色戒无删除版

Cygnus did not need to look at the person who came because he already knew who it was. He looked at the burning wraith with cold eyes and the grin on his face disappeared. Even the crazed look was gone and was replaced by his usually laid-back expression.

"Yes, it is time. Ari gave me a report so I rushed here to make sure that you won't do something drastic before you achieve your goal," Mr. C answered with all honesty.

The man's gaze was not on the master as it was focused on the fire in front of them. Mr. C heard his master sigh before he snapped his fingers again and the red fire intensified. He was not like the master who could read minds and there was no way that he would know what the other was thinking but based on his actions, he has calmed down.

"This is boring. It was fun to fight something like that but you came and interrupted it." Cygnus stood up and the blood from his wound flowed out again. "Let's go." He turned around and with one last snap, something dark appeared below the wraith followed by dark hands that pulled it down.

Duke Galahad watched and listened to all of this with a straight face. When the master turned around and walked towards him, he sighed and met them halfway. He stopped Cygnus to check the wound on his body that was still bleeding.

"That's a nasty wound. Aren't you going to take care of it first?" Galahad's eyes looked at his chest before looking him in the eye.

"I'm fine," Cygnus shrugged his shoulders as he intended to walk ahead but the duke's grip on his shoulder tightened.

"I don't care what your deal is or what your body is made off but a wound is a wound. It should be taken care of right away." His eyes narrowed at the young man before giving the butler a glare. "And it is the butler's responsibility to take care of his charge."

The butler inclined his head as he too held his master's arms. The duke let go as he turned around and walked out of the cave. The butler pulled his master along until they stopped a few distance away from the cave.

Mr. C brought out an illuminating crystal to give the space a little bit of light. He then waved his hand and a magic circle appeared where he dipped his hand to get some bandages and a bottle of clean water. Galahad leaned on the wall to wait for them to finish.

"Please remove your clothes master," Mr. C instructed but the master only glared at him. The butler then gestured at the duke who was looking at them.

Cygnus, who had no other choice, removed his torn and bloody clothes. The butler crouched down to clean the wound on his chest and back. Galahad saw that the wound was slowly closing but it still needed to be bandaged to let it heal completely.

Mr. C's hands moved swiftly and skillfully wrapped the bandage around the master's torso to cover the wound. After that, he pulled out a black loose shirt from the storage and gave it to the master. He dressed himself before giving his butler a glare.

"Happy?" His voice was so full of sarcasm that it made Galahad smile.

The man couldn't help but think that even though the young man would always give a smile that would confuse people, this side of him was a bit refreshing, because he was acting like his own age. The duke shook his head before he pushed himself away from the wall and started to walk out of the tunnel.

They exited the tunnel and the sentinels were relieved to see that they were all okay despite all the shaking and explosion they heard. Galahad went to one of them and told them the status of the cave after that he instructed them to move out. Cygnus and Mr. C followed them back to the manor where the others were still awake and waiting for them.

It was already past three in the early morning when they reached the manor and finally the rain stopped. They were served with food and sent to rest, especially Cygnus. Galahad was about to talk to Ulysses but the man refused and told him to rest.

"Let's face everything after you have rested for a few hours." Ulysses pointed at the direction of the manor's second floor where all of the bedrooms were located.

The sun slowly rose to the sky and the news of the attack towards the civilians spread through the masses. Even the rumors that the talismans created by the duke and his people were not effective against the evil spirit. Fear struck through the heart of the people as they went to the duke's manor to complain and ask for an explanation.

The sentinels were holding them off since the duke has yet to wake up from his rest. Ulysses on the other hand went to face these angry and anxious people. He was dressed formally and the aura around him showed his authority, even his usually brushed down black hair was slicked back to give emphasis to his dark eyes that often intimidates people.

A loud creak sounded as the black doors that led towards the manor. The people took a step back when the large gates suddenly opened. Behind the doors, the sentinels were lined and a man in a black formal suit with a white coat hanging on his back walked towards them.

Ulysses swept a gaze through the crowd but he did not speak. He only stood there with both of his hands inside his pockets. The crowd that was gathered there looked at each other because they were afraid to speak. The duke thought that none of them would speak so he gave one of the sentinels a subtle nod.

Before the sentinel could move, a loud voice came from the back. "The duke isn't to be trusted! How could he let his people be attacked by some evil spirit and the talismans they gave didn't even work. How can he assure that we will remain safe?"

Ulysses raised a brow and took a step forward. The crowd instinctively parted to give him way as he walked towards the man who spoke. The man suddenly felt nervous when he saw that they all stepped away and left him behind to face the intimidating man.

"Well, it is up to you if you trust or not the duke of this place. Let me tell you something, the Blackwell territory is hundreds of square miles wide and your duke is only one man, are you saying that he should stay in your house and protect you? Isn't that a bit selfish? Those talismans are effective and if you don't want them, you are free to return them. Duke Galahad Blackwell has been doing his best to protect all of you, now if you don't think that maintaining your borders free of monsters and facing those evil spirits is not a way of him protecting you, then I suggest that you leave this place immediately." Ulysses's cold gaze stayed on the man which only made him take several steps back.

*The man's courage a while ago disappeared at the face of the duke's piercing gaze. He shivered and shook his head as he turned around and ran. He didn't think that he would face someone like Duke Ulysses and he was not informed that something like this would happen.

The man disappeared after he made a turn on the intersection ahead. Duke Ulysses turned around to return to where the sentinels were. He subtly turned his head towards one of them and gave him a small nod. The sentinel left the line and disappeared in the crowd.

"Now if any of you have any more complains, say it now and I will make sure to relay it to the duke later." His voice was not too loud or too soft, it was enough for everyone to hear his statement.