Year 2 Chapter 6: Rematch

If he had not stared at them for so long, Keith could have fled and escaped! The others were five moves ahead as they had already taken 20 steps away; the great spirits did one better as they lifted Eri and the little ones and brought them away from the upcoming blast zone! Gabriel and Arlo followed suit as they entered the mansion to organize Gabriel’s room. Even Herrick and Melor understood: as they punished Jack, they slowly scooted away from Keith, knowing the women were about to destroy him.

A loud and uncomfortable gulp went down Keith’s throat as he questioned, “W-What do you want to talk about?”

“Where do we begin?” Alfia slowly and gently tapped her cheek with her finger, lost in thought about what to speak of. From her posed expression, there were mountains full of issues. But the major problem was directed by her gaze.

“The main concern we have is...” With a poised point from her fingers, “What is this about your engagement to this woman?”

Scarlet stood on the side with a silent yet calming smile. She brushed her hair leisurely, “Is it not normal for me to be engaged? We are at that age.”

“Not the point.” Carolyn joined the battlefield, “The issue is you leading Keith to the demon kingdom.”  

“There is nothing wrong with Keith spending time with me.”

“That is another matter.” Krystal’s eyes narrowed. Everyone was taken aback when they received letters about Keith heading to the demon kingdom. No one expected he would go unless someone lured him…Scarlet was the cause.

However, that was only the kicker. Furthermore, they later discovered that the demon princess was betrothed to a human. No need to guess or think about who this “human” was.

Keith scratched his head, “There was-“

“Be quiet and sit in the corner.” Alfia’s gaze narrowed like knives.

“Yes!” Not even Keith; Herrick and Melor jolted forward as they grabbed him by the shoulders and dragged him off! Herrick even mouthed to tell him to be silent—

Only death awaited if he spoke.

Keith agreed as he stared at the dangerous aura forming a few steps away from them.

“Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

“What do I have to say?” Scarlet grinned, “Whoever strikes first wins.”

“!”

“But you two aren’t married,” Leona muttered. She was listening in on this spat. Then, a thought came to mind: are they really engaged?

“...” Scarlet froze.

“There was an announcement that you were supposed to be married to him because he won the tournament, but the king stopped it.” Leona heard about it. Herrick instantly clutched her mouth, signalling her to stay silent. He was sweating!

His fiancée was adding more fuel to the fire!

“Heh.” A bitter laugh came from Alfia’s lips, “To act superior when you have yet to accomplish the objective.” The air of superiority and condescension formed around the elf princess as she chuckled at the demon princess.

“You wanna go?” Scarlet snorted with confidence.

“It’s been a while. Maybe I should test my new powers out on you.” From the get-go, they were going to throw down. It was only a matter of when, not if.

Keith gulped, “Let’s not. How about we sit down and have some tea?” Don’t go blowing up our mansion now that we returned!

“Fine.” The two women halted their killing intent.  

“You survived for now!”

“Please,” Scarlet rolled her eyes as she hooked onto Keith’s arm, “But I missed you so much.”

“It was only a month.” He patted her head, consciously avoiding the angry stares from the back. Even though it was only a gaze, it was searing: his back was slowly getting charred from their fiery looks.

Scarlet grinned, “Then I will hug my little Eri.” The little fox was instantly lifted into her arms, which caused the others to glare. Eri was giggling as she hugged back.

“Big Sister Scarlet.”

“Mmhmm, my little Eri.”

“When did they get so close?”

“How could we not when she stayed with me the whole month?” A month alone with one another would deepen their relationship.

“Hey,” Keith saw the elf princess tugging his sleeve, “The next time you do something like this, come to my kingdom instead.” That minx had stolen a march on all of them.  

“I don’t think I’m going to any kingdom anytime soon.” Keith laughed, “I’m not feeling like fighting another psycho heir for someone’s hand in marriage.” That was a one-time event. Actually, it was one of those times when all the stars aligned.

“Do you think you have a choice?”

“...”

Why aren’t you saying anything?

“Make sure to come to my kingdom first,” Alfia rolled her eyes as she entered the manor. They all had to put down items they had brought back from their vacation.

Keith scratched his head…So was that a yes?

“I’ve prepared cookies and tea. Let us eat inside,” Diana chimed in. Hearing her words, the woman nodded. Cookies and tea were the best after this.

Herrick chimed in, “Keith, let’s spar!”

“Alright.” Let’s see how much you’ve grown. From the letters he received, he talked about getting even stronger than before. The two stood on the training ground. Melor stood as referee.

“Begin!” The moment the two started their battle, Herrick made the first move as always. However, Keith instantly guarded as he took the brunt. Whoa!

Even when he understood he would grow, the strength was still shocking. Keith understood its weakness. Wide openings. With wide swings, that meant he was also showing himself off for an attack. He planned to throw a fist into his chest, but a wide swing from the left hand came flying right at him! It was so fast that it caught Keith off guard once more!

Keith quickly tossed a right hook, but that was when Herrick took a step back.

Damn! Before Keith could make a move, Herrick dashed forward and knocked him down! As he mounted on top of him, Keith prepared himself to get hit in the face. However, that never came to light.

“I lost.” Keith laughed as he lay on the ground.

“Yay! I got a win!” The lion grinned ear to ear; beating Keith was a rare instance. Getting a win against Keith was difficult.