The daily life of a ghost in Oletus manor

Chapter 18

Aesop had absolutely no idea what to do with the current situation. Barely an hour had passed since the bad news had arrived, in the form of a fancy, red envelope, that was containing something that changed their already bad enough lives for the worse. All of them were currently gathered together in the hall, arguing over what to do next.

„What is on your mind, Aesop?" Eli, bless his soul, was as calm as always, seemingly unbothered by the fact that they were no longer protected by that strange, yet comforting force of the Manor, that made sure no injuries were left on them after they were finished with those damned games. Up until that moment, it didn't matter how badly beaten up they got during a match- they were always completely healed up right after they arrived back to the manor, be it on their own feet or on the chairs- and now, now it was all gone.

Why was the Owner doing this?

Aesop highly doubted that it was all only because of the friendly matches- after all, they were still fairly uncommon, and hunters still preferred to do the matches the normal way. And that nonsense about the relationship between the Ripper and Naib? Surely, it couldn't be the real reason either. If the Host truly didn't want them to mingle, then why did he even made it possible for them to visit each other's side? Because to be honest, with the amount of power the man possessed it would have been so easy, so simple to separate them completely, sealing the doors that were connecting their halls.

Not to talk about the garden. It was a neutral ground, which was frequently visited by both factions. If that vile man truly didn't want them to see the opposing faction anything other than the predator and the prey, why did he let them see what was hidden behind the masks, the real persons behind the roles they were forced to take on?

"I am not sure..." and he was not. He glanced at his maybe-friend, with confusion written all over his face. "I don't know what to think."

"It's alright." how could Eli smile like that? As if nothing was wrong? How could he keep his calm even at a time like this? "I do not know either." there was a little pause. "But I know we will get through this together. We always do."

"You are right." he sighed, while Eli's expression turned sour, as he glanced around, frowning slightly at the commotion that suddenly broke out.

Aesop himself felt slightly lost, wanting to get away, but he knew he would just be ridiculed the same way they did to Naib, throwing all the blame onto the boy as if all of this mess was caused by him.

It was not fair.

Surprisingly the one, that was causing the biggest ruckus was Martha. She couldn't get over the fact, that Naib had a relationship with a hunter. Which, to be honest, surprised Aesop quite much. It was pretty obvious that Jack and their mercenary had something going on- it was as clear as day. Even the blind could see how obsessed the two have been with each other, especially lately. Though if the way the girl behaved herself was anything to go by, it was possible that she was actually quite aware of the fact that Naib and Jack were a couple, but she decided to deny this truth. As the letter was read out loud by Emily, Martha had a heartbroken expression on her face, as if she couldn't believe what she was hearing. She was sitting silently for a while, frozen to the spot she was sitting at, staring at the letter with hollow eyes, then as if a switch was suddenly pushed, she went completely mad with fury. She screamed at Naib, begging him to say it was all a joke, a lie.

Of course, Naib didn't deny it.

And so, Martha punched him right in the face.

Now, that was a shock. Aesop would never have thought that Martha had it in herself to punch Naib- after all, the two of them were always pretty close. Aesop for himself knew that Naib saw the woman as a sibling. A sister, and nothing more. Martha however... she saw herself as future Mrs. Subedar.