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Chapter 138 138 Apologies And Thanks
Chapter 138 138 Apologies And Thanks
Chapter 138 Chapter 138 Apologies And Thanks
'Yes,' he pondered; 'Yes Monica, you need to be strong- you need to be cruel. That is the only way to survive here. . .'
Nexus thought back to the cave, and he wanted to kick himself;
'Damn it what was I thinking? Was I really going to spare those vile hunters?!'
He bit down so hard on his tongue, a trickle of blood ensued. What would he have done if it were him that was about to be violated by a band of perverse orcs?
His hypocrisy tore him from the inside out;
'. . .well, I guess that reflects on just how misogynistic I am. . .I shouldn't have hesitated. . .I should have protected her honor. . .'
But there was really no need to flog a dead horse.
Literally- they were all dead.
Every single one of them that had witnessed, and partook of the attempted rape were all dead. No one would be able to spread this news again. Yes, she would maintain her honor, and fiery reputation.
After all, that was what was most important to her- the prestige of her family.
"You can turn back now Ni Yang." she called out to him; "I'm all good now. . ."
Quietly and very slowly, he slid around - not wanting to seem overeager.
His eyes found her under the soft silvery rays of the moon. Her head was bent low and downwards as she did the last few buttons on her chest. Her slim fingers flew in and out of the button holes, weaving the buttons in place.
Nexus watched her with new found respect on his face.
Without looking up, she said;
"You know I can see you staring right?"
Nexus' shifted his weight, and pretended to crack his knuckles;
"It's been one heck of a night. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," she said flatly. Immediately regretting it, she answered more softly; "Sorry about that. . ."
"Oh don't worry about it. It's fine really."
Lifting her head, she looked at him in the eye- gratitude flashing all over her face;
"No, it's not. If you hadn't stepped in when you did, I mean when I let my guard down in an attempt to blow up those infernal hunters, I would have been dead by now. . ."
Her eyes sunk deeper into the shadows of her face. She shook her head unsurely;
". . .I don't know what came over me, I was just overcome with an insatiable rage you know? I wanted them dead on the spot. . .I wanted them gone. . .and I didn't want to feel weak. . ."
She crossed her arms across each other, rubbing her elbows as if the cold was finally starting to get to her.
"Monica," he stated calmly; "It's all good now,"
A guilty look streaked across her face;
"I forced your hand didn't I? I made you stain your hands with blood right?"
"Moni–"
"I heard what that hunter said in there okay? I heard what he said about what spilling innocent blood does to people in this business. . ."
Nexus shrugged; "Yeah, well, they weren't exactly innocent were they?"
The wind picked up, sweeping through the open grasslands with a subtle vigor, swaying the leaves of the tree in rustling sounds- bringing a dash of cold to the pale moonlit night.
Monica, rubbing the sides of her biceps, squinted her eyes at Nexus. Her brows clamped together as she observed him. Everything about him was mysterious. And his mysteriousness was only enhanced my his misleading 'simple' outlook.
She didn't know him, yet, she felt like she did.
"Those hunters," she started; "you killed them all with that flying sword. . ."
Nexus smiled; "I'm not sure if that was a question."
She squinted her eyes into thin slits;
"That technique right there. . .I've never seen anything like it. . .it was like you were controlling the sword. . .like telepathy or something like that. . ."
Nexus remained silent.
". . .if you had that ability all along, you could have wasted the wind wolves in a heart beat. . .but you didn't. . .which means you didn't consider the threat worthy enough . . "
Her eyes squinted even tighter as her brows closed in;
". . .which means you used an entire pack of Wind Wolves as a playground to test your strength?" Her eyes widened; "Of course! out there, in the open, with that number of enemies, you knew you'd never get the opportunity go all out like that in the city!"
Her eyes gleamed as she put the puzzle pieces together;
"That's what it was wasn't it?"
Nexus took a step forward;
"Monica I–"
She cut him off;
"No Ni Yang, just listen alright?" she inhaled deeply; "I have no idea who you are, or what you are. . .but I owe you my life two times over. . .you didn't need to save me from the Leading Wind Wolf, and you certainly had every right to have let me die at the hands of those goons back there when I left my self exposed- literally. . ."
She paused to catch her breath;
"Again, I forced your hand to kill to save me, and for that. . .I am truly sorry. . ."
Her voice cracked as she bowed her head curtly;
"Forgive me for putting you in that position, and for also getting you involved in the death of the Howard boy."
In a smooth stride, Nexus stretched his left foot forward;
"No, you've done nothing wrong. It is I who should apologize to you for hesitating to kill them on the spot, I allowed them gainsay me after what they tried to do to you,"
His right foot quickly followed behind, bringing him a foot closer to her tall, trim form;
"If I had been a little bit more emphatic, if I had been more sympathetic to your situation, I would have wasted them the very moment they gave up their defense- then you wouldn't have been in that situation in the first place."
It was paradoxical that Nexus was spitting sincere words while wearing a mask of deception. But Monica had sunk deep into his apology.
The corners of her eyes twitched sporadically. Her eyebrows shut up together in an even tighter embrace. Her naked eyeballs darted from side to side- flipping wildly. Were her ears deceiving her? she wondered; did Ni Yang actually just apologize to her?
Heart racing within her, she played his words over and over again, taking every bit apart-piece by piece. The poor red head was shocked- and for good reason.
In this continent, two things were a given; the sun shined by day, and men NEVER apologized to woman. It was a complete patriarchy! It was a male dominated society! Men never apologized, they had no need to.
They were endowed by nature as the top dogs.
So, hearing a man apologize- and so intently, was as rare as a blood moon.
Her clenched chin eased up, as she dropped her arms to the side. Her piercing, questioning gaze shredded the air between them. Her temple throbbed violently as the thoughts in her head chased each other.
'Just what kind of man is he?!' Monica's inner voice thundered.
Her eyes roved all over him- from his head hidden in his hat, down to the fluffs of beard on his face, then his rugged black trench coat, and then his very peculiar pair of boots.