Chapter 04: Brother was in danger

Khan told the servants to prepare a meal for him and announced that he would eat it in his own room. Then he motioned for the wolf to follow him. The servants in the mansion looked at the wolf with fear in their eyes, but when they saw its docile figure following behind Khan, they could do nothing but pretend not to know.

Returning to his room, Khan let the wolf inside and then closed the door and locked it. Khan felt he needed to be more careful, so he went to the window, the color of the sky outside had turned black, the garden outside the mansion was quiet and lonely, and the bushes and leaves looked ragged with little being taken care of. Khan glanced around and coldly drew the curtain.

He was just worried a bit, but… "For a useless person like me, no one should be watching, right?" Khan mumbled very softly.

The wolf tilted its head and looked innocently at Khan, it looking a rational being, very insightfull. Khan felt like he was hallucinating, why did he think that wolf was acting so harmless? An inoffensive wolf, or a clever and cunning wolf?

"I'll give you a chance."

Khan smiled as friendly as he could, he looked even more harmless now than the wolf was trying to show. The eyes narrowed into a discreet long line, hiding all the emotions hidden in the pupils. His slanting smile grew wider when he saw the wolf shrinking its legs, kneeling in front of him in an expression of unconditional submission.

"You are very smart. And brainy people are very useful…" Khan did not finish the last sentence, but it was also very dangerous.

It was just, there was nothing more dangerous than what he was going to have to deal with. He had to be careful every step of the way if he wants to change his ending in the novel because his current situation is like letting an amateur actor walk on a thin rope. His life is in danger, and the time of the male lead's return is getting closer and closer, so he doesn't have much time left.

Khan gently placed three fingers of his right hand on the wolf's forehead, through contact he could clearly feel the hardness and fiber of the gray fur covering the wolf's large body. But he could feel its shiver radiating from his skin to every hair. He didn't know if it was out of fear or excitement. It seemed that it guessed that his current actions were the benefits it was looking for, as it decided to bet on leaving its forest to follow humans.

Now, he will show how well he made the decision.

The Divine Words this time were more verbose, but somehow he remembered more clearly the words he used at first. Maybe it's because his sister was constantly babbling in his ear like he was going to die if he didn't know it by heart. Under the current circumstances… he would surely die if he forgot that long phrase, right?

Khan repeated the phrase he had memorized in his heart, determined not to misread it, then nodded and prepared to use the Divine Word, once more. Approaching the wolf, it crouched lower, eyes closed expectantly. Khan didn't do much either but put his palm between his forehead, feeling the shaggy fur and the warmth radiating from his skin penetrating his hand. Khan opened his mouth.

"Knit cuth, and net oak, eat sar nia."

Divine Words were uttered words on his lips. The hand on the wolf's forehead suddenly glowed with a bright light, feeling something very sacred. Once again, the flow of sounds beyond the control of nature was once again chanted, magically and far away, resounding throughout the world like a whisper in the ear.

"Awake, and become beyond your own expectations."

After that, the circle of light gained more and more momentum to expand its sphere of influence. Khan felt as if someone was shining a flashlight into his eyes, and closed his eyes in annoyance. He uneasily waited for the light to fade away before he opened his eyes.

The form of placing a hand on the wolf's forehead was necessary to identify the creature into which the Divine Word will awaken. It could also be understood as a form of ritual, representing that the child of the god had chosen the entourage he wanted. Of course, Khan was not a child of a god or blessed by a certain god who hinted at using Divine Words.

He just knew the plot, so some things seemed much simpler.

Khan vaguely remembered that the Divine Word had different phrases and each phrase was held by a god. One god could not use the other god's designation phrase and vice versa. As for the reason, for the time being, his mind was still stubborn and it could not remember.

He was not someone who easily forgot what he will remember or wanted to remember. Maybe because he was reincarnated, so his memories were not comparable to his previous life, or… because his remembrances were hidden by some force in a drawer and locked, while he did not have a key.

The light seemed to have softened a lot, eyes closed hesitantly opening their vision. And yeah, that blinding light was gone. Instead, it was the wolf lying on the floor, still lulling without a sound. Khan let go of his hand and watched it silently for a moment.

Nothing has changed but it's gone to sleep.

It seems that the Divine Word was working its magic, and I wondered: when the results will come?

Just as Khan wondered, the servant knocked on the door and said that the meal was ready, so Khan decided to eat slowly and wait for the situation. He was hungry, too.

* * *

When the sky was dark, the moon raised above the head, and the main character returned. The wolf was still sleeping soundly. Khan was full at this time, so he was extremely easygoing, he pretended not to see the main character's appearance as if he had returned from a battle in a landfill. Luckily there wasn't any bad smell, or he would have kicked him out of the room by the neck, regardless of whether he was the main character or not.

"Brother Khan, I found them but…" Saul gritted his teeth, so angry that his shoulders shook. "They're all dead."

"Thank you for confirming it for me." nodded Khan nonchalantly

"Did you already know that?" Saul glared at him.

"It's not hard to guess." Khan brushed aside the main character's adoring gaze, his hand resting on one cheek, leisurely asked the protagonist. "Did you find any clues?"

Just because the kidnappers died didn't mean the clues will break.

"Did you figure this out too?" Saul spoke up startled. "Can you guess who the killer is?"

Khan thought out of the way.

"You have to listen to him first. Saul, what have you seen?"

Hearing him call his name, Saul immediately straightened up, his face serious, and answered.

"The killer who killed them must be a magician using dark magic. Judging from their deaths, it seems to have died of extreme fear, since I examined their bodies quite thoroughly and found no fatal wounds. In my opinion, the killer's forte is using illusions, or mind control hypnosis."

Khan raised his eyes to Saul, who was also looking back at him with clear blue eyes but no less nervous and nervous. In fact, Saul could have used a different explanation to report the situation. Originally, Saul just needed to narrate how the kidnappers died, without being so detailed; he just didn't mention what magic the other magician used, or even his forte.

Because Saul was now like him, who has no magic power, he couldn't sense magic.

How could someone who couldn't sense magic see which magic caused the deaths of Cole and the others? It even revealed the killer's knack for possessing dark magic.

He was testing himself.

Khan didn't show his emotions openly. He pretended to be deep in thought, but he didn't pretend. Because right now, he was really using his head to think. Was the main character really back? That "mad dog" Saul just wanted to be the villain, not the hero?

What should I do? Or pretend not to know?

Khan remembered the madness of the main character after being reincarnated. It can be said that a rabid dog had to kneel down and call him daddy. He really didn't want to die at the hands of the main character at this time.

"Saul," Khan interlaced his hands, he gave his perfect smile and asked. "Can you tell me how you know the killer is a mage, and even know what type of magic he uses, okay?"

He decided to be honest.

"I believe I remember correctly, both of us are powerless without magic." Khan sighed, retracted his smile, and said in a dejected voice. "Or, you hidd…"

Before Khan finished speaking, Saul awkwardly interjected.

"No, not at all, brother. It's because I use magic stones, which are for sensing and sensing magical energy within a certain range."

Hmm? Khan looked at the protagonist suspiciously, he looked honest and confused as to what to do. His hands were stiffly waved back and forth as if he wanted to explain further. This appearance was the Saul of the present. If Saul hadn't mentioned the magic induction stone, Khan would have almost forgotten its existence. Since he previously knew he was unlucky with magic, he didn't bother to find out anything related to it. So the type of stone that could sense magic was even more obscure. Even though he was in control of the plot content, not every little detail he could remember clearly.

Was it because I thought too much? Khan frowned, he was so smart that he almost got hurt by his intelligence.

"As for the fact that I figured out the killer mage's knack, it's also because of the deaths of the Coles… They died seeing something terrifying." Saul stammered.

"Your judgment is very good." Khan nodded and added. "I made a mistake earlier, so I'm sorry, Saul."

"It's okay bro, we're brothers." Saul grinned widely, like a child. "Be all brothers, we don't need to pay attention to these three little things!"

Involuntarily, Khan gazed a little longer at this playful figure of the protagonist. Because it was very likely, he will not see the smile full of purity and holiness like a real angel in front of him.

At the same time, he considered this was a good time to capture the main character.

Khan flashed a perfect smile, his eyes narrowing into an elusive dark streak.

"Yes, we are brothers."

The bright and handsome face of the main character immediately brightened, and his cheeks flushed red, whether from embarrassment or from excitement. But for whatever reason, the main character's face now will be hard to come by later. He must ask the servants to give him a Magic Stone of Records, and capture the male lead's golden moments, to later sell at a good price to them.

"By the way, do you think of anyone?" said Saul worriedly. "There's no way someone in Evangeline's house would want to kill you."

Khan rubbed his chin, as he spoke to the protagonist.

"Well, it's true that no one in the house wants to kill me, no matter how corrupt I've been all this time."

Saul was silent, this time he didn't refute or correct Khan's words, it seemed that he was also tacitly acknowledging his comment about his brother-self.

"Tomorrow we might know the killer."

Khan was about to pat his brother on the shoulder telling him to go home and rest, but suddenly, he stopped in front of the protagonist's dusty appearance, it looked like a beggar.

"Ah, then I will go back to the inn first. Just rest." Saul noticed the difficult situation in his appearance, he quickly excused himself.

"Where to go?" Khan asked confused. "An inn? Is there no room for you here?"

Saul was about to say something, but he quickly won.

"My brother, go back to your room." Khan sent the main character a smile that said to believe in him. "This isn't just my house, it's yours too, Saul."

Always took advantage of the opportunity to pull the main character's sympathy as much as possible before Saul the mad dog returned. It was true that Khan didn't want Saul to stay here either, it was a risky move anyway. What if while he was sleeping, the main character suddenly returned and went mad to kill him? But, if that mad dog Saul hasn't returned, then he had a high-class bodyguard by his side. Safety issues could be solved.

"And tell me," said Khan, his voice as cold as ice. "Who dares disrespect my brother, Khan Evangeline!"

Saul was surprised for a moment, but soon he smiled and bowed to his brother. Perhaps too many surprises had befallen him today, so he could now face it without embarrassment.

Khan was extremely satisfied, then Saul left the room. It was already dark, and although it was still a little early and he had slept before, sleep still suddenly struck him. The bed became sexier than ever, throwing all his thoughts behind his head, Khan crawled right into the bed and covered the blanket, closed his eyes, and slept.

For a moment his consciousness sank deeper, and Khan wondered if he would dream about his sister again this time. If possible… that would be great.

✢

– Brother… Huh… I beg you, please wake up… Huh…

It was her voice, why did it sound so sad? Was it crying? Why cry?

- Don't leave me alone... brother, don't leave me alone...

Abandoned it? Me? No way, how could I let it go? What was it talking about?

Doubts of questions and snapping questions appeared in Khan's mind, but other than the sound of his sister, Khan saw nothing. The surroundings were pitch-black, and he seemed to be the only existence in this scene with no way out. He walked aimlessly, sometimes ran around tried to chase the source of the sound but failed because his sister's voice echoed on all sides. The direction could not be distinguished.

Where was this?

– Big brother, I will definitely finish it… So…

Completed what? What was it talking about?

For some reason, Khan felt strangely nauseous and restless inside.

– So… you must live, okay?

Living…? Did I...

Khan halted his aimless footsteps, glaring at the dark-swallowed ground. Then his legs, then his knees, and gradually increased its feeding speed to his stomach, and his hands gradually dissolved into the deep night.

That's right, I was… dead.

The darkness, at last, swallowed him completely.

✢

Khan awoke from his dream, breathing fast as if he had held his breath during his sleep. But without waiting for his breathing to stabilize, he froze at the surroundings. He was originally lying on the bed, in his room, but now he was sitting outside? Khan looked up at the night sky, many of the stars were twinkling at him, but he was not in the mood to admire the scenery.

Was he sleepwalking? Khan didn't think so, he didn't have to sleepwalk in his previous life or this life.

Khan was just about to raise his body to sit up when he was suddenly pulled back by something, he fell to the ground, and his whole body seemed to be glued to the long grass that no one had trimmed or cared for. Khan coughed out a pained sound from the sudden impact, then he looked at his arm. No, almost his entire body was tied up with ropes woven from black smoke. They were nothing more than a life-giving rope that went through his body, binding tightly.

"Young master Khan, you are awake."

A voice rang out in the stillness of the night, with terrifying clarity. Perhaps also due to the indifference and coldness instilled in the timbre. Khan looked around to find the person who had spoken, then suddenly saw the old face above his head, who was crouching in the opposite direction from where he was lying. His thin lips curled up, letting a gentle smile bloom in his emotionless eyes.

"You woke up faster than I thought, and I didn't expect you to be able to resist my enchanted image. The old man here is very surprised."

Khan showed no emotion, not even a tinge of pain from the ropes that were getting tighter and tighter around him.

"Oh, is that the Evangeline Khan I know?" The old man showed interest, there was a glint in his icy eyes at last. "That's great, you've successfully piqued this old man's interest."

Khan sneered, he didn't flinch but looked straight into the eyes which caused tension in the opposite person. Only then did he speak.

"You showed up earlier than I thought, butler Jonathan."