Villainess Reborn: SEASON ONE

46

CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

Tatiana and Bjorn walked towards Elliot and Morgan.

"A monster! A monster is coming this way!"

Someone just shouted at the front door. Everyone turned their heads at the newcomer and the hall turned silent. Tatiana reached her hand out to Elliot and Elliot immediately stood up and ran towards her and held her hand.

"Must be a joke," Morgan said and stood up, "their property is secured, right?"

Everybody ignored the newcomer and went back to doing their own business. Even the musicians continued playing and the dances resumed. Tatiana looked around and noticed the guards closing in on them.

She knew that something was wrong because Bjorn's body stiffened and stayed on high alert. He even used his arm to block her and Elliot in.

Suddenly, the lights turned off and that's when everyone panicked. An ear-piercing screech was heard from outside of the mansion. People screamed and ran while the guards kept order in case of a stampede.

"Go to the second floor! There are plenty of vacant rooms and hide!" Duke Iondale shouted from the balcony at the second floor, "do not panic, everyone! We have guards stationed inside the mansion!"

People screamed in fear. Tatiana and Elliot were pushed to a corner along with Bjorn and Morgan. The place was too dark for

anybody to see properly and the only that they hear are the people's screams and the rampaging of footsteps.

"Let's go," Bjorn calmly said, "the first priority is to keep the royal family safe."

They walked through the crowd and instead of going for the stairs, they made their way to the mansion's kitchen area where the maid's chambers are. Tatiana noticed a silhouette of a girl hiding under one of the tables without anyone around her.

"Bjorn, wait!" Tatiana ran and Bjorn called after her. She quickly moved and grabbed the girl's arm and went back to their circle. She doesn't see her face clearly but it's better to bring her with them to safety.

Another screech was heard but this time it was getting near. Morgan fastened their pace and led the way while Bjorn stayed at the back to cover them. He also went to get a butcher knife from the sinks during the process.

Tatiana tightened her grip on the stranger as well as Elliot's hand. Soon after, the found an unlocked and vacant room.

"Here!" Morgan shouted and led the way to check the room. "Clear!"

Everyone entered the room except Bjorn. The door was about to close when Tatiana blocked the way.

"Where are you going?" She asked him.

"I need to find the monster and kill it," he explained. Tatiana quickly grabbed his arm tightly and shook her head.

"No! you can't!" she demanded, "stay here!"

"The monster needs to be killed," Bjorn told her firmly but Tatiana looked at him sternly and shook her head.

Elliot and Morgan were watching the two of them fight and swallowed. Bjorn was the captain of the knights, why would he let—

"Fine."

Bjorn entered the room and locked the door and sat on the floor. Tatiana nodded victoriously and turned to look for the girl she

rescued. Ever since they arrived, the girl didn't even utter a single word.

"Excuse me?" Tatiana patted the girl's shoulder, the sobbed and turned around. Tatiana squinted her eyes to take a good look at her face and was immediately taken aback.

"Lady Iondale?!" she gasped, "what are you doing here?!"

"I don't know," she cried, "my friends left me and ran and I didn't know what to do so I hid under the table!"

"Your parents must be very worried right now," Morgan commented and went to peak at the window. The moon provided light just enough to see the silhouettes of stuff but other than that, it was too dangerous to go outside. Their weapons are also nowhere to be found.

"Tiana?" Elliot walked towards the princess, "I think I know what creature that was."

"What do you mean?"

"I read a book about the monsters in this kingdom. There is a certain monster with a specific type of scream." Elliot paused and went towards the bed where Lady Iondale was sitting, "may I sit?"

"Su-sure," Lisabeth sat straight and wiped her face. Elliot was feeling dizzy from everything that happened and wanted to rest. Tatiana noticed this and quickly rummaged through her bag.

She got out a small vassal, popped it open and gave it to Elliot. "Drink this. It will calm you down and replenish your energy."

Elliot drank it immediately and gave the vassal back to Tatiana, "why do you have that in your bag?"

"I asked some from William just in case you start to feel unwell," Tatiana said sweetly and caressed her brother's hair, "tell me immediately if you feel anything else."

Lady Iondale watched the siblings as she calmed herself down. When she saw how Tatiana treated her brother, something inside her sparked. She never wanted something as bad as that. She wanted to feel the love and care that the sibling has for each other.

"So, the monster is called a banshee. Based on what I've read, it is a monster that lets out a sound notifying someone's death. I read that it opens people's doors at night and chooses its victim, usually an old or a critically ill person. Most people in the past waited for the sunrise for it to leave."

"So, it kills people?" Lady Iondale repeated, "how do people kill it?"

"Not really kill, but banshees only take the lives of people closest to death, and it's only one person," Elliot answered, "and it can be killed. Using a blade that's made of gold but a curse will be placed upon the person who kills a banshee so it's not really worth it."

Tatiana shot a knowing look at Bjorn, "see? I told you that we should all just stay here."

Lady Iondale sighed and hugged her knees, "I wonder if mother and father are alright."

"They might be staying in the master's bedroom so you don't have to worry," Bjorn assured her. "They might be worried about you but it will soon be sunrise in a few hours."

"I wonder if the people know about the banshee," Tatiana muttered under her breath. She imagined them panicking and not knowing what to do but only hiding.

They heard another shriek that sounded like it came from upstairs.

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END