When I awoke, I found myself in my room within Lord Dominic's mansion. Light from the morning sun stread in from the window, aning at least a few hours had passed since I fell unconscious.
I wondered what had happened since then. Clearly, my companions brought back into the mansion. However, that was all I knew.
What happened with the hostages? Had we managed to save them? Or had they succumbed to the succubus' control and killed themselves? I had been too busy fighting the succubus to check on them.
I hoped they survived. All of them had been innocent bystanders, victims of a cruel and capricious demon. None of them deserved to be toyed with and used like that.
I also wondered about the aftermath. Lord Dominic sound-proofed the entire neighborhood, yes, but soone must've noticed sothing. There had been nothing subtle about last night's events. We must've left signs. Perhaps enough for soone to figure out the truth, or a close approximation.
If so, I hoped it wasn't House Sandstrike. If they, or Lady Isabel rather, figured out that we fought with the succubus, that would bring a whole load of trouble on our heads. Maybe she'd even connect with the disguises I used while running around Eastwatch. Still, at least we succeeded in capturing a succubus. As for whether or not it was worth it… Well, only Anna could tell us that.
My stomach grumbled as I had that thought.
Right. Eat breakfast first, and then ask Anna about what she learned.
I sat up to get out of bed. However, just as my feet touched the floor, the door to the room opened and Anna stepped in. The two of us froze when we saw each other and stared for several seconds.
Anna recovered first. She shut the door behind her and walked up to with a serious expression on her face.
I tried to stand up, but she put a hand on my shoulder and pushed back down.
"Is that really necessary?" I asked, a little annoyed.
Anna, still standing, crossed her arms and lood over . Her vanilla scent wafted over, teasing . Despite the serious atmosphere, a part of wanted to nibble Anna's abs. A wildly inappropriate thought, given the circumstances, but I blad Anna for that. She was the one who corrupted with her degeneracy.
"Yes," she said in a firm voice. "I'm so angry that I want to throttle you." She paused. "No, angry isn't the right word. I…" She took a deep breath. "Do you know how it felt when you offered yourself up to the succubus? I thought I lost ten years of my life."
I reached over to grab one of Anna's hands. She resisted at first, but I persisted. In the end, she gave up and let hold her hand.
"I'm sorry," I said. "It was the best I could think of at the ti." I let out a wry chuckle. "Honestly, at first, I just said it to buy ti."
Anna narrowed her eyes at .
"So you never planned to give yourself to the succubus in exchange for those hostages?" she asked.
I took a mont before responding.
"If I hadn't co up with the plan I used, I would've tried so other trick."
Anna's eyes narrowed further, until they beca slits.
"That wasn't a no," she said.
I sighed.
"I couldn't stand by and do nothing," I said. "It's just not in ." I held up a hand. "However, I wouldn't have surrendered. I would've kept trying to find so way to save the hostages without giving myself up."
Anna sighed and shook her head.
"Just tell this," she said. "If left with no other choice, would you have surrendered yourself to save those hostages?"
"I… Yes, I would have."
Anna nodded as if she expected this answer.
"I thought as much." She sat down and held my hand. "Gabriel, you know as well as I do that you must never let a succubus, or Lady Isabel, get their claws in you. You know too much. If our enemies get their hands on the knowledge in your head, we may lose this war before it truly begins."
Her voice hardened.
"So, despite knowing all that, why would you offer yourself up? Do you want to be a hero that saves everyone? Is that it? If so, I'll tell you right now, that isn't possible. Despite our best efforts, innocent people will die. You know this. You experienced it for yourself in the Icefall region."
I nodded. Yes, I understood that innocent people would die, despite my best efforts. However…
"If I see people in danger, and there is sothing I can do to save them, then I will," I said. "It's just who I am. Hearing about innocent people dying isn't the sa as watching it happen before your very eyes."
Anna bit her lip and turned her head away from .
"Perhaps," she said. "But that doesn't an you have to sacrifice your life for a random stranger. Why can't you value yourself a little more? With the way you act sotis, it's as if you see yourself as worth less than others."
I didn't know how to respond to that, so I just tightened my grip on Anna's hand.
"I'm sorry," I said.
Anna looked at again, anger and tears in her eyes.
"Don't be sorry!" she said. "Be…" She took a deep breath. "Risking our lives is inevitable for us, given what we set out to do. That's unavoidable. But at least promise that you won't surrender yourself to save others. You can give that much, can't you? Be a little more selfish with your life."
I fell silent. While I wanted to reassure Anna, I didn't want to make a promise I couldn't keep. Neither of us knew what the future held. Anna was a regressor, so she knew more than most, but the future was rcurial and ever changing. Even the smallest decisions could have profound impact.
"I see," Anna said when it beca clear that I wouldn't respond. "In that case, know this. Every ti you do sothing like that, my heart breaks and I die a little inside. If it happens enough tis, I don't know what I'll beco. I may even revert to the person I used to be in the First Tiline. Please don't do that to , not after giving hope last night. I want to be a better person this ti around. I don't want to beco a monster. Not again." She shook her head. "And before you say anything, I'm not trying to blackmail or coerce or threaten you into anything. I'm just warning you of the consequences of your actions."
The pleading in her voice pierced my heart like a barbed blade. I wanted to protect and save as many people as I could. However, I loved Anna. To hear her speak like this tore at . My resolve faltered.
"I promise," I said in a quiet voice. "I won't surrender myself to save others. If I do, it'll be a part of so trick or sche. It won't be genuine."
Anna nodded.
"Thank you." She leaned her head against my shoulder. "I know it's selfish for to ask this of you, but as I warned you before, I am a selfish person. You're just going to have to put up with it."
The two of us fell silent after that. I didn't know about Anna, but the atmosphere was heavy and I didn't know how to lighten it.
A few monts later, my stomach grumbled again, this ti louder than before. My cheeks heated up a little. I felt my cheeks heat up a little. Anna's shoulders started shaking as she held in her laughter.
"Let's get so food in you," she said, her voice filled with mirth.
I nodded. Together, the two of us headed down to eat breakfast.
Breakfast was a somber affair. Anna and I were still quiet from our conversation, while Leroy appeared troubled. anwhile, Cally looked hungover. The cursed skewer's effects must have done a number on her. She joined us for breakfast with a scowl on her face and dark circles under her eyes. Even Kiki seed a little subdued, though I couldn't be sure since she seed more difficult to read than usual.
The only one who appeared unaffected was Lord Dominic himself. He ate breakfast with relish, humming a little tune in between bites. It appeared that he knew nothing about last night's events. I stared at him and almost envied his ability to ignore everything unrelated to his work.
By unspoken agreent, none of us talked about anything serious over breakfast. However, the atmosphere felt too heavy for small talk. So, we ate our coarse grain porridge, made by Kiki, in silence.
Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.
After breakfast, we readied ourselves for the day before eting in the mansion's drawing room. Everyone attended this eting, including Lord Dominic, though he seed confused about what was going on.
To catch everyone up to speed, I gave a brief summary of last night's events. As I spoke, Lord Dominic kept glancing at Kiki to confirm my words. She nodded each ti.
Cally scowled at when I got to the part where I offered myself up to the succubus in exchange for the hostages. It was part of my plan. However, like Anna, she must've realized that I would've surrendered for real if given no other option. The sa applied to Leroy.
"I expected nothing less from a fool like you," Cally said in an acerbic tone.
I ignored her comnt and continued with the story.
"And that's all I rember," I said, after I finished. "I don't know what happened after I fell unconscious." I looked at Anna, Leroy, and Kiki. "Did we manage to save the hostages?"
Anna nodded.
"Yes, though they're still enthralled," she said. "For now, we're keeping them asleep in the basent."
I frowned.
"Is there any way to free them?" I asked.
Cally nodded.
"Yes, but it will take ti," she said. "We're better off leaving them as is until we deal with everything. Besides, that sort of thing is best left to the Church of the Sun."
I sighed with relief. Good. Knowing that there was a way to help the enthralled people eased the burden in my heart. At least sothing good ca out of last night's events.
"We also cleaned up as best we could," Anna said. "With so luck, no one else will figure out what happened last night."
"Um," Lord Dominic said, raising his hand like he was at school. "Can soone explain to what's going on?"
My companions and I all glanced at each other, before we turned towards Kiki.
"I'll explain everything later, Master Dominic," she said. "For now, I'll say that working with these people is the best course of action for us."
Lord Dominic studied her for a mont before nodding.
"I'll follow your lead then," he said. "You've never led astray thus far."
That was it? Lord Dominic listened to Kiki just like that? I expected more resistance from him. I even ca up with several argunts to try and convince him, just in case Kiki failed. Instead, he followed her words without hesitation, rendering all that effort pointless.
Who was the master and who was the servant in their relationship again?
"Tell ," Cally said, looking at Anna. "Was all that trouble worth it? We saved a few people, yes, but what about the bigger picture?"
Anna nodded.
"I know where the succubi are hiding out," she said. "I also figured out why they're in Eastwatch. Their leader, Ash, wants revenge against Lady Isabel."
I assud Ash was the succubus from last night. They were the most powerful succubus we encountered thus far.
Revenge, huh? I had already suspected as much from what Ash said last night. It made sense, but also infuriated . How many innocent people had suffered because of Lady Isabel's greed and Ash's vendetta?
"Wait, the succubi are acting on their own?" Cally asked. "But what about the ones who summoned the succubi in the first place?"
"They're dead," Anna said. "Lady Isabel killed them already."
I snapped my fingers.
"The demon worshipers," I said.
"Yes," Anna said. "According to Nico, the demon worshipers summoned the succubi in order to destroy Eastwatch from the inside. At so point, they decided to try and use Lady Isabel. However, she turned the tables on them, killing the demon worshipers and injured Ash in the process. Nico didn't know the full details about what happened. Only that Ash hates Lady Isabel from the depths of their heart."
"Well, we know the reason," I said. "Lady Isabel stole so of Ash's power for her own."
"That's what the succubus said," Cally pointed out. "However, they could've been lying."
I made a gesture of acquiescence. Fair enough.
"Still, at least we know that the succubi are acting on their own," I said. "That makes things simpler. Once we take them and Lady Isabel down, Eastwatch should be in a better position for the future. Perhaps it won't fall to the demons a few years from now."
Lord Dominic leaned towards Kiki.
"What does he an by that?" he asked. "Demons are going to attack Eastwatch?"
"Yes," Kiki said. "Though we have a chance to prevent it from happening. That's one of the reasons why I agreed to work with these people."
Lord Dominic wore a thoughtful expression on his face, before nodding.
"Good," he said. "I like this place. I would hate to see it destroyed."
I looked at Lord Dominic with an amused smile on my face.
"How do you plan on dealing with Lady Isabel and Ash's succubi?" Kiki asked, looking towards the rest of us. "From what I saw last night, you're not powerful enough to defeat one succubus, let alone a whole group of them. The sa applies to Lady Isabel."
"We could kill a succubus if we ambushed them," I said. "However, you're right. We're not strong enough to defeat either Lady Isabel or the succubi." I grinned. "So, why not let them fight each other? Both sides already have a grudge against each other. We just need to fan the flas a little." I shrugged. "Even if that doesn't work, I already sent word to Grand Priest Darius. He'll send people to clean up Eastwatch."
The problem was, I didn't know what state House Sandstrike would be in after that. We needed them to remain strong in order for Eastwatch to survive. That, or we needed to set up a strong force in the city in order to repel the demons.
However, I'd rather avoid that if possible. The more we stretched ourselves thin, the less effective we would be at repelling the demons.
"You know a grand priest?" Lord Dominic asked, a little awed.
"Yes. He's a family friend."
Lord Dominic stared at , before shaking his head.
"House Sturm is sothing else," he muttered under his breath.
"How do you plan on getting both sides to fight each other?" Kiki asked. "Don't get wrong, it's a good idea. I just don't see how you're going to make it happen."
I smiled.
"If everything works out the way I want it to, we may end up forming an alliance with a scion of House Sandstrike. That should make things easier for us."
Kiki started to say sothing, but then a magical construct entered the drawing room. It carried a letter in its hands.
"This is for Lady Calla," the magical construct said, handing her the letter.
Cally took the letter and read it.
"Lord César wants to et with us," she said.
The rest of us gave her questioning looks.
"When we decided to move here," she said. "I left instructions for the innkeeper to send us a ssage in case Lord César wanted to get into contact with us." She gestured to us. "I also left instructions with Marcio, just in case."
That made sense.
"Well then," I said. "Shall we go et with Lord César?"
Everyone nodded, including Lord Dominic. While I had my misgivings about this, considering his antisocial nature, I appreciated his enthusiasm.
With that, we all prepared for our eting with Lord César and headed out.
To no one's surprise, Lord César wanted to et at his casino. It was his seat of power, where he felt the most secure. It was also the perfect place for an ambush, should he decide to betray us. However, despite that risk, we decided it was still worth eting with him.
To avoid any potential followers, we brought along enough invisibility bracelets to hide our whole group. Lord Dominic, in particular, appreciated this since he was an antisocial shut-in who hadn't left his mansion ever since he arrived in Eastwatch. It turned out that Lord Dominic had no problem with being around people as long as they couldn't perceive him in any way.
In fact, from what I observed, Lord Dominic held a strange fascination towards other people. Several tis during our journey to Lord César's casino, Lord Dominic stepped within soone else's personal space in order to take a closer look at them. Every ti this happened, we had to drag him away. It got to the point where Kiki held his hand to prevent him from wandering off.
By the ti we arrived, I regretted bringing him along. Yes, he was a part of our group now and deserved to sit in on our eting with Lord César, but he was also a pain to deal with. High maintenance, in other words. Perhaps we should've left him at his mansion and just brought Kiki along.
After we passed through the abandoned shop that served as the secret entrance to Lord César's casino, and deactivated the invisibility bracelets, we t one of Lord César's henchn waiting for us at the front entrance. It was the bald one. What was his na again? Arturo? Yes, that was it.
Arturo raised an eyebrow when he saw us.
"There are even more of you now," he said in a dry tone. "Great."
I smirked.
"Co now," I said. "You aren't still upset about what happened last ti, are you?"
Arturo glared at , before glancing at Leroy and Cally.
"Let's just say that I'm not happy about being beaten by kids who are a full rank below and half my age," he said.
Well, I couldn't bla him for that. In his shoes, I might feel the sa way.
"Anyway," Arturo continued, gesturing for us to follow him. "Co with . Lord César is waiting for you in his office."
Arturo led us through the casino's front entrance. Like before, the entire place was empty except for us. One of these days, I needed to visit this place during the night so I could see what it was like when it was busy and bustling. I wasn't a big gambler, but I found it fun every now and again.
During the walk to Lord César's office, Arturo kept glancing back at .
"Is there sothing wrong?" I asked.
"The people who disappeared… Are they all dead?"
I blinked at him in surprise. His question caught off guard. I hadn't expected it from him.
"I believe so, yes," I said. "Why do you ask?"
Arturo didn't respond right away.
"There was this woman I t," he said. "A tourist from out of town. There was a spark between us. I thought sothing might co from it, but then she disappeared. I thought she left Eastwatch and went back ho. However, if she was taken…"
Arturo trailed off, but I understood what he ant. I felt a prick of sorrow.
"I'm sorry for your loss," I said.
Arturo shrugged.
"People die," he said. "It happens."
Despite Arturo's words, I doubted he was as nonchalant as he pretended. Otherwise, he wouldn't have ntioned this woman's disappearance in the first place.
A few minutes later, we arrived at the door to Lord César's office. However, before we entered, Arturo held out a hand to stop us.
"I don't know if Lord César plans to work with you or not," he said. "However, even if he doesn't help you, I will." His expression hardened. "When you go after the ones responsible for the disappearances, let know."
I studied his face for a mont, before nodding.
"We will," I said.
We needed help, and we weren't in a position to be choosy.
"Thank you," Arturo said, before opening the door and entering the office.
My companions and I all glanced at each other, before we followed right behind him.
Reviews
All reviews (0)