Vows and Bullets
Chapter 149 - 1st week of September (Part 3)

Chapter 149: 1st week of September (Part 3)

Please DON’T READ this Chapter yet. I will update this first week of September!

Good news! My hands have healed now and I’m catching up on writing my missed Chapters. My apologies for all the delays. I will replace this Chapter with the real one soon, don’t worry, and upload a new one for the next day. I really apologize once again.

In the meantime, please enjoy the continuation of the story below titled "The King’s Beloved". This is the revised version I am planning to submit for paperback publication. Hopefully, I get a chance someday.

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(Part 12 - Continuation...)

"But your highness—" Servus interrupted.

"I don’t want to hear any objections. I am amused! And what should I reward the one who gave me amusement? Nothing?"

"B-B-But..."

"Silence! My decision is final! I will choose my hundred and let go of the remaining! Make sure to bring them back from whence they came!"

Another moment of silence took place once more. Only whispers and murmurs of the king’s outrageous decision from the crowd could be heard.

Every captured maiden was thrown in disbelief as well, but afterward, a few of them started clapping their hands. The remaining felt relieved and jumped in delight. They were overjoyed! For what greater news could they receive on a tragic day such as this? They all went to Azalea to thank her, who by then was catching her breath. The maidens started crying tears of great joy. Azalea tried to look for Rania to thank her for the idea, but she couldn’t find her due to the crowd swarming at her.

After that, the king indeed chose his one hundred candidates by simply waving his hands and lifting them in the air. Once done, he commanded the rest of his knights to return the unneeded women to their families—well, at least for those who were lucky enough to have a sane Magi capture them and still have their family alive.

Out of the chosen hundred belonged Rania and Azalea. They were later brought to the sleeping quarters inside the palace to rest and prepare for the next day. Truly, they needed all the rest they could get. After all, it had been a very long and tiring day full of emotional roller coasters and tragic deaths.

Alone in the room given to her, Rania didn’t even bother going to bed. Her whole surroundings felt like a backdrop of nothingness. As soon as she entered the door, she immediately closed it and fell to her knees, hugging herself and crying.

"Zeid... sniff... Ms. Lailee... Hannah... everyone... hu-hu-hu."

She did her best to calm herself, but the tears just wouldn’t stop. To think that everyone important to her would disappear in just a single day... and worse, on her very own 21st birthday. She prayed to God, called the voices, and asked numerous times why something as tragic as this had to happen? But none of them answered. And so, she was left to cry alone in the darkness with her body trembling and her lips bleeding from biting too hard.

She sobbed and sobbed... until she lost consciousness and fell asleep on the cold floor.

***

Chapter 5 PANDORA’S DRESS

"Babe," a man’s gentle voice sweetly whispered.

Rania grunted while her eyes shut close.

"Just five more minutes, please."

"Babe, wake up, or you’ll be late for work!" Pouting, he stood up, crossed his arms, and sighed. "I already prepared breakfast—your favorite—bacon, and eggs."

Rania chuckled. "You’re the best, babe."

"Come oooon, get up!"

"Yeah, coming."

Getting up, she rubbed her eyes gently.

"Finally, Snorlax got up!"

"No. I’m not Snorlax," she complained.

"Ha-ha-ha! Yes, you are! Ooooh, what will you do without me, huh?"

Grinning, she replied, "Of course, I can’t live without you. That’s why—"

Finally opening her eyes, she barely finished her words.

"That’s why... you should never leave me."

It took a while for everything to sink back into her. Waking up in an elegant, mystical-looking yet unfamiliar room, she began to realize that everything that happened last night was not a dream—or rather, a simple nightmare.

The Magi, the bloodbath in the hotel, the death of Ms. Lailee, Zeid, and everyone... all of it was not a dream.

Before she knew it, large droplets of tears fell from her already swollen eyes once more. As if a whole night’s tears were not enough to get rid of the pain, her heart writhed in agony, her mind went blank as a sheet of paper, and her soul vanquished in misery.

She cried and cried and cried.

After a while, she stood up, captivated by the sight of the large glass door leading to the balcony. She walked closer and opened it to welcome the magnificent scenery of the morning dawn. Since her room was set high above the ground, she could see the treetops where the birds kept singing, tweet-tweet-tweet. Stepping closer to the railings, she stared to nothingness once again.

Then, as if lightning struck her, she thought of an idea.

Since I can’t imagine living without Zeid and everyone I love, and I don’t want to be a plaything for this evil race who killed the most important people in my life, why not... Why not kill myself?

As cold as her thoughts, a chilly wind blew towards her.

Yeah, that’s right. What else is there to do? It’s not like I can escape this place. And it’s not like Zeid will come back whatever I do. It’s not like I’m gonna be happy in this place. There is no hope. There is nothing to be achieved. There is nothing to want and to think about. There is nothing for me here.

Looking down at the railings, she thought...

This place is pretty high. If I jump from here, I’ll surely—Yes, I will be with Zeid again. We promised not to leave each other. And even death will not keep us apart.

Decided, she climbed up the railings and prepared herself to jump.

"It was a heck of a journey but... goodbye world. I’m not gonna play your games."

One... two... three...

Rania closed her eyes and—

THUD!