The old man opened his mouth but then hesitated. "How close were you with the fighters of your group?" he asked.
Zeke frowned. From this alone, he could pretty much guess the identity of the second traitor. "Ishaan?"
The old man nodded with a grim expression.
"There was nobody to stop him?" Zeke asked.
The old man sighed. "It's even worse than that," he explained solemnly. "After he was done with the fighters, he snuck into the main building and attacked even more people."
Zeke steeled himself. "Are they all dead?" he asked. Fortunately, he had bought Ashen Wolf before tragedy struck, but there were still Ripper and the others.
"No," the old man said. Zeke's relief was short-lived, however, as he immediately went on, "But it would almost be better if they were."
Zeke's face hardened at those words. His voice held a dangerous edge. "What do you mean by that?"
Palms raised placatingly, the old man said, "It's not what you think, and I don't say this because I look down on them, either."
Zeke calmed down. "What happened to them?" he asked.
The old man averted his eyes. "Do you know what a Marrow-Shackle is?"
[Notice]
The Marrow-Shackle is a short-range projectile weapon developed by the dwarfs. The technology was designed to counteract Life Mages. It works by embedding tiny Voidiron splinters into the bone marrow of its target, interrupting the flow of Mana. The wounds caused by these weapons cannot be healed.
"I know about it," Zeke nodded grimly. "What is their condition?"
Again, the old man sighed. "Most can't even walk, and none of them can fight anymore. For the Chimeroi, this might have been an even crueler fate than to kill them outright."
This time, Zeke kept his cool. "Why is that?"
The old man looked at Zeke with a hint of reproach. "Surely you don't think that the Master will keep a bunch of useless slaves around to feed and care for until they die of old age?"
Zeke met the old man's gaze calmly. "What then? Is he going to cast them out? Kill them?"
Their gazes clashed. The old man was the first to avert his eyes, shaking his head. "No decision has been reached so far. And that isn't likely to change anytime soon, either."
Zeke raised his brows. In his opinion, the master of the Lion's Den was a decisive man. "Why?"
The old man's eyes glazed over for a moment. "You are right. Normally, he wouldn't do that." Zeke felt a palpable sadness radiating off him. His gaze then traveled to Leo, searching for an explanation.
Leo didn't disappoint. "Do you remember how we said that Ishaan snuck into the main house?"
Zeke nodded slowly, a bad premonition creeping up on him.
"He didn't only attack the slaves, but some of the Mages too," Leo explained. "Among them…"
Immediately, Zeke understood. "Sunil," he said softly.
Leo nodded. "He is alive, but…"
Zeke met Leo's gaze and gave him a curt nod. Not only did Zeke consider Sunil a friend, but he knew firsthand how much Ravi cared about his son. Now, it all made sense. If Ravi's son had been among the victims… in addition to the familial bonds, Sunil was also his only descendant and heir. If the young man was crippled, then it was as good as ending his line.
"How is he holding up?"
"He is in and out of consciousness," the old man said. "He tries to put on a brave facade, but it breaks my heart to see him so."
Zeke grimaced. The last time he had seen Sunil, he had been sporting his trademark carefree smile. The young Mage surely hadn't deserved such a fate. "And Ravi?"
The old man shook his head. "Not good," he said. "He hasn't left his son's side since this happened, and he refuses to speak to anybody. He doesn't even seem to be interested in revenge. I fear… I fear his spirit has been broken."
Zeke gnashed his teeth in both anger and frustration. He had counted on the Lion's Den for support, especially after learning about what had happened. However, it now seemed as if he couldn't depend on them.
Leo put his hand on Zeke's shoulder and looked at him with a warm smile. "Can you walk?"
After a moment's hesitation, Zeke forced some strength into his legs and got out of bed. Even though he was a little wobbly, a short walk shouldn't be a problem. He nodded to his brother.
"I can take you to see them if you want," Leo offered.
Zeke agreed readily, but inwardly, he felt ashamed. Leo must have misunderstood his previous expression as worry for the wounded fighters. In truth, he had merely been frustrated that his plans had been ruined.
Zeke bade farewell to the old man and followed Leo down the corridor.
The building they were in was wholly different from anything he had seen before in Korrovan. Instead of the lavish architecture and luxurious decorations, everything here seemed to be spartan in nature. Even the floor and walls looked to be mostly primitive, carved out of yellow stone.
"Do you have a plan?" Leo asked as soon as they were out of sight.
Zeke sighed. "Not anymore. I expected the Lion's Den to be eager for revenge, but with Ravi in such a state…."
Leo nodded and didn't say anything else, silently guiding the way. They descended thrice before coming to a halt in front of what looked to be a storage cellar of some kind. Leo hesitated for a moment, a melancholic look on his face.
"What's the matter?" Zeke asked, noticing his brother's odd behavior.
Leo gave him a crooked smile. "You better brace yourself. It's not a pleasant experience." Immediately after saying that, Leo entered the room.
Zeke, not knowing what his brother meant, followed right after. However, the moment he stepped past the door, he felt it. The atmosphere in the room was so oppressively gloomy that it was almost a physical thing.
There were some crates and shelves on one side of the room, forming a big pile. This place must have originally been a storage cellar. However, that wasn't the case anymore. Most of the space was now occupied by rows upon rows of mattresses.
Zeke approached the closest bed. There, he found a young man who looked almost fully human, aside from the bit of fur around his neck and shoulders. He was one of Ishaan's fighters.
On his first day here, he had fought against the young man several times before eventually beating him. From this fact alone, it was clear that the Chimeroi was not very strong. Zeke had not been using any Magic, after all. However, Zeke remembered him vividly, not for his strength but for what had happened after the fight.
Instead of getting dismayed, the young man had looked at him with a gaze filled with fighting spirit. He had even vowed not to lose next time. Zeke hadn't taken the challenge to heart. Even so, those eyes had been so full of life and vitality that the scene was hard to forget.
Zeke looked down at the figure in front of him. Even though he had been standing right in front of his bed, the young man didn't acknowledge his presence in any way. He was lying in bed without moving, staring at the ceiling with open yet sightless eyes. There was no fire in his gaze anymore, no vitality, no life. If not for the slight rising and falling of his chest, Zeke would have taken him for a corpse.
"You are back already?" somebody said.
Zeke turned his head, recognizing that voice. It was Kaaria, the hybridian who had guided him on his first day. However, she had not been talking to him. Instead, she had stopped in front of Leo, staring at him with a tense expression.
Zeke was intrigued. From the familiarity of her tone, it seemed as if Leo came here quite often. However, Kaaria didn't seem entirely happy about that.
As if to prove that point, Leo was acting flustered. He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "No, no, miss Kaaria, don't misunderstand. I am merely guiding a colleague today."
It was at this moment that she noticed Zeke standing there. Immediately, Kaaria's body stiffened, and she hastily bent her waist. Her bow was so deep that her long hair touched the floor. "W-welcome, Master Blood Dragon."
Zeke sighed. "Hello Kaaria, have you been well?"
"Yes, Master. I have been well. Thank you for asking," she said without raising her head.
Leo lifted a brow. "You two know each other?"
Zeke nodded. "She guided me on the first day."
Leo frowned and crouched down next to the bowing woman and poked her face from the side. "Why are you treating him so respectfully when you are so casual with me?"
"Keo is Keo, and Blood Dragon is Blood Dragon. Figure the rest out for yourself," Kaaria scolded in a hushed tone.
In any other situation, Zeke might have smiled. His brother really had a knack for putting people at ease. Somehow, she was talking comfortably with his brother and even berating him openly. This was far from normal for a slave.
Kaaria slowly stood back up while keeping an eye on Zeke's expression. After noticing his mood, she spoke hesitantly, "May I ask what you have come here for, young Master?"
"I wanted to see how my comrades were fairing," Zeke said as he gestured at the beds all around.
Kaaria quickly hid the frown that had emerged on her face. However, Zeke had still caught it. "Is there a problem with my request?"
"…No, young master," she said. "Is there anyone in specific you would like to visit?"
Zeke remained silent. There was indeed somebody he wanted to visit. However, he was afraid of what he might hear when asking about her. After a momentary pause, he still spoke her name. "Ripper."
Kaaria took out a small clipboard hanging at her belt. Her lips moved silently as she went through the names one by one. Zeke's heart clenched as he watched her finger move down the list without coming to a halt. Was she dead, after all?
However, he didn't have to suffer for long.
[Notice]
Don't worry, Host. She is here.
Zeke let out the breath he had been holding. Thankfully, the worst hadn't happened. Just as Akasha had said, Kaaria found her name on the third page. She signaled for Zeke to follow before giving Leo a warning glare.
After walking a few steps, he couldn't suppress his curiosity anymore. "Mr. Keo doesn't seem to be welcome?"
Kaaria sighed. "Not by my will."
"Then who?"
Kaaria hesitated for a moment before an even deeper sigh escaped her lips. "The patient's…"
"What?" Zeke exclaimed. He had expected some nefarious plot, not this. "Do they dislike him that much?"
"It's not that they dislike him. It's just… hard for them to talk to somebody like him."
"Somebody like him?" Zeke asked.
"Mr. Keo is a very optimistic person," she explained. "However, sometimes hope can be an eyesore to those who have none."
Zeke fell silent, remembering the eyes of the young man he had seen earlier. He didn't ask anything else and quietly followed behind Kaaria. After passing by at least two dozen patients, she came to a halt. After a nod toward the bed, Kaaria left.
Zeke carefully approached the bed, inspecting the figure lying there. Her hair was long and wild, a tangled mess of deep ebony locks. Even now, her bare upper body displayed an impressive set of corded muscles. This was the woman he remembered — if not for a single fact. Her emerald eyes were vacant and unfocused. It was an expression he had never seen on the proud warrior. The sight was so alien that he almost didn't believe this was the person he knew.
For a while, he just stood there, hesitating on what to do. Would his visit bother her? However, he soon dismissed that thought. He was already here, and it was too late for second thoughts.
Zeke sat down on the floor next to the mattress and leaned his back against the wall. Ripper didn't react, but he hadn't expected her to in the first place. However, what was he supposed to say? It somehow felt like a simple hello wouldn't cut it. Even worse was the fact that the longer he waited, the more awkward he felt.
This couldn't go on. Before the situation got even worse, Zeke just blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
"You look like shit."