In my eyes, she was like the picture of elegance as she walked through the room, the light following her every step. I was clearly not the only one enamored by her beauty; many a male gaze followed her every move. If I had been less of a man, I would have felt jealousy at their stares, but instead, I felt shame. Shame at the fact that in the last month, I had not contacted her once since I had awoken from my coma. With every day feeling like another battle, it was too easy to overlook the mundane. But that was just the excuse used to justify my actions. When in reality I was afraid of her reaction to my disfigured face, I was afraid that she would not accept me.
As she walked into the crowd of guests, greeting them as she walked past, I heard a voice speak from behind me. "Beautiful, isn't she?" The calculated tone I was used to was replaced with one of burning pride. Turning my head, I looked at the man who had invited me to this event. If Count Alister knew what I had done with his daughter, I would most likely end up as a red stain on the wall.
"Indeed," it was the only response I could come up with, still enamored by Verity's beauty. "You know I do not envy you count," I said with a stifled laugh.
Count Alister raised a brow. "And why is that?" He crossed his arms as he looked at me inquisitively.
"Look around, Count, I'm sure you see all the hungry eyes, all focused on your daughter. I expect a few duels in her honor before the night ends. Now I understand why you never publicly announced her; you did not want to go through the hassle of refusing hundreds of marriage proposals. A rose is best nurtured in fertile soil, instead of being thrown to the wolves. And that Count is something I can respect." My words caused a frown to form on his face as he looked at all the young men staring at his daughter. A vein was protruding from his forehead as he used every single ounce of emotional control not to beat them bloody.
"It seems we have gotten off track, Count. I believe the reason you invited me here was because you wanted to speak of something?" My words brought Count Alister out of his murderous thoughts as he looked back towards me.
"Have a little patience, Zeon, all in due time. For now, enjoy the festivities." He put his hand on my shoulder as he began walking away. Leaving me alone once again, I downed the entire glass of wine in one gulp before taking another. Tonight promised to be a long night, so with a glass of wine in hand, I walked over to the balcony and began smoking my pipe.
Taking a long drag from my pipe, I looked out towards the full moon, lost in thought. It was a welcome distraction from the dull party. The soft clicking of heels on the marble floor caused me to turn around. My eyes met the ever-curious green eyes of Verity as she stopped next to me. "I don't believe we have met." She said with a smile as she too looked out at the moon. My heart started pounding in my chest, but I suppressed my anxiety.
"Oh, but we have," I said cryptically. For a while, we stood there in blissful silence, just enjoying the view. I bent down towards my shadow and grasped onto a thorny stem. I took out the artifact rose made from pure darkness from my shadow as I handed it to her. "Happy birthday, Verity." As she looked at me in stunned silence while taking the gift, I just turned around to leave. It was the only thing I had figured out in regards to the flower. It had the ability to be stored within your shadow.
"Wait! What is your name?" She asked as I was walking away. I just continued walking, ignoring her question. I was not ready to face her, not yet, at least.
One opportunist saw our interaction and decided to use it to his advantage. "Hey, the lady asked you a question." He said while grabbing my arm.
My killing intent flared, bringing the smell of rot and decay with it. I looked at the hand that grabbed me and at the face of the fool who is courting death. "Remove your hand before I remove it for you." My voice was as cold as a winter breeze; even the melody within my vocal cords only added to the seriousness of my tone.
The young man was taken aback by my sudden change, but with every eye present trained on our altercation, his pride would not allow him to back down. The vultures had spotted entertainment, and they were loath to see it end without conclusion. "Did your parents not teach you manners? When a lady asks a question, it is deemed polite to answer. But no matter, I will be the one to educate you then. I, Baron Lugong, challenge you to a gentleman's duel." He emphasized his statement by slapping me with a white glove. I had to use all my strength to hold myself back from laughing.
"So be it," I shrugged with indifference.
"Damnit, Zeon, I leave you for 30 minutes and you are already causing trouble." Count Alister's voice boomed over the whispers of the crowd. I saw Verity's eyes widen at the mention of my name but she held her composure. While I myself saw through the meaning of the Count's words. The familiarity with which he spoke was to display our friendly relationship as a form of declaration, quite the sly move, old man. "As the challenge, you have the right to set the terms of the duel."
"Right here and right now, I would rather not waste more of my time on this rabble. As for the terms, he can do whatever he wants to; either way, it will make no difference. But it will be to the death, of that there is no place to argue." I could see the young man's anger flare at my lack of reaction to his provocation, but I genuinely did not care. None of this mattered anyway.
We were led towards the front garden where a deuling arena could be found. We stood on opposite sides. Count Alister, as the host of the event, would serve as the judge. "Let the duel commence," he said while dropping his raised hand.
Lugong did not even get a chance to react before my soul mana gripped him in the form of a hand. Squeezing my outstretched hand, you could hear the creaking of bone as he was crushed. Whereas leading up to the duel, the mood was boisterous, now it was eerily silent. The only noise the Baron screams as he was crushed alive. After breaking another rib, I stopped the pressure while still holding him in place. I walked with composure; every move was slow and deliberate. I drew the blade at my hip as I drew closer, and a surprised murmur ran through the crowd when they saw the blade. An understandable reaction, as this blade was legendary. The Black Dawn, if the legends were to be believed it was forged from the bones of the black dragon Tian Long. He was the boss monster of an A-rank rift, slayed by the very first patriarch of the Whither family.
The blade itself was black as night, while the hilt and handle guard were made from a strange silver. By all measures, it looked like a normal blade, until I wreathed it in the fire of my family gift. The fire grew in intensity as the blade recognized its new master. Silver light mixed with the black and blue of my fire, creating an almost divine fire. With a single fluid motion, I took the young baron's head as my fire consumed his body, leaving nothing but ash in its place. My glowing blue eyes traveled across the crowd. I saw the intrigue in Verity's face, the indifference in the Count's eyes at the expected outcome. But when they landed on Wu, I saw… fear.