The Book Of Flowers

Darius and Collin Terpojok

-- The next night, Hortensia---

...

...

...

Breathing heavily...

As the two men sat before a woman standing tall before them, they also began to shed bone-chilling cold sweat. Their eyes were wide in disbelief, while imagining every horror that could happen to them

Yep. That night, brothers Darius and Collin are caught by Rosalia's surveillance. Caught for daring to move behind him

"I took off the watch magic on your body to make you more free. But, apparently you guys still remain brash"

Hearing a cold voice from before them, the two hugged from side to side. They try to move away from the person, while the person is getting closer

And when she reached Collin with her hand, the first thing Rosalia did was grab her sister's hair

Collin screamed in pain, so he was sure that the entire castle that night could hear his voice so clearly

"Sister! Don't fuck Collin!" Darius asked for

"Oh? Since when have you been so honorable, my brother Darius? Especially for someone who is only half of your blood?"

Darius was goosebumps, as Rosalia threw Collin until she was hit on the floor. Her brother immediately tried to make sure that his sister was okay, as Rosalia increasingly seemed unimpressed by the situation

Yael, who had just been sitting casually on the sofa sipping tea, just looked at every detail of the drama with a happy heart

"I told you we still need to keep an eye on them" Yael commented later

"Silent. I don't need you to talk and add to my anger right now" Rosalia denied

"Hmphs. But I didn't expect that these two guys were helping us in dismantling them"

Across from Yael, there were two people sitting on a sofa that had the same model. But the two did not intend to enjoy tea with the black magician, as he began to give a smile full of plaits to the two

The two men were none other than Frank, and Veskal. The two sat down with stiff expressions, observing every gesture given by Yael

Meanwhile, Uncle Zero stood in the corner of the room, waiting for a sentence from Veskal to move away from there

"We honestly don't need you guys to unpack this. But yes already~" He commented in a derisive tone, before, "You guys want something, don't you think?", Yael turned serious, interrogating the two

"At least you have a brain" Veskal commented, changing his sitting position as if he was the more powerful one in that place

"All right, little Elf dog. You don't want trouble with me...!"

"Yael, enough! shut the fuck up and let them explain all this!" Rosalia interrupted, still standing with a gaze that could have killed her two younger siblings at that moment

Yael retreated, as Frank advanced his body so Rosalia could catch his gaze

"We want to do business. It's just a down payment, and a little picture of how we can help you" Frank said

"By stabbing Oberon in the back? You play with fire, Frank" Rosalia denied. "And what makes you believe we can trust a traitor?" He asked again

"Treachery..."

Veskal laughed after muttering that. Laughter that even made Rosalia and Yael surprised, until the gazes of the two people met for a moment

"We have no intention of betraying Vainzel or Verdea. Even if we literally do that, our goal remains to make sure both people are safe"

"... Those two guys?"

"I don't care too much about Verdea's friends" Frank predates

"I'm the opposite. But, I'm just doing what's necessary"

Veskal shifted his sitting position to approach Rosalia who was still standing. He made sure that their gazes met first, before he revealed what his intentions were

"We want you to spare Vainzel as well. I know you have the intention to let Verdea live, but I want my friend to keep Verdea company"

Rosalia was silent, while Yael sighed as if she heard something stupid

"What's in it for you...?" Rosalia asked

"none. I only know that we have no chance of winning this battle against you both"

Rosalia jerks. The sentence from Veskal made him surprised, coming in the form of a confession of defeat. Confessions made before the war began

The sentence sounds like a joke, but Rosalia herself, as the main opponent from our side now understands very well the weight of the sentence. He understands that Veskal is not kidding

"And why do you think we'll give you what you want?" He asked, making sure to go back to secure his suspicions

Rosalia began to move around the sofa where the two people were sitting, starting from Frank's side. And when he got to Veskal's side...

Her hands moved, strangling Veskal—'s neck as well as nailing her in the back of the sofa

Uncle Zero who saw it immediately tried to get in his way, but was soon banished again by Frank who told him to stay in place. The situation was still under control, although Zero's uncle saw and responded to it in a different way

Rosalia on the other hand, began to bring her face closer to Veskal by putting on a furious look, as the other calmly tried to breathe properly under the giggling

"You're trying to play games with me, aren't you? The offer was too stupid to be real" Rosalia squeaked

And he's not wrong at all. There is no point in someone knowing that he will lose making a deal with someone who will be the winner. That action was either done by the most arrogant person in the world, or the most stupid person in the world

"But it-Right! I know you very well, Rosalia. I worked under you for a few years. I know very well what you can do" Veskal tried to speak clearly

"And what is it, that I can do...?"

"You're crazy - I'm not going to hide that at all. And my friends are not like you

People like you have unlimited imaginations. Nothing hinders your mind from doing even the craziest thing"

Rosalia actually increasingly strangled Veskal, so that the person she strangled was increasingly seen to need air. Uncle Zero increasingly couldn't bear it and started moving again, so-so

-- Rosalia removed her hand from Veskal's neck, making Veskal start coughing very hard while stopping Uncle Zero's steps in an instant

The atmosphere is calm again. This situation looks very strange, but everything that happens there will be very important for everyone. So, Uncle Zero was just silent back, slightly bowing his head as if he was on standby. He let the four people talk back, discussing some things that would come later

"You could have helped me at this moment, but you didn't. Your movements are too suspicious" Rosalia commented, waving her fan in front of her face

"Wow. I doubt you want to 'do business' in this place" Yael interjected

"Business is done above the same position. If the two sides could not benefit each other, this conversation was useless" Frank also followed

"I pulled my words about you having a brain" Veskal even said

Jael wanted to immediately slash the head of the person before him, but Rosalia immediately stopped him

"Then? What do you want to offer me?" Rosalia asked

"Finally the question I want" Veskal said. "I can help you get 'it', something you need from the devil worshipers"

Rosalia surprised. Something that spontaneously made Yael come by in shock because not every day she could see that expression on her master's face

"You know about 'that'...?" Rosalia asked

"I know more than you think. Especially when using logic that your beloved black magician is in recovery, and needs it. You can get it or not, but getting it means things will go faster"

"We actually wanted to offer something else, but Veskal got valuable information" Frank interjected, taking the tea that was served to him to drink. "That's why we're rushing to dismantle Collin and Darius as a first step" he added

"You betrayed us!" Darius shouted. "We really want to help you, and this is what we got!"

"Think of Verdea and Oberon, Veskal!" Collin followed

"Shut your mouths! A brat like you would be of no use to my two friends!" Veskal replied to both. "The best thing you can do now is just lie down and die...!"

"Don't. I still need them" Rosalia interrupted. "Even though I would have thrown them away if they had been rude again"

That cold gaze from Rosalia further made Collin and Darius cling to each other in fear. Both of them even began to pray for their own safety

Rosalia turned back to Veskal with a serious look. He brought his face closer again, but without strangling Veskal this time

"What you offer is something that pays a lot. I'm sure you want something other than the safety of your two friends", he who still hesitates asked a question in a defiant tone to Veskal

Veskal just kept quiet trying to think. But he was right to have no other wish. And because of that...

All the gazes turned to Frank

"I have one more thing"

He played his finger to signal Rosalia to come closer. Although not happy, Rosalia stepped up so she could start whispering in his ear

Even Veskal couldn't hear what Frank wanted. And as he waited for the two to stop sharing the secret whisper, Veskal just closed his eyes— was not happy to see Yael in front of him

And Rosalia, you understand

He accepted the offer gladly, knowing that the exchange between the two sides was very profitable for each other

"I will keep my promise. But I'm not sure I can do it if your Elf friend keeps trying to annoy us after this plan goes" Rosalia said

Veskal accepted that. He couldn't get a better offer

Because both sides have agreed. What is needed now is simply waiting for the results to be exchanged for each other

"I'll call you back if we get a thing or two about 'that', okay?"

"A-ah~" Rosalia moves her index finger right and left. "Contact us, if you've got 'it' in your hand" teasingly, he said to Veskal

"... Alright"

Uncle Zero approached Veskal and Frank, who were ready to leave

"There will be more people by my side, Rosalia. Getting what you want is just a matter of time right now" Veskal gave his last sentence before leaving

"Then, I will wait very patiently" Rosalia replied

And so, Zero's uncle teleported to the three of them, so they disappeared from the presence of Jael and Rosalia

...

"They made a bold move. Or too stupid? I don't know anymore" Yael started commenting. "They're honest too, I hate to admit that. Veskal really wants to work with you again, even though I can feel the hidden intentions of that one"

"Frank isn't a threat if he's alone. And Veskal is indeed very practical, unlike you who rotate sentences and do not know when to be silent" Rosalia replied

"It's terrible that I'm the one who stays loyal to you until the end of~"

"You just proved that point..."

"Alright, alright. I will stop flirting with you again today, my lord. I've had quite a lot of unexpected pleasure"

Jael sipped his tea, as Rosalia looked back at her sisters who were still curled up like two frightened animals in front of a fierce predator

And it drew out a wide grin from Jael, knowing that something would come out of his master's mind...

"What will you do to them, my lord?" Yael asked too

...

Rosalia, we have decided

"Stop Lynia in front of the two of them. That would be a good start"

The two are wide-eyed, but it doesn't take long for Yael to call Lynia, Collin's mother, into the room. With just a flick of a finger, the woman was already inside the room in a confused state

And when she realized that she was in Rosalia's room, Jael had already finished her off with just one slash to her neck, so that her blood splashed on the floor and stuck a little in Rosalia's dress. The woman could not even utter a single word before she fell to the floor, dead

Collin, yelling hysterically watching that. Everything happened in an instant, so all Darius could do at that moment was to banish and close the view of Collin from the corpse of his mother who was still fresh and lying on the floor

However, not enough with that, Yael did not stop. His form suddenly changed, and he ate the blood of Lynia scattered everywhere in its entirety through the underside of his elongated robe. He licked his own lips, as if he could feel the taste that the blood gave him on his tongue

"It's not satisfying, but it's enough for today" Yael said

"Do not mind his body. Hang the body or make it look like he killed himself" Rosalia gave an order approved by Yael herself

Collin was still screaming hysterically, while Darius who tried to cover his gaze could only grimace their fate. His cry was extremely loud, even exceeding his screams before this. The supposedly silent night was filled with terror from the screams of a tortured prince

Now, both of them were completely cornered. The castle had become a prison for them...