For the past few days, Ian didn't feel the urge to shed blood. He never knew he could go so many days without vengeance trailing behind him, following him like an addiction that never faded away. This time, he surprised himself. He never thought this way of change in his life would occur.
Every morning, Ian woke up to the delightful smell of fresh buns, butter, milk, or lemonade tea. And came back to her savoury supper. Nilana's cooking was like magic to his senses. The way she mixed dough, spices, and ingredients felt like reuniting with old friends. When she presented the dishes, it was like she held something precious. It warmed his heart. That scared him the most. He wasn't capable of having a warm heart. What was he even thinking?
The sky rumbled over his head, highlighting the zigzag patterns of the lightning. It wasn't pouring yet; the rain was sprinkling. Wind flowed peacefully, just how calm before the storm should be. His black steed ran at a fast speed, big trees after trees fading behind him.
Ian wore his usual 'nobleman' clothes tonight, a while doublet with black embroidered and black trousers. His ice-white hair was short and steadily complimenting his sharp features. His almond-shaped silver eyes squinted as his manor came into view. A female figure stood in front of the iron gates to his Manor. She was wearing a cloak.
"Nilana?" He asked as his horse approached the gates, his brows creased slightly. "What are you doing here?"
The female figure turned her head at his voice and removed her cloak. Curled locks of red hair fell into her shoulders, her eyes saffron like yellow.
"Serpent." She uttered loudly.
Ian was definitely caught off guard by the sudden appearance of this familiar face. But his facial expressions didn't show it. Calm, and collected his steed halted as he jumped from his horse. His heavy boots thudded against the muddy grounds.
"Moonscar." He replied, his voice frigid and cold.
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Nilana awoke by a world-shattering thunder lightning, ravaging the entire sky as if it was a fierce dragon unleashing its fury. She fluttered her eyes open, a searing pain slicing through her skin. Gritting her teeth, she touched the wound on her knees. Pulling her hand back, she could feel the warm stickiness of her own blood, a stark contrast against the pitch-black pit surrounding her. Another thunderous roar made her flinch, her entire body convulsing. The heavens wept, huge droplets of water falling upon her, drenching her already soiled dress and matted hair.
Drowning in the water to death was one thing, but now she found herself trapped in a pitch-black pit, facing her worst fears - the sight of land tantalizingly out of reach. The sky grumbled above her, the pouring rain intensifying, water pooling near her legs. She could bet that in a few hours, this enormous pit would be flooding, adding another layer of dread to her already dire situation.
She realized, in dismay, that she might end up drowning after all—whether it was in a relentless river or the confines of this dark, gaping pit seemed inconsequential. The cruel reality was that she was trapped, surrounded by rising water, fighting against the inevitable fate that threatened to consume her.
Shivering from the cold, the pain in her wounded knees gnawing at her, she mustered the strength to crawl, groping through the darkness in search of her umbrella. The idea struck her that perhaps she could sit on it and use it as a makeshift flotation apparatus when the pit inevitably flooded. A newfound glimmer of hope spurred her on.
Even though the unbearable pain wrecked her, she didn't stop searching for it.
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.
A sense of extreme disappointment and hopelessness washed over Ian as he walked inside his home with Moonscar with him. There were no candles' lights, no smell of warm food in the air, no presence of the cat, no floor was cleaned, no curtains nor window panes were closed, no Nilana.
It was as if Ian went back to a normal day of his solitary life, except it felt anything but normal.
Where was Nilana? Was she gone? Did she finally decided to leave?
"I was sent by Duke Hermann's spies to check up on you. He seemed really pissed." Moonscar stated.
"Why so?" Ian asked, looking around, his eyes in search of her. His voice distracted.
"Because his daughter came to visit you earlier this afternoon." She said, her voice cold. "One of your maids insulted her and kicked her out earlier this afternoon." Her voice was bitter as she spoke. She looked around and questioned her own words, "Do you even have a single servant in this goddamned enormity of a manor?"
"No." Ian replied, distracted. "I do not. And the person Lady Belladonna-to her biggest mistake- assumed that was my maid, she's my guest."
Moonscar's red eyebrows creased. "A ruthless assassin's guest? Now I am curious to see her."
"Uhuh..." Ian's voice trailed off. "Where could she be?" With that, he strolled across the whole estate in search of her. Her bedroom, the dining room, the kitchen, the living space, the 6 other guest rooms. He saw the cat lounging on the divan, but she was nowhere to be seen.
"Wait.." His words trailed off as he ascended from the stairs and face the red-haired lady in the cloak. "Did I hear correctly that Lady Belladonna graced us with her presence and departed in a state of displeasure, all due to an encounter with Lady Nilana?"
"Indeed, the lady in question is named Nilana." Moonscar replied, holding a candle to herself.
"So, she didn't leave yet." Ian muttered, "She didn't leave yet...so it means she must've gone somewhere from here."
Just then a huge thunder of lightning struck, illuminating the vast sky. A powerful gust of wind flowed through the open windows, lighting out the candles and leaving the whole manor dark.
"It is well past midnight, Serpent. If she ventured out in this treacherous weather, one can only hope she did not meet an unfortunate fate, for a storm of such intensity could easily have befallen her."
Ian's face hardened as shadows grew thicker, and the rain grew heavier.