MSG – Volume 1 – Chapter 9
Solon felt discomfort from what he found after sifting through the person in question's memories of that day. With anger, he said, "Do not just believe whatever people say without proof or context. Or else, you will just end up causing pain for people."
His words caused the twins to turn their attention towards him with frowns on their faces and question marks above their heads. "You, what are you trying to say? Also, I was not talking to you, you little runt! Stay out of this!" The male of the twins was the first person to lose his cool. In fact, his outburst was almost immediate upon hearing Solon's words.
Solon did not back down. "I normally do not give a rat's ass about what you say or do but, in this case, I have to put—" He started to speak but could not help but shut his trap as he sensed death looming over him. He ducked to the side as though on instinct, dodging an attack that would have killed him.
Looking up, he found that he would not have actually been hit by whatever had made his spine tingle since Cyanea had moved to stop her brother's claw attack. "Nick!" she roared an abbreviated version of his name, her body trembling with anger as she raised her right leg and delivered a swift kick towards the left side of his waist.
He managed to dodge in time, gliding backwards with the help of his spread-out wings. She did not pursue him to deliver a follow-up attack but rather moved to stand in front of Solon with her back facing him, her intention to shield him unhidden. "Are you alright?" she asked Solon without looking back as her gaze was firmly locked on the incubus' floating figure.
"I'm unscathed," he answered as he rose to his feet, maintaining a guarded posture. Hearing that he was alright, she released a relieved sigh before turning her full attention to the other male in the room. "What is wrong with you, little brother?!" she sounded vexed, and that she was. "Since when did you become so unreasonable?!"
"I! I… am unreasonable?!" he snapped back, the magical energy around him trembling slightly before he quickly reined it in to avoid being detected by the demons' enemies before it was time for war. "You are the one who has been spitting on our best friend's memories, sneaking out of the Demon Realm to meet his killer!" he pointed in Solon's direction as he added that part.
"Me?! Sneaking out?! When did I ever do that?!" she snapped back, a red mist appearing around her for a brief moment as she momentarily lost control of her magic due to her unstable emotions. "Should I announce everything I do to everyone? Or should I be reporting to you? Huh?!"
"Cyanea! Don't even—!" Nikolaos wanted to say something but his sister ignored him and continued rambling. "And what the hell are you talking about? When did I ever say that I loved that oaf romantically?" she fumed. "As far as I remember…"
Cyanea went on to narrate the incident to her brother from her perspective but he tried to refute it and argue, saying that she was lying. However, when Solon corroborated her tale and even went as far as regurgitating the conversation that the original Solon and the Incubus had had that day, the winged man could not help but frown. He seemed to be mulling things over.
"Besides, who are you to say that I am wrong to choose who I love? What right do you have to have a say in who I decide who I spend the rest of my life with?!" the Vampire's mana went haywire for a moment before she inhaled deeply and exhaled in an attempt to calm her nerves.
There had been a light exchange of blows but neither side of the argument used their full physical strength nor magic. "Go back to your whores. Before they go too far with the cucumbers, trying to satiate their cravings." Cyanea turned around as she drove the final nail in the coffin. "Your presence was never and is still not welcome here!"
"Tch." The incubus clicked his tongue and clenched his fists, his inner turmoil leaking into his facial expressions. Soon, as though a moment of clarity came upon him, he turned to face Solon and said, "You… if what you say is true, then you would not mind a Dream Dive, right?"
Hearing his words, a look of realization crossed the Vampire's and human's features but soon the latter's facial expressions morphed into a frown. "Having someone worming their way into my memories and subconscious, is not something I would subscribe to," he said, shaking his head in emphasis with folded arms. "Especially when it is one that I cannot trust."
His response caused the incubus' face to become more twisted. "One you do not trust?" he muttered. "If you are referring to me, then you do not have to fear. I would not be the one doing it. How about we ask Lilith? You would not say that you do not trust her, right?" Once the charm demon put it that way, he figured that he could not refuse.
Turning the ultimatum down would imply that he indeed did not trust the Goddess of Night, Darkness, Moon, and Death. With a nod, he answered, "Fine." Hearing this, the expressions of both twins eased. It seemed that the vampire was hoping that Solon would agree to this—since it would shatter all doubts.
"But…" he continued, causing the twins' features to tighten once more. "…That would have to wait for later. Preferably in the night since when I may be visited by any of Rafflesias is unpredictable." Understanding the logic of his words, the twins could only nod in agreement.
With a snort, Nikolaos turned around as a black circular portal opened in the air before him. "I will inform the madam about this." These were his last words before he glanced over his shoulder at his sister with an expressionless face and subsequently vanished through the portal.
After the vampire and human pair watched the charm demon leave, the former turned to the latter and said with a serious expression, "I should leave too. The time for war is getting closer so I need to ensure that all the preparations are carried out perfectly."