24 The New Heat

Maximilian gripped the man even harder and snapped his neck in one try. Edna screamed in surprise at the sound of the neck bones breaking. The blood pouring down the masked man's neck splashed onto the floor of her room.

Maximillian threw the lifeless body aside. The man threw it away so easily. Seeing it, Edna's body greatly shook. She could see that her master's nails were elongated red. Whether it was the original color of her master's fingernails or the color of blood splashed from the neck of the masked man who attacked her before, she didn't know.

Maximillian drew closer to Edna who was sitting on the bed. The boy was still shaking with fear. The sweet smell of blood that he had smelled earlier was now swept away by a disgusting scent like that of rotting trash. The masked man's blood covered the sweet scent of his servant's blood.

"Eden," Maximillian called.

"Y-yes, Sir?"

Edna had difficulty swallowing her saliva as her master's long fingernails wiped the traces of blood from her cheek. It was blood from her hand that was trying to hold back the knife the masked man had used to attack her.

"I've helped you. Can you do something for me?" asked Maximillian with a keen eye.

It wasn't intimidating. Edna felt something strange on her body. She strangely felt hot. She nodded, then held her breath as her master's thumb touched her cheek gently.

"I hate the smell of human blood. Can you bury it in the backyard? Waiting for Luca will take too long, and the smell of that human blood is disgusting."

"Huh?"

Maximillian pulled away his hand from Edna's chin. The warmth that enveloped her body disappeared when the man finally walked away.

"After that, I will call a doctor to examine your wound."

Edna took a deep breath and nodded. Maximilian then walked out of her room, leaving her alone with the corpse of the man who attacked her earlier. She then glanced at the lifeless body in fear. The sight was far more horrifying.

It looked like Edna would have nightmares after this.

Strangely, she wasn't as scared as before. The warmth of her master's hand was like exceptional protection. Edna was back on her feet. She would not be strong enough to lift the body. It seemed she had to drag the corpse by force.

"I won't get used to this," muttered Edna, who wrapped the masked man's head and neck so his blood wouldn't spill on the floor when she dragged him down to the ground floor and carried him to the back garden.

Edna decided to bury the body in the backyard. It took her all night to dig the ground and put the body in it. She had never felt this exhausted before. Cleaning the mansion all day felt much easier.

Even Edna's hand still hurt and stung. If she didn't treat it soon, it might get an infection. Hence, she had no luxury of time to feel scared to see the lifeless body in the hole.

Every joint of her body felt nearly dislodged from fatigue. The girl returned to her room. Her gaze then landed on the broken glass of the window. It made her wonder again how the masked man could enter her room.

Edna threw those thoughts to the back of her mind. She decided to clean her body, then changed into cleaner clothes. The wound in her hand looked even more disgusting.

The girl winced in pain as she applied the medicine the doctor gave to her own palm.

Edna then lay on the bed, feeling exhausted. It seemed tonight she could fall asleep before three o'clock in the morning due to exhaustion. She didn't even care about the blood that was splattered at the corner of her room or the night breeze that came in through the broken window.

***

Maximillian took a deep breath. His body was hot again. He had soaked himself in cold water, but the heat did not subside. He needed Luca. His subordinate knew how to make a potion to relieve this discomfort.

His breath also got heavier. Maximillian couldn't hold it anymore. He had to find Luca immediately. The young man dared to disappear from his reach. If Maximillian met him, he would definitely break the young man's neck too.

Maximillian got up from the tub and put on his robe. With quick footsteps, he left his room.

The man stopped when he saw the figure of his servant walking very slowly towards the stairs. His servant was only wearing an oversized white shirt without pants or slippers. Did the cold floor of the mansion not make her cold?

"Eden," Maximillian called.

Edna didn't look up. She kept walking with her head hung down helplessly. Maximillian knew something was wrong with his servant.

It was still three o'clock in the morning, and Maximillian wondered what she was doing early in the morning like this.

"Shit!"

Maximillian walked quickly and held his servant's body, which almost fell on the stairs. Their bodies grazed each other, causing him to be burned with desire again. Maximillian's hand then touched something that shouldn't be on the body of a man.

He pulled his servant and was about to scold Edna, but when he turned her over, he found her still sleeping with her eyes closed.

"Mother… help me…. It's dark …. and cold… It's scary… please… Mother…"

Maximillian looked at his servant intently. Edna's face was serene, but drops of tears wet her cheeks. He lowered his gaze to Edna's neck, as well as the shirt she was wearing. The shirt exposed her alluring breasts.

Seeing it, Maximillian could guess that his servant had something she hid. There was something cunning behind her innocent face. He then covered Edna's eyes with his palms and wiped away the tears pooling on her cheeks.

"You owe me so much," muttered Maximillian, then carried Edna to return to her room.

Maximillian arrived at Edna's room and found the broken window, as well as the blood of the man he had killed pooling in the corner of the room. Seeing the sight, Maximillian growled. The disgusting smell of human's blood still enveloped Edna's room.

The man turned around to take Edna to his room. He then placed her on his bed roughly. He had to find a way to get rid of the burning sensation in his body.

Maximillian left Edna alone. He walked quickly to the backyard and then transformed into a gigantic red dragon with glowing golden irises. The man spread his wings wide and soared up into the dark sky of the night.

If only Maximillian were allowed to burn everything around him, he would feel much better. But it wouldn't reduce the heat within him.