Chapter 1: I've been single my whole life. Who the hell are you?
Cass should have known better.
Or, at least, anticipated something like this.
It wasn't like he was a novice when it came to situations like this. He'd read a lot. Not by choice, but still! He knew what was popular right now, and he'd laughed off how unbelievable they all were. Isekai? That could never happen. Unrealistic.
Well, one couldn't laugh when they were smacked in the face with a similar situation.
Hmm, his sister was probably laughing at him at this moment, but he couldn't focus on that thought because fuck, his head was pounding .
The "god" or whoever he talked to didn't warn him about this.
The headache was incessant, and made it hard to remain lying down. All he wanted to do was curl into a ball on his side and sob. If he'd been at home, he would have been able to do that.
But he wasn't home. He was very, very far away.
A deep, stinging pain filled his chest and he could feel his eyes grow damp. No. He couldn't cry.
He shouldn't cry. Who knows? It wasn't like he signed a contract with the "god" or anything. It was more like they had begged him for his help. So, he should look at this positively.
Normally, in stories like this, the character could go back home after. Right? Right?
The sharp, throbbing pain of his head got the better of him. He winced, his face contorting with the pain he was feeling. He exhaled sharply, and it was like he'd popped a bubble.
Before he felt like he'd been floating in a dark, deep silence. It felt...all consuming, and trapped him with his thoughts.
Which is why he had probably been spiraling so quickly. If he'd had outside noise, he might not have spiraled so quickly.
...Or not, as the outside noise washed over him and all he could hear were several voices shouting over each other, along with the soft noise of sobs. His mind filled with confusion, since several of them sounded like men. Cass groaned again.
The sounds were not helping his throbbing head, nor clearing up the confusion. That damn "god" hadn't even told him where he was going so this was even more confusing. He thought he would have started as a baby or something, not as a...whatever this was.
People didn't behave like this if you were a baby. At least, not in his little experience.
Fuck. He hoped his sister was okay. He had only spoken to her that morning before everything happened. He just wanted to see her face one more time, but the "god" had refused, and flung him out of the subspace that they had been talking in.
Now he was here, confused, with people shouting and crying around him, and too afraid to open his eyes to find out why.
Who was the person he'd...possessed? And why was everyone so...upset? God, what had he walked into?
What had they made him walk into?
A sharp external pain unlike the ones he felt internally caught him by surprise. Someone had pricked one of his toes, and gasping, he flung his eyes open.
His breath coming in pants, Cass stared up at the ceiling above him in shock. What the fuck? Where the fuck was he? This wasn't covered in the briefing the "god" gave him!
The ceiling was painted in a mural. A very detailed, must have taken years kind of mural. The ones you saw in history documentaries. Which he knew, because he liked to watch them.
It was a painting of several demons chasing a single angel. It was moody, dark, and he was pretty sure the demons were laughing in glee.
It was a bad omen.
Blinking, he turned his head to where the noise was the loudest, and had to take a second to compose himself.
It was a group of some of the prettiest people he'd ever seen in his life. And only two of them were looking at him with anything but pure disdain.
He wouldn't even call what the two were looking at him with as affection. More like, tolerance. Holy shit. What the fuck was going on?
"The Lord opens his eyes!" Someone hollered, and Cass furrowed his brows. Lord? He was a lord?
"Barely. Can he even see us?" One of the men standing in the back asked, snorting.
He had long, black hair that seemed to have a mind of its own. He wore a white, billowy shirt that barely covered him, and was open at the top but supposedly tied with laces. It showed off the broad expanse of his shoulders and skin, and the scars that covered him. His facial hair was well maintained, but it was the deepset yellow eyes that startled him.
What the fuck? What were those? Where the hell was he? And why did he...look familiar?
"Lucy! Don't be mean! Lord Blackburn took quite the fall, and no thanks to you!" A woman protested, and Cass turned his attention towards her. She was clearly scolding the other man, who shrugged and huffed.
She had brown hair similar to his sister, but she had it done in an elaborate braided crown around her head. Her grey eyes were piercing, and felt like they could look through his soul. She wore a fitted, dark blue dress that reminded him of the old theatre productions he used to go see when he was a kid.
It looked...gothic? No, that wasn't quite right. There was a name for it, but it wasn't coming to mind. Fuck. Ugh, this damn headache!
But Lord Blackburn? Where had he heard that name before?
Wincing, he raised his hand to touch his forehead only to find a bandage there. A man rushed to his side, his head down, and he helped him into a seated position. Cass felt his vision sway as he moved. Whatever had happened to him, he was not well.
And these people really didn't like him.
There were two other men in the group, along with another woman. Two of them were blonde of differing shades, and the last one was a redhead. All of them were striking a particular cord with him but for the life of him he couldn't remember why.
The redhead was dressed stiffly, in what appeared to be an older version of a three piece suit. It had a big, puffy scarf at the top that Cass wanted to say didn't suit him, but had a feeling the man would bite his head off if he did. His green eyes stared at him coldly, and it was worse than how the man with yellow eyes looked at him. There wasn't even like or dislike, just pure, cold, disinterest.
Turning to the remaining man of the group, Cass felt a shiver go up his spine as the man smiled at him. There wasn't an ounce of kindness in his eyes as he smiled, and it felt hollow. He was the outwardly handsomest of the trio though, as Cass would willingly admit. He had princely good looks, and it seemed that he knew it too. Especially with his almost glowing blue eyes, it was clear that he was a playboy of sorts.
The last of the cast before him seemed the most nervous.
She had her blonde hair pulled back with a few ties and ribbons in a brown shade, matching her eyes. Her hair was soft, at least by looks, since a few strands were around her face. Her large brown eyes were watering, and she was wearing a dress in a brown shade that wasn't quite unflattering to her eyes, but not quite a complimentary shade. She did not look well.
She looked quite ill, actually, and Cass wondered if she should be the one on the bed instead.
"Is there something displeasing about Lady Ava, Lord Blackburn?" Cass blinked as the other woman, the brunette, covered the woman with her arm. The woman had moved rather quickly across the room to cover the slightly smaller woman. Lady Ava shivered, her eyes spilling over and Cass was stunned.
What on earth was going on here?
"Uh, no. She just looks..." He trailed off as the tension in the room rose as he spoke. Clearly, whatever he had done, it was awful if everyone hated him this much. "Get her a chair. She looks like she is going to faint." Cass said, the group of five seemed shocked. None of them moved an inch to do so.
The man in the room with him, who had helped him sit up, wasted no time. In but a few seconds, Lady Ava had a seat under her butt and the rest of them seemed to be confused. It was the brunette who spoke.
"Lord Blackburn, you do know who we are, don't you?" She asked curiously, and Cass stared at them blankly.
"Can I be blunt?" He asked, and the man in the back with black hair snorted.
"When are you not?" He muttered loud enough that Cass could hear him. The brunette shot him a glare, and the blonde man smacked him.
"You may, Lord Blackburn." The brunette encouraged and Cass cleared his throat.
"No. I do not know who you are, but you do look familiar." Everyone paled except the redhead.
"You cannot be serious! It wasn't even that serious of a fall!" The black haired man in the back protested loudly, and Cass winced.
"My throbbing wound would beg to differ." He deadpanned, and he shut his mouth. The brunette raced to his side, taking his hand in hers.
"Wait. you don't remember me? Your wife?" Cass' eyes went wide. His wife? He had a fucking wife?
"I'm married?" He asked, his voice raising in pitch and her gaze filled with sorrow.
"Yes. We had our ceremonies at the same time." That only caused more confusion to him, as the blonde man chuckled.
"Technically, if we go by law, we are brother husbands of a sort. We are all married to our dear Fiona." His cold gaze and smile warmed when he looked at the brunette, and Cass felt his head spin.
He closed his eyes, but that didn't seem to help the fact that the world was spinning.
Groaning, he gripped his head with his other hand, and Fiona gasped.
"Oh no! Was that too much for you?" She asked, worried, and Cass chuckled.
"Well, I think anything at this moment would be too much for me. Uh, Fiona, was it? Can you explain to me what happened before I awoke in this bed? And...why are we married? It doesn't feel like you even like me." Fiona went white, as did the other men in the room. Lady Ava swallowed thickly.
"I-I can't just-" Fiona stopped herself, biting her lip. "Y-You confessed to me." She admitted, and Cass felt his eyes widen, along with the other men behind her. He glanced at their expressions, and found that this was new information to them. Fiona's cheeks were pink. It was quite cute.
"Ah, so I was the one who admitted his feelings first? But, given that you already had three suitors..." He trailed off, sighing. He sucked air in through his teeth in pain when his head throbbed in a particular way. Fiona's grip on his hand tightened, concern in her gray eyes.
"Lord Blackburn, are you alright? I know you said that Ava's powers wouldn't work on you, but I highly suggest that we try!" She was desperate, and Cass felt himself frown.
"I know you are worried, but if we do as you say, and I get more hurt, it would only be a burden onto you. I can tell that you have a big heart, but I will be fine with time and rest." Cass told them, and watched as several of them didn't take kindly to his words. He wondered why, but didn't have the energy to prod more. "Who knows? Maybe in the morning I will have more of my memories back." He joked, but for some reason, it sounded like a threat coming out of his mouth.
Fiona gave his hand a squeeze, the concern still in her gaze. Cass didn't know how to comfort this woman who he was apparently married to but who, at the same time, reminded him of his sister.
That was going to be awkward.
It was even more awkward that he shared her with three other men. But he'd worry about that once they all left this hellish bedchamber.
"Well, I guess that makes sense. Are you sure you want us to leave?" She asked, her eyes big and wide. Cass winced at her expression, and the grip she had on his hand. She was...much stronger than she looked.
"Uh, yes." He told her, and she seemed...downtrodden. Upset. Cass didn't know what to say to her. This was a bit too much, and he needed some time to figure out what was going on. She gave his hand another squeeze before she got to her feet.
"Alright. If you need some time, I'll absolutely give it to you. But, if you have any questions, don't be afraid to come ask me. We all live together here, even if we have separate rooms. I'm sure anyone would be happy to show you to my chambers." Cass didn't believe that from the glares the men were giving him from behind her.
He smiled softly, and watched as her eyes widened slightly.
"Thank you, Fiona. Have a good rest of your day." She nodded, swallowing, before she helped Lady Ava to her feet, and they finally left him alone.
Well, alone without them. His...butler? Remained.
Sighing, he dropped his head, rubbing his temple. What the fuck had that "God" gotten him into?