255: 6.15 Keep Him Alive

6.15 Keep Him Alive

cw: graphic violence *cough* just a lil bit0

***

"He—He's going to kill everyone…!" He curled up on the floor and hugged his head, shivering for surely a different reason than the cold weather. Everyone stared at him speechlessly. Never had they expected this kind of reaction coming from someone whose build was compact with muscles and easily towered over half of the soldiers!

"Come to think of it," Bassil rubbed his chin with a thoughtful look, effectively bringing everyone out of their reverie. "It is indeed odd how they died due to different causes. It's bizarre, to say the least. We found an abnormal amount of poison in one's body, while the others died from either heart attack or excessive blood loss. There was even one whose chest had caved in and when our doctor examined him, he said that his heart had been crushed from inside! How can that be possible, I wonder?"

"It can't be…" The servants whispered-shouted in fear. "There's really a ghost who will kill people inside the manor?!"

"Shut up." Jillian hissed. In an instant, everyone clamped their mouths shut and straightened up, hands clasped in front of their stomachs. They didn't even dare to lift their eyes for fear of being the General's target of ire. "Find out who sent the assassins here. I don't care what kind of method you will use, I expect a name by noon. As for the other corpses, hang their heads in front of the gate and burn their bodies." After saying that, he turned on his heels and walked briskly into the manor, the robe fluttering behind him.

As soon as Jillian was certain he had escaped from everyone's sight, his composure instantly cracked and he hastened his pace, almost running back to the room he had just left. Assassins, the peculiar way of death, a ghost. Could it be… Jillian clenched his jaws and slammed the door open. He didn't even pause as he marched toward the doll who was sitting on the bed. "Is that you…?" He asked with a hint of tremble in his voice. "Did you kill them?"

Who else could it be beside Regius? His logical mind replied. There was only one person who would go to such lengths to protect him. 

Jillian had no idea how to describe what he was feeling. He was by no means a weak and fragile man. Hell, he was a General first before he was a nobleman. He had slept in the tent under the harshest weather with his sword gripped protectively by his side, unable to lower his guard in case someone snuck in to assassinate him. He had fought in the grotesque battlefields with blood all over his body, swinging his sword again and again until all he could see was dead bodies. He was no stranger to this kind of thing and he was sure, very very sure that he could handle it just fine.

On the other hand, Regius was so helpless that he could barely maintain his human form for a few minutes. He had saved Jillian's life back in the forest and now, he had once again protected Jillian from the assassins. Jillian let out a long-suffering sigh as he dropped to his knees, feeling weak all of a sudden. He buried his face to the crook of his elbows and groaned. "Regius… I can do it myself, you know. You don't need to sacrifice yourself for me, not anymore. If… If something were to happen to you because of me…" Jillian trailed off, unable to continue the line of thought. The mere notion of Regius getting hurt due to him was enough to make him sick on the pit of his stomach. 

He swallowed past the lump on his throat and let out a vexed huff. "Well, what's done is done. Next time, you should leave this kind of pest to me—" Jillian lifted his head and all words promptly stuck in his throat. He scrambled closer to examine the robe on Regius' body and—

Nobody knew more than Jillian how to differentiate normal fabric to dark fabric that had been stained by blood. 

His hand was shaking as he reached out to rub the darker spot on Regius' garment only to come up with half-dried crimson stains on his fingers. He carefully brushed away Regius' inky black hair and his pupils trembled as he saw the crack — a sickening, crimson crack — right on the side of Regius' otherwise perfect neck that was previously hidden by his thick hair. "Did they… do this to you?" He asked hoarsely, red crawling over his eyes.

His head was buzzing as if all the blood was rushing there. Regius had gotten hurt, he was hurt hurt hurt and the one who did this was— Cold anger seeped into his body, coiled around his throat, his eyes before bursting through the seam of his quivering lips. "I am going to chop his fingers one by one…" he seethed, fury rolled off him in violent waves that threatened to engulf everything. His eyes tinged with red on their rims, and his teeth were cracking from the force he used to tighten his jaws. "...force them down his throat and make him regret every single second of his life." 

However, he was exceedingly gentle and careful as he lifted the doll into his arms, careful not to jostle him in fear of further damage. "I'm sorry." His jaws were set, eyes staring determinedly in front as he exited the room. "This won't happen again, Regius. I will make sure of it." He was so engrossed in trying to control his raging blood, unaware that the doll's lips had turned down on its corner, eyebrows drawn tightly in distress.

"Prepare the carriage." He told the passing servant. "Tell Bassil not to expect me by lunchtime. I will be late."

When he was crossing the main foyer, the assassins' bodies were still there, wrapped in white fabric while the only one still alive was tied to the pillar, facing the soldiers' interrogation with dull eyes. Alas, his luck was just so poor because his gaze instantly zoomed in on Jillian right as the man stepped out, or to be exact, the doll in Jillian's arms who was staring straight at him with crimson eyes. 

"A—AHHHH!!!" An ear-deafening shriek reverberated through the air as he thrashed around against the binding. "It's the ghost! He's here… Get him away from me! Get him away from me!"

Unfortunately, there were two people who were in the absolute worst mood right now and he had coincidentally offended both of them at the same time. 

Jillian stormed toward them and without any warning, snatched the sword strapped to the soldier's hip beside him and stabbed it right on the assassin's palm, earning him another gruesome wail. Jillian relished in the fear in his eyes and the steady stream of blood that soiled the pure snow, but it wasn't enough. Slowly, he twisted the hilt until a gaping hole was formed on the man's palm. The corner of his lips curled into a bloodthirsty smile. Barely satisfied, he leaned down to whisper into his ear. "Do you want to know how it feels to desperately wish for death only to be denied again and again?"

The man's terrified eyes reflected Jillian's face and once again, his eyes rolled backward and he abruptly fainted.

"Keep him alive until I return. Careful, if he commits suicide, then I will have your head in exchange." Jillian ordered before he made his way to the approaching carriage, leaving the flabbergasted soldiers and pale-faced servants who were coincidentally there to witness the bloody scene. 

"The ghost? He… wasn't talking about the General, was he?"

They looked at each other in apprehension. If it wasn't the General, then the only possibility left was…

***

Jillian's shoulders sagged in relief when Grandmaster Dynn informed him that he could repair Regius' body back to its perfect state. "Fortunately, the two travelers who made the order especially asked me to use more resilient materials. I can fix him up in a few hours."

He had no idea what he would do if the scar remained on Regius' body. Really, he was going to go crazy. Jillian refused to leave the Grandmaster's side, much to the latter's annoyance, staring nervously as the old man dexterously mended the crack with his tools. It took almost three hours before Grandmaster Dynn allowed Jillian to touch the doll again. He didn't take it to heart when the old man berated him for his carelessness. He deserved it anyway.

Stepping out of the decrepit house, Jillian inhaled deeply before sighing, mist curling up from his mouth. The sky was dull grey in color and he tucked the doll closer to him, unwilling to let Regius feel cold despite knowing that he wouldn't be able to feel it.

He was ready to go back and torture the hell out of the assassin when a voice called out to him tentatively. "General…?"

Jillian almost groaned. What was up with his deja vu? Annoyed, he turned to see a man with chestnut brown hair with faded bruises on the corner of his eyes and a cut on his lips. The man was darting glances at Jillian with excited twinkles on his eyes but when his gaze landed on Regius, the smile faltered slightly.

Jillian disliked him already. "Who are you?"

The man performed a formal salute and exclaimed loudly. "Reporting to General! Sergeant Hayden, in charge of the second troops division. At your service!"

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