Adamine Icarus wasn't the type to wake up late, but he had spent half of the previous night thinking about his actions. Although his intentions had been to keep her quiet and nothing more, he couldn't deny the fact that he had actually enjoyed kissing her. He had kissed a lot of women in his life before, but she just tasted different.
He blamed it on their differences, she was from another realm after all. Unlike the last time, she had actually woken before him, and that fact had Icarus startled for just a second. Although she probably wouldn't be able to kill him in his sleep, he was still surprised by the fact that she didn't try to do so.
Isabelle glared back at the puzzled man before her. She had only woken thanks to the discomfort of her dress. She had fallen asleep without changing out of the dress, and it was all because he had kept her occupied with too many thoughts. But she had woken in the dead of the night, and ever since then had been unable to sleep.
She had watched him from the cushion all night, wondering what would happen if she walks forward and stabs him in his sleep. Would he die? Or would she get herself in trouble? She also wondered if it was right to kiss him again, just to quench her curiosity and know if she would feel like she did the first time.
"How long have you been awake?" Icarus asked as he rose from the bed, his uneasy eyes fixed on hers. Although most of her magical energy was being used to seal Avalon, it didn't mean this princess was weak. She would have a decent chance at harming him in his sleep, but for some she hadn't attempted to kill him. He had ended her father's life, killed her people, yet she had done nothing to retaliate. He knew his power could be intimidating, but it didn't have much effect on this princess, he knew that more than anybody.
"Ten minutes now. Is it a rule to not wake before the king?" Isabelle lied. She had no idea what was going on in his mind, but telling him that she had been awake for the past three hours would not help matters.
"No...it's not." Icarus drawled out before walking past her. He had barely taken two steps when a knock came to the door.
"We don't need assistance!" Icarus replied to the knock without needing to ask for who it was. At this time of the day, it was mostly the maids who were at the door. They always wanted to help him out in any way they could, but he knew most of them only wanted to feel his body as they bathed him.
Without needing to knock anymore, Julian pushed the door open and walked in. Icarus' reply had been his cue to enter. The fact that he had replied meant that he was awake and not in the bathroom. Those were the two things he wanted to confirm.
"Julian? You rarely visit this early, is something wrong?" Icarus replied after seeing his friend walk inside. He had a frantic look on his face, and it was one of the few times Julian changed facial expressions.
"We have breachers." Julian informed. Three simple words, but it was enough to make everybody in the room tense.
"Breachers? From where?!" Icarus demanded and Julian's eyes made their debut towards Isabelle for the day.
"It's from her realm. They've come to reclaim their princess." He informed, and Isabelle immediately shot up from where she sat.
"Let me see them, I want to see them!" She pleaded, her heart beating ecstatically at the thoughts of meeting her people.
"Sit back down princess! You're not meeting anybody, and none of them are making it into this fortress." Icarus shunned, his aura flared and his demeanor completely changed. "How many are we talking about?"
"An army of fifth, possibly hundreds. Tearing past the space between the realms is no easy feat. They don't have access like you do, which means they used magic to force their way through."Julian explained. "They've already started wreaking havoc at the coasts, they'll be heading into Axel's faction soon. And we both know that would mean certain death for them all."
"So there's nothing to worry about? You had me worried for a bit." Icarus remarked before letting out a sigh of relief. However, the lady beside him had shot up and made a dash for him, a blade swiftly materializing in her hand.
Julian intercepted the enraged princess. His hand gripped her feeble ones, and in one painful twist, he stole the blade in her hand away before pushing her aside.
"Don't you dare hurt them! Don't you dare hurt any one of them!" Isabelle screamed on the floor, her rage skyrocketing and she molded yet another blade.
"They're killing people, don't you think they deserve to be punished?" Julian asked with a death stare, one that had Isabelle's body shaking. Unlike Icarus' blazing aura, his was cold. It felt as though she was being subdued in a cold sea without a bottom. It became difficult to breathe, and her magic ability began to fluctuate.
"W..what about him?! He killed my father! He killed my people! Don't you think he deserves to be punished?" Isabelle threw back. Though her voice was shaking, she refused to back down. "If you're going to kill them, then perhaps you should kill him as well." She yelled, her finger pointed towards Icarus who was just smiling at her naiveness.
"It's fine Julian, let her be." Icarus ordered and Julian complied. "Inform Axel not to harm any of them, we'll send them back to where they came from unharmed, is that alright?" He asked the still shaken princess.
"I want to see one of them, just one." Isabelle pleaded. She knew her tears wouldn't fetch her any pity from these two, but she still chose to cry.
Icarus exchanged glances with Julian, and he had the same thoughts as his friend. The plan was to win her over, and although allowing another pure realmer into the fortress might be a bad idea, Icarus was willing to risk it for his goal.
"Fine, just one!" He agreed before sending Julian off with a wave of his hand. He was becoming too lenient towards this prisoner of his, but it was all for a higher cause. Once he's gotten what he wanted, he was going to dispose of her as quickly as possible.