Cleaning the Wounds

After putting the trio of ruffians away, Arthur returns to the tavern and finds the Carpenters still with frightened expressions.

It clearly was a very tense situation for them.

"It's all okay now; you're safe," Arthur speaks in a calm tone and then sits down at the table with his father again.

He lets out a sigh of relief, leans back in his chair, and picks up his beer mug.

But to his surprise, the mug is empty, and he gives his father an inquisitive look. "Really?"

"You were taking too long to come back," Draven shrugs.

But his proud smile is so vivid it seems like it could jump off his face, and his eyes shine brightly.

"My bad, my bad," Arthur laughs.

"Hahaha…" Draven also laughs. "You were incredible, for real; I don't know why I keep being surprised, you never disappoint me."

Arthur really appreciates his father's respect, but he doesn't feel entirely deserving of it because he almost got consumed by the desire to kill those guys.

He thought the part of him that came from Liam was just memories, but when he felt the blood on his fists, something stirred within him, in the darkest part of his soul.

Arthur doesn't think his dark desires can control him, but he is also Liam, and that dark part is a part of his whole.

Draven can see that Arthur is shaken, and he thinks he understands his son's feelings; after all, he always feels a bit sad when he uses violence intensely.

So, he doesn't know how to console his son.

Draven tries to change the subject, "Hey, son, what was that thing you did at the beginning of the fight?"

"What?" Arthur is confused.

"When you used a lot of your internal energies to reach that speed?" Draven explains. "Damn, I could barely follow your movements with my eyes."

Draven is clearly exaggerating to boost his son's morale, but Arthur actually managed to reach an incredible speed of over two hundred miles per hour to save Margaret.

"That…" Arthur can't explain his adrenaline surge or how he was able to use all his body's potential in a single instant.

"Yeah," Draven is genuinely excited about that ability. "You also seemed much stronger and tossed that guy around like a rag doll!"

Arthur doesn't really want to remember that moment, as that was when he was closest to being consumed by bloodlust.

So he shrugs. "I don't know how I did it."

"You don't?" Draven is puzzled.

"Yeah, I just wanted to reach Margaret quickly, and it just happened…" Arthur can't help but cast a quick glance towards his Nexus.

"Oh," Draven notices that. "I was thinking the same; maybe it's the power of your Nexus, after all."

"My Nexus?" Arthur wonders about that.

Then Nyx's voice echoes in his mind. "I think your father is right."

"At that moment, you really wanted to be faster and stronger, so I shared my-" Nyx pauses and changes her words. "I mean, OUR energy, so you could use it all at once and exceed your body's limits."

Arthur is excited about the idea of using that ability again, but what he likes the most is hearing how Nyx mentions their energy.

They are connected, united as one being, so it's natural for them to act as partners, sharing everything.

Her shy and explosive personality prevents her from being more honest about her feelings, but she doesn't seem shy about their partnership, at least not in times of danger.

"That makes sense," he comments to her. "Is that why I felt so weak right afterward?"

"I think so," she doesn't have a manual for that and just trusts her instincts to explain it. "You used a lot of our energy all at once and suffered a kind of side effect."

"So I better be careful when using this ability again," Arthur comments.

"You should!" Nyx agrees.

As they converse mentally, Draven just watches his son's expressions change while he seems so thoughtful.

Draven has seen Arthur behaving like this other times, and although it seems a bit unusual, he thinks his son is just very thoughtful, which might be one of the reasons he is so clever at times.

While father and son rest, the Carpenters recompose themselves, and both Margaret and her father approach Draven and Arthur's table.

"Thank you so much for coming to our aid, Draven!" Mr. Carpenter bows respectfully with a grateful expression. "And especially to you, young Arthur."

Margaret also bows as her father, but in addition to gratitude, her expression is full of admiration and affection when she looks at Arthur.

"You really are incredible, Arthur," her tone starts off animated, but there's still a bit of fear in her gaze. "I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't been here…"

"Don't think about it," Draven speaks amiably. "Also, sorry for not acting sooner, but I couldn't do anything until they committed a crime, or it would have been us breaking the law."

"I understand," Mr. Carpenter nods. "Those guys had been here for several hours, and I said that we usually close at nightfall, so they started getting aggressive…"

While Margaret's father speaks, she can't stop looking at Arthur and notices small drops of blood dripping from the holes in his sleeve.

"Arthur!" She exclaims, worried. "Are you hurt???"

"Oh," He looks at his arm, and now that the adrenaline has left his veins, he feels the sharp pain from the two cuts in his skin.

The swords of those guys were rusty and dirty, so Arthur knows he needs to clean his wounds as soon as possible to prevent infection.

"I have bandages in my backpack," He stands up and walks towards the backpack on another table.

But Margaret quickly holds his other arm gently. "Let me take care of you; it's the least I can do to thank you for saving me."

Margaret's eyes shine with so many good feelings for Arthur that he can't help but feel touched.

But precisely because she harbors strong feelings for him, he doesn't want to be near her, risking giving in to his masculine desires.

His relationship with Nyx is finally evolving, and the last thing he wants now is to put that at risk.

"No need to-" He tries to reject Margaret's offer of help.

"He will accept," But Draven speaks confidently before looking at Arthur. "Let her take care of your wounds, it may help you much more than you can understand."

Arthur doesn't want to argue with his father now, and he also dislikes continually rejecting the sweet Margaret, especially when she just wants to help him clean his wounds.

"Alright," He smiles at her and accepts her help.

Margaret smiles even more and quickly leads Arthur to the back of the tavern. "This way."

Arthur follows Margaret to a small bathroom used by her family at the back of the tavern.

She quickly pulls him inside, and he starts to become concerned about her intentions.

But Margaret just seats him on the closed toilet and swiftly gets a first aid kit with medicines and bandages.

She seems very skilled with these things and pours some strong-smelling liquid onto a piece of cotton, probably alcohol with some other ingredients.

"Let me see it," She speaks in a loving tone while holding the cotton with her teeth and begins to roll up Arthur's shirt sleeve.

He stays calm, though she can't help blushing as she touches him. Also, she clearly touches more than necessary.

Arthur feels Nyx becoming restless in his Nexus, but Margaret seems to be trying hard to behave.

She gently starts dabbing the alcohol-soaked cotton on his cuts. "I need to clean it, but if it hurts, let me know."

"It's okay," Arthur is indeed feeling some pain, but his experiences as Liam make this pain seem insignificant, so he doesn't really mind it.

But Margaret seems very concerned about his pain because she gently blows on his wound every time she applies the alcohol-soaked cotton to it, just like Aria did when he was a kid.

"She's really a sweet girl," Arthur can't help but think, careful not to let Nyx hear it, of course.

"And bold…" He's sure that if Liam could have had a woman as good as Margaret, his life would have been much better, and he would have died with excellent memories.

But as Arthur, he has Nyx, and not even a woman as good as Margaret can outshine that cute demoness.

However, she doesn't know about Nyx, and that wouldn't make her back down either. With determination and love in her eyes, Margaret continues to smile at Arthur.

After cleaning his wounds, she places tender kisses on his skin and then starts to apply ointment to it.

But she takes only a little ointment at a time, and as her fingers become clean, she slides them along Arthur's arm.

"Margaret…" Arthur is tired of rejecting the poor girl, but he can sense how this situation is upsetting Nyx.

She pouts cutely. "I just want to take care of you, Arthur... and all your needs…"

Arthur uses his other hand to gently hold Margaret's chin and make her look into his eyes.

"I would like to accept all your love," His words make her heart beat faster, but then the next ones are like a bucket of cold water.

"But I can't return your feelings right now," he speaks honestly.

"I don't mind!" She exclaims and tries to kiss him. "As long as you can accept my feelings, I don't care if you don't return them; just let me be with you, please!"

Arthur has to use all his determination to not give in. "I can't do that to you, Margaret."

"I don't want to take advantage of you and take something precious that you might save for someone who can treat you as well as you deserve."

Arthur's words are still a rejection, but Margaret can see that he cares about her, which makes her like him even more.

But as her aggressive tactics are not working now, she tries to back off and be more patient.

"I'm sorry," She speaks in a cute tone. "I won't try anything now; just let me finish cleaning your wounds."

"It's better not," Arthur takes the ointment from her hand. "I can finish up; you've already helped me a lot."

Margaret is a bit upset with that outcome, but it doesn't weaken her determination to win a place by his side.

"Alright, I'll leave you be now," She says before walking towards the door.

"Margaret…" But Arthur holds her arm and smiles at her. "Never lose that special sparkle in your eyes. You are a wonderful woman, and I know you will find a good man to love you a lot."

She just nods at him before leaving the bathroom, and despite being grateful for his kind words, she can only think of one thing:

"You will be that man; I won't give up!" Her feelings grow stronger with each interaction with him.

As Margaret strengthens her determination, Arthur closes the bathroom door and sighs with relief.

But Nyx doesn't give him a second to rest and appears in front of him, wearing her usual black bikini, which is so hot due to her perfectly tanned and shiny skin.

"Nyx???" He exclaims in her mind, fearing her reaction after hearing his words to Margaret.

But she doesn't seem upset, rather she's very shy, which makes her face blush and awakens Arthur's most intense desires.

He wonders what she will do next, but it turns out to be a pleasant surprise.

She quickly takes the ointment from his hand and speaks in such a cute tone. "I will take care of you…"

Arthur can't help but feel extremely happy, feeling as if his loyalty has been rewarded, the best reward he could wish for...

The woman he loves taking care of him like a loving wife.