“So, this is it...” Gasha stared long at the entrance on the ground, feeling her fingers slightly shivering, “Damn, even from out here, I can feel the stifling aura from the place...” she took a shaky deep breath before letting it out slowly, feeling calmer instantly, “Phewh~ let's get down to business.” She went down to rest the canvas on the ground before snapping her finger. Two crows came flying silently toward her out of nowhere and stood on her hands. She smiled fondly at each of them with her yellow eyes, “Find a hole to sneak in. Don't get yourself killed or caught, my babies.”
The crows immediately flew in different directions after her command. She stood back up with trusting eyes, “It shouldn't take long.”
Fwishh!
“Huh? Wha—!” she didn’t have time to react when something, no, someone, quickly snatched the canvas from the ground and jumped high and fast deeper into the forest. “Who the heck?! Shit!” she was just about to chase after the bastard whom she thought was most probably from her very family, Anfinrud, when another person came almost flying after her target, jumping from one tree to another at the speed of light with a face so stiff like a robot. It was within seconds, but she recognized that face immediately; she could recognize it from miles away, even in the dark.
[https://i.postimg.cc/RCKWFShN/1.jpg]
“That was... just now...” She widened her eyes and remained still as the person disappeared into the forest’s darkness, forgetting about the bastard from her family or an agent working for the family as she was sure the person she had just witnessed would definitely catch him. “Was that... Neron?” she blinked her teary eyes several times, and a smile slowly appeared on her stunned face, “Wow... wah... he's alive...”
Remembering the purple-haired man’s face from seconds ago as if she couldn’t believe her eyes, she gulped down the lump in her throat and whispered with her voice shaking, rubbing her face with both her hands slowly, “Fuck... he’s alive... thank goodness… he’s alive… brother is alive…” she kept repeating the words in the dark, trying to calm herself as it wasn’t the time nor the place to get emotional and overwhelmed with feelings.
She tensed up when she felt eyes on her.
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The Red Flower
Chapter. 30
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Elois blinked tiredly as he looked at Ellmer’s frowning face, wondering if he should stay quiet or ask the guy what the problem was; he didn’t want to sound more stupid than he already was since it was probably clear as to why the other was upset. He was suddenly reminded of Javi and moved his head to search for his friend, finding him lying limp under one of the trees not far from them, still in the shadow form.
“He's alive. He'll be fine once he wakes up. Just don't bring up what happened tonight.”
He turned to look back at the still frowning Ellmer. Despite the assuring tone, Elois noticed the bit of anger still evident in the other’s voice.
Ellmer stared long at Elois’s blank face, glancing at the shadow before fixing his eyes back on the ginger head. Crossing his arms and looking fiercely at the puzzled Elois, “So, what were you two thinking, coming to this place after all the red flags from before? And at night, wow, I'm so flabbergasted.” He scoffed, tilting his head back with a disbelieving smirk.
“Um...”
Ellmer glared at the other and raised an eyebrow, “What, you've got an excuse?”
“...no...” Elois wasn’t dumb enough to try and anger the glaring guy standing beside him any more than he already was, and he obviously didn’t have anything to say to defend himself.
“Of course.” Ellmer scoffed again, “And you two thought you were helping Davante by being stupidly reckless? Haven't you caused enough trouble already?” he felt pretty satisfied when Elois visibly flinched at that.
“...sorry...” he sounded like a kicked puppy, sounding pathetic even to himself. He felt awkward as he couldn’t even avoid the other’s piercing eyes and was forced to stay still inside the healing bubble and accept the insults silently.
“And die after you make everything up to my little brother, you thick-headed bastard.” Ellmer said with a growling voice, barely holding back his anger at his brother’s roommate and childhood friend.
Elois stiffened, ‘Little brother...?’ he recalled Javi’s first impression of the guy glaring at him now and how he never mentioned anything else as he insisted that the guy was some villain coming after them and their lives, ‘Shit... Javi, you idiot.’ He wanted to smack his friend’s head so bad, and why didn’t Davante tell him before? No, the kid isn’t obliged to tell him everything, but he didn’t even hint at it, not even once. He wondered if the two brothers were on bad terms, but that didn’t seem like it, with the big brother getting all worked up and protective of his little brother.
“Do anything stupid again, and I'll make sure to make your worst nightmare come true.”
He flinched at the chilling voice above him. Ellmer’s face looked even pleased with his reaction, and he honestly looked like a villain, just as Javi described him.
“Believe me when I say I know how to make your beloved family disown you once and for all.”
[https://i.postimg.cc/mZYr4mp9/2.jpg]
“......that...” he slowly widened his eyes in fear as he looked at Ellmer’s evil smile, looking so confident and giving the impression that he would do exactly what he said if Elois so much made a single mistake again. ‘Shit, he means it...’ he gulped, weakly mumbling to the other, “Please don't...” he was still in the process of believing that his father and little brother accepted him even after knowing what he had done. Even though they often assured him that they would never abandon him, that was still a possible future with the person he is today.
Ellmer’s pleased face was replaced with a frown again as he met the frightened face of the orange head, who looked up with pleading eyes and pupils shaking. “Haah, do you seriously have so little faith in them?” he sighed as he suddenly felt like scolding the dumb guy for a different reason.
“Huh...?”
“......” staring at the puzzled cyan eyes, Ellmer wondered if he should waste some time teaching the poor guy how to trust his family a bit more and all the homily talk right after he had just threatened him using the very same family.
Elois blinked blankly at the observing crimson eyes, wondering just why the guy who had just threatened him like a typical villain was now looking at him with pitying eyes.
The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
Ellmer gradually furrowed his eyebrows the more he stared at Elois’s eyes, “You got the nerve to look so innocent. The audacity, this is unbelievable...” he clicked his tongue and looked to the side, looking extremely offended.
Elois wasn’t sure if he should apologize, he wasn’t sure what he had done now, but he felt like the other had the right to be mad at him for some reason… “Uhm...”
Ellmer glared back at him, “Do I look like I'm done yet?”
“...sorry...” he didn’t know anymore, but somehow Ellmer looked calmer now, or maybe kinder to him, no longer threatening at least.
“Listen, Elois Iriart.”
His tone was still sharp and cold, though. Elois tensed up again.
“It's a shame I have to say this,” Ellmer sighed lightly with a slight grimace, massaging his forehead with his hand, “I can't help but care and save you idiots from troubles, and I won't care less no matter how many times you fools get yourself in near-death situations, because I'm humane, can you believe it?” he looked at the blinking Elois with amused eyes.
“...yes...”
“Oh, but I don't. I'm quite amazed myself.”
“......” Elois wasn’t sure why, but Ellmer looked so creepy as he laughed lightly while saying that. The guy was scary in a new… different way. At least to him, that is.
“So, point is, grow the fuck up and be careful from now on. Can you at least do this much?” Ellmer glared with a cold smile.
Elois was sure the other wasn’t asking, he was giving an order, and he must follow or else. “Yes...”
Ellmer’s smile faltered for a second, and he sighed, looking offended again as he rubbed his face with his hand, “Hah, I'm so mad, can you see that?” he glared back at the confused orange head.
“Yes...” any idiot would see even from miles away.
“Good, and I'll come after you if you ever take advantage of my brother's kindness again.” He smirked, making the other shrink under his fierce gaze.
“...sorry.” he didn’t dare to question the guy how he had even known of the many times he took advantage of Davante’s forgiving and accepting side. It didn’t sit right with him to imagine the kid complaining about him to his brother, though he had the right to complain.
“Why do you listen well?” Ellmer’s smile dropped once again and went back to looking personally offended.
“...because I have no right to fight back...” wasn’t that clear already?
Ellmer scowled even more before shaking his head side to side, “...hah, you're a baby, yeah.”
It was Elois’s turn to frown at the other, wondering what the guy was talking about and why he was looking at him with pity again.
Ellmer let out a long sigh, closing his eyes tiredly as he tilted his head back for a moment before looking at Elois again, “Forgive me for using your family against you. I’m calm now.”
Elois was taken aback, wasn’t expecting the other to apologize at all. “...it's fine.”
“No, it's not. Are you that depressed?” Ellmer scowled a little before shaking his head again, knowing it wouldn’t change anything even if he explained to the other and gave him a whole lecture on how to value himself a bit more. “Anyway, I don't think Rewind would be able to recover you fully, but from the looks of it, you'd be left with some minor injuries.” He checked the condition of the other with his observing eyes, “Your heart, though...” his face hardened.
Blinking dumbly at the frowning Ellmer, “Rewind?”
Pointing at the purple bubble around Elois, “That ball, or my weapon. In any case, we'll have you checked by your father later.” His gaze turned sharp, pointing briefly at Javi, “Again, don't let that idiot know what happened. Not even about your heart.”
“Yeah, sure. Wasn't going to.” It may be unfair in a way to hide stuff from his friend when it clearly concerned him, but what happened was horrid and shouldn’t be told, never.
“Nice. I almost forgot you can normally use your head pretty well.”
Elois wasn’t sure if that was an insult, but judging by the pleased smirk from Ellmer, he guessed he was complemented in a way. He turned to look at the passed-out shadow, “But... is he... will he really be fine?”
Ellmer contemplated before deciding to share a bit with the worried friend, “...you know the necklace he always wears?”
Only then was he aware of the missing blue necklace around his friend’s neck. Elois looked back at Ellmer’s serious face, “Yes...”
“They say it helps him control the shadow, but that was just some bullshit.”
“What...?” Elois furrowed his eyebrows, wondering who were the people the other meant with. He guessed they were Anfinrud perhaps, now aware that Ellmer was highly likely associated with the organization as well.
“His maternal uncle had made that necklace from pure stone that helps calm the nerves, but Javi could function without it just fine.” Shrugging his shoulder, “His uncle told me Javi would be okay to let it go when he's old enough to control his emotions. Well, I doubt it's the perfect time to throw it away, but the fool would be fine if he's himself again.”
“...but he had been... off lately...” Will he get scolded again? He wondered if it was even his fault this time. Javi had denied it when he asked him, but still, he wasn’t given a definite answer.
“Ah, yeah. That's on me, I suppose.” Ellmer had a thoughtful look for a moment, looking strangely regretful, “I did run my mouth a bit too much.” He silently observed the shadow, remembering that he had, in a way, started all this mess when he tried to help the brown head somehow fix the mess from the past. “I guess I should do something about that jumbled brain of his...” he hummed in thought, ignoring Elois’s questioning eyes. He blinked, and his face brightened a bit as a thought crossed his mind; he looked down at none other than Elois, who flinched at the bright smile he was given all too suddenly. Ellmer squatted down with a grin, “Or maybe you could help? Don't you think I deserve a break from you two?”
[https://i.postimg.cc/0jnxwHhH/3.jpg]
Elois was sure the unapologetic guy was cheating his way out of it, but he didn’t have the face to refuse. “...I'll try...”
“Great! Best friends should handle each other instead of the help from a stranger after all.” Ellmer smiled brightly with his eyes closed, uncaring that the orange head had seen right through his plan. He opened his eyes and glanced at Javi, “See.”
Confused, Elois turned his head to the side again and found Javi, not the shadow. “...ah.” he was feeling emotional for some reason; somehow, he missed his friend’s stupid face.
“He'll be fine. Just help him with whatever he's going through to be mentally stable again,” Ellmer stopped, rethinking his own words, “Or to how he was anyway since I doubt any of us is considered normal by society's standards.”
Elois almost choked as he suddenly laughed after the emotional rollercoaster he went through in one night. “Seems like we all are depressed...”
“Well, seems fun to me,” Ellmer smirked playfully at the other.
Laughing lightly in disbelief, “You sure embrace this fucked up life...”
“Should I struggle and cry like a baby, then?” Ellmer raised an eyebrow.
“...yeah, no.” he felt ashamed. He had no right to correct Davante if he ever called him a crybaby again.
Ellmer observed the other’s regretful face before sighing with a resigned smile, “Learn to move on, orange boy.” He was instantly met with a grimace.
“I do not appreciate the name.”
“That was the point.”
Elois laughed again. Who would have thought he would get along with someone like Ellmer? Not him, and definitely not Javi, who would aggressively disapprove of Elois’s newfound friendship with who was supposed to be the evil they should be wary of.
“You're good again. It can't reverse back any more than this.” Ellmer pushed himself to his feet, looking down at Elois as he snapped his finger, and the bubble instantly shrank, going back to his side and leaving Elois alone. “Try to stand up.”
Elois pushed his upper body up with the help of his elbows and immediately winced at the pain in his heart. He bit his lip and kept struggling to stand up, quickly getting familiar with the pain after his experience of walking for so long in the forest before becoming a hearty meal to the shadow, all while struggling with a damaged heart. “Huff, hah...” he was standing at last with his back hunched.
“Hah, the problem is the heart, as I feared.” Ellmer stepped closer and supported the other as it was hard enough for the poor guy to even stand.
Silently appreciating the help with a nod, Elois wiped the sweat on his forehead before asking, “What did he do with it?”
“No idea. He functions more like a haunting ghost, honestly.” Recalling all the missions he had seen the brown-head perform from a distance in the past, “You hear stories of dark ghosts or spirits taking over the body and almost killing it sometimes, yeah?”
Blinking as he slowly realized what the other was trying to say, “Oh...”
Ellmer nodded his head, secretly remembering the time he stupidly fought with Javi, and his heart almost got damaged as well, “Something similar. I’m not very informed of the shadow's abilities precisely, so I'm not sure what he does with the heart to stop or weaken it. It feels like a curse of some sort.”
Elois looked down at his body and smiled tiredly, “Haah, at least I'm in one piece again.”
Ellmer looked at the other with pitying eyes; he lightly patted the trembling shoulder, “I'll find a way to help you recover. Though I don't want to push another worry on your poor father, but we can't have you strain your heart because of your little knowledge of the human body.”
“Ah... right...” he didn’t want to imagine his father’s face if he found out what ensued right after he thought their lives were getting better. How would he even explain without bringing Javi to the matter? His thoughts were interrupted when the other patted his shoulder again.
“I'll explain everything to him in a way that wouldn't cause any more drama against one another. You’re welcome.”
Elois looked at Ellmer with sparkling eyes, “You're really...”
Ellmer smiled kindly, still managing to look like a villain, “You must be really grateful now.”
“I seriously am.”
Nodding with a satisfied smile, “As you should.” He carefully moved, pulling Elois with him to leave the place finally; he sent Rewind to carry Javi on their way. It was best to keep the sleeping brown head caged in the bubble just in case he woke up agitated again, “Now let's—”
Whoosh—!
Ellmer was quickly pushed and stumbled to the side, having no time to question the orange head when something went past and in between them in less than a second. He regained his balance and checked on Elois, who had saved them both at the last second and fell to the ground, looking back at him and equally alarmed and shocked that he was the one who saved both of them when it should be the sharp Ellmer instead.
Ellmer was silently questioning himself how he hadn’t sensed the smiling stranger with aristocratic clothes, who came down out of nowhere and landed with grace before them like an angel flying down from the sky. Ellmer tensed under the glowing red eyes of the silver-haired man whose smile looked nothing like angelic. He worried over the fact that Rewind immediately missed its radiant light and shrank before falling to the ground, looking like any ordinary tiny pearl, meaning it had lost its effect and shut down immediately for some reason. He guessed it was the doing of the stranger standing from a distance and blocking their way to the still-unconscious Javi.
“Greetings, little gentlemen.”
Both guys stiffened at the calm yet intimidating voice of the rich-looking man.
“Mind if I get to know you a bit?” Albern glanced sharply at each of them, from Elois to Ellmer and finally to Javi behind his back. He stared back at the two guys in front of him, smiling gently at them as if he was looking at amusing children, “Since you three have some blood of my kind.”
[https://i.postimg.cc/CKcQbpK8/4.jpg]
“......”
Both Ellmer and Elois had the same thought at that moment as they remained in place and unable to move under the man’s vicious gaze.
‘This man is... bad news...’
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The End of CH. 30