Chapter 58: I Shall Court I

Chapter 58: I Shall Court I The whole situation infuriated Mozrael more as she thought of it. Kesha was just acting high and mighty because she had a strong background. Her thoughts were turning more and more ugly, then- I shall lend you my power...kill...her... Burn her... destroy her... I know what I want, Mozrael thought sharply. But even she was unsettled by how easy it felt this time, how natural the idea of burning Kesha had become. The voice whisperred in Mozrael’s mind- the ancient voice that wanted to take control. This was the first time she’d wanted the strength willingly for something so unnecessary. Mozrael didn’t throw the fireball. She launched it. A roaring sphere of flames hurtled toward Kesha’s face— BOOM! Dust and smoke erupted in the room, sending everyone stumbling back. Kesha’s sigh was long and suffering. "Mozrael. What did I tell you?" Mozrael flipped her hair back and looked at Kesha defiantly. "You said no harming. I was aiming to incinerate." Henndar looked up from where he’d shielded his face, eyes darting through the settling smoke. I hope she is not wounded A sharp cough sounded from the side. Kesha emerged from the smoke, dress slightly singed, silver strands of hair floating down. But her face? Completely unimpressed. She looked down at her burnt sleeve, patted out a lingering ember, and then calmly removed the entire outer layer of her dress like it was an inconvenience. Beneath it, she was wearing another white dress. Mozrael stared. "What—How—WHY do you have another dress?" The girl flicked her hair. "A lady is always prepared." The words had an underlying meaning and that made a nerve bulge on her head. Aramith, who had been twitching in silence, finally twitched too hard and just... keeled over sideways, hitting the floor with a thump. Mozrael immediately abandoned the murder attempt to grab his shoulders. "Aramith?! Wake up!" Aramith was completely unresponsive, his mouth slightly open, his soul probably floating in another dimension. Henndar groaned, rubbing his temples. "Wonderful. He’s broken." Kethra raised a hand, conjuring a glowing white petal, and pressed it to Aramith’s forehead. It sizzled. Henndar paled. "Did you just burn his brain?" "I reset it," Kethra corrected, as if restarting a person was as normal as breathing. [reset his brain?????????] Aramith twitched again before suddenly sitting bolt upright with a gasp, eyes wild. Kesha beamed. "You’re awake! We can continue planning our wedding." Continue? Aramith’s soul immediately tried to leave his body again. Mozrael lost it. She lunged at Keshaa, but Kethra was faster. With a flick of her wrist, vines held Mozrael down. Henndar let out the longest, most exhausted sigh of his life. "Is this Karma?" Kethra smiled softly. It was amusing. Henndar always went chaotic, teasing people, so to see him taste his own medicine was something...nice? Meanwhile, Aramith had finally found his voice again. "LISTEN HERE, YOU—" He grabbed Kesha by the shoulders, shaking her slightly. "I AM FOURTEEN! FOURTEEN!! WHAT KIND OF INSANE PERSON—" Kesha blushed and looked at him coquetishly "Oh, so you’re aggressive huh?" "WHAT DO-" [some three people didn’t know how to react to this.] "You’ll grow," she interrupted smoothly, patting his hands like a doting wife. Aramith nearly exploded. "THAT’S NOT THE PROBLEM—" He was on the verge of tears. "Excuse me?" a hesitant new voice called. Everyone turned. A bewildered servant stood at the door, eyes darting between Mozrael tied down by vines, Henndar holding his head in despair, Kethra swatting away floating embers, and Aramith visibly combusting in rage. "...Should I come back later?" Henndar looked the servant dead in the eyes. "Yes. Yes, you should." And with that, the door quietly clicked shut again. Mozrael groaned from the floor. "I hate her." Kesha smiled. "You’ll be my maid of honor." Henndar buried his face in his hand. "I need a drink. Wait where’s that servant?" He suddenly regretted telling the servant to leave. Silence stretched between them, broken only by the faint crackling of embers still lingering in the air. Henndar, looking approximately five decades older than he was, pinched the bridge of his nose. "Enough. Everyone. Sit down." Aramith, still gripping the girl’s shoulders like she was some kind of nightmare, looked ready to protest. But one glare from Henndar and he reluctantly let go, stalking over to a chair. Mozrael picked herself up, rubbing her wrists where the vines grabbed, and flopped onto a seat with a very audible huff. Kethra, unbothered as ever, gracefully took her seat as if nothing had happened. Kesha, still far too pleased with herself—sat down as well, folding her hands in her lap like the picture of perfect innocence. Henndar dropped into his chair, exhaling. "Now, let’s all behave like reasonable people and discuss matters properly." Aramith twitched. Mozrael opened and closed her fist, flames crackling at her fingertips. "Yes. Properly." The girl smiled. "This sounds lovely." Henndar shot Mozrael a warning look (more like a plea) before shifting his gaze toward their uninvited guest. Kethra stood beside Henndar, eyeing the three children carefully. "Okay, Aramith? Mozrael?" Henndar drew their attention. They looked at him, Mozrael agitated, and Aramith a black-and-white filter of emptiness "This is Kesha Frostborn of the Glacial Empire. As you already know, the Glacial Empire is the strongest force among us humans as of now. Kesha happens to be the princess there. She only has an older sister, but still, she is from a powerful background. That is why we need to listen to what she has to say." Henndar ended his little explanation and turned to Kesha, who was just staring dotingly at Aramith. "As for you. A marriage proposal is not something you can just decide on so easily." Kesha looked at Henndar seriously. "Marriage is about love. What do you mean?" Henndar didn’t take his eyes off her. "Do you know the political implications of that decision you’re making? And are your parents aware of this decision?" "Politics bore me. Marriage is about love, and we love each other." She pointed a finger at Henndar and Kethra. "Didn’t you two get married because of love?" Henndar wasn’t expecting that approach. "Well, yes. We love each other dearly, but as for you-" "I was drawn to him by fate. We have a connection- love." She gave Aramith a sweet smile. He shuddered, and Mozrael itched to burn her. "Kesha, even if you decided that on your own, You need the consent of many people. Aramith for one hasn’t accepted you-" "But he has. Look how happy he is. Oh, Aramith." Her voice was laced with warmth, an unsettling contrast to the frozen tundra of her earlier expression. Mozrael, suddenly gripping a fork, twirled it between her thumb and index finger. "You can’t even read human expression." Kesha didn’t even glance at her. In fact, she acted as if Mozrael was an inanimate object. She was utterly indifferent, as though Mozrael’s entire existence was just a mildly inconvenient shadow in the room. "Aramith, come sit next to me." She patted the chair beside her with slow, deliberate movements, like a queen summoning her most prized knight. Mozrael twitched. "Like hell he will!" Aramith, sensing the impending explosion, cautiously chose his words. "I think I’m fine right here—" You think??? Can’t you say no?? Mozrael was surprised at how lightly Aramith was taking this. Kesha tilted her head slightly. "You smell nice." Mozrael’s chair scraped against the floor as she stood, her aura radiating murderous intent. "I’ll kill her." Kethra was about to step forward but Henndar was fast and immediately wrapped an arm around her, desperately holding her back as she lunged forward. "Mozrael, no!" She’s so difficult to control when she’s like this. Kesha continued to act like Mozrael simply did not exist. Her only concern was Aramith, and she stared at him with an eerie calm. "I’ll make sure you’re well-fed. Unlike her, I will take care of you." Kesha turned her head toward Mozrael. "Tsk tsk tsk. I know it’s hard when you’re the rival, I understand" She looked sad, pressing a hand to her chest. "How tragic. But you should know true love—" Mozrael hurled a fireball. "HE’S MY BROTHER! AND YOU’RE NOT PART OF MY FAMILY!" Her words shook the room. "Mozrael." Aramith suddenly spoke. "Let’s try not to burn people and the room?" He signalled at the fireballs she kept hurling. He was genuinely concerned, but then he realized. Am I defending her? he looked at Kesha, who wiped a tear. "So you do love me. I knew it was fate." Mozrael suddenly calmed down. "I see. You’re taking her side." Mozrael said calmly and turned to leave. She paused at the door, her voice softer this time. "If you’re so happy about bringing a stranger into the family, then maybe I don’t belong in that family as well." "No I wasn’t-" Aramith stepped forward but kesha grabbed his hand. He didn’t want to have anything to do with that crazy girl, but it seemed best to allow Mozrael to calm down. Henndar and Kethra didn’t interrupt anything. After Mozrael left, Kethra went out to find her. Henndar sent Aramith to his room and arranged a room for Kesha. After the night had calmed down, Henndar called for Aiden. "Check these two," Henndar pointed at the two vials Kesha had brought in. Henndar told him about Kesha and Aiden after studying the first vial was impressed. "This is the same poison I found in Lia’s blood. But as for this..." He studied the second vial a while longer, drew some alchemy formations on it, and then frowned. "I don’t understand it. This is a different antidote. it doesn’t eliminate the poison in Lia. This kills...worms?" "She was right about the poison, but the antidote she provided isn’t the cure." Henndar thought awhile. "So this is still a lost cause?" Aiden, still scrutinizing the clear-blue liquid replied. "Not exactly. The people who were slipping the poison in her have been caught, so there shouldn’t be any more poison added. The only issue is that this flower, as we know is very rare, so we are finding it difficult to find something to counter its effects. There is no mention of it in the records, other than the fact that it is a poison. I never even knew it induced sleep in a person. and as we discussed earlier, we still have access to those rare pillls that could heal anything and bring a dying person to life, but anything could happen if the poison has an effect on the pills." Henndar let out a breath. "That’s understandable. I would still want you to take them with you, check them again," he pointed to the two vials. Aiden took them, but as he was about to exit, he turned and bowed again. "Your Majesty, may I ask a question?" "Go on." "I am only curious, and it is not in my place to ask, but do you trust that girl?" Henndar smiled. "You could put it that way." Aiden showed a brief expression of surprise, then excused himself.