As they followed a bronze haired maid whose steps screamed nervousness, Brunos opened the mission tab. He wanted to check if the system was serious about reducing Kill A Pergus duration.
[Quest: Kill a pergus!]
[Duration: 2 days.]
[Countdown: 1 day. 18 hours. 36 minutes.]
'Two days and it is showing only 1 day and... oh oh! The countdown must have started the second I received the quest. Oh my!'
'Does it mean I only have tonight? Geez!'
If it was true that those creatures showed up only at night, it meant he had one night to find one.
When it was ten days, Brunos was too blinded by those two numbers to realize there was a clock counting toward his death. Now that it was only a day and a few hours, his heart beat increased, a creepy feeling replacing the vermilion liquid in his veins.
Seconds later, his mind felt like exploding as hundreds of questions filled it. But he didn't have time for some of them like; where do Pergi hide at day?
He could only ask himself, what if something goes wrong?
'I have only tonight to go kill a Pergus. God! How am I going to tell the Petite what my plans are?'
He took a moment to mine some ideas and lastly, came to a conclusion. He had to leave the palace as soon as possible and prepare for his hunt before the sun sets.
'That means I need to come up with an excuse to shorten my conversation with Valeria.'
With that in mind, he smiled and gave a glance to his surroundings. He could see a house in every direction, mediaval smell streaming from them. From the looks of it, this was more of a town than a castle. Did they call it a castle because of the way the houses were arranged?
Maybe yes, or... or no. But if it was a debate, he would be on a proposing side. The houses were short, and got taller and taller as one approached the center. The one in the middle was at least 50 meters tall, demanding to be called a tower instead of a house. With this pattern, they formed something like a castle.
At that moment, he heard Lilyon's voice. "Who are you?"
He gave her a questioning look but saw her staring at the maid. The maid halted in her steps as if frightened, but then continued her journey like she didn't hear anything.
Lilyon repeated her question.
The maid turned around and stared at her instead of answering.
"I'm asking you, the maid."
Brunos didn't need to look at Lilyon's face to know something was wrong. Her tone had a wary tune within.
"I'm Nattollie!"
"... Uliva calls me her disciple," she hurried to add.
Lilyon's face seemed thoughtful before she said, "OK!"
The journey continued and Brunos resumed his observations not forgetting to ask Lilyon what was that.
"The queen never uses any other maid to run her errands except Uliva."
"Maybe Uliva sent that one," replied Brunos as he resumed his observations. Houses of the same height seemed to be grouped together, leaving a wide compound between them and the ones taller to them. "Didn't she say she's her disple?"
"That's the scary part of the story."
Brunos raised an eyebrow.
"Her hair colour belongs to the old generation," explained Lilyon. "I don't think someone like her can be anyone's disciple let alone a maid."
"If you've paid much attention," she continued. "None of us has a pure coloured hair. It might be red, but with some kind of strange hue mixed within. Only those who had lived over two hundred years before the curse has pure colour."
Brunos remember the day he woke up in the nest of now-called-his-wives hair. He could tell at first glance that something was peculiar about their hair.
Who was this maid then?
Before he could say anything to Lilyon, he heard another question.
"Where are you taking us?"
Still walking, the maid replied. "To the Queen, my lady!"
A smile could be seen on Lilyon's face at the mention of my lady though it didn't stop her from asking another question.
"Not to who. Don't you know the difference between where and who?"
"I do, my lady," the maid answered, a suppressed irritation obvious in her tone.
"Then where?"
"It's the garden, my lady!"
Another smile.
Actually, Lilyon was a princess. Why was she satisfied with my lady? Wasn't it clear? No one knew she was the King's daughter so no one respected her. This might have been her first time being addressed a royal title.
"Who are you trying to fool? The queen never go at the garden on Monday. What day is this?"
"Monday, my lady!"
"Then where exactly are you taking us?"
The mention of Monday reminded Brunos of the day Valeria swore never to open her mouth again. They were in the garden when he rejected her. The reason why she never returned there on Monday.
"Stop tormenting her," Brunos told Lilyon. "It's me who told Valeria to send someone to fetch me whenever she feels like it. I was the reason she never goes to the garden on Mondays. Maybe the reason why she has returned there."
"OK!"
The journey continued in silence.
Even if Lilyon and Eleanor would try to speak to him, he was too engrossed in the memories of Monday and the garden to reply.
Back then, the garden was new. Valeria had planted it all alone when Brunos left for war against Lantana—the Queen of Valinan. Placed far from the King's chambers, it was the closest thing to the castle's perimeter.
Valeria said she wanted Brunos to see something as breathtaking as that as soon as he would return from the war and emerge from the Valinan mountain.
A mountain near the Crimson Castle that allowed anyone on its peak to see the tower in Valinan. Brunos wondered if the tower was still there after the curse.
'Oh my! She made a garden for me, and I rejected her in return? That's not me of course. It's the former Brunos. I'm Morgan. Ha!'
Slowly, the Valinan mountain grew broader and taller as they got closer to perimeters of the Crimson Castle.
"This place is dangerous," a memory of Brunos's father scolding him came to his mind. "I told you never to come close to this mountain."
"Why?" asked Valeria as Brunos's mother dragged her behind her golden wings.
"It's the most effective shooting point for an enemy."
***
Morrin woke up as usual. Energetic and grateful for what the devils did for her. She was a daughter of no noble family, yet she managed to be a wing commander. She was sure her children would be considered noble if she would manage to keep the title.
The question was, would she give birth? Who would be the father? Thinking of a father, images of an incubus came into her mind.
Fellene, Brunos then the incident of yesterday night.
'Oh Devils! Where would I hide today? I don't want to look him in the eyes.'
'Uh... what about Fellene? What would I lie to him? Is he going to make the fact that I denied him access to my mind a big deal? '
Not knowing what to answer herself to, she jumped out of bed and prepared herself for the day ahead—the most unpredictable day of her life, if not the most terrible day of her life.
***
She avoided any path that could lead her into colliding with Brunos. As for Fellene, she was still surprised that he hadn't yet shown up at the castle.
Tired of hiding from Brunos whom she didn't know his whereabouts, she decided to go to her favourite place. The Valinan mountain of course. It was going to be her first time going there not to shed tears.
'Ten minutes taking in some fresh air and getting rid of anxiety.'
That decided, Morrin gave orders to Four Aurburns and flew away.
"Why am I so unlucky?" she asked herself when she saw Brunos, his maids and Lania heading towards her favourite place.
Wait!
Lania in a maid's uniform?
Morrin couldn't comprehend it. Lania was commander of an independent wing of old generation warriors who refused to be under the Queen's command. Someone they considered weak and young. Stupid and crazy because she became mute for love's sake.
No one knew where the old generation warriors lived and no one wanted to know. Why would someone try to provoke a strong enemy who exiled herself?
Morrin was too curious to follow Lania and know what she was up to, but she couldn't risk meeting Brunos. She also needed to consult the queen if she knew anything about the situation.
Having made up her mind, she stole a glance at the peak of her favourite mountain as if it would help her in any way.
Unfortunately, she saw a dozen or so of succubi emerging from it. The colour of their wings threw old generation in her mind, their bows in a ready-to-shoot position ringing a wary bell in her mind.
"They're going to shoot Brunos."
For some reason, her speed doubled. She screamed Brunos's name but he was too far away to hear her.
She didn't give up.
"Brunos! Brunos! Brunos!"
'Am I not loud?'
"No!" Brunos's voice echoed inside her head. "She stays!"
'If not for him, I would have died.'
At that moment, Morrin felt power of some sort invading her body. Then as the armed succubi approached the Queen's garden, she released a lion's roar.
"BRUNOS!"
Brunos turned his head to look at her.
"They're going to shoot you!"
The moment he turned to look in the direction she was pointing her long nailed index finger, it was too late.
"Nooo!"
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Your comment is great motivation!