PHYSIENTS WILL ALWAYS OFFER BEST NOVELS || LATEST MOVIES || LIVE STREAMING ALL TIME
HELLBOUND HEART
Chapter 286 Please
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A dark-haired lady stood by the door. Her skin looked really pale and her eyes were a shade of pale green. Nevertheless, even with all the paleness, she was a beauty.
She looked at Elle with widened eyes as the room went absolutely silent. Until the sound of the spoon clattered noisily on the ceramic plate.
Zeres immediately rose to his feet, carelessly pushing back the chair that he was sitting on, creating a slight commotion. It was as though he was suddenly thrown into a panic. And that made Elle wonder who this woman was to be able to draw out such exaggerated responses from this seemingly ever cool and calm Zeres.
"Iryz..." He was before her in an instant, hovering over her as he held her arms ever so gently with his large hands. "You shouldn't be here..." his voice was so tender. So very soft as though it were wool.
"Zeres..." she pressed her palms over his chest. "I thought we'd already talked about this –" The woman that he called Iryz spoke in a gentle yet broken voice.
"Shh... please..." his soft voice cracked a little while the lady named Iryz looked at him like she was about to cry. There was a sheen of tears glistening over her large doe-like eyes that were looking earnestly at Zeres.
Elle did not know why, but the sight of them at that moment was just so... sad. She just could not help but feel her heart being squeezed while looking at their forlorn figures standing so close together.
"Please, Iryz... let me take you back to our room." He bent to pick her up princess-style, but Iryz stopped him with just a lift of her delicate hand.
She shook her head at him. Her soft eyes pleaded with him and that was all it took for him to give in. She saw him clench his fists so hard before he stepped aside and allowed her to enter the room.
However, before the woman could walk closer to Elle, the loud and fierce barking of a dog from a distance pulled at their attention. Elle wondered why there was suddenly a dog barking. But she did not pay much attention to that matter as her attention was more focused on the lady that had entered her 'holding cell'.
Zeres walked towards the window and quickly looked outside, his body glowed silver in an instant.
"I'll take care of the rest here." Iryz told him as she took Zeres' spot on the bed. Then she picked up the plate to continue feeding Elle her meal.
When Zeres looked at her with an expression Elle could not quite read, Iryz smiled slightly at him. His brows creased a little and his sharp jaws clenched before he hesitantly disappeared before their eyes.
"Hello. I'm... Iryz." Iryz introduced herself after a few moments of silence and staring at each other.
"Izabelle." Elle replied succinctly, guessing that Iryz would have already known her name anyway. "Are you... Zeres' wife?"
"Fiancee." She corrected, smiling sweetly. And Elle could only think she had a really sweet smile. "Are you okay? You're not hurt anywhere, are you?" her expression changed to be one that was filled with concern.
Elle was about to shake her head but she refrained from doing so. Now that Zeres has left, this should be her chance to...
"My wrist... it's hurting..." she lied.
Her expression turned very sad as she stared down at the shimmery rope that was bound around her hands.
"I'm sorry... Zeres did this to you..." she whispered. "I'm really sorry." Elle somehow got the feeling that her apology was genuine.
Something with the look in her eyes and her voice made Elle feel so bothered about this woman. Not in a bad way, but she did not know why her heart seemed to be aching for her. Why was she so... sad? Like she was hurting so much right now?
"If you're sorry... then please set me free." Elle did not beat around the bush anymore. She felt that without a doubt, this woman was a good person. And she was definitely a human right? She could not feel any tremendous power coming from her. In fact, Iryz felt just like herself. Perhaps because she could tell that this woman was so in love with her kidnapper. She was genuinely sorry for her lover's crimes.
Their eyes just held for seconds until Iryz looked down at her hands again.
"Please forgive him. He is forced to do this. He's forcing himself to do this." Her voice was a little broken as she tried to contain her emotions. "He never was an evil person..." she clenched her fists and then she stood and headed towards the door.
Elle's eyes widened. "Please! Help me! Release me please, Iryz! I can't be kept here. My husband... he's definitely going crazy looking for me right now! Please! Help me! I can't be caught by Elijah. He'll kill my husband if that happens. You have someone you love as well, don't you? I love him... I love my husband with all my heart, Iryz. So please..." Elle's plea went louder as Iryz opened the door. She was desperate not to lose the only person that might listen to her pleading. "Iryz! Please!"
Iryz shut the door closed behind her, leaving Elle gritting her teeth in frustration. What should she do? How could she free herself from this? Right... her powers...
They said she was no mere human! Now would be the best time for her to use it, right? But how? How could she even call on her power?! How?!!! All that was told to her was she could become invisible. But her invisibility sadly could not help her in this situation. She could not even move. Zeres would definitely find her like he did last night! Could there not be something else? Alicia said she definitely had other abilities... but what are they?!
While she was desperately trying to figure out how to bring out the powers she even knew nothing about, the door opened again and she gasped out in shock. But to her relief, it was not Zeres who entered. It was ... Iryz.
A knife and a gun were held in each of her hands.
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HELLBOUND HEART
Chapter 287 I Don’t Care
Elle only watched in shocked silence as Iryz knelt down beside her and cut the rope with the knife.
Thankfully, the knife was sharp and worked well. Elle was honestly a little scared that the rope would not budge until she saw that the knife obviously was not any ordinary knife either. It seemed to be something that only belonged to a witch, most probably Zeres.
"T-thank you..." Elle finally uttered, staring at the pale skinned lady. She could feel from the way she was struggling to cut the rope that she was physically really weak. In fact, right now, Elle felt like she was able to do this perhaps purely due to sheer desperation.
She shook her head. "Don't thank me, Izabelle..." The lady told her as she continued struggling to finish cutting through the thick rope. "Listen... you need to run away as far as you can. I believe that that vampire should be here soon, hopefully in a couple of hours. But he might be already coming here right now so don't be too lax. I think it'd be wiser if you ran straight to the woods behind this house. Avoid the road and just head on straight ahead until you reach the town."
Elle nodded. She just knew in her heart that she could trust Iryz. "Can you tell me why Zeres is doing this? You said that he is forced to do this. But why? What is it that Elijah is holding against him that he needs to do this? Or is he facing some problems that Elijah had promised some solution to? If you tell me, I'll convey it to Alexander and everyone else. I'm certain that if they know what's going on with Zeres and yourself, they would help Zeres instead. After all, he's their close friend."
The look that flashed across Iryz's face broke Elle's heart. Such sadness... What in the world was this woman going through right now to have such a heart-breaking look in her eyes?!
Shaking her head, a small sad smile tugged at the corners of her lips. "They can't help us, Izabelle. If they could... Zeres would never go as far as doing something like this to betray them."
"That can't be... if Alexander can't help, then I'm sure Alicia and Lilith... right, Zeres was looking for Lilith a�"" Elle suddenly piped up, remembering he had come a couple of times just to look for the witch queen.
"I'm sure that was just his excuse. Not even the witch queen can help us." Iryz spoke softly as a helpless smile crossed her lips.
"Are... are you... they're powerful. I think you should try anyway. You guys would never know until you a�"" Elle broke off when she smiled again.
"I'm dying, Izabelle. We've done everything." Iryz said in a soft voice. "But the only thing that can save me is... something I cannot accept. And at the same time, something... someone Alexander and everyone could never ever a�""
The bark of the dog echoed from a place that sounded nearer from previously and Iryz panicked. She gritted her teeth and gave her all to cut the rope until at last, Elle's hands were finally freed.
Iryz was already panting and breathless with just that seemingly simple action, so Elle took the knife from her and cut the rope around her feet on her own.
"Take this gun. You must run now before Zeres returns, Izabelle. I'll stop him from chasing you for as long as I can. So just run as fast as you can." Iryz frantically instructed as she shoved the gun in Elle's hand. "Now go! Go now!"
Elle turned to her one last time as she opened the door and when she nodded at her, Elle stormed out of the house and ran straight into the woods as Iryz had instructed. Iryz... she uttered her name in her mind... she wanted to save that gentle lady. She was such a good person and it was a shame for her to die so early...
Once she was in a safe place and reunited with everyone, she would then request help for Iryz. But for now, she must escape and outrun Elijah first.
Her eyes gleamed as she entered farther into the forest. She would never let anyone catch her this time. She would do anything and everything to ensure that it would not happen again.
...
Back in the house, Zeres rushed towards Iryz who was already slumped over on the floor.
He gently helped her up and seated her on the bed. Extreme worry filled his eyes. "Are you okay? Damn it, Iryz... didn't I tell you to..." he trailed off and finally realized what she must have done. He bit on his lower lip and did not say anything, save from the clenching of his jaws.
"Don't chase her." She told him. "I'm begging you, Zeres." Her voice broke.
And he squatted down on the floor before her, lifting his hand to his hair and grabbing a handful of his silvery locks.
He dropped his head down miserably and leaned his forehead against hers. But then he breathed out shakily and clenched his fists so tightly.
Just as he moved to stand up, Iryz grabbed onto him, straddling him as she wound her weak arms around his neck. "I won't let you go. Over my dead body, Zeres..." she told him in a broken voice.
"Please... don't do this to me..." he begged. Every breath he was taking seemed unbearably painful.
"I'm so sorry..." she hugged him. "I'm so sorry..."
Zeres shook his head. Something so deadly, so wildly dangerous that it might as well border a little on madness, flashed in his eyes now. "Everyone has been telling me to stop being selfless, Iryz. To stop sacrificing myself, hurting myself for someone else... to stop trying to be the hero..." his voice turned wintry and hard. "I've given up too many times in my long life... sacrificed myself over and over for someone... but never again, Iryz. Never again... I can never give you up... never... I'll save you even if it means sacrificing someone else's life... I'll willingly take on the mantle of the selfish and cruel villain if that's what it takes for me to keep you alive and in my arms."
He pinched her chin and stared deeply into her eyes, willing her to understand his point of view. She was silently crying and shaking her head at him slowly but desperately.
A heart-wrenching beautiful smile graced his angelic face as he wiped her tears that were pooling in her eyes. "You've loved me for so long... even when I was busy chasing after someone else and never spared you a glance. You were there and held me when I had nothing left... you became my home when I had nowhere else to go... loved me when I wasn't even sure if i still have the heart to even love even myself... Now tell me, Iryz... how can I give you up? How could you tell me to just let you die?" He cupped her face and kissed her pale lips, his eyes gazing into hers aggrievedly. "I'll sacrifice anything, anyone... I don't care if this is madness. I don't care if I'm a monster now. As long as you're with me... I don't care if the entire world falls apart."
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HELLBOUND HEART
Chapter 288 Here We Go Again
"Sir, I think we should take another route." A man in black suddenly swirled and blocked Elijah's path.
They were on their way to meet with Zeres and they only needed to cross this city and they would finally reach their rendezvous point. According to the message they had received not long ago from Zeres, the prince should be in the forest around this time. So, they absolutely could not stall anymore!
"Move, Lio." Elijah said nonchalantly.
"But Your Highness...!! This part of the street is really dirty. Let's take another route instead. We're going to be late so we should take this a�""
Elijah craned his head to the side to look at what Lio was blocking with his large and bulky body. But Lio matched his speed and still managed to block his view.
Narrowing his gaze, Elijah craned his head to the other side. Again, Lio blocked him.
"Haha..." Lio forced a nervous laugh. "Oh, come on Your Highness... we really don't have time to play around like this. Zeres had reminded us that we should hurry a�""
"Relax Lio. Whether we get there early or not, nothing will change."
Lio blinked. "Huh? What does that even mean?"
The prince's hand landed on his shoulder. And with just one touch, the bulky and massive guy froze while Elijah casually walked past him.
Upon seeing the desperate looking girl holding a flyer with a picture of a dog on it, Elijah paused.
"Good grief..." Lio groaned and could only follow after him. He had tried to not let this prince see that girl right there because he knew what this prince would do! Damn... he could already tell they were definitely going to look for the freaking missing dog first! This prince would always do this kind of sh*t that he could never ever understand!
"I'll help look for the missing dog, Your Highness." He could only propose as he sighed internally. He must not let this prince go astray or he would be damned once that woman interrogates him of what really happened! "So, you go ahead before me and a�""
"I don't think she's looking for a missing dog." Elijah cut him off and he began to approach the girl, causing Lio to slap his large palms over his face before dragging them down exasperatedly. 'Here we go again, damn it! Why in the freaking world is this prince like this?! Can't he just act like the cold-blooded man that he usually is?' Lio could only yell within his own mind, knowing that he could no longer do anything to drag the prince out of this. Not until the problem with the animal was solved!
"Why are you crying?" the vampire prince asked the girl. His tone was gentle and coaxing. She was a young lady with a really pretty face but the type that had the resting bitch face.
"I'm not crying. I'm just begging." She replied straightforwardly. Before Elijah could speak again, the girl eyed him from head to toe. Not in a dumbfounded and lustful kind of manner though. The girl did not seem to be fazed by the prince's almost unreal look. "Are you rich, Mister? You are, right? You definitely are, right?" She looked closely at him, her eyes moving over his clothes and his bearing.
"No. I'm actually poor." Elijah replied blankly.
"Liar a�""
"Yes, he's very poor! So don't waste your time, pretty girl." Lio butted in. "This man here only spends money on animals. Now let's go, Sir!" Lio grabbed the prince's arm and began to drag him away when the girl jumped onto Elijah's feet and hugged both his legs.
"Then please save the dogs!" she cried. "Please adopt them! They're all going to die, sir. They're going to get euthanized today, Sir because no one's adopting them! Please save them! They're a bunch of lovely and beautiful babies! Please, I'm sure you'll love them once you've adopted them! Please, handsome, sir!"
Elijah's aura darkened, causing the girl to suddenly swallow in fear.
Slowly, she looked up and met his devilish eyes. She had never seen eyes like his before. It was like she just saw a vision of hell in there.
"What did you say? Euthanize?" he asked with a shrill voice.
The girl forced herself to nod and spoke despite all the chills that were strongly gripping her. "Y-yes... s-sir. It's... the rules and..."
"Bring me there. Now!"
The girl scrambled to stand and as though the fear had been long forgotten, she grabbed the man's hand and dragged him away, leaving Lio standing there uselessly. His sharp jaws might as well be on the ground now. "For the love of... are you crazy?! What are you doing? Letting a girl drag you away?! We have a mission here! We're not here to rescue those damned pesky animals!!! Do you really only care about animals? How about me? How about my life?!! Your Highness!!!!"
But his yell only caused people around him to look at him like he was crazy. "Goddamn it!!!" the bulky man huffed as he could only follow after his prince.
...
Meanwhile, Elle strategically hid herself behind a tree trunk to rest a little. She had been running for a long while now yet she still did not seem to be reaching the town Iryz had told her about.
She was not sure if Zeres was chasing after her. There was still no sign of a pursuer. Did Iryz manage to stop him back there?
Elle shook her head, refusing to be too optimistic. Zeres was a silver-haired witch and he could be on par with Alexander. He might even be chasing after her now without being detected. So she must continue running and bear with it a little.
But just as she was about to move, a waft of cold breeze blew past and the leaves rustled above and around her. Her heartbeat raced. Wait... had her pursuer already caught up?! Lord... this could not be! That was just too fast!
Swallowing, Elle did not dare turn around to look behind her. She knew better now that one wrong move from her might end up being a fatal move for her. So she only moved her eyeballs to the side.
Shock instantly filled her eyes at what she saw. S-snow?!
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HELLBOUND HEART
Chapter 289 Tension
Back in the shelter, Lio looked like he had aged ten years as he wiped off the sweat on his brows. He was glad that the animals were not dead yet and they had arrived exactly on time!
If they were even a minute later, the dogs would have already... good grief... he was certain he would be doing clean up for the human's dead bodies while the prince would be somewhere else, giving the animals a more than decent funeral.
"Now shall we go, Your Highness? We've wasted too much time already!" Lio was desperate. If he could, he would have already dragged the man out of the place long ago!
Elijah walked towards a window and stood there, sticking his hand out as if to feel the movement of the air. His eyes focused on the hills that were at a distance where they should have been right now! If not for that unexpected detour they had to make, they would be standing where he was looking at right now.
"We don't need to go anymore." The prince quietly replied, causing Lio to blink, not quite understanding what his lord meant.
"H-huh? What do you a�""
"They've found him." Elijah's neutral tone sounded as he continued staring off at that far off spot.
"What? Ze-zeres? Who is that 'they' a�" wait... Alexander and the witches are there right now?!!!" Lio's eyes were wide as saucers as his head darted from Lio to the hills from afar.
"I don't know about the others... but I'm quite certain that Alexander's there right now as we speak. So, this would only mean that Zeres has failed." Elijah nonchalantly squatted down and petted the dogs he had just saved from sure doom.
"And that means...?" Lio tilted his head, wanting to understand clearly what his lord wanted to say.
"That means I can now stay here and spend the rest of the time we have left here with these little lovelies. I'll have to buy this shelter and turn it into their house and have that girl take care of them all... of course, I'll pay her a big salary. Mmm..." Elijah nodded to himself. "That sounds like a really good plan."
"Wait a moment, My Prince!" Lio burst out after hearing what Elijah had said. "Are you really serious about this?! We're not going to do anything anymore? At all?!"
"What... you want to step up and go fight against Alexander head on?" Elijah raised a brow at him. "Go on if that is what you wish. I'm not going to stop you. Unlike you, I have 120 babies at home, waiting for me and I didn't even have the time to bid them goodbye when I left earlier."
Utterly speechless, Lio's jaw literally dropped to the floor once again as he looked at the prince who was now on the floor, literally letting the puppies and some bigger dogs surround and clamber over him as he gave them treats. 'Good grief...' Lio rolled his eyes. 'Could you stop calling your animals' 'babies'?!' he grumbled in his mind. 'But seriously?! Why is this prince so laidback, right now?! Why is he not even surprised, as if nothing had even happened? Wasn't his plan just ruined and failed again with Alexander already appearing in the picture? Did he have another plan under his sleeve already and that was why this is nothing to him?'
Lio could only shake his head because no matter what he did, he knew he could never understand this weirdo Prince that he was serving.
...
At the small house in the midst of the forest, Zeres was standing several steps away from the door.
He was about to leave and chase after Izabelle, but was stopped by the sudden arrival of Alexander.
The two stared at each other as the tension rose between them. Well, the tension was mostly from Zeres since Alexander still pretty much chilled as he stood there, observing his friend and then searching the house behind him.
"Is Iryz inside? She should be, right?" Alexander asked. "Is Izabelle still with her? I am wondering if Izabelle's not here anymore, maybe you just downplayed her presence with your spell a�"" He mentioned Elle as though he was just asking for her, who was having a sleepover at Zeres' place.
"I had already made up my mind the very moment I decided to betray you and everyone to kidnap Izabelle." Zeres replied. His voice was emotionless, like a robot who was speaking without any agenda or alternative motives. "So, if you just came here planning to talk to me about her... don't waste your voice and precious time, Alex."
Silence reigned between the two men until Alex let out a heavy sigh. The words 'man... here we again' could almost be seen plastered all over his face. But just as he was about to say his piece, the door behind Zeres swung open. His eyes were automatically drawn to the small and frail figure that appeared in the doorway.
Alex's eyes widened at the sight of Iryz standing there. She looked as pale as paper and seemed to be very sick. One look at her condition reminded him of those times when... when his beloved Abigail was fighting with her illness back when she was still a human. And even now that he knew she was totally fine and healthy, he could not help but feel the tight squeeze of his heart just remembering how weak and frail she had been back then.
"Iryz!" Zeres rushed towards her and caught her stumbling figure in his arms. "How did you... how come you're still awake?" His worried eyes scanned her from head to toe, brows furrowing when he saw how even her lips were paler than usual and there was a light sheen of sweat beading her brows.
"Alexander..." she called out, looking at Alex with pleading eyes. "Zeres is just trying to save me."
"Stop it, Iryz..." Zeres begged, worried to death. And then Iryz gripped her fist over her heart. She began to gasp as though out of breath. It was as if she were having a cardiac arrest!
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HELLBOUND HEART
Chapter 290 The Truth
Alexander who was watching could not help but panic and approach. Zeres placed his hand over her heart and as the silverish glow appeared from his palm, Iryz slowly settled down from her trashing and fell peacefully asleep in Zeres' arms.
At that moment, Sebastian had also arrived. He and Alex came rushing in from the opposite direction as a precautionary measure, just in case Zeres was already moving Izabelle away.
Sebastian who still had his blood boiling like an inferno within him did not expect this particular scenario to be welcoming him. What is... going on? What had happened to Iryz and why was she passed out in Zeres' arms?
He had met this woman many times before, especially during the times when he was approaching Zeres to help him bring Ezekiel back. Sebastian had especially liked the cookies and coffee she was making whenever he visited their home. Iryz was so healthy then... So what had happened to her?
The rage within him that was threatening to blow like a volcano was forgotten for a few moments. One reason was because he could sense that his Iza was here. Her presence was very faint and it was coming from somewhere within the house. But for some reason, Sebastian also felt like she was somewhere outside, he just could not quite pinpoint where her exact position was at the moment because he could not pick up her scent at all aside from the faint scent of her coming from that house. It was just his intuition and feeling but...
"Iryz is dying and no, none of you can help. Not even I can save her even if I give up my life in exchange!" Zeres suddenly yelled as he stayed there on the ground, holding Iryz in his arms. This was the first time Sebastian was hearing Zeres letting his emotions go. Usually, the man was cool, calm and collected. But he did not blame the man. If it were him and Izabelle in their shoes, he would behave similarly... Or even worse.
Zeres..." Alexander calmly and carefully spoke. "Don't say that. There will always be a way a�""
"Enough!" Zeres harshly barked out, stopping Alexander from continuing his words. After drawing in a deep breath, he shook his head. "We've tried to look for other ways... for years, Alexander. We've been searching for so many years but there is nothing! Nothing, Alex! Do you think there is something I couldn't or wouldn't do to save Iryz?!" His tone became more aggrieved the more he spoke.
"Still... I believe if we all work together... if you don't do it by yourself and ask for our help. That's why we're here, isn't it, Zeres? You have friends, damn it! You have me and Abigail! How could you think we can't or won't help you when you don't even tell us anything at all? We aren't mind readers to be able to know what you keep in your mind! We can do anything to help you too, you big idiot!"
Alex's outburst had everyone falling silent for a while until Zeres suddenly smiled as he lifted his face and looked at his longtime friend. The sad and almost broken smile on his face looked almost haunting.
"Really? Anything? Then give Izabelle to me, Alex..." his smile turned villainous and yet heartbreaking. "Iryz needs her heart to continue living. Can you give me that? Can you give us that?!!"
And the world seemed to stop spinning.
Then Sebastian finally lost it. His initially calm and muted aura blazed crazily and the burning rage and everything else that he was holding in since the moment he heard the news that Elle was missing, was now bursting out of him.
The danger coming from Sebastian instantly reached Zeres and the silver-haired witch shifted his gaze warily to him.
Zeres' body glowed brightly as well when his power fully enveloped him, prepared to attack and defend the moment Sebastian dared to come at him. His arms tightened minutely around his wife who was still unconscious.
"What..." Zeres' gaze at Sebastian was sharp, deadly. "It's not like Izabelle's heart belongs to her, either. That heart isn't hers in the first place and I know all of you know that as well!"
Alex stepped in and held Sebastian's arm, keeping him grounded.
"Izabelle borrowed that heart too and she'd been living because of it for many years... it's about time, isn't it? That she should give it back to where it belongs a�""
"Shut the f**k up!" Sebastian growled, incensed at Zeres' demands on Izabelle's heart. "Say anything more and I'll really kill you!"
If Alex was not stopping him and if Iryz was not in Zeres' arms right now, Sebastian was not sure what else he would have done already. He was not confident that he would be able to hold back.
Zeres smirked. "Ah..." his smirk turned to heartless chuckle. "Right... I almost forgot about the real reason why you're reacting like this. I wonder how Izabelle would react if she learns about the truth a�" that the real reason you took interest in her in the first place was because of the heart that is within her a�""
"Enough..." Sebastian's voice was barely a whisper. But it was a sound filled with nothing but danger and death.
Still, Zeres continued. As if he did not care about what would happen next. As though he was willing to let go of all civility to those he had considered his friends from before.
"That heart belongs to your late girlfriend from long time ago and that's why you cannot let another woman who's not yours to have it a�""
"Zeres! That's enough!" Alex finally shouted as he blocked Sebastian from lunging forward. The vampire prince was now looking simply as deadly as he stood there, a single threat was what was left to keep him under a leash. To not go ahead and destroy the man before him.
"That heart is supposed to be for Iryz!!!" Zeres roared. "Kiel, your brother stole it from Calliste after killing her!"
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