Forgotten Juliet

Chapter 120:

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The next moment, he stood in the familiar hallway of the Northern Dukes Mansion. It was the hallway in his dreams.

Lennox wasnt surprised.

As soon as he saw the black panther leisurely walking in front of him, he blurted out:

Get lost.

He snapped irritably.

He realized the situation immediately when the unlucky beast and the all-too-familiar dream scene appeared together.

It was your doing after all.

The panther, as large as a house, swished its tail.

(Did you forget? This was the price for restoring your eyesight.)

This damned demon.

He cursed, but there was nothing he could do.

It was clear that everything, from having strange dreams to suddenly losing consciousness moments ago, was because of this black panther.

Dragons are known to pull people into the spiritual realm without hesitation.

(Consider yourself lucky I didnt take your firstborn, like in old tales.)

The black panther chuckled.

While a beast cant laugh, Lennox felt it did.

While it looked like a captivating carnivorous beast, its real identity was a demon attached to a pitch-black sword.

Their relationship resembled a strange symbiotic one that had continued for over a decade. But until now, the beast couldnt control him at will.

Unlike the cunning butterflies that lured Juliet to borrow their power in exchange for a deal, he needed an unyielding sword, not demonic power.

Except for the fact that it doesnt dull or rust, it was just a sword with exceptionally good durability.

Despite the countless temptations to lend him power, Lennox scoffed. Hence, the demon, taking the form of a black panther, couldnt interfere with his mind.

Until he began having vision problems.

(That was our contracts condition.)

The black panthers tail swished gracefully.

(Hand over control of your mind when I want.)

You said just once.

(Im impatient.)

Wasnt constantly making him have nightmares against the contract terms? He wanted to protest.

(I just imprisoned your physical body for a while to show you something. Once the matter is over, Ill let you go, so dont act rashly, contractor.)

He knew in his head that with so many skilled knights around, Juliet would be safe. But he couldnt help feeling anxious.

(Your girl is safe.)

Although the demon spoke leisurely, Lennox felt annoyed as if his thoughts were read.

Damn it. Whatever it is, finish it quickly.

This isnt how one should deal with a demon. Regretting was pointless now.

Lennox felt it would be better to quickly comply with whatever this demon wanted and return.

(A wise decision.)

The smiling panther disappeared again.

What did he want to show?

Lennox had memorized this entire dream.

Walking down the mansions hallway, and when he reached the bedroom door, it would inevitably end. So he wasnt too worried.

Before he could even see the crying womans face in the bedroom, he would wake up from the dream.

But this time, it didnt end.

Lennox stopped in front of the door.

Instead of waking up, for the first time, he could clearly see the silhouette of the woman sitting on the bed with its curtains drawn.

Her long hair was of a light hue.

Her trembling shoulders were slender, and glimpses of her neck and back, visible through the gap in her draped clothing, were full of scars.

[You must feel relieved now.]

The sobbing woman who had her head down raised her head. Lennox felt as if his breath had stopped for a moment.

It wasnt a face he was seeing for the first time. No, in fact, it was a face he was so familiar with that he could picture even with his eyes closed.

[Now that the nuisance is gone.]

Those watery blue eyes staring at him.

Juliet?

Bang!

At the same time, the door closed in front of him.

(Scared already?)

And the wavering black beast reappeared.

Stop this nonsense.

Lennox gritted his teeth. A sense of unease made his fingertips cold.

It cant be.

That unknown woman cant be Juliet.

Theres no reason for Juliet, a face hes seen dozens, hundreds of times, to look at him with such sorrowful eyes.

(Oh dear, theres still a long way to go. You cant be scared already.)

Whats the reason for showing me this hallucination?

(Hallucination? Thats harsh.)

The demon giggled while muttering something incomprehensible.

Youre lucky you lost your eyesight.

(Why? Because Ive been waiting for this day for a very, very long time.)

The black panther whispered softly.

(Open your eyes and look carefully. This is a memory you had forgotten a long time ago.)

Snap.

Before he could comprehend the meaning of the words, the scene changed.

Lennox was no longer walking down the corridors of the palace. Both the season and the place had changed. He sat in a gazebo in a garden lush with rose bushes.

And there she was.

Juliet, with rosy cheeks, the complete opposite of the tearful image that had shot him a glance moments ago.

She was wearing a green dress that went up to her neck. Perhaps to hide the scars on her back?

But this Juliet felt unfamiliar as well.

He pondered why Juliet seemed so unfamiliar, and it didnt take long for him to realize.

Even in his imaginations, Juliet had never had that expression.

She neither blushed innocently nor shone with the blind love and trust in her eyes.

Juliet, looking at him with her emotive eyes, felt entirely unfamiliar, yet endearing.

[I have something to ask, Your Highness.]

The Juliet standing before him seemed oddly tense.

[What if we were to have a child]

[I told you, I dont desire a child from you.]

At his cold words, her eyes widened in shock.

[But Your Highness, what if?[

Her blue, moist eyes, unable to hide her emotions, followed him.

[Its not about marriage, but if we were to have a child]

Her immediate and naive response felt unfamiliar too.

[There are no ifs.]

And as if reciting a scripted line, he spoke without intent.

[Dont you understand, Juliet?]

His voice, even to his own ears, was chillingly sarcastic.

[I said I dont need a child. Even if one is conceived, it wont be born.]

The eyes that once shone with love and trust quickly filled with caution and disappointment.

[Yes, you did say that.]

Juliet, looking pale, hung her head and forced a semblance of a smile.

The anxious movement of her fingers on the hem of her dress was obvious.

His mind went cold.

He remembered this conversation.

I said its not necessary.

Its no longer here.

The tone of the woman, sitting under the red plum blossoms, speaking in a calm voice.

But before he could make sense of the chilling realization, the scene changed again.

The next moment, he stood in a messed-up room, and at his feet, a woman with a familiar yet unfamiliar face knelt.

Hanging onto his arm, Juliet sobbed like a child.

[I was wrong!]

With a terrified expression, Juliet looked up at him, her tear-streaked face pale and pleading.

Thump.

Silent servants were frantically turning over furniture in the small room.

Whether she was scared of those servants or of him, Juliet was terrified.

Each time a drawer or a closet was overturned, items carefully collected spilled out onto the floor.

At his feet rolled items that looked like they belonged to a child clothes and small toys.

[Really, I wont ask for anything anymore! I wont plead again.]

Watching the obviously new baby clothes and meticulously collected white gazette towels getting trampled by the people turning the room upside-down, the woman cried even louder.

[I didnt mean to deceive. So, Lennox please, ask them to stop. Okay?]

Even though a grown woman was crying out loud, the servants paid her no heed.

Seeing the woman claiming to be the owner of this small room, he realized. It must have been her doing, hiding all the baby items like a squirrel.

[Its all my fault, okay? Ill go away and live as if Im dead. So]

The fragmented scenes passed before he could grasp them.

He couldnt remember how many times he had seen these hallucinations or understand their context.

The only clear thing was the voice and the image of the woman pleading at his feet.

[Please just save our baby.]

The Juliet he knew was never this emotional. She was always calm, never losing her composure.

When she smiled, it was faint. Rarely did she even tear up.

The woman in front of him, with Juliets face, laughed much more brilliantly and cried much more sorrowfully.

Laughing out loud easily and bursting into tears easily

This couldnt be Juliet Monad.

Then whose memory is this?