Chapter 157 157 Get ill

Chapter 157 Chapter 157 Get ill

Deeply moved, Nexus stepped forward towards her with his arms stretched out;

"Come here Nora. . ."

She instantly jerked forward and met him halfway.

Sliding her arms above his, she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, and squeezed him in a tight embrace. Nexus in turn wrapped his arms around her waist. And together, they swayed on their feet, holding each other tight- as if afraid to let go.

"It's not exactly goodbye now is it?" he boomed as he released her; "Sooner or later, I'll be coming around to treat you in the future. . ."

"Huh?" she asked weakly.

"Oh, my bad, your mother will fill you in on the details soon."

Madeline lingered, nervously waiting for her own hug. But Nexus didn't reach out. Gratefully, Crystal chose that exact moment to enter the scene.

On the low hanging chandelier dangling over the great table, all the flames from the army of candles swayed gently- in tune with the sweeping breeze. From the open door on the west wing, Crystal waddled over to the group of three, eyeing Madeline with hostility through her collapsed black hair, and clutching a small black bag by her side.

Nexus instantly recognized it as the shopping bag from the bazaar. He watched in amusement as she held on to it as though it contained a shit ton of gold. Poor girl. Nobody had ever bought anything for her at all.

As soon as she came within range, Nora swiftly threw her arms around her, squeezing her in, bringing both their chests together in a firm hug;

"Don't be a stranger alright? Make sure you come visit sometime. I'll be expecting you."

With her free hand, Crystal wrapped her arm around her- still somehow finding the time and space to glare at Madeline;

"I'll do my best Nora, thanks for having me."

"You're always welcome. Good bye."

Finally, they pulled away from each each other- freeing the entanglement of black and blond hairs.

Nexus coughed, and turned towards the exit;

"Come on Crystal, let's go."

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Outside the comfort of the Great Hall, out in the open, a thick fog of blackness met them. The moon was locked behind a thick formation of clouds. The cold morning breeze attacked their faces, their necks, and every other inch of exposed skin- leaving them jittery in a manner of seconds.

Nexus whistled under his breath, as they walked to the stables;

"Hot damn, why's it so cold?"

"I think it rained somewhere close last night."

"Yeah, no kidding."

The horse neighed nervously as Nexus tugged at its reins. With Crystal in the rear, Nexus pulled it away from the stables, and led it into the courtyard- there, he mounted it in one fluid motion.

"Give me your hand," he called out to her in the dark.

She did.

And Nexus pulled her upwards- sliding her in place behind him. Balancing herself properly, she adjusted her hips slightly, thrusting them forward towards him, and wrapping her arms around his waist.

"Are you good?"

"Yes, m'lord."

"Good." he replied, and kicked the horse's sides slightly, leading it towards the entrance in a slow trot;

"The lady mentioned there might be spies outside the castle's walls. So, as soon as we head out, we're on stealth mode. . .got it?"

She nodded- then remembered he would't see and said;

"Got it."

In a slow trot, they headed towards the gate. The guards were already expecting them. There was no flame, no torch, no source of light- all at Madeline's command. Without as much as a single word spoken, the massive wooden doors were parted, and they melted out into the darkness- away from the Russell family, and towards a new adventure.

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"M'lord," she whispered into his ears; "Do you think we were followed?"

Dawn had broken, and the roads were starting to liven up. Horses, and horses- but mainly brown, dusty, donkey-drawn carts, lined up both lanes of the stone paved roads. On either sides of the road, a handful of pedestrians trickled down the paths in a dull haze of gray and brown- drifting seamlessly horse dreamless

"I don't think so. . ." he answered as his quick searching eyes flashed; "We avoided the alleyways, and I took the fastest route to town. If there was someone trailing us, they would have showed their hand by now."

"Oh," she scoffed; "So, I guess she's not just sick, she's also s paranoid old bird . . ."

"No need to be coy Crystal. We're done with that bit now."

Behind him, she opened her mouth to say something, but ended up keeping shut instead.

Galloping through the stretch of roads before them, they skedaddled into town with a general air of expectation. Crystal was just eager to put as much distance between them and the Russells. While Nexus himself was looking forward to working with Selina again.

Of course, she knew him as Ni Yang.

But at least, his past experience with her, would enable him work better with her this time.

Finally, the familiar white glare of True Potions came around the corner.

"This is the place," he nudged her.

She stirred, and cocked her head towards the white edifice, taking it all in with beady open eyes;

"My lord, please remind me why we're here again? Because I feel like this is just Mrs. Russell's way of controlling us even after sending us away. . ."

Nexus laughed as he climbed down from his horse;

"Wow, you really can't go one minute without saying her name, can't you?"

Nexus helped her down, and together, they strolled into the all white establishment. The door opened, and Crystal gasped behind him. The all white ambience of the pharmacy snatched her attention- leaving her starry-eyed, and breathless. She had never been anywhere with such perfect bloodless taste.

From the counter, just beside the rows and rows of neatly stacked shelves, a voice called out to them;

"Sir, ma'am, welcome to True Potions! How can I help you today?"

They both turned their gaze together, and found the small, effeminate man standing behind the counter. Nexus recognized him instantly as the manager from last time. As usual, he was dressed impeccably. His crisp white shirt shone from under his waist coat. And his short hair was styled in near perfect curls.

Boldly, Nexus walked over, clicking his feet along the white marble tiles- hauling his weight across the room;

"Yes. I would like to see the owner."

"I beg your pardon sir, but who's asking exactly?"

Nexus simply dug his hands into his shirt, and lifted up the badge clearly for him to see;

"This is who's asking," he said flatly; "Kindly inform her of our presence at once. Our business is urgent."

The manager's face had gone pale white the moment he saw the Russell badge. Asides from the reputation of the family, he was also well aware of the close relationship between them and his boss.

So, the manager readjusted his stance, changed his tone, and addressed Nexus with an all but respectful voice;

"My apologies, but at the moment, I regret to inform you that the lady of the establishment is currently not on seat. You can perhaps choose to leave a message with me, and I will certai–"

"My good man," Nexus cut in; "You do recognize this family badge right? This isn't a social call. We need to see her right away. It doesn't matter how long it takes, we're going to wait right here."

Beside him, Crystal had her game-face on. She squinted her eyes with all seriousness, and nodded twice- reaffirming Nexus' words.

From behind the counter, the well dressed man observed both of them carefully. Noting their stubborn resolve, his eyes kept darting between the duo, as if trying to make a decision or not. Finally, his shoulders slumped as he sighed;

"Okay, here's the deal. I'm not really cleared to dispose this information. But the truth is, Miss Selina had not exactly been in top shape these past few days."

Nexus' black eyes shot into the man;

"What exactly does that mean?"

"It means she's been sick, and we're exactly sure what the problem is. One moment she was fine, healthy, and lively, then suddenly, she began to diminish. . .so as you can imagine, meeting her in person will not be possible. . .not now anyways."

As the final words curled out of his tongue, he fixed his small eyes on Nexus- watching and gauging his reaction.

Nexus' eyes appeared to have dimmed on the spot. The light went out on his face, as the rest of his features contorted in surprise. He blinked, and then blinked again- trying to digest this bit of information.

"But that's impossible. . ." he mumbled.

"What's that sir?"

Nexus ignored him, and leaned forward on the counter- supporting his entire body weight on the glossy marble. His brows furrowed together as he plunged himself into his own mind- highlighting the facts as he knew them.

Selina was a powerful mage.

He could testify firsthand to that. He had felt the bluntness of her power the last time, when she had very nearly come close to piercing his heart with an icicle.

She was an A-class mage. The very top of the foodchain. So, for mage of that rank, sicknesses were an anomaly. Even if they were to get sick, it would not be to the point of being bedridden.

Nexus hands clasped ontop each other on the white counter. He had to see her, and not just to commiserate with her, but also because he was genuinely eager to find out the root cause of her illness.