The Duke's Passion

767  It's impressive -- at least for someone at your caliber

[ The night of the regression ]

Fabian froze, watching Florence collapse to her side. She reached out her hand to him as if asking for help while the life in her eyes dimmed. However, just as he thought she would land on the floor, Florence's foot glided, stopping her body from falling. Her head was still hanging low, just like how her hands and body swayed listlessly.

His eyes glinted menacingly, sensing the evil aura emanating from her back. He gripped his dark spear tightly, jaw tightening.

"So, that is how it happened…" he whispered, breathing out calmly. "Poor Silvia."

He watched Florence raise her head, only to see a wicked smirk that didn't suit her face. He didn't meet Florence until tonight, but he heard a lot about her. The second he laid his eyes on her in that garden, Fabian was certain what he heard about her was correct.

According to Rufus, she was kind and considerate, and she was oddly scared of many things. After interacting with her for the first minute, Fabian was certain Rufus wasn't lying. And then, after seeing her hiding inside that closet, he was certain even though this lady had a lot of potentials, she wouldn't swat a fly. The reason… the wicked sight of her right now was a little insulting. Not only was the person who was possessing or controlling the empress right now disgraced the empress, but he was a coward to use people like Silvia and Florence to commit heinous crimes. "How amusing," Fabian muttered in a dull tone. "I'm intrigued… just how scared you are of us that you'd use such a lame method?"

CLASH!

Fabian blocked Florence's sharp nails as she lurched forward, attacking him unannounced. Her mesmerizing midnight blue eyes glistened with malice, hissing with her fangs growing long. "Ahh… Fabian the Butler… truly, you lived up to your reputation," Florence spat out in mockery. "Was your appearance for tonight simply a coincidence? Or did you sense about your brother's death and wanted to send him off yourself?"

"Perhaps, a miscalculation?" The side of Fabian's lips curled up, but this time, it didn't reach his eyes. "Or that you're simply hapless for having me as your guest tonight."

"I am delighted!" she hissed, putting force on her hands to shove him away. "For your attendance!"

Fabian jumped back, stopping himself from crashing against the wall by putting all his weight on his feet. She swung his dark spear Maleficent to the side, smashing the window behind him using the bottom of his spear. "Quentin Moriarty?" he guessed, narrowing his eyes while sizing Florence up. There was only one person Fabian knew who could use the puppeteer's ability, and that was the king of the Spade Kingdom. However, Zero was dead. Fabian checked it himself and even opened him up out of curiosity. Therefore, he was certain it was almost impossible that the person behind all this was Zero. 'Who?' Fabian wondered while adrenaline prickled under his skin. 'Who could it be…?'

"Haha…" Florence chuckled as her eyes fastened with amusement. "... can't guess?" Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn Novᴇ(l)ꜰɪre .ɴᴇt

She playfully tilted her head to the side and then slowly to the other. She didn't blink — not even once — and her lips were stretched from ear to ear. It looked sinister, but not sinister enough to send the slightest dread onto Fabian's spine. If anything, his curiosity soared. "Not Stefan, not Quentin, not the dead Alphonse…" she continued teasingly, enjoying the sight of Fabian. "... who am I?"

Everyone knew that Fabian rarely gets things wrong. This butler was an animal clad in human skin and could even intimidate a noble or pureblooded vampire. Therefore, seeing him not have clear answers under that sharp facade was undoubtedly satisfying. "Who are you don't really matter." Fabian fluttered his eyelashes ever so slowly. "It's saddening that my dearest brother died in the hands of his beloved, and Silvia had to die because of it."

He glanced at the bed where Rufus' and Silvia's bodies lie lifelessly. "And it disheartens me that I do not have the time to mourn for their deaths. They lived a long life." Fabian slowly set his eyes back at Florence and smiled. "No one had mesmerized me as she did," he continued calmly, staring at Florence's wicked face. "But I'm glad you had possessed her body. If you didn't, I'd kill her myself."

"Interesting, Fabian! Interesting!" Florence laughed, bending her knees, preparing to charge at him. "Who would have thought you'd fancy your brother's wife? Surely, your affection for your brother is far more twisted than I thought!" "You think that is twisted…? How cute." Fabian chuckled, and then, without a moment's notice, he jumped out of the window. His expression remained sharp, landing from the seventh floor safely. Not even a graze, as if the height didn't bother him. As soon as Fabian quickly retrieved the strength of his knees, he looked around at the open landscape he landed on. He then looked up, his expression growing even more solemn. "Amusing," he whispered with a tinge of admiration. "The last time I had seen such a large-scale power was when Master put up a blood and darkfield."

Fabian snapped his eyes when he heard a loud thud from behind him. He looked back ever so slowly, catching the blood dripping from Florence's knees, which she got from her landing. With just one glance, despite the darkness, he was certain she crushed her knees. Yet, she was still standing without a word of complaint. "So, you do not share the pain of your host," Fabian pointed out, snapping his eyes up at her. "That's tragic."

Florence laughed. "What can you say about what you are seeing?"

"I'd say it's impressive." Fabian smiled until his eyes were squinting. "At least for someone at your low caliber."

"Haha —" Florence laughed, only to halt when a figure suddenly hovered over her. When she looked up, her eyes dilated at the bone-chilling glint of the dark spear aiming at her eyes.