Sinister Obsession: Macsen Massey (Emperor Series, #3) ✔️

Chapter 33

Chapter 33

What is happening? She's so confused. The commander is right in front of her leading her to a huge mansion. The palace is much bigger but the manor before her eyes is truly astonishing. A different kind of nostalgic sensation makes her eyes wet. She's trembling for an unknown reason. The place feels like a home that never was; she's feeling an unfamiliar kind of yearning and grief for a lost place in her past.

Hiraeth.

Everyone was crying. The moment she entered the door of the mansion, two people immediately came to hug her. They were bawling and the people around them were staring in agony. It was Duke Valerian Luell and Duchess Wilhelmina Violetta, her parents. She could feel their sorrow and she understands because finally, their long-lost child has been found. She came back and she feels the same. She's yearning for her parents' warmth and she could finally feel them.

She was greeted with a very warm welcome. The Duke celebrated her homecoming with a feast, and the commander was awarded for bringing her back. However, the commander never stopped apologizing. He felt sorry; he hadn't realized it was her due to her disguise. He was sorry he couldn't save her sooner in the hands of the Emperor. Despite his shortcomings, he was still rewarded and she's still grateful. Because of him, she found her home.

The woman in her unclear memory was her personal maid, and she's the mother of the commander. Her name was Fatima, the woman she thought was her mother. The commander told her everything from the very beginning.

The clans of Vassily and Aastha were never on good terms. The Aastha family was the only one who defied the Grand Emperor. They were against the dynasty of the Vassilys. And because of that, a conflict happened which escalated and soon turned into a war of clans. The Vassily clan threatened the Aasthas, and for their defense they took the initiative of abducting a Vassily member to blackmail the family. But it was indeed a wrong move—the worst decision they ever made.

The Vassily clan is not an easy enemy. They are dominant and they never lose in any challenges that's why their dynasty never stops. The abducted Vassily member escaped, and soon the Vassily clan attacked them. The Aastha family was destroyed, their properties were damaged, and their clan was almost wiped out. Duke Luell didn't have any actual plans to give up until his only daughter went missing.

The mansion was under attack at that time so he ordered Belle's personal maid to take her away. But they were outnumbered and they were tracked in the city. It was a mess; the people were slowly dying. It ended in a great massacre. And to survive, the maid made the choice of surrendering and that means letting Bellona go alone. Fatima, the maid, told her to disguise herself because the Vassilys know the Aastha family has a daughter. To keep her identity from them, she was told to disguise herself as a man.

It was effective; they escaped from the palace guards. However, there's another problem. Her voice. If she's going to disguise herself as a man but her voice sounds feminine, she'll be suspicious. That's why Fatima asked her to never speak again in the future; she was banned from speaking for her own safety. Everything was for her. Fatima let her run away to lure the guards and she did; she escaped. However, that was the last time she saw her personal maid. The next morning it was on the news. A maid of the Aastha family was found dead.

She was devastated; she was drowning in deep sorrow. The woman she lived with all her life has died and she's alone in the city wandering around and trying to keep her identity. It was hard especially for a child to survive. She was on the verge of giving up and her last choice was to forget everything by dying. It was probably her trauma that made her forget everything. Her last memory was trying to erase everything, and when she woke up the next morning she couldn't remember a single thing.

Trauma is not a joke. It drowns people in the abyss. And when someone loses their memories due to trauma, that's a serious case. It means what they experienced was so unbearable that their last resort is to forget everything.

Years passed, she learned to survive in the crowd by stealing food from the stalls. She's been chased and hurt a lot, until she got tired of robbing. So she ended up deciding to work in the palace and since she's disguised as a man and was considered mute, she easily passed. She showed her hard work and her dedication was evident in her everyday routine so the bosses let her stay in the palace as a servant. Little did she know, she was in the lion's den all along.

The Vassilys made her like that. She had no idea. Nevertheless, in the hands of Emperor Macsen, she experienced the same. She was hurt, not physically but mentally and emotionally. It was hard; she fell into depression. She was ready to succumb into the abyss again. And yet she survived when she saw the light in the face of the commander. He took her back to her family—her real family.

"Lady Seraphine Bellona Aastha." The commander greeted her. She smiled genuinely. Yes, that's her name. It's beautiful, isn't it?

"Welcome back."

---♡---

Meanwhile in the palace, it's been weeks since the Emperor last heard of her. And unfortunately he's falling into depression for an unknown reason. He keeps on looking for her; that's messed up because the palace is affected. He's always in a bad mood, and fuck, the palace is such a mess. The number of injured people grows day by day. The Emperor punishes anyone who gets in his way whenever he's triggered. It's like the old Macsen came back to life and the populace feels threatened.

"Where is she?" His voice thundered in the hallway. There's an injured servant lying on the ground.

The trembling servant cries in fear. "May I ask who you are referring to, your majesty?"

"Nevermind. She's not needed," he replied and he swung his sword mercilessly against the servant. That day, another man fell into his hands. It's getting worse. The palace is surrounded by a dark aura; it's spread across the empire and everyone is troubled. The Emperor is going crazy. Like literally going crazy everyday.

"Fuck, where is she?" He's going berserk once again, hurting anyone who gets in his way. His voice thunders the palace and whoever hears him runs away in fear. The Knights can't even do anything to stop him.

"Your majesty?" The servants from the field were called. They were trembling in fear, and only Lucky was able to respond.

The Emperor yelled. "That servant!" Everyone quakes at his raging voice.

"I think he meant Raph," the matron whispered to Lucky.

"But Raph is a he!" Lucky replied to the matron.

"Just tell me where the fuck is that Raph." The Emperor angrily swung his sword once again making everyone fear.

Lucky stuttered heavily due to massive fright. "He... left already, your majesty. We've been looking for him as well but we can't find him."

"What?" The Emperor combed his hair with his fingers in frustration. "Ha, fuck. Who told you to fucking let that servant go? I'm going crazy."

Obviously, he's going crazy. And it became more evident when he started slashing his sword around, making everyone run away. "Where is she? What the hell! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"

"Macsen! What the fuck?" A voice roared making Macsen halt. It was Emperor Maximus; it looks like he's carrying news with him. Oh, fucking bad timing. Macsen wants to kill someone so badly.

"Nice timing, brother. I've been wanting to have a sparring session with you." He smirked. "Fuck you, I've lost her. Now, father's about to lose you too."