SPELLBOUND

Out of the blue, that thought suddenly fired Kione up. It seemed as though his desire in pulling Gideon out of his very own abyss of darkness now had overtaken his worry about what might – or even might not – happen in the future. After all, it had always been his wish for a long time now. He had always wanted to help get Gideon out of that psychological slump he seemed to be forever trapped in and he would always be willing to do anything for him. As how Gideon had done everything and anything for him back when they were still young brats who did not know much about suffering, just so he could save his hopeless little ass.

So now that he was indeed seeing a sign that the old Gideon they had known during their younger years seemed to be making himself known once again, he would willingly toss aside his personal beliefs as long as this could help him come back to the land of the living and enjoy life once again.

With a mocking smile, Kione stared hard at Gideon, challenging his authority right in his face. The slight fear and hesitation in his eyes were completely wiped away now as in its place, determination bloomed within them.

"What did I do wrong, my prince? Was it wrong of me to offer my services and be a gentleman to escort such a very beautiful young lady around? And besides, why do you even care, huh, My Lord? This is very unlike you…" Kione's voice lowered into a whisper as he continued, "have you forgotten that for so many years you didn't even bat an eyelid whenever I escorted your girls out of your room and brought them over to mine and do them next? You used to not care about such inconsequential matters at all as long as I do not force them to come to me, right? So what's with this behaviour of yours now? Don't tell me… don't tell me you've fallen in love with this human girl –" Kione continued to egg Gideon on, his voice flippant and grating to Gideon's ears alone.

Another punch came flying in as Gideon growled the words "shut up!"

Kione was then sent soaring before being slammed against the door yet again. Still, he let out a short laugh as he licked the corner of his lips. "So she's indeed off limits, huh. I had wondered, though… tell me Gideon," Kione's gaze became incredibly serious as he stared into Gideon's stony eyes. "Is all this hoo-ha all because you've fallen for her, or is it because you're actually seeing Leah in her?" Kione's question was like a lance, sharp and piercing in its aim, hitting the spot in Gideon where it hurt the most.

"I said shut your damned mouth –" Gideon growled even louder. And this time, with a darker tone as he attempted to hit Kione for the third time. But before his fist could reach him, he suddenly halted, as if a certain powerful magic had held him immobile and frozen to the spot. Did the bloody queen finally made a move and is going to jump in to save his wretched ass? Of course not!

Peeking quickly to the side, his eyes could make out that the queen was still standing right where she was the whole time, seemingly not moving even a single step forward. She did not even seem to have the slightest bit of compassion for his current state. And it was clear that she was not planning to even make a move. Was she really going to just stand there and watch? Oh, what a wicked little lady she is! For some reason, Kione was starting to get the very same feeling he had felt towards Gavrael when he looks at the light fae queen right now. It must be due to the both of them being actual devil sprouts. Only that this queen has a deceiving exterior of an angel! These devil sprout couple really do go hand in hand!

So who was it that had stepped in to save him? Who had dared to…

Silence reigned as Kione stared at the frail and pale arms that were now wrapped tightly around Gideon's waist. Of course, it had to be her… Damn… Vera, you go, girl!

Kione almost laughed out loud at the sight of Gideon's tall and muscular form, stiffening up like he had turned into a marble statue just by her touch. To think that the young lady did not even need to speak to stop this brute from going crazy.

But Kione was not done yet as he found that this was another opportunity while the young human lady was still chaining Gideon down well with her two little frail arms. Kione wanted to burst out laughing as he looked at her thin arms holding Gideon back. They literally were like two strands of threads trying to restrain a fierce and violent lion.

"Don't get me wrong, My Lord. But if you're acting over protective of Vera like this only because she reminds you of Leah, then forgive me… But I won't back off and let you have her for yourself." Kione played his role of acting out the knight in shining armour, wanting to save Vera from the big bad wolf.

"What?!!" Gideon roared as he snapped out of his trance, his eyes widening with renewed fury. It was obvious that he could not believe what he had just heard coming from Kione's mouth itself. "What did you just say?

"

"Yeah, I know it sounds unbelievable, but I guess it shouldn't be that surprising. Any man can fall for such a beautiful lady like her. Though for me, I believe that this must be what they call love at first sight, no?" Kione daringly replied and was seemingly talking to himself a little.

Listening to his friend rattling off, Gideon smiled, open mouthed, as he looked at Kione in utter disbelief.

Kione ignored Gideon and continued. "Besides, don't you think she would be a thousand times better off with me instead? At least, I really like her as she is, and not because she reminds me of someone else. She's breath taking and so maddeningly beautiful. Don't you think such a beautiful creature like her deserves to be with someone who really likes and appreciates her as herself? Compared to someone who cares for her only because he's seeing someone else that he loves in her?"

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