Chapter 51: Vessel

"Ah… the verdict," Aries remembered. "I understand…"

"You understand?!" Princess Pieffer, Ross, and Dan had chorused. All of them looked deeply upset as if they are the ones who will be punished.

"How can you be so calm about this?" Ross was confused.

"Death is the only punishment waiting for you," Dan reminded him.

"I already asked Lira to wait until Serestral is safe. I know she will make adjustments for it."

"But you will still get punished!" Ross and Dan had chorused and they were starting to get frustrated.

"After all that you did for our House, you deserve a pardon of some kind," Dan bitterly looked down on the floor.

"Remember how your House had nearly fallen," Aries had seriously reminded the two. "Criminals should be reprimanded. That's how things should always be. I killed people and I should be punished for it. Thank you for the concern but I will not run away."

His words had silenced Ross and Dan yet worry was still evident in their eyes.

"How are the barriers around this House?" Aries asked Princess Pieffer.

She heavily sighed before answering, "Lira was done reinstating the barriers. Now she is busy recruiting guards. Siorre and Alfred are helping her out. Fortunately for this House, many are volunteering."

"What about the people I brought to the House of Pitcher?"

"Quaria will take them here later tonight for the judgment. Yours will also be decided after theirs."

"I still have a few hours to rest."

"Ah… Sir Aries…" Ross began to say but hesitated.

"What is it?"

"I heard this from the eastern border," Ross continued despite his uncertainty. "This might only be gossip but I think you should still hear this."

"Just say it," Aries impatiently urged the guard.

"People in the eastern border keep talking about a guard that survived the clean-up."

"I made sure that I killed all…" his voice faded as he remembered that wife who wanted to save the corrupted soul inside the body of her dead husband. "Can it be her?"

"You have an idea of who it might be?" Princess Pieffer seemed surprised.

"I need to check it out," Aries moved out of the bed and nearly collapsed if the princess did not grab his arm.

"I can check it out," she had kindly offered.

"I can do it," he stubbornly insisted, and fortunately, after a few deep breaths, his knees were no longer wobbly and he could stand on his own. "I will be quick."

He passed through the darkness once more and rushed towards the eastern border but halfway on the road of shadows, his consciousness had wavered and he was pulled towards the deepest part of his subconscious.

The axe-wielder was bending over him with a scornful smile.

"Your mind is still weak. You should rest a lot. If this is something so urgent, then let me take over your body."

"My mind is weak but not crazy. Why will I let you take over my body?" Aries could not even sit up. His back remained glued on the dark and cold ground.

"If you will not let me then someone else will," the axe-wielder glanced at the glass containers not far from behind him. "Do you want it to be the whip? What about the silver dagger? Or maybe you want to be possessed by something weaker than us?"

Aries noticed the cracks on the glass containers. His mind must have weakened a lot.

"You only have a few hours left. If a corrupted soul is left inside the House of Scale, how long do you think before he could make another scratch in the newly reinstated barriers?"

"House of Scale strictly abides by its rules. We cannot destroy that corrupted soul."

"Now 'we' are talking," the axe-wielder slumped on the ground right next to Aries. "I have a plan that will save you from another obvious crime. That is if you will allow me to take control of your body."

"Just for this task," Aries strictly reminded the axe-wielder. "One wrong move and I will pull you back here."

"I know," the axe-wielder offered a hand to Aries. "It is a deal."

Aries grabbed that hand and said, "Deal."

A temporary connection between their souls had been made and in an instant, the axe-wielder became the one in control.

Aries could not move an inch but his mind was functioning well. He could sense his surroundings even better than the Celestial Knight controlling his body.

Gani Cleaver, the axe-wielder, had been thrown out of the shadows and rolled onto the ground just near the entrance to the eastern border.

"Don't do things without telling me!" he yelled at Aries inside his head.

"I didn't do anything. It seems that you cannot use all of my abilities. And don't talk out loud. People will think you had gone crazy."

"We need to hide in the shadows or that guard will notice us before we can get to him," Gani was getting anxious.

Aries ignored that statement and told the axe-wielder, "The previous bodies you possessed had been wearing armors. I thought that once you had taken over my body, I will be wearing one."

"I can do that and attract more attention," Gani replied with sarcasm.

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"You can really do that?"

"The armor comes out once I called forth my axe. You want to see it now?"

"Maybe later," Aries was starting to feel relaxed as Gani made his way quietly towards the eastern border.

It was a good thing that the new overcoat Aries was wearing had a hood on it. Gani used it to cover his face. He was now searching for the guard or the wife.

"Why can't I ask people about those two? It will be easier to find them if we ask around," Gani whispered under the hood.

"This is only a hunch. I don't want people to become suspicious by asking around. If you cannot hide through the shadows then you should blend well with the crowd."

"Fine," Gani found a food stall and settled on one of the empty tables in there. He ordered a lot of food and the owner gave him additional free dishes.

"Thank you for what you did for us, Sir Aries," the owner was teary-eyed. "Enjoy your meal."

"I want to enjoy my time alone," Gani kindly told the old lady. "Please, do not tell other people that I am here. I don't want to gather attention."

"I know. You are safe in this place," the old lady nearly whispered, then bowed low to him before leaving.

"She misunderstood," Gani smiled. "She's thinking that you had gone into hiding."

Aries was about to answer when he noticed a familiar face. It was the crazy wife who had fallen in love with the corrupted soul that killed her husband. She was wearing a veil and a cloak. She was walking briskly along the crowded street where Gani was observing while eating a lot of food. She seemed to be in a hurry but was cautious of the people around her.

Aries had quickly informed Gani about the crazy wife. They carefully observed her until she passed by their location. She failed to notice Aries because of the hood. Gani was also looking down on the dishes most of the time.

"Let's follow her."

But Gani was not moving away from the table. He was busy emptying each bowl.

"Remember the reason I allowed you to take control," Aries reminded the axe-wielder. "I can pull you back in here…"

"I already caught her scent," Gani quickly told him after emptying the last bowl. "I can follow her wherever she goes."

"Are you a dog?"

"Of course not," Gani finally got up on his feet. "I am a human and always will be."

Aries could no longer see the crazy wife but Gani kept on walking as if he knew where to go. He kept on marching until he reached a vast plot of towering trees near the border gate. He entered that place and passed through similar-looking trees. For a moment, Aries thought they were only going in circles but after an hour of hiking, they reached a fenced hut hidden behind the trees and tall grasses.

"She is inside," Gani had whispered. "Are we going to enter? Or should we knock because we are still in the House of Scale?"

"Knock."

"Okay," Gani stood in front of the wooden gate and yelled, "Is there anyone home? If there is none then I will take this hut for myself!"

They waited for a few minutes. The woman was not coming out of the hut.

"I'm a lucky guy!" Gani exclaimed. "I finally found a home!"

He was about to open the gate when the crazy wife finally came out.

"Someone is already living in this house," she was not making eye contact. "Please, leave."

Before she could close the door, Gani had broken the gate and held the door open.

"Maybe we can talk," he smiled at the crazy wife and peeked inside the house. There was a backdoor and it was left open. "It appears that your husband has run away."

Gani pushed the woman out of the way and dashed towards the backdoor.

"Don't worry. I caught his scent. It is lingering inside the house," Gani had said as he chased the guard.

It only took him a few minutes before he caught the trail of the corrupted soul. He ran faster through the uneven rows and columns of trees until he could grab the guard. They stumbled and wrestled over the grass-covered ground until Gani had pinned him down.

"Keep on struggling and I will cut your head off," Gani had threatened and fortunately for them, the guard had been intimidated.

He stopped struggling and tried to negotiate, "If you kill me, you will be punished. This House is no longer lawless. You will also die, in front of the people you had protected. You will no longer be a hero but a criminal."

"I don't care," Gani relayed the thoughts in the head of Aries. "I am a criminal right from the start," he tightened his hand around the neck of the guard. "I will give you two options. One is death and the other is a chance for your soul to be redeemed."

A flicker of hope flashed in the eyes of the guard as he heard the last word but it quickly transformed into suspicion.

"You are trying to trick me."

Gani raised his right hand and called his axe. At the moment it materialized in his hand, a red armor had covered the body of Aries.

"You…" the eyes of the guard had widened with shock.

"Yes. I am Gani Cleaver. A Celestial Knight," he answered the unfinished question of the corrupted soul and rested the huge axe on his shoulder. "I'm not sure about the redemption thing. But this guy promised me the same thing. Let's just kill him if he fails to keep his word."

"But… he cannot absorb my soul…"

"There is no need for your soul to be absorbed," Gani expressed the thoughts Aries had in mind. "What we want is your body. Lend it to me."

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