Chương 36: Cynthia Sanguine

The group gathered in the hallway. Only one room remained between them and the throne room. Millie and Milo sat on the frozen floor behind them, tending to their wounds. Milo carefully wrapped a cloth around Millie's bleeding forehead, while Millie sniffled and held her lollipop with her remaining hand. Noah tried not to look at her. Ava kept looking at him anyway. Then footsteps echoed from the hall ahead. Slow. Heavy. Confident. Noah raised his fists. Adam lifted his spear.

Cyrus adjusted his glasses, his expression immediately sharpening.

"It seems the final guardian decided to come to us." A woman stepped into view. She wore a maid uniform, but nothing about her looked delicate. Long silver hair flowed down her back. Crimson eyes stared at them with amusement. Massive golden horns curved from her head, and golden metal gauntlets covered her arms. In her hands, she carried a massive axe. The blade dragged lightly across the floor, leaving sparks against the stone.

"Damn." The woman grinned.

"Didn't think the siblings would go down so easily." Millie perked up.

"Lady Caroline…" She pointed at Noah.

"We tried our best. They're really strong." Her cheeks puffed out.

"Also, the dumb-looking one is super mean." Ava slowly turned toward Noah.

"Yeesh, Noah. What did you do to her?" Noah looked away.

"Nothing." Cyrus stared at him. Noah sighed.

"Just a headbutt." Ava blinked.

"You headbutted her?"

"It worked."

"That does not make it better." Cyrus's face had gone pale. Not from fear. From recognition.

"Everyone get back." Noah glanced at him.

"What?" Cyrus did not take his eyes off the maid.

"This maid is not a normal fighter. She is much worse." The woman's grin widened.

"She's—" Cyrus stopped. The woman vanished. Noah's eyes widened. One moment, she stood at the end of the hallway. The next, she was behind Cyrus. Her axe flashed. Cyrus's head flew from his shoulders. Black blood sprayed across the floor. His body dropped. For one terrible second, no one moved. Noah's heart stopped. Ava's eyes went wide. Adam's grip tightened around his spear. Then Cyrus's body sat up. His severed head rolled across the floor, blinking once in irritation.

The body reached over, picked up the head, and placed it back on his neck. Black Mist stitched the wound closed in thick, crawling threads. Cyrus adjusted his glasses as if nothing had happened.

"Do not worry." Noah stared at him. Ava slowly lowered her daggers. Adam's mouth opened, then closed. Cyrus cleared his throat.

"Due to the Black Mist in my body, I cannot die unless my heart is crushed." He turned back toward the woman.

"As I was saying…" His expression flattened.

"This scary psychopath is my sister." The woman burst into laughter.

"Aww, Cyrus." She rested the axe over her shoulder.

"You didn't have to ruin the fun." Her grin turned wicked.

"I was planning on kicking your head around a little more." Cyrus sighed.

"You have not matured at all." The woman reached up and pulled off her silver wig. Long purple hair spilled free beneath it. Then she removed the crimson contacts from her eyes. One eye was red. The other was yellow, marked with the symbol of a crown. Her golden horns gleamed under the hallway lights. Cyrus looked at her with tired affection. Noah slowly understood. This was not Caroline. This was Cynthia Sanguine. Cyrus's sister. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

And she was smiling like she had just found the most entertaining toy in the world. Milo slowly raised one hand.

"Wait." Everyone looked at him. His expression had gone pale.

"What happened to Miss Caroline?" Cynthia blinked. Then she waved her hand dismissively.

"Oh, her?" Milo nodded quickly.

"Do not worry. I just knocked her out, tied her up, and left her in a cabin in the woods." A long silence followed. Cynthia placed one finger against her chin.

"Somewhere near the ruined Eldenwood territory, I think." Milo stared at her.

"That is very worrying."

"She'll be fine," Cynthia said.

"Probably." Cyrus pinched the bridge of his nose. Adam sighed and looked at the axe resting over Cynthia's shoulder.

"Did you really have to chop off his head?" Cynthia looked at him as if the question itself were strange.

"Honestly, that was his fault." Cyrus lowered his hand.

"My fault?"

"You didn't block it."

"I was trying to introduce you."

"And I was trying to have fun."

"You are horrible."

"I know." Cynthia turned away from her brother and looked over the group. Her gaze moved from Ava, to Adam, to Noah.

"So." She planted the axe against the floor.

"You're the lot my brother invited to hunt Medusa." Noah straightened slightly. Cynthia's eyes settled on him. She looked him up and down. Then frowned.

"I'm guessing you're the stupid-looking golden retriever of a Hero he mentioned." Noah blinked.

"Golden retriever?" Cyrus looked away. Ava slowly turned toward him.

"You called Noah a golden retriever?"

"It was an accurate description." Noah frowned.

"Stupid-looking?" Cyrus adjusted his glasses.

"I may have said golden retriever. I do not recall adding stupid-looking." Cynthia stepped closer to Noah, staring at him with open curiosity.

"Yeah." She nodded once.

"Definitely a dumb puppy." Noah's expression flattened. Cynthia smiled.

"No way he would betray us." Adam's shoulders stiffened. Cynthia's gaze slid toward him.

"Maybe tall, broody, and sexy over here." Adam flinched.

"But not this puppy." Noah looked at Adam. Adam looked away.

"Sexy?" Adam asked. His voice was far too casual. Cynthia smirked.

"I said what I said." Ava glanced between them, then narrowed her eyes at Adam. Adam raised both hands.

"I did not ask for this." Cyrus stared at his sister.

"Can you focus for five seconds?"

"Fine, fine." Cynthia lifted her axe and pointed it down the hallway.

"All that matters is that we have a clean shot to the throne room." The humor faded from her face.

"There are no more guards." Noah's grip tightened.

"Just Medusa?" Cynthia's smile disappeared completely.

"Medusa…" Her yellow eye gleamed faintly.

"And The Crows." The hallway grew quiet. For the first time since appearing, Cynthia looked serious.

"The Doctor, Jackpot, and the child are all inside." Adam's jaw tightened. Cynthia noticed. Her gaze lingered on him for half a second too long. Then she looked back at Noah.

"If you're going to speak with Medusa, do it carefully." Cyrus stepped beside his sister.

"And if The Crows make a move?" Cynthia's grin returned. Then she lifted her axe.

"Then we kill them first." Cynthia rested the axe over her shoulder.

"Listen up. I'll say this once." Everyone turned toward her.

"My ability is called The Reversed Stars." The air beside her hand twisted.

"It allows me to tear open space between short distances and move through it." Cyrus narrowed his eyes.

"Or," Cynthia said, smiling, "I can do stuff like this." She punched the air. A small portal opened in front of her fist. Another opened directly in front of Cyrus's stomach. Her punch passed through one and struck him through the other. Cyrus doubled over.

"Ow." Cynthia laughed.

"See? Useful." Cyrus glared at her while holding his stomach.

"You could have demonstrated that on a wall."

"I could have."

"Then why didn't you?"

"Because this was funnier." Noah stared at the space where the portals had opened. Ava's eyes sharpened. Adam remained quiet, studying her ability carefully. Cynthia tapped beneath her yellow eye.

"Next is my demonic eye." The crown-like symbol inside her iris glowed faintly.

"It is called the Monarch's Eye. I can temporarily take over someone's body." Noah's shoulders stiffened.

"But," Cynthia added, "I can't move my own body while I'm inside someone else's." She glanced at Cyrus.

"My dumb brother here also has a demonic eye, but he's using the Black Mist to hide it." Cyrus looked away. Cynthia's smile thinned.

"Can't blame him. That thing brings back bad memories." The hallway went quiet. Noah looked at Cyrus, but Cyrus did not explain. For a moment, his usual sharp expression looked distant. Then he spoke softly.

"Hey, Cynthia." Cynthia blinked.

"What?" Cyrus hesitated.

"Do you remember much from our childhood?" Her grin faded slightly. He looked at her carefully.

"Can you remember Mom or Dad's faces?" Cynthia opened her mouth. Then stopped. Her eyes shifted toward the floor. For the first time, she looked uncertain.

"Now that you mention it…" Her hand tightened around the handle of her axe.

"No." Cyrus's expression darkened. Cynthia tried to smile, but it did not fully return.

"That is weird, isn't it?" Cyrus did not answer. The two siblings stood there in silence, both trying to reach memories that had been stolen from them. As they began speaking quietly, Noah gently pulled Ava aside. Ava looked at him.

"Noah?" He kept his voice low.

"I've been thinking." Ava's expression grew serious. Noah glanced toward Cyrus and Cynthia, then toward the throne room doors ahead.

"I think I figured out the Black Witch's true identity." Ava's eyes widened slightly.

"You did?" Noah nodded.

"Actually…" His grip tightened around his ruined sword hilt.

"There's only one person it can be." Ava leaned closer.

"Who?" Noah looked back at the others. Cyrus was still talking to Cynthia, too shaken by the missing memories to notice them. Adam stood nearby, silent and distant. Noah lowered his voice even more.

"Don't tell anyone." Ava frowned.

"Not even Cyrus?"

"Not yet." Noah leaned in and whispered his suspicion into her ear. Ava went completely still. Her crimson eyes widened. Then she slowly looked toward the throne room doors.

"Noah…"

"I know." The air around them felt heavier. The throne room was no longer just the place where Medusa waited. It was where the truth waited. And once those doors opened, there would be no turning away from it.