Emperor's Reckoning

Lyon pulled his face back while slightly puffing his chest up in a pathetic attempt to show his muscle. He crossed his arm with a grin as the veins in his forearms slightly bulged. His head was slightly tilted as he savored the blank expression that Cecile had on her face.

"None?" Cecile muttered.

Lyon nodded twice, "None, absolutely none, not even your body."

Cecile's eyes dilated looking at him before she darted her glance down to her palms. They were still dirty but she closed them then opened them repeatedly as Lyon wondered what she was contemplating.

The woman couldn't even smell her own odor anymore as her nose already got used to it. There was no water insight that could be used to rinse her body, however, at the very least the bruise on her body had healed thanks to his magic.

"You know, it's hard to believe your word."

"What makes you think so?"

She darted her glance forward and looking him straight in the eye however, the sharpness of what he had seen when he first met her was gone.

"They all try to act nice at first, giving me benefits beyond my reach before, at the end of the day, I was nothing but a tool. Do you think I would believe that you won't after my body after you said that you stole the queen's underwear?"

Lyon raised both of his eyebrows before he muttered, "Damn, my achievements preceded me."

(Huh? Did he just say achievement?) thought Cecile as she looked at him. 

"You're right, you shouldn't believe me, but did you see this," Lyon suddenly took a piece of thin short hair on the ground. It was really thin and short that Cecile couldn't help but squinted her eyes to focus.

"A hair?"

"Not just any hair, this, this is my nose hair."

"...What?"

Cecile couldn't believe what she just heard from both of her ears. It was out of nowhere and at this point, she didn't know where the conversation was heading. One of her eyebrows slightly rose as she looked at this unpredictable young man. He maybe looked like an open book by the way he was talking, but the paper had jumbled words and was difficult to read. 

"That's right a nose hair, my nose hair, do you know what this means?"

Cecile nervously shook her head but her eyes were locked against his expression.

"It means that your odor is so bad it plucked itself off, hahaha!"

One of his eyebrows twitched before she turned around and rushed to the corner sulking once more.

Lyon chuckled to himself as he saw her sulking in the corner. 

*Tap

The sound of footsteps was heard along with the clanking noise of metal. The pace was calm and steady as it approached the cell where Lyon and Cecile were in. Across the hall that was illuminated only with burning torches, one could see a glimpse of a tray that the guard carries with both of his hands. 

The glistening red meat could be seen with incredibly thick and inviting sauce smeared in. Golden tiny square butter was still sizzling from the heat of the meat itself was one ear could hear the delicate and tender of the dish. The juicy juice of the meat was holding together so hard that a slight push with a fork could squeeze them out.

However, before he could get to the place where he was supposed to give the food. He was halted by one of his juniors. The latter looked at his senior's face that was battered by hitting his face against the bars repeatedly.

"Senior..."

The guard looked at his junior before his eyes darted from his face toward his clenching fists. They were trembling with rage before he saw him saying, "Why do you do this? Why not report the king so that we can bring out the elites to teach him a good lesson?"

The guard let out a sigh before muttering, "I did report the matter against the upper rankers, but it seemed like the order from the emperor was not to disturb the two."

The junior opened his eyes wide before he made a harsh swallow, "No way, what are they thinking? That man was jailed for a perverted deed that rips apart our queen's image. That woman she—"

"You shut your mouth!" berated the guard with his glaring eyes and sharp voice. 

He was taken back by the flared-out authority that came out from his senior. The guard let out a heavy sigh before he muttered.

"You're young, there are many things in this world that are better for you to keep your mouth shut, else you won't find peace."

"But!"

"Besides, that young man was never jailed in there in the first place. That young man could come out anytime he wants. He may steal the underwear, the bras of the queen but we all forgotten the fact that he could get in inside the palace, to the heavily guarded room with ease. Do I need to mention that our kingdom was tense since the four kings' meeting ended up that way? You tell me, under its high alert, the man could sneak in and stole that item. If he had the skill to do so, he might as well get inside the treasure vault, the weapons, the ludicrous items, with ease. Thank the gods he is perverted and not a war addict."

"T-Then... how the hell did we catch him?"

The guard closed his eyelids before walking forward and went past him before muttering, "I don't know."

"He could be looking for the woman, he could be plotting something against the kingdom but one thing for sure was that he didn't try to defame the queen. Hmm... maybe."

"Maybe what?"

"Maybe he tried to save us some face, can you imagine the disappointment of the people if they heard a thief manage to steal our queen's underwear and got away with it?"

"Huh?"

The junior was slightly taken back by his assumption before his mouth trembling as he said with a slight stutter, "N-No way, impossible."

"I know, but the man is unpredictable, the least we could do is not to offend him. With the situation of our kingdom against the three others, the least we want is another trouble popping out of nowhere inside our own garden."

The guard left his junior speechless before making his way toward the cell. The latte was gritting his teeth before remembering the slight glance, just a glance from before. That red dead eyes that governed life and death still clenched his soul just from memory alone.

After taking one last step to stand in front of the cell, he was coughing out his hoarse voice. There was no way that he would smack the bar rudely as he would to the other criminals in the prison. The woman might be a criminal that sparked the war but the young man could kill his way out if he decided to.

"Oh, the food is back!" said Lyon that was loud enough to make her flinch out of shock.

He stood up before taking a huge grin toward that glancing auburn-haired woman. He turned around as he steps forward toward the bars. The moment his figure was left out by the illumination of the light, his eyes turned deep red and gleamed. There was atmospheric pressure at every step that he took. Everyone that he put on glance to would immediately ignite their flight or fight instinct. 

Lyon stood behind the bar looking the guard down before opening the bar with a pull.

"Ah?!" the junior looked at how effortless he was opening the cell. (Weren't they locked?! They were locked! Yet he pulled it just like that?!) thought the junior as he realized that the perverted thief was no ordinary thief in his field. 

Lyon received the silver tray with plentiful foods on them. He could see the variety and the delicacy of each item. There was no denying that the guard had the food from a worthwhile kitchen just from a single glance. 

"Thank you," said Lyon before he turned around.

The guard was speechless as he opened his eyes wide. He would have never thought such a response would come out of the young man's mouth. He couldn't utter a word of response before Lyon closed the cell with a kick of his leg.

The guard could only make a harsh swallow as he looked at the young man's back walking away from him. (What a cultivator, what a man) thought the guard before he turned around and stepped away before stopping. He took a glance at the woman with auburn hair under the illumination of the only light available.. He could see the gleam in those eyes, dilating as the young man got closer and closer. It was at this moment that he questioned himself, could someone that pure betrayed her own birthplace?