Chapter 84: A Pain in Her Lovely Derriere

Chapter 84: A Pain in Her Lovely Derriere
Aurelia was already shaken up by how impossible it seemed to get the Blood Crystal of Nox and the Mirror of Lyria, but there was no time given to her to recover.

Xavier moved swiftly onto the next items.

“Is this what I think it is?” Syre asked, picking up a beige, horn-shaped dagger.

“A replica,” said Xavier. “It looks identical to the Soulbone Dagger.”

“How did you know what was on the list?” Syre asked curiously. “You weren’t here when we opened it.”

“I ran into Damon,” answered Xavier. “He told me, and I instantly went up to my attic, grabbed anything related to anything on the list. I knew these things would all come in handy someday.”

“Your obsession with rare items is finally paying off,” agreed Ethan.

“It’s not an obsession!”

“Just…” Zen sighed. “Just carrying on explaining, we don’t have all day.”

Xavier snatched the dagger out of Syre’s hand and turned to face the group.

Aurelia watched with interest as he grabbed the horn part of the item and jerked his hands apart. Out of the horn came the actual blade, attached to the round hilt.

It was a curved, beige-colored blade made from what appeared to be bone.

X looked at her. “Aurelia.”

She braced herself. “This is the one you all think is hardest to acquire, isn’t it?”

“Oh, yeah. It’s going to be a pain in your lovely derriere.”

Vlad couldn’t help but glare at him for that comment.

“You mean our derriere!” Aurelia suggested, eyes bright with desperation. “Right?”

Xavier sighed. “The Soulbone Dagger is carved from the bones of a celestial being. It has the power to kill the mightiest immortals. However, it also absorbs the soul of whoever uses it, by eroding their sanity.”

“Damn,” whispered Ethan. “Power at a price.”

“A hefty one,” said Zen.

“So, it tests the limits of one's purity,” Aurelia thought aloud. “Those who are made greedy and cruel by the power it gives them become corrupted and may use it. So, in the end, they’re killed by their own corruption, and the dagger only executes justice.”

“But they wouldn’t become corrupted if it wasn’t for the dagger in the first place,” countered Ethan. “It isn’t fair. And what if the immortal they kill is an evil bastard who must be erased for the greater good?”

He raised a brow at her.

Aurelia sighed. “In that case… the one using the dagger is a tragic hero, willing to sacrifice themselves for that greater good.”

Her soft words held such weight that they silenced the group, dragging everyone into deep thought.

“Next,” Vlad suddenly said. “We haven’t got time.”

“There he goes being enthusiastic again,” teased Ethan. “But, oh no, he’s so against it!”

“I’ll kick you,” Vlad murmured.

Ethan blew him a kiss, making Vlad cringe.

“Did you see that?” Ethan asked Aurelia, pointing at Vlad’s face. “He only accepts affection from Syre; it’s so unfair.”

“It’s okay,” Aurelia patiently said, patting Ethan’s arm.

“Let’s move on,” Xavier said, rolling his eyes.

“Where do we find the dagger?” Aurelia asked.

“The temples of Oraclice. It’s guarded by divine monks who absolutely will take off anyone's head for even attempting to touch it.”

“It’s a suicide mission,” Zen said. “I can’t think of any way we’ll get to it, but let’s move on for now. We’ll figure it out later.”

Nodding, Xavier put down the dagger and took the next item. It was a map, which he unrolled. It depicted land and water, with blue lines tracing a route across various bodies of water.

“The marked areas are basically the homes of sirens,” he said.

Aurelia’s eyes went wide. “Mermaids? Real mermaids? I thought… the Tears of a Siren were metaphorical.”

“Not at all,” X said. He pointed at a mark on the map. “See, up here?”

“Where?” Frowning, Aurelia rushed forward to see.

She didn’t see the small, gold bead on the floor.
And, apparently, neither did the guys. Because when her foot suddenly slipped and she went flying, they were just as surprised as she.

“Aurelia!” Syre gasped, dashing forward.

He was too late. Vlad was already there.

Caught tightly in his arms, Aurelia found herself held close to a chest far warmer than she remembered.

He was frowning down at her, his breathing unsteadily rushing in and out.

“You okay?” he asked. “Damn you, don’t you ever look where you’re stepping?”

Her grey eyes blinked up at him as her mouth slowly rediscovered its ability to speak. “I… didn’t see it. Thank you, Vlad, Sir.”

For a moment, they were all they saw in each other’s vision, but then a face appeared beside Aurelia’s waist, staring at Vlad’s hand as it tightly held her.

“What a familiar grip,” Zen muttered, studying their hug.

Vlad quickly pulled away from Aurelia, turning away from his brothers’ curious stares.

Zen straightened, eyeing Vlad. “You’ve held her that way before?”

“Of course,” Vlad easily said. “She’s clueless and clumsy, so she’s landed on me several times.”

“The horse incident,” Syre said. “Vlad’s the one who caught her.”

“Oh,” Zen said. “Are you alright, Aurelia?”

“Yes, Sir. Ah! Zen. Yes, Zen.”

“You might’ve knocked your brain loose,” Zen worried.

“She’s fine,” Xavier muttered. “Let’s move on.”

The sharp tone in his words made Vlad tense. He looked at X, studying the look of displeasure on his face.
What was that? He was mad that Vlad had touched Aurelia? Vlad silently scoffed, turning away again.

He would soon go insane around here. How could they be mad that he was touching her? Who else could touch her, if not him? It was rather he who should be pissed that they were all buzzing around her like horny bees around a freshly bloomed lilac.

Sighing, he repressed the useless thoughts. It wasn’t like he could lay claim to her anyway. A curse tie didn’t mean she belonged to him. It just meant they were both victims of something very unfortunate. What he had to do was find a way to break their soul tie, then his brothers could have her if they wanted.

The thought brought a pain so sharp into Vlad’s heart that he groaned, doubling over.

“Vlad?” Syre was alarmed.

Forcing himself to straighten, Vlad nodded at Xavier. “Continue.” What the hell, the soul tie was becoming too vicious. He couldn’t even think of rejecting her without getting struck by a bolt of pain.

The guys anxiously studied him but forced themselves to focus on the King’s list.

“This is…” Xavier absently began, glancing at Vlad. “It’s going to be easy to retrieve the tears. We just need to make a siren cry. But they’re evil creatures with vicious hearts, so evoking their sympathy to the point of tears is the mission.”

“That doesn’t sound easy at all,” said Aurelia.

Vlad scoffed. “Why not? All we have to do is send you in there.” He looked at her, a strange look of anger and pity in his eyes. “I’m sure your story is enough to make even the devil weep.”

The guys exchanged looks.

“Her story?” Zen asked, crossing his arms.

Aurelia tensed.

“What’s her story?”