Trouble? Make It Double.

WARNING: THE FOLLOWING CHAPTER IS VIOLENT, GORY, AND BLOODY.

The man sputters before calmly saying, "Those are children I've saved from a village that was attacked by bandits!" Li Jie scoffs and says, "So you keep them locked up in a cold, dark, abandoned shed in your courtyard?" The other men scoff and give him a look of disgust, not believing him.

I silently watch the scene unfold, trying to control my anger. This is not my world; I shouldn't meddle in it but... I grit my teeth and remain silent as the old man with white hair 'hums'. He reaches up and rubs his chin as he looks over to the shed with doubtful eyes.

Old man Ru turns to the man and says, "Zhi Fang, what is the meaning of this?" Zhi Fang nervously laughs as he says "Don't be alarmed! I've only placed them in there to keep them safe. I am arranging for an orphanage to come in and get them, but it takes a few days for them to get here. I don't want the children to run off and get hurt before then."

Old man Ru slowly nods his head but still seems a little doubtful. I roll my eyes, no longer able to bite my tongue as I say, "Oh please, even an idiot can see what's happening here. He's a sick pedophile who's abusing these children. He probably bought them or kidnapped them himself." My disgust was clearly heard in my voice.

I hook a thumb behind me as I say, "You can clearly tell they've been in there longer than just a few days." Zhi Fang's eye twitches as he quickly says "I do this on a regular basis! I save lots of children. This is just the newest batch."

Old man Ru nods again, looking conflicted but not entirely convinced. He suddenly speaks up and says "I will have my men investigate the situation but until then, I'm going to have to ask everyone who isn't a part of the Fang residence to leave. This is trespassing."

Welp, there goes the last of my patience. I sigh and say, "Okay, this is going nowhere. Since you don't want to handle this properly, I can't be bothered as well." I lift my hand and send my magic and rage into the plump Zhi Fang.

Zhi Fang suddenly pops like a balloon made of meat.

"POP!!"

Bits and pieces of the fat man go flying everywhere, covering everything and everyone in the courtyard. Well, except for me. Everyone jumps and sucks in as they're plastered with the man's bits. Silence descends upon the entire courtyard as everyone remains frozen in shock.

I brush off the end of my dress once again as the silence is finally broken. A servant in the Fang residence screams as chaos soon follows. People start screaming, throwing up, and passing out. Some run for their lives as the guards still kneeling begin pleading for mercy. They had seen what happened to the head of the house, they didn't want to be next!

Suddenly, old man Ru yells "Order!!" Everyone tries to calm down as he turns and looks at me with fear and disbelief. He tries his best to wipe away the bits and pieces on his face as he asks with a shaky voice "What... how, no. Do you realize what you've just done? You have committed murder in front of the Chief of Guards!"

I blink as I look over at Li Jie. He still remains rooted to the ground, unable to move or process what just took place but as he hears old man Ru's words, he quickly wipes his face with shaky hands and says, "Sir, he was a pedophile and a murderer. He is guilty. Plus, he attacked her first! It was self-defense." He had no idea how or what just happened, but he knew he needed to protect Lyra, no matter what! He would think about what just happened once he knew she wasn't going to be taken away.

Old man Ru looks at him before lifting a shaky finger at me and saying, "That doesn't mean she can murder him right in front of me and everyone else here!" I arch a dark brow but when old man Ru sees it, he quickly lowers his hand and clears his throat in fear. He clearly valued his life.

I sigh and say, "Fine, since murdering a sick freak like him is going to be a problem, I'll just fix it." I wave my hand with annoyance and watch as all the bits and pieces quickly start putting themselves back together.

A few more guards look on in fear and disgust as I put Zhi Fang back together... well, kinda. Someone throws up again as I hear a few more people pass out. Indicated by the soft 'thuds' I keep hearing. Zhi Fang stands before us again, moaning and shivering in pain as his skin sags in different places. He looks like a knock-off version of Quasimodo from the hunchback of Notre Dame.

I tilt my head to the side and frown. One of his legs is shorter than the other. And his shoulders aren't sitting right... Oh, and he's missing a few fingers. Well, this was only taught to me in theory, so I've never done this before. This was my first time, what did they expect? Practice makes perfect, right?

You can also only do this right after their death though. If you wait too long, their soul leaves and you bring an empty shell back. Similar to necromancy but necromancy isn't really my thing... clearly. I sigh and say "No, no. It's all wrong. Hold on, let me try again."

Everyone cries out as he explodes once again, covering everything and everyone for a second time. I wave my hand again and watch as he's pieced back together. Zhi Fang gurgles out "Mercy! Please!" But his lips are all messed up, so it comes out all muffled.

I frown in dissatisfaction as I sigh loudly and say, "No, it's still not right. Hold on, give me a minute." He explodes again, covering everyone once again before repeating the process. This time Zhi Fang just screams in agonizing pain.

I sigh and say out loud, "I think it's just getting worse." I turn and see a chuck of something on my shoulder as I say, "Oh, maybe I keep losing bits and pieces of him every time he explodes. Let me try again."

He explodes again but this time old man Ru yells "STOP!! JUST STOP!!" My hand freezes in the air as I turn and look at him with an arched eyebrow. Those of his men remaining were either throwing up or shaking with fear as they try to pick up the men who've passed out."

Old man Ru's eyes tremble with fear as he softly says "Zhi Fang was a pedophile and a murderer. He was found guilty and executed on-site." His whole body shakes as he stiffly bows and says "It seems as if I have interrupted your work. Please carry on. If... if you need any help in the future... ppppplease look for me."

His face twitches as he struggles to smile but when a chunk of skin falls off his cheek, he turns so white he looks like a ghost. He quickly turns around and practically runs out. Well, as fast as an old man in a dress can run anyway.

I turn back to Li Jie to find him leaning over and wiping his mouth. He must have thrown up as well. It was gory... even I was grossed out. When our eyes lock, I give him a small smile and say, "Let's send the children off and then look for your father."

His dark eyes look at me with a mixture of emotions before pulling himself up and giving out commands. It was going to be a long day. That really took it out of me... I wave my hand and use my magic to clean up the mess before lifting the barrier on the children. I had placed the barrier on the shed before all of this. That way they couldn't hear or see what took place.

I didn't want them to witness any of that. I walk over to the nearest bench and plop down. Now Li Jie can look for his father without any further problems. A dark smirk pulls at my lips as I think about the pain Zhi Fang had to endure. Somewhat befitting.