Chapter 17: Intruder
"Did you really have to stab three of them?" Gabriel asked Johann casually, swirling his wine.
"They touched our sister," Johann replied with a shrug. "We don't let things like that slide."
"I assume you wouldn't either, Duke."
Gabriel smirked. "No. I'd have done worse."
The brothers shared a dark chuckle.
It was an unsettling scene—three men so deeply steeped in evil, finding common ground in their mutual ruthlessness.
"I appreciate your visit," Gabriel said, raising his glass. "But let's get something clear. Eira is under my protection now. Whatever happens to her will reflect on both of us. Understood?"
Gunther's lips curled into a smile that didn't reach his eyes.
"Of course. Though I'd argue it's you who should be grateful we didn't destroy this castle over what happened."
Pedro squawked suddenly, "DANGER IS COMING! Doom! Doom!"
Johann frowned, glancing at the parrot. "What's wrong with your bird?"
Gabriel waved him off. "Ignore him. He's been saying nonsense about demons lately. Probably cursed."
But Lirian, standing near the doorway, found the scene deeply unsettling.
Something was wrong with Gabriel.
Something she couldn't exactly explain.
"I need some air," she muttered, turning to leave.
Gabriel barely glanced at her. "Don't wander too far, Nightwind. You might not like what's out there."
She rolled her eyes. It was hard for her to deal with his weird character sometimes.
Eira walked briskly down the hall, shaking off the unease Gabriel always seemed to inspire.
But as she turned a corner, she stopped abruptly.
The corridor was unnervingly silent.
No servants. No distant sounds of clinking dishes or murmured conversations.
Her stomach churned. Something wasn't right.
When she pushed open the door to her chambers, the smell of an old medicine reached her nose, as if the room itself were holding its breath.
She stepped inside cautiously, looking at her chambers.
And then she saw it—a snake, coiled near her bedpost, watching her.
"A snake!" A scream tore from her throat before she could stop herself.
The snake moved with terrifying speed, slithering toward her.
But before it could strike, its form twisted until it wasn't a snake anymore.
It was a man.
"Stay quiet," the stranger hissed, moving his hands to cover her mouth.
Lirian bit down hard on his palm.
"Son of a b—!" The man cursed, pulling back.
She lunged for the dagger she kept under her pillow, but he was faster.
Grabbing her wrist, he twisted it, forcing the blade to clatter to the ground.
"Don't make this harder than it has to be," he said, pulling a cloth from his pocket.
Lirian kicked and clawed, but the stranger was just stronger.
He clamped the cloth over her nose and mouth, the sickly sweet scent made her head spin.
"No…" she tried to scream, but her voice was soon muffled.
Her limbs grew heavy, blurring her eyes.
Just as darkness began to claim her, the door opened with a crash.
Gunther, Johann, and Gabriel came to see what happened after they heard Lirian scream.
"Let her go," Gabriel ordered.
The kidnapper hesitated, tightening his grip on Eira's body.
"Do you really think I'm afraid of you, Duke Sylcrest?"
Gunther stepped forward, "You should be."
Before the man could react, Johann flung a dagger, embedding it in the wall just inches from the kidnapper's head.
"That was a warning shot," Johann said wickedly. "The next one goes through your throat."
The kidnapper snarled, backing toward the window.
"Do you think I came here unprepared? I'll—"
Before he could finish, the room filled with a soft, glowing light.
Gabriel's eyes widened as butterflies—dozens, then hundreds of them—began pouring from Lirian's body.
Their wings shimmered with a faint, otherworldly glow, filling the room that drowned out all other sounds.
The kidnapper froze, staring with an open mouth as the butterflies surrounded him, their tiny forms creating a barrier he couldn't escape.
"What in the…" Gunther muttered, shielding his eyes from the sudden brightness.
Gabriel, however, stepped forward.
"Release her," he said again, his voice quieter but no less commanding.
The butterflies swirled faster, intensifying their glow until the kidnapper let out a scream, dropping Lirian's unconscious body to the floor.
The moment she was free, the butterflies surged toward him, forcing him to stumble back.
"Get him," Gunther growled, but before he could move, the kidnapper went for the window.
With one last desperate glance at the room, he threw himself through the glass, shattering it in a shower of shards.
Gabriel rushed to Lirian's side, lifting her gently.
"She's breathing," he said, more to himself than the others.
Gunther sheathed his sword. "Who was that?"
"I don't know," Johann replied. "But he made a mistake coming here."
Gabriel looked up, his golden eyes hard. "He wasn't here for me. He was here for her."
Gunther's fists clenched. "Then he'll regret it."
Johann knelt beside Lirian, brushing a strand of hair from her face.
"She'll be fine," he said softly. Then, with a glance at Gabriel, "But I want answers, Sylcrest. If you know anything about this—"
"I don't," Gabriel interrupted. "But I'll find out."
"She's stronger than she looks," Johann said.
Gabriel didn't respond.
He was too busy watching Lirian, thinking of the questions he couldn't yet answer.
"Why the golden butterflies?" Gunther placed his hand on his forehead.
"Lirian had no mana, so how come she could summon such powers?"
"I don't know, brother. But we need to inform father immediately."
Hearing the word father made Gabriel's hair stand up. "No. Don't say anything to Lucis yet. I need to find out first what kind of power this is."
"But fathe—"
"No!" Gabriel cut Gunther off. "If you tell him, he will demand for her return. I can't accept that."
"But—"
"I can't let her leave me…" Gabriel muttered under his breath.