Calverd stood frozen, both of his hands clenched tightly at his sides. His rational brain worked hard to process every single word that had just been spoken by Arvin.
The youth could not deny all the logic presented by the hero who had freed him. It was indeed true, this man's main purpose in infiltrating the deadliest place in Victoriaz was solely to save his spouse. There was absolutely no obligation to save the other prisoners.
However, understanding did not mean accepting. His heart, still bleeding from trauma, refused to compromise. The image of the hopeful faces of his comrades-in-arms, who ended up dying tragically in pools of their own blood, was still vividly etched in his mind.
He felt annoyed. Incredibly annoyed. The indigo-haired youth disliked the fact that the mysterious man with such immense power in front of him could easily let so many lives just slip away. Even though the man had saved his life from the slash of Prince Wiltan's sword, his sorrow and frustration demanded an outlet.
"I hate you!" Calverd growled in annoyance. His voice trembled, holding back the surge of suffocating emotion, glaring sharply at the black-clad figure. "You have extraordinary power, yet you still let many people die because of your actions!"
Hearing those words full of hatred and ingratitude, Arvin's posture did not change in the slightest. The masked man ignored the explosive feelings of annoyance from the youth in front of him. To him, validation or gratitude from a stranger meant absolutely nothing.
Without uttering a single word of defense, Arvin turned his body, leaving the indigo-haired youth who was still panting from his own anger.
"Have it your way!" Arvin replied in a flat and cold tone, his feet beginning to step slowly toward the bathroom. "You are free now, and you are also free to determine your own path in life from this second onward."
The masked man's steps halted for a moment. He turned his head, looking at Kaydan who had been standing silently in his position, still completely naked after their embrace had been released. Arvin's previously cold tone of voice instantly changed when speaking to his spouse.
"Kaydan, do you want to bathe with me?" Arvin invited very gently, offering comfort after a long nightmare. "After this, Kylen and I must immediately resume our journey to the Flamort Kingdom."
Hearing that warm invitation, a faint blush spread across Kaydan's face. The gray-haired youth immediately nodded in agreement with sparkling eyes and hurried over to his husband.
While holding hands tightly, as if they never wanted to be separated again, the two of them walked side by side into the bathroom, leaving behind the lingering tension in the dining room.
After Arvin and Kaydan left, Calverd still stood frozen in his spot. His breath was ragged, his eyes glaring sharply and full of hatred toward the bathroom door that had swallowed the shadow of the mysterious man. He felt he had not finished venting his anger.
However, before he could take a step to follow them, a gripping cold aura suddenly crept up the back of his neck.
Alrain stepped forward from the dining table area. The green-haired youth's face no longer displayed the warm smile from before. His gaze was extremely cold, as sharp as a sword blade ready to slash anyone who dared to disturb his family.
"Hey you!" Alrain called out with an incredibly cold and bone-piercing voice.
The indigo-haired youth instantly turned toward the source of the voice. But, before he even had the time to react or utter a single word, a movement that far exceeded the speed limits of his eyes occurred.
Grab!
In the blink of an eye, Alrain was already right in front of him and immediately gripped the youth's neck with his right hand.
The grip was so strong and powerful, lifting Calverd's body into the air until both his feet no longer touched the floor. The rough jolt caused the towel that had previously been wrapped around Calverd's waist to slip off and fall to the floor.
"Don't you know what the consequences would be if our husband had shown his power out there openly?" Alrain hissed right in front of Calverd's face, his eyes radiating a very dense killing intent.
Calverd, who suddenly lost his footing, immediately struggled in the air. His airway was tightly choked, making it difficult for him to breathe. His face began to turn red.
He hit Alrain's right arm and hand that were gripping his neck hard, trying to free himself from the deadly vice. However, the green-haired youth's arm felt as hard as steel, not shifting in the slightest.
In a state of panic and peaking survival instinct, the indigo-haired youth raised his right hand and used his telekinesis magic directly on Alrain's body, intending to blast the youth backward.
And what happened next instead made Calverd's blood feel like it was freezing. His eyes widened, radiating absolute disbelief.
He saw with his own two eyes that the green-haired youth gripping his neck was entirely unaffected by his telekinesis magic. His invisible wave of force simply shattered upon touching the aura of Alrain's body, like a gust of wind trying to topple a mountain.
Seeing the despair in Calverd's eyes, Alrain tilted his head slightly.
"Why are you not answering my question?" he asked with an increasingly sharp gaze, enjoying the ripple of fear on the indigo-haired youth's face. "Ah... I forgot, you are having trouble breathing right now."
Without warning, Alrain released his right hand's grip on the neck just like that.
Thud!
Calverd's body instantly fell with a thud, landing hard on the floor.
The indigo-haired youth coughed violently, gasping as much air as possible into his burning lungs while holding his reddened neck.
Alrain lowered his body, squatting right in front of Calverd who was still panting.
"Just so you know," Alrain whispered with a tone full of emphasis, ensuring every syllable was embedded in the youth's brain, "the diplomatic relations between the Astoria Kingdom and the Victoriaz Kingdom are extremely bad! And right before we left that disgusting place, our husband had directly clashed with King Estadian and also Prince Lionias!"
Calverd, who was still coughing, instantly stopped his movements. His eyes widened perfectly. He was surprised not because he learned about the bad relationship between the mysterious man and the core family members of the Victoriaz Kingdom, but rather because of one kingdom's name that had just been mentioned.
"Where... where am I right now?" he asked with a hoarse voice, as if the pain and soreness in his neck had never existed, replaced by an overwhelming bewilderment.
"Right now you are in the capital of the Astoria Kingdom!" Alrain replied casually, though his gaze remained sharp, locking onto the pair of emerald green eyes in front of him. "More precisely, you are currently inside the mansion of the Arvin Vedegra family!"
The shock Calverd felt instantly peaked and intensified after knowing where he was at this moment and also about the true identity of the mysterious assassin-clad man who had saved his life.
S-S-So... that mysterious man is a Vedegra descendant? he thought in shock, his mind spinning rapidly, piecing together all the information he had just received. The youth clenched both of his hands tightly, his face looking down at the floor beneath him. And right now I am also already in the Astoria Kingdom? Far from the reach of Victoriaz?
Realizing that his message had been well delivered, Alrain stood up. He straightened his clothes slightly and intended to immediately gather back with the others at the dining table. However, right after he turned his body around, he glanced back at the youth who was still sitting on the floor.
"Finish your bath!" Alrain said firmly, though there was no longer any tone of dislike or killing intent in his voice. "Are you not aware that you're naked?"
Hearing that reprimand, Calverd flinched. He had only just realized that his towel had slipped off when he was choked earlier. Strangely enough, as he slowly stood up, there was no longer any shame or panic like what usually happened before. His mind had become clear, swept clean by the hard facts that had just slapped his ego.
He stared straight at the face of the green-haired youth looking back at him. His heart was now filled with a deep understanding of how heavy the risks Arvin Vedegra had taken in order to breach that underground prison.
"You're right! It seems, I really have gone too far." Calverd said in a low voice, yet filled with sincere regret. The walls of his hatred and selfishness had crumbled. "I will go see him to apologize."
Without wasting any more time, Calverd turned his body around. He walked down the corridor toward the bathroom with steady and firm steps, leaving the ten youths in the dining room who were now watching him leave with meaningful smiles.
They knew, the stubborn youth had finally realized where he ought to place his respect.