Kaiser was a little surprised. He had certainly teased Olivia a few times, but was it really that obvious? Over the past two days, he had focused the majority of his attention on Isabella herself. What action could she have possibly noticed? Yet nothing attention-grabbing had happened between Olivia and me.
He shook his head. "No, I barely know the princess. I enjoy teasing her, but our relationship is at best acquaintances."
"I suppose it has something to do with your ex, then," Isabella ventured, changing tactics.
"Iām not going to say anything about that," he repeated firmly.
"So I hit a sensitive spot," she inquired with a triumphant smile.
"..."
Isabella sighed, understanding she wouldnāt get anything more on that front. She changed the subject, perhaps out of pity, or out of a strange desire to comfort him. "I think you should move on. Itās not official... but I believe Miss Hornraven is in a relationship with the heir of the Ashborn family. Darwin, I think."
Kaiser lifted his eyes toward the blazing sky of Tenebris, keeping silent.
Internally, he was laughing.
āAriana in a relationship with Darwin Ashborn? Iād rather say heās her willing slave, just like most of the men she frequents. Now that I think about it, itās a bit strange...ā
He stood up, finishing his piece of meat. "Good night, Miss Isabella."
Isabella watched him leave, an odd feeling of emptiness in her chest. "If you ever need someone to listen... Iām here. Good night, Kaiser."
"Donāt think about it too much, Miss Donoghan," he called over his shoulder, his tone light and detached again.
Instead of heading toward the tent he shared with Zane, he veered slightly, approaching Oliviaās isolated tent.
"Letās play a little tease on our beloved princess before going to sleep."
***
*Kaiserās Point of View*
The camp was quiet, except for the distant crackling of the guard fire. In my hand, a portion of roast was cooling. I approached Oliviaās tent, seeing the shadow of her silhouette projected by the light of a small mana stone placed on a folding stool.
She was bent over parchments, probably maps or personal notes. After all, she planned everything down to the smallest detail.
I parted the entrance curtain. "Youāre still working. You should eat."
She barely looked up. "Iām not hungry. Keep it."
I nevertheless placed the wrapped piece of meat next to her on the stool and remained standing, arms crossed.
"Why are you really here, Kaiser?" she finally asked, setting aside her parchment. Her gaze was piercing, stripped of her usual courtesy. "Did Adrian send you? To watch me? Or for something else?"
I let out a small breath. "Iām here for you, Olivia."
She let out a brief, humorless laugh. "Spare me your lies. No one does anything without a reason. Itās always a transaction, a maneuver, a means to reach another end."
I sat on the edge of a chest opposite her. "You donāt trust anyone, do you?"
"Trust is a luxury I canāt afford," she replied, eyes locked on mine. "Not when you grow up with a brother who tries to strangle you in your sleep."
Kaiser was surprised but not that much. āWhat wouldnāt that madman Adrian do?ā
"My own family taught me that. So no, I donāt trust anyone. Especially not a guy like you who clearly doesnāt show his intentions."
I listened to her, observing the movement of her lips as she spoke of her past, the humiliations she endured and her constant struggle to survive. And the more I looked at her, the more an intrusive and completely inappropriate thought in the situation forced itself into my mind.
āHer mouth is so plump~~. Iād like to shut her up in other ways...ā
I wanted to take her lips between mine.
"WTF???"
Shit, whatās happening to me?
I tried to rationalize. Did I drink that aphrodisiac?... No, impossible. I didnāt ingest anything when I kissed her last time, did I? Yet a strange heat was rising in me, and my pulse seemed to accelerate just from her proximity.
āWhat the hell is this?ā
I frowned, disturbed. In this world, the people I truly liked could be counted on one hand. There was Irene, with her maternal aura that had helped me climb back up after Rubyās death.
Kara, the tsundere kitsune with a fiery personality, or that arrogant dark elf who had helped me so much with Black Neon, and one of the people who helped me survive and become so powerful. And then Ariana... dangerous, manipulative, my type of woman in many ways.
In a way, I understood those attachments.
But Olivia? Why did the atmosphere seem to change around her? She was beautiful, intelligent, that was true.
A woman who had turned humiliation into fuel, who used every asset, every weakness of others, to climb the ranks at any cost. I respected that obsession, that thirst for revenge and greatness. She resembled me, in a sense. The same obsession to survive, to never become prey again.
But that didnāt explain at all why my heart was pounding like crazy at that precise moment, like a kid in front of his first crush.
It was ridiculous and dangerous bullshit.
āI should go rest. Shit, when I kissed her in the garden, did I accidentally ingest a bit of that aphrodisiac concoction? That would explain these... symptoms.ā
"So, can I really trust you, Kaiser?" Her voice abruptly pulled me from my thoughts.
"Hm?"
She narrowed her eyes. "You havenāt listened to a word Iāve said for a while, have you?"
"Uh... Uhm... Princess..." I stood up, a slight sweat on my forehead. "I feel a little... strange. The heat... Probably the demonic mana... I think Iāll retire to my tent."
āI hope this isnāt what I think! Fuck. For a man like me, having this kind of uncontrollable feelings is the worst thing that could happen.ā
The aphrodisiac, that must be it. I absolutely need to increase my [Level-headed] skill. Being a prisoner of my emotions... that was a vulnerability I couldnāt afford.
As I headed toward the tent exit, a hand closed around my wrist.
"Let go of me, Olivia."
"Or what? Youāre going to kill me?" she retorted, moving closer, frowning in turn. A spark of defiance shone in her golden eyes.
"But what the hell do you want from me in the end?"