Bab 63: The Heart of Darkness
"Liru, you're back," Clockmaker said enthusiastically.
"Yep," Ru said and walked past Vaelan inside. He threw himself onto the three-seater sofa.
"I was just about to call you, man. Let's go out and celebrate," Vaelan said, sitting down next to Ru.
Ru put his feet up on the coffee table. "What's to celebrate," he asked.
Vaelan began to explain enthusiastically: "The Wolf Without You Bar wants to see us on stage again and they're paying twice as much this time. Moreover, we received an offer from the Sleepy Mell Bar. What more can you ask for, man? We might even get sponsors for our concerts with a few more gigs."
"Yeah," Ru said, and one of his phones rang. Unfortunately, it was his old phone.
When he saw the new one, Vaelan asked, "Wow, where did you steal that from, man?"
Ru gave him a dirty look and picked up the phone. "Hello! Yes, I'm at Vaelan's house. There is no situation. What did you guys do?"
"Who is it?" Vaelan put his ear close to the phone to listen.
"Claude," Ru whispered to Vaelan. "How is your secretary? Is she going to be all right?"
Vaelan asked, "What happened?"
Ru warned him, holding his index finger over his lip: "Shh!"
"Okay."
"Oh yes, I opened the booklet," Ru said, showing the object to Vaelan.
"What is this," Clockmaker asked.
Ru looked at them and spoke into the phone. "They called it a booklet, but it is a wonderful device. I could not examine it completely. We can examine it if you come here. I will send my location."
"Is Claude's secretary beautiful?" Vaelan asked excitedly. He was not deterred by the dirty looks of Ru. "How old is she?"
Ru kicked Vaelan's leg.
"Ow!"
"Okay, I'm sending you a location, bye," Ru said, and hung up the phone. "Dude, are you stupid? Behave yourself for just a second!"
"But dude, we're two single guys here," Vaelan said.
Ru said imitating his voice with exaggerated facial expressions: "I'm a single man, buddy, I'm horny, I need a woman now! Meh!"
Vaelan gave up, "Oh okay! Whatever you're up to..."
Ru said, "Get up and tidy up a bit, Claude is coming in an hour."
"That's great news, let's make something to eat for Claude," Clockmaker said excitedly.
"What's your problem?" Ru snapped to Clockmaker.
"Look, there's two single guys and a single girl here," Clockmaker said.
"You're a man too, look at that muscular body, bud," Vaelan said in a panic.
Ru glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. Frankly, Vaelan had grown a lot bigger and more muscular lately. He was an extremely attractive and handsome man.
Noticing Ru's look, Clockmaker giggled, "Teehee!"
"No way! He is my bro," Ru yelled.
"What the fuck," Vaelan said.
"I know you're jealous of our bodies," Clockmaker said mischievously.
"Yeah, we are muscular," Vaelan said enthusiastically.
"Too much muscle," Ru said, turning his head in embarrassment. "We need to tidy up the house," he stammered, coughed, and continued, "And we have to get dinner ready."
"Yes, Monsieur," Clockmaker said.
Vaelan asked, "Is there anything you want me to do?"
"Mate, order something to drink and eat and I'll tidy up," Ru said, who suddenly stood up. "But put away your laundry."
"OK, Mom," Vaelan said sarcastically and set about picking up his clothes that had been thrown around.
Ru started the robot cleaner and picked up the vacuum cleaner at the same time. "Go go robot! And Vaelan, when you're done with your laundry, put the pizza and beer cans in the trash and the dishes in the dishwasher."
Vaelan and Clockmaker made a new offer, still busy picking up dirty clothes: "We're going to the grocery store. We don't want to bother ordering. They shipped us expired food last time, you know."
"Go, but don't be late," Ru said.
"Yes, sir," Clockmaker said and they left the house, ignoring the pile of laundry behind them.
Ru yelled after him, "Filthy bastards!" and continued cleaning.
It had been five minutes since Vaelan had left the house when Ru seemed to hear an unexpected voice, a kind of cackling or growling. Suddenly he felt a strange vibration in the room. The lights flickered on and off, and there was a dull darkness.
BZZZZTTT!
[Power Outage]
"Come on! What's happening now," Ru muttered, standing in the center of the room with the vacuum cleaner in his hand and looking around.
Strange sounds repeated cackling or growling. He noticed a light under the pile of laundry on the couch.
"I'm an idiot."
His phone was ringing—the new one.
When he saw the VIP text on the screen, his heart started beating rapidly.
He picked up and said "Hello. Am I talking to the Purple Lady sitting on the pedestal?"
"Wow, you're smart. You managed to excite me," the girl purred.
"Who are you? And what do you want from me," Ru asked, taking hurried steps.
"Actually, I was going to do what I do to every Ru, which is to kill you. But this time, you're so sweet that I wanted to make a change, Lulu," she replied, her tone playful.
"I wonder if this change is related to the apocalypse game," Ru said, his mind racing.
"Hmm, looks like someone told you about me," she said suggestively.
"This was just my guess," Ru said, unable to believe he was protecting that painter psychopath.
"Anyway, that doesn't matter. After all, the game continues. It is still possible for you to die before performing your transmigration, Lulu," she said, her voice taking on a more serious tone.
"I want to ask something. About your captor in that gray void with giant statues," Ru said.
"My captor? Ahahah, you are so funny," she laughed.
"Okay, you weren't taken captive, so why can't you get out of there," Ru asked.
"Because I don't want to leave here. Let's call it responsibility," she said firmly.
"But you were talking about someone and asking 'Why did you leave me here?'" Ru persisted.
"What a sweet stalker you are. You confess to all your crimes, my naughty flower," she replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
"I'm sorry, somehow I got pulled in there and just saw you. That's... So where exactly is that?" Ru asked, his voice filled with confusion and intrigue.
"An art gallery in gray hell," she replied, her tone deadpan.
"What do you mean by hell?" Ru asked, his eyebrows furrowing.
"Absolutely hell," she replied, her voice a chilling intensity.
"Okay, but you don't look like demons, do you?" Ru asked, trying to make sense of it all.
"Ahahah! You are really funny. I'll give you a bonus for making me laugh," she said enthusiastically.
"Oh, sure," Ru replied, his confusion mounting.
"Your other phone is ringing non-stop, it's 'Auntie' calling. Because the greatest demon attack ever is about to begin," she said, her voice suddenly serious.
"Thank you for this great news," Ru said sarcastically. "One last thing: Are you the one sending the demons to me?"
"I am the one who directs the demons to you. Because I don't have a problem with your planet, but I have a problem with you," she said with excited breaths.
"Your problem isn't with me, it's with Almighty Ru," Ru retorted, his voice filled with defiance.
"The reunion will take place when the show begins," she said, her voice cold and calculating.
"No, I don't want to merge with him. I don't want to turn into him," Ru pleaded.
"My flower, what you don't want to understand is that you are already him," she replied, her voice filled with a sense of finality.
"No, I'm not and I don't accept it," Ru insisted, his voice rising.
"Facts are facts even if you don't accept them, Lulu," she said, her tone unwavering.
"No," Ru shouted, his anger flaring.
"You are a thief and you ripped out the heart of the man I love," she said, her voice filled with a cold fury.
"What?" Ru exclaimed, his mind reeling.
"Soon you will feel the pain I have suffered for a million years," she said, her words a chilling threat. "See you later!"
And the call is over.
Ru stood frozen, the phone still clutched in his hand as her final words echoed in his mind. The room around him seemed to close in, the silence thick and oppressive. The electricity must have returned at that moment because everything was punctuated only by the distant hum of the vacuum cleaner.
He felt a deep, inexplicable connection to this girl—this Purple Lady—whose voice had just wrapped around him like a vice. It wasn't just the threat she posed or the ominous warnings she delivered; it was something more, something far more unsettling. Despite the danger, there was a strange, almost magnetic pull towards her. He couldn't understand it, but it was there, gnawing at him, refusing to let go.
The last sentences hung heavily in the air.
'A thief? Ripped out the heart of the man she loved?!'
The words pierced through him, bringing with them a pang of guilt.
The phone just fell out of his hand.
"You... You... Sen... Senec..." he was saying, slowly punching his chest.
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