Chapter 339: Finding Broken Pieces-I

A/N: For a few days I am not feeling well due to my anxiety of my writing, it might reflect and affect my writings (making it unclear) If there is a part anyone can't understand do notify me^3^ also don't forget to keep voting~~

Elise stared down at Barner, the man now was caught under Ian's iron grip which make him unable to move. Elise looked around the forest and she could feel something like a great presence near them, "Strange, I feel like someone is near here," she said.

"Me too," Ian narrowed his eyes, "they seem to have blocked their power but I could still feel it resonate near here."

"What happened to Mr Ernest?" Elise queried when she recalled of the other man who wasn't with Ian during the time he came to safe her.

In pulled his hand forward, creating a slit of portal when he moved his hand vertically before pulling a rope from it, "I placed him in Beel's care. He should be able to take care of another human." and that was great, after talking with Dalton, Elise didn't want the man to lose his brother because she knew how it felt to lose a family member.

Barner suddenly laughed seeing Ian and Elise together and his eyes stopped at the rope, "Do you think a simple rope could stop me? You should have brought something stronger."

"Aren't you active?" Ian grinned widely, "This is a special rope I got from Hell. A rope to bind creature like you, a corrupted angel. Try to see if your power work."

Barner narrowed his eyes, he was doubtful that a simple rope could hinder his power and with a snicker he said, "You will regret it soon." 

Ian shrugged his shoulders on reply. Elise came closer, watching the man struggling to get the brown rope off only to looked shocked when he wasn't able to do anything.

"N-No way! What did you do?! My power...My ninety years of power is disappearing!" Shrieked Barner in horror but Elise could feel her heart turning like a stone and she couldn't feel a single pity or sympathy directed toward the man even though she never liked seeing people getting hurt. She was aware of the reason, it was the deep anger she held against the man who had harmed her mother. Despite having a rough childhood due to her mother, she never hold contempt against her and instead pity her situation. After seeing the unjust again in her mind, she could withstand her anger.

Ian rolled his eyes, looking at the foolish man who seemed to have finally realize how doomed he was, "He needs to have some teaching, Elise what did he do to you? Tell me so we can settle our score."

"He didn't do anything to me. He wasn't able to," continued Elise while looking down at Barner, "But he did a lot of things against my mother. He also knows about my father."

At this, Ian who didn't expect the sudden change of tides raised his brows, "Your mother. Did you regain your childhood memories?"

Elise shook her head, "Only a little, I only remember a part of my memories."

"You will get there soon," Ian encourage, and he bent his legs just slightly to have a better eye level with Barner, "Now, Barner. Do you understand where your position is? You are currently my hostage, you seem to love the thought about keeping hostage, here, in your ghost town, don't you? How does it feel to be like one?— to be a weak ant who soon would get squashed? But don't worry, I won't squash you easily. Like Elise I got some bone to pick with you. Where is the real Alfred?"

Barner didn't know how in the God's name where his power had disappeared to but he didn't allow himself to become frightened any longer. The corrupted angel held his pride high that he would rather die than kneeling down and Ian could tell this. He could also tell that it would get more exciting if Barner keep his pride high.

Pulling himself together along with a smile, Barner replied, "He is at the bottom of a sea. Do you know how I killed him? First I acted like his dear lover whom I've killed and waited for him in an inn. When he had lowered his guard I killed him. It was truly exciting to see how his face twist in shock and confusion when seeing how his beloved killed- AHHH!"

Ian licked his lower lips after severing Barner's left foot with a knife that he pulled from the portal. "Sounds like fun," he commented sarcastically and immediately his smile fell. "Where was the sea?"

Barner could feel his body burning in pain as the agony spread throughout his entire body, he tried to heal his body which failed. Faced with another question from Ian, Elise could still see the smile on the man's face that had her hands which she balled to loose fists to tighten.

"Like I would-" his words immediately broke with another pain as Ian pushed his hand through the man's stomach, right below the place that was vital.

Pulling his hand out, Ian swung his hand to the right to have the blood wring out from his hand, "Tough one aren't you? You won't die with this wound. I have got some studying about a human's body from my nine hundred years of experience, and I know which place to stab so they won't die immediately. It will be painful but I tell you, there is only a single way for humans to be born but I have got millions of way to kill you. Fortunate news is, I have a great healing magic. Before you can die we can repeat all of this again. So to my repeated question, where is his body?" Ian asked with his eyes narrowed.

Barner kept his smile, "I won't die, what's there to be feared?"

"Yes you won't die but you will soon loose your mind from the suffering. Let's see how long you will hold out," and raising his hand, Ian began his series of torture.

Minutes passed in a tick tock movement. Although Elise didn't have a pocket watch with her, she could tell it had been only five minutes since Barner's last attempt of being prideful. Now the ground beneath Barner had soaked in blood, the puddle of red liquid almost reach to her shoes even though she was four steps away from them. 

Barner was in a mess of situation with most of his limbs had been sliced off. The scene could only cause Elise to look away but tonight she didn't. Instead of looking away, she watched Ian's slow and agonizing torture to Barner and she could feel herself turning dark.

Elise was aware every people had their own darkness in them that was hidden or covered by their good side. The weigh of the of the light and dark side of each people differentiate accordingly to the person itself and the belief and moral that they adopt. Elise had always been thought in the correct way of a human where killing is bad and that hurting people is wrong. That belief didn't change in her but she could tell the dark enjoyment that grew in her to see Barner receiving what he deserve. At first Elise thought it was wrong for her to feel so but the she also understand her rights to become angry and to see Barner paying his sins.

As Ian had said it was him who won as it only took Barner five minutes before turning to a person who had lose his sanity. When Ian playfully raised his hand, Barner immediately scurried and pressed his back to the trunk of the tree in fear, shrinking as if he wanted to escape from Ian's murderous gaze.

"Now, it's my seventh time repeating this that I am starting to get tired, where is Alfred's body, corrupted angel?" Ian cracked his neck as he asked.

"H-He is buried in h-his backyard! U-Under the o-oak tree," responded Barner quickly, fearing another pain was to come to him.

"Obedient aren't you?" Ian smiled darkly, he then pushed his hair with his hand that wasn't stained with blood to the back of his hair, leaving it to stay combed back in a wild manner. "Now let's get to the next question while you are still obedient. What is your relationship with Elise's mother?"

Barner casted a glance to Elise whose eyes were watching him without an expression written on her face. He thought the girl would stop the Demon but she didn't and he could tell she was enjoying the torture that was inflicted to him. But now it had become fear that ruled Barner's mind as he was scared Ian would injured him or severe his limb again, "We w-were neighbors."

"Elise," Ian lifted his face to her, and he urged her to come closer by waving his hand in a curl, "What else do you want to ask?"

Elise looked at the man with a silent look before casting her gaze to Ian. Currently there was too many questions in her mind that was more than what she could process. She took it slowly so she won't forget any one of her question as currently the man held a strong information about her parents and her childhood.

Yet from all the questions that were in her mind there was one single question that stood out more than the rest, "Do you know and have you seen my father?"

Barner gulped as he felt his throat drying, "I have seen him before."

"He is a demon, isn't he?" Elise moved to her next question.

"He is."

"What about my mother?" Was her next question. Somewhere she had a feeling that her mother wasn't a normal human. She recalled the moment she had activated her power to Barner and see how horror come to her mother's face as if she was shocked and terrified with the power she hold. 

"She was..." Barner looked at between her and Ian back and forth, replying slowly...