Mated to the Mad Lord-Chapter 196: I Can Walk

Lord Javi stood in the middle of a wide space, surrounded by his men and guards on every side. In front of him was a man lying on the ground, clearly in pain as he groaned but otherwise didn’t make any movements to try and remove the huge sword embedded in his chest—considering Lord Javi had been the one to thrust it through him.

"Weak! Fucking weak!" Javi spat to the side in annoyance, glaring at the man who didn’t even dare to meet his eyes. Neither did any of the guards around him. The last thing they wanted was to become the next person lying on the floor with a sword embedded in their chest. They watched as Lord Javi finally decided to pull the sword out.

None of them dared to show an expression, their faces blank as they heard the loud squelch of the sword sliding out of flesh and against bones. The victim knew better than to make a sound, biting down on his lips as he instantly scrambled to his feet.

"Get him a drink! We’ll continue once your wound has closed!" Lord Javi ordered. His sparring partner knew better than to complain, even though it was clear that just because his wounds healed didn’t mean he wouldn’t be weaker than his already defeated self.

"In the meantime, someone else—" The others around stiffened, mentally calculating who among them would be next. Some even dared to take half a step back to avoid standing out. Suddenly, they heard footsteps as one of Lord Javi’s personal guards appeared right behind him, dropping to his knees with a letter in his hand.

"Fucking read it!" Javi snapped, clearly not in the mood to do so. The newly appeared guard wasn’t the least surprised as he hurriedly obeyed without any hesitation.

"Lord Cain defeated Lord Magnus and made all the other lords bow to him. He has grown stronger, and his beast is five times bigger than before!" the guard said with a bow, glad he hadn’t stuttered as he read the number written in the letter.

Is this information right? How is that possible? The thought flickered in his brain when he heard Lord Javi lash out, swinging the sword just above his bowed head. The guard shivered, aware that Lord Javi could kill him, and even the sand he stood on wouldn’t notice.

"WHAT! THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE! DO YOU KNOW HOW BIG WEREWOLVES ARE!" Javi screamed at the guard, who couldn’t help but bear the brunt of his ire. He bowed his head even lower, praying that all the luck he had accumulated over the years would finally show up.

"THAT’S LIKE SAYING HE’S ALMOST THE SIZE OF A FUCKING CAR! CALL REXTER!" Lord Javi yelled, tossing the sword in his hand to the ground as he strode back into his mansion, which was much bigger than the one that had been destroyed by Cain.

He wasn’t surprised to push open the doors of his office, his dark hair swaying across his forehead where a frown had been etched. His eyes fell on Rexter, who was already waiting for him there with a young man beside him—one with a clearly prosthetic arm.

"Is it true?" Javi asked, the anger in his tone clear for everyone to hear as he fixed furious eyes on Rexter, who knelt on the ground with his head bowed.

"Yes, my lord! It’s true... somehow Cain has gotten stronger!"

"That fucking Eldric! Is he a fool?" Javi yelled. "Have I partnered with a fool?" he asked as he leaned into his chair, a huge look of displeasure etched on his face. He shifted his gaze back to Rexter, glancing at the man who knelt beside him.

"You bring such a broken thing? For me to eat?" Javi asked, impressed to see the young man not so much as flinch as he simply lowered his head. Rexter began to speak.

"This is Nathan! He was one of the spies inside Cain’s mansion, but due to the last attack on Cain, he had his arm torn apart!" Rexter hurriedly explained. But Javi’s frown only deepened, about to burst, only to freeze as he fixed his red eyes on the boy. His gaze moved up and down Nathan’s body with a cold and dark look.

"...and how can a one-handed man be useful to me?" Javi asked with a sneer. Nathan, who had lowered his head, was about to speak when Rexter smacked him—hard enough for a crunching sound to echo, showing that he had broken something on Nathan’s face. Blood dripped from Nathan’s nose.

Rexter bowed his head lower as he continued to speak with a reverent attitude. "He is very capable and can also be used to quench my lord’s thirst!" A flash of fury crossed Nathan’s face, but he didn’t dare to move, even as he heard Rexter go against what they had agreed on.

After he lost his arm and had been unable to regrow it, all he had thought about was revenge. He had worked tirelessly for Rexter, only to realize that the longer he stayed with him, the harder it would be to grow. But the thought had just settled in his mind when Rexter suddenly came to him and offered to let him work with Lord Javi. He had been excited about it until he heard the guards talking and describing in detail how vile Javi was.

"Nathan can stay at your side as a go-between! He’s very capable!" Rexter promised. It was at that moment that Nathan realized Rexter was simply using him to distance himself from Javi, which made him feel even more displeased, though he knew better than to let it show.

Still! This is an opportunity! If I do well, then I can get closer to Lord Javi, who clearly has more— But the thought was still forming in his mind when he felt an intense gaze fix itself on him and heard the lord speak.

"Raise your head!" Javi ordered. Nathan immediately obeyed, even as he felt his heart tremble within the walls of his chest. He met red eyes—the color of blood—that seemed to stare directly into his very soul.

"Innocent face and green eyes! That’s unique!" Javi admired, his eyes fixed more on the blood dripping from Nathan’s nose than anywhere else.

"Everyone out! It’s been a while since I’ve satisfied the desires of my flesh!" Javi said in a way that made Nathan’s stomach sink. His heart thumped twice as much as before as he watched everyone instantly obey, heading towards the door without saying a word.

Nathan had just heard the door shut and saw Lord Javi get off his seat, undoing the belt of his pants as he spoke. He could no longer take it anymore.

"I heard some terrible news, but this should help—" Javi continued to unzip his pants, only for his eyes to widen in shock as Nathan suddenly interrupted him.

"My-my lord! I’m an assassin, and I’m pretty good at it!" Nathan said, half expecting to be turned away—which was what he wanted the most—only to feel a chill descend. He raised his head just in time to catch Lord Javi slowly marching towards him with a nasty smile on his face—one that promised pain and cruelty and nothing more.

"You interrupted me!" Javi said in a tone that suggested no one else had ever dared to do it before. He continued undressing, his eyes fixed on Nathan. "Oh... I’m going to enjoy breaking you!" he mumbled. Nathan could feel his very soul tremble as he realized there was nowhere for him to run—even if he tried.

********

Violet had been surprised to feel Cain continue to hold onto her even after they entered the car. He made her sit right on his lap, even as she shuffled, trying to show how uncomfortable she was. But he simply continued to beam at her with a satisfied expression on his face, making it extremely clear how good his mood was—an opportunity Violet refused to let pass by without taking advantage of it.

"Ca-Cain!" she suddenly said, calling his name as she lowered her head to his shoulder, leaning her entire body against him. "This-this collar is uncomfortable!" she groaned, even as she leaned even more into him. She was surprised to see Cain turn his gaze to fix it on her face in a charming manner that made her widen her eyes even more in surprise.

He leaned in to kiss her, but Violet immediately stopped him, aware of Frank, who was driving the car. She was unwilling to be kissed in front of others again. She would be lying if she said the memory of what had happened hadn’t scared her, but she tried hard not to let it show as she smiled back at Cain.

"Ma-maybe when we get back!" she told him, hating the way her cheeks reddened simply from the intensity of his gaze, which always brought back memories that Violet would rather forget.

But Cain had just nodded, and Violet relaxed a bit when she noticed that the car suddenly came to a stop. Her eyes peeked out to see that they were in front of a luxury hotel, which surprised her.

Her eyes jerked back towards Cain, only to note a certain look in his eyes—one she was greatly familiar with and could clearly see in the way he looked at her. He wrapped his arms more tightly around her waist as he carried her out of the car, princess-style.

"I-I can walk!" she hurriedly told him, relieved when he actually allowed her to. But then she heard him mumble in a low voice, barely caught as they both headed in.

"But not for long..."