After a few seconds, the smile under the hood finally erupted into a full-blown smirk as the stature slowly arose into a standstill, facing Sanum.
"Decay. I aM DECAY."
Its face was similar to that of a man, though under the darkness brought by the cover of its cloak, the eyes radiated a crimson-coloured glow that peered through the soul of the already agitated Sanum.
"SERVANT OF CORRUPTION."
It then extended both arms, as if presenting a masterpiece of a play in front of a large audience.
"PLEASED TO MEET YOU, SANUM BAL OSIDAL THE SECOND."
————
Sanum felt his spine tingling as his eyes widened upon the gesture of the cloaked man; whose irises that glowed a crimson-coloured light penetrated through the whiteness of his corneas and into his very own soul.
"De..Decay..?" - Sanum quietly mumbled, to which the cloaked man responded by lowering its torso into a bow.
"THE ONE AND ONLY."
— It spoke, voice resembling that of a cacophony coming from a dozen different intonations as if the mumbles of a girl, the blood-curdling echo of a woman's scream, the yell of an outraged man and the cry of a certain kid all coalesced together to form one single tone that echoed everywhere yet felt like it was from nowhere.
"..What..Decay..? An-another..one?"
- Sanum thought; causing the cloaked man's smirk to expand even further.
"INDEED! I TAKE IT THAT YOU MET MY.. BROTHERS?" - It tilted its head, sending an ominous pressure to loom over Sanum's head that made even breathing feel like shaving away a mountain; futile, and needless.
"Wh..Why are you here..!?" - Sanum inquired, his voice slowly losing the authority laced unto it.
"BE NOT AFRAID. FOR I AM HERE NOTHING MORE THAN TO DELIVER A MESSAGE."
- The individual smirked before lifting its foot to step closer towards the throne;
His presence being so disturbing that each step made Sanum hallucinate a tremor that shook not only his nerves but the room also, with it intensifying as he grew closer and closer.
A sweat slid down Sanum's cheek as the presence, despite being the size of an average male towered over the grandiosity of his golden streamlined throne.
Sanum's instincts went ablaze as every single nerve screamed for him to run, to flee, to avoid whatever this creature was that loomed beside him with unknown interests as there were only a few good inches separating him from the unexplainable entity.
The individual, with a smile on his lips then leaned in closer and whispered over to Sanum's ear, who could only freeze on his seat as he felt the voice of the man repeatedly molesting his eardrums with its raspy, binding touch.
"..."
"...!!!"
As the voice of the individual eventually subsided to that of a whisper for only Sanum to hear which the middle-aged man responded by slowly closing his eyes and gulping down a saliva, attempting to calm down his haywire nerves.
After the creature had finished its relaying, it then straightened its body before briefly remarking towards Sanum;
"I MUST REMIND YOU;
IT IS ABSOLUTE.
THEREFORE BREAK IT ONCE..
AND I'LL PERSONALLY HUNT YOU DOWN."
- The voice held enough power that it made Sanum's head instinctively lower a little, the man looked back at Sanum under the utter obscurity of its own hood that only the non-smiling, solemn lips accompanied by the pair of glowing crimson-coloured orbs piercing through the darkness could be made out of the figure.
*FWOOSH!*
Then, in a blink of an eye did the figure disappear, leaving behind a small gust of darkness to proliferate around where it previously stood.
...
Haah..
Sanum, feeling the immense weight be lifted off his chest could only inhale and then release a heavy sigh as he tried to calm down the noisiness of his beating heart and the lungs' desperate attempt to catch the middle-aged man's breath.
His eyes remained widened as he stayed there, legs too wobbly to support his weight and stand up as if all strength has been sapped away.
.
.
.
"..That..early..huh.."
————
In the wooden-flooring hallways of a structure constructed entirely in stone-bricks there stood two armoured men standing before a wooden gate with both hands clasped behind their backs.
"Hey." - One muttered, eyes still focused on the wall in front of them.
"Speak." - The other replied, concentration not faltering.
"Doesn't Sir Osidal—"
"Hush. We are not to speak of such a matter."
"..I agree with that. But isn't it saddening to keep shunning the elephant in the room? Ignoring such matters would only serve us temporarily."
"It is what we are being paid for, to keep a blind eye towards some..certain things."
"Are resources really that crucial? So much so that we exchange our morality for a few pieces of silver and gold?"
"..Morality won't feed your family."
"I know that, however it just bothers me."
"..Haah.. What a lost cause you are my brother."
"Do you suppose it is true? Just between you and me.." - "That Sir Sanum..is.."
"..." - The knight paused for a second.
"..Well.. I think that—"
*CREAKKK..*
"!!!"
Both of the knights flinched before straightening their bodies as the wooden gate gradually creaked open and they then turned to their sides to face one another before quickly saluting.
Then, a middle-aged man slowly exited the wooden gate before walking in between the two saluting knights.
"Crap..did he hear..?"
"I'm sure.. that.."
Both the knights felt their muscles freeze as Sanum slowly treaded the red carpet in between them.
.
.
.
After a few seconds, Sanum passed by the two without saying a single word.
Haah..
The knights felt their shoulders slightly slump forwards as a suppressed sigh escaped their lips.
"Almost.."
They felt their control slowly returning until;
*STOMP!*
*HALT.*
"...!"
They both froze again as Sanum halted dead on his tracks, an air consisting of noticeable weight beginning to loom over their shoulders.
Feeling the air around them intensifying, both the knights gulped down a saliva.
"You Two."
- With a simple, yet authority-filled remark from Sanum feeling like a lance piercing through the wall of concealed deception created by the two knights causing them to inadvertently flinch.
"..Si..Sir Sanum."
.
.
.
"Go Home. You are dismissed for the day."
— Sanum added before continuing on his steps, leaving the two armoured men to dumbfoundedly stare at his back as he was walking away.
Though relieved, with one's body even collapsing to his knees. They cannot shake off the confusion from the sudden, almost unused command of the middle-aged noble.
They inhaled and heaved a deep exhale, allowing their shoulders to finally slump as the intensifying air that once weighed down on them finally dissipated back to normal.
"..It's so hard.. to make a living.."
————
"hmm.."
"stare..."
"hrmm...!"
With two pairs of peering eyes that hid behind the wooden frame of an exposed window belonging to that of a decaying shack did observe on a young man and a young lass conversing together with content prevalent on their faces.
"is that..!"
- A high-pitched, childlike voice whispered.
"that is.."
- while a quiet, soft-spoken one replied.
"Charlie..!"
"Charlotte..."
"and.."
They both exclaimed as they saw the crisp-golden haired lass fiddling with the mechanical head of a large bear alongside a jet-black haired young man who had his right hand wrapped in white tape-like bandages.
"A BOY!"
- They both exclaimed inside of their heads.
"Mila..! are you seeing this..!?"
"awawawawawaa..."
"Mila..?"
"awawawawawawawa.."
"Mila!"
*Slap!*
"Kya!"
"There!"
"Lay..layla..! Lieutenant Charlotte..!! an-an-an-an-an-an-"
*Slap!*
"and that boy..!! together..!"
"Ye-yeah..I can see that..!"
"tha-tha-tha-that is most unorthodox..! be-be-because..! whe-whe-when a boy and girl are to-to-together...!!"
"..huh?" - Layla glanced over at a jittery Mila.
"the-the-they will ho-ho-ho-hold hands..!!"
- Mila exclaimed, hands covering her pinkish face as she squeaked out.
"hold...hands..!?" - Layla's ears erupted to release a sudden burst of steam, her cheeks slowly transitioning into more like Mila's.
"we..we.." - Layla whispered, with tone so low and somewhat ominous that it caused Mila's flustered squeaking to be broken.
"lay..layla..?"
"We can't let that happen..!" - Layla exclaimed.
"Ho-how.. th-then..!?" - Mila asked, head still secreting out steam because of the current overheating of her crimson countenance.
"Fi..first..let's just watch for now.." - Layla raised an index finger before focusing her gaze once more towards the two.
-
"..And it goes there.." - The young man's voice echoed before; "..I see..then this one right..?" - the soft, deliberate tonality of a young lass replied.
"Can you pass me the wrench..?" - Calestro inquired, hand extended out to Charlotte.
"Sure.. which type?" - In response, the lass leaned over towards a set of wrenches with varying sizes.
"Cone, ten millimeters.." - He added, before the lass hovered her head over the tools then picking up the one situated in the middle and handing it over, while preoccupied with the young man's work in progress.
"Here." - "Thanks."
With Calestro's focused being absorbed completely by his work; he absentmindedly extended out his hand, and with Charlotte's concentration drifting off to how intricate the head's machinery are; her hand remained in place with neither one of them noticing the misalignment of their hands causing..
*touch..*
"..!"
"..Oh?"
"Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahh....!!!" - Mila's eyes that were supposed to be covered by her hands were seen peeking through the fingers as the blush on her face continues to grow even wider, the steam emanating from her head barely subsiding as now even her ears are secreting out fumes.
"Thi..thi..thi..this..is to-to-to-too much..!!" - Layla's blush-ridden countenance could only lower itself in surrender as her eyes refused to absorb any more of such "indecency".
"Thi-thi..thi..haah..haah..haah..This is..so.." - In between raspy breaths, Mila still managed to squeak out a few coherent words.
"Thi..this is so..stimulating..." - Mila whispered, body being sapped away of strength as she felt it progressively getting more and more hotter.
"Mi-mi-mila..! Sn-snap..out of..it...!" - Layla exclaimed before pulling Mila's collar to repeatedly shake her.
"Mwehehehehehehehehehehe.." - To no avail, Mila has gone way too far to be saved, her eyes remained in a daze as it pointed upwards while her raspy breaths continued to intensify.
"Mila...! No..!" - Despite the deep blush on her face, Layla continued to resist such stimulation however; she cannot fathom the idea of not looking.
-
Calestro's fingers narrowly avoided the wrench by a millimeter before intertwining with lass'es slender ones.
"...Had my wrench always been this soft?"
With Calestro's eyes still steadfast on fixing the bear's intricate machinery, the young lass'es lips slowly erupted into a small, soft smile as she noticed the young man's clueless nonchalance.
"Nice try, Casanova."
- Charlotte then remarked, her voice laced with a slightly raised tonality resembling that of a person teasing another one.
"...?" - Calestro glanced beside him in curiousity, only to see his—
"..!"
Fingers intertwined with Charlotte's.
"Whawhawhawhawha.."
Calestro, in a sudden sprung of strength was launched from his previous location all the way into the wall; Face blushing like crazy.
"What the heck!!?? What Why!?" - He stammered, tightly gripping the wrist of the hand whose fingers intertwined; which was the bandaged right hand with his other one.
"You know..Wanna hear something factual..?"
"..fac..tual..?"
"In the medical corps, just simply intertwining an injured body part... with a medical officer's hand.. it will be healed!"
Calestro stared in disbelief, to which Charlotte's pale lips formed a slight smirk;
"So..Wanna try?"