In the tense silence of the base, Kai’s anger flared, “What is the meaning of this, Leon?” he demanded through gritted teeth, glaring at Leon Dragonheart and his team.
Leon smirked, a glint of mischief in his eyes, “Don’t you understand, my friend?” He snapped his fingers, and numerous bubbles appeared, surrounding Kai and his team.
“I want to see what my friend is capable of!” he declared before the bubbles exploded.
Kai and his team barely avoided the blast, thanks to Kai’s quick reflexes, pushing everyone down to the ground just in time.
‘Grrrr,’ Kai growled internally, recognizing his friend’s challenge.
He had hoped to face Aqualina to win his bet, but now he was forced into an unexpected confrontation.
As he glanced at Leon’s team, filled with attractive girls, he fumed, ‘If he is a playboy, there is no way I am handing my sister to him!’ Determined to protect his sister and uphold his pride, Kai prepared to fight.
Meanwhile, Aether and Snowflake quietly slipped away from the scene, heading towards their next destination: Aqualina’s base.
Upon arrival, Aether noted the peaceful atmosphere.
Aqualina had established a small camp on a cliff, her team members strategically positioned around it. Assessing the situation, Aether asked Snowflake to hide inside his pocket and approached the camp with a steady stride.
The appearance of a hooded figure immediately put everyone on alert. The commotion drew Aqualina out of the camp, her eyes narrowing with suspicion.
“Who might you be?” she demanded.
Aether uttered a single word, “Gifts.”
Aqualina’s eyes widened in recognition and surprise. She gestured for him to enter.
Inside the modest camp, Aqualina scrutinized the hooded figure with intense curiosity.
“Hello, Princess,” Aether greeted as he removed his hoodie.
Aqualina sighed in exasperation, “What the hell are you doing here? And how did you even get inside?”
Aether gave an awkward smile, “There’s no way I would let the Princess face danger alone, so…”
“So?” Aqualina pressed, sensing a headache coming on.
“I pissed off the Principal, and she threw me in here just like before,” Aether admitted.
Aqualina froze momentarily, then grabbed his collar and shouted,
“Are you an idiot? She clearly told you not to cause any trouble, and now you’ve angered her again. This time she might expel you from the academy… arrrhhh!” she groaned in frustration.
Aether smiled reassuringly, “It’s fine, Princess… as long as you’re safe.”
Aqualina released him, sighing deeply. Looking at his innocent face, she sighed again, feeling both exasperated and touched.
[+500 Affection]
Aether knelt on one knee and said, “Your servant is here, Princess… I am ready to do anything for you!”
[+500 Affection]
Aqualina sighed once more before sitting down, her gaze fixed on Aether’s gentle smile. “Really! Why are you so… handful?!” she mumbled, but a small smile played on her lips.
“Anything for the Princess!” Aether replied earnestly, his expression unwaveringly serious.
“…” A small red hue appeared on Aqualina’s cheeks before she coughed and said, “There is no need for you to do anything…” When she saw his happy expression turning sad, Aqualina sighed inwardly and added, “Though I do need you to carry out the mission.” She tossed a small handbook at Aether.
“It has almost every detail about the Arcane Queens,” she said with a smile.
Aether opened the book and began flipping through the pages with a puzzled expression.
“Hmm, what happened?” Aqualina asked, noticing his frown.
“Well… there is nothing about you, Princess,” Aether replied with an innocent face.
“….” Aqualina’s lips twitched. Instead of addressing his obvious question, she said, “Your first target will be Aria Zephyr since you’ve already made contact with her. She knows you, so she should be an easier target.”
Aqualina’s eye twitched when she saw his gloomy expression, ‘Is this guy really into me that much?!’ she thought.
She knew there was no way Aether’s love would ever come to fruition, not even in a million years, considering he was a slave and she was a royal princess. Their love would never be acknowledged in this world. She felt a pang of pity for Aether.
Even if, by some miracle, she fell for him, their relationship would never see the light of day, especially with her mother, the Empress, never allowing her to marry a slave.
Aqualina sighed and said, “According to my calculations, Aria is most likely to be confronted by Kaelen while others…” She continued to inform Aether about the current situation and potential conflicts.
Aether was amazed at the accuracy of the information. Most of the predictions were spot on, except for the unexpected battle between Nyx and Jack. It was astonishing to see how a teenage girl could predict so much with such precision….. Aether was genuinely shocked.
Seeing his expression of astonishment, Aqualina asked with an amused look, “What?”
“Well, you are really… a princess!” Aether said with a serious face. Not just in name but also in how she carries herself. She was a Princess to the core!
“…” Aqualina smiled at his genuine compliment, a rarity in her life where everyone around her only saw her as a tool to be used… Except her mother!
Aether, driven by an unconscious impulse, patted her head gently, “You’re really working hard to protect your mother…” he began, only able to imagine the weight of the Empress’s expectations on her shoulders and how Aqualina was doing everything to ensure her mother’s safety and happiness.
“!!!” Aqualina flinched at his touch, her eyes widening as she stared at him. She swatted his hand away and said with an emotionless voice, “Do your mission.”
Aether snapped back to reality and screamed inwardly, ‘Fuck!’ He couldn’t believe he had just done that. Just as he was about to apologize, Aqualina, with a serious and emotionless tone, commanded, “G.E.T. O.U.T!”
‘Shit!’ Aether sighed, quickly wearing his hoodie back. As he was about to leave, a notification popped up,
[+600 Affection]
!~Ding~!
[Survival rate: 11% ↑]
“Tsundere~” Aether mumbled with a smile before exiting the camp.
Meanwhile,
Aqualina touched her forehead, a small red hue still visible on her cheeks. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com
“….” She didn’t say anything or even think much; she just touched her forehead for a long moment until,
“PRINCESS!!”
Hearing the urgent call, Aqualina snapped back to attention and stepped out of the camp to see Aurelia Scarlet approaching.
“Hehe… I knew you would come here,” Aqualina said with a smile.
“Well, we have an old balance that needs settling, right?” Lia said with a smirk.
“Yeah…” Aqualina nodded and glanced at Selene, who stood beside Aurelia, “You seem to be enjoying this more than anyone, Selene?”
“Hmm… Of course. Do you think I’d let you get away with snatching Ether from me?” Selene replied with a stern face, clearly holding a grudge against Aqualina for taking the opportunity to make Aether her servant.
“Sigh… Even though I’ve helped you many times,” Aqualina said, shaking her head.
“Well, that’s what a sister-in-law is supposed to do, right?” Selene said with a smirk.
“…” Aqualina simply smiled and shook her head, thinking that Selene was still acting like a child. She then turned serious and said, “Well, if you win, I will let you have him.”
Selene’s eyes sparkled with determination, and without hesitation, she made her first move, breaking the formation.
“W-Wait!!” Lia shouted in alarm as Selene charged forward.
Aqualina smirked, pleased that her plan had worked. Selene was incredibly intelligent and dangerous, but the only way to make her unstable was by using Aether as bait.