169- Hunt him down (1)

It was that smell again—a whiff of fresh grass soaked in morning dew, the sparkle of sweetness in the breeze enough to make someone drunk. But the same moment the scent numbed Dujin's senses, his back went stiff as brick, and he turned colorless.

Hugo called for Raihle a moment ago, but he hasn't responded yet, and now this scent is leaking out of the closed room.

His breathing rumbled, he shoved Hugo off his way, slammed his hand on the door, and twisted the knob vigorously, but something blocked his way.

Everyone was startled, but the sound of hoarse coughing shifted the words they intended to say.

"RAIHLE!" Dujin throbbed at the door with his closed fists and shouted. "Don't do anything useless!"

Guldier's harsh voice shouted after him. "Your highness! Please open the door."

The coughing stopped with a fall on the floor, making Hugo's heart sink.

He pushed Dujin out of the way and raised his leg to snap the door out of its place with a kick, but his leg paused in the air when the door suddenly opened.

The cold and handsome lips twisted at their shocked expression, almost unbothered by the fear that rose in their widened eyes and pale faces. The other person's shirt was soaked and slippery, he was already boneless in his grip, so he held his arm over his shoulder and the one on his waist tightly, while his silky hair blocked his blood-stained face.

He didn't wait for the terrifying shock to wear off before speaking with hoarseness and a vicious smile. "Can someone tell me what the hell happened to my cousin?"

"My mother was healed by the Miracle Worker!" The little boy was jumping up and down around the shelter while shouting, but his noisy voice made no disturbance in the air.

The place that reeked of death has shifted in color, shining with delight and light air.

The people lying down in agony were now sitting up laughing at the jumping boy as the sun's light broke into the basement and lit their lives up through the harsh winter. The warmth of spring wrapped the place in velvet and a gentle touch.

It was a sudden change, under the thick shadow of death, with the echoes of pain and prints of blood on the floor, when life was draining and leaking out of their veins.

A fragrance of sweetness, moist and fresh in the air—that was how it started, and then everything ceased, the pain was slowly being washed away like the pure water of a river.

Soon the despair turned into a blooming flower, and the deep darkness under the shelter was lightened with a new day's sunlight.

'It's a miracle!'

It started with disbelieving laughter, but then one after another, people got up on their feet.

Skin sewn back and bodies free of disease.

And then the rumors started more vigorously.

It was the nurses who heard about the group that returned after being trapped in a cave for a night.

Nol was a close friend to them, when he came back, he was fine, but his face was all in distress, and in the next second, he blurted out all that had happened without specific details.

With daze and admiration, the news traveled quickly. The miracle was the work of someone, and even though his identity was concealed, the sudden miracle proved that his existence was inevitable for some people, mostly the youngest.

With the scent of enchanted flowers, they were graced by the Miracle Worker.

The shelter was a festival in this person's honor. They hung hand-made decorations and gathered their meals in the middle of the basement, where they sang with bottles of drinks.

The basement door was suddenly slammed open, and shouts shook the walls. "He came back to life! The Miracle Worker brought a dead person to life!"

The shout hung in the air, circling around in the middle of the silence, jumping from one head to another.

They had admiration and gratitude for this little tale about the Miracle Worker, it was something that brought joy to the children, but they never actually thought that a single person could heal the sick by their presence or their touches.

But now someone has been brought back to life? The mythical man they joked about was actually real? And he is capable of bringing back the dead?

The air in the room was heavier than steel. The silence was overbearing for the people present around the table in the center of the room.

A dry voice was the silence-breaker. "It was one of the nurses that were assigned for young master Solvian, she knew he had passed away and then accidentally saw him when he left the room." Julisa completed her sentence with a click of her tongue.

Her eyes were on Alick's Solvian's stoic face, he sat on a distant couch, his eyes hazed by unreadable thoughts. He hasn't spoken since he heard about everything that had happened after he passed out and held a frozen face during this time.

When she didn't get a response from him, she turned to Hugo's back.

He stood facing his reflection on the dark window glass and was still as if he were made of stone.

"Hugo, what are you planning on doing now?" She asked. "Recovering from the disease is one thing, but reviving the dead..."

There are many excuses for the miraculous recovery, especially for a new disease with no previous information; they could say it turned out to be a temporary condition, or perhaps their infected immune system managed to defend the body.

But how many excuses could explain someone coming back after their death?

"They know someone is behind it, and I'm afraid it wouldn't be long before they knew his identity."

Is there a person in this world who wouldn't want their beloved ones back to life? How many of them would be desperate enough to go beyond their imaginations to get the opportunity from the Miracle Worker?

Their greed will increase one after the other, and there will be no end to it.

"His highness is still unconscious."

Since the person concerned with this matter is unconscious, Hugo was the person to make the decision.

Hugo didn't respond for a long time, his back still like a mountain and his expression unclear in the reflection of the window.

"We are leaving." He finally turned and showed his ice-cold gaze, showing no emotion on his face.

Julisa got up from her seat. "Right now? Does his highness condition allow that?"

Hugo pressed his lips together tightly. "We have to. We can't stay any longer and draw more attention."

He strode toward the door when Alick suddenly broke his silence. "Is that what his highness wants?"

"No. What Raihle wanted was to heal you, and he did. Hell, he even pulled your soul back to your dead body." Hugo glared at him and forced him to reseal his lips.

He left the room in silence and went to the room next door. Two imperial guards were standing by the door frame, showing solemn expressions.

He entered without knocking, the lights were off, but he followed the moonlight threads coming through the curtains.

A single candle was lit next to the bed, the flame flickering in the soundless air and making a dim light.

He stopped by the bedside and crossed his arms, his eyes weak and heavy as he looked at the ghost lying under the thick covers.

His already pale skin has turned worse, his eyebrows are twitching in pain, and blood has stained his collar.

His clothes were already changed once before he left, and the fact that they were stained meant he had bled again.

Hugo's eyes didn't move from his expression when he spoke to Guldier.

"We are heading back to the empire."

Guldier nodded and hummed his understanding.

Then Hugo spoke again with a broken voice. "Can...can he handle the trip?"

"That's..."Guldier tightened his fists on his legs, he hardly managed to admit it. "I'm ashamed to say that I don't know. I don't know what made him recoil, and I don't know the source of his pain. It's like a vague and blurred image to me, as if something is blocking me from seeing what's wrong with him, so I can't answer that question."

Hugo clenched his jaw tightly, if he didn't, he feared he would snap and let the fire in his chest eat up everyone and everything.

He suppressed his rigid breathing and slowly sat down on the bedside table, careful not to startle Raihle's body lying on it. Then he extended his hand to his face and tucked the sweat-soaked hair away from his forehead.

His cold fingertips spread coldness on his skin, his brow furrowed harder, and his lashes fluttered.

"Raihle," Hugo said in a whispering voice, he made sure that his shaking didn't sound clear in his tone.

Raihle struggled to open his eyes, and he couldn't clear his vision when he finally did.

The place was too dark, so he turned to the candle, and a yellow glow washed his pale face.

"Raihle, we will be going back. Our job here is done." Hugo said. 

Raihle parted his lips and let out a weak voice: "...Where_"

"The empire, home."

"No, where is my cousin?"

Hugo flinched at his unfocused gaze, he thought that he wasn’t completely aware of his surroundings.

"What do you want from him?"

Raihle moved his weak eyes from the candlelight to Guldier and eyed him, his breathing was unsettled, as if a heavy weight was sitting on his chest.

"I have something to say to him."

Hugo closed his lips.

"I know he is alive now." He said this in case Hugo would tell any more lies like he had in the beginning.

Hugo glanced at Guldier and finally nodded with a sigh. "I will prepare for our leave as you two talk."

He got up and placed his hand on Guldier's shoulder, and the other followed him out of the room.