22 His Wicked Shadow

Nesrin never feared Izekiel.

What she feared was the creature inside of him.

Was it a curse, or something he was born with? Nesrin couldn't recall, but she knew he carried a darkness inside of him, something evil, something beastly that overpowered the little humanness he had.

When he was young, Izekiel soon realized that he was different. The people of his age, as well as the elders avoided him, everyone knew he was not normal, but they didn't know the actual reason.

Almost every human in this world is born with one of the four holy elements; fire, water, earth, air, but Izekiel was born with the element of darkness. 

As soon as his father noticed this, he did his best to conceal the wicked nature of Izekiel, he succeeded but Izekiel's freedom was robbed in return. 

He couldn't make friends, he was forced to avoid getting close to anyone for they could get hurt, he was forced to become detached, to keep everyone at a distance.

And what did he get when he was trying hard to not let his darkness overpower him?

He was shunned.

He was outcasted.

He was bullied.

In the end, Izekiel got tired of suppressing himself for the sake of others. They labelled him a freak, so he became one. 

Izekiel stopped putting up with people that mistreated him, he paid back for what he had received, and he was labeled as a villain for not bearing the 'small conflicts' within the family.

The voices made him do things he never wanted to do, at first there was regret but soon he realized how foolish his regret was. After all, he only punished those that offended him.

Then how was it bad?

Was it not justice?

Eventually, Izekiel respected the labels he was given and truly became the cold hearted tyrant. He stopped caring about anyone, their opinions, their actions, and instead became the most powerful person in the empire so that he can have the freedom he was never given in childhood.

Izekiel gave in to his darkness for the sake of power, and with every sin he committed, the wicked shadow of his grew more and more powerful. It became more wild, and more out of control.

However, despite all that, at the beginning of the novel, Izekiel was never the one that started battles or wars. He was simply the man that finished them.

And so, in the novel, when he felt that Saint Azure could pose a serious threat to him after knowing the nature of his darkness, Izekiel held no fear.

Izekiel accepted the war that would arise. He had never lost in his life, and he was sure about his victory.

Izekiel had stopped caring about the deaths of some thousands of people a long time ago. 

If they decided to stand up against him without having the power to do so, they were too simple minded, killing them would only mean relieving the world from extra burden.

Such was the thinking of the emperor of Elysia.

Then what happened now?

Nesrin could not believe her eyes.

The reverent saint was lying dead, and his disciple was sobbing besides his body.

Izekiel's hands were covered in blood.

Nesrin's heart was hammering in her chest, her legs became numb from the cold, she wanted to run away and at the same time she couldn't move an inch.

Izekiel held her gaze darkly, a wicked smirk curled up his lips as he grabbed the woman by her head and pulled her up. Her eyes were filled with furious tears as Izekiel placed the blade against her throat.

His gaze didn't moved an inch from Nesrin as he did this, in a rough amused voice he asked,

"Won't you try to save her?"

"Should I let her go?" he questioned.

Nesrin's hands were covered in sweat, her voice was suppressed by the fear in her heart hammered loudly as she nodded her head.

The woman, Cassandra, was an important part of the plot.

Izekiel pressed the sword further, a trail of blood rolled down the woman's throat. His eyes carried a frightening look of enjoyment, the lack of any empathy or remorse upon his face caused Nesrin's nerves to go cold.

He removed his sword and smiled brightly,

"I will do as you say," the sword then pointed at Nesrin, "If you take her place."

Her face turned ashen as she took a subconscious step back.

"Why?" he asked, "Will you let an innocent woman die?"

"Y-you monster!" Cassandra hissed while trying to loosen his grip on her.

Izekiel frowned and pushed her way. He was no longer interested in her, the terror upon Nesrin's face was more interesting.

"Y-your majesty..." Nesrin's voice trembled, "The lady is an oracle, please don't-"

"Don't make me repeat myself," his voice turned cold.

Nesrin flinched as fear pulsed through her veins. She was no longer able to keep her thoughts rational, she had lost her life once, and in this life it was only her fate to die by Izekiel's hands.

A terrifying thought came to her mind, did the saint die because of the ripple effect she caused by her transmigration?

Nesrin's eyes lowered as she slowly, stiffly got on her knees. A nameless dread engulfed her, she tried hard to suppress the tremor of her voice as she said,

"Please let her live."

Izekiel's smile lost its playfulness, it was cold as he watched her,

"Foolish," he scoffed and dragged his blood stained sword towards her, "Do you think that's honorable? Wasting your life for someone else?"

He placed his sword beneath her chin and lifted her face towards him. Her eyes looked at him in a way that made him hesitate, in a way that created a flicker of irritation inside of him.

There was something strange about her.

Izekiel's mind that was filled with those voices began to waver, he should have killed someone like her, someone so idealistic that it was laughable, but Izekiel's hand didn't move.

Anger and frustration swirled inside of him.

What was happening?

It was as if he was not in control of himself.

He flung his sword away in annoyance, and grabbed her collar before pulling her face to face with him. His voice was laced with venom as he spat,

"Who are you?"

Nesrin feebly tried to free herself, he had left the weapon but the very essence of his dark aura was making her suffocate, it was enough to kill her. His anger was too strong, she couldn't understand what was happening.

A spark erupted between them, the intense energy burned through Izekiel's hand, but he stood there unwavering as his eyes coldly seized her. The gaze of his was full of hate, and something about that made her heart shudder.

Nesrin grabbed his hand with all her might and tried to push him away, 

"It's the soul binding seal," she pleaded, "If you don't leave me then-"

Her eyes turned wide, she saw that Cassandra was staggering upon her feet. The rage was clear in her eyes as golden light surrounded her.

"Izekiel! Behind you!"

"Scram!" Izekiel seethed as darkness engulfed his hand and he shoved her away.

A throbbing ache flared through her body as she fell, her vision whitened for a second. Her hands shook as she tried to lift herself, but her body froze when her eyes met with Cassandra and she realized that Izekiel was not her aim.

Nesrin desperately tried to move away but a cramp seized her foot.

Izekiel stopped in front of her, he looked calmer now. The dark almost look had disappeared from his eyes. But his gaze was still as cold.

He lifted his hand, a violet light flickered as he said,

"I despise you,"

"Your majesty, you should not stay there!"

He did not move, but something softened in that chilling gaze of his. Nesrin thought she imagined it, but it was as if he almost smiled at her, before the golden lightning struck him.

Izekiel was no longer protected by his devilish shadow, the sacred magic of the oracle brought him to his knees. He coughed blood.

Nesrin forced herself to stand but her head spun, she placed a shaky hand to her head and found her fingers covered in red.

Why did he save her?