Hunter x Fem Reader ~ As Little Miss Perfect

28: Messages

Nights in the Emperor's castle were quiet but never truly silent. The walls seemed to talk from time to time. There were always whispers and the sound of crawling critters.

"Good night, Hunter." Belos smiled.

The sound of the heavy door echoed through the halls after the Emperor shut it from inside. On the other side was Hunter, left with so many unanswered questions. He felt frustrated being left in the dark. He was the Golden Guard, the emperor's right-hand man. Why is he being replaced?

What are the Titan's plans? With him? With the girl he loves?

All these he asked the emperor and was returned with the vaguest of answers. "The Titan has big plans for you. You and your friend Y/N." Those were the Emperor's words. However, Hunter refused to stay still. He wanted answers. But most of all, he wanted to prove himself useful again.

He marched to the castle's library with the red glow from his staff to light the way and a palisman who accompanied him. Hunter browsed through the shelves, taking every book that he deemed useful. Just as he did, the red cardinal perched on his shoulder and chirped at him.

"Go away! I'm busy." Hunter shooed.

The palisman just started chirping back.

"Sorry, I don't speak Palisman." He shrugged.

The cardinal flew to one of the shelves and pecked on a small brown book. It was almost like he was trying to show it to Hunter.

The book was rather old. Its leather cover was filled with cracks and pieces of it flaking with even the slightest touch.

"This looks ancient." Hunter examined the book. "If I'm not mistaken, this could date way back in the Deadwardian era." He presumed.

The palisman just chirped back.

The title read "A Research on the Isles' Life forms". It was a book by an author with the initials "P.W." as written at the bottom.

Hunter no longer waited and opened the book. The words were roughly hand-written in ink. The pages were either burnt in the sides or stained with dirt.

Hunter flipped through the pages, scanning each chapter. "Basilisks... Stone sleepers... Ahah! Half-bloods!" He exclaimed.

"This will help us- I mean-" He cleared his throat. "This will help me know more about Y/N."

"Half-bloods, the child of a witch or demon and a human." Hunter read.

"magical beings without the ability to completely control one's powers."

"unstable individuals."

"Pfft well, that's Y/N." He chuckled and continued reading.

"In my time in the Boiling Isles, I was lucky enough to encounter a half-blood. They offered to aid me in my journey in exchange for resources. However, they grew greedy and wanted more than I could provide."

"One day, they started attacking me. With a heavy heart, I had to fight back. Unfortunately, their blood was shed and there was nothing I could do."

Hunter felt a shiver down his spine as he read the chapter. Yet, he kept going.

When Hunter flipped the page, it was followed by ripped paper and rough scribbles.

"Abominations"

"A disgrace to man-kind"

Those were the words roughly scribbled on the chapter.

He flipped the pages some more and landed on a cleaner one.