Lord of Charm

Gale was furious at Leo and barely stopped himself from attacking him.

"What happened to Moira? Is she ok?"

"She will live, but she lost her arm because she stood too near to me when I was ambushed by Tara's mages."

Gale was taken aback by the genuinely concerned expression on Leo's face to the point he almost believed the whole ordeal had nothing to do with him.

"I see, I'm glad to hear she is alive. I will compensate her and her family handsomely so she would never face any financial problems in her life and supply her with the best potions I can to help her recover as soon as possible. Regarding the maids, it saddened me to learn of the death of two of them and Sol's death."

Gale was surprised to learn that not all of them died, but then he quickly caught on to the meaning in Leo's words; Nina wasn't killed! Although he didn't want Sol to die, he didn't have the emotional capabilities to think about it when Nina was at risk.

"Then where are Nina and the rest of the maids?"

"The maids are here, but Nina decided to go to an inn."

"Stop pretending to be nice. Tell me, why did you want Tara to kill me?"

Gale's green eyes became lighter once he lost his patience with Leo's saint-like act, forcing Leo to answer his questions truthfully.

Leo immediately felt like he was drowning in Gale's eyes, unable to stop a strong desire to please the man before him and do everything he says from emerging.

"Tell me, why did you want Tara to kill me?"

"I'm sorry! I didn't want her to kill you, but she has too many mages by her side. You were able to defeat two beasts of the equal stage, so I believed you could kill a few of her mages if I instigate her to attack you."

"And the death of your benefactor means nothing to you if you can have the duke title?"

"I would be even more grateful for his sacrifice! It's just the life of one person, how can it be compared to the title of a duke?"

"Lord Lionel!"

The only mage that was still awake was shocked by Leo's statement; Didn't it mean Leo would sacrifice him too if it raised his chances to earn the title? He didn't think much about Leo sacrificing some maids, but he now realized it might not stop with just maids.

"I… why did I say that?"

He woke up from the charm after doing something completely against his nature, but it was too late.

"Give me a good reason not to kill you right now."

Gale felt it was wrong to kill Leo; although he did what he did to make Tara attack him, ultimately, it was Tara who tried to kill him and not Leo. In a sense, the fact that Gale killed all three of his attackers and survived was an even better outcome for Leo.

"You are in Antwerp, if you kill me my father will never let you go. You're strong for a mage, but you can't defeat an Advanced Mage yet."

It was a valid reason that Gale couldn't refute, and Gale didn't want to kill him in the first place. He nodded and stepped back.

"I left Moira in the destroyed mansion, it's your responsibility to take care of her as you promised. If there's a next time, I will kill you even if your father stands in front of me and watches."

He left a final warning and went out of the mansion to search for Nina. He knew Nina's character and went straight to the fanciest inn that they visited with Leo to have lunch often.

"Lord Gale, Miss Nina instructed us to take you to her room if you come here."

Gale saw a few waitresses run toward him, and the fastest one bowed first and passed Gale Nina's message. The rest had disappointed looks after losing their chance to interact with Gale. Ever since his first visit to the restaurant, the waitresses would race to serve him first every time he dropped by and even the owner was helpless about the fangirls.

"Thank you."

Gale thanked the waitress with a smile and beckoned her to lead the way. A few seconds later, when the waitress awoke from her daze, she quickly led him to Nina's room.

The waitress knocked on the door and announced Gale's arrival, and a few seconds later Nina's voice was heard.

"Come in."

Gale entered the room and looked around him. It was a large room with a king-size bed in one corner. He found Nina sitting at the dining table with a jar of wine and luxury food.

"You sure know how to enjoy life. We can't afford such meals all the time you know."

"You're talking as if this money was earned by your hard work, didn't you just rob this? I bet you got even more after the recent attack."

Gale nodded with dismay, but still took out one of the money cards and one of the magic bags he looted and gave them to Nina. He sat down in front of her and poured some wine for himself.

They quickly caught up and told each other about the happenings of the last day, making Nina frown when she heard Leo's part in this attack.

"Forget it, we will leave Antwerp in a few days, let's just stay here and refrain from making trouble. We can't deal with the duke yet if we cross his line."

They rented an additional room for Gale for three nights and planned to stay in the inn until it was time for the convoy to leave.

--------

Tara left her mansion and moved to her chambers in her father's mansion as soon as she heard of the results of the attack on Gale. To make things worse, the subordinate she sent to kill his woman companion came back and reported that Nina was a student of the Fire Witch and had her emblem.

She feared that she angered the wrong people and decided to retreat and be under her father's protection.

"Hello sister, seems like you've met with an unfortunate disaster."