Married To The Mad Vampire Lord-Chapter 148: The danger in the forest_Part 2

Once everyone was done taking their weapon, they began to make their way out of the castle in groups, laughing in excitement and anticipation to step into the wild and hunt down animals. Some were even talking about how they planned to hunt down a lion if possible, as they were determined to win no matter what it took—no matter what—and Belle, who overheard those excited words being said, felt an involuntary shiver down her spine.

Evenly’s words swirled around her head, but then she thought everything wouldn’t go out of hand since there were guards watching over the hunt, right? No mischief could happen, she told herself. However, it would not hurt to be careful and cautious.

This was her first time ever doing anything remotely close to this. Where she came from, women did not hunt nor stay close to anywhere around where it was happening. She would have been nervous had she been the only human, but seeing that many human women were participating and they all looked confident, she gathered her strength and calmed her anxious mind.

But then again she wasn’t worried about the hunt as much as she worried about Rohan. She could go into the forest and come back with nothing—that was the plan—because she wasn’t planning to win nor kill any animal. Her greatest worry now was her husband, whom she couldn’t find after he had left the hall before everyone.

When they reached outside the castle, many had already begun to make their way into Grimvale Forest. The forest was so big it took most of the land space in Nightbrook; it stretched to many towns and places and connected to the forest outside the royal castle. Many carried bags of camping tools, and Evenly, being their leader, made Anne carry their camp bag.

Nobody was allowed to bring their servants or slaves, and nobody had their horses and carriages. It was every man for themselves.

She slowed her pace just outside the castle gate when she caught sight of the familiar blue hair of her husband in the distance. It was like he had gone ahead and was now coming back as if he had forgotten something.

The people walking out of the gates cleared the path for him when they saw him coming, and Belle stopped just outside the open iron gates. The surrounding voices and people blurred away, her eyes fixed only on the man walking casually toward her, never once tearing his gaze from her face.

Now, he looked as pale as all the other vampires and his eyes more darkened, and her concern for him grew as she watched him approach and then stop a foot from her.

"Rohan..." She muttered his name with her voice laced with worry.

"Hmm." He hummed, his lips pulling up slightly at the side. "I can’t believe I almost forgot I had a bunny with me here," he muttered to himself under his breath.

His damn fogged brain had twisted and blocked things so badly that, for a moment, he thought he was alone here and had already left. He’d almost gotten into the forest until he saw something in his pocket when he wanted to retrieved his cigar—something he had meant to give to her—and then belatedly remembered he was married and had his wife still back in the hall.

Not catching the words he muttered, Belle looked up at his face with a small frown. The sky was as gloomy as always, with thick clouds hovering over the sun, and the gloom perhaps made his expression look all the more concerning. She parted her lips and asked softly,

"Are... are you really all right?"

He gave her a brief nod, then tucked his hand into his pocket and pulled something out. "I brought you this. You’ll need it."

Belle looked down at what he was handing her and was surprised to see a map in his hand.

"I thought one was given to every group," she mused as she took it from him and unfolded it, seeing it was exactly the same as the one given to their group earlier.

"I don’t need a group to hunt. I don’t give a damn about what the rules say. That’s my map. I’ve memorized the paths and know every inch of Grimvale. But you’re not familiar with it. I don’t want you getting lost in the maze of trees." Rohan remarked nonchalantly as he took the map gently from her hand and tucked it into her coat pocket, as though he worried she might lose it.

He had taken the map from the hands of one of the servants sharing it, and being who he was, the servant dared not question his action and had hurried away.

His memory, both for things said and for paths, was sharp, and he had walked almost every corner of the forest when he had nothing to do. He knew his way around it without needing a map.

He did not want a situation where his wife would get lost in there just because they were sharing one map and she was depending on strangers to find her way out.

He tucked it into her pocket and then raised his hand to her face, cupping her cheek gently. "I am assuming you brought me another piece of cotton, my love?" he said with a small grin that made him look more like himself, causing Belle to become flustered for a moment.

Pursing her lips, she muttered as she retrieved the cotton from her other pocket, "Of course. I almost thought you would leave without remembering you have a wife." She brought the cotton out and showed it to him, and he chuckled softly and then bent his head for her to change it for him, as that one had become damp after his bath this morning.

Many of the people had already walked towards the forest, so the noise was less, but still, when she removed it, Belle noticed how he inhaled sharply and grimaced.

"Will you really be fine?" she asked him as she ruffled his hair to cover his ears, where she had stuffed the cotton. She touched her fingers to his face and then his jaw before letting her hand slide down, back to her side.

He looked down at her. She was so worried about him that he couldn’t help but find it strange and foreign. He couldn’t even remember a time when anyone had truly concerned themselves with his wellbeing.

Her concerns and worries were so genuine, it made him feel both unsettled and at ease—because there was finally someone in this world who meant what they showed on their face.

To have someone care about you in a way you had never been cared for before was something entirely new to Rohan, and he found himself smiling tenderly.

Though he couldn’t tease her as much as he wanted to—because of how his head kept throbbing and how even the sound of his own voice aggravated the pain, just like the outside noise—he still didn’t want to stay silent.

Talking in this state of his often became hard and forceful unless he was ready to suffer more pain and discomfort, but he couldn’t simply go mute when she was standing in front of him, genuinely worried for his sake.

"I will be fine," he assured her as he touched her hair and stroked it gently.

"How was your night?" he asked softly, wanting to spend a little more time with her before they would part ways.

"It was good. And yours?"

"Terrible. The idiots placed in the same group as me annoy the shit outta me, and if any of them don’t come out of the forest alive... they brought it on themselves," he said with a hint of humor. But then, all the amusement suddenly drained from his voice as he added seriously, "Be careful in there. I’ll find you if it comes to camping in the forest at night. Don’t trust anyone in there, understand?"

His gaze trailed down to her pale pink lips, which were slightly pouted.

Belle nodded. "Yes. Are we really going to have to camp in the forest?" she asked quietly, her voice thoughtful. She noticed how his eyes moved from her lips to her eyes, and then back again.

"I heard there are years where the hunt took more than two days because the animals were in hiding. If they decide to hide again this year, everyone will camp. People kill each other when that happens and make it look like an animal attack. I marked a place in the map—once it starts to get dark, start walking in that direction. I will find you." He ran his thumb against her cheek as he spoke gently so she understood the gravity of the situation.

Rohan himself had not thought the hunt was this serious, as he had never taken part in it. He had taken it as child’s play all this while, as all he ever heard of was the name of the winner, not the activities that went on during the hunt.

But picking up on everything everyone was saying and whispering behind closed doors, even overhearing some plotting to kill someone they hate at night if they were to camp, he realized it was graver than he thought.

Belle, who had not been nervous a moment ago when Evenly warned her, began to get nervous now when Rohan warned her. Before she could speak, Rohan’s arm slid around her, pushing her slowly up against the wall of the gates.

He curved his body over hers, warmth surrounding her. Instead of speaking to her—perhaps assuring her that everything would be fine—Rohan put his fist beneath her chin, tilted her head back, and kissed her.

He crushed Belle back against the wall, trapping her with his strength, and scraped his tongue between her lips. His mouth stole, commanded, left her breathless.

As abruptly as the kiss had begun, Rohan eased it to its end. He looked down at her for a moment, then released her, dropped a kiss to the corner of her mouth, and said,

"Do you know you’ve grown so much stronger since we were first married, little bunny? I shouldn’t call you ’little’ anymore, my heart. You’ll be fine. And I’ll see you tonight. Goodbye."

He pecked her lips again, then stepped back from her, a slow smile forming on his face as he turned away.

"Remember, find me when things get out of hand," he added over his shoulder, before walking off in the direction he had come from.

Belle remained against the wall, knees weak, her hands pressing the cold stone to keep herself upright as she watched him go.

She was still struggling for breath when Evenly herself came down the gate path, looking around until her eyes fell on her.

"Oh my, you are here. Let’s go before we are left behind." She came forward and reached to hold Belle’s wrist, but the moment she touched her, Belle gasped and froze for a moment before yanking her wrist away, horror flashing across her face as if she had seen a ghost.