Death, Devotion, Dissonance

Evin called for the Voice inside his head, but no answers came. Evin wasn\'t disheartened, as he knew that Endra could choose to ignore his messages if he wanted to.

<Endra?> Evin asked again, stirring more noise in his head this time.

This way, Endra would know that Evin was calling him. He didn\'t know how he was able to do these things, but after some practice he just learned to do them. The closest explanation he could give was that of a child learning to use his arms and legs. With his mind\'s functions, Evin felt like he\'d discovered another limb on his body and was now learning how to use it.

<Hello, Evin,> Endra soon replied.

Evin jumped at the sudden connection. He didn\'t expect the Voice to actually reply. As far as he was aware, Endra was more than happy to keep up its silent treatment until Evin relented to separate.

<When have you woken up?> Evin asked. <Or were you even sleeping in the first place?>

<Hmm, it\'s hard to tell. But I guess I could say I was sleeping,> Endra seemed to shrug. He seemed to be in a rather good mood so Evin felt glad. <As for when I woke up… It\'s a bit blurry to be honest. And half the time I felt like I was daydreaming so… I don\'t know.>

Endra really seemed to be okay. He was acting like nothing bad ever happened between them, like he didn\'t push Evin to kill his father. Evin didn\'t expect an apology, but this normalcy felt off to him.

<Are you okay?> Evin asked.

<I\'m… perfectly fine. And I do apologize for what I did to you and your father… though you don\'t seem to mind it as much. Well, that\'s… whatever I guess. I was feeling a bit guilty, but now that I\'ve seen you, I don\'t feel so bad.>

There was definitely something wrong about Endra, bur for the love of the Empress, Evin couldn\'t tell what. But Evin felt like he needed to understand what was going on in his head. For now, he could only prod the Voice for answers, hoping he could make some sense out of the answers.

<What are you going to do next?>

<Me?> Endra replied cheerfully. <I want to say nothing much. But that\'s probably not true… I was thinking of threatening to kill Bella or whoever else you\'re close to if you don\'t work hard on separating from me… but decided it was a stupid thing to do.> he casually revealed something that chilled Evin\'s bones. 

<I see…> Evin managed to say, but his mind was focused on what had befallen the Voice.

<Well, you don\'t have to worry about it too much. If I devise more plans upon you, surely, you\'ll see through it not too late… But once again, I want to remind you to not worry. I\'m not as unhinged as you\'re probably seeing me now and I swear on the Empress\'s name that I won\'t resort to violence.>

<…>

<Well, enjoy your night and please don\'t disturb me unless absolutely necessary.> 

With these words, Endra rebuilt his wall that kept Evin\'s messages from reaching him freely. Evin was left pondering upon the conversation, the feeling of off-ness permeating his core. 

At this moment, though, Bella appeared inside the room and called out to Evin, saying that it was dinner time. Finally, Evin would be seeing Bella\'s object of revenge.

Evin quickly got himself presentable and followed behind Bella. She led him to a large dining hall, that for the time being, was empty. There were a few servants toiling around the food, but aside from them, I was only Evin and Bella. 

He knew that this was how the kingdom\'s nobility worked, with children or less important people showing up first, and with the most important person showing up last. But he didn\'t know why such a thing was necessary here. 

Shaking his head, Evin sat next to Bella and waited for the rest of the family. 

The first to show up was Bella\'s middle sister, Olevyn. She looked to be about 14 and had a soft-spoken aura around her. Her features were soft, with droopy eyelashes, slightly long face, and hazy eyes that gave an impression that she was high on something. 

Then, came in a man who seemed to be the same age as Evin\'s father, but had a much dangerous air to him. Bella explained that it was the leader of the Mage Guards inside the manor, Komarokh. He was a Northerner who mostly communicated with grunts and nods, acting as if his words were made of precious jewels. Bella also noted that Komarokh worked in the business for years now, so he was definitely someone you couldn\'t take lightly. 

The encounter made Evin realize that if they were ever going to murder Bella\'s father, most likely, they would have to go through the Mage Guards to do so. But feeling the grit emanating from the guards, Evin couldn\'t help but feel hesitant about their goal.

Next to show up was Bella\'s eldest sister, Arelyn, and another man who looked to her age. Arelyn\'s features were closer to Bella\'s with her sharp features and hawklike eyes. Except in her, these details were more prominent and defined because she was turning 16 this year. This difference also showed in their hairstyles: Arelyn had comfortable bob cut, while Bella\'s swayed freely down to her chest.

One more thing Evin noticed was Arelyn\'s air of arrogance around her, the same one that was most prominent in noble ladies who could order you around without you feeling opposed to it. 

But… all these sharp and confident details wilted when her eyes inevitably fell on Bella\'s figure. 

She suddenly turned into a turtle that decided to withdraw into its shell, as she clutched onto the youth she came with and breathed out a sigh. The young man, on the other hand, did not hide his hatred for Bella. He looked at Bella\'s direction as if she was one of the Twelve Calamities\' incarnate, and of course, this hatred extended onto Evin. Following Bella\'s example, Evin decided to mostly ignore the man\'s stares.

From how he acted, Evin could guess that he knew of what happened between Arelyn and Bella. Did Arelyn tell him, or was it common knowledge in this house? Evin couldn\'t decide if this was relevant or not. He couldn\'t even tell if this young man was relevant or not.

\'Why is he even here?\' Evin couldn\'t help but think as he waited with Bella. He asked if Rith was going to appear, but Bella said no, as the Cosmic had already met the Viscount and was now busy with something

And finally, the Viscount and his new wife, Elufay Borna, appeared in the room. It was the same man Evin saw back when he was first getting acquainted with the Cosmics, a plump, almost jolly-looking man, who looked like he could get along with anyone.