The Tyrant's Pet

"I was searching for a missing item. I've been sensing Maleficent's twin around the capital. Thus, I'm trying to locate it. Unfortunately, even though this place reeks of the item's scent, it's no longer in here."

Only when Fabian mentioned this did it cross Aries that Maleficent's scent was drifting in the inbound breeze of the establishment. It was faint, but she would never mistake this scent.

"I thought it was you," said Aries, looking back at him. "But now that you mentioned it, it was indeed different."

"Not different. It smells like you."

"Used to smell like her."

Fabian rocked his head. "My bad." He smacked his lips. "What about you, my lady? Now that you know the purpose of why I am here, may I know what are you doing in the streets of the capital?"

"My dwelling had been boring." She shrugged, lifting the glass of wine to her lips. "I thought taking a night walk was a good idea, and then I saw you come in here."

"That is quite a long walk."

"Indeed, it is." Aries licked her lips, eyes on the wine. "This is one fine wine."

"They served it with noble blood."

"A noble?" she arched a brow. "Whose house is this?"

"This establishment, if my memory serves correctly, was owned by the Rothschild. They dominate the market."

"They're pouring their blood in the drinks they served?"

"Not pour, but just a tiny drop of it. That's why it was called luxury." Fabian shrugged indifferently. "The Rothschild clan had a very special blood almost as precious as the royal family. Of course, they were still not on the same caliber as the Grimsbanne, but it had its healing properties."

"As I heard."

"Most of their clients were those on the highest social ladder. Not everyone can drink in here."

Aries thought about this detail, which wasn't new to her, but definitely slipped her mind. The Rothschild was one of the wealthiest noble families on the mainland. The poorest — officially — was the Grimsbanne since their reinstatement.

"I wonder if it's because of age that important details such as this would slip my mind." She snapped out of her momentary trance. "Good thing I bumped into you. Tell me if you found the thief who stole my late husband's favorite creation."

"I thought you don't want anything to do with Maleficent?"

"I don't. After what it had done in my life, my desire that Maleficent will cease to exist grew significantly. However, holding onto it is still far better than knowing someone else holds such a dangerous thing." Aries leaned back, planting her palm on the edge of the counter. "I don't want to risk it."

"You should blame your husband for being so careless."

"Well, I apologize for the inconvenience." Suddenly, Abel's voice caressed their ears from behind. Fabian and Aries looked back, only to see Abel smiling at them before he marched to her seat. "I was in a hurry that night because my wife was on the brink of death. Although it sounds like an excuse, I believe it is a valid reason."

Abel positioned himself on the stool next to Aries. He propped his side against the counter, eyes on Aries and then on Fabian over her.

"Time wasn't in my favor that time. Therefore, I have to make a choice and obviously, I would choose my wife over anything else," he added in a knowing tone.

"I'm certain you didn't make a choice that night, Your Majesty." Fabian smiled until they couldn't see his eyes anymore. "You simply left because you completely forgot about the weapon."

Abel's smile stretched. "That's definitely not the case," he denied. "I'm not like Samael, who forgets the important details and never sticks to the plan."

"My master never forgets the plan. He just doesn't care about it."

"I'm not like him."

"I believe you."

Aries let out a deep sigh as the two chatted with Abel, denying all accusations he made up in his head while the other slowly agreed with him, but with a doubtful tone.

"What done is done." Aries rolled her eyes, putting a stop to their conversation. "There's no point in dwelling on it."

"That is exactly my point." Abel nodded in agreement, only for Fabian to press his nerve.

"Yet, Your Majesty is being defensive."

"I am not being defensive."

"Oh, for goodness's sake. We know how much you adore me, Abel. Even if you need to make a choice that night, it doesn't make you any less affectionate."

"Thank you for the reassurance, darling." Abel smiled in satisfaction, ignoring Fabian completely as if that was all he needed to hear. "Anyway, I smell Maleficent. It's definitely not coming from you two."

"Well, Fabian came here because he sensed Maleficent. Unfortunately, the person left before he even came in."

"It was the reason I was indulging with you two to mend my sorrow that this failure brought me."

Abel darted his eyes to Aries and Fabian, cocking his head to the side. "What are you maniacs saying?"

"Huh?" Aries and Fabian looked at Abel, confused.

"What are you up to now?" she inquired.

"I'm not saying inside this establishment." Abel pointed over his shoulder, directly at a particular table in the corner. Aries and Fabian slowly set their eyes on the corner table, only to see an empty place. However, when their eyes lifted, they caught a person walking away through the transparent glass.

"Malefic —" Aries abruptly stopped when Fabian jumped from his seat, rushing outside to follow the person who seemed to have been watching them. "I have to —"

Aries didn't think twice as she pushed herself away to follow Fabian. But just as she did, Abel grabbed her wrist to stop her. She looked back at him, confused.

"Abel, why are you stopping me?" she blurted out. "We have to help him."

"He won't catch her." Abel leisurely propped his jaw against his knuckles, wiggling his brows meaningfully. "If we could catch her that easily, I would've done it to cheer you two before coming in. Let's not waste our breath, darling. Fabian is a man without any commitment to someone, so he could waste his time. But not me, since my wife isn't legally my wife in this land."

Abel said a lot of things, but Aries only dwelled on one word.

"She?"

"Yes. It's a she, darling. I might not be able to catch her, but just like how she was watching us, I was also watching her. You'd be disappointed if I don't do this much, right?"

For a moment, Aries held her breath whilst staring at him. No wonder Abel was being so defensive, which was very unlike him. He was buying himself some time to observe someone without being caught.

"Can I get praise now?" he brought her back from her trance by poking the tip of her nose. "I did a good job."

Her shoulders relaxed as a subtle smile turned up on her face.

"Yes, you did." She cupped his cheek with both her hands, eyes locked with his. "That narrows down the people who could've gotten the weapon."

"No, it didn't, darling." He shook his head, grinning from ear to ear. "She didn't come from this land… which I found even more interesting."

"You've seen her face?"

"A shawl covered the lower half of her face, but I know those features." He winked. "I'm the one who lost it, so I'm the one who will retrieve it. Don't worry. I'll get it back soon."