OVHC Chapter 20

Chapter 20

 

 

Twisted desires, obsession, and jealousy—Berndt’s feelings for Anette were distorted.

It hadn’t been like this from the start. 

When she first arrived at the mansion, he had promised himself he would be a kind older brother to her. 

He had even been excited. Her beautiful hair, something he had never seen before, had taken his breath away.

At first, Anette had accepted his kindness warmly.

But over time, she changed.

The warmth in her eyes when she looked at Berndt and Heine turned into hatred, and her words became sharp like daggers.

Heine continued to protect her, but Berndt was different. 

He felt as if his pure feelings had been rejected. 

From that moment, his relationship with Anette became so broken it could never be repaired.

Now, if Anette woke up, she might try to kill him instead of Heine. 

She might grab a knife, scream until her voice gave out, break everything in sight, and tear her clothes apart in rage.

Berndt scoffed at himself.

It didn’t matter.

He had no intention of dying and leaving her behind. 

Anette belonged to the Lois family, and as the future Duke, she was his possession.

However, when Anette finally woke up, she reacted like Berndt had never expected.

Knock, knock, knock.

A servant knocked on Anette’s door.

“Young Master, I have brought warm water and towels as you requested.”

“Come in.”

The servant entered silently, placed the tray on a shelf, and set the warm water and towels on top.

“I’ll do it. Leave and call the doctor.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

After the servant left, Berndt turned back to Anette, who was still asleep.

He was afraid of her. 

It was ridiculous—how could he be scared of this small, delicate girl?

Yet, the day she left this mansion when a nameless maid told him she had died, he had been terrified. 

It felt like all the blood had drained from his body.

Anette would never know how he felt.

It was a foolish emotion.

Berndt pushed his thoughts aside, soaked the towel in warm water, and wrung it out.

Her face, covered in dust, looked like that of a mischievous child.

“Anette.”

He whispered her name softly.

If only she were always this quiet.

Anette always looked at him with contempt, but he could never truly hate her. 

She was his one and only…

“Aaaaah!”

The moment the towel touched her face, Anette screamed and woke up in a panic.

Startled by her unexpected reaction, Berndt quickly pulled his hand away.

“Are you okay, Anette?”

His voice, much softer than he intended, surprised even him. 

Seeing her like this weakened his heart, making him speak with a gentleness he hadn’t used in a long time.

“W-who…?”

Something was strange.

“What do you mean ‘who’? You don’t recognize me?”

There was no way she wouldn’t know him. Even if she forgot everyone else in the world, she could never forget him.

Berndt frowned.

“B-Bern? Berndt?”

Anette finally said his name, but her voice sounded neither kind nor hateful—just unfamiliar.

“Did you have a nightmare?”

“A nightmare?”

Yes… A nightmare. A terrible nightmare.

She had worked for a whole week, only to have her money stolen by a pickpocket. 

She chased after the thief, only to end up surrounded by criminals kidnapping children.

Someone had saved her. She hadn’t died, but…

“MY MONEY!”

“What?”

“My money! Where is my money? Bring me the person who saved me!”

Anette grabbed Berndt by the collar and shook him violently.

“If you were going to save me, you should’ve saved my money too! Wah!”

She burst into tears, crying as if the world had ended.

She even pounded her fists on the mattress.

Berndt was completely shocked.

Anette had never cared about money before. 

She had always demanded jewelry and dresses more expensive than Heine’s, but she had never screamed over money itself.

And now, she was lying on the bed, kicking her legs and crying like a child throwing a tantrum.

This was not what he had expected.

“C-Calm down. How much was it? I’ll give it to you.”

“H-huh?”

Had she heard him correctly?

Anette sniffled, wiped her tears, and looked at Berndt with wide eyes.

He was rich, after all.