Married To The Mad Vampire Lord - Chapter 535

Chapter 535: Ruined
Winter faded little by little, the snow in the mountainside melting into the soft, wet earth. The cold air that once made the atmosphere freezing grew warmer each morning, and the hard frost on the grass slowly disappeared. Small shoots of green pushed through the soil, and the breeze lost its bite, carrying a hint of freshness. Spring arrived quietly, settling over the land like a gentle promise that the long winter was finally over.

The lands that had been ruined by the disaster slowly began to build back to normal, or so they tried, but many of the wealthy families were forced back to the life of the middle class, and some who didn’t save their wealth outside their lands were moved down to the lower class. Many arrogant nobles were humbled, and many moved away from the cities they had grown up in to hide their shame and disgrace at becoming poor after living in luxury. The Dawsons were part of the families who had fallen from grace and had no choice but to move.

The royal title had fallen from their hands, and though they didn’t go completely poor, still being related to the past royals, they were not considered anywhere close to rich. Their house was burned down with everything in it, and not having a choice, they moved into the new boarding homes built in Aragonia by the people of other lands who weren’t affected by the disaster and came to relieve them of their loss. The boarding houses were not even a quarter as big as their old home, but because it was the only place available, many Aragonian families moved there until they became financially stable again.

Just like many who had lost their things, the Dawsons’ only hope now was to urge their daughter into marrying a wealthy man, more accurately, one of the men who were building the new boarding places in their land and doing business there. Now that many had lost their wealth, these people who came from other foreign lands were like kings to them, for they flaunted their wealth and riches openly.

“You are our only hope, Eve, and you have to marry. Mr. Edgerton, for example, looks interested in you. At least show some interest too, so he can be encouraged to approach your father to ask for your hand in marriage,” Louisiana Dawson said to her daughter, who was pouting and looking at her reflection in the mirror.

Genevieve had lost her glow, and even bathing every day was becoming an issue in this place because of the lack of water, as the fire had dried up many wells. Water had to be carried in from faraway rivers into the lousy boarding houses, where one never had a moment of silence or peace because of the constant noise and fights among neighbors. If one got lucky enough to bathe once a week, then it was pure luck, for every single drop of water was treasured in this place.

Hearing her mother’s words did nothing but add to Eve’s buildup of irritation. “Mr. Edgerton? Mama, do you hear yourself? That man is older than Papa!” she cried. “How can I be with someone like that?”

Louisiana, who had hoped to talk her daughter into marrying that man, who came from a foreign land, where he was said to be an ambassador and have riches enough to own the entire boarding places in Aragonia, frowned.

“Do you have any options? No Aragonian man will marry you now that we have fallen from grace, and many of them have fallen too. The other young men who came from the foreign land are all married, with wives back home. Marrying a man from our land now would be no different from signing yourself up for a lifetime of poverty.”

Eve, who had dreamed of a prince charming and a beautiful life, and had been hoping to catch the eyes of the younger men among the foreigners, was not about to sacrifice herself for her family by marrying an old man with a large potbelly. She wasn’t raised to be someone who put others first before herself. If she would marry, it would be to a man close to her age, someone who would worship her and give her everything, not some old-fashioned man who would probably turn her into his servant the moment she became his wife.

So, pursing her lips, she grumbled, “I am not marrying some old man no matter how rich he is. If you wanted a daughter who would marry to make you rich again, you should have given birth to another. I don’t care if you and Papa starve, but I won’t live the life of an old man’s wife for you when the two of you did not have the sense to at least save your wealth outside Aragonia.”

Louisiana gaped at her daughter, who was combing her unwashed hair that was already starting to have an unpleasant smell from the built-up oils. She had always known that her daughter was selfish and senseless, but she had overlooked it as she believed she would marry into a wealthy family befitting her character. But now there was no chance of ignoring that attitude when there was a chance of them becoming poor forever with a spinster daughter.

If only she had another daughter, but unfortunately the obedient daughter she had had only been in a dream, a girl who listened and did everything to please them, a girl who would marry anyone they told her to. It had been a wonderful dream, and if that girl was real and was here, she would have saved them rather than talk like Eve.

“It seems I have spoiled you too much, Eve, but it’s not too late to fix that. You will marry Mr. Edgerton if I have to tie you down in chains. It is settled. Go get yourself washed because you are starting to smell like a spoiled onion and you are making me nauseous.” Saying that, Lady Louisiana turned and walked away, leaving Eve fuming. She sniffed her underarm only to gag from the unpleasant smell.

“Oh, I hate myself!” she screamed, and then she began to cry, knowing there was no way out of this and she would end up marrying a man older than her father. If only she could turn back time, she would have long married one of those men who came to propose to her, but she had turned them down just because she could, and because she believed she was still young and beautiful and still had time to choose from the best.

Only now she was young, but her beauty was waning, as there was no way of maintaining it with the lifestyle they were living, where one only got to bathe when it rained.

“How I wish I had an elder sister to run to and hide. I would give anything to have an elder sister somewhere right now,” she sobbed, not knowing she indeed had an elder sister she had never appreciated and had insulted and mocked all her life, making her feel small and less in public. But the memories had been wiped away because they all didn’t deserve Isabelle’s kindness and her goodness to their family.

And now they had to pay the price of it in the worst way possible.

“I hate my life! I wish I was never born!” Eve cried, her voice rising over the noise of the boarding house.

A fist slammed against the thin wooden wall separating their room from the next boarding room, and someone’s irritated voice snapped, “For heaven’s sake, can’t a person get a moment’s peace in this place? If you want to scream your head off, do it somewhere else and stop ruining my afternoon nap!!”