Perhaps he had found some inspiration. Or maybe, what he lost in his arm, he made up for in focus. I wouldn't doubt it if he turned his pain into discipline.
That reassured me a little. She wasn't just trying to distract me - Evelyn had her own thoughts, her own worries.
"What else?" I asked, in an almost involuntary whisper. I wanted to keep hearing his voice. To prolong that moment as if it could last forever.
She took a deep breath before answering, her eyes fixed on some point on the ceiling, as if trying to organize the memories.
"Tomorrow the first criminals will arrive" he said in a soft but firm voice. "My mother told me that she encountered many problems in the territory. At first, people were afraid to talk..." she paused, thoughtful: "...but we soon learned many things. More than we expected"
I nodded, my jaw tense. Nothing surprised me anymore in that world, but it was still hard to swallow the rot that seeped into the land.
I leaned in, ready to kiss her, when two firm knocks interrupted everything.
"Young master, the baron is calling you. Something has happened" said Vera from outside.
I exchanged a glance with Evelyn. The urgency in her voice was clear. We started to get dressed quickly.
I walked down the castle corridors with my armor on, feeling its weight pressing down on my shoulders. The sounds were louder than usual - hurried footsteps, tense voices. Armed guards gathered in the corridors, and the atmosphere was as heavy as before a storm.
I found my father in the training yard. He was sitting on the stone floor, silent, his gaze fixed on something ahead.
I approached and felt my body stiffen. There was a corpse in front of him.
The dead man's dark armor made me pause for a second. I recognized it - reinforced black iron. We had seen this kind of armor before, worn by those who belonged to no formal kingdom, but who served the darkness behind the scenes. Hired assassins. Single-purpose mercenaries.
I turned the corpse on its side with the tip of my boot.
He was a big, strong man, but smaller than my father. The head wound was grotesque, deep enough to reveal pieces of brain mass sticking out of the side of his skull.
The ground around the corpse was dyed red. Still warm, still fresh. I approached, my eyes scanning every detail, every mark. It only took two blows for my father to bring him down - two. That... that was impressive. Before he was wounded, he might not have made it.
"You've improved" I murmured, relieved but also surprised.
My father scrunched up his nose, a little embarrassed by the compliment, almost as if he didn't want to admit the effort.
"Now that I only have my commanding arm, I can focus only on it... using a one-handed sword isn't ideal, but it's helped me improve a little" he said, and there was an honest lightness in his voice. Something I rarely heard.
Doug appeared soon after, approaching slowly.
"Shall we throw it away again?" he asked, his voice laden with doubt.
I shook my head.
"No. Give me the corpse. I need to do something with it"
My father immediately gave me a worried look.
"Be careful. Dead bodies can make you sick" he warned, his voice low, almost a whisper laden with fear.
"All right" I replied, trying not to show the tension that was consuming me inside.
I looked at the fallen body and then at the guards nearby.
"Take the body to that area I marked a few days ago. Do it discreetly"
"Yes, young master" they said, bowing briefly before leaving with the body on their shoulders.
As the guards' footsteps moved away, I turned my attention to my father. The situation had escalated. An assassin had managed to enter the castle. This was different. More serious. More urgent.
"So... how was it?" I asked, trying to keep my voice neutral.
"I managed to translate it. I'm curious... but I still don't know if that's the way to go" he replied, lowering his voice.
I was silent for a moment. Then I just said what needed to be said:
"It's your choice. I won't hate you if you decide not to do it"
He gave me a smile. Tired. But full of pride.
"I'll do what I can for the family"
I looked over my shoulder, spotting Evelyn among the maids. Her skin tone was pale, and she coughed again. My eyes fixed on her for a moment longer than they should have.
(Maybe I can find something to help her) I thought, feeling that old restlessness settle in my chest.
Without saying another word, I placed my hand on the hilt of my sword and began my patrol. My boots echoed across the stone floor as I crossed the corridors.
My chance had come.
It was time to plant the first orchid.
—•—
The torch flickered beside me, casting dancing shadows over the cold earth. The silence was almost absolute, broken only by the rustle of the wind and the crackle of the flame.
That area... looked like a real cemetery. Rows and rows of coffins buried in a "Y" shape, all sealed, imposing and silent. I was at the bottom end, in front of the nearest headstone.
The corpse I was carrying still looked almost alive. Clean, prepared, too fresh to have been dead for hours. The possessions had been removed, leaving it naked for what I needed to do.
I placed the torch in the ground and took out the ceremonial dagger attached to my armor. The cold of the blade in my hand was almost comforting.
I took a deep breath and cut into the man's chest, feeling the skin split open and the blood trickle out slowly, accumulating warm and viscous on my skin. The corpse's muscles twitched a little, involuntary reflexes that made me catch my breath.
With effort, I exposed the beating red heart - or what was left of it in that lifeless body.
I wiped my hands carefully, feeling the cold sweat drip off them. I picked up the glass jar and took out the small, black, bean-like seed.
In the beginning, nothing happened. It was just a seed, dead, cold.
But when I placed it on the corpse's skin, near the exposed heart, I felt a strange vibration, as if it had become conscious. A shiver went up my spine.
Carefully, I left the seed next to the heart and moved my hand away. I picked up the torch again to observe.
The glow of the flame revealed something... almost imperceptible.