Arghhhhhh. I was planning on posting the corrected chapter immediately after April 1st, but I lost my damn USB. /MOURNS LOSS WHILE POSTING THIS CHAPTER.

And now I don't know where my journal is with the rest of this chapter. /more excuses here.

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chapter o7.5; no srsly this time

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Sozhen was good at problem solving ― but his methods and solutions were questionable. Yet somehow he always seemed triumphant in the end. Kaotin put it off as sheer, dumb luck because come on now ― throwing Black at Ardor as distraction should not work so well.

But apparently it did. When Black and Ardor finally untangled themselves, Sozhen and Kaotin were long gone.

"Black," Ardor said. "When someone throws you at me, don't flail and try to angle your body so you land on anyone but me. Thank you."

The other man scowled. "You act like this happens everyday."

Ardor let out a sigh. "Where the hell was Baalusan? And the Legion?"

Somehow, during the whole 'get off of me!' thing, the other demons had disappeared. All that remained were huge craters and fires everywhere.

"Black," Ardor said again. "You're telling Belial."

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"Sozhen!" the lady gasped, peering down at the bound and gagged figure on the floor. "What did you do? Is that… who I think it is?"

"Yes, Noir. That is Kaotin."

"Why is he tied up?"

Kaotin glared at the two while yelling incoherently through the piece of cloth tied around his mouth.

"Well, he has to return home one way or another…"

"…I'm pretty sure this counts as treason," Lady Noir said. "You bound and gagged him. Doesn't that account as assault?"

Kaotin continued struggling while Sozhen looked at everything except Noir or him. The statue over there was rather intricate and sophisticated looking.

"I'm sure the council will understand."

The Lady sighed. "If you say so. Well, if anything goes wrong, tell me. I'll help you."

"I know. Thank you, my dear sister." Sozhen grinned at her. "Come on, Kaotin. We have a long road ahead of us." He heaved a kicking Kaotin onto his shoulder.

When the servants saw the Captain of the Royal Guard sprinting into the castle with a struggling figure slung over his shoulder, they didn't ask. When they saw the Captain of the Royal Guard carry the same, now cloaked figure bound and gagged into a carriage, they still didn't ask.

When the carriage was out of sight, however…

"Did you see that?!"

"Who was that he was carrying?"

"Maybe Captain Sozhen bought a slave, eh?"

"He could be carrying a criminal to the council!"

Regardless of gossip, they never found out who it was that the Captain carried off. Sozhen, however, stopped being 'the amiable and kind captain of the royal guard' and was soon referred to as a scary brute. Not that anyone would ever say that to his face.