Days had gone by in a blur as Aries waited for their return. Since Dexter was fatally injured, they didn't want to move his body and strain him. Aries understood this decision, so she patiently waited for them.
During these past several days, she had missed many prior commitments and just stayed inside the forbidden mansion, spending her days standing in front of the window, waiting.
Thanks to Gertrude and Gustav, Aries's constant visitors: Suzanne, Sybil, and Veronika didn't find out that Aries wasn't in the Hyacinth Palace all along. They told everyone Aries fell ill, and thus, she couldn't attend to her scheduled appointments.
During this time, Sunny and Conan could only accompany her in silence. Most of the time, it was Sunny who would spend the day in the same room as Aries. They didn't bother her, respecting Aries's silence. They were simply glad Aries didn't snap and managed to get a hold of herself; it was thanks to Sunny and her previous advice.
When the people Aries had been waiting for finally arrived in the imperial palace and kept Dexter in the forbidden mansion, since it was the safest place in the imperial palace, Aries hurriedly rushed to the room they had kept Dexter. To her surprise, Isaiah returned with them and he returned without a scratch on him.
"What are you doing here?" Aries rushed to Isaiah and grabbed the lapels of his suit.
Isaiah was just standing outside the room. The door was wide open, and the people inside gazed at Aries and Isaiah just right outside the room.
"My lady —"
"How come you're back without a single scratch on you?!" Aries cut him off, tugging Isaiah's clothes aggressively. "He went away to search for you, and if possible, help you if you needed it. How come you're safe while my brother was fatally injured?!"
Isaiah let out a shallow breath, staring back at those pair of fiery eyes glaring at him. He glanced to his left, his gaze instantly fell on Conan. It seemed Conan didn't tell Aries about the miscommunication, but he couldn't blame Conan as it would only add to Aries's anxiety.
"Darling, come inside." Aries heard Abel's calm voice from within the chambers, but she ignored it. "I'll fill you in with the details… including why Isaiah is here."
Her jaw tightened as she gripped Isaiah's clothes even tighter. What else would they tell her? Aries didn't know, and a part of her didn't want to know.
"If my brother dies… I'm going to kill you, Your Grace," she warned, along with a sharp breath. "You better pray he will open his eyes because I will curse you for life if he didn't."
Aries let him go aggressively, eyes flickering with anger and deep hatred, blaming Isaiah for the excruciating pain in her heart. When Aries turned and faced the door, her eyes glossed over the faces of the people inside.
Conan, Abel, and Marsella were standing around the bed. They were looking back at her, watching her keep her chin up as she stepped inside.
Marsella's gaze veered behind Aries's figure, staring at Isaiah, who remained standing motionless in the same spot.
'It's not actually his fault…' she thought, peeling her eyes away from him. '... but he is also not innocent. These men… are just too reckless without regard for the people who were now a part of their lives.'
For Marsella, Isaiah's only fault was not sending a word back to the empire. If only Isaiah did, Abel wouldn't send Dexter to find him. However, the reason she couldn't fully blame them was that it was a habit, and breaking a habit was a tough case to do. She heard there were times Isaiah — and even Abel — would leave without a word and would be gone for months, only to return when they feel like it.
Marsella folded her arms under her chest, glancing at Abel across the bed. The latter also cast her a cursory look, but immediately shifted his attention to Aries.
"Brother…" Aries's voice shook as she got closer to the bed, seeing Dexter's pale complexion. Her heart sank, catching several cuts on his face. And despite the quilt covering his body, Aries knew underneath it lies a severely wounded body.
Aries had always admired her brother and never once did she ever see him look so weak. But right now, Dexter was hovering between life and death, and she couldn't even do anything about it.
Tears instantly pooled in her eyes, flooding her face. Aries clutched the pillar of the bed, keeping her eyes on him. She dragged her feet to the side of the bed while Marsella stepped back to give way to her.
"You promised…" Aries hiccuped, sitting on the edge of the mattress. With a trembling hand, she reached for his face. Not only his complexion was pale, but his skin felt a bit cold. If she didn't know, she would've mistaken this for his corpse.
"You promised you'd retreat before anything goes wrong…" she gulped and her neck turned taut, sheltering the tension in her throat. "... but why are you lying here? Do you hate me so much that you'd return to me in such a state?"
Everyone remained silent, respecting Aries's space and her feelings. Abel snapped his eyes at Conan and Marsella. Conan wordlessly bowed while Marsella rolled her eyes before the two of them left as silently as possible, closing the door to give them some time.
When it was just them, Abel sat down on the armchair beside the bed and across from Aries. He glanced at her as she wept silently and then moved his gaze to Dexter's side profile. Abel was silent and his eyes sheltered multiple emotions, deep in thought.
His train of thoughts halted when Aries's shaking voice pierced the air.
"What happened to him?" she asked, facing him. Tears blurred her vision, but she looked at Abel with anticipation. "Who did this to him?"
Abel fluttered his eyelashes ever so slowly. "We're still investigating."
"So… you don't know yet?" Aries let out a dry laugh but was unable to blame Abel for it. There was a process to everything and not everything could be done in a snap of a finger.
"Darling, that trinket…" Abel crooned, watching her refocus her eyes on him. "The Marquess woke up once on our way here. He only said two words: the trinket and…"
"And?"
"Maleficent." His continuation made her hold her breath. "We believed that the protection spell you gave him saved his life. However, we hadn't found out how. Even Marsella had no idea. Did you feel anything? It might help."
Aries furrowed her brows, puzzled. "No." She shook her head. "Nothing in particular. I was nervous."
"I see…" Abel rocked his head, keeping his arms folded under his chest. A glint flickered across his eyes, holding her gaze without faltering.
"I will announce you as the Empress in a few days, darling," he said, and despite that Aries wanted to throw her sarcasm, she stayed silent. "In a few days, it'll be a full moon and the night council will be present. We suspect someone in the night council has something to do with everything."
"They will ask for your presence in the night council. Would you be willing to take a seat at the same table as them?" he asked after a minute. "You'll be the bait, darling, is what I'm trying to say."
"If it's proven someone among them had anything to do with this… I will become a god or the devil himself if I must," she remarked with a tinge of suppressed anger and hatred. "I won't let anyone who did this to him get away with this... unharmed."
The two of them looked at each other; one bore calmness while the other held in the swirling fury in her eyes.
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