The Land of Keimusho [ COMPLETED ]

Chapter Thirty Six: Unveiling Curses

I carried Storm inside with the help of strength from Emerald and placed him carefully on my bed. When I was done, I went to my wardrobe, took a towel, and went outside my room to get a basin from the kitchen along with the medicine kit. Upon returning to my room, I immediately placed the medicine kit in my bedside table. Carrying the basin and towel, I walked towards the bathroom, filled the basin with water, and returned to Storm, who remained unconscious. I tended to his wounds, cleaning them with the towel and applying medicine and bandages.

While wiping his face, he unexpectedly grasped my hand, his eyes still closed. His action caught me off guard, and for a moment, my heart skipped a beat. Confusion overwhelmed me as I struggled to identify the unsettling emotions I was experiencing.

"St-Storm?" I attempted to ask, wanting to confirm whether he was awake or not. However, judging from his breathing, he was definitely still sleeping. I swallowed hard, carefully withdrawing my hand, and continued what I was doing, putting a band-aid on his wounded forehead.

Afterward, I stood up, tidied and closed the medicine kit, and carried the basin to the bathroom, placing it in the sink. Taking a moment to gaze at my own reflection, I noticed that my face was slightly flushed, and my breathing was heavy. I couldn't help but wonder what on earth was happening to me.

In an attempt to snap out of it, I splashed cold water on my face from the sink. The icy shock brought a temporary relief, but my mind remained clouded with confusion.

I took a deep, long, heavy breath before leaving the bathroom, settling back on the bed, and watching Storm sleep peacefully. Almost involuntarily, my hand moved on its own accord and brushed the hair away from Storm's eyes. Even I was shocked by my own actions. I bit my lower lip, slapping my own arm with the other to regain my composure. Just as I was about to move away, his hands reached out and held mine.

Frozen in my standing figure, I turned to face him. Slowly, he began to open his eyes, and as his gaze met mine, a jolt ran through me, causing my knees to weaken like a jelly unable to support my own weight. He took me by surprise by pulling me closer to him, making me sit again on the bed while he hugged me tightly. I was rendered speechless, stunned by the unexpected turn of events.

As he pressed his face against my bare neck, his warm breath sent electric shivers down my spine. I couldn't find the words to express myself; I was simply overwhelmed.

"I don't know what's going on with me these days," he spoke in a deep, low tone. My eyes widened in disbelief as I struggled to comprehend the scene unfolding before me.

"S-Storm...?" was the only word that escaped my mouth. In a gentle motion, he broke the hug, taking a moment to stare at my face, locking his gaze with mine. Slowly and tenderly, he brushed aside a strand of my hair off my left shoulder, his movements deliberate and unhurried. With a delicate lean towards my neck, he pressed his lips against my skin, and in a gentle bite, he drew a sip of my blood. It took mere seconds before he released his bite, his tongue lapping up the remaining traces of blood. The warmth of his tongue against my skin sent a tingling sensation through my entire being. Unlike the previous times when he needed my blood, there was no pain. Instead, it was something else, something indescribable with mere words.

As we faced each other once again, he took off the bandages and Band-Aids I had placed on his wounds, and I couldn't help but notice the changes in his appearance. His previously battered face, adorned with deep bruises and cuts, was now in the process of healing. The evidence of his past injuries was still visible, but there was a noticeable improvement. The swelling had subsided, and the wounds were slowly closing, leaving behind faint traces of the ordeal he had endured.

"Your wounds..." I muttered, my eyes fixed on his improving condition.

"I can no longer heal myself," he confessed with honesty.

"What do you mean?" I asked, my mind filled with confusion.

"I am now reliant on you. My entire well-being and life depend on your blood. I can no longer heal my own wounds; I have become your total servant," he explained.

"What does that mean?" I inquired, my confusion deepening.

"Do you still not understand?" He furrowed his brow, and I shook my head, realizing that his words had merely passed through my mind without sinking in.

"Never mind then," he said dismissively, lying back down.

"Hey, aren't you going to explain why you were in that state earlier?" I asked, frustration creeping into my voice.

He looked at me, taking a long moment before answering, as if contemplating whether to reveal the truth. "I had a fight with my father."

"Your father?" I exclaimed, surprised by the revelation. I had never known he had a father.

He nodded in response. "Yeah, you've probably met him already."

I furrowed my brow, struggling to process his words. "What? Who is your father?"

He took a deep breath. "The headmaster of this school. Shadow," he replied with a hint of boredom.

"Your father is that annoying invisible creature?!" I exclaimed, shocked by the sudden revelation.

He smirked. "Yeah."

"Oh, I never imagined that," I replied, my mind still reeling from the information.

His expression turned serious and determined, his gaze drifting somewhere far away. "I'm going to have to kill him, though," he stated with conviction.

I was taken aback and confused by his words. "Kill him? Why? I mean, that's your father, right?"

"Yeah," he replied, turning to face me and locking his eyes with mine. "He's a demon."

I stood frozen, unable to comprehend the weight of the revelation. Yes, I knew he was a half-demon, but I had never imagined, or perhaps I hadn't allowed myself to fully grasp, that he was the son of Shadow, a being of whom I had never seen the face.

"So, you're saying Shadow is your father, and he's a demon," I summarized the information, and he nodded without any visible emotion.

"But why do you want to kill him?" I asked, my confusion still lingering.

"Don't you understand? He's not cursed; he is essentially a demon himself. Maybe if I can kill him, we can all return to being normal people, or maybe not for me, but at least for some cursed individuals," he explained, his expression devoid of emotion.

My mouth hung open with the weight of the idea, and I nodded faintly in agreement. "But how? We can't even see him."

"But I can," he replied with a smirk. "I tried fighting him earlier, but he was far stronger than I was." He took a deep breath before continuing, "I want to become even stronger."

I furrowed my brow as I processed the information. "You knew your father, but what about your mother?"

His eyes shifted with an indiscernible emotion. "No, I never met her. Perhaps she died while giving birth to her half-demon child."

My jaw dropped, rendering me speechless. He looked at me, his expression lightening up, and a smirk formed on his face.

"Was the information that indigestible?" he teased, and I rolled my eyes in response.

"It's just... unbelievable. I never imagined any of this, especially the idea of returning to normal," I said, frustration evident in my tone. "But what makes you believe it?"

"It doesn't require deep thought or heavy reasoning. It's just a gut feeling," he simply replied. Growing irritated, I slapped his arm.

"Ouch! Why did you do that?!" he complained, and I rolled my eyes once again. "What's wrong with you this time?"

"You need to gather information first. Don't be reckless with your actions. Regret is haunting, and it's the scariest thing in the world," I told him, speaking from experience. He smiled, and I barely recognized him in that moment. It was a smile I had never seen before on his face. I stood frozen, trying to process the sudden change, and within seconds, he became serious again.

"Are you going to help me, then?" he offered.

"Help you with what?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Hmm..." he muttered softly. "Gaining information, as you suggested."

"Why would I help you?" I retorted, rolling my eyes, ready to walk away. But he grabbed my wrist, preventing me from leaving.

"I need you, though," he said, his words sending a chill down my spine and causing my hairs to stand on end. The weight of his plea hung heavy in the air, stirring a mix of emotions within me.