To His Hell and Back-Chapter 150: Which Is Family?

A/N: happy Easter!! Two Chapter as one for today~

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Queen Morgana’s eyes glimmered with interest. It’s rare that Malvo would ever help her out especially by giving her an answer to her problem. Not that her human son noticed but she was happy beyond words to know that there was actually one way to make sure so that Arabella and Cassius’s trust in each other would be broken forever. This would make a perfect chance to go after his life as well.

But she remained composed, acting concerned as Malvo was, "That is indeed concerning however it is merely a rumor is it not? Lady Genevieve would choose a woman wisely for Cassius and that would never let down any of us. Besides everyone has a flaw and perhaps it is just one of the princess’s flaw though it wouldn’t be harmful as you might have expected."

"Indeed lady Genevieve is wise, I shouldn’t be too worried," Malvo answered her with a soft smile. "Thank you mother for listening to me. I overheard that there is a little problem between Lady Adele and Cassius but I doubt it shall happen for long. Then I shall continue with my work now."

"Wait Malvo," Queen Morgana stopped him from his steps. She crossed her arms and showed him a wide smile. "What is the princess’s name?"

"Isabelle."

Days passed ever since the brothel incident had occurred. Though the castle appeared peaceful from outside, the crown prince’s chamber had been far away from the word calm even if it was for a slight second.

The crown prince though always busy and hardly appear in his bedchamber had locked himself and make most of his time in his room which other servants couldn’t tell why except for the head of his maid Karnala who had also helped him to take care the girl who had been unconscious for a full four days now. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com

She looked exhausted, still pale despite her condition that should have been better than before. With her eyes closed and her body laid on the bed, she appeared to be peacefully asleep if not for her bluish lips.

Karnala who saw Cassius sitting quietly beside his bed while staring to the human girl’s face for hours without ever once looking away began to speak, "The maid Nora is famous for being hated by her peers. She has no close friends and though hated it seems no one has a grudge deep enough to turn it into a motive for murder."

"Then that day what was she doing in my chamber?" Cassius inquired bleakly to which Karnala answered with a held sigh in her lungs.

"It appears that Nora had always despised miss Arabella. Knowing this, she must have appeared in the room when she noticed Miss Arabella was alone and had came to..."

"Hurt her." Cassius completed Karnala before she finished, confirming the guess he had made but didn’t say out loud. Now it’s even clearer what had happened and though impossible he had guessed what had happened.

Somehow... his birdie had killed a human.

If she knew about this she would be shocked and he could tell she would as upon seeing death for the first time she had fainted. There was still doubt in his heart whether Arabella is as real as she had showed herself to be but he had decided to trust her as she had protected him despite knowing that it would wager her own life in exchange.

But the problem now was how she hadn’t woken up from her condition at all, as if spelled to do so. All the human doctors he had brought to check on her condition had came with the same result, citing that her condition was due to shock and whatnot when she couldn’t open her eyes the slightest or drink and eat.

He was about to resort in killing every doctor incapable of waking her up but knowing that would only hurt her if she woke up to find the fact, he dropped the idea and waited for her instead.

Renard’s voice then appeared between the two inside the room, coming after the knock he had hit thrice, "Your Highness lady Genevieve is here to see you."

Cassius exhaled and pushed himself to stand up. He looked once at Arabella before exiting the room and then toward the sitting room of his chamber, finding his aunt and a short man with bright red eyes and glasses over his freckled nose. His expression was twisted between nervousness and a bluish hue of impatience. But in front of his aunt that vampire doctor quack had turned quiet like a mouse. Knowing well how his aunt had always hated Wilhelm and his guts, this was a perfect chance to teach Wilhelm a lesson after suddenly disappearing out of the blue, declaring that he was far too exhausted to keep up with his work.

Lady Genevieve eyed Wilhelm with a long hardened stare, "Have you rolled into a gutter and live alongside rats Wilhelm? Since child you have not changed that utterly eyesore of an outfit with all the mismatch of colors you can find in your wardrobe and now you have even turned like a rat with that long disarray hair like a bird nest."

"Oh lady Genevieve..." Wilhelm squeezed his lips. "I chose more muted color... isn’t this better than before?"

"Better? Shall I rip apart your closet so you could finally learn how to dress up properly? Your late mother will weep seeing this atrocity."

"But she’s dead, the dead cannot weep," retorted Wilhelm harmlessly but that was enough to cause for the vampire doctor’s ears to be pulled so roughly that tears began to spill from his eyes.

"Aunt Eve, Aunt Eve! I’m sorry, I mean my mother will definitely cry!! She would!! Corpses cannot cry but I’ll get her to do so- please stop!!"

"Aunt Eve," Cassius called from the door which stopped the two from their quarrel instantly.

Like seeing a ray of hope, Wilhelm jumped to his feet and hopped over to hide behind Cassius but seeing the doctor hopping behind him, Cassius’s red eyes only narrowed sharply into a glare which caused Wilhelm to turn tinier.

"I can explain...." He immediately spoke up and excused, "Once we got back from war everyone demands that I take role as the palace doctor! I don’t want that burden your highness and you knew that! The only reason why I had worked under you is due to the fact that every cases you brought me were interesting to research on but the royal palace doctor is extremely boring. My father worked for the palace for years and look at him balding and always so angry from the stress."

"Wilhelm," Cassius eyed him quietly which the doctor accepted with tears on his eyes. "I didn’t order you to become the palace doctor. I ordered you to become my doctor. You don’t serve the King and thus is there reason for you to follow his demand and turn to a royal doctor?"

Wilhelm was quiet and for a moment he made a wide expression of shock as if epiphany had hit him hard.

"I don’t have to!!"

"Then what have you done?"

"Run away from the... crown prince’s order..."

"How have I dealt with those like you?"

"You killed them..." every answer that Wilhelm had uttered turn smaller and smaller until he began to squeak like a little mouse.

"The only reason why I hadn’t killed you is out of patience as I still need your talent," Cassius said while pointing his finger to Wilhelm. "Repeat it and next time it won’t be Renard finding you from your hiding place. It would be me to take your head."

"Thank you for your mercy, sob, your highness..."

"Mercy is me killing you," Cassius said before tossing Wilhelm aside and turning to his aunt, "How have you been auntie?"

It’s been days and this was the first time they had met each other privately without eyes watching after he had pulled out his cousin’s fangs. To no extent does Lady Genevieve love her two children despite their foolishness and could be proven by how lady Eve would have taught them in a worse and crueler methods as she had always ruled her subordinate with merciless and even deadly punishments. After all she is someone who would never hesitate on using her subordinates who serves her no more use into death’s hands and even toward him Aunt Eve has always been crueler.

But Lucien’s stupidity and Adele’s lack of maturity was simply a folly she couldn’t rectify any longer and his action was a wake up call to how much she had spoiled her two stupid children.

"Good," Aunt Eve answered before letting go a deep sigh, "If it hadn’t been you and if it hadn’t been due to the fact that we are family-"

"-Let’s not go there," Cassius said as he strode over and sat on the polished couch, "If you were not my aunt would I have been merciful as well? Have you forgotten how my mother taught me? I doubt so as you had always been there supporting all those lessons she had taught me."

And at this Lady Eve pursed her lips. She recalled how when Cassius was young his mother, her sister, had a sudden plan to strengthen her son by giving him to the devil.

It’s a twisted plan born out of love but one could question how would one who loved someone else would have been able to do what his mother had done? Giving him to the devil, using the devil’s power, and tying her son’s fate so that he would never step to heaven ever again.

But aunt Eve had supported the idea as much as her sister had been. After all if Cassius was stronger and more invincible even in face of death, the throne of Versailles would always be their bloodline to control.

Thus even as Cassius who was still young left bloodied from the cave they had locked him with the demon, aunt Eve didn’t feel the slightest remorse or offer him comfort.

Just like his own mother, they both never seen him as a family member.

But Cassius had long forgotten the way to feel sad by that.

"Family," Cassius hummed while repeating the word. "Isn’t it mercy for me to teach Adele where she belongs? Punishing is a part of love, Aunt Eve. By shielding and protecting them from the cruelty, you have made them weak and unable to understand that their action could cause them their own death. Thus why they were so confident to cross me even knowing who I am. I close one eye over their foolishness long ago but I have grown tired about it."

He then leaned back his head at the couch, "And I hope you know that if my patience continues to grow thinner, even my dead mother’s words won’t be enough to stop me."

Aunt Genevieve felt her head about to split, exhaling as she clicked her tongue, "They had done nothing that owe them such punishment."

"I know what they have been doing behind my back and I only pretend that I’m unaware of it," Cassius eyed her and narrowed his eyes slowly, "Especially what Lucien had tried to by accidentally shooting an arrow to my head. Wilhelm remembers it."

Wilhelm who had been playing dead jumped as he looked warily at his crown prince who had said his name was akin to throwing him to be eaten alive by Lady Genevieve.

Furrowing her eyebrows Lady Genevieve pursed her lips tighter, "He hadn’t known the extent-"

"You can stop defending him when I have told you that I shall pretend it to be a mere accident," he saved her breaths. "But do know that I am utterly done being merciful to them. Count this as my last mercy."

Lady Genevieve held her breaths and with a tight fist she finally relented, "It is not that I hold a grudge over what had happened. I just wish that you would not choose a mere human above your own family."

That was only right to do but Cassius now wondered how many of his family member would have protected him just as Arabella had done back in the Brothel. Clearly the ones in the castle with him wouldn’t. So why would it that he prioritize them over the sickly girl in his bed?

Lady Genevieve studied his expression and noticed that though Cassius had smiled and nodded, a deep terrible premonition echoed in her heart.