Kill The Empress (Reincarnated as the villainess)

Part three

'What is this feeling?' I ask myself, my head down and my hands grasping each other in desperation. 'Why am I so afraid?"

The original novel never described the duke, in fact only his name was included in the writing. So, I always assumed he was a doting father who simply put up with a spoiled brat for a daughter.

Yet, as I stood before him, his overwhelming aura alone caused me to fight my tears.

"Edith,' He finally spoke, his cold voice laced with malice. "Face me." He commanded. I Shakily lifted my head and saw him in his full splendor as the curtains of my hair parted away from my face.

He had raven black hair and yellow eyes, piercing yellow eyes that I swore were so sharp they could stab me. He got up from his chair and slowly approached me while I was rooted to the floor where I stood, afraid to even move. He was tall and lean, just by glancing at him you could tell he overexerted himself when he worked and exercised naught, yet he didn't look weak or tired. In fact, he was utterly terrifying.

He bent down in front of me. "Do you remember what I have told you?" He asked in a serious tone. 'Of course not! I just spawned in like five minutes ago!' But, of course I couldn't say that to him. Instead I just slightly shook my head and averted my gaze from his overwhelming eyes.

"Well, then recount it." 

I instantly looked up at him without thinking. Is he serious? It must be something that was impossible for me to forget for him to say that. I began to struggle to decide if I should continue to feign ignorance of pretend I do, in fact recall.

"O-oh, that," I say as I look down again. "Yes, I-I remember."

His expression remained unchanging but now he stood up fully to where he towered over me. "Of course you do. You have quite the obsession over that boy." He began to walk around the room, finally allowing me to breathe since he was no longer standing right before me. His aura was still cripplingly scary even as he paced around leisurely, not facing me.

"Just imagine how much power our family will hold if you are to be his betrothed.." He continued to speak. "Has he taken a liking to you yet?" He asked, this time facing me.

I almost flinched as he looked at me, but I tried to appear unafraid. Is he really commanding his daughter, a child, to seduce another child? 

Though he clearly invokes so much fear into Edith, I told myself I would not be married to the crown prince and I will stand by that.

"Father," I said with my head held high, my heartbeat pounding in my ears. "What if I do not wish to wed him?"

He whipped his full body around now and furrowed his brow at me.

"What do you mean by that, child?"

"Prince Heinry.." I fought my voice from shaking. "I do not wish to marry him."

"And do you genuinely think your opinion matters in all of this?"

He took a step closer, slowly closing in the distance between us.

"This is how you will assist me, your one and only father. You are under my command, you are my possession. If you do not do this simple task I have asked of you, then you have no use at all, do you? And if you are not useful to me, you are as good as dead."

I clenched my jaw so much in reaction to his words that it began to shake. Whether it was shaking from anger or fear was beyond my knowledge, but what I did realize was the overwhelming reality of the situation.

"You do want to please me, don't you?" He said as he leaned down close to me. "Or are you foolish enough to think that I won't have your head for disobeying me?" I couldn't fight it anymore and I began to shake violently. "I'm....I'm sorry, father, but I am certain there are other duties I can fulfill. This one is just too-" SLAP!

My whole body flung to the ground . I looked up and saw my father's open palm still in the air, his face coated with a dissatisfied scowl.

"Just too what? Too hard for you? You insolent girl! All I ask of you is to persuade him to marry you, yet you cannot even do that. If I had known my only daughter would be this useless, I would've slain you upon birth."

He then leaned down and gripped me by my throat with both hands. He lifted me until I was just hovering above the ground, kicking my legs and struggling in his grasp. I tried to claw at his hands, but then I noticed his expression. A grin was tugging at the corners of his lips. He was amused by my desperation. It loosely reminded me of a child that likes to torture animals, laughing as they fight for their meaningless lives.

But the thing is, no one's life is meaningless and this cruelty is unfair. "F-father..!" I fought to speak as my neck felt as if it was being crushed under his grip. Suddenly, to my surprise, he dropped me and I crumpled to my knees. He didn't even bother looking at me and instead just walked by and made his way to the door. He opened it and called in a servant.

"Confine her to her room for the next month and limit her meals. She is to consume nothing but broth and water until her punishment is over."

I Reach out my arm to him in desperation and open my mouth to speak, but no voice escapes my frail lips.

I kick, but I cannot scream as the servants rushed in and dragged me out of my father's study by my arms. I pleaded to him with my eyes but he did not care. "I hope you will learn from your mistakes, Edith." He said menacingly to me just before the door shut.

This is a nightmare.