The Tyrant's Pet

[ To the master of the dark spear,

As much as would like to write you a formal letter, this letter required urgency. There were many things left unsaid two years ago, and I asked for your extended understanding for not sending you a proper letter.

To be truthful, I am unsure myself which side are you on. However, a part of my soul had faith in the young princess of the land I pledged to serve. She trusts you, and therefore, after years of doubt, I will take a leap of faith and believe in her spirit.

Please assist us.

Isaiah. ]

The same night Abel's letter to Maximus arrived and Isaiah's letter reached Ismael's hands, the second recipient was delivered successfully. Just like the first letter, the second one was short but slightly more vague than the first.

Standing in the middle of the queen's garden with a letter in his hand and a gardening can in the other, Fabian shifted his eyes at the raven standing on the bench. The moment he locked eyes with the bird, his eyes squinted as a smile turned up on his face.

"It's you again," said Fabian to the raven. "Have you eaten anything?"

Fabian carefully placed down the watering can and then folded the letter, slipping it inside his vest. His hand then went inside his pocket, fishing out a handkerchief. Fabian slowly peeled the layers of the handkerchief, revealing a small, round candy.

"Here," he bent over, offering the candy to the bird. "Have some."

The raven assessed the butler's smile which reached his squinting eyes. Even though Fabian was smiling, there was just this dangerous and suspicious aura emanating from his back.

"Say ahh…" Fabian trailed off as the bird spread its wings and flew away. "My…"

A deep sigh slipped past his lips, gazing up as his gaze followed the raven flew away and camouflaged in the dark. He shook his head mildly before looking down at the candy in between his index and thumb.

"What an interesting creature," mumbled Fabian, placing the candy back in the handkerchief before putting it back in his pocket. "It would be nice to open him up and see how he was built. It's not like I planned to roast it. I will stitch it back just after peeking at what's inside that body."

Fabian let out a sigh as he looked heavenward once again. Silence followed his mumbling before he carefully set his eyes back on the castle nearby. There, he could see Aries standing on the balcony. She was gazing at the sky with such forlorn in her eyes, hiding in that thin shawl as the wind blew her hair back.

"What a gorgeous thing," he mumbled, admiring the beauty not far away. However, aside from admiration, there was no desire in his eyes. All there was honesty.

Aries was truly a woman with unparalleled beauty, yet with powers so destructive. She was like a goddess who fell from the grace of the heavens and was now lost in this hell.

"Pity," he added under his breath. "It seemed she had no idea of what was going on and what will happen in the following days. Alas… I guess that would be for the better since all eyes were on her."

The letter Fabian received moments ago was frankly vague. If he was someone else or a little less dull, he wouldn't understand it.

[ Please assist us. ]

That was the only thing he focused on in the letter he received; the rest were nothing but worthless scribblings.

"Assist them, huh?" he slowly turned on his heel, rubbing his chin with a finger. The side of his lips curled up into a smirk as his squinting eyes slightly cracked open. "It is good I met him once and conversed with him, even for a short while." — that short interaction with Abel two nights ago gave him an idea of how the gears in the emperor's head turn.

With that thought in mind, Fabian sauntered off to give a little bit of his 'assistance.' Heading to the only way a 'simpleton' like Abel would take, a large grin dominated Fabian's face as if he was looking forward to welcoming his new friend home.

*

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*

Meanwhile, in one of the private residences situated in the heart of the mainland…

A woman opened the window from the inside of the chancery, stretching her arm as a raven landed on the side of her hand. Her thin lips curled up into a smile, gazing at the hauntingly stunning raven that had silky black feathers.

"It's been a while, Morro." Her voice sounded pleasant in the ear with a tinge of dominance. "I never thought I'd be able to see you in this lifetime again. Or rather, I never thought I'd be hearing from him in this lifetime."

A soft chuckle slipped past her thin lips, stroking the raven's neck gently. Her long platinum hair fell on the side of her face as he lowered her head, taking out the envelope in the bird's beak. The woman kept it in between her fingers, looking at the plain envelope back and forth without opening it.

"What a child," she chuckled, setting her eyes back to the raven. "It's dangerous in this place at the moment, my dearest Morro. Rest if you need be. My residence is always open for you."

The woman moved up her hand slightly, making the bird fly inside the chancery. Her smile remained, watching the raven fly directly to the jar on the stand that had an eyeball in it.

"I'll be back, dear. Although I do not need to read the letter that child had left, I'm sure someone is interested to take a look at it," said the woman, sauntering off while the raven pecked on the eyeball in the jaw.

The woman waltzed through the dark and empty hallway of the residence until she reached a particular room. She knocked once and waited for a response, but when a minute had passed in silence, she opened the door ever so slowly.

The moment the door opened, her eyes fell on the man doing push-ups in the generous space in the middle of the chamber. He had no upper clothing and his skin shone because of the layer of sweat on his body.

"Look what I got, Marquess." The woman folded her arms under her chest, leaning her side against the jamb. "It seemed you'd be able to get out of here soon."

The man, Dexter, paused. He turned his head in her direction, only to see her waving an envelope that had Isaiah's seal on it. Dexter pushed himself away from the floor, standing smoothly, and didn't idle as he marched toward her.

"Give it to me." He reached for the envelope, only for the woman to move it away slightly. His lips curved down, frowning. "London Leviticus, hand it over."

"I made a promise to your sister, Her Majesty, the Queen, to keep her brother safe. I understand that your ego was bruised, but I hope you understand it was a mutual agreement with mutual benefits."

Dexter assessed the sly woman's face; she had a slight resemblance to Isaiah but was way more annoying. He snapped his tongue, snatching the letter from her.

"I understand the reason she stripped herself of the people she cared about so they wouldn't use us as a leash to her," he said as he opened the envelope calmly. "Regardless of my thoughts, all I want to know is if that damn husband of hers finally woke up to his senses."

Dexter's eyes shone in contempt as he skimmed through the letter. A glint flickered across them upon reading it all completely, lips curled up into a smirk.

"Finally…" he breathed out, crumpling the paper in his hand. "We can all settle the scores soon."