Chapitre 30: BABYSITTING ROYALTY (PART 2)
"Bello or whatever your father named you! I swear to the gods above that today I will beat your ass raw!"
When Bello heard the man shout those words, he came to a startling halt. What was going on here? What was that man talking about? Why did he want to beat him? The questions kept flowing into Bello's head non-stop as he watched the man get closer and closer.
The man was impressive. His height alone made Joda step back in worry and his thick arms which they could see decorated with veins even from this distance worried him very much. A punch from that man could tear his host's head off with no problem. It was better he and Bello escaped than try to fight the guy.
"Hey, Bello. I don't know about you but I really don't wanna see what that guy's gonna do when he gets close to us. I say we run away." Joda advised Bello who nodded before replying.
"Yeah, I agree with you. I don't think he was joking when he said he was going to beat my ass. I like my behind just the way it is. Let's go." Bello beckoned to Joda as the man got within 40 feet of them.
"Don't move." The princess stopped them. "I want to know why Lief is targeting you of all people," Ivana said unsmiling.
The man was very close now and Joda and Bello were panicking out of their skin. When he started to jog towards them, they quickly slipped behind the Princess in fear.
"Lief, I order you to halt!" Princess Ivana shouted the moment the angry guard reached her. Lief looked like a crazed man. His eyes blazed a fiery red in his anger and he seemed to have forgotten the princess was with Bello. When Princess Ivana gave her order, he glanced at her for a second in contempt before ignoring her.
Two long stretches of his pole-like legs brought him right behind her, and before Bello could raise his arms to defend himself, a slap so heavy and which sounded like a lion's roar sent him sprawling on the floor with a busted lip.
Bello's world spun dangerously as his vision blurred. He lay flat on his back, gasping for breath whiles his cheeks burned as if on fire.
"Bello!" Both Joda and the princess shouted in rage and concern respectively. The former immediately assumed a fighting stance between the fallen Bello and the giant guard while the latter knelt beside Bello to check on him.
Even in his rage, Lief found a slave protecting his master a little odd but quickly dismissed it. He had a bone to pick with the slave too, even if it was very small. He jumped on the bloodied slave but before he could deal the boy any damage, Lief was grabbed from behind by his colleagues whom he had come along with.
In his anger, he had left them behind as he made his way towards the princess and her two boyfriends, but judging from their hands restraining him now, they must have gotten here right after he did.
"Lief, stop. You're only making things worse for yourself by antagonizing the princess. She's your only way out of this fix. Stop and think of your actions." One of the men berated Lief as they held him. The three men were putting their all into holding Lief still but he was just too big to restrain fully.
"Unhand me!" Lief shouted. "Let me teach that boy a lesson. Let me teach that son of Orion to not meddle in others' work. Because of him, I'm going to get killed. Let me beat him up!" Lief struggled like a wounded animal.
"What are you talking about, you mad man?!" Princess Ivana asked the restrained guard in great anger. "I gave you an order and you ignored it. Don't you know what that could mean for you?"
"Bullshit!" Lief yelled. Their ruckus was attracting curious onlookers that stood a safe distance away from the guards as they observed what was happening.
"Your orders mean nothing to me anymore!, Whether I obey them or not, I will still be executed because of you and him. Don't give me that look! You know what I'm talking about. You know he is the reason why you ran away and put me in this situation. You ran away to go meet him, didn't you? You ran away to go get some, and now look where your childish fantasies has left me!" Lief accused Bello and the princess loudly.
"Oh, you crazy man. Bello played no part in my actions this afternoon. It was all my idea. Everything that you're going through is my fault. I-im so sor-sorry!" Princess Ivana burst into tears at the end of her revelation. Lief's words had been too much for her already guilty heart and to think that he was going to be killed because of her had pushed her beyond the edge.
Lief's anger at the princess immediately evaporated as he saw her body shake as sobs racked through her body. His body visibly relaxed and his colleagues let go of him as they could tell he was no longer a threat to the other group.
The giant guard shuffled his feet awkwardly as he watched the princess sob. Tears were one of his greatest weaknesses and his wife utilized them well. He felt like comforting the princess but he was not allowed to touch her so he just stood a few feet away and tried to do his best.
"Look, I'm sorry. It's just that I have a child. She's only six years old and the thought of leaving her sickens me. I'm sorry I got angry, please don't cry. I promise-" Lief's words died in his throat as the princess threw herself into his arms and hugged him tightly.
The guards gasped as they saw this and burnt it in their memories for later. Today's event would make a good story later. Lief felt the princess's body shake against his own. She was now crying even harder than before and Lief's hands moved independently on their own. Before he knew what he was doing, he was rocking her whiles his fingers danced through her hair just like he did whenever his own daughter was upset.
"I-I'm so sorry. I swear that your daughter will not lose her father. I would do anything to ensure you're not harmed. I promise." Princess Ivana looked up at Lief with eyes full of tears as she made that promise. The giant only nodded before stepping back after making sure she wasn't going to start bawling again.
"I suggest we go back to the castle, Princess. There's still time until your father learns anything of today's event. We can plan then. As for now, we need to leave before this new crowd gets bigger." Lief pointed at the onlookers who were thickening with every passing minute.
"I agree. Let's go home." Princess Ivana replied before turning to Bello who was now seated on the ground with Joda beside him. She opened her mouth to speak to them but Lief beat her to the punch.
"Allow me to apologize to you, master Bello. I am sorry I took out my anger and frustration with the Royal family on you. Please forgive me." Lief bowed to Bello who motioned for him to rise.
"It's nothing. I know how difficult your job is so I won't hold this against you. Just, please, don't hit anyone like you hit me again. You almost broke my neck with that slap" Bello said seriously and the giant guard nodded before turning to the Princess.
"I will see you later Bello," Ivana said to Bello before turning to Joda who was studying her silently.
"Thank you very much for saving me. I am very happy that people like you still exist in our Kingdom. I pray we meet again another time." Ivana said with a smile before turning to leave with her guards. The guards seized a curious onlooker's chariot, helped the princess into it, and then took off as the onlooker cursed his own curiosity for meeting with such bad luck.
A few distances away, Princess Ivana smacked her forehead in frustration as she remembered something quite important to her. In her grief and eagerness to escape the forming crowd, she had forgotten to ask the brave slave his name. What a rotten day she was having. The princess thought with a sigh.
Cadeaux
-- Cadeau
reçu État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone