The Essence Of The Darkness
EOTL eps 11: Adu Strength

I don't know what time it is. However, the day seems to have squirmed, rolling the ball of the sun up to the end of the sky and sending it to almost half an hour.

The sunlight itself was so bright, it shot its light through a clear window glass whose curtains had been set wide to its left and right sides, making this all-white room becomes more dazzling and makes the pounding pain more agonizing, banging Sera's head mercilessly.

Xavier himself, standing at the end of the bed, looked so perfect, with neatly combed hair, a shirt so slippery without the slightest wrinkles and a fresh face full of understanding smiles. The man looked like a perfect character jumping out from within a two-dimensional fictional story.

Sera widened her eyes with her mouth agape staring at Xavier, while her still writhing brain looked for consciousness as if she did not want to be invited to run fast to find a vocabulary, to be sprayed towards the man.

All the mixed questions in Sera's head seemed to freeze in her vocal cords, unable to be issued.

Calmly, without caring for Sera's expression of shock, Xavier, who was carrying a tray full of breakfast in his hand, moved to the side of the bed and placed the tray there. Then, without caring that he had invaded Sera's personal space with the forced closeness, Xavier sat on the edge of the bed, sitting down, facing towards Sera and thrusting a medicine in her left hand and a glass of water in her right hand.

"It's medicine for your hangover. Drink, it will make you better. Half an hour later, you can eat your breakfast without feeling dizzy and nauseous again."

Sera's eyes widened while an expression of horror he could no longer hide, radiating out to the point of turning his face.

Xavier is a killer who likes to take advantage of toxins, drugs, and various viruses and killer bacteria whose effects are very terrible.... If such a man thrust a medicine at him and told him to take it, Sera's fear reaction could not be considered excessive, could it not?

Sera's lips trembled when she finally managed to force herself to voice her thoughts.

"What did you do to me? Why am I here?" he was half accusing.

Sera had managed to move a little shroud of fog around her memory and she remembered that she felt dizzy and lost consciousness after eating the appetizer served at the restaurant chosen by Xavier at the dinner their night.

Xavier's expression showed no offence at all to the accusations Sera had thrown at him.

"I didn't realize that there was alcohol in beet juice that was used to soak lobster dishes in your meal yesterday." Xavier lied so easily, without even batting an eye. "I also did not expect that your allergic reaction to alcohol was very strong. I'm sorry." Xavier's voice sounded sincere, coupled with his sweet smile, making his face that turned back to the sunlight seem to glow with glittering light that made Xavier look like an angel in Sera's eyes.

But Sera knows for sure that Xavier is not an angel. The dark soul of the man is so evil that it deserves to be called a being with all the opposite of an angel.

"You're feeling very dizzy, aren't you?" Xavier guessed quickly when he saw Sera grimacing in pain. "This drug is an over-the-counter drug for hangovers, you must know him, too" as if aware of Sera's doubts, Xavier showed the brandy packaging of the drug that still existed on the tray. "drink. However valuable you are, I will not poison or give you anything strange for you to consume."

Xavier seemed to be able to guess through Sera's way of thinking by deliberately saying that sentence and somehow, Xavier's attitude that was so good that it made Sera feel bad.

"I brought you to my house because I knew you lived alone and no one took care of you there in your condition." Calmly, Xavier rose from his standing position. Then, as if not offended by Sera's attitude that did not also accept the offer of medicine that he was given, the man put back the medicine and the drinking glass in his hand on the tray.

"You might want to drink it later. You can rest for a while after taking it while waiting for the medicine to react," Xavier said as he looked at Sera with an unreadable look. "Eat your breakfast after your dizziness goes away and your nausea subsides. The bathroom door is right over there if you want to freshen up, your bag and cell phone are in the bathroom closet, you know, there's also a change of clothes available there and I hope this time you don't mind wearing it," Xavier said, stepping towards the exit of the room.

When he opened the door, Xavier turned to Sera before exiting the room. "If you feel ready, I'm waiting for you to speak in the reading room. There were a lot of things about work that we should have talked about last night but didn't get through," Xavier threw a smile, then nodded his head politely and closed the door.

I don't know how long Sera was still glued to the closed door left by Xavier before. He felt like he was still dreaming, unable to move and not knowing what to do.

Xavier seemed to be acting ordinary, like a friendly would-be boss and host.

Could it be that Sera was too suspicious and sensitive because she had secretly known of Xavier's cruelty in the past?

Well... Xavier was kind to him for considering him a qualified assistant candidate. Sera regrets being overdone by being driven by her fear of Xavier that triggered her past trauma.

Sera only hoped that her defensive attitude earlier translated by Xavier as confusion from waking up with a hangover, it was not that Sera kept a secret plan to approach Xavier and wait for a stabbing opportunity from behind as the man let his guard down.

The dizziness was still agonizing, and Sera's hands moved back to massage her temples to ease the pain. Then, he suddenly recalled his wig.

Sera's hand moved palpating her hair and her heart pounded between relief and confusion when she found her wig still neatly attached to her head. Curiously, Sera flicked her blanket, then tried to get up from the bed, about to drag herself towards the bathroom.

Sera's head again felt like it was being hit when she set foot on the surface of the thick carpet that instantly submerged the sole of her bare foot. His body staggered, making Sera have to hold on to the bedside nightstand so as not to fall.

His eyes were fixed on the medicine on the small plate that Xavier had been thrusting at him. He then lifted the medicine container and examined it.

After making sure the packaging and brand of the original drug, Sera prefers to take the drug she took directly from the packaging, and ignore the drugs that Xavier had proffered to her.

Slowly Sera took the medicine and swallowed it with the help of a large mouthful of water, after which she sighed deeply.

He could not linger in this house in this kind of weak condition. Sera knew that she had to brace herself against Xavier, then find a way to go.

With great difficulty, Sera dragged her feet back, keeping her body in balance by holding her all the way to the bathroom wall.

He had passed through a large window that shot out the bright sunlight from the clear window glass slats. Sera glanced for a moment out and realized that she was on the top floor of this house because the view of the garden that spread out from the window was seen far below. Afterwards, Sera turned her face away as the sunlight hurt her eyes and refocused her strength to make it to the bathroom door.

It took a while for Sera so she could get inside that bathroom. His breath was breathless as he held onto the white marble-clad sink table and stared straight at the huge glass that lay almost filling the one wall of the bathroom in front of him.

His wig was strangely still perfectly mounted on his head.

Sera did choose to use a special wig that can be attached tightly to his head that is covered in a special adhesive net and not easily separated, even when the fake hair was pulled though. These wigs are usually used by sports athletes or concert singer artists, or opera drama artists who move actively both on the field and on stage. It was only this time that Sera was really grateful that she had decided to buy this wig despite the very expensive price.

His clothes were also still the same as the one he wore last night, neatly attached to his body without anything suspicious.

While his face looked very pitiful. Sera really looked like a haunting, deathly pale ghost with dark circles around her eyes.

Sera slowly turned on the water tap in the sink, then leaned over to wash her face. Afterwards, he looked back at the image of his wet face at the reflection of himself in the mirror and frowned.

Is everything okay? Is the secret still safe and Xavier does not know anything? Is it true that all of these incidents were just minor incidents of unintentional neglect?

If so...why is Sera still unable to calm down? Why did he feel the uneasiness tickling his crutches as if there was a strong premonition from his instincts shouting about the great danger that might befall him?

Sera knocked on the sturdy door of the study slowly. A servant whom he had met while exiting the room had ushered him to the door of this room and said that his master Xavier had been waiting for him inside, before then leaving him alone in this hallway.

The voice of the order to enter that from within made Sera unthinkingly open that door and step inside. Thanks for the medicine he took. Now his condition is much better, it is fresher, and his headache is no longer dominating.

"You're still wearing the same clothes," Xavier's voice sounded calm, but Sera could see how the corner of the man's lips twitched as she hid her irritation.

Yes, in the name of her stubbornness, again Sera had refused to wear the change of clothes provided by Xavier in the bathroom for her. The clothes were all new and definitely expensive, but for some reason Sera felt that if she obeyed Xavier and put them on, she was as if she was declaring her helplessness in the man's hands.

And that can't happen.

Facing a man like Xavier, Sera knew that she had to be strong and have a firm stand so that Xavier could not help but oppress her. His incidences of stumbling overnight due to alcohol poisoning were the result of his boredom and Sera promised that he would be so careful later in life that it would not happen a second time.

When Sera just nodded her head and stood in place without taking a word, Xavier clucked slowly, then used his hand gesture towards Sera.

"Please sit down, Miss Sera. Let's start our conversation on work." Xavier waited until Sera complied and took a seat opposite her, then the man continued, "Although I work at the Night Corporation, but I don't work there completely. There are several other companies I hold that need my attention. You must have known that before applying to be my assistant, right?" ask Xavier then.

Sera nodded her head. "Yes, I know it" he answered honestly.

In the announcement of job vacancies from Night Corporation, which was circulated specifically only in certain circles, it was written that Xavier Light needed a personal assistant not only at Night Corporation, but also to handle his work in other fields.

"Most of my work is done at home," Xavier uttered his sentence meaningfully, then stared at Sera with a sharp look. "Also there are some of my jobs that are in the shadows. You certainly understand what I mean. I guess, the rumors that developed about me could not escape your ears," he said in a tone no less congratulations.

Sera gulped, and nodded her head without refuting Xavier's conjecture. He knew that if he said he didn't know anything, it sounded suspicious.

Xavier's dreaded fame both in the brightly lit business world and in the pitch-black underground world was just as great, it was impossible if Sera came to apply as Xavier's assistant without knowing any information about this man.

"Then, you must have known that I have a special interest in the field of developing biological weapons that are quite dangerous. You applied as my assistant, so you're ready to be my assistant in that field, right?" ask Xavier quickly.

Once again Sera nodded her head. For some reason his heart suddenly thumped rapidly full of anticipation.

"My previous assistants were all men, so I had no trouble determining this. However, you are my first female assistant, so I feel that you better be told first the rules to become my assistant completely." Xavier's eyes narrowed, watching Sera closely.n"Because of my timeless work hours, all my previous assistants had to stay in my house, so that they could be ready as soon as possible, whenever I needed them."

Xavier's words made Sera's eyes widen. He did know that all of Xavier's previous assistants always followed wherever Xavier went, and as Xavier's assistant, he did aim for the closest position to the man to look for his weaknesses before then destroying them. However, the shadow that they all lived in Xavier's house was completely unthinkable.

In fact, the closer Sera was to Xavier, the greater the chance for him to injure or kill Xavier. But, encouraged by his ego, Sera chooses not to take the shortcut of completing her grudge.

For the man who had ruined and destroyed his life, just death was not enough as revenge. Sera must be able to crush Xavier to the bottom, until the man falls to the ground, then the man deserves to die.

Sera quickly controlled her heart that was churned by the flames of anger. He looked towards Xavier with a bold attitude, as if raising his chin defiantly.

"Mr Xavier," Sera deliberately spoke in a restrained formal tone to remind Xavier of his position. "I applied to be your assistant professionally, and you accepted me, definitely with professional consideration as well. So, I hope we continue to keep this relationship within the realm of professionalism. I'm a woman, so it doesn't feel right that I'm staying in your house, even though it's the reason that I'm your assistant."

Sera stopped her sentence and looked towards Xavier who only raised an eyebrow at hearing it back using formal language to speak. "It is with a heavy heart that I reject the terms you have proposed. If you still want me to be your assistant, I promise I'll always be ready whenever you need me, without me having to stay at your house. But if you want to cancel this job because of my refusal, then please. It's just that, I dare to guarantee, you will never be able to find another candidate, with a qualification as good as mine."

With great pride, Sera got up from her seat, staring at Xavier in a haughty manner.

"I think the talk is enough to get here. You may need some time to consider your decision, so it's better if I don't interfere. Excuse me." Without giving Xavier a chance to speak, Sera turned around, then sped her steps out the door and left the room.

The taxi that drove him stopped right in front of the gate of his house, and immediately Sera paid and then went down from the taxi and stepped hurriedly into his house.

He immediately locked the door and rested his back on the door. Sera's legs felt so limp that he was finally unable to support the weight of his body again and made him slump to the floor.

Sera submerged her face in her bent knee, sighing deeply to calm herself down.

He tried to escape as quickly as possible from Xavier's house and half ran across the garden of Xavier's mansion until he finally managed to step out through the giant gate guarded by large bodyguards Sera knows she's equipped with a gun.

Luckily, there were no guards there to stop him. They all just looked and let it go when he stopped the taxi and left. It was as if Xavier had indeed instructed all of his men to let him go....

Sera herself did not know whether her self-respectful decision to refuse Xavier's order to move into her home was the right thing, or if it would close the entire path to her revenge on Xavier.

Could it be that Xavier would really be willing to consider his words? Or did the man decide to reverse his decision to accept Sera as his assistant?

Fear directly crawled Sera. If until Xavier overturns his decision and if it's up to Roman and Samantha Dawn to find out that it was Serang's attitude that caused it, they would be furious and would probably do something evil to his dazed and crippled father who is currently still stuck in a life sentence in the city prison.

Roman Dawn and his wife always force him to use his body to seduce Xavier Light, they say that it is easier to seduce a genius man like Xavier by using his lust. But, Sera certainly did not want to do it. Although she complies with Roman's threat by willingly proposing to be Xavier's assistant to approach him, she has secretly investigated what Xavier's favorite women look like and purposely dresses up as the opposite, so that there is absolutely no interest from Xavier to him.

Sera is convinced, that her intelligence is comparable to that of the man, and that she can defeat Xavier by using her brain, not her body.

Although later, if Xavier turned out to completely overturn his decision to make Sera his assistant, Sera no longer knew what he had to do in the future....

The house looked quiet and deserted, like the previous nights, as well as with the entire area of this simple, deserted residential complex and without competent security guards.

It's past midnight. For almost an hour, Xavier sat in his dark-glazed car parked under the large trees in the park not far from Sera's house. The color of the car looks dull with the surrounding environment, so that, if there are people passing on this lonely road though, no one will notice it.

"He finally went to sleep," Xavier's eyes watched the window of Sera's darkened front room. He knew that the room lights that had been turned off for some time indicated that Sera had indeed slept. "Move now. Burn that house. I want the house to burn down and there's not a single piece of stuff left in there. All documents, property, money, clothes, destroy everything. But, remember to get that woman out of there unharmed in the middle of the process, make this fire like an accident and lest she suspect your disguise as the fireman who saved her."

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If you like fantasy romance stories, also read the new author novel titled INEVITABLE WAR which is now published in Mangatoon, yes. To visit, please find the title "INEVITABLE WAR" in the search field, or click author --> profile select "KARYA' --> Scroll to the bottom ---> In the Contribution section, there are titles of Novel by the author in Mangatoon, and please click the cover of the novel INEVITABLE WAR

Thank You's. By AY