Drystan is enraged, and Ercilia is entertained.
There's a feral look in his pointed glare that gives off the impression that he's all set to strike back. She smirked, seemingly smug enough to lower her gun slightly - an opening. Even then, he stayed on his guard, preparing himself for another trick up her sleeves.
Drystan hissed beneath his breath when Ercilia placed her foot on his chest - a perfect image of a prey getting trampled by its predator.
"Well, do you despise me now~?" she mocked with an amused grin, regarding him condescendingly.
"With every fiber of my being," he growled vehemently, voice raspy, and at that moment, she noticed an incandescent, fiery glow in his crimson irises.
"My, how pretty~ Your eyes are burning with life. Perhaps, it is mine?"
"How could I set you ablaze when you yourself had already put me on fire? I was a moth drawn to your flame - only to get caught in it and lose my way."
"You're quite the poetic one, I see."
Ercilia snorted while Drystan kept quiet.
Being a poet like what she teased he is may have been worth it, though. Seeing how it distracted her, he bolted straight into action and raised his feet to kick her away. Thrown off guard, she ended up losing her balance and stumbling backward - an opportunity he seized to stand up again and grab a hold on her weapon.
However, Ercilia's reaction this time is not delayed. She tightens her grip on her gun and regains her footing at the same moment, reminding Drystan that she has good reflexes and an excellent fighting prowess.
"You dirty little trickster using all those poetries on me!" she exclaimed, fuming.
Thinking that he's no match for her when it comes to one-on-one combat, he decides to flee as soon as he gets the chance. He knows that she can shoot at him like last time, but at that point, all he can do is elude the bullets and continue to make a dash for it, especially considering that the pursuers must already be approaching.
So, Drystan just keeps on running - leaving Ercilia behind and never looking back.
'Survive. I've got to survive...' he told himself over and over again.
'I'll get out of here, and I'll make them all pay!'
Drystan let his hatred rage through him like the rush of adrenaline, igniting his desire to take revenge on the Viatrix family.
---
Ercilia stays in her place, still and silent.
She watched how Drystan ran from her as if his whole life depended on it. He didn't spare one last look nor did he hesitate for a second. His farewell had been that sight of him scurrying away in a haste - that sight of his expression filled with inconceivable hate. She seems to have really gone for it, and now, she has to see it through until the end.
"You're wrong, Drystan. I was the one who'd been drawn to your flame. Only difference is that you're not the one who set me afire. It was I who made you leave me burning..." Ercilia muttered to no one in particular, still staring out dazedly to where Drystan disappeared to.
"And I don't regret it at all."
She lets out a sigh in resignation, smiling weakly as she does so.
Now that he's out of sight, she no longer has to keep wearing her mask - a mask that has ended everything they were and would have possibly been. So much for the whole mafia heiress act. It's not like her relatives were ever going to forgive her after she reduced all their plans and goals to ashes.
"Well, to begin with, I'm not going to ask for those people's forgiveness. Neither would I surrender the only friend I ever had just to replace my monster of a father."
Drystan was right.
Ercilia was lying.
But it had to be done in order for him to escape successfully. It's true that there were pursuers nearby, though it was never her plan to side with them and give him up at the last minute. His captors will definitely catch up to them. That's why she chose to stay behind and give him as much time as he needs to make it outside.
She'll be the bait.
"Besides, I have left the other captives scattered around the area. I need to go back there and help them escape too."
Ercilia knows that Drystan could help her if only she asked.
However, she wouldn't risk it. Initially, saving the others wasn't a part of their plan, considering that they barely even succeeded. Still, she won't give up on those who're in need, and she'd rather get caught on her own than get caught with him.
As if her thoughts had the power to summon, she heard footsteps coming her way.
"Oh, they're here."
The pursuers are close.
Fortunately, she managed to get Drystan to drag his ass out of there as soon as possible. Ercilia had worried that her act of betrayal would just be for naught when he went back to being a ball of negativity earlier - how typical of him. It's a good thing that she could still bring herself to lie some more.
"Geez, Drystan. You really had to make me rack my brains out back there. I didn't know what else I should say to make you hate me enough. But it seemed like calling you a 'toy' had done the trick..." Ercilia continued to murmur to herself, readying her gun and turning in the direction of the approaching pursuers.
"That was probably painful to hear. You must really despise me now."
Though she's sad about it, she still doesn't regret anything.
After all, making Drystan hate her has been her goal. She wanted to earn his hatred, and she wanted him to take revenge on her clan - to bring them down once and for all. It may be selfish of her to place the burden on him. But if he is to find himself wanting her family's downfall, then instead of being selfish, what she did is give him the push he needs.
Ercilia just hopes that pretending to betray Drystan is enough to motivate him to put an end to the Viatrix's monstrosity.