Chapter 141- The Best At What They Do

Chapter 141: Chapter 141- The Best At What They Do

Chapter 141- The Best At What They Do

Rize exhaled as he stood up and looked at his hand silently. The amount of blood that covered his hand disgusted him slightly as he went to try to wipe it on his clothes. However, Venera stopped him and grabbed his arm.

"You need to wash your hands." She said. Then she looked at his face and continued. "And your face. You got some blood on it."

Rize didn’t say a word as he started walking with Venera next to him. The trip back to his quarters was completely silent and tense. Neither said a word, but the one who was in inner turmoil was Rize. The shame he felt from the sight Venera witnessed plagued his mind and didn’t leave him be.

He kept sneaking looks at her as they walked, trying to see if she had any sort of reaction to what she witnessed.

’She must be shocked at what she saw.’ Rize thought to himself. ’Fuck, why did I let myself lose control like that? What if she thinks I’m always susceptible to losing control and beating people to death?’ He clenched his teeth.

Even if Venera had seen him kill someone before, that was far better than the sight she just witnessed. It wasn’t what he did precisely that made him feel ashamed, but rather the state of dark anger he felt at that moment and the kind of vibe around him that she was not familiar with.

Rize never wanted her to see him act like a barbarian, especially when he knew the kind of environment Venera came from. What if that disgusted her and she was contemplating changing him? Or replacing him?

He hated that idea a lot even though Rize never even planned to be her bodyguard at the very start of all of this. Now that he got to know Venera and the true person she is. He feared that this could be a reason for her to give up on him, thinking that she saw his true colors and what he is deep inside.

The trip back, even though it wasn’t that long, felt like an eternity. Eventually, when they made it there, Rize put his watch against the lock and unlocked it before he walked in and rushed to the bathroom as he tried to wash the blood.

Putting his hand under the running water, he started washing it in a hurry, trying to get the blood off of him as quickly as possible. He rubbed his hands against each other, used soap, and kept rubbing and rubbing until the entire sink was covered in blood.

’Dammit, just get off.’ He clenched his teeth as he tried to rub even harder. He kept rubbing as if he was trying to peel his skin off. It reached a point where the sound echoed through the entire place.

Rize was so focused on rubbing that he didn’t notice that Venera had walked behind him and was watching him silently.

"You will hurt your hand if you keep doing that." She said as she walked to his side and looked at his hands. "You will get the blood off with gentle rubbing. It didn’t dry yet, so it will peel off quickly."

"..." Rize didn’t say a word as he slowed down and tried to rub slowly. That was when the blood started dripping down and peeling off his skin. Venera nodded her head before she looked at his face calmly and said.

"I will get a towel and wipe your face before it dries." She said as she walked out and came back with a towel that she put under water, and then grabbed Rize’s shoulder.

"Can you face me, Rize?" She asked gently. However, Rize didn’t reply as he kept looking away, as if he was trying to avoid her. Venera understood what he was thinking about before she pulled him to the side and made him face her.

Rize tried to move his head, but Venera grabbed his chin and made him look at her. His eyes were lost and confused, but she didn’t mind that.

"Venera..."

"Shhh, you don’t need to say anything. Just don’t move and let me wipe your face, ok?" She asked. "As much as you look quite nice with blood on your face... I don’t like that right now." Venera said with a soft smile.

Rize looked at her with a difficult expression as his lips quivered. However, he didn’t say a word as Venera started wiping the blood from his face. The two stood silently in the bathroom. The atmosphere had calmed down a bit compared to earlier, but Rize still felt like he wanted to say something.

He didn’t know what it was, but he felt the urge to just say something, to break the ice and ask her if she was disgusted by what he did.

"Ok, that looks better." Venera eventually said as she gave Rize’s face a final glance and then went to wash the towel. Rize watched her silently.

’Why is she so calm? Isn’t she upset? Doesn’t she think I’m some kind of bloodthirsty monster?’ He asked. ’Does she not think I enjoy doing such things?’

"Venera..."

"Hm?"

"..." He hesitated for a second before he finally mustered the courage to speak. "That wasn’t me... That was... I was angry, and I lost control of my emotions. I promise I didn’t do that because-"

"I know." Venera cut him off as she turned to look at him. "I know, Rize."

"..."

"You were angry for me, weren’t you?" She asked. "That needle... It was targeted toward me, wasn’t it?"

"..." Rize pursed his lips. "Yeah, it was..."

"So, why should I be upset that you were mad for me? If anything, I want to thank you for saving me... And being that upset that someone wanted to attack me." She said.

Rize’s eyes widened before he started subtly panicking. "What? No, it isn’t anything... Worth thanking me for. It’s my job to protect you... I just... I shouldn’t have hit him like that..."

"When we’re angry, we don’t really think about what we’re doing, Rize."

"..."

"Don’t blame yourself for that." She said. "You didn’t do anything bad, ok?"

"But... I don’t want to be that way." He said. "I don’t want to be consumed like that. It’s something I swore I would never feel again..."

Rize had sworn to himself that he would never let hatred and anger make him do bad things. What he did that day, all those years ago, it ruined his life beyond salvation. It made him a completely different person, and because of it, he ended up alone, left by everyone and hated for everything that he represented.

Venera saw the sheer fear in his eyes and sighed before she pushed herself off the counter and walked toward him.

"Hey, look at me." She said as she stared deep into his eyes. "You won’t be consumed by anything. You are far stronger than these emotions or these thoughts. The Rize I know would overcome anything he faces and come out victorious every single time. You aren’t the kind of person who would lose to this."

"..."

"And I’m here. As long as I’m by your side, I will never let anything consume you." She said. "I promise you that."

"..."

Rize stared into her eyes, and all he saw was conviction and belief. She trusted him with her life, and he could instantly see that. The feeling made him even more ashamed, but also... He realized something.

’Every single time, she proves to me that I’m wrong and she’s right.’ Rize thought to himself. ’She wouldn’t give up on me no matter what. Even when she sees my ugly side... Why did I always suspect that she would give up on me? Even though she proved again and again that she truly believes in me?’

Rize could only sigh at how distrustful he was toward people. Venera was the best human being he ever met, and it wasn’t close. She deserved his trust just like how she trusted him. He shouldn’t question that she would betray him or leave him because of his own fears from the past.

This was a different him, a different world, a different Venera, and a different kind of connection than anything he had ever established with someone.

"Thank you, Venera..." He said with a warm smile. "You’re truly the best... Ever."

Venera was taken aback by his compliment before she smiled. "You’re giving me too many compliments. I’m not doing anything worth complimenting."

"No, you are... Far more than you could ever imagine." He said. "You always carry the burden with me and never complain. I’m really too much trouble for someone who is supposed to be your escort and bodyguard."

"What can I say? My bodyguard is troublesome. But... I wouldn’t replace him with anyone else." She said. "I wouldn’t want it any other way."

Rize could only laugh at her reply before he nodded. "You won’t be able to replace me easily, you know?"

"Absolutely. You’re the best at what you do."