Chapter 265: Perpetrator
Music Recommendation: Poa Alpina - Biosphere
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Unable to bear the relentless onslaught of tragic news coming one after another, Emily’s knees nearly gave way beneath her, but Raylen quickly moved to her side and held her close. Her breathing grew shallow, as if she were struggling to breathe.
"Princess?" Raylen called out to her, noticing her beginning to break. "Take a deep breath... slow, deep breath. You can do it," he cooed gently.
Emily felt a constriction in her chest, and it took a couple of seconds before her breathing returned to normal. She asked, "Why Jane? He didn’t need her, he didn’t..." She shook her head. Was he trying to corrupt her heart? Testing it by inundating it with anguish? Tears spilled from her eyes, and she inquired, "Do you think he killed Layla too?"
Raylen gently rubbed Emily’s back, trying to calm her emotions. He said, "It would be a bit of a stretch to imagine he could go so far as to kill her." He couldn’t help but question if it had anything to do with his father. After all, Nathaniel had allegedly stolen the Potion of Longevity. "It is the consequence of her soulmate’s actions."
Two people she knew had died, and the more she thought about it, the more she recognised that there had been a number of other deaths. Even if Julia appeared to have seemingly resurrected from her grave, her father had passed away, as had her brother Maxwell. Death had been strikingly prevalent this year, showing no signs of stopping.
"This time, it is my fault. It is because of me," Emily whispered, her lips trembling.
When Emily broke into tears over her friend’s death, Raylen embraced her tightly in his arms, allowing her to cry as much as she wanted. He turned to look at Westley, who stepped out of the room to give the couple their privacy.
"You never wished death upon her, Princess. You wanted her to thrive, and you have never harboured ill thoughts about her or anyone," Raylen reassured her as he gently stroked the back of her head. "It’s not your fault. There is only one person to blame, and that is the one who took her life. No one else."
Emily closed her eyes tightly before she opened them, tears glistening on her eyelashes. She asked, "How do we find him? We need to stop him." She had serious doubts that the person behind all this would simply stop on their own.