BXBX NOVEL Chapter 17 God's Promise
**Warning - Descriptions of gory scenes**
"What's more, this young lass is so daring! According to Randel, she managed to contract a cursed beast!" Andvari added.
Up until now, he couldn't understand why the little girl would choose a cursed animal as a contracted beast. Isn't that bringing more harm to herself? However, Randel had a high evaluation with Eli's contracted beast. As reported by him, it is strong but it is also highly reliable when it comes to protecting Eli.
"You little old man, what did you say?! A cursed beast as a contractor?!" The man on the other end of the conversation replied in shock.
Andravi just gave a serious nod.
"Old Andi, I understand your intention. However, I must see for myself if she is worthy to be protected by the Farauld Magic Institution." The elderly man calmly. However his eyes has been glowing with of agitation.
"Suit yourself, Old Ben, however you must act fast. I can foresee that forces will be appearing here in town soon." Andvari shrugged and replied, he knows his friend's attitude.
His dear friend Reuben is using this chance to go out and travel again. Despite his old age this friend of his was actually a man who wasn't honest to himself, even if he wanted to say yes, he would say it in a very roundabout way.
He was satisfied with his friend's reaction as he threw out a perfect bait. Eli's contracted beast. Being the headmaster of the Farauld Institution, this friend of his is a lover of knowledge and new things. No one can stop him from travelling to the ends of the world just to pursue a chance to unravel its mystery.
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"Ahh!! It is finally finished!!" Exclaimed Eli while she carefully stretched herself from hours of cooping herself on the study.
Looking again at the several sheets of paper, Eli uttered with a hopeful tone, "This will do.. I hope I'll find someone who can craft these things!"
It's been a week since Azayn visited her house. Azayn once asked her if she had already prepared for the necessities needed when Little Han was born. She suggested that Eli must prepare earlier than normal because she was living alone.
Although she had contracted beasts, there were still situations when a human companion was convenient. For instance, running for errands. Now, Eli had to do all these things by herself. However, it will no longer be advisable for her if she keeps doing these things as she approaches her due date.
'Sigh, Azayn is right but what can I do? I don't have a husband. And even if that man knew about Little Han's existence, it may not be necessarily a good thing for us..' She thought in resignation.
One really important thing which she decided to set aside for the meantime was the fact that Elise had a killer. Up until now, she had no clue about who it was. The only thing she knows is that the mastermind is a woman. And what does it usually mean if a woman wanted another woman to be killed?
Envy, Jealousy.. It has many names, but all pertain to one common thing - Hatred.
Eli's main deduction was that someone wanted to kill her because of this and it's probably highly connected to that man. It was highly probable that Elise and that man were spotted by the mastermind that night of the festival and assumed things - accurately, like any other suspicious woman.
Why so? Because one, it happens not only in novels but in real life throughout human history. Second, it is because of Elise's remark that Little Han may be born as an illegitimate child. With this, Eli is ninety percent convinced that it is connected to the man.
Lastly, she knew Elise's life from a third person's perspective. She was never involved in another man that may spark the jealousy of other women.
When Elise was born, she never knew anyone other than her parents. She was shut down in their family's basement ever since she was born. The only light she saw was the light of the lamp. When she was five she finally saw the sunlight.
However, that was the day when she was happily sold to a man with a gentle smile. That was the first time she saw someone smile at her. She thought that she could finally have hope to constantly be free from that dark basement.
However, as soon as they reached the man's mansion, she was then again locked up in the basement. Elise felt disappointment because she thought that she could finally live a new life. She quietly continued her life living in the darkness in another basement. Soon this disappointment evolved into despair.
It was her seventh birthday when the hell started.
The man with a gentle smile, opened up the basement and led her out into a more secluded dungeon. He laid her down into a stone bed, chained her hands and legs. The extracted pieces of her flesh and blood everyday for study. Sometimes, the man came to the dungeon frustrated and he would torture Elise by inflicting injuries in her body, then feeding her with healing potion, then torture her again.
She always heard the man talking to himself, thinking if he should cut through Elise's body and see what it looks like inside.
Then on her eighteenth birthday, he finally decided to do so. However, he did it slowly in parts. One day, he will start opening up one of her legs first then an arm on another. He said that if he didn't do so, then that's the time that he wanted her to die.
Elise, fed up with despair and endless torture and pain, begged the man to kill her. She started to plead to him every time the man comes down in the dungeon.
However, it was as if the man never heard anything.
He would just go on feeding her a medicine that prevents her from dying of blood loss, cut her flesh, stare at it for a long time examining some parts, take notes, then heal her again.
It was her twentieth birthday, when the man finally decided to open up her chest - where her heart is. That day, she laughed like a maniac while tears fell endlessly from her eyes.
To some, it is a miracle that only the part of her body where the heart and brain is located was unscathed, until now.
But only she knows how badly damaged her heart and mind is.
She lad long determined her heart dead and her mind a corrupted one.
The man didn't like Elise's trembling due to her crazed actions. He will be operating her in the most vital area on her body and the trembling is not necessary for this operation. So the man threw a fit out of anger.
The higher the intensity of his anger is, the louder are Elise's crazed laughs and cries. It went on until an explosion was heard in the entrance of the dungeon and a man with hair as red as blood came and seized her captor.
Elise's mind went blank upon seeing another person in the dungeon.
Soon, she saw men, wearing valiant looking uniforms and restrained the man with a gentle smile. She heard a lot of rustling and crashing along the dungeon and loud clunk near her body. One of the valiant looking men went to her stone bed and started freeing her away from her chains.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Every thump of his weapon freeing her, sounds like her dead heart trying to beat again.
Every limb that was freed, feels like the Creator is bestowing her wings to fly.
When all her chains were removed, she let out a loud cry. She cried her lungs out, she cried like she wanted all these tears to cleanse her from all the darkness that she had witnessed ever since she developed a mind of her own.
"Poor lady, you are safe now, and from this day on, you are free."
When she heard these words, her body had already recognised the weariness and pain she had been enduring all along. She fainted immediately.
When Elise woke up she found herself in a brightly lit room. It was a hospital room where she was sent to. She was taken care of by the nurses and doctors with utmost diligence.
At first she was afraid, as once this kind of gentleness had brought her into hell. She refused any food or help from them. She also repeatedly attempted escaping, but her emaciated body is not capable of doing so.
Helpless, the doctors asked for help. The man with the blood red hair immediately visited her and told her things that helped her jumpstart the process of her healing.
"Are you afraid that people here will do the same?" The man with the blood red hair asked with his rather young voice.
Elise, who is afraid of people, did not lift her head. Instead, she curled her body and hid her head on her malnourished scarred hands. She let out a whimper.
"Do not worry, that man was already punished." The man said straightforwardly.
Elise froze.
The man with blood red hair continued to explain as he saw her reaction, "He will no longer hurt you. He has been killed."
"He can't hurt me? Anymore?" Elise slowly let down her hands, however, she was still too afraid to lift her head up.
"Yes, he's gone. You are free now, no one will lock you up," He continued to coax her.
Elise started to let out soft sniffles.
Continuing, the man said, "Not everyone will hurt you just because of who you are. One thing I assure you, is that the people here are my people. As long as they are loyal to me, they will never hurt you. No one will hurt you."
"Tha..thank you.." Elise started to cry.
"Do you have a name?"
Elise gently shook her head. Her parents called her cursed child. Her captor just looked at her like a lump of meat.
"Then may I give you one? This name will be the one you will carry as you live your life from now on."
Elise finally looked up. He met the eyes of the man, it was blue. It was as blue as the first skies she saw when she was five.
A name.
She never had one. Will it be nice to have a name? A hopeful glow shined in her eyes, so shining that even her pitiful scrawny face couldn't negate.
Seeing life slowly come to the young lady's being, he gave a smile and said. "Let's give you a name.. Did you know, people with hair and eyes like you are loved by God?"
"Maybe that is why the heavens let me save you in time. Because God never forgot His love for you. His Love is His Promise,"
"Elise, will be your name."
"The name Elise, will remind you of God's love, God's Promise."