Chương 23: I'm exhausted, Radulf

Melissa's sobs echoed in the silence of the night as the painful memories of her childhood surfaced.

When she was younger, she had desperately longed for her parents' love. But as she grew older, the harsh truth unfolded: her mother was no longer alive, and her father—her only remaining parent—didn't want her.

She had lived in solitude, confined to a quiet, cold palace that offered no comfort. That loneliness persisted until the day her father visited. She was six years old then. His arrival should have brought joy, but it shattered her already fragile hope.

Melissa had been playing with the hem of her tattered dress when the heavy doors creaked open, revealing a tall, imposing man flanked by servants. She froze, her tiny frame trembling as she recognized him.

"Get on your knees!" a servant barked, shoving her down roughly.

Confused and frightened, Melissa obeyed. She knelt there, her wide eyes staring up at the man who loomed before her.