Chapter 17

Logan sat with his back against the wall beside the large double doors. The lingering effects of the hoseki still tingled through his limbs. Nadine had just left with Hayes for the Medic Wing and he was left alone in the silent corridor. The silence was broken by the quiet sob of a female inside the room.

He shut his eyes and took a shaky breath. There was an overwhelming urge to stop her tears, to prevent her from ever shedding them again. He felt… so responsible. It was his fault, his carelessness that almost cost Ysabel her life. If Conrad hadn't been at the stables at that time… If he hadn't seen the assassin and hoseki… Logan cringed at the thought. They would have never made it in time.

Logan got up. He was still lightheaded but he had no desire to remain here. He looked over his shoulder, through the crack of the door where Ysabel continued to cry while being held. She was in safe hands. After tonight's event, he was sure of it. He recalled the words that were exchanged in the stables.

"When it comes for feelings towards Ysabel, there's not much difference between the two of us," Logan muttered softly to himself. His gaze wandered over to the veteran. "There's one difference but you didn't see it up until now, did you?" Logan's gaze lowered. He paused to steel himself before continuing. "The difference is that she chose… you."

Logan closed his eyes and turned his back of the couple. "I'll leave her in your hands," he murmured as he walked away.

Conrad continued to hold her close, gently stroking her hair while she wept. He had only ever seen her smiling, full of life and happiness but only now did Conrad know how blessed he was. That very same person was now here in his arms, so fragile, so helpless. For every snivel, every whimper that plagued his ears, a knife stabbed his heart a thousand times over.

Conrad felt so… broken.

It was wrong, cruel even. Someone like her, she shouldn't have to be in this state, ever! She deserved to be happy every second of her life. So, then why? Why did god allow things like these to happen? It was wrong and Conrad would take it upon himself to correct it. He would make sure that she would never have another reason to be sad again.

"Conrad…" Ysabel's small voice drew him out of his thoughts.

"Are you alright now?" Conrad asked a bit too fast. "You're not hurt, are you?"

She shook her head mutely. "I'm… alright. What…" she stopped mid-sentence.

"What is it?" Conrad pushed.

She didn't answer immediately. "What did you say? When you caught me." Conrad realized she was talking about when he moved forward to catch her when the assassin threw her. The moment he said…

Conrad's breathing got caught. He blinked. The moment he said…

I love you.

"I… uh…" The words wouldn't leave his mouth.

"Conrad?" she cocked her head. She sincerely didn't hear what he said!

"I… uh… I…" Conrad stammered. He gulped. His mouth was dry. It wasn't working properly. His mouth was open but nothing was coming out. His heart threatened to jump out of his chest. Its beating was so loud! He hoped Ysabel couldn't hear. He swallowed again. Was it him or was the room getting hotter?

"I… uh…" Why was it so hard to say three words?

"It's nothing," Conrad said. No… That wasn't what he was supposed to say! "Are you sure you're not hurt?" His mouth no longer belonged to him.

"No, I'm fine," she said. She fell quiet. Conrad breathed a sigh, relieved that she didn't notice him changing the subject. Wait… he was changing the subject? No, no, no. He was supposed to be saying something really important.

"Hayes!" she said suddenly. She straightened quickly and scanned the room. "Where is he? Is he alright?" Unfortunately, talking so suddenly wasn't such a good idea. She braced her head in attempt to stop the ringing.

"Calm down," Conrad reprimanded, slightly frantic. "He's fine. Nadine is taking him down to see Gisela." Conrad had seen a lot of wounds in his lifetime and just from a brief glance, he could tell that Hayes' injury was quite serious, almost life threatening. That and the fact that he had bled quite a bit made it a risky call. Conrad felt awful for lying to Ysabel but worrying about another thing was the last this she needed at the moment.

She grabbed a fistful of his sleeve. "Who were they?"

Ysabel walked down the corridor towards the Medic Wing with Logan at her heels. She had composed herself on the outside but her insides were still feeling the after effects of an assassination attempt. Last night was definitely one she could live out the rest of her life without experiencing again.

By sunrise, at Ysabel's own request, the castle was back to normal with no signs that anything ever happened last night. The last thing she needed was a full scale investigation or unnecessary additional protection. All the loose ends had been tied up. Of what she knew, Logan and Conrad had arranged for the bodies to 'disappear'. There was minimal damage made to the furniture or the castle itself so covering up the scars of battles weren't hard. In addition, in assurance to Nadine's words, there had been no unnecessary witnesses. So now… the only problem would be…

Hayes' wound.

Honestly, Ysabel hadn't the faintest clue as to how to cover that up. She had yet to come up with a believable story that would justify the seriousness of the wound. Just when she was about ready to give up, Logan appeared with an amused smile and told her, 'Don't worry. Hayes gets in too much trouble than what's good for him but he knows how to get out of it too.'

Ysabel's face grew blunt. What did he mean by that? Ysabel knew that that would was serious. She honestly hoped that he was alright. Gah! If only she hadn't spaced out like that. None of this would have happened. Well… Maybe they would have but not to this extend!

She cleared the double doors and walked into a white room with white beds lining the walls in two rows. She immediately spotted the large crowd around a certain bandaged blonde. As Ysabel started towards them, she identified the crowd to be practically the castle's entire occupants, minus the military.

Hayes' shirt was removed so that it would be more convenient to change his dressings. It was only now that Ysabel noticed now toned his body was. Well… Guess that was one of the requirements of a soldier. He had his usual cheeky smile on his face as he exchanged light chatter with the other nobles. "Well… it's a long story…" he said as he scratched the back of his head with an embarrassed smile plastered on his face. Seeing him like that, Ysabel wondered if he really was on the verge of death just a few hours ago.

Wolfram shook his head. "That's Hayes for you," he said as he crossed his arms.

"I wonder which innkeeper's daughter he womanized this time…" Gwendal muttered to no one in particular.

Hayes' eyes widened in shock as his face paled. "Your Excellencies!" he protested. "You know that I would never do such a thing!"

A few in the room rolled their eyes at that comment. "Mmhmm," Cheri said sarcastically. "What about the time you 'courted' the daughter of…" She paused when she couldn't remember the name.

"The tavern keeper in Bandarbia, Your Majesty," Gunter supplied without hesitation.

"That's the one!" Cheri smiled.

"Or that time when you saw the need to escort the crown princess back to her chambers. I, personally, was surprised her fiancée didn't run you through," Wolfram added.

"Now now," Hayes said, "Let's not get too hasty. We all know that Marie adored me. I was merely submitting to the will of women. I, after all, am but their humble servant." He did sort of a makeshift bow in his half sitting position.

Was it just Ysabel, or did the room grow colder…

Conrad, of whom stood behind the crowd, was the first one to notice Ysabel's arrival. He walked around the crowd who continued their conversations to stand before her. "Good Morning," he gave a warm smile. "Did you sleep well?" His voice only betrayed the slightest signs of worry.

Ysabel felt happiness swell up in her and couldn't help but smile back before nodding.

"That's good to hear," he said before he turned his gaze to Logan. Ysabel peeked over her shoulder to where Logan stood. Both of their faces were void of all emotions. Somehow, Ysabel felt as if silent words passed between them. A few moments passed before Logan nodded to Conrad and took a step back. Blink. Was that a code for something?

Ysabel looked back just in time to see Conrad returning Logan's gesture with a nod of his own. "With all due respect, don't Your Excellencies have a country to run? I mean, how would all the women of Shin Makoku fare if everyone was here visiting me instead of doing their duties to the country? I could never live with myself if something happened to them," Hayes' face was amusingly dramatic. There was just something about him that made one couldn't stay angry at him for too long.

"That's right," a familiar voice sounded from behind. "Too many people visiting at once could hinder his recovery." Everyone turned to see Gisela guiding Susanna Julia in.

"Well then, I guess we should get going," Günter said. Goodbyes were exchanged as everyone was seen out of the room by the two medics. Now, the entire Wing was empty except for Hayes, Ysabel, Conrad and Logan. There was a moment of silence as they waited for the footsteps to slowly die away. When he was sure that there was no one is listening distance, Logan called out, "You can come out now."

Seemingly out of nowhere, Nadine appeared on the opposite side of Hayes' bed. "Your Excellency," she greeted with a slight bend. "There are no spies in the parameter as of this moment." She directed the last sentence at Logan.

"Looks like they believed your story," Conrad said, gazing after where everyone left.

Hayes merely grinned and, being wise enough not to move his bandaged shoulder, shrugged his uninjured shoulder.

"What story?" Ysabel asked, cocking her head to one side.

"Well…" Hayes said. "It's more like they assumed a story of their own, Your Excellency. I didn't say anything at all."

Sweatdrop. Did that mean that what they all said about fathers and fiancées to be true? Ysabel took the chair beside Hayes' bed. She sighed. She knew what kind of answer that she'd get but it just wouldn't sit well with her if she didn't ask. "Are you really okay?"

Hayes was momentarily stunned. Before Ysabel had the time to ponder why, he replied in the same cheerful manner. "Of course, Your Excellency, it'd take more than that to get rid of me. It's not the first time I'm in the Medic Wing."

"He's in here more often than not," Nadine muttered. "And all for the wrong reasons."

"Do all the reasons really involve women?" Ysabel couldn't help but ask Hayes.

A carefree smile spread across his face again. "Well, I guess that's one way to put it."

"Moreover," Logan said. "What do you plan to do?"

Even though he didn't state 'do about what', they all knew what he was talking about. In situations like these… Ysabel would probably have asked Conrad and Logan for their advices but…

Flashes of last night's events flashed through her mind. Everyone was hurt because of her incompetence, because she couldn't do things herself, because she couldn't take care of herself. No… She had to learn to stand on her own two feet. She was, after all, one of the te—eleven aristocrats that governed over the land of demons. Mm… Land of Demons… that sounded wrong for some reason… Rather than just relying on the people around her, she'd have to learn to take matters into her own hands. She'd have to learn to make the right decisions by herself.

"We'll…" Ysabel started. "We'll keep this quiet for now."

To say that everyone in the room was taken aback was a mild understatement. "Your Excellency," Hayes was the first to speak out, "you do realize that you were targeted by an unknown enemy to take your life. With all due respect, this isn't something you should take for granted."

"I'm not taking it for granted, Hayes," Ysabel said. "That's why I want to keep it quiet. We all saw it coming. Someone was bound to target me, a revived aristocrat. Moreover, my family status in the demon hierarchy puts me in natural danger already. You can't tell me that the Voltaires or Beifeilds have never been targeted. Besides, I can't afford to cause an uproar during a time like this, when the kingdom my family swore to protect is at pre-war." Ysabel paused and blinked.

Revived aristocrat? The kingdom my family swore to protect? My family status? Where did those words come from? Was she already adjusting and accepting the fact that she was a noble of Shin Makoku? What's more, where did that speech come from? Was she subconsciously thinking like that without knowing it?

"True… but what do we do if they come back? We know so far we can't stand up to the hoseki they have. It's not normal Hoseki. Currently, you're asking us to keep this between all those who know the incident happened. We don't have enough manpower to guard and research about the hoseki at the same time."

Ysabel bit her lip. Hayes was right. They didn't have enough manpower and if the enemy decided to strike again before they gathered their information, Ysabel couldn't guarantee that they'd be as lucky as last night. But what about the country? Would Ysabel risk the country for her own safety? She couldn't! She just couldn't do such a thing! What was she going to say?

"I think Ysabel is right," Conrad said suddenly. "It's true that all the nobles are targeted from time to time. Subtracting even one from the picture could cause the country serious problems. Taking the Edel noble out would definitely throw the Mazoku off balance. That was probably the humans' initial plan. If we were to cause uproar within the country, then it would be as if their succeeded in their plan in the first place."

"Conrad…" Ysabel whispered.

Logan nodded and said, "That was what Her Excellency meant." He looked down at her. "Wasn't it?"

Ysabel smiled in gratitude to both and nodded. That was right. She needed to think faster, to connect the dots faster. However, even she knew that these skills weren't things one could learn overnight. It would take time. And until she could get it absolutely right, she knew that she had people like Conrad and Logan by her side to support her.

They discussed the subject for awhile longer before Ysabel remembered that one amongst them needed to rest. She stood up, ignoring Hayes' statements saying that he was alright.

"This all is important but your health comes first," Ysabel said to him as she was about to turn and leave. "You said so yourself, didn't you? We already lack people so we can't afford to lose you." She, of course, added the last bit as a joke.

Ysabel turned on her heel, closely followed by Conrad and Logan, and started to the doors only to be stopped by Hayes. "Hold on a moment, Your Excellency."

"Hm?" Ysabel's head cocked instinctively to the side again.

"Ne, Nadine, help me up for a moment," Hayes said surprisingly seriously. Nadine didn't move but raised an eyebrow in question.

A wry smile grew on Hayes face. "Now, now, don't give me that look, Nadine darling. I only want your help for a little bit." He paused. No, it wouldn't be appropriate. "No, you're right, never mind. Forget that I asked." Then, before anyone could do anything, Hayes started pushing himself off the white linens. An agonizing, sharp pain shot through his arm from his shoulder, making him clutch it with his other hand in hopes that the pressure would soften the pain.

It didn't.

Panic surged through Ysabel at the sight of his pain stricken face. "Hayes!" she called out as she rushed to help him. She wasn't the only one to do so.

"STAY BACK!"

Ysabel, Logan, Conrad and even Nadine, stopped in their tracks. Hayes' voice echoed through the empty Wing. Hayes sent an apologetic smile in their direction as he continued to clutch his shoulder. "Sorry, that wasn't like me." He took a few deep breaths before resuming his previous task.

Watching Hayes struggle like that, what was he trying to do? Why was he putting himself through this unnecessary pain? It was all too much for Ysabel to bear. Tears stung her eyes. "Hayes, that's enough!"

"Nope," Hayes hissed through gritted teeth as he moved his feet over the side of the bed. "This is something I have to do."

"Hayes…" Ysabel wanted to help him. Ysabel needed to help him. She couldn't stand watching someone in pain like that. Ysabel moved forwards only to be stopped by Logan extending his arm to block her way.

"Logan…"

"Watch," he said. "This is something Hayes is determined to do."

Watch? How could she watch a scene like this unfold? A person was in pain here and they wanted her to watch? She couldn't. She wouldn't! Ysabel was just about to push through Logan's barricade when something enlaced her hand. Ysabel followed the arm up to Conrad's face. He wasn't smiling but seeing him comforted her somehow. Holding his hand, Ysabel was able to calm down somehow.

"You can't destroy a person's resolve," was all he said.

"Conrad…" Ysabel bit her lip as she returned her gaze to Hayes.

Because of all the movements that Hayes had been making while his wound wasn't even closed yet, the blood had started to seep through his white dressing, staining it with a sickening crimson. Ysabel's grip tightened on Conrad's. Now, if Ysabel hadn't been too busy to note, she would have noticed that she had tightened her grip to the point where her fingernails were forceful enough to draw blood from Conrad's hand. But even then, Conrad didn't move an inch.

After a pain staking fifteen minutes, Hayes had managed to get to a standing position opposite Ysabel. He breathing was uneven. His bandages were almost entirely red now. Beads of sweat had already started to form. Then, after he mustered enough strength and will, he did the unexpected.

Hayes shot to a ninety degree bow.

"I declare my deepest and most sincere apologies to you, Your Excellency, for falling short," Hayes announced. His style of putting words together was definitely present but there was something about his tone. There were times where Hayes was serious but they always carried a teasing, almost mocking, air to it. No, one couldn't really apply the word 'serious' to Hayes but now… there was nothing like that. His tone was sincerely serious, more remorseful so to speak. He was truly and honestly sorry.

"I have no excuses," he continued. "Even though I had no wounds at that time, even though I had a sword in my hand, I failed to defend you. For that, I express my deepest and sincerest regrets. I know I haven't the right to wear the auburn of the Edels and I won't be so ignorant as to ask Your Excellency to exonerate me. What I did, or rather, what I failed to execute was unforgivable. Know that I will accept any verdict that you decide."

The room was stunned and silent. The only sounds that could be heard were from Hayes' labored breathing. Since when did Logan put down the hand that was stopping Ysabel from advancing? Since when did Ysabel let go of Conrad's hand? Since when did she start letting her tears flow down her face? Since when did she come to stand before Hayes' bowing figure?

Ysabel took a deep breath and smiled. She placed a gentle hand on his undamaged shoulder, causing his tense body to soften a little and he looked up. "What are you talking about? There's nothing to forgive…"

"You were awfully quiet during the discussion just now," Hayes said.

They were alone in the Medic Wing now. The other three had departed only mere minutes before Lady Julia and Lady Gisela came back in. Hayes suspected that Her Excellency had a hand in that coincidence. After a harsh and lengthy scolding for doing something as absurd as getting out of bed in his condition, Lady Wincott changed his dressing and, with another warning from Lady von Chirst, they departed.

"It's my obligation to follow orders, not help give them," Nadine replied coolly.

"Your opinions on the topic matters as well," Hayes pushed but he was dismissed with a small shrug. "Should you even be here? What happen to guard duty?"

"Lord Weller and the captain are with Lady Ysabel now," Nadine explained. "If there's combat, I'd only serve as a hindrance."

"Don't say that," Hayes said lightly. "You wear vivid auburn for a reason." A pause. "Ne, Nadine, have you ever met Her Excellency before?" He looked up at the woman that sat beside his bed. "I mean, before we came to Blood Pledge this time round."

"What's with this question all of a sudden?"

Hayes shrugged, causing Nadine to sigh. "You know that I've barely lived more than half of what you have. I think Lady Ysabel disappeared before I was even born. So technically speaking, it would be rather difficult for me to have met her before."

"Is that so?" Hayes said before he let out an embarrassed chuckle. "I keep forgetting you're that much more younger than I am."

"Maybe it's because you stopped growing up, senpai," Nadine flatly stated.

Hayes took the insult with a slight smile. "Oi, that's mean," he said light-heartedly. He leaned back against his pillow. "And stop calling me that, you wouldn't know if someone was listening in."

"There's no one listening in," Nadine countered without hesitation. "You know that as well."

Hayes smiled. "You've improved. True, no one's listening in but you still shouldn't call me that. You have a higher rank than me after all."

"We both know that that's only in name," Nadine replied. "In reality, you have more authority."

"Hm… I suppose but one has to acknowledge the fact that the student has surpassed the teacher."

"It'll be centuries more before I can match up in your forte."

A wry smile. "Heh… I don't know about that…"

Silence. "Why did you do that?" Nadine's tone was respectful, as if saying that it was perfectly alright if Hayes didn't want to answer. "That practice was removed centuries before."

Hayes remembered the feeling of helplessness as he lay on the bed starring at the ceiling, the condition of being powerless as he struggled with something as simple as getting out of a bed, the sharp pain in his shoulder when he shifted position… Yet, despite all that, he had forced himself to stand before Her Excellency and apologize. This practice started since the dawn of time among the garrisons at Edel but was removed by Lord Rai, grandfather to Lord Charles. Honestly speaking, Hayes had always thought the Edels must have been filled with some pretty stuck up nobles to initiate a practice like this but now…"I wonder about that…" Hayes whispered to himself.

"Senpai?"

"It's nothing," Hayes said. Instead of castigating him, the first thing that Her Excellency said to him after his failing to perform was 'Are you really alright?' Hayes was starting to wonder who started that custom, the nobles or the garrison themselves. "It just felt… appropriate, I suppose" Hayes said. "And stop calling me that…"

Her Excellency had probably not noticed it herself but saying things like 'are you alright' and 'this is important, but your health comes first' to a soldier that had just failed to defend you… Well, Hayes didn't really know what to make of it. Honored that Her Excellency thought about him? Grateful that Her Excellency didn't blame or persecute him? Ashamed that Her Excellency still cared for his health despite the fact that he had failed? The last one was definitely true, of course. That one failure, among the few that he made in his career as a soldier, was a failure that would have caused Her Excellency her life. It was unforgivable.

'This is important, but your health comes first'. Did people really know what that sentence meant? The matter which Her Excellency had proclaimed to be important was something that went hand in hand with her life. Yet, why did Her Excellency say that his health came first? Wasn't that indirectly saying something like 'his life was more important to Her Excellency than her own'? Hayes shook his head. That wasn't something that a noble should, or rather, would say.

And taking in Her Excellency's reply into account, Hayes heaved a sigh. Really… the pain that had surged through his arm during that short fifteen minutes was nothing compared to the discomfort he would have felt if he didn't apologize.

"Her Excellency is definitely something different than what I imagined." He balled his fists. "Nadine," he said quietly. "You're our 'ace' against the humans if they come back. Don't fall short on my expectations."

"Affirmative, Sir." Her tone immediately changing.

"Tch… with the situation in this state…" Hayes glared at his wound in disgust and sighed in frustration. "I wonder if I should call in Nexus."

It was truly disgraceful, for Nexus Element Hayes Volfield to fall into a situation like this.

"With Hayes temporarily disable, we have even fewer people we can trust around us," Logan was saying.

"The problem with trusting other people is that you'd have to trust people that they trust," Conrad said. "And that usually involves trusting people we don't know."

"We'll just have to make do," Ysabel said. "I doubt that would come back soon after a failed attempt but we shouldn't discount the possibility. In any case, that's a worst case scenario." Ysabel looked up at the two veterans. "What about Josak?"

Logan and Conrad exchanged looks before Conrad answered, "Josak is definitely someone we can trust but…"

Just then, there was a knock at the door of Conrad's quarters. A soldier in a navy blue uniform opened the door and, seeing unexpected additional faces, bowed. "Excuse the intrusion, Lord Weller."

"What is it?" Conrad asked, waving off the apology.

"My lord, there's something that you should know…"

A/n:

Okies! Cliffy! Not to make you guys mad, but to motivate me lol. I must admit, I lost a lot of zeal since no one really reviews but meh, I've decided to continue writing anyways. I love Kyou Kara Maou, and I love writing. That should be my sole reason for posting.

To make up for my absence, I've posted a chapter that's more than two times my usual length. So I hoped you all enjoyed it. If you guys got any question, you can ask and I'll post the answer in the next chapter.

Lol, honestly, I was extremely tempted to have Ysabel reply with a 'YOU IDIOT, YOU DID ALL THAT JUST TO APOLOGIZE?!' But nah, that would've sounded just a little insensitive lol.

F.A.Q

1. Does this mean that Logan's going to give up on the chase?

A. Well… it does seem that way, doesn't it? But I dunno, it's just the beginning. We'll just have to see what the future has in stored now, don't we? 

2. It sounds like Hayes and the other characters have got quite a good relationship, doesn't it?

A. Yup, just think of it like Hayes is a member of the militia that's dispatched to the capital a lot. Plus, sounds like he's pretty famous, or rather, infamous among the ladies, huh? ; )

3. What's the relationship between Hayes and Nadine?

A. No comment :)

4. What did Nadine mean in Section 6, paragraph 9?

A. No comment :)

5. Nadine and Hayes sure act different when they're alone.

A. That's not a question! XP Lol.

6. Hayes isn't a womanizer, is he?

A. Of course not, he just takes it up to himself to protect the dignity of all womankind. :)

7. Nexus…?

A. Don't ask lol. You know I won't answer :

Until my next update,

Forever,

Val.