Chapter 79

Chapter 79
Brix has been fighting for others all his life. He devoted all his time trying to prove himself, to be accepted, to rise above all the stories that were pinned to his name.

It has to end now.

This time, I want someone to fight for him.

“I see…” Lord Morales—or should I say, Lady Grenda—smiled. She even laughed before slowly revealing her true form. “You’re really good at this. Impressive, just like your father.”

“Y-your power is back?” Lady Nath asked. “I-I thought…”

“Wait…” Lord Hezuera stepped forward. “I don’t understand. Why did you have to pretend to be Lord Morales?”

I arched my brows, anticipating her reason. What lie would she say this time to cover herself up? How would she get out of this?

“Are you one of them now?” asked Lord Barbarian.

Lady Grenda sighed. “I had to disguise myself to observe everything better. To find out who the real enemy was. I’m sorry, Milords.”

“The Cloaks, right?” Randolf said. “They’re the only real enemy here.”

Lady Grenda’s face saddened. “That’s true, but… haven’t you wondered why even the witches have turned against us?”

I bit my bottom lip. I could already see where this was heading.

“What do you mean, Mom?” Lord Oscar asked.

Lady Grenda turned to her fellow witches, still unconscious. “I am still one of them, even if I only have a little power left. I still understand them, and what they’re fighting for.”

“What do the witches really want?” asked Lord Sentero. “As far as I know, they never liked getting involved with vampires.”

“Justice…” Lady Grenda whispered.

“Justice? For what?” I asked.

She let out a heavy sigh. “The witches wanted to keep this secret. Not that it would matter if it got out. Just like what happened now…”

“What are you really talking about, Mom?” Lady Nath asked, her voice rising in frustration.

“Unbeknownst to most…” Her voice dropped lower. “The peace of the witches was once disturbed. Half of them were mercilessly slaughtered.”

“W-who did it?” Lord Oscar asked nervously.

“No.” Lady Grenda shook her head. “You don’t need to know. The witches are already defeated. Let’s leave it at that.”

“No. Tell us!” Lord Hezuera insisted. “Was it a vampire who did that?”

“Lord Hezuera, it’s better if—”

“Tell us, Milady…” Lord Barbarian said firmly. “We deserve to know what happened to the witches and why they hate us so much!”

I tightened the grip on my bow. I never liked watching movies, but this one had me hooked. It felt like I’d seen this film before—and even if I didn’t like it, I was still willing to watch it again and again.

It was satisfying.

“Please, tell us, Mom. We need to understand why the witches are acting like this,” Lord Oscar pleaded.

Lady Grenda nodded. “I-I’m sorry but… they need to know the truth.” Tears welled up in her eyes. “The one who committed that horrific crime is here among us. That someone is right here.”

She didn’t have to name names. Everyone looked in the same direction.

My chest felt so heavy.

“That’s right.” Tears fell from Lady Grenda’s eyes. “It was Brixton. He was the one who slaughtered my kind. I couldn’t even protect them…” She broke down sobbing.

I swallowed. Tears formed in my eyes too.

“I-Is that true, Brix?” Lord Oscar asked, disoriented.

Brix didn’t answer.

Lady Nathalia stepped toward him. “Tell us the truth, Brixton. Were you the one who did it? Is what she said true?”

“What do you think?” Brix smirked.

“N-Nath… stop,” Lady Grenda said, holding Lady Nathalia’s arm. “W-we don’t have time for this. It already happened. There are more important things we need to focus on.”

I stood still, holding back every lie of the story.

“Is that where you got your power, Brix?” asked Lord Barbarian. “You attacked peaceful witches and took it from them?”

Brix only stared and didn’t answer. It was like he was used to this kind of accusation. As if, even if he denied it, no one would believe him.

“Enough now!” Lady Grenda shouted. “It already happened!”

I gasped as Oscar walked toward Brix and pointed a sword at his neck. His eyes were filled with tears… he was trembling in anger.

“W-why?” Oscar asked. “Why did you do it?!”

“Do you think you can win this war without me?” Brixton laughed. He stepped forward, pressing the blade further into his neck. “Then kill me…”

Oscar’s hands trembled. I could feel he didn’t want to believe what he heard… couldn’t accept what his brother had supposedly done.

“Brixton…”

“Stop now!” Lady Grenda collapsed to the ground and wailed. “Please stop. I don’t want to think about it anymore. It still hurts me so much that I wasn’t there when my comrades were killed. Please, enough!”

Tears rolled down my cheeks.

“N-no…” Nigel looked confused. “I-I don’t believe he could do that.” He turned to me. “Did you hear that, Astra? Do you think Brix could do something like that?”

“Nigel…” Lord Hezuera placed a hand on his son’s shoulder.

“No.” Nigel swallowed hard and shook his head. “I don’t believe it.” His breathing grew heavier. “B-Brixton hasn’t even confessed. He hasn’t admitted anything, so why are you all already convinced?”

Slowly, I walked toward Lady Grenda. With tear-filled eyes, she looked up at me. Her lips trembled from crying so hard.

“I-I'm sorry, Astra. I couldn’t save your father.”

I offered my hand to her. “I-I understand, Lady Grenda.”

She accepted my hand, trembling so much she nearly fell again, so I helped steady her. She continued sobbing.

I turned to Brix. He was staring at me too.

“D-don’t be angry at him, Astra,” Lady Grenda said. “Maybe darkness just clouded his mind…”

I nodded. “But that was unacceptable…”

“Please don’t be mad at him!”

I swallowed. “Because of you, I never got to meet my father. Because of you… everyone suffered. Because of you… this all happened.”

I switched the bow to my left hand and with my right hand, I slapped Lady Grenda. It was so strong she staggered backward, her nose bleeding.

“H-how dare you…” My breathing was heavy.

She was stunned. The pitiful look on her face twisted into rage.

I stepped closer and struck her face with my bow. It left a long gash. She screamed and immediately ran to Lord Oscar.

“A-Astra…” Lord Oscar said.

I shook my head. I couldn’t calm down. “Brixton hasn’t confessed. It doesn’t matter because I believe in him. He didn’t do it. Brix could never do such a thing.”

“Yes!” Nigel stood beside me. “I believe he couldn’t do that either.”

“I see. Looks like Brixton has poisoned your mind too,” Lady Grenda wiped the blood from her face. “I understand. It’s just… sad.”

“How did you lose your power as a witch, Lady Grenda?” I asked.

“Because I couldn’t save the witches while Brixton was killing them one by one!”

“Who can prove that?” I smirked. “That story came from you—it could be biased. Does anyone here know about it too?” I raised my hand and looked around. “Is there anyone here who can confirm what Lady Grenda just said?”

“Stop this nonsense, Astra!” Lady Grenda snapped.

“Okay.” I looked at her again. “Let’s just say you’re telling the truth. But don’t you think that reason is too shallow? Just because you couldn’t save them?”

“You know nothing about us!”

“But I can think of one reason—one valid reason why your powers were taken away…” I smiled after saying it.

She looked anxious. “You still know nothing—”

“What if your powers were stripped because you used them wrongly?” Her mouth fell shut. “What if our ancestors took away your powers because you committed a crime?”

She had no answer.

“What I mean by crime is…” I stepped forward. “You used your ability to copy someone’s identity and turn them into someone they’re not. You copied Brix’s appearance. You were the one who attacked the witches. You killed them. You’re the reason they’re seething with hatred. You started the war between witches and vampires. You… started all of this.”

She laughed. “You’re delusional!”

“You killed my father…” I said firmly.

“She’s lying!” she screamed.