Chapter 2966: Aqualas’s Indifference |
Date: Unspecified
Time: Unspecified
Location: Myriad Realms, Card World, Southern Region, Blossom District, Sky Blossom City
"Wait, what?" Petra blurted out aloud. She stared at me for a long moment. Then, when I simply nodded in confirmation, a slow, smug smile spread across her face. It started at the corner of her lips and gradually widened. The kind of smile that usually meant someone was about to suffer.
Specifically, Aqualas. Unfortunately for Petra, the intended victim remained completely indifferent. Not a flicker of discomfort crossed Aqualas’s face. No outrage, embarrassment, or irritation. There was nothing but indifference, as if their talk didn’t concern her at all.
She had clearly decided that under no circumstances would she give Petra the satisfaction of seeing her squirm. Even if she had to fake it. The Ocean Supreme maintained an ice-cold facade, as though the conversation had nothing to do with her.
Then she looked at me and made her position clear without waiting for further explanation, "As long as I get to stay with Veerott, I don’t mind the arrangement."
Her agreement came so quickly that it caught several people off guard. Most notably Veerott. The giant immediately looked touched, then worried, and then touched again. He wasn’t entirely sure whether he should be happy or concerned.
I nodded. ’Fair enough.’
Petra’s smile immediately widened. She deliberately dragged out the word while looking Aqualas up and down. "Well... Her being so cool about it completely takes the fun out of it. Plus, if I keep making a fuss, I’ll just come off as petty."
She paused, seeing Aqualas remain expressionless, she clicked her tongue in disappointment. Then glanced sideways at Aqualas.
"Although..." The grin returned. "I don’t mind being called petty at all. Especially if it means I get to make her life a living hell."
Aqualas’s eyebrow twitched, just once. It was a tiny movement, barely noticeable. Unfortunately, Petra noticed and instantly looked delighted. The Stone Supreme’s smile became positively radiant. Like someone who had just received an unexpected birthday gift.
"Therefore..." She pointed at Aqualas. "Yeah, I’ll take her off your hands."
Aqualas’s face remained indifferent but there was a look in her eye, as if she gained a tiny victory.
Yes, she will be Petra’s subordinate, but as long as she wasn’t killed, or imprisoned for eternity, and got to be with Veerott she considered it a win.
Petra looked immensely satisfied with herself. Not knowing that her pettiness only made her enemy get what she wanted, she stared at Aqualas with a smug smirk.
Feeling Petra’s provocative gaze drilling into her, Aqualas stubbornly maintained her mask of indifference.
She refused to react. Refused to give Petra even the smallest victory. The Stone Supreme wanted a reaction. Any reaction. And Aqualas would rather drown an ocean than hand one over willingly.
Outwardly, she appeared calm and unbothered. Almost relaxed. Inwardly, however, things were far more complicated. The rest of the world revered her as one of its strongest Supreme beings. A force of nature. A living catastrophe capable of reshaping the world. Yet Aqualas had always known the truth. She wasn’t at the top, not even close.
There existed a handful of Supreme beings whose power stood on an entirely different level. Monsters among monsters. Beings whose existence went unrivaled on the card world. And today, Southern Hope had given her a brutal reminder of that gap between their strength. As such she instinctively treated her with a degree of caution and respect that bordered on deference, mimicking her deference to those supreme beings.
Without her noticing he had quietly stepped into that category within her mind. She no longer thought of fighting him. She evaluated him using the same standards she reserved for those terrifying existences. His words carried more weight, threats felt more real, promises felt more absolute, and somewhere along the way, she had begun unconsciously accepting the authority that came with that power.
Not because she respected him. Certainly not because she liked him. But because denying reality would be foolish. And reality was simple.
If Southern Hope truly wanted something done, there was a frighteningly high chance he would make it happen with a snap of his finger.
Veerott and Seraphina noticed the change immediately. Veerott showed mixed feelings. Meanwhile, Seraphina pinched the bridge of her nose. Clearly not liking this change in her one bit. To a certain point, neither liked what they saw.
As Aqualas’s closest friends, they understood her better than anyone. She was stubborn, argumentative, proud, and most importantly authoritative. She liked to boss people around. She was the type of person who would order a mountain standing in her way to move then go above, below, or around it.
Therefore seeing her act this restrained wasn’t reassuring for them, it was unsettling, deeply unsettling. Because it was unnatural. Sometimes, Aqualas could be reasonable. Occasionally, she could compromise. But submission? That was practically an alien concept to her.
Her friends who had known her for years struggled to process it. The woman who routinely ignored good advice, common sense, and occasionally the laws of physics was now calmly accepting circumstances she disliked. That alone was enough to set off alarm bells.
Of course, neither of them could truly blame her. The opponent she was facing was terrifying. Any reasonable person would think twice before provoking him further. The problem was that Aqualas wasn’t usually a reasonable person.
Which was precisely why seeing her behave like one worried them so much. Yes, the circumstances dictated it. But, it didn’t mean she was alright.
"Now that Aqualas is settled, what about you, Princess Seraphina Heatsend?"
I turned to Seraphina, deliberately ignoring the invisible battle taking place between Petra and Aqualas. One was trying to provoke. The other was trying not to react. It was surprisingly entertaining.
"Will you continue troubling me?" I asked, tilting my head at Seraphina slightly. "Or will you leave quietly?"