143 Chapter 143: The Room

He removed the blankets from him and looked at his brother who was sprawled all over the bed. He shook his head before he placed the blanket over him. 

Usui stood up and took his coat, draping it over him. He put on his slippers and walked towards the door. 

'A small walk might help me get some sleep.'

When he opened his door softly and stepped out, he saw the two guards who were supposed to guard them, sleeping on the floor, leaning against the door on each side. 

He chuckled softly and closed the door noiselessly. He looked at the sleeping guards one last time and slowly made his way towards the empty corridors.

'Well.. let's take a small tour around the castle.'

Usui looked at the two corridors in front of him and rubbed his chin thoughtfully before he decided to go with the left corridor. He was glad that the silver beam of moonlight ignited the corridor even though it wasn't enough to devour the darkness. It did give him enough light for him to expand his perception of his surroundings.

Usui looked towards the garden where the leaves rustled softly in the cold night breeze. It was a full moon night which reminded him of yesterday. 

He smiled softly before turning back towards the desolate corridors. He escaped the eyes of the patrolling guards and walked further deep in the direction. The moonlight guided him as he moved further, brightening his path.

But soon, darkness devoured the moonlight which made him glance towards the sky. That's when he realized that he had moved past the garden making it impossible for the moon to guide him. He pursed his lips before looking towards the path which was immersed in darkness.

He frowned not because of the darkness, but because of the absence of guards in the area. At least before he saw a few guards patrolling or standing guard but here, there was none just darkness.

He took a step into the darkness and soon his eyes were blinded. He took out a stone and injected his mana which made the stone lit, giving him some light in the darkness. 

He knitted his brows when he saw a room at the end of the path. He stopped and sighed, 'So it was a dead-end'

He was about to turn around when he stopped and looked at the door again. 

'Why would the guards ignore this place if there was a room here?'

He looked around with his small light and saw that it had an open area but the plants have all died. It was like a desolate land closed off from visitors.

His eyes landed back towards the door and approached the door. He lifted his hands and touched the doorknob which was covered in dust. 

'No one has entered in so long'

"Who's there?" 

He looked back and saw the distant light coming closer to his direction. He hurriedly shut his light and entered the door, closing it shut behind him. He heaved as he leaned against the door and waited for them to leave.

"Did you find anyone?" 

Usui let out a breath as the voice appeared closer to him.

'Maybe in front of the door'

"Nope... Nothing here. Maybe it was my imagination." 

"Okay.. let's go now before anyone find us here. You know what would happen if they find us crossing the forbidden area."

Usui opened his eyes, 'forbidden area?' 

No wonder the area was deserted. He heard the footsteps and voice fade into the darkness making Usui sigh in relief.

Feeling something on his shoulder, he turned around and nearly screamed for his life when a face came into his view. Luckily, he swallowed the building scream within him, and shakily took out his stone and lit it in front of him.

The face of a statue came into view making his heart set calmly.

He looked around with the limited light and tapped his hands on the wall, searching for a light. When he found it, he gladly turned it on, and instantly his eyes were blinded by the light.

He glanced across the room, surprised at what he found. Unlike all the rooms they visited in the castle, this room was by far the messiest room he had seen. 

The books lying around, chairs thrown, the table filled with papers. He wondered whose room this was until he stepped on something. Looking down, he saw a book under his feet. He bent down and picked it up making his eyes turn cold.

The pages had blood on them.. it wasn't new more like it was very old. The book cover was smeared in dried blood making him frown. He glanced up and saw the bookshelf with half of its contents on the floor. 

He moved closer and found blood marks on the shelf.

'Just what happened in this room?'

He knitted his brows as he glanced across the room, halting at the fireplace. His eyes widened as he mumbled, "Could it be?"

He walked forward, taking in the blood on the walls and floor. It did look like the place he heard from her. He stood in front of the fireplace before he stretched his hand and slid through its sides. 

He caught his breath when he heard a rusty click making him gulp his saliva and move back. He watched as the fireplace moved aside and a black space opened up.

'This was Hezekiah's study'

He was sure of it...from all the blood and secret pathway. He clenched his fist as he thought how the young Hazel tainted her hands with blood for the first time.

He could imagine how lifeless she was, kneeling her crying her heart out for her brother.

He closed his eyes as he pushed the fireplace back in its spot. He moved towards the table which had papers sprayed across. He looked at the paper and saw the names Black Shadow written in neat handwriting.

'This must be his papers'

Usui was sure that no one had entered the place after that night leaving all of his things in this place untouched. He frowned when his eyes focused on the bottom paper. 

'ERADICATED'

Those were scribbled in messy handwriting making him sigh. Hazel must have added this as her way of avenging him. Now that he thought about, that day on the meadow she was acting strange because some of the guild members escaped.

He pressed his lips as he thought of helping her find their whereabouts.

He kept the papers as it was before his eyes shifted to the small drawer. There was a key in its keyhole making it easy for him. He pulled the drawer and saw a diary inside.

He took the diary and sat on the floor before he proceeded to open it. On the first page, it was written Hezekiah neatly and at the corner of the page, it was written Hazel's big brother messily making him chuckle.

When he opened it, something fell on his lap making him knit his brows. It was a small red envelope with a torn seal on it. He opened the envelope and saw a lot of pictures along with a small letter.

"Happy Birthday Big brother Hezekiah!! I love you and don't break your promise this time. Hmph!!" 

Usui's face softened when he imagined the young adorable Hazel writing this down with an indignant face. He looked at the pictures and saw it was all her young images with a grown-up man.

Usui's eyes immediately went towards the young adorable girl in pigtails smiling widely at the camera. Her smile was like sunshine pouring into the darkness, cheering up the room. In the next image, he saw her looking at someone and sticking her tongue out. That's when Usui noticed the man beside her who had a doting smile on his face as he smiled at Hazel.

In the next picture, there was his face clearly depicted. He was handsome. Usui had to agree to this. If he was alive, Usui was sure that there would many ladies willing to die for him. He had emerald eyes just like Hazel but his gaze was cold on the camera. 

Usui was smiling at the last picture where the man and Hazel were hugging each other. The cold man had a huge smile on his face while his eyes reflected that he was carrying his whole world in his arms. Hazel had her small arms around his neck as she laughed freely in his arms. 

It was a beautiful picture that represented their feelings.

Happy...Bliss...Love

Usui could feel all of it from the pictures which made him sigh. He couldn't imagine the level of depression Hazel was after his demise. Both of them loved and cared for each other so much that Hezekiah sacrificed his life for his beloved sister without any hesitation.

He drew his brows together when something bugged him as he looked at Hezekiah's face. There was something which was brewing in his mind but before he could dwell on it, he heard voices walking past outside the room.

"Hurry..hurry before the meeting begins"

"I can't believe we had to use this forbidden shortcut to reach quickly."

"We can't be late... its better than getting punished"

"Yeah.. I wonder why they called everyone. Even all the patrolling guards were called forth."

"Did something happen I wonder?"

Usui's face darkened before he shut the diary and placed it back in its original position. He hurried out and ran across the corridor to his room. He frowned when he noticed his guards were also missing.

'Looks like something happened'