Not this again.

The light breeze in the air tickled my cheek, urging me to open my eyes.

The sky was painted a beautiful shade of red with the orange sun setting beyond the horizon. The ocean below was glimmering like a carpet of stars. It was a picturesque sight mesmerizing enough to take a person's breath away.

I was able to recognize the all too familiar scene in an instant.

I was dreaming.

Again.

And as usual, I had no control over the reins of the system.

I was even wearing the same white strappy backless summer dress that only reached to my knees.

Since I've been through this dream countless times over the years, I knew exactly how it would play out like the back of my hand.

Just then, the wind blew and ruffled my hair over my face.

"Ahh"

I held my hair that was fluttering all over my face with my hand and looked towards the sea. I could hear the seagulls from the distance that were flying across the sky enjoying their freedom.

And right on cue, Mr. Faceless Handsome called out to me from behind.

I could feel my face unconsciously curve into a beautiful smile as the man walked towards me.

The loose white shit. The tall and muscular build.

The feeling of nostalgia was too strong for it to be just a dream. It felt like there was a deeper connection between me and whoever he was.

As always, I was unable to see his face since it was blurred. He took my hand into his in a natural manner and tenderly placed a kiss on the back.

When he started talking with a warm smile on his lips, all I could hear was the rhythmic sound of the waves.

Whatever he was saying was effective enough to cause a stir inside my heart.

I took deep breaths and averted my eyes away from him.

My face was hot.

I could feel my heart beating faster and faster just by looking at the movement of his lips.

Even when I tried to read his lips to figure out what he was talking about. It was pointless since I always ended up getting distracted and lost sight of the goal halfway through.

Just what is this man saying to make me feel like this?

We started walking as per the schedule, holding each other's hands in a tight grasp.

Leaving traces of our footsteps on the soft sand, we continued on our path while looking at each other's smile.

Countless times I have been through this dream. Yet it never fails to make me feel.... at home.

After walking along the shore for a while, he yanked my hand and made me fall into his chest.

Surprised by the sudden pull, I clenched my fingers on his shoulder to steady my footing on the ground.

I don't know why. No matter how many times this happens. I always end up falling face-first toward his chest.

Then again, I have no control over this dream since I was experiencing it just like a movie in the theatre. The only difference was that I was playing a part in the film rather than watching it from the audience seat.

With a warm smile on his face, he gently lifted my face towards his. Like magnets attracted to each, our lips came together in slow motion.

I closed my eyes and gave in to the tender feeling bubbling inside me.

But... right when things were about to get good.

"Don't think you can escape from me"

Suddenly an invisible force pulled me back like a lifeless puppet. A pair of strong hands were holding me with my back against a hard muscular chest.

With one arm across my chest and the other on the side of my face tilting my head. I was trapped with no way to escape.

In an instant, the picturesque seashore vanished. And instead, I was standing on top of a cliff with a raging ocean underneath.

I recognized the scene from three years ago.

It was exactly the same as the day I escaped from Mount Zion.

"Wherever you are. Whomever you may be masquerading as"

A deep virile voice spoke from behind.

"No matter how you resist"

The scene warped again. The area turned pitch black within microseconds.

With darkness everywhere, I stood in front of a large mirror, still trapped within my captor's arms.

My body felt powerless. It was as if all the strength in my body disappeared leaving behind an empty shell.

Although the surroundings were pitch black, I was able to see my reflection on the mirror before me.

My face turned pale when I saw the red jeweled eyes shining in the darkness behind me.

'No way'

My eyes grew as wide as saucers when I deduced who it was holding me. Although his face was not clearly visible in the darkness. Those blood-red eyes were enough evidence to deduce the identity of the person they belonged to.

It was Edward Frost.

"I. Will. Find. You"

The arms around me tightened their hold as if to solidify the claim.

"Wife"

He tenderly whispered in a low voice tickly my ear.

Hungrily, he took in my scent gliding his face over my exposed neck, and placed a deep kiss biting into the skin.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH"

I screamed at the top of my lungs and woke up.

In a panic-infused state, I rolled out of the twin-sized bed and fell to my butt with a loud thud.

"Oww...."

The pain from falling to the floor was enough to clear my mind.

I was neither at the beach nor the cliff of Mount Zion. I was inside my room in a small village in the Velven Empire, thousands of miles away from Volos. The medium-sized room had a large window on the side and a bed in the middle. There was a wardrobe near the door and a small table on the opposite side of the bed.

I could see the sun rays inside the room coming through the curtain.

Having zero intention to move, I laid on the cold floor limply while staring at the wooden ceiling with a wave of thoughts running through my head.

'That....that was too ominous to ignore'

My heart was beating like a superspeed racehorse. I blinked my eyes several times to take in the surroundings and organize my nerves.

Never have I ever had such a nightmare before. This was not how my dream was supposed to end.

It should have ended with an unattainable kiss. Not a freakin' vampire bite to the neck!

Unconsciously my hand traced my neckline where I had felt hot lips being pressed.

'It's just a dream. It's just a stupid dream' I tried to calm myself down.

I covered my face with my hands and groaned.

It was only a dream. In reality, such an incident never happened.

But either way, my survival instincts were screaming that something was wrong.

"I should check up on that b*stard" I muttered, pressing my eyes.

For three years, I had forgotten or rather ignored his existence.

Since there were always rumors of the famous Archduke Frost, who was in a coma. I never explicitly went out on my way to check up on him.

In addition to the fear of being backtraced for requesting information on the well-being of the male lead at an information guild, I refrained from even speaking his name other than in my thoughts.

In my situation, it was better to be safe than sorry however trivial it may seem.

I honestly couldn't give a sh*t about him when I was too busy traveling from place to place.

I never visited the same place twice nor stayed anywhere for more than a week. Due to that, I had no clue regarding the story progress of the novel.

Aside from a mental estimation of the timeline, I had no idea as to what the main characters were up to. I was lacking in the information department.

But that too ended when I crossed the borders two years ago and wandered into Velven territory. And after I joined the Nero mercenaries, I had completely forgotten the novel and made the best out of my new life.

At that moment, the door burst open with a bang.

"I heard a scream!"

A high pitched worried voice marched inside the room unannounced.

Long rabbit ears were visible from where I was lazing around. The grey eyes scanned through the room as if to find the source of the scream.

There was only one person in this country, who was daring enough to barge inside my room without permission.

That brave soul was none other than Eugene's little sister or my soon-to-be adopted cute daughter, Bea.

"Where are you?!" Bea asked in a worried voice.

"Here" I raised my hand and identified my position since I was unwilling to get up.

"Phew..." Bea heaved a sigh and walked inside the room with a huff.

Judging from the ladle in her hand and the blue apron around her waist, she must have rushed over from the kitchen after hearing my outburst.

With a single swoosh, Bea opened the curtain on the window to let the sunlight in.

"Hisssss"

Like a nocturnal animal, I hissed at the sight of the bright light.

"What are you doing there?"

Bea, who was similar in terms of appearance to Eugene tilted her head to the side and asked me.

"Testing the gravity" I answered with a bitter smile and looked at the ceiling.

"Somethings never change"