When A Ghoul Falls In Love

"Why…"

The floor seems to be swaying under his feet. Zachary Krauss grasps the doorframe to keep himself from falling. His head is dizzy. 

Why is that magic showing up on her? It's been a long time. The dark fae king is dead. He killed him with his own hands.

"Do you know anything about this magic?" Eli has noticed the change in his expression. "If you know anything --"

"How did she get this curse on her?" Zachary Krauss looks at Eli darkly. "Did you do it?"

"Sorcerer, are you out of your mind?" Devil snaps at him. "That's fae magic. Little Marshmallow is a ghoul sorcerer. He can't use fae magic. Can you use fae magic when you are clearly a moon sorcerer?"

Zachary Krauss opens his mouth to say that he can. He had used fae magic. That's how he knows what kind of fae magic is that. He was the one who took it away from the dark fae king. In fact, he is still carrying that magic inside him. 

After the dark fae king died, everything should have ended. He did have enemies, but nobody was as bad as the dark fae king. How is this possible? Why does Nell have this curse?

This curse… 

He put it on the dark fae king to make him suffer exactly what that dark fae king made his victims go through. 

"Get a grip." Eli tells him solemnly, "I need your help. If you can stop this curse, please… I beg you. Please help her."

Zachary Krauss shakes his head. "It can't be stopped."

Devil sighs. He knows it already. It's the seal that also acts as a curse.

"Every curse can be broken," Eli stresses his words. "She is going through the memories that were sealed for ten years. Her memories recreate the wounds from her past. If you can't break the curse, just do something about the wounds. At least, we should try that her body doesn't suffer."

Suddenly, Nell thrashes her leg. Eli smells blood in the air. He rushes to Nell and pulls the blanket away from her right leg. Spots of blood appear on the white fabric above her knee. 

Eli tears the fabric and checks her wound. It's a shallow wound. Did she fall in her memory? He looks for the ointment on the table. Amachi had prepared everything that he might need. This ointment heals wounds quickly. He applies it on her knee. 

"It won't work," Zachary Krauss says to him with a haunted look in his eyes. "If you try to heal her, her body will reject it. If you apply ointment on her, the wounds will become worse. It's called sinner's atonement."

Eli frowns at him. "How do you know that?"

"I made this curse," Zachary Krauss whispers. "I used forbidden magic. There is no end to this curse until she goes through it. If we try to help, it will cause her more pain. It might even kill her and send her soul to oblivion."

So, it's true. Devil looks at Zachary Krauss. That Fae spoke the truth. Zachary Krauss is the reason behind Nell's misery. 

"The curse might repeat." Zachary Krauss steps toward Nell. His heart is growing heavier. His stomach churns at the thought. "How long did she have this?"

"Ten years," Devil answers. Little Marshmallow is too shocked to speak. "She got this because of you. She was violated by the horde of Satyrs because of you. After she wakes up from this, she will remember everything. She will never forgive you. It's all your fault."

Zachary takes a look at the cat and then, he turns his gaze toward Nell. The realization hits him. He gasps. "You are a part of her soul."

"Ten years ago, she was desperately trying to resist the curse." The devil laughs sardonically. "That's right. She tried her hardest because she wanted to save someone, but she was helpless. And then, I was born from a piece of her soul. I lived in her mind. I used to be part of her thoughts. Slowly, I grew. That's why I am here. She and I are the same and yet, different. Our souls can't ever merge again, but we can't separate either. Her soul will never fit in the next body. Even if she does, she will always suffer from incurable emptiness. As for me…"

Devil trails off. Even he doesn't know what will become of him. He will probably follow her to her reincarnation or he might cease to exist. He will also suffer from this detachment. 

"Who did this?" Zachary Krauss asks him. "Everyone related to the Dark Fae King died. I didn't leave any proof of this curse. Then, who could cast this on her and why?"

"Did everyone die?" Devil chuckles. "Are you sure that you were alone with the dark fae king when you were making him go through hell?"

Zachary pales. "I spared that boy because --"

"Because he thought that I was innocent," Devil mumbles. "Your father believed that I should live after seeing my father's death. My mother was r.a.p.ed brutally by lowly beings. Do you think Satyrs are bad? You are lucky that I can't be as cruel as your father. My sisters and mother were taken by goblins and ogres. They took turns. They were violated even after their deaths. Yes, just like your friends. I had to make you see it. Then, you would know how I felt."

Zachary Krauss drops on his knees. He covers his eyes, gasping for air. He can't hear it anymore.

"I wished you had died." Devil continues, "Nell, I liked you. You were full of life. If you were a v.i.r.g.i.n, I would have made you my queen. But you gave yourself to that boy. But I am not as cruel as your father. I won't --"

"Stop, please, stop!" Zachary Krauss bends down his waist. He covers his ears. "I don't want to hear anymore."

"You have to see it." Devil doesn't pity this man. "The curse will repeat indeed. If you don't see what happened to her until the end, if you even look away for a moment, and if you don't regret your actions, she will go through it again and again. Her body won't die. Her soul will stick to her until it rots away. He did this to her because he wanted you to regret not killing him that day."

Devil eyes Eli thoughtfully. "Sometimes, death is a kindness. That person hated this sorcerer because he let him live. After seeing his mother and sisters go through that, and seeing his father go through a certain curse, his mind was broken. He wanted to die. Before that, he wanted Zachary to feel like that. But he couldn't find Zachary. He found Nell instead."

After hearing everything, Eli realizes what that man had meant. He doesn't know Nell's father's reasons. But nothing would ever make it justified. What did she do wrong? "I can't let her go through this again."

"It's impossible to remove this curse," Devil exhales. "Do you want her soul to break?"

But he must do something. How could he let her go through this? He would rather die than… Eli inhales sharply. Magic won't work on her. The medicines won't work either. If he takes her soul out of her body… no, that's too dangerous. He shouts at Zachary Krauss, "You created this curse. How could you not know how to break this?"

"That's why I created this." Zachary Krauss reaches for Nell's hand. She was only eighteen back then. "I made sure that there was no way to break the curse. I wanted the dark fae king to suffer for the things that he made his victims go through. The boy I didn't kill was probably his son. He was so young. I didn't think that he needed to die. I helped him escape."

The Dark Fae King had many children. The crown prince was already dead. Zachary didn't think that the boy had any significant background. He was a weak little boy. After seeing his daughter in this state, Zachary already regrets letting that boy live. 

"What we can do is to be prepared for the time after she wakes up." Devil advises them, "She doesn't have two weeks of memories. She will wake up after two weeks. I will tell you all about the injuries that she received last time. Even if we can't do any healing, we can stop the blood and close the wound with the bandages. We need to avoid magic and any medicines with healing properties."

"There are poisons that act in contrary ways when they are mixed with certain chemicals." Eli furrows his brows. He can use alchemy. It's not exactly magic or healing. Even stopping blood is possible if the poison is given in an adequate amount. Eli looks at Devil, "Keep an eye on her. I will be back soon."

Devil climbs on the bed and sits next to Nell's head. He places his paw on her forehead while keeping his eyes on Nell.

Two weeks will be a long time.