146 Chapter 146: My Ligh

W-What?

Harold softened his gaze when he saw her pale expression. He caressed her cheeks softly while gazing into her shocked eyes. 

"I will never hurt you, Princess" He paused and said, "But you need to agree to be mine."

"I can also love you the same way he does. I will protect you, way better than he does. What he can do, I can do it ten times perfectly now. So agree to be mine."

Hazel closed her eyes and asked, "Then what?"

Harold knitted his brows, "Hmm?"

"Then what will you do? Will you leave the students alone? Will you fight the demons along with us?"

Harold pressed his lips into a thin line and said aggrievedly, "I am one of them now, Princess. I can't kill them."

Hazel smirked, "You were one of us too but it seems easy for you to harm us rather than them."

Harold pursed his lips and refused to answer her.

"You will never have my heart, Harold. Even if you kill me and dig my heart out, my soul would forever be with him."

Suddenly she felt her face being grabbed and his claws piercing her skin. She squeezed her eyes in pain and heard him snarl, "I wouldn't have gone to this extent if you had chosen me."

Hazel glared at him furiously as blood trickled down her cheeks.

He laughed, "You will be mine, Princess. I will never let my light dim in my life."

Hazel could feel her body shuddering in fear. Her eyes went towards the dagger.

'Only if she could reach her dagger'

Abruptly, she felt the force disappear and saw him staggering back while groaning loudly. He fell on his knees and started writhing around making her confused.

Her eyes widened when she more black lines appear on his body. He coughed black blood out as his eyes glowed. She saw his other eye changing colors and finally realized what was happening.

She remembered reading about his kind from her books. Even though the term half-demon was rare in this period, it wasn't so million years ago.

Demons captured humans and tried experiments on them which were one of the main reasons behind their enmity. They forcefully turned humans into demons by making them drink their harmful blood. 

Once a person drank the blood, he/she would turn into a half-demon and develop enormous strength. They would be slightly more powerful than regular humans but less weak than the demons. But if they failed to drink the demon's blood continuously, they would lose their sanity and go berserk.

Which was what happened a million years ago and what started the war between humans and demons.

Now, looking at Harold writhing on the ground, suffering while he was losing his rationality slowly made her heart wince.

Hazel hesitated before calling out, "Harold?" and just as she took a step forward, she was frozen solid by a sudden gust of wind.

"Stay away"

Hazel looked back at him and saw his pained face. He was bleeding all over but still fighting with the demon inside him. More lines appeared on him as if the blackness was covering his body pulling him into the eternal darkness.

She remembered what he said, "I will never hurt you"

Hazel gulped as she knew this was her best chance, to get her dagger and finish him but she couldn't seem to move her feet.

She exhaled before walking towards Harold who wanted to shout but closed his mouth as his face twitched with the sudden onslaught of pain.

She knitted her brows as she wondered who made him like this. Who made use of his weak point and controlled him?

She pressed her lips when that red eyes popped in her mind... the one who stood in the shadows amongst the reapers. She tightened her hand into a fist wishing that she could crumble him like that.

Hazel looked at Harold who was writhing on the floor. Her heart winced when she saw him suffering.

But before she could get any more closer, Harold yelled, "Stay away, Hazel" before succumbing to his pain.

She saw how hard he was trying to stay in control as veins popped out from his hands and face. She saw him heave heavily as he gasped 

"I will protect you, Princess"

His words made her heartache painfully. She squatted beside him ignoring his words and said.

"Harold, Thank you for loving me"

Harold froze suddenly as he looked at her in surprise. Hazel could see all the love he had for her in his eyes. Her heart trembled when she saw blood trickling down from his eyes. 

"Thank you for making me your light"

She reached out and held his hand making him gasp but surprisingly, Harold smiled as he clutched her hand tighter but carefully. 

He couldn't feel the pain now even though more black lines appeared all over his body.

Hazel looked at him worriedly, 'He would die'

She whispered looking into his eyes, "Even if you had told me about your feelings before, I still wouldn't have accepted you."

She bit her lips when his claws nicked her hand. 

She smiled softly, "Because you see, I was immersed in my darkness too."

Harold froze before he said astonishingly, "But Princess, you weren't-"

Hazel shook her head interrupting him and said, "I was always in the darkness that's why when I found out my friend was suffering like me, I reached out. I didn't want anyone to go through the same pain. I wanted to see him smile."

And, then she looked at him and said softly, "And, he did. Whenever he smiled, my heart would be relieved because I managed to save someone from going through the same pain."

"I made your life brighter... which was enough for me."

Then she exhaled as he looked at his hands which was beginning to turn all black.

She patted his hand and said, "But, it wasn't easy for me to step out from the darkness. I couldn't no matter what I did, the darkness pulled me deeper."

A small smile formed on her lips as she said, "Until he appeared... I don't know when and how it happened but before I knew it, he was holding my darkness at bay, reaching out for me to pull me into the light."

She chuckled, "I didn't accept his hand at first which made him more determined to fight harder. No matter how many times I pushed him away, he still swarmed his way back to me. He was like a magnet, pulling me towards him and holding me tightly."

She looked at Harold who was staring at her in shock.

"He was my light, Harold. He will be my only light in this lifetime."

"Do you understand now?"

She looked at Harold who was staring at her and said, "We are the same, Harold. So you should be able to understand why I said I won't accept you."

Harold nodded slowly and mumbled, "He is your light"

Then he threw his head back and laughed, "I didn't know... they told me that he was disturbing you. He was trying to snatch you away from me."

Hazel's eyes grew cold at the lies they fed him with. They quickly grabbed onto his weak spot and managed to turn him into a spy.

"What did I do? Just what was I thinking when I agreed to them?"

Hazel saw his pained face as he hit himself. She quickly held his hands and said, "It's okay... We can still turn this around. We can fight them, help them."

Harold shook his head pitifully, "But I'm a half-demon now. I have no place here. Not among the humans and definitely not among the demons."

Hazel glared at him and said, "No matter what you are, you are family. You are one among us and you stay with us"

"Let's head out, Harold" but she was surprised when he held her hand and shook his head.

"I can't... I don't think I can keep it under control anymore."

Hazel frowned and looked at him worriedly.

"What can we do?"

Harold shook his head as he pulled her to him and said, "I can feel it, Princess. I can feel it eating me from inside, dying to be out."

He looked at her gratefully, "Thank you, Princess, for coming into my life, for letting me see a colorful world."

Then he mumbled, "Thank you for not hating me"

Before Hazel could counter his words, she felt a gust of wind blow her hair and something light fell on her hands. 

She looked down and saw her dagger lying on her lap. She widened her eyes as she knew what it meant.

She looked up and said urgently, "No"

"Please, Princess"

Tears trickled down her cheeks as she said, "No... I won't kill you, Harold. We can find that demon and bring him to you."

He shook his head and said, "We don't have time... Kill me, Princess."

He closed his eyes shut as blood trickled down his eyes.

"I don't want to hurt anyone more than I already have."

Seeing her still shaking her head, Harold smiled softly as he grasped her hand and brought it to his chest, her dagger hovering over his heart.

Hazel pleaded at him through her eyes but he smiled gently at her.

He leaned forward and knocked his forehead against hers and whispered, "I can rest easy knowing that you would take care of things here, Princess."

He suddenly pushed something inside her mouth making her knit her brows. Before she could spat it out, Harold closed her mouth with his hands.

"I love you, Hazel"

He smiled as he pushed her hand, the dagger piercing his chest.