The One after my Heart

"HOW DARE YOU LAY YOUR FILTHY HANDS ON THIS QUEENS DAUGHTERS!!!?" came the bellow as furious winds blew past at the middle-aged man who stood there rooted to the ground like a wooden statue.

Kyra turned around, thinking someone was beside her and the two girls but found no one in sight. She then turned back to look at the man in front of her and then it was when she noticed something.

A faint mist gathered ten feet up the air between Kyra and Fredrick. It kept swirling up in the air until it slowly descended towards the middle-aged man as though something was walking down from the heavens.

The hazy white mist kept slowly condensing. An outline of a figure slowly started to form as it came to a stop in the air as it stood a little higher than Fredrick standing on the ground.

Frederick's previous neatly combed hair and clean robes had turned into a mess as dust and air blew past him when the words were spoken. His wood-like features had long turned back to his normal self.

Gone! Gone was the dignified look, and what was present now was instead a person in his forties sweating bullets as his knees shook and nearly buckled under the pressure he could feel. His face had gone white and pale as he stood there as though he was mummified.

Gone was the anger and indignance on his face, and what replaced it now was instead bitterness and regret. He'd finally realized what that gut feeling he felt earlier when he first laid his eyes on the two young girls was before he got distracted by the woman next to them.

With his experience and age, how could Fredrick not realize what he'd done this time? Not only had he endangered his life but also his family's lives as well this time.

Of course, he knew whom the voice belonged to. Almost every single person in Spratia knew this voice by heart and recognized it, even in their dreams.

It was the current leader of the Alliance of Witches and Warlocks of the entire Spratian domain!

Nihaiya Greenwood!!

Peoples adored her beauty and brilliance. Her fellow witches' hearts shook at her capability and leadership. At the same time, their enemies bowed their heads as they hid with their cowardly tails tucked away in her presence and ruthlessness.

Frederick cursed himself as he realized what he'd done. He should've listened to the young brunette's reasoning and pleading earlier as she asked him to stop. But he couldn't be blamed for his anger. Imagine guarding something for thirty years, biding your time, only to find out someone else had beaten you to it!

He began to furiously think about his next actions and words, and as the mist kept condensing in front of him, he knew he had to speak out fast. He felt as though there were an invisible hand wrapped around his heart squeezed slowly tighter.

"Cough-..Alliance head... it's a misunderstanding. I really didn't know it---"

"SILENCE!!" bellowed out a woman's voice as it dripped in anger.

A couple of trees nearby in the surrounding even cracked open and fell down.

"Did this Queen.. ask you... to speak yet?" jeered the voice in malice as the outline of the figure in the mist grew clearer.

"N-no.." Frederick bitterly replied.

"Then stay quiet until you're allowed to speak! Did the Dartwood family go crazy with power in their hands all these years!?"

The pressure on Fredricks body increased as though the air was compressing where he stood.

"No...no"

Frederick shook his head immediately as he stuttered and was about to explain but then immediately fell silent when he saw the glare coming down from the mist at him.

Speak only when asked to! That's what his elders reminded his family every time they mentioned the leader.

'Queen! What Queen?!" he scoffed within but didn't dare to say it out loud as he put on a respectful expression on his face and hid his frustration. Now wasn't the time.

She was just a leader elected unanimously by the council of elders. But this woman did have the might to back her words; hence no one complained about this narcissistic woman and just put up with her antics. Apart from this flaw of hers, she was their perfect leader as her deeds and dedication reflected the current peace across their entire domain. Things were better now, he had to begrudgingly agree.

Kyra's mouth was slightly open as she became a silent onlooker in the background. She felt oddly happy in her heart as she saw the man suffer as she did earlier. 'Serves you right!' Karma.

From the figure's haughty tone and manner of speech that was just like Nisa, Kyra guessed it should be their mother. No wonder Nisa spoke like she was a princess!

Kyra's eyes went wide in amazement as she finally saw what had formed between her and the man named Fredrick up in the air in front of her.

It was as though an invisible person stood in front of them, but, because of the help of the mist, a barely noticeable silvery outline like border appeared around a transparent figure. It was no different from a human-shaped bubble since the insides were completely transparent and could be seen through.

Kyra could now vaguely make out a tall, beautiful figure of a woman with long hair that reached all the way towards her waist. The outline seemed to stand there in the cloudy mist with her hands on her waist.

Even though her features weren't clearly visible, Kyra swore this was definitely a gorgeous woman.

Fredrick, the air around him got thicker and tighter as though it were planning to choke him to death though everything seemed normal outside.

As though the silver-white outlined figure tried to calm herself, she took a deep breath before she slowly spoke out,

"Speak! How did they arrive here all the way from the capital and why did you dare to kill this Queen's daughters?! If there's even a single lie in your statement, which you know I 'will' sense immediately, I'll instantly kill you and wipe out the entire Dartwood family! You've one minute to explain yourself so you better make it count!"

Frederick gritted his teeth, knowing it would invite trouble, but it was better than dying.

'Let the family's elders deal with this....unreasonable woman!'

Even he himself couldn't think of any profane words to curse this…..bad woman….as he looked at the beautiful outline and saw her eyes staring at his. It was as though they saw past everything and through him. In front of this gaze, it felt like nothing could be hidden.

'Her soul magic...how powerful. She's not even here physically and it's just her mental projection! Even a Rank 2 Warlock like me doesn't stand a chance in front of her! Is this the true difference? What level are her powers at!? ', he thought to himself, being amazed.

He immediately bowed his head as he thoughtfully spoke out, "Replying to the Alliance head, I've no idea how they arrived here at all. I just caught them here on my usual daily patrol for the surrounding borders. I was just on my regular patrol when I sensed the disturbance from the illusion formation that was set up around the Kitthale tree my family has owned for decades. Since I was close by I rushed in. Since the tree was about to mature in a few weeks we've been on full alert and when I saw the three of them on the scene I couldn't control my fury and mistook them for dark witches. Please forgive my rudeness and mistake, Alliance head."

The pair of eyes from within the mist looked at him with a piercing glare as it listened to his words and watched him.

After a moment's pause, the figure nodded and then spoke in a sneer," A Kitthale tree! So all this fuss was all about a Kitthale tree? Funny, I don't recall the Dartwood family ever claiming to own a Kitthale tree since these are considered holy and endangered spirit flora. No wonder your family has thrived well and rose to powers soon enough in recent years."

Fredrick Dartwood's body shook as he heard this. This was something they'd hidden from the alliance and everyone since they wanted to keep the profits and monopolize the spirit tree to themselves. They'd indeed secretly planned and managed to raise their family's status as they rose to power soon.

The surrounding temperature in air around Fredrick dropped to a chilling low as the woman's voice reproached in a reprimanding tone, "Even if you did own it for 'decades', I don't recall you or your ancestors registering it as your personal property or even pay the taxes for it all these years. Don't tell me you think you deserve to claim it since you found it. You of all people should be aware of the Spratian laws clearly, Mayor Dartwood!"

"Tell your family elders to be prepared to face the legalities and be prepared to pay the fine and punishment as per the Alliance laws during the next council meeting!"

Fredrick Dartwood's white ruddy face turned pale and started to sweat bullets as he heard the words. He was doomed!