"So, when do I get my sister back?" The commander asked, his voice low, clipped, but sharp enough to cut through the still air of the courtyard. His eyes burned with an intensity that felt like he wanted to tear the answer out of us instead of wait for it.
"Get her back?" Stacy slowly repeated the question, raising one eyebrow as she leaned back in her chair. She crossed one leg over the other with the kind of unhurried grace that said she didn't consider his rage worth speeding up for. "She is our prisoner. Why would we just give our prisoner back?" Her tone was mild, but every syllable dripped disdain.
"Because this will lead to a war that you started," the commander snapped. His teeth ground audibly; I heard it even from where I sat, and the tension that hung around him spread out like a choking miasma.
Stacy tilted her head at him, and the motion was familiar—too familiar. My lips twitched when I realized she'd picked it up from Kitsuna. The little brat's habits were starting to infect us all. "We started?" Stacy repeated, her tone lilting, almost mocking. "Don't joke like that. You people are the ones who've sent spies into our country multiple times. Then, when that wasn't enough, you tried to start a monster stampede on our land. Hello, do you even know what you are saying?"
"You have no proof we did any of that," Pendragon scoffed, straightening in his chair. His broad shoulders flexed, as if that alone could protect him from her accusation.
"Are you sure we don't have any?" Stacy asked, her eyebrow arched like a blade, daring him to step closer.
"Yes," he said flatly, refusing the bait. He wasn't stupid; I'd give him that.
"Really? Okay, then listen to this." Stacy slid her scroll onto the table with deliberate slowness and tapped it. The surface shimmered before a girl's voice spilled into the air, sharp and clear as if she were standing right beside us.
"Ah, yes, my pets, they were busy leveling up in the dead forest."
The words cut the silence like a knife. Every soldier behind Pendragon shifted uncomfortably, their eyes darting between him and Stacy.
"Now do we have proof?" Stacy asked, cutting the recording with a flick of her finger. Her eyes gleamed as she leaned forward slightly.
"Hah." Pendragon pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled slowly. "You know that sister of mine…" His sigh carried both frustration and reluctant acknowledgment. Then he looked up, gaze sharpening. "What do you want?"
"Oh, it's not that much," Stacy said casually, sliding a folded piece of paper across the table. She smiled like she'd just given him a gift, though we all knew it was a demand.
Pendragon unfolded it, and his expression tightened the further his eyes traveled down. "Lady Stacy, you are asking for too much," he said, his voice polite but taut, like a bowstring about to snap.
"Am I?" Stacy tilted her head again, her eyes narrowing in mock thought. "Didn't know your sister's life would be of that little worth."
"They're blackmailing us now," Pendragon muttered with a dry laugh that had no humor in it.
"Yes," Stacy said shamelessly, her voice smooth. "You started all this after all."
"Tsk. I want my sister first."
"Mr. Pendragon, that's not how negotiations work. You do know this." Stacy's tone didn't change, not even a flicker of sympathy or patience. She was a wall, and he was the fool trying to punch through it.
"Tsk. Fine." He placed the paper down and gestured with his fingers toward his assistant. "You take your time and get everything on this list. You have thirty minutes."
"Yes, sir." The assistant quickly took the paper, already fishing out his scroll and whispering urgent orders into it.
"Woah, thirty minutes? Are you sure he'll make it?" Stacy asked, her voice full of humor, though there was a note of genuine doubt tucked beneath it.
"Yes," Pendragon said firmly.
"Okay. If it's like that, we will go see your sister." Stacy stood smoothly, her chair scraping back over the stones.
"Uh, Stacy," I muttered, leaning toward her with a whisper, embarrassed and obviously faking it, "we still haven't gotten through the ice wall."
"That's fine. It should go faster if you try to do it, but why would we do that?" She whispered back, her lips twitching into an evil smile that confused me.
"What do you mean by that?" I muttered, brow furrowed.
"Don't do anything. Let him blast through it himself, Kayda." Stacy's eyes glittered with the kind of amusement that made my gut sink.
"Okay," I replied while nodding slowly, although a sense of suspicion gnawed at me.
[5 minutes later in the mansion.]
"What is this?" Pendragon demanded, staring at the thick wall of ice sealing the guest room. His breath puffed faintly in the chilled air, and his soldiers shuffled uneasily behind him.
"Ice magic, of course," Stacy said, shrugging as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"I can see that," he snapped, turning on her, "but why is my sister on the other side of it?"
"Well, she's being held prisoner by my daughter. Didn't you know this already?" Stacy tilted her head again, mocking him with the same gesture as before.
"So, tell her to open up," Pendragon demanded, his patience unraveling.
"I already tried to call her, but she's unreachable. I think her scroll is out of power," Stacy explained with another shrug, casual as tossing a stone into a lake.
"She can recharge her scroll with mana, though. Why isn't she doing that? Is she dumb ?" One of Pendragon's guards muttered under his breath.
Every eye turned on him. Pendragon's glare froze the words in the man's throat.
"I don't know. I can't see through walls," Stacy replied breezily, deliberately ignoring the insult.
"She is your daughter, isn't she?" Pendragon asked sharply.
"She is adopted, but yes."
"Fuck this," Pendragon growled, pulling back his fist and slamming it against the wall.
Crack.
"Ugh!" His knuckles split on contact, the sound of bone giving a muted echo through the hall.
"Did you just break your hand?" Stacy asked, her tone amused, not concerned.
"..." He ignored her, coating his bleeding hand with wind magic and lashing at the wall in slashes that rang like knives against glass. Shards of ice shivered loose but reknit almost instantly, glimmering like steel.
"Hmm, this process is going to take a while. Get us some chairs, please," Stacy said, turning her head toward the nearest maid.
"Will do, ma'am," the maid replied with a bow before hurrying off.
"Kayda, is there any update you haven't told me about?" Stacy asked suddenly, her sharp gaze sliding to me.
"Hehe, well, you see…" I rubbed the back of my neck and looked away, laughing awkwardly.
"I can see that her ice magic has become something really annoying to deal with," Stacy said, watching Pendragon's futile slashes, "but not perfect just yet."
"Yes, I'm also surprised that her ice magic got this strong just from her new discovery," I admitted, letting some honesty slip through.
"New discovery?" Stacy repeated, one brow raised. "New discovery?"
"Yes. She's got something new to show you," I explained, nodding once.
"And you aren't going to tell me?" Stacy asked, her tone amused, though her eyes narrowed knowingly.
"Even if I do, you won't understand what I'm saying."
"Hmm." She folded her arms and looked back at the ice, silent but thoughtful.
[30 minutes later]
[Kitsu POV]
"Hey, we aren't even talking, and you're making dumb mistakes," I said, sliding my queen across the board and taking Dea's unsuspecting piece.
"Dammit, I didn't see your knight." Dea groaned, her hand clenching into a fist as she scowled down at the board.
They've been trying to break the ice for thirty-four minutes already. Why are they struggling so much? Kayda should've blasted it apart in seconds, I thought, eyes flicking to the doorway. The once-solid surface now sported a lattice of small cracks, but the wall still held firm.
"Hey, what are you looking at?" Dea asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.
"Well, at the door, of course," I said with thick sarcasm.
"That's not a door anymore. That's just an ice wall." She scoffed and flicked her eyes back to the board.
"Why did you move your king?"
"Uh, because he hasn't moved yet?"
"But you could have done castling."
"I could do what now?"
"Didn't I explain it to you?" I said, baffled. I showed her the move, rearranging the pieces briefly.
"What you could do is that."
"Yeah, only if those two pieces haven't moved, though."
"Oh, I get it."
"Yeah. But anyway—checkmate," I said, sliding my queen to its final spot.
"What!! This isn't fair!" Dea slammed her forehead onto the table, sulking like a child.
"Let's try the game again, shall we?" I said, already packing the board for another round.
"Fine," she grumbled, sitting back up.
Just as she reached for a pawn, the ice wall exploded.
Boom!
"Kyaa!!" she screamed, clutching her pillow as shards rained down.
"Well then," I said, standing slowly, an ice whip snapping into existence around her neck. My grin widened as I turned to face the man who'd shattered the wall. He floated mid-air, one fist extended—only to be caught inches away from me by Mom's hand. Blood ran down his knuckles in a steady drip.
"What is this?" Pendragon demanded, baffled, seeing his arm trembling, caught effortlessly by Stacy.
"I'd like to know as well. Why'd you try to attack me, huh?" I asked, my other hand conjuring a massive greatsword of ice. The blade hummed with cold as I rose to my feet, whip tightening on Dea's throat.
'As I suspected, it won't deter someone in a leadership position,' I mused, but my grin only widened. I looked at Mom, her calm smile meeting my excitement.
"Huh, brother? You're here already?" Dea asked with a flicker of joy despite being bound.
"No, no, we're still busy here," I said lightly, tightening invisible wires around her arms.
"Huh?"
"You let go of my sister," Pendragon snarled, ripping apart several of my wires with a surge of wind magic.
"Nah. Why would I do that?"
"I already made a deal with your mother, Kitsuna Draig," Pendragon snapped.
I tilted my head at Mom, then back at him. "Yeah, I know. But that deal didn't include you almost attacking me," I said with a grin.
"...Haha. And what are you going to do about it?" He smirked, sending small wind blades that shredded the rest of my wires.
"Oh, I don't know. "Maybe you should consider taking your sister's life," I said, tightening my grip on the whip.
"You aren't fast enough," Pendragon sneered.
"Don't you guys already have a list of my skills?" I asked, genuinely confused.
"We do, of course."
"Then you know I love my bombs, right?"
"You dare threaten me?" His hand drifted to his blade, while Mom's eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Hey, it's insurance, man, insurance," I said, raising my hands with a mocking laugh.
"Tsk. I should have known. What do you want then?"
"One of your arms, please. I would prefer your right arm," I said, smiling.
"...What?" Everyone gaped.
"Come on, give it to me." I held out my hand expectantly.
"Fine," Pendragon said at last, and without hesitation, he cut off his right arm. The blade was clean, his face stoic, and no grunt escaped him.
"Brother!" Dea screamed.
"Thank you," I said cheerfully, catching the arm and engulfing it in black fire.
"Augh!!!" Pendragon roared in pain before collapsing, his remaining arm falling limp as his unconscious body hit the ground.
"Oh, that's how it works," I mused aloud, snuffing the devil's fire.
"Commander!!" His soldiers surged forward, weapons drawn.
"Oh, now you're threatening me?" I asked, conjuring a halo of ice needles in the air.
"What have you done to the commander?!" one soldier shouted, his sword trembling.
"Sheesh. The Federation dogs get dumber every time I meet them. Where do you think you are?!" I shouted, my killing intent slamming into them. One by one, they buckled, knees hitting the ground. Mom's aura joined mine, doubling the pressure.
"Okay, that's enough of the show," Mom said, clapping her hands lightly as if ending a performance. She stepped between me and the soldiers.
"Are you happy now? It's really annoying when you make me do this," I muttered, dispelling my mana.
"I know. But seeing you put people in their place is always fun," Mom said with a laugh, slinging her arm around my shoulders.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm done," I sighed, teleporting away to my training grounds.
"Brother!!" Dea cried the moment I disappeared, her voice cracking in despair.