Ruling the World With My Rebellious Demon Girls

Chapter 7

Two weeks before Lucien's death, he had called Selene aside and handed her a sealed envelope.

"I'm going to die soon. Keep this safe," he said, taking another drag from his cigarette.

"Why are you dying this time? And what about the Vault?" Selene asked.

"Don't question me. And don't bother opening it. Only the person it's meant for can read it."

"Then why give it to me?"

"Because I said so."

He walked away. Selene slipped the letter into her pocket and eventually forgot about it. Lucien's strange behavior had never been worth trying to understand.

Only as she lost consciousness under Vyrella's attack did she remember the envelope. Then everything went dark.

\\###

Marcus stared at the letter in his hands.

Marcus Hale.

That was his name. His real name!

What kind of fucking coincidence was this?

He tore open the envelope and unfolded the paper inside.

Marcus, if you're reading this, then I was right. You finally made it here.

— Lucien Veyr.

Marcus frowned. Before he could decide what to make of it, he noticed another paragraph beneath the signature.

The last time you spoke to your friend, you told him that both of you would probably die broke and single. Funny how things turned out, isn't it? At least you're not dead. Not in the way you understand it.

That was all.

Marcus read the letter again, hoping he had misunderstood something.

He hadn't.

His legs weakened, and he dropped onto the cold floor.

What the actual fuck?

How could Lucien have known about that conversation? He had been on Earth when he said those words! Nobody else had heard them apart from his friend.

And now some bastard in another world had written them down before Marcus even arrived?

"What is that?" Vyrella asked.

She had been watching him for some time, wondering why he was sitting on the floor like someone who had just received news of his own death.

She took the letter from his hands and read it.

"Marcus Hale?" she repeated. "Who is that?"

Marcus didn't answer.

Vyrella looked at the letter again. Lucien's signature was clearly written beneath the message, but the contents made no sense to her.

"Who is Marcus?" she demanded again.

Marcus swallowed. "Someone I know."

"Someone you know?" She frowned. "Then why are you acting as if you've never seen his name before?"

"It's complicated."

"Of course it is." She threw the letter back onto his lap. "Everything with you is always complicated."

Perhaps Marcus was another person Lucien had cheated or made some foolish arrangement with. She couldn't put anything past him anymore.

Marcus barely heard her.

If Lucien had written that letter, then his arrival here hadn't been an accident.

Lucien had known he was going to die. In fact, everyone seemed to know that he died and resurrected regularly. Nobody even acted surprised when they saw him alive again.

But this time, something had changed.

The original Lucien hadn't returned.

Marcus had.

Did that bastard plan this?

The thought terrified him. Had Lucien somehow chosen him from all the people on Earth? Was he supposed to carry out some kind of mission for him?

And where the hell was Lucien's soul now?

Marcus looked around before realizing how stupid that was. What was he expecting to find? His own body lying somewhere in the ruins?

He was still sitting there when Vyrella spoke again.

"What are you going to do about the Vault?"

Marcus looked up.

She was holding the map he had taken from Dren.

"Do you even understand where this place is?" she asked.

Marcus shook his head before he could stop himself.

Vyrella stared at him. "You went there yourself, Lucien."

"I know."

"Then why are you looking at me like you don't?"

Marcus rubbed his forehead. "Just tell me what you want to say."

Vyrella looked irritated, but she continued.

"The people guarding that Vault don't forgive thieves. Do you know what they'll do if they discover that something is missing?"

Marcus remained silent.

"They won't simply hang you. They'll remove your eyes, wait for them to grow back, and remove them again. They could keep doing that for years."

Marcus swallowed.

What kind of sick people live in this world?

"You know you didn't have to be so graphic, right?" He asked

Vyrella gave him an annoyed look.

Marcus stood up, folding the letter and putting it safely inside his clothes. He wanted to go back to Earth more than ever, but he was beginning to understand that he wouldn't get anywhere without learning about Lucien.

And the only person who seemed capable of helping him was standing right in front of him.

"Do you ever get hungry?" he asked.

Vyrella frowned. "What?"

"I'm asking whether you eat. You know, food?"

"I know what food is, you idiot."

"Then have you eaten today?"

She stared at him. Lucien had never asked her that before. He barely cared whether she was injured, much less whether she had eaten.

It was such a strange question that she didn't even know how to answer.

Was something wrong with his head after his last resurrection?

Or was this another trick?

"Why do you care?" she demanded.

Marcus shrugged. "Because we haven't eaten anything, and I don't know how long we're going to be here."

Vyrella continued looking at him suspiciously.

She didn't believe for a second that Lucien had suddenly become a considerate person. But she couldn't deny that something about him had changed.

She cleared her throat. "Forget about food. What are you going to do about those three?"

Marcus glanced toward the unconscious Selene and Dren.

"Garrick escaped. He'll probably come back." He muttered.

"Of course he will. And next time, he won't come alone."

Marcus sighed. Wonderful.

"You know those people better than I do," he said. "How do I get them to leave me alone?"

Vyrella almost laughed. "You can't. whatever you stole from that Vault is important enough for them to attack you. And you know perfectly well that Garrick isn't the kind of man who gives up on something he wants."

Marcus looked toward the two unconscious fighters again.

He had promised to bring them the missing treasure in three days. That meant he had three days to find something he didn't even know existed.

And seven days to break a contract he couldn't read.

I'm so fucked.

Vyrella folded the map.

"And don't misunderstand me. I'm not telling you this because we're suddenly allies. If those idiots kill you before you fulfil your promise, I'll be the one who suffers."

"Fair enough," Marcus replied.

She hesitated, then handed him the map.

"Start by finding out what you took from the Vault. Otherwise, those three will never leave you alone."

Marcus accepted it.

For the first time since arriving in this world, someone had given him advice that didn't involve threatening to kill him.

It wasn't much, but he would take it.

He looked down at the folded letter inside his clothes.

Three days to find the treasure. Seven days to free Vyrella.

And somewhere out there was a man who had known his name before he even arrived in this world.

Marcus had no idea how any of it was connected.

But one thing was becoming clear.

If he wanted to get back to Earth, he needed to find out what Lucien Veyr had been planning before he died.