Chapter Thirty-Nine
_ Even if you die here... no one will care about you
Rokshan laughed; he finally understood why he liked the boy so much. He resembled him, and his blood flowed through the boy's veins... but there was a problem: the boy was no longer under his thumb. Rokshan sighed and said..
"Why don't you return to my side, and I will overlook what the Emperor has done..."
"Is this a threat to a man on the brink of collapse? Do you think I will accept this... His Majesty the Emperor is stronger than ever... Your loss is imminent, My Lord Great Saint.."
"I am not threatening; I want to win you over to my side, Ivan, and I will retreat with my people..."
"And why do you want me?!"
"My final duty as a father..."
At this, Ivan almost fell off the bed from laughter until tears actually welled in his eyes. After composing himself from laughing, he looked at Rokshan, who felt that Ivan was now mocking him..
"A father?"
"Are you turning my words against me?! ... What an opportunist you are... "
He wiped the laughter from his face and spoke in an icy tone that parlayed the limbs:
"You do not know, but I think you have truly reached the edge... Do not try to cling on... You will fall soon... Steve Rokshan.."
Ivan stood up, heading toward the door, and before leaving, he said calmly:
"I still believe in God. Not the god created by you and your kind, but the True God, who gave me a chance..."
He was about to exit but remembered one last thing. He scanned the room with a complex feeling, then gripped the edge of the door...
"Stop wearing the robes of angels; you are merely beautiful-looking demons from the outside only..."
* * *
He sat quietly in the vast and elegant office, surrounded by walls clad in dark walnut wood interspersed with shelves filled with ancient leather books. Before him stretched the polished desktop, centered with a map with faded edges and a quill resting near a luxurious crystal inkwell. From the arched windows, silver threads of light seeped through crimson velvet curtains, flooding the place with pale moonlight, while a bronze chandelier hung from the ceiling, scattering its brilliance into every corner, as if the room itself whispered the secrets of past years and breathed the scent of glory and power...
He looked at the hourglass indicating the end of his waiting time. He stood up, and before he could leave his place, a middle-aged man with dark brown hair and cold green eyes entered. He raised his head with resentment to see his son standing with pride despite the gravity of what he had done to him. The father clenched his fists tightly and spoke through gritted teeth:
"What have you done, Elliot?!"
Elliot looked calmly at his father, smiled coldly, and said in a mocking tone:
"I have performed my duty as a Silas family member... Why are you upset, Marquis Silas?"
Black smoke flowed from Albin's hand, and he said angrily:
"Are you betraying your father... Elliot?!"
It was a familiar feeling for Elliot—this ominous energy, he had felt it before. Elliot felt his words choking; he wanted to deny the truth and believe that his father was innocent and that he hadn't done it, yet he knew very well that his father was the one who did all this...
"Why did you kill my mother?!"
"You truly are your mother's son; you are doing what she did.."
"It seems I am a very dutiful son to my mother.."
He spoke in a sarcastic manner, but he knew his heart inside was tearing violently; he truly didn't want his father to be like this...
When he was young, he heard from some relatives that although his father was older than his brother, the previous Marquis did not hand the title to Albin because he was incompetent. He thought perhaps his grandfather had wronged his father, perhaps and perhaps...
But all of this was a lie. His father was a greedy villain. He never treated him as a son but as a tool for gain. When he needed a father to love and understand him, his uncle was always there. His uncle told him that he would hand him the title, even after Ariana was born. He didn't feel she was an annoying cousin who took the love from him; rather, he felt she was his sister whom he must love and protect...
In the beginning, he did everything so that his uncle would love him and be proud of him, but later he realized that he also felt affection toward his small, innocent sister, whom he now realized he cared for even more than his father. Now Elliot understood what he wanted...
' I will choose my sister '
Albin looked at Elliot with eyes burning with madness. Ominous energy flowed around the room, which turned black. Elliot swallowed hard and clenched his fists tightly. He felt his heart had dropped from its place, but he tried to remain steady, gritting his teeth...
Despite his wavering eyes and trembling limbs, he raised his head and smiled faintly:
"Are you going to kill me?!"
"What do you expect?!"
The dark energy had spread throughout the office; Elliot and Albin were the only points of light in the room...
Elliot thought that no matter his physical strength, he was truly unable to face him. His father really intended to kill him. His jaw trembled, and he let out a derisive laugh. Did he hope for something from a monster..
He retreated several steps, feeling his heart in his throat while still laughing. He clutched his heart, but then felt the pocket watch that was in his jacket...
[" If you need help, I will be there "]
He took a deep breath, for he didn't know what he should do, but he gripped the watch tightly and thought deeply; he had to find a solution. However, he felt a strange small gap in the watch; when he ran his pinky finger through it, a spark ignited around him...
SPLASH!!!
Elliot turned around and found two people he knew well: one with wheat-blonde hair and watery blue eyes, and the other with golden hair and light violet eyes. Although both belonged to the Emperor's Knights, their presence together was strange...
Brian looked calmly as usual at Kayn as he spoke to Elliot:
"Young Lord Marquis, please step back..."
Elliot retreated automatically; of the two people before him, one was the strongest swordsman in the empire and the former commander of the Emperor's Knights, and the second was a high-ranking magic knight and the current commander of the Emperor's Knights. No matter his physical strength, it would be nothing; in fact, he would be a hindrance to them...
Albin looked at Brian and Kayn and said mockingly:
"I didn't expect the Emperor to be involved in this..."
"You will die, Albin Silas... and tonight."
The word was spoken with utter cruelty from Kayn's mouth. Brian looked at him, then at Albin..
[" Your mission is to support Count Cyrus; this is his final mission under my command, then you will officially become the commander of the Emperor's Knights... and also... whatever is said or happens there is a secret you will keep in your depths until your death "]
' Why did His Majesty refuse to discuss the matter with me further?! '
Brian drew his sword and signaled to Kayn that he was ready to support him. Anger intensified in Kayn's features, and he unsheathed his sword—it was not his usual sword, but a special one with a transparent white blade and a soft, warm aura...
Albin laughed mockingly and said:
"Do you think if you use the Holy Dragon Sword you will defeat me?! It seems the Emperor pays his friend a lot of attention..."
Kayn did not care for Albin's words; instead, he lunged with a strike that almost split Albin in half had he not retreated at the right moment. Blood froze in Albin's veins when he sensed that this man had come solely to kill him, yet he laughed sarcastically...
"Shouldn't you kill the Emperor who killed your family, not me..."
"Shut up, you traitor..."
Anger had surpassed its limits in Kayn's eyes, creating an opportunity for Albin to provoke him...
"You are unable to kill the murderer, so you come to me. What a coward you are..."
Kayn was striking, and Albin was protecting himself with his dark power, moving quickly so that Kayn's strikes would not reach him. Because black magic is magic from hell, and its enemy is holy energy, a single strike from the sword might tear the protection he built around himself—let alone a strike from the strongest swordsman...
It was a one-sided attack; Kayn was striking in anger, and Albin was provoking him and moving to protect himself. As for the expensive office, it had turned into worthless trash, and outside the office, no one knew what was happening inside because of the isolation magic Albin had performed earlier to interrogate and kill Elliot...
"Will you keep waving that sword like a fool? I think the Emperor deceived you and gave you a fake sword.."
This time Brian felt anger and almost launched an aerial attack, but Elliot grabbed his shoulder and said in a whisper:
"I don't know what happened to Count Cyrus, but there is great anger and a deep struggle going on in his heart... if we interfere, we will ruin everything.."
Brian stepped back and looked at Kayn, who stopped striking Albin and stood upright, making Albin laugh triumphantly and bare his fangs...
"Why don't I make this place a graveyard for the Emperor's dogs..."
Kayn understood Albin's intent when he saw Elliot standing at the end of the room, with Brian in front of him...
He breathed deeply and said calmly:
"How does it feel, knowing you will be killed because of your lineage?!"
"Who will kill whom... haha... I will kill the traitorous son, no exceptions... the three of you will die here.."
"What a wicked father you are..."
Brian and Elliot felt the atmosphere change around them; Kayn's aura had shifted, and he held his sword in a different way and lunged in a flash toward Albin, who in an instant gathered the greatest amount of dark energy around him for protection. It was torn, and he barely managed to avoid Kayn's sword..
Albin felt the crisis after the pace of Kayn's attack changed, so he spread poisonous energy throughout the room. Brian looked at Elliot, then at Kayn, who felt the crisis, and said steadily:
"We will not hinder the commander... finish the mission."
Kayn looked calmly at Elliot, who despite the signs of poisoning appearing, continued to watch with icy glares. Kayn turned his gaze back to Albin, who was laughing like a man who had completely lost his mind, and gripped the sword tightly, which provided him protection from the poisonous energy...
Brian approached Elliot and gave him a magic potion and a strange-shaped necklace. As soon as he held it, the poison in the area around him retreated, and the potion he drank restored his skin color, which had been turning blue and purple from the poisoning... Elliot's stance was calm despite facing this, but he asked with a sort of concern:
"Will this reach the residents of the palace?!"
"I don't know if it's a blessing or a curse, but the Marquis isolated us in this office; we cannot leave, and no one can enter.. I believe the effect of the poison will not reach them."
Elliot breathed a sigh of relief then said in a neutral tone:
"Let's finish this matter, then let's check on everyone's condition.."
Brian did not say a word but returned his gaze to Kayn, who was fighting Albin..
* * *
Somewhere, the room was extremely dark despite the full moon, but the thick curtains refused to let a single point of light seep through, as if the world agreed that this heart had rotted from darkness...
_" What next?! "
A small voice whispered within this darkness—a voice that was not human, but upon hearing it, you would feel as if frost had touched all your joints and your soul had begun to pale and fade...
"Very powerful energy; you will like it very much..."
It was the deep voice declaring loyalty to its master regarding his desire. The voice hummed with satisfaction; this servant had not hesitated to please him..
_" Hmmm, what is your wish this time?! "
The servant smiled with pure greed and said with fascination and enchanted eyes:
"The thing that moves this game; no matter how much I tried, I could not know it.."
A purple but dim spark ignited, revealing sharp fangs and a hideous face that resembled no monster, but was a mixture between a deformed human and a terrifying beast...
_" What you ask for is a risk... a being that travels in this world and was born from desire. The task is not easy, for there are those who know your intentions... Steve "
Steve felt astonished. He thought for a moment that it was just luck in the hands of the current Emperor, but the shock that there was something more powerful was greater than he imagined...
"My Lord, and the solution?"
_" Your good luck is that I want it too... I will help you "
Steve's own confusion increased; what need did his master have—the invincible monster who had managed to hide in Cassian for more than thirty years without anyone finding him—for a traveling being in this world..
"I will bring the head of this being... just give me the signal..."
_" I do not want her head; I want her alive "
Steve turned to his master sitting in the darkness and felt puzzled. His master's tone held amusement, so he bowed and said:
"Your command, My Lord..."
Steve Rokshan left that room. As soon as he left, the room was fully lit with a dim purple light, and the monster appeared, sitting on a chair of polished gold with a strange body—feet and hands, but they were longer than natural—and a face with circular eyes and a mouth with massive, sharp teeth without lips, bat ears, pale skin, and hair like gold. It was a luxurious room for a terrifying monster... but he seemed not to care for it...
* * * It was a fierce fight between Albin and Kayn. Despite Albin being over fifty years old, he fought with a brilliance that truly amazed Elliot, but his opponent was Kayn; the man who never lost..
Elliot looked at Brian, who seemed to be in his most tense and anxious state, then at Kayn, who seemed terrifyingly angry. When he looked at his father, he knew that what kept him standing until now was the massive amount of his dark magic...
' How many souls have you taken, Father?... '
"Albin Silas.... my request has been accepted by the Emperor, and I have officially become the Marquis, and I have the right to withdraw everything from you.."
Brian looked with confusion at Elliot, who spoke words that seemed meaningless during a fierce fight, but he was astonished at Albin's reaction, who froze in his place and said angrily...
"What are you raving about?!"
Elliot moved Brian aside and walked toward Albin calmly while taking a bundle of papers from his jacket pocket and showing them to his father...
"These are the documents; you can check the Emperor's seal"
As soon as the documents flew to Albin's hand and he read them, a mad energy erupted from him. Elliot smiled at his father's face with sadness...
"My father has lost. Even if you die here... no one will care about you..."
Kayn looked at Brian for a moment then at Elliot and realized that the small distance separating Albin and Elliot was a very deadly distance...
' The madman! ... He is going to sacrifice himself '
In a fraction of a second, Kayn and Brian moved at the same moment Albin launched a fierce attack toward Elliot..
CLAAAAASH!!!!!!
...... To be continued ......