BLOODY LOVE'S
Episode 157's

The Chantall family has been working with Argent for a long time. They actually buried their nails and fangs in another city. Bjork is not their territory. But the disappearance of Marco makes Lady Chantall so busy roaming the city.

Several nobles and trade leaders secretly formed a new group, discussing who would control the trade in Bjork once Argent fell. Others are still waiting for official news from the Argent Family.

Two days. Not even two days ago Marco Argent disappeared without a trace, but the impact was already so great. Lady Chantall knew that a split was bound to happen sooner or later.

The heads gathered together in the alliance were calculating, cold, and realist heads. As soon as they kissed that Argent was about to fall, they would immediately switch positions.

The strongest position at the moment was Baron Spencer who joined Baron Hastings. There is news that the two barons were funded by a Duke. But which Duke, no one knows. The news is that Baron Hastings and Duke Ashington have just had a relationship.

"If you think of Duke Ashington" said Lady Chantall. The woman immediately joined them as soon as the condition turned around. "And if you think about South Bjork which has always been a point of matter, you don't want me to be thinking of the old castle on the mountain. Doesn't Duke Ashington have a castle there? Castle chapel, that's what I thought. So I approached Xavier Hastings, I heard he's always been nice to beautiful women."

"So you seduced her?"

"Jealous, Argent?"

"Very," said Marco sarcastically. Rolan had already stitched his wound, both on the waist and on the forehead. He felt better after swallowing two breadcrumbs, a few slices of ham, and downing a large glass of ale.

Now they sat around the stone altar, making it a place to put food and drink. The party guests were gathered together as one on the side of the room, guarded by many workers. The monks have been stripped of their weapons. Some were crying and complaining of being hurt, some were cowering in fear. Jose took care of those people, interrogated them.

"Honey trap isn't my forte, but he's pretty easy to tease. There is no need to do anything and all the info is flowing from it. And yeah, here I am. I didn't expect to find you, Argent. I'm just .. lucky, I guess."

"And knowing about the golem was also good luck?" Marco did not believe.

"Hastings was a little ... strange when I met," Lady Chantall replied while recalling. "He looked scared. He said this place scared him. So just in case, I asked for holy water from the Jesuit priest I knew. I also brought another amulet, if you want to know."

"What I want to know is whether the golem will come back here again." Marco looked at Rolan who had been silent since. "You sick?"

"I think of the missing" whispered Rolan. He had picked up chalk that fell on the floor, now using it to paint the altar. "According to your story, Jack and a few other corpses were used to make golems. And it was true to my guess about transmutation: they made golems, but strangely used evocation. So they bound the dead bodies with something evil, making them move and live but entered by another evil consciousness. And this golem moves according to the whistleblower's wishes."

"Not everyone can make a golem" said Jose, who now walked over as he dragged the collar of a monk-robed man's clothes. He throws the frightened man in front of the altar, falling at Marco's feet. "Meet Uncle, he's my new friend. Name's Torfin. He's a senior monk here. It was from Aston. Torfin, tell me again all the things you just told me."

Torfin was thin with a foul odor emanating from his clothes as if he had not bathed for a week and urinated directly on his pants. He was mid-thirty. The man was covered in blood and tears, but not blood. Jose just kicked him into a pile of bodies as a threat to open his mouth.

"Torphins?" Jose dropped his head to one side as he stared at the monk. His eyes were cold. There is no mercy there. "You'd rather talk to me alone?"

Torfin shook his head in horror.

***

Xavier Hastings shrieked, howled long and curled the oath of absorbency. He gripped his arm tightly. His right shoulder joint came off, and the culprit stood quietly in front of him.

Jacob stood still. In his left hand was a leather belt; the object he used to catch and twist one of Xavier's arms and pull it loose from the joint. Two workers stood behind him, but they were silent and just watching.

"Guests won't go inside the homeowner's office and mess around with the contents of his desk drawer."

"I'm not messing with anything! Damn, you! I should've known Argent would break his promise!"

Jacob shook his hand, slashing the end of his belt against Xavier's mouth. The man shrieked in pain and fell to the floor with a bloody mouth.

"Listen, Hastings," said Jacob softly as he stepped forward. His shadow fell onto the wall, creating a terrifying illusion in Xavier's eyes. "Jose may be being lenient with you because he thinks you've helped him. But I'm not as innocent as him. I know you're up to something. I hope you don't tell me what your goal is, 'cause I still want to play a little longer."

"You won't dare" Xavier laughed softly, but sounded unconvinced. His arm hurts, his head hurts, his tailbone hurts too. Jacob looked as lean as a mannequin in a clothing store, but the man could throw it as easily as if he were made of cotton pillows. After fighting a blind fight, obtained by Xavier even bloody and painful blisters all over the body. "I'm going to scream really loud" he wrote in despair, "your wife and mother will know what you did to me!"

Jacob smiled sweetly, he smashed his belt into the air. His voice was like a shotgun blast, making Xavier jump in shock on the floor. "Could only. Please scream, Hastings. Let's see if someone's gonna help you from me." He turned to the two workers behind him, who immediately came forward holding Xavier on the floor.

Jacob placed his belt on the table, replacing it with large scissors. The smile on his face widened as he approached Xavier, crouching in front of the man. "What are you looking for in Jose's room?"

Xavier stared at the scissors in horror. "Nothing! I'm just a prank! You can't hurt me! I'm in your brother's protection!"

"That's right. He's protecting your life, and I respect his decision" Jacob said. "Just calm. What matters is that you're alive, right? Just so slight flawed, he must be aware. Well, I see your nails are long. Come here, let me clean it up."

Xavier glared in horror. His arms that were loose from the joint were pulled by Jacob. Then without batting, the man cut off Xavier's fingertips.

It didn't feel anything at first, but then the pain exploded in Xavier's head, making him scream long.

"Ups," said Jacob calmly. "Sorry, I got the wrong cut. You're moving anyway. Try now changing your little fingernails, yeah. Maybe if I tidied it up sweetly, you remembered why you just ruffled Jose's room."

The two Argent workers were silent when Jacob cut one finger off Xavier. They already know the madness of the family they serve, and are ready with everything. This is what they are trained for, to be silent.

"Will not talk? You want me to cut out your long nails?" Jacob moved the scissors to the tip of Xavier's nose. "Your nose seems to be long. Shall I tidy up, all of you?"

"I'm told!" Xavier screamed as soon as the scissors sliced the tip of his nose slightly. "I'm told to Him! I'm told! I was just told!"

Jacob moved the scissors away, but only for a moment. "Omong empty." He ordered the two Argent workers, "Lay him and take off his pants. Let's see if it's long enough to cover it with scissors."

Xavier screamed in panic like a baby. Belleleran's whispers. "I was just told! The vow! I've been told to Sir William!"

***