The moment Henri sensed Solene’s fear, he immediately transported back to the Fair Silver Estate. Enraged and ready to fight, he forgot to change his appearance and ditch the scythe. He had been so careful these past few days not to show his grim reaper form to his wife, preferring to show her when the time was right, but now it seemed, his anger overrode his cautiousness. He was totally exposed in front of her, all for her to scrutinize and judge.
However, this was a matter best discussed at a different time, after the demon’s death preferably.
Hovering in the air just a stones-throw away from where Solene sprawled, Henri locked gazes with her. His was full of controlled rage while hers filled with surprise.
“Hen… ri?” she hesitantly said. Not only was she seeing this side of him for the first time, but it was also a first witnessing him float in the air like a black-suited Superman minus the tights, and instead of a cape, he had a robe and a hood. He looked darkly handsome overall, but Solene still couldn’t shake the feeling of danger surrounding him.
With this, her hands shook, but she clenched it tight to control it.
“How do you fair, Solene? Did the demon hurt you anywhere?” Henri asked, slowly lowering himself to the floor. He still held the intimidating weapon on his right hand and this proved to be very distracting for Solene. It reminded her of that dark blue-haired man. He certainly wielded the same weapon as her husband does.
Do all grim reapers use this kind of weapon? She asked to herself. If they do, then they needed some crash course from a Weapon’s Specialist. There were certainly lots of weapons they could have used other than a scythe.
Dragging her attention away from the crescent blade, she shakily stood up and faced Henri.
“He was about to but you came at just the right moment,” she answered, feeling relieved, but in all honesty, partly hesitant to approach him to give him a kiss maybe for being her hero.
Henri studied her shaking form and clenched his jaw. Damn it, if it wasn’t for his responsibilities elsewhere, then the demon’s attack would have been avoided. The barrier was an enough protection for her while he was away, but it seemed this high-class Demon of Torture took advantage of his absence and decided to attack her. Clearly, he had some help destroying the barrier. The question now was, who?
“Good,” Henri stated, shifting his attention briefly at the unconscious body of his head cleaner which was almost covered by rubble and dust.
“But Tessa and Mrs. Ingrid…” Solene voiced out and watched both women with deep concern.
“The maid is fine,” he informed. “Give her first-aid. She’ll live. But Mrs. Ingrid…”
“I kn… ow,” she interjected, abruptly choking on her own saliva. She shed a tear for the old woman, somehow feeling guilty about her death. This was ever the first time she saw someone die directly because of her so-called uniqueness. It clenched her heart real good.
Henri, seeing her tears, wanted to console her, but his attention was redirected when Mrs. Ingrid’s body moved, indicating that the demon was still inside her.
“If you’ll excuse me, Solene, I’ll finish this demon first,” he stated, moving forward. “He still poses a threat to you.”
“Ple… please be careful!” Solene exclaimed, suddenly feeling a deep sense of worry for him.
Henri stopped walking and awarded her a grin. “I will, Darling.”
As he approached the demon, Solene went to Tessa’s side. As before, blood pooled around her head, but luckily, she was still breathing. Tearing a good part of fabric from her maxidress, she crumpled it up, made it into a ball, and pressed it against Tessa’s chest wound.
“Survive for me, please,” was her plea despite knowing the maid couldn’t hear her.
A loud rumbling sound from the sky was heard suddenly and then heavy rain came. Granted that Solene and Tessa were under some shade, they were spared from being soaked, but Henri and Mrs. Ingrid sure were affected.
Solene watched as the old woman stood up as if she wasn’t affected by the high fall earlier. She flashed an evil grin towards Henri’s way who in turn just showed his unchanged, serious face.
They started talking. Solene wanted so much to hear their conversation, but the rain hindered her from getting at least a coherent sentence.
“You had some help breaking the barrier did you?” Henri started as he threw the disguised demon a once-over. “It would be wise to tell me who your friend is. That way, I would be merciful to you.”
Mrs. Ingrid chuckled. “I was told not to squeak, bloody king,” she answered accompanied by the demon’s lulling echo.
Henri released a deep sigh.
“Never mind, I’ll find out soon enough anyway,” he answered. “But sometimes, I’m thinking whether you demons have a death wish or you’re just plain stupid not to see. She is protected by the Rantzen Clan, and more importantly, she is protected by me.”
He gripped his scythe tightly and flashed the demon an even colder look.
Eligos wasn’t affected by this. In fact, he controlled Mrs. Ingrid’s mouth to show a proud but twisted smile.
“It’s a risk us demons are willing to take,” he stated. Then, the old woman’s red eyes rested on Solene. “That woman is worth it.”
Henri cracked a half-smile.
“I know,” he agreed, “but certainly not in a manner you think. She is worth to me than my life and my kingdom combined.”
The demon immediately laughed. “You really have become a servant for a mere human, Your Highness.”
“Hmf, you’re wrong,” Henri shook his head. “She’s not just a mere human, Eligos, but you’re not worth it to know that knowledge. Now, do you want to die or not?”
The demon shifted his stance, controlling the old woman’s body into a battle position.
“Fucking royalty,” he stated then inhaled loudly from her mouth. “I’ll take my chances and kill you instead! Two birds in one stone! I’ll become King of Sattus when I get to kill you!”
Black smoke appeared around Mrs. Ingrid’s body. Then, her once wrinkled skin now turned to scales and spikes. Her delicate features morphed into that of a man’s roughened face with a beard as black as midnight and as long as two rulers combined. Her ears became pointed and her forehead grew two rhinoceros-like horns. Her teeth turned sharp and long, the canines now jutting out from her mouth. Her height changed too. From a five foot four woman, she now stood at ten feet.
Henri looked up to see the ugly face of his opponent, but not a single spark of fear appeared on his visage. In fact, his expression showed some kind of twisted happiness.
“I like it when demons use their true form. It only goes to show just how weak they are,” he stated with enough poison in his voice the Demon of Torture couldn’t just ignore. “You’ll be begging for mercy when I’m done with you, demon, but hmm, on the other hand, I prefer you die this instant.”
“Why you fucking royal!” Eligos cried out, suddenly disappearing and reappearing in front of Henri. With two large claws ready to slash his neck and chest, it was expected Henri would dodge it, but he didn’t.
Solene watched with bated breath as he just stood still, all too vulnerable from the colossal demon’s attack. She placed a hand to stifle a scream and then closed her eyes, trying to shield it from what could be a bloody aftermath, but then, a strong gush of wind passed her.
It appeared it came from Henri’s way and so she looked up again.
The demon was still present, standing in front of Henri but he was definitely not moving. He was suddenly frozen on the spot. His scaly face was a picture of confusion at first but then it morphed into surprise.
Solene saw Henri lift his left hand, waved it once, and then the demon’s chest burst with blood, consequently mixing with the rain. As if it wasn’t enough, more blood spurt from his nose and eyes and on every inch of his limbs. Henri, standing inches away from the demon, erected a barrier around himself to avoid the splash.
It was a macabre sight, but one that Solene was thankful about. Now, justice was served for Mrs. Ingrid and Tessa. And maybe, partly for her.
She stared at Henri with awe. Whatever invisible attack he did, it continued to slaughter the demon. It writhed in pain, staggered backward, and eventually fell head first to the floor.
Solene heard a pained growl before finally, the demon’s body exploded, surrounded by the black smoke from earlier.
With Henri facing the explosion, Solene could only see his back. She couldn’t see just how murderous his eyes were and she definitely couldn’t see the look on his face… of how much wicked happiness this brought him.
The smoke covered most of the area where the demon disappeared. This told her that danger had ended, but somehow, the next sight before her gave her sudden chills.
“Oh god…” she cried out, her eyes popping.
Was she just seeing things or was she actually looking at the dark blue-haired man in the body of her husband?