BXBX NOVEL Chapter 182 - A Guilty Farewell
Chapter 182 – A Guilty Farewell
A glint in his eyes terrified Cecily, but she knew she had to act like she did not understand what he meant. Her once childhood playmate was now a mighty adventurer who may have betrayed his guild.
"What do you mean, Icarus?" muttered Cecily with a shaking voice as she took a step forward. The young man glared at her, and his eyes twinkled with light. Then, as she turned to the others, Cecily saw them fall unconscious.
"I cannot believe that we would find you here. You should have died in the Great Unseen. At least my job would have been easier," said Icarus from in front of her as lights danced around him.
The guildsmen fell one after the other, causing the lanterns to roll across the ground. The darkness flickered as the two stood in front of each other.
"What are you doing, Icarus?"
"I would have done nothing if for your appearance," he sighed. "That damned skill of yours is as annoying as you are. I knew that you would remember me the moment you look at me."
"You are proving that you are the spy," she turned toward the rest, seeing that they were knocked out cold. The six lights around Icarus all flew toward Cecily, circling her. They moved in orbit as if Cecily was their sun.
"This mission failed the moment that you appeared. I know that you would have realized the inconsistency at one point. But, unfortunately, that head of yours cannot let things go, and that is the reason you are hated even by your own family."
Cecily looked around her for a way to defeat him. However, the notebook\'s presence was gone, and it made her realize that she needed to rely on herself.
"I need you to tell me, Cecily. Why did you keep asking questions? You would have never noticed me, and we would not be here."
Her mind pulled every memory she had on him. All the events that surrounded Icarus arranged themselves into a line. But then, she found the inconsistency. There was a time where Icarus disappeared from the Royal Academy, and he resurfaced afterward.
"The Vangir Guild suffered their first raid after your reappearance," she said through her holy mask. "There is no way for me to realize this unless I realize you are among this group."
"You are like a machine, Cecily. A machine devoid of feelings that allow others to use it," said Icarus as he smiled behind the mask. "I wonder how long it takes until you break."
"Are you going to kill me now?" she retreated as a dagger slid out of her sleeve and hid behind her. "I must warn you. The darkness is a friend of mine," she tried to stall.
"I was never afraid of this darkness, as my six servants will take care of any monsters. However, I was impressed by what you did. Tell me how."
The lights danced around her until they created a circle of light. Cecily felt dizzy as she began to stagger. Icarus said gently to her, "You will listen to me from now on."
The voice seeped into her mind as she grew dizzier. Cecily was on the ground, holding her dagger, as Icarus walked toward her. The knight passed through the lights which he controlled.
"I changed after that year, Cecily. You can change too. This darkness will not scare you if he is on your side," Icarus raised her chin to look into her unconscious eyes. "There is more power on this path than any other."
Cecily did not respond, and Icarus smiled with a shake of his head. Cecily jerked her arm and stabbed the dagger into his stomach as he was about to stand.
"I will not fall for the same trick twice," she said with a smile. Icarus stared at her with wide eyes before looking at the dagger piercing his stomach. "This is the item that I acquired after a lot of trouble. It does not matter what stats you have; this dagger will kill you."
Icarus fell to the ground as she pulled the dagger away and stood. This was the first time she killed someone with her own hands, but Cecily did not feel anything.
"Maybe I am a machine like he said," she muttered. However, something made her frown. Cecily turned around and found that the six lights were still there.
"I did not think you would be immune to my skill," said a voice from one of the lights, which began to expand. "You killed one of us," muttered Icarus, who appeared after the light turned into a human.
"You should be dead," her eyes widened until most of them were white. "This should not be…"
"I agree," said Icarus, who walked toward his corpse. "This is not possible, but I told you that I changed. It was my wrongdoing for wanting to make you live. Die, Cecily," he said while crouching beside the body, which turned into a dim spot of light.
The lights expanded and turned into five humans, all looking the same as Icarus. They wielded their weapons at her as Cecily turned around to flee. However, she tripped and fell to the ground.
"Die!" shouted one of the clones as he pierced toward the ground. Cecily accepted her imminent death, but the ground began to sink, swallowing her whole. The sword hit the ground, but nothing else.
Cecily could not feel any pain, so she opened her eyes. There was nothing visible, not even her own body. Then, as she thought that the lanterns broke, a voice came from ahead.
"You created quite the mess," said the dark being as he appeared from the darkness. However, something was different about him, something almost human.
Cecily swallowed down as she helped herself stand. The dark being had his hood down, but the darkness still obscured his face. However, his body was humans, and his clothes looked costly.
"I found the spy," she reported, and the dark being looked surprised. "It was the man who wanted to kill me. I know his name and how he turned against the guild. We can report to Vangir," she started to present her case.
"You thought I was doing this for Vangir?" the young man tilted his head. "However, I am amazed that you managed to find him so easily. I find it suspiciously amazing."
"I was lucky because I knew his identity from before. That is mostly the reason, but I would have found the inconsistency sooner or later."
"The inconsistency, huh?" muttered the dark being with a pondering expression. "You are quite useful," he declared, and her heart throbbed in pride.
"I can help you with many things," she walked forward. "This is not the limit of my abilities. This is only a fraction of what I can do. Let me join you, and I can…"
"You want to join a dark being?" laughed the man heartily. Cecily flinched as if she laid herself bare. "I know everything about you, Cecily Rainmaker. I know your life, and I know that you are destined for greatness. You have no reason to join, but you are too eager to be sincere."
"The reason is simple. The world has changed. Either I can keep thinking of ways to cross the darkness, or I can work with you to rule it."
"You think very highly of me," smiled the dark being, and that was the most she could see of his face. "You aim to use me, and you expect me to follow along happily."
"You used me as well," she objected before sighing. "I can let go of that dream, as possible as it is, but I want my notebook back. You know the traitor now."
"Let us talk outside," smiled the dark being. "You have yet to tell me about the traitor, after all," as he said so, Cecily felt her body sink into the darkness again.
Then, she was out. Cecily looked around, but there was no Icarus to be seen. The only person in front of her was the dark being, who was standing a few feet away.
"I accept your offer," said the man as he turned to her. "I acknowledge your abilities, and I want to make use of them. We will rule The Great Unseen together."
"You… are?" she blinked. "I… promise that you will not be disappointed. We will forever take control of the trade routes using your abilities. There will be no trade without us involved!"
"You are truly a businesswoman," sighed the dark being with emotions before taking out her notebook. "I believe this belongs to you."
"Thank you," she ran forward and snatched the notebook. "I almost forgot; the traitor\'s name is Icarus Grigoras. What are you going to do to him?"
"It seems like you have feelings for him," said the dark being as he took a step closer to her. Cecily shook her head as the darkness rippled. But then, something within her heart was ignited.
The dark being raised his hand, and Cecily did not retreat. His hand traced her face, making her close her eyes. There was a feeling that pulled her toward the darkness.
"You are still naive," sighed the dark being before his hand gripped her throat. Cecily snapped her eyes as she stared at him with confusion while he raised her in the air. "I can never let you live."
"I… on your…" she tried to assure him, but all that came out was gasps for air. The man shook his head before he sighed.
"I don\'t care what side you are on," he said with what she felt to be guilt. "You must die because you know too much. Farewell, Cecily Rainmaker," after he finished his words, the hand around her throat tightened.. The last thing she heard was a crack as her neck snapped.