Esme's POV
I slept from yesterday evening until noon the next day. My heart jumped the moment I heard the table moving when I woke up. Uncle must've returned last night. He hadn't even sent a letter prior.
My body felt weak, from the effect of my monthly guest and all the things that had happened lately. I sat at the edge of the table, keeping my head on it.
"You finally woke up. Did they stress you out so much?" he said, sitting beside me. I inched closer to him. If I told him all that had happened, he'd likely ban me from meeting them ever again.
I mean, those brothers' behaviour could be linked to their insanity and instabilities, but I shouldn't be the one taking the damage.
Now I had a way of sensing which ones were less sane. Grandus had a sanity level of low. He was most definitely deranged. I would do my best to avoid him.
"I wondered if he kept me locked up in his treasure trove as…" I gasped, raising my head from the table. That silver-headed shiny pole!
"Did he leave me with his riches because he thought I was just a 'valuable object' he owned?"
I slammed my hand against the ground. The more I thought of how long I stayed there, when he was supposed to entertain me, the angrier I got. Where would I find karma to avenge me?
That guy was truly spoiled by Ruby. Speaking of Ruby, why hadn't he come to see me after his brother's trouble, like he had done for Eidrin?
"You have a report, I'm guessing." My uncle folded his arms, watching my clenching fists. "What fool? Name, their offence, and where they live?"
I hesitated.
These were the usual questions when a village troublemaker offended me, but this time, it was an immortal. Would Uncle be able to put him in place?
He stroked my head. "Just say it. Even if it's those brothers. How could I leave you for less than a week and they made you this exhausted?"
I lowered my head. "But I was supposed to be able to handle them. And I told you, right? I even had my wolf now."
A part of me wanted to be able to gain their respect without having to use Sanya as a stabilisation.
Uncle said nothing, before dropping his hand from my head. "And I told you when you turned eleven, if a creepy guy bullied you, let me know. It didn't matter who the creepy guy was. You were still my responsibility."
A smile tugged at my lips, but it faded quickly. "It's their Third Brother. He's using me as a prized toy."
There was no hesitation in Uncle's eyes. He knitted his brows together. "Gordon? Wasn't he still travelling to different kingdoms beyond the seas looking for legendary artifacts or something?"
Gordon? Sora did mention that they changed their names frequently. I wondered how the first meeting went when Uncle first met them.
"Well no, he's around now. He even met me before the ritual. A very annoying one." I sighed.
He calmly left where he sat and headed to his room. I counted to three before hearing the click of his revolver. We were going immortal hunting.
I held back the laughter. Grandus would be horrified when he'd meet my Uncle again. "Should I lead you to Haven?"
"Thank you."
My butt quickly left the ground. Karma had always been my Uncle. Grabbing my cloak and my trusty sword, I dashed out of the house behind my uncle.
On reaching the forest, I thought back on how the personal teleportation circle was made. Would it still work despite Sora's absence? I took two steps but couldn't bring myself to take the third.
"Don't be scared, Esme," Uncle called out. "He couldn't hurt me even if he got serious. I'm also from the line of Malcolms, who he was bound to respect."
The line of Malcolms? I'd get an explanation for that later. I took the third step and my uncle and I reappeared a few steps away from the Haven.
Uncle took a few glances to absorb the exterior of the mansion before walking in. "Do you know where exactly he stayed in here? It's a big place."
"It's much bigger on the inside but I'd lead you to his exact room." I went in front of him and picked up my pace. The hallway had grown dimmer since the last time I saw it. I found his room, and knocked.
Uncle pushed the door open before we heard the response. That reminded me we weren't there for a courtesy visit. I leaned on the door. A grin was on my face as I waited for what would happen next.
"Where's your Prince?"
Wasn't it Grandus there? I looked in and found a girl my age, with white hair and blue eyes. She had a small adorable face that, at the moment, was stricken with fear.
"M-Master Mark? W-Why are you…." she stumbled on her words. "My master… was actually…"
Uncle revealed the gun behind his back, but kept it pointed on the ground. "I needed a word with him, Elle. He had forgotten the commandments written in the blood of the Malcolms. The blood that my niece used for the ritual she did with him."
Inheriting these brothers was a paternal gift, but I never asked why. Uncle could've been their Master. Why did it fall on me? Was it only because I had the Blood-Hound or just because I was a Malcolm?
This knight, Elle, seemed to recognise him and even called him Master. They must be something else.
"The Prince was…" the girl's lips quivered. "I know you have a grievance but… he'd been unconscious… for three days." She gripped her dress to stop her shaky hands.
"How did that happen?" I walked into the room. "That guy had been talking to me yesterday."
She froze, her eyes on me. "Mi-Mistress?" She moved faster than my eyes could follow, and her cold hands wrapped mine in an embrace.
"My lady, I had been searching for you." There were no more pauses in her words. "Are you alright? You didn't look tired. Did you return home to rest?"
My uncle sighed, and dropped the gun, letting it swing across his shoulders. That silver-headed prick wouldn't be getting his karma that day.