Bride To His Darkness-Chapter 302: The Explosives

"IVAN!"

Alistair urgently exclaimed, his eyes widening in premonition as the space he vacated erupted into a shower of debris and flames. The shockwave rippled through the air, leaving a chaotic symphony in its wake, and for a moment, Alistair could do nothing but look away.

He shielded his face from the onslaught of dirt and leaves, still uncertain about the danger that had narrowly missed him. However, an inexplicable fear clutched his heart as he thought the worst had befallen on his cousin. A collective gasp echoed through the camp as they believed Ivan had been caught in a devastating explosion.

Time seemed to slow as the dust settled in, revealing the aftermath of the explosion, and the few soldiers who had stepped out of their tents, stood frozen in a moment of dread, unable to utter a word. Alistair, wide-eyed and trembling, expected the worst. A stunned silence enveloped the forest, their almost-mourning eyes settling on the spot where their King once stood, but from the dissipating dust, a weak figure staggered out, cutting through the lingering smoke.

His clothes were disheveled, and a fine layer of dust covered him. A series of shallow cuts adorned his face, evidence from the impact of the blast’s impact, and his usually imposing stature diminished as he coughed, struggling to clear his throat from the lingering dust. To everyone’s disbelief, the minimal injuries he sustained didn’t match the magnitude of the explosion that had just occurred, and most of them were in shock to see him standing... even though it was obvious he still needed help.

His soldiers, initially frozen in disbelief, rushed forward to support him. Cassian and Tobias were the first to quickly assist him on time, still struggling to comprehend the miraculous escape, and Lucy, who was standing beside Madeline close to a tent, could finally breathe after confirming that he was alright. Going closer was not permitted, else they would have assisted in any way they possibly could.

"He’s injured, wait here for me." Madeline placed a comforting hand on Lucy’s tensed shoulder, helping her snap out of her daze, and Lucy could only nod her head quietly, immediately rendered speechless, as she had never witnessed something like an explosion happening before. Her body still trembled, and she rubbed her arms to soothe the goosebumps rising on her skin.

Ivan was made to sit on a chair, surrounded by everyone, and Duncan stepped forth with a realization he had picked on too late. His eyes scanned Ivan who, despite his injuries and weakened state, still had the strength to glare at him, meanwhile, he was here trying to grapple with the surreal reality of him surviving what was impossible.... If it had to be anyone else, their whole body would be blown into unrepairable pieces.

"I thought you said you disconnected all the explosives?" Ivan queried Duncan, already aware of the hidden bombs planted in this region. When Marius said to come find him, Ivan already picked up on the Demon’s plan, and although Duncan may seem to know about nothing but his Piano, those hands were capable of deactivating the most dangerous weapons it could get a grip of. Being the son of Vampire whose aim was to construct the deadliest weapons in the realm, Duncan was lucky to have been gifted in that aspect.

"I did." He replied sedately, "but there was one more explosive that was difficult to find, it was set an hour ago, and that was what hit you. If there is one thing I’ve learned right, it’s how to keep your friends close, but your enemies closer. Don’t you agree?" His crimson eyes looked in the direction of Herbert whose face momentarily paled, and when he dared to run, Duncan was at his side in a flash.

The imposter tried to fight his way through, but Duncan was more skilled and effortlessly twisted the man’s hand behind his back. He sent him to his knees and placed his foot threateningly on the imposter’s back, a silent warning for him to stay still. Lucy had never witnessed Duncan in action before, and watching him take down Herbert made her heart flutter uncontrollably, but then again... HERBERT??

"Herbert?" Ivan gazed at the man who had been brought to his knees by Duncan. When Herbert lifted his head to meet Ivan’s stare, the vampire blinked in recognition and shook his head.

"You’re not Herbert." At the end of this, Herbert and Atticus stepped out of a corner. They were both indulged in a conversation but had stopped at the sight they were welcomed with. Everyone’s gaze turned to Herbert, then to the one Duncan had held down.

"Herbert?"

"Your Majesty?" Herbert’s face paled upon seeing the condition of Ivan, but then, he was thrown into a state of confusion when someone who had the exact physical look like him was held down by Duncan. All he knew was that Duncan had sent them out to deactivate further bombs on the way, whilst he trained him on how to do it, but now he was returning to this?

"If that is Herbert, then that is...." Tobias barely had time to complete his sentence when the imposter immediately transformed into his true self. The soldiers surrounded the imposter, and Tobias murmured.

"A Shapeshifter."

"I think Marius is keeping a better eye on us than we thought." Duncan noted audibly before returning his gaze to the imposter, "he sent you to spy on us, didn’t he?"

"No matter what you do, the Southerners will never let you cross their borders! You’re inviting trouble and no one recognizes it! Who will save your Kingdom if you choose to be this greedy and go after what you can’t have???" The imposter, who turned out to be a man with serpent eyes, laughed as he fixed his gaze on Ivan. frёewebηovel.cѳm

"You stole from our King! Whatever his Orb creates belongs to him as well, and that includes your precious Kingdom from the North. You’re a fool! Stepping into someone else’s territory and leaving yours at the mercy of the borders! We will raid your Kingdom and you will fall at our Queen’s feet! Let go of me!" He struggled to escape from the clutches of Duncan, but his actions were futile.

"Are you sure about that?" Inquired Duncan, "let’s see how far you can run then." And he released the imposter.

Failing to register the warning in Duncan’s subtle phrase, the imposter began to run as fast as he could. As expected, no one chased him, and that gave the imposter some flicker of hope that he would survive, whilst he kept running.

From the corner of his eyes, he inadvertently noticed a sharp glint of light heading his way, but that was all he saw before his head was separated from his body with a clean cut.

The flying scythe had effortlessly sliced off his head, portraying the damage its blade was capable of causing, and the scythe returned to the grip of its wielder. Alistair’s eyes flashed with contempt as he approached the body, and his raging eyes narrowed as the blast replayed in his head.

"He could have died... HOW DARE YOU TRY TO HURT MY COUSIN?? YOU SPINELESS BASTARD!!" He raged, the wild side he had been trying to tame, breaking through the restraint of his chains as he sliced the body of the imposter over and over again, decapitating him in a fit of rage. Lucy had to cover her eyes to avoid the gruesome scene, and she helped Madeline cover her own eyes.

"Imagine losing your life in the hands of Alistair." Duncan murmured in awe, almost shivering from the sight.

Ivan watched, clearly awestruck by his cousin’s sudden display of rage. He wasn’t sure why the sight made him feel worried, but there was something unusual about his rage which he could quite decipher.

When Alistair finally vented out anger, he stopped, but he was now covered in blood. Before anyone could utter a word to him, he was out of sight in a blur of speed.

Later on, Ivan had a bath prepared for him, and he changed into something more simple. Madeline handed him a herbal mixture she had made, and when she left, Ivan proceeded to apply the herbal cream himself, whilst informing everyone else that he wanted to be alone.

He attended to his wound, and how he survived the ordeal was still shocking to him. Ever since he had that tiny piece of Orb in his chest, there was absolutely nothing that could kill him unless someone eventually takes it out. He just survived an explosive, and has escaped death many times, but he remembers, the day he tried to take that tiny piece of Orb out of his chest, his life was slowly slipping away from his grasp until he never took it out.

Was taking the little orb out of his chest the only way his life could really end?

His thoughts were cut short when Alistair stepped into his tent. He turned to look at Alistair who had halted at the entrance, and Ivan sighed.

"I said I wanted to be alone."

"Your guards told me."

"Yet they let you in."

"I threatened to kill them if they didn’t." He answered, and Ivan once again felt the mysterious air surrounding his cousin. The Alistair he knew was a smiling freak, a playful vampire who shared a deep contrast to the traits of a wild Vampire, but today, Ivan had seen just how gruesome it felt to be butchered by a wild vampire.

"How are you feeling?"

"I’m fine."

"Would you have been fine if you were blown into unrepairable fragments? Do you know what would have happened to you if you incurred worse injuries from that explosive?? Pushing me out of the way was the stupidest decision you made today, and I mean it!!" He strictly asserted, "don’t ever do something foolish like that or else I’m gonna kill you myself!"

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