#also they for SURE eat corpses so we loop back to fear no. 2 really just being fear no. 1 hbfhs | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

queen-haq · 3 years

Text

Fic: A Woman Scorned - Part 16

Pairing: Billy Russo x Reader

Rating: R for language and smut.

Words: ~3100 words.

Summary: You’ve been sleeping with Billy Russo for a few months now. Knowing his aversion to emotional commitments, you’re satisfied with your clandestine arrangement until you catch him having dinner with Dinah Madani one night. Then it finally dawns on you. It’s not that he doesn’t want to commit, he just doesn’t want to commit to *you*.

Billy may think he knows you, but he has no idea what he’s just lost…

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15

gif credit: @benbarnxs

Part 16

You were straddling Billy, riding him, your hips undulating atop his body. His fingers tightly gripped your waist, getting ready to take charge so you were underneath him, but you refused to submit. Instead you grabbed his hands and pinned it above his head. As you hovered above him, he arched up to kiss you but you shifted back, instead staring down at him intently. He growled at you before he rolled over unexpectedly, taking you along with him.

As he thrust into you, harder and rougher each time, you began to slide off the bed. In your new position, you caught sight of Adam on the floor. His corpse was wrapped up in a rug, only his head sticking out-

“Hey.” Billy pulled you up so you were now sitting across his lap, facing him. “Look at me. Only me.”

Only a few seconds ago he was biting you as you clawed at him, both of you desperate to possess each other. Your movements had been savage, animalistic even, but now Billy was kissing you languidly, his hand brushing the back of your hair while the other settled on the small of your back. You were directing the rhythm of the thrusts now, setting a slower pace so you could fully enjoy the feel of his cock stretching your insides oh-so-tantalizingly. Your forehead braced against his, you closed your eyes and lost yourself to the flood of emotions that overcame you.

***

It was after midnight. Billy had come home with you and both of you were in bed, you nestled against him while he spooned you from behind. Even though you were tired, you couldn’t sleep. Your brain was working overtime processing everything that happened in the last few hours. He stirred next to you, dropping a tender kiss on your bare shoulder.

“What’s wrong?” he murmured. You may have been fully alert but he sounded absolutely exhausted.

“Are you sure they’ll be thorough with the cleaning?”

“Yeah.” Throwing his arm over you, he covered your hand with his. “These guys are not amateurs. They know what they’re doing. There won’t be any traces of us left in that room.”

“And Adam’s body-”

“Will be disposed of.”

“But how do you know you can trust these guys? What’s stopping them from blackmailing-”

“’cause money talks, babe. That crew is very well paid.” He squeezed your palm. “I’ve used them in the past. No trouble yet.”

With his military career you were already aware of his violent past, but you also sensed he had a long hit list aside from that. When he’d realized your plans for Adam, he hadn’t been remotely shocked at the idea of you killing another person. In fact, as you stabbed Adam repeatedly, Billy had looked at you with such pride and reverence that it had left you breathless.

“What we did tonight, you know what that means, don’t you?”

His voice brought you out of your reverie. You exhaled a deep breath, drawing circles on his palm. “That we’re bad people.”

“No, we’re survivors. We take down anyone who gets in our way.”

“He didn’t come after you,” you reminded him. “You didn’t have to get involved.”

He turned you around to face him. “Nobody threatens you and gets to live after that.”

Your heart pounded in your chest. When he looked at you with such intensity, you were almost ready to believe anything.

He cradled your face, his thumb caressing your bottom lip. “We’re connected now. Forever. Because of tonight.”

You didn’t understand how his words could evoke such conflicting emotions within you. On one hand your stomach fluttered with excitement, he was saying things you’d wanted to hear for a long time, but then there was the fear. Doubt. Uncertainty. You forced a smile, hoping some levity would lighten the situation. “You make it sound like we’re married or something.”

Disgust flooded over his face. “Fuck, no. Marriages end. One day you’re bragging about being in love, next it’s all over. It’s not based on anything real. But we are.” He reached for your hand, which was resting on the pillow between you and him, and intertwined his fingers through yours. “I saw you tonight, the real you. And you saw me. No pretenses, no boundaries. And you didn’t run. You didn’t even flinch.”

“Neither did you.” You lifted your eyebrow. “You were rock hard.”

“I always am around you.”

His words made the heat rise in your cheeks, which he noticed right away. Giving you a teasing smile, he leaned in closer to give you a peck on the cheek. “Are you blushing?”

“Shut up.”

Billy’s eyes remained locked on you, simply staring at you with sleepy eyes. “I don’t like who I was when I thought I lost you. I couldn’t eat, couldn’t work. Every time I closed my eyes I imagined you fucking this other guy, kissing him. Even the thought of you talking to him made me want to burn it all down.”

Your heart ached at how tired he looked. Scooting closer, you started massaging his forehead. When he closed his eyes, you dropped a gentle kiss on each of his eyelids, the beauty mark just below his right eye, before snuggling him tightly in your arms. “Sleep, Billy.”

“You’ll be here when I wake up?” he murmured drowsily.

You smiled. “It is my apartment.”

He didn’t respond, already fast asleep. You tried to do the same but couldn’t; there were too many thoughts running around in your brain. You had assumed you’d feel guilty about taking a life; you didn’t. You remembered the vicious, contemptuous anger in Adam’s eyes when he’d held you at gunpoint, and how he’d threatened to kill others in your team, and all you felt was relief. Relief that he was dead and no longer a danger to you.

Billy stirred next to you, drawing your attention. You reached out to hold him, your touch feather-light so as not to wake him up. He looked calm and peaceful, unlike the haunted and distraught way he appeared earlier in the hotel room. It was still hard to digest that he’d been so unhinged at the thought of losing you. But the thing that resonated with you the most was that he hadn’t been able to hurt you despite all of the anger he’d felt. Growing up the way you had, you were always on alert for things to turn violent at any moment. One wrong comment or an innocent gesture - hell even a lone pair of sock on the floor - had the potential to trigger your father’s temper and turn things violent. During those moments his rage was uncontrollable, and as a result you always worried about how people reacted when they were furious. The fact that Billy hadn’t hit you even though he’d been completely enraged made you realize you were physically safe with him.

Maybe emotionally as well. For so long you’d had difficulty believing he could reciprocate your feelings yet you couldn’t ignore how devastated he’d been. Nor could you rationalize away his emotions. It still felt surreal but he did truly care about you, and the thought filled you with warmth and made your heart soar with happiness.

You brushed your lips against his, hoping Billy’s comforting presence next to you would help you relax. However, fifteen minutes later sleep still alluded you. Eventually you decided to do something useful and work instead. Carefully sliding out of bed so you didn’t disturb him, you tip-toed out of the bedroom. Immediately you felt the soreness in your body, an after effect of the rough sex you had with Billy in the hotel room earlier. Grabbing a nearby throw, you were soon nestled in your favourite spot on the chaise lounge, working away on your laptop.

An hour later you heard footsteps behind you and you turned around to find Billy yawning, clad in boxers, his hair all ruffled.

“Why aren’t you in bed?” he grumbled.

You scooted over to give him space to sit on the chaise but he seemed to have other ideas in mind as he took a seat behind you. You found yourself settled between his legs, your back nestled against his chest, as he caressed down the length of your arms.

“I couldn’t sleep. Figured I might as well do something useful.”

“What corporate shit are you working on?” he teased, playfully grabbing your laptop to look at your screen. You smacked his arm right away, shutting the screen and pushing the laptop away.

Billy purposely rubbed his face against the base of your neck and you started giggling at the sensation of his prickly beard on your bare skin. “Stop,” you whined. “It tickles.” you squealed loudly, trying to jump out of his arms but he held you in a tight grip.

Finally he stopped, and as you struggled to catch your breath, you slapped his arm playfully. “You’re such a jerk.”

He chuckled, hugging you tightly from behind. “That’s for ignoring all my calls since Tuesday.”

“I’m still not unblocking your number,” you retorted. His beard scraped along your shoulder, making you squeal again. “Okay, fine. Sorry!”

“Swear that you’re not gonna block me again.”

You turned around in his arms, resting on your knees as your arms looped around his neck. Smiling down at him, you nuzzled your nose with his. “Swear that you won’t act like an asshole again.”

“Can’t really do that.”

“Exactly.” He tucked your hair behind your ear. Butterflies fluttered in your stomach at the tender affection on his face, the warmth of his gaze spreading slow, languid heat throughout your body. “You should go back to bed. You still look tired.”

“I’ve had a rough week.”

You pouted your lips. “I know. I’m sorry.”

“Want to make it up to me?” he asked, cocking his eyebrow at you.

”How? By sucking you off?” you teased, running your fingers through his hair.

“Move in with me.”

Your hands stilled on him, finding it hard to breathe all of a sudden. At first you thought he was joking but the solemn expression on his face made you realize otherwise. You moved away, putting much needed distance between the two of you.

“That’s not funny, Billy.”

Maintaining a rigid posture on the chaise lounge, he shrugged his shoulders. “Not meant to be. I’m dead serious.”

“You know that’s ridiculous, right?”

“Why? ‘cause I wanna keep you safe?”

“The threat is gone. I took care of it.”

“We took care of it,” he said pointedly. “A threat which you didn’t even tell me about.”

“I explained that to you already.” Feeling defensive, you started pacing the floor. “You promised you’d have your guy stop tailing me.”

“Sure. As soon as I know you’re not gonna keep things from me again. You moving in will help with that.”

“So if I don’t move in, you’ll have me followed 24/7?” Anger surged through you, you were so furious you wanted to scream. “That’s fucking blackmail.”

“Relax. No need to be so dramatic about it.”

You grabbed the closest cushion you had and flung it at him, enraged by his patronising tone. “We barely know each other-”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” he interjected, finally moving to stand up. His eyes were pitch black, his jaw clenched. “You and I killed someone tonight! You took my hand, my knife, and we stabbed the bastard in the heart with it, together. We fucked while he drew his last breath and now you’re feeding me this bullshit?” He stormed towards you. “No! I’ve seen your darkness and you’ve seen mine. There’s no one else in this world that knows us better than we know each other.”

You shook your head, flabbergasted by his reaction. “This is insane. I can’t move in with you. We haven’t even gone out on a real date because you said I was boring!”

“If you believe that then you really are a fucking idiot!”

You stiffened, his words ringing in your ear. Fucking idiot. Something your father used to call you repeatedly, his tone full of hate and vitriol when he lashed out at you. It started with a fucking idiot then spiralled into bitch and whore and everything else hurtful under the sun. You swore to yourself you’d never accept being spoken to like that by another person yet here you were, being insulted again by someone who was supposed to care about you.

You retreated back from Billy, careful to keep your distance from him, and leveled him with a cold glance. “Don’t you ever talk to me like that again.”

Your voice may have been deceptively calm but there was a storm brewing inside you. You desperately needed some space. As you moved away from Billy and headed to the kitchen, he tried to block your path but you immediately pushed him away. “Don’t touch me!”

You quickly sidestepped past him and entered the kitchen, heading for the cabinet where you kept your bottle of whiskey. Pouring yourself a glass, you slowly sipped the liquid to soothe your frayed nerves and forget the memories Billy had just unleashed in you.

***

Even as the words left his mouth, Billy knew he’d made a mistake. He regretted what he said instantly, even more so when he realized how much the words had stung you. The last thing he wanted was to cause you pain but he couldn’t seem to help himself. The more he tried to hold on to you the more you slipped through his fingers.

After giving you a few minutes to calm down, he entered the kitchen behind you. You were standing in the opposite corner, drinking the hard stuff, which further signalled how shaken you were. Billy knew Scotch wasn’t something you enjoyed, you only drank it when you were messed up.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized. “I shouldn’t have said that. It won’t happen again. I swear.”

You didn’t acknowledge him, and it hurt like hell.

“When I think about you pulling away from me, it makes me lose my mind.” He swallowed audibly, desperately trying to get through to you. “I’m all in when it comes to us but it feels like you always have one foot out the door.” He took hesitant steps towards you while your eyes still remained on the countertop, refusing to meet his gaze. “I keep fucking up but I’ve never felt this way before. I don’t know what I’m doing. I just can’t lose you, Y/N.”

“I’m not built like you, Billy,” you finally spoke, turning to look at him. “I have doubts. I’m constantly dealing with insecurities. It takes me time to trust people, and I just can’t rush into things head-on.”

“And I’m someone who hustles. I go after everything I want with guns blazing. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have Anvil.”

“But I’m not a thing, Billy. I’m a person, and you can’t push me into doing stuff I’m not ready for.”

He exhaled a resigned sigh. “I know. It’s ‘cause I get paranoid when it comes to you. You’re a closed book and you never tell me anything.” His eyes scanned yours, his stomach clenched with anxiety. “I don’t even know how you feel about me.” It was the first time he’d voiced that thought, something he didn’t even realize he felt until this very moment. You wanted him, that he knew, and you’d even confessed you loved him once but he didn’t really believe in that bullshit. What mattered to him was if you needed him as much as he did you. The idea of not having you in his life drove him insane, but did you feel the same way? He didn’t think so and it bothered the fuck out of him.

You set your glass down on the counter before reaching out to cradle his face, your soulful eyes meeting his emotional gaze. “I want to be with you, Billy. I like you so much that it scares me.”

Your words brought with them a tidal wave of relief that swept over him like a calm breeze. It was like he could breathe again. He pulled you close, his forehead against yours as he simply held you. “Don’t be scared, babe. I don’t bite.”

“That is a complete fucking lie,” you retorted. “I still have the marks from earlier to prove it.” Your smile faded again as you held his stare. “But I need you to be patient with me. You can’t bully me or get mad if I don’t want to rush into things.”

He nodded his head. “I won’t.”

“I’ve only ever had myself to rely on. And the thought of trusting you? Relying on you? It scares the hell out of me. Because there’s always a voice in my head that’s reminding me I need to go back to being alone when we end things.”

“I need to kill that voice.”

You chuckled, reaching out to loop your arms behind his back. “It shuts up eventually. It did in the hotel room when I saw how fucked up you were without me. That’s when it sunk in you actually do like me.”

“It took you that long to believe it?”

You gave him a sad smile. “Yeah. You did tell me I was boring.”

He groaned right away, regret washing over him. He should never have said those fucking words to you. “You’re not boring. You’re smart. And hot.” He kissed your left cheek. “And sweet. And funny. And mine.” Then the right cheek. “And when you lecture me about cybersecurity, I get so hard.”

“Whatever. You’re the one who wanted to know more about the topic,” you grumbled.

He grinned, giving you a tender peck on the lips. “I can listen to you talk for hours and hours-“

“Shut up.” You pressed your palm over his mouth.

Wrapping his arms around you, he lifted you off the ground and started carrying you back to the bedroom. “Forever actually, if you’re naked.”

“Not once have I lectured you naked.”

He dropped you on the bed. “Yeah, exactly. Time you start.” He jumped into bed, rubbing his beard on your face again as you started squealing.

A few minutes later you were both panting for air, staring up at the ceiling. “Just to make it clear, I’m not moving in,” you huffed through laboured breaths.

He turned to look at you, smirking. “Fine, but I’m taking you out tonight. Proper date and all.”

The most beautiful smile graced your face. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” You were a ray of sunshine beaming up at him and Billy’s heart felt so full he worried it would explode. If he could, he’d freeze this moment forever.

Part 17

A/N - As always, your wonderful feedback is what keeps me inspired to write and post consistently. I was initially nervous about this chapter because the characters experience a gamut of emotions but it was necessary. I hope you like and enjoy this chapter. Feedback, as always, is very much appreciated and feeds my soul :)

Tag list:

@yourfavoritefruitybitch @voyevoda-thejoy @adreamemporium @queenmalhinewahine @gubleryum @galaxyjane @xceafh@maralisa124@tomhollandisabae @daybleedsintonightfa11 @lil-baby-nor @all-art-is-quite-useless @tanyaherondale @nashibirne @dour-trash @thetallassgirl @athenamikaelson @agent-jbarnes @primadonnasdream @aleksanderwh0r3 @elisemockingbird @nihilismworld @archisur@nemesis729 @lysawayne@kaqua @ladyblablabla @lemasonda@advictedtohim @24-martie @tarkanelima-blog @shinebrightlikeafanbase @krystal-clear1 @damalseer@dontjinx-it@darkishx @wanderlusting-about-life @thatguppienamedbae @happypepperdog @bat-revival @sassygirl25 @consulting–heroes @the-celestial-kitsune @mackaywhore @ablxssm @competitive-dust @red-head011 @exo-1204 @sunsetenigma @millieb-3199 @chatnain @licensedcheek @tinkertailor1212 @vertesalope @safetyhtom @acourtofglassandroses @eliwinchester-barnes @finnismyoriginalsin @weallhaveadestiny @beananacake @beauty-and-the-beast97 @smurfelle @fire-treasure-iii @charly-0 @kestrafagnor @pigwidgeonxo @damagelove @allegra-writes @pensandthings @jad3djay @batshitbarnes @kashimayuki @secretsthathauntus @odetostep @awesome-eccia @mackaywhore @stories-you-wont-hear @vvsdiamond28 @supernaturalcat7 @arieltwvdtohamflash @iknownoqueenbutthequeeninme @devs-stufff @ticosas @moodacheeks @myakai13 @carlywhomever @fvckthisbxtchup @its-evita-here @papapapadumb @talesfrommycell @bat-luna-cat @fific7 @elluvians @dailydoseofchoices @everythinghappens-love @papapapadumb @mylife-love-and-other-things @bigcreatorwombatdreamer @ancientbeing10 @natty2245 @stuckysavedmylive @kasslucilfer @simp-for-ben-barners @originaldeputycalzoneegg @bdffkierenwalker @kimoranelson03 @sadbi-hours @haushinka27 @haushinka27 @caylaxwrites @extraneousred @agentmstark @crazywitchkitty @its-an-idea-not-a-blog @partypoison00 @fictional-hooman @hoglady @helnicks @luckyfreakfishpeach @chiquitita18 @rachlovesactors @icecream50055 @doloreschanal @lupinsfavslytherin @swthxrry @wanderlusting-about-life @dreamer7black @leahnicole1219 @superawesomegeek @weallhaveadestiny @toxicenough @tiiffanym @dark-twisted-and-mechanical-mind @cap-just-said-language

#billy russo x reader #billy russo #ben barnes #the punisher #the punisher fanfiction #a woman scorned

653 notes · View notes

outlawandlychgate · 3 years

Text

Chapter 3-Funeral Procession of the Dead; Scene 2

Outlaw & Lychgate, pages 48-58

The land that had once been Retasan Fortress.

Seth and Lich spotted the crew of undead walking along in a procession nearby.

“…There they are. The Outlaws,” Lich murmured as he got down from the carriage alongside Seth.

Dead soldiers were largely beings without capacity for reason, yet the Outlaws appeared to be heading somewhere in a single-file line with distinctly organized movements.

“It’s like they’re a funeral procession.” After voicing his thoughts, Seth turned to look at Lich’s face. “I suppose I ought to ask what our resident expert thinks of this scene. Hey, Lich.”

“…Someone is controlling the Outlaws. At this point the only person who could make the dead soldiers move like that is Lady Banica, I would think—”

“But it isn’t her.”

“—Then there are two other possibilities I can think of. An ‘inheritor’ who has the power of ‘Gluttony’, or else…the ‘boy’ that you’ve spoken of.”

“An ‘inheritor’…It’s been a while since I’ve heard that term.”

By all rights, the only people who could wield a demon’s power were those who had contracted with that demon.

But in this world there was the rare person who would have demonic powers from birth.

In the days when the magic users of Levianta called these people “inheritors” they were worshipped, and still at times also feared and discriminated against.

For example, Irina Clockworker.

While being a clone of Seth, she was also an “inheritor” of the powers of “Greed”, and so was able to cast blue flames.

And then there was the people of the Loop Octopus clan.

The whole family line, such as the head of the Leviantan senate and his descendants, would periodically have prophetic dreams called “purple dreams”. This was because they were “inheritors” of “Envy”.

Other “inheritors” had shown up in history several times before, such as Mikhail Asayev, the instigator of the “New Four Horsemen Incident”.

But as for an “inheritor” with the power of “Gluttony”…

Seth had never so much as heard a rumor of one, in all the long years he’d wandered this world.

It was the same for Lich.

“Still…There may be someone who had the power of an ‘inheritor’ but went their whole lives without using it.”

There was something Seth found hard to grasp in Lich’s theory. “If that were the case…Why would they start using their power this late in the game?”

“Who knows…What do you think of the other candidate?”

“The ‘boy’?...” As far as Seth knew, he didn’t have that kind of power. “I don’t think so.”

“But do you think that he’s involved in this matter?”

“Yes. So it’s likely that the ‘boy’ and this person controlling the group—”

“Have joined forces?”

“It would appear so.”

There was no point in endlessly debating over it here.

Whatever the case, for now the two of them decided to tag along with the procession.

“Could you wait for us here?” Lich asked the coachman.

“Sure, I don’t mind.”

“I don’t think it’ll take very long, but…if we haven’t come back by sundown please head back to the palace by yourself and let the King know.”

“Understood—Well then, stay safe.”

It wasn’t clear if the Outlaws could see Lich and Seth or not, but at any rate they didn’t appear to pay them any particular mind, steadily moving on ahead.

Judging by their direction, their goal seemed to be the ruins of Retasan fortress.

“They’re quite slow…How about we try going ahead of the procession?”

Lich nodded at Seth’s suggestion. “There’s no need for us to tag along at the back of the line. And perhaps the person controlling the group is at the very front.”

The two of them slipped by the line, aiming for the head.

Midway there, Seth stopped and pointed at the procession.

“Hey, Lich, look there.”

Inside the line it seemed there were Outlaws carrying a long black box.

“It’s just big enough for someone to be inside—It looks like a coffin. I guess it really is a funeral procession.”

“I wonder whose corpse is…Actually, I suppose there’s not even necessarily a person in there.”

“Shall we take a peek? We may be souls but I’m sure we can at least move the lid a little.”

“…No way. We’re going to head to the front first without needlessly provoking them.”

“Alright, alright.”

Lich began to walk towards the front again, paying no mind to Seth’s apparent reluctance to leave.

They reached the head of the line, but the Outlaw walking at the front appeared no different from the rest.

“Doesn’t look much like the leader.” Lich appeared a bit disappointed, but when he turned to look at where the procession was going, the color of his expression changed. “That’s…”

He could see a mansion with red walls.

It looked like that was where they were headed.

“You recognize that building?” Seth asked.

“I’ve never been there myself. But it…looks very much like the mansion Lady Banica conjured with her imagination…based on the one she’d had in life.”

“My my—Then maybe Banica’s the ringleader of all this after all?”

“It can’t be…I never heard anything about it from her.”

“In that case maybe it’s just that she doesn’t have a lot of confidence in y—”

“Let’s check it out,” Lich interrupted, dashing off towards the mansion.

“Hey, I wouldn’t think you’re that sort of character…Well, this is fine too. This is Lich’s true self that only I know…Ha ha.”

Seth chased after Lich, a half smile on his face.

On first glance there was no one inside the mansion.

But given that the building existed like this—there must have been someone to have conjured it up.

Seth and Lich split up to search every room.

--In no time at all.

When Seth opened the door labeled “Head Chamberlain’s Quarters”, he spotted a single man quietly sitting inside.

He looked like a dead soldier, but had a slightly different atmosphere than the others.

“…What is it? I’m in the middle of my break right now,” he said, his eyes clearly carrying a spark of reason in them.

“Ho, so you can see me.”

“…I’m not sure I understand what you’re getting at.”

“Well, whatever—Hey, Lich!” Seth loudly called for Lich. “This way, he’s in here!”

Lich appeared after a few moments.

“This is—”

“Most likely the leader of the Outlaws.”

Lich stood before the dead soldier and asked, “What is your name?”

“Ron Grapple. I am a chamberlain who serves the Conchita family.”

“…Ah. But from what I can see, there’s no one in this mansion but you.”

“Indeed, it would appear so. Everyone else has already passed on, after all.”

“So then what exactly are you doing here?”

“I…must show my mourning. For the final owner of this mansion—Lady Banica.”

“--!?”

Lich’s eyes opened wide for a moment.

“By doing so, her spirit will be released…And the curse upon me will also be lifted.”

“Curse?”

“I was once cursed by two dreadful twins. A curse that means I can never die—Even if I become a dead soldier, and my body rots away…As time passes I am resurrected, again and again.”

“…”

“At first I lost my sanity, just like the others. But eventually, little by little, I regained the conscious mind I had in life…and became able to control the other dead soldiers.”

“Hmm, that’s quite interesting…But why were you cursed in the first place?”

“Curse…curse…” Ron suddenly covered his face with his hands, bending over. “The twins’ curse…No, much earlier than that…The curse of the Baemu—No! It all started…On that day. My father…Aybee, using his ‘inheritor’ powers, turned me into—I have always been his puppet! Without being conscious of it I hired those twins…And then the Baemu…I was forced to slip it in with the other gifts…Ohh…Ouuugh…”

Finally he started to sob, bursting into tears.

Seth stood before Lich and murmured, “He appears very distraught…Perhaps we ought to change the subject.”

“…Right.”

Lich crouched down and locked eyes with Ron. “—Are you alright?”

“Y…yes…I apologize. I lost my composure there.”

“Let’s not talk about the past, but rather what’s going on right now, shall we? Before we came here we saw a group of dead soldiers carrying a coffin…Are they yours?”

“—Yes. They are bringing it here under my instruction. To hold a funeral service for Lady Banica.”

“So then inside the coffin is—”

“Lady Banica’s corpse is laid out inside. It was recovered from the ground under the directions of another.”

--There was a massive flaw in his explanation.

As far as Seth knew (and Lich likely knew as well), before her death Banica’s last act had been to eat herself.

Her dead body couldn’t possibly still exist somewhere.

Someone had lied to this Ron.

And the true identity of the fiend deceiving him would be--

--The ‘boy’.

Seth cut in between Lich and Ron, “Where is the person who gave you those directions now?”

“He’s—”

In that moment.

The room was suddenly filled with a dazzling light.

“—You don’t need to say it, Ron.” A child’s voice came from within the light. “If you’re talking about me…I’m already here.”

Seth cried out to the light—to the ‘boy’, “So it’s you—Amostia!”

“…Well well, if it isn’t my dear father.”

“Indeed. But…You seem to have changed quite a bit, haven’t you.”

“I have, you are correct. I am no longer—the ‘boy’ that you once knew.”

--So it was true.

It was as he’d thought.

The theory that Seth had in his mind was becoming a conviction.

<<prev------directory------next>>

22 notes · View notes