Forced To Marry The Heiress (GL)

PROLOGUE

"Where did that weakling go?! Find her and make sure she pays for what she has done to my expensive clothes!"

"Yeah! Find her!"

"She’s not far from here. I’m sure she’s not familiar with this forest!"

"Don’t wander too much into the woods. We’re not familiar here either."

Keres hid herself behind the bushes while covering her mouth tightly, trying so hard not to make any noise even as tears continuously rolled down her cheeks. Her small body trembled badly from fear, and even breathing felt difficult after running for so long.

This was supposed to be a simple game between the children of powerful and influential families. Earlier, Keres genuinely thought she would finally make friends around her age. She even forced herself to leave her comfort zone despite her weak health because she wanted her mother to praise her for trying.

But instead of making friends, the other children mocked her the entire time.

They laughed at how often she coughed. They mocked how weak and fragile she looked compared to them. Some of them even avoided touching her as though she carried some kind of disease.

Keres tried ignoring them at first. She tried smiling politely and joining their games even when they clearly didn’t want her around. But no matter what she did, they still treated her like a joke.

And now, she ended up hiding alone in the middle of the forest because of them.

Keres slowly lifted her head to check her surroundings. The voices of the other children were becoming farther now, but she still didn’t dare step out from behind the bushes immediately. The sun was already beginning to disappear behind the mountains, causing the forest to grow darker little by little.

Sooner or later, night would come completely. But even then, Keres was far too scared to leave the only place making her feel safe.

After several minutes, she finally gathered enough courage to slowly crawl out from behind the bushes. Her legs trembled slightly as she stood up carefully, brushing dirt away from her dress with shaky hands.

She needed to leave.

The forest was becoming darker by the second.

Keres carefully took a few steps forward while looking around nervously, trying to remember which path they used earlier. But every tree looked exactly the same no matter where she looked.

Then suddenly, she stumbled over a tree root and fell hard onto the ground.

"Aah...!" Pain immediately spread through her knee.

Keres bit her lower lip hard while staring at the scrape on her skin. Tears instantly gathered in her eyes again because of how badly it hurt. She wanted to cry. She really wanted to.

But the moment she remembered how those children bullied her earlier for being weak and fragile, Keres stubbornly swallowed her sobs instead.

She didn’t want to cry anymore. She didn’t want them to be right about her.

She slowly pushed herself back up despite the pain in her knee. Her legs were shaking badly now, but she still forced herself to keep walking.

By the time she started moving again, the sun had completely disappeared. Darkness slowly swallowed the entire forest.

The deeper night became, the more terrified Keres felt. Cold wind brushed against her skin while strange sounds echoed around her from every direction. The trees looked endless in the darkness, and every path seemed unfamiliar no matter where she turned.

Then suddenly, a wolf howled somewhere in the distance.

Keres immediately froze.

Fear instantly crawled down her spine as her breathing turned uneven again. She quickly covered her mouth with both hands, terrified that even the sound of her crying might attract something dangerous lurking in the woods.

"M-Mama..." She whispered weakly between trembling breaths. "Mama, I’m scared..."

Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks again, she was only eight years old. Any child placed in her situation would have been terrified too.

She then continued walking aimlessly through the forest while trying her best not to panic. She didn’t know where she was going anymore. The deeper she wandered, the more lost she became.

Eventually, she started running.

She ran and ran despite the pain in her injured knee, terrified of the darkness surrounding her from every direction. Her breathing became heavier with every step, and her vision slowly blurred from exhaustion and fear.

Until finally, her legs completely gave out.

Keres collapsed hard onto the ground while gasping desperately for air. Her body felt freezing cold, and her consciousness slowly began fading away.

Then—

"It’s okay... You’re safe now."

Keres weakly opened her eyes after hearing the unfamiliar voice.

Her vision was blurry and dark, but she could vaguely see that the person in front of her was a girl wearing a white dress decorated with white roses. Even in her dazed state, Keres noticed how elegant the girl looked beneath the moonlight filtering through the trees. Sadly, she couldn’t see her face properly.

The girl carefully wrapping something around Keres’ injured knee.

A handkerchief.

"M-Mama...?" Keres mumbled weakly while trying to reach out toward the girl, mistaking her for her mother in her half-conscious state.

The girl immediately pulled Keres into her arms and carried her carefully.

"You’ll be okay," the girl whispered softly while walking through the forest. "We’re almost out."

Keres weakly held onto the girl’s clothes while resting against her chest. She could hear the girl breathing heavily from carrying her, yet her arms never loosened even once.

Oddly enough, the warmth of this stranger comforted Keres more than anything else. The girl smelled faintly like flowers and fresh rain.

Keres doesn’t even know why she felt this sense of safety, warmth, and comfort. It was odd for Keres, but she didn’t felt uncomfortable either.

The girl continued following the red ropes tied around the trees earlier to guide herself out of the forest.

"Almost there..."

Everything afterward felt like a dream.

When Keres suddenly jolted awake, she immediately gasped while looking around her surroundings in confusion.

It was her bedroom. The same luxurious bedroom she had slept in her entire life.

Fifteen years later, the frightened little girl from that night had already grown into a formidable woman whose name alone represented power, wealth, influence, and fear.

Izzah Keres Maude Eisenthurn. freewebnovёl.ƈom

Keres groaned softly as she sat up from the bed, only to glance toward the woman sleeping peacefully beside her. The woman she picked up from the bar last night was completely naked beneath the sheets, her skin covered in bite marks and bruises left behind by Keres herself.

But despite everything, Keres felt nothing.

No satisfaction, no happiness, no attachment.

She silently lit an expensive black cigarette before wearing her black satin robe and stepping out of the bedroom.

"Butler Josh," she called coldly. "Get rid of the woman in my bed. Make sure my room is spotless when I return. I don’t want to see any straps, toys, or tools left behind."

"Yes, Master Maude. We’ll take care of everything immediately."

"Good."

Keres walked toward another master bedroom before opening one of the drawers quietly.

Inside was the old handkerchief from fifteen years ago. freewebnovёl.ƈom

The same handkerchief the mysterious girl used to wrap around her injured knee that night in the forest.

Keres slowly picked it up before bringing it close to her face. Even after all these years, she still treated it like the most precious thing she owned.

Her grip tightened slightly.

"Just wait until I find you..." She whispered softly into the darkness of the room. "I’ll never let you go."