The commotion had drawn a crowd.
"Some servant, I heard. He tried to steal from the young miss, and when he got caught, he turned violent."
The voices echoed through the halls as the guards dragged Lucian away. He hung his head low, his bangs covering his eyes.
Blood dripped from his split lip, a bruise forming on his cheek. The back of his head was throbbing from where her heel hit him.
"That's Glory's badge on his chest."
People gasped and continued to whisper to each other.
"I also have Glory's people tend to our garden."
"You should check if anything is missing."
"They can't be trusted anymore, ever since their founder's neglectful behavior."
"They say he only chases after skirts these days and leaves his business to his Vices."
Lucian paid them no mind, his third eye observing Celine.
"Young miss, are you alright? Did he hurt you?" a maid came running, fretting over Celine's state.
"Just a bit shaken," Celine put her hands on the maid's shoulders, "Make sure the guest won't be affected by this."
She never cared about her image before. She would have been happy to be seen with him, even if it meant ruining her reputation. His Celine.
'She didn't turn into a shackled, did she?'
Lucian's heart beat faster in panic. Only a shackled would have spat on their relationship so cruelly. Or at least that's what he wanted to believe, because the alternative would destroy him.
He saw the Crown Prince approach Celine, wishing her a happy birthday and inquiring about the incident. She feigned distress, saying the accident had shaken her to the core.
The Crown Prince offered his arm to escort her to the ballroom.
"She killed one before, and I'll be next!" Lucian yelled at the top of his lungs, "I didn't steal anything! No hay head is safe from her!"
People gasped again, this time at his accusation. The guards' grips on him tightened, trying to shut him up, and he thrashed in their hold, refusing to be silenced.
'Don't touch her. Don't touch her. Don't. Touch. HER.'
The words repeated in his head as they dragged him away.
The Crown Prince retreated his arm, his face turning cold. Celine tried to explain herself, but he brushed her off, and walked away.
Fists hit Lucian's head and back, and it only served to increase the pity the onlookers felt for him.
"If I die, it's because of her!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, making his throat hurt, "Lucian Arclight was innocent! And she murdered him in cold blood! His blood is on her hands! If you care about your lives, stay away from her!"
His accusation took another turn, and suspicious glances were thrown at Celine. The Duke's family name was not to be trifled with, and she would probably get away with it again. Like she always did.
"Is he crazy?"
"He is going to die for sure this time."
They whispered. The birthday celebration was ruined before it even began. A bitter taste spread among the guests. Who would be able to enjoy the night after witnessing such a tragedy?
The guards hauled Lucian to the dungeon. A dark, damp place with a few cells lining the walls. They threw him in the farthest one, and before they could lock the door, he elbowed one of them in the face, and rammed his fist into the other's guts.
They activated their gold ranks but they couldn't do much against Lucian. He continued to disarm hem, beating them to a pulp. The sound of their bones breaking echoed in the dungeon, and the metallic scent of blood filled the air.
"One of hers for one of ours," he whispered, his rage not subsiding one bit.
He dragged the unconscious bodies to the cell, and threw them inside. Keeping one of them alive.
He wiped the blood from his face with the back of his hand, the wound on his head burning like fire. Ignoring it, he nudged the still alive guard with the tip of his shoe.
'You were supposed to protect her, not let any harm come to her. And you failed.'
His hands went for his throat, squeezing until he started to choke on his blood.
'Why is she like that now? It couldn't be my fault. It can't be.'
He pressed harder, cutting off the man's airway completely, his eyes twitching as they began to turn blue.
'...right?'
"Who...are you?" the man choked out, his broken fingers twitching on the ground.
Lucian's hands loosened, and the guard's body sagged to the ground, gasping for air.
"Hm?" He crouched before the guard, his voice deceptively gentle, "I am a man who wants nothing more than to have his wife back. You don't know where she is, do you?"
The guard tried to shake his head.
Lucian lay him next to the dead body, "The Glory's not happy with the Rocheforts' behavior. Keep that in mind when you wake up."
He knocked the guard out, and left the cell with the other guard's body, sending Celine a message with it.
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The guard dragged his body through the dark hallways, grabbing a rope on his way, and hung it over a balcony railing, "I can't...I can't kill another innocent... person."
The mumbles echoed back from the walls as he made a noose, and wrapped it around his neck, "Please, spare my family...my life for their lives. I beg you..."
With the last bit of his strength, he climbed the railing, and jumped.
It was not long before people noticed the body swinging from the ceiling, and screams filled the estate.
The ballroom was cleared out as fast as possible, leaving the birthday girl alone in her ruined celebration. The band packed up their instruments, and the guests ran out of the estate in a panic.
The staff was investigating the crime scene, and the rest of the guards were tense, shocked by the death of their comrades.
Celine's teeth clenched as she walked out of the estate, towards the dungeon. Her hands held up her skirts as she stomped her way down the stairs.
The man who was behind all of this was sitting in a cell, waiting for her.
"You came." Lucian's head turned when he heard the sound of her shoes, a smile spreading on his lips. "It's just the two of us now, a birthday date like old times. With nobody to interrupt us."
She picked up the spear the guard was holding before his death, and stabbed it into the cell, aiming at Lucian's shoulder.
He shifted to the side, avoiding the spear tip, his back hitting the wall.