Tangled By Fate

Ovior bickered at his friend, "Are you nuts? Can't you see I'm eating? How did she get injured? If it's nothing serious, I'll finish my breakfast first."

"We had sex last night," Arthur proudly announced.

"&*%&$%^#!!!!!" Ovior lost his cool. His mood was completely tarnished.

"How dare you talk about your personal life in the early morning? Have some class!" he roared.

Arthur nonchalantly said, "Oh, I forgot you are still a virgin."

"…"

"You don't have to take it personally. Just bring the ointment. You don't want an innocent person to suffer due to your anger, do you?"

'He said it exactly because he offended me,' Ovior thought. He gritted his teeth.

He controlled his anger thinking of Veronica's condition. "One the left drawer of the wardrobe. You will find the ointment there."

"You brought it with you?" Arthur strode toward the wardrobe and found the thing he was looking for.

"How can I not bring it when your wife is always a troublemaker?" Ovior scoffed.

'You want to insult my wife? I will show you what happens when someone does that.' Arthur stared at his friend and stated, "I didn't know you had that in you."

While eating Ovior asked, "Had what?"

Arthur replied, "Fatherly love."

Ovior: "…"

Arthur added, "I'm sure you will become a great father in the future. I mean if you ever be able to get married that is."

'You want to take that road? Fine, I'll do the same,' Ovior decided.

He stated, "…I can become a father. Here is the suggestion. I'll adopt your wife. I'm sure she would love to have a father figure. After all, she never got the chance to be spoiled by her father. And when I become her father, call me father-in-law."

"…" This time, it was Arthur's time to stay quiet. 'There is no way in hell I'll call him that!'

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Veronica waited ten minutes and got impatient. Finally, Arthur came back.

She complained, "What took you so long? I was thirsty and had to get up to drink water."

"Everything is Ovior's fault. He is a bastard. He didn't want to give me the ointment." Arthur shoved the blame toward Ovior.

At that time, Ovior bit his tongue while eating and flinched. 'Did someone curse me?'

Veronica was surprised. "He didn't? Then why did you bring it? Don't apply it. I don't want to use someone's medicine that they don't want to give."

"I bought it from him already," Arthur flatly lied. "Your husband spent lots of money for this ointment. So, use it."

"Okay then." Veronica didn't doubt him even for a second.

After the massage, she washed her face and dressed up to have breakfast with Arthur.

"Shall we stay here?" Arthur wanted to know her preference.

Veronica looked outside the window and replied, "No, let's go out. This is a fine morning."

"All right, let's go."

They were having a peaceful meal when Darius and Sebastian joined them.

"Sebastian, how are you feeling?" Veronica asked the moment she spotted him.

Sebastian bowed to greet her. "It's all your grace, Mistress. I'm better than I ever was."

"I just did what I could. You are Arthur's precious disciple."

'More like a troublemaker,' Arthur thought.

"You guys woke up late. We are here to have lunch," Darius stated. He looked at the couple ambiguously. His eyes were meaningful.

Veronica was quick to respond, "I finally got a day off from training. So, I wanted to sleep as much as I can."

"Oh yeah, you were training day and night. Want me to check how much you have progressed later on?" Darius proposed a sudden plan.

Veronica's eyes lit up. "Really?! Can I–"

"No need," Arthur cut off. "This guy over there doesn't know how to restraint his strength."

"I will restrain myself because of this beautiful lady here. I swear by my head." Darius touched his smooth bald.

"Don't fall for it," Arthur warned his wife. "He is swearing because he knows he can't control himself. He just wants to break the promise."

Veronica became curious. "Why is he eager to break the promise?"

Sebastian was drinking. He choked upon hearing her question.

He started telling a story, "That's because he fooled around with a beautiful woman once. She was a witch. When she realized that he was just playing with her and not serious, she cursed him."

He stole a glance at Darius whose face was dark. He chuckled. "Darius was always proud of his strong hair. So, her curse was aimed at his hair. The rest is history."

Veronica was astonished. "The woman cursed and his hair started to fall? Just like that?"

"Just like that." Sebastian nodded his head like a wise man. "He did everything to grow his hair but never been able to grow his hair again."

Veronica listened to them and shared her opinion, "That's just sad. But I think the woman was even more hurt. I mean just think about it. The man she loved so much; she cursed his most proud possession. Her heart must be bleeding."

Darius was speechless. "…I'm the one who is cursed you know."

"You reap what you sow, Darius." Veronica's answer was clear-cut.

"Do you want to join me for a spar or not? I swear I will go easy on you."

"I have a feeling you won't. Let's check if you were able to grow some hair after breaking the promise."

Thus, Veronica agreed.

In the evening, wearing her usual training uniform that was fetched by Arthur, she confronted Darius.

They were in the valley's private area. No one would bother them here.

Darius stood there barehand while there was a sword in Veronica's hand.

"Draw your weapon," she demanded.

Darius replied, "I won't do that unless I see you as my opponent."

However, Veronica insisted, "I don't care whether I'm your opponent or not. If you don't draw your weapon, I won't fight against you with a sword."

"Don't blame me for the outcome." Darius drew his ax.

His eyes sharply stared at her. He acted like he wasn't scanning her but drilling her.

'Why is he looking at me like that? It's as if his persona completely changed. Can he read my every move? Should I attack him first or let him attack me?'

The more Veronica thought about his gaze, the more she got nervous. At this rate, she couldn't think straight.

"He is trying to scare you. Don't let him get you," Arthur shouted from the sideline.

"Stop saying anything. This isn't fun like this." Ovior hushed from the side.

Arthur frowned. "What do you know? You don't have a wife."

"There is no chance for Mistress." Sebastian shook his head.

"Shut up! She didn't even start fighting," Catherine glared at him. "I think she will win."

Then, she shouted at Veronica, "You can do this, Ver! Just kick his balls!"

"…" Sebastian face-slapped himself.

Darius grinned at Veronica, not affected by the surroundings. "You come first."

"No, you come." Veronica shook her head.

Darius's lips stretched wider. "I can do this all day. Do you want to stand there forever? Trying to figure out who has no more patience? We can test that too."

Veronica licked her lips. 'I don't think I have the patience.'

She waited till snow started to fall. Snowflakes flew closer to her in slow motion. One of them touched the edge of her shiny blade.

She raised her sword and attacked Darius. As she drew near, she swept her blade.

But, Darius didn't move. He was standing there without doing anything.

Veronica's blade sliced into the thin air. It didn't leave a scratch on him. She bit her lower lip and stepped forward to attack him once more.

Darius quietly moved away. His movement was so swift that she couldn't see it.

'It's not that I'm not being serious. Darius is just like Urulas and then other elves. He is strong and quick. Did he train with the elves too?' Veronica wondered as she launched at him.

This continued for a while. She kept attacking him but he dodged her. he avoided all her attacks as if it was nothing. And that made her frustrated.

'Damn it! I know he is a good warrior. But it looks like I'm no match for him in any way,' she thought.

No matter how swift and desperate she became, it wasn't enough. And then, there was his smirk. It almost blinded her in anger.

'No, I shouldn't lose my cool. It will bring me a disadvantage,' she told herself.

Her eyes searched for his weak spots. He was standing there unfazed. Nothing bothered him.

That's where their strength and experiences drew a line.

'I need to come up with a plan.'

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Announcement:

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