Chapter 335
At t
Pidence City
Ever since the Osborne family fell from grace, the Queen had been living on benterhooks.
These days, she dared not show her face before the King, terrified of angering him and implicating Fermin.
Only after Lizzie’s wedding did the Queen finally breathe a sigh of relief.
One day, Fermin went to the palace to see the Queen
Inside the palace chambers, the Queen and Fermin sat together, speaking in hushed tones.
Flamin’s face darkened with fury. He spat,
soat. “That b
bastard Nicolas. To think he was actually a remnant of the previous empire, hiding in plain sight and
nearly dragging me down with him!”
The more he thought, the angrier he grew. He couldn’t believe that Nicolas had played him.
Seeing how utterly furious Fermin was, the Queen said coolly, “Why are you still keeping tabs on the Osbornes? Surely you don’t expect Nicolas to come and rescue them”
“Mother, don’t you know? Nicolas has always doted on Willow and can’t bear to let her suffer the slightest bit of injustice. I don’t believe he’ll just stand by and do nothing while she’s exiled,” Fermin huffed angrily.
The Queen wasn’t entirely clear about the relationship between Nicolas and Willow.
All she knew was that Nicolas had been rather protective of Willow,
The Queen scoffed, “He probably just values Willow for her ingenuity. Surely you didn’t expect him to actually fancy her?”
The Queen thought coldly, ‘Feelings are mere illusions. They are intangible and fleeting.
“There’s no such thing as genuine love.
“Just like between me and His Majesty. We were head over heels in love back then.
“But now…
The Queen’s eyes dimmed at the thought of Arthur’s cold Indifference.
Arthur hadn’t set foot in her chambers for more than half a month.
Fermin cast a disapproving glance at the Queen, thinking. She’s the Queen already, yet she still spends all day obsessing over romance,
Fermin slammed his fist down hard on the table, his face livid with rage. “No matter what, I won’t let that bastard get away with this!”
The Queen cast a cool glance at him and said in a measured tone. “If you’re going to do it, do it cleanly and thoroughly. Leave no loose ends.”
She loathed the Monson family to the core since they dared to harbor remnants of the previous empire. She felt that they deserved nothing less than
death.
By mid–June, the scorching sun beat down mercilessly.
Across the barren wasteland trudged a ragged procession.
Men, women, and children of lages shuffled along, their hair matted, laces smeared with dirt, and dressed in Ethylattered fagi.
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Shackled at the wrists, they shuffled forward with heavy steps.
They were all hollow–eyed and sallow faced from hunger, barely clinging to life, it looked as if they might drop dead at any moment and never again.
The scorching sun baked the ground, leaving Will
Willow weak and dizzy.
Sometimes, Willow wished she could just end it all
At least then I wouldn’t have to endure this torment anymore,
Willow thought bitterly.
At first, Willow would quietly sob to herself, but after taking several lashes, she didn’t dare make a sound anymore.
No matter how unbearable things got, Willow could only grit her teeth and tough it out.
One misstep, and they’d be beaten within an inch of their lives.
For three full days, they hadn’t eaten anything. Their lips were cracked and peeling, and their throats felt scorched.
“Sir. Please, give me some water…” Nona’s parched, hoarse voice rasped weakly beside Willow’s ear
Willow turned, her eyes burning with a venomous glare at Nons. However, in her pathetic state, she couldn’t muster even a shred of intimidating presence.
At times, Nona would even deliberately trip her up, causing her to fall
Nona shuffled up to the officers, her eyes pleading and her voice trembling with desperation. “I haven’t had a drop in three days. Please, sir, have mercy. Just a sip of water, I’ll do anything you ask.”
Her words were so explicit that the officers couldn’t possibly misunderstand her meaning
Earlier in the journey, as they passed through towns and villages, the officers, wary of public scrutiny, didn’t dare to cross the line.
But now, in this desolate wilderness, they cast off all restraint.
Nona wasn’t exceptionally beautiful, but she did have soft skin.
The officers‘ faces twisted into lewd grins as they sized Nona up from head to toe. One of them purred, “You’re willing to do anything?”
Nona nodded frantically. “Yes, I am. I’m completely willing”
To survive, she abandoned all dignity.
Nona couldn’t wait to bare her delicate arm to the officers. She simpered, “My lords, just look. My skin is still flawless. I was the Marquis’s concubine, once his favorite.”
Kelsey watched Nona’s degrading behavior, her teeth grinding in fury.
Kelsey seethed inwardly, ‘How could my Michael have taken in such a shameless.concubine?
“She’s brought nothing but shame to the Osborne family!”
The officers exchanged lewd grins, then roughly dragged Nonai
na into the roadside thickets
Not long after, lewd sounds dried out from within, Kelsey gritted her teeth in fury, shut her eyes, and spat, “Shameless whome. The Onborne lamily has no place for a woman like you.”
Willow’s eyes went wide with terror, her gaze frozen in sheer horror.
Willow thought in despair, ‘We’re not even hallway there, and it’s already this unbearable.
“What will I do if it gets even worse?
“Sooner or later, those bastants will get tired of Nons
What if they set their sights on me next?
The more Willow thought about it, the more terified she became, Hugging herself tightly, the trembled uncontrollably and huddled closers “Mother, I’m scared”
Before Willow could react. Kelsey suddenly slapped her hard across the face
Kelsey jabbed a finger right at Willow’s nose and screamed, “You wretched bitch. If it weren’t for the Monson family dragging us down, would Osborne family have come to this?”
Kelsey’s anger flared, in a violent rage, she lunged at Willow.
At first, Willow didn’t dare fight back. But after taking brutal blows, she suddenly spun around and slapped Kelsey and across the
Kelsey reeted from the blow, spinning around before collapsing to the ground.
Kelsey stared at Willow, her eyes wide with utter disbelief. She shrieked. “You actually dared to strike your mother in law?”
Willow wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and sneered coldly. “You still think you’re the head of the Osborne family? Still trying to play the mother–in–law card with me? Why don’t you take a good look in the mirror and see what a pathetic mess you’ve become!
“The Osborne family is finished. Michael is done for Your noble family is destroyed!”
Kelsey’s eyes widened in terror, her emotions boiling over as she suddenly lunged at Willow.
Kelsey suddenly lunged forward, her hands clamping with a death grip around Willow’s throat. Through gritted teeth, she snarled. “You witched bitch The Osborne family isn’t finished. As long as Michael is alive, the Osbome family will rise to glory again”
Kelsey’s hands tightened around Willow’s throat. Willow gasped for air, her eyes rolling back in agony
Fighting for her life, Willow viciously kicked Kelsey in the ribcage, then collapsed to the ground, gasping and coughing violently
Kelsey lay sprawled on the ground, a dull, throbbing pain in her chest. For a long moment, she couldn’t get back on her feet
Once Willow had caught her breath, she jabbed a finger at Kelsey and spat, “You wretched old hag. Look how far you’ve fallen, and you’re shit dreaming of restoring the Osborne family! You should be more worried about whether you’ll even survive the journey to the northwestern wastelandu
“I must have been blind to ever marry into the Osborne family. My whole life is utterly ruined”
Willow descended into hysterics, howling and shrieking as if possessed.
Kelsey’s eyes went dull with shock, her spirit shattered. She kept muttering in a daze, “No, it can’t be like this. I don’t believe it. I just don’t
Suddenly, the sharp crack of a whip split the air
Willow shrieked in agony, curling into a ball as she rolled frantically across the ground
The whiplashed down on her like a torrential rain, each strike splitting her flesh open
Nona looked at Willow with triumphant malice in her eyes. She said to the officers, “Officers, that bitch is the young inadain of the the daughter of the duke’s estate, I bet she’d be a hundred times more satisfying than a lowly mad
mly and
Chapter 336
