Aethernea - Chapter 93

Episode 93 Anti-theft

Previously:

Elaru gives Kiel the ring she had made for him two days ago. It had now been enchanted with the spell she had designed and mystified. She claims that she thought about everything and no one would be able to tell that his artifact was fake. She also claims that Venric Rroda wont take this artifact away from him.

Inexplicably, Kiel suddenly had a bad feeling. What do you Kiel tugged on his ring. mean? He stopped talking and instead concentrated fully on taking his ring off. He tugged, pulled, and twisted for a whole minute before his hands stilled.

He turned to Elaru and looked at her with his signature ice cold glare. Elaruwhy cant I take it off? He pronounced every syllable clearly in a most chilling voice he could muster.

Ah! I forgot to mention! It also comes with anti-theft function. Elarus face blossomed into a most wonderful smile, completely oblivious to the murderous chill being directed her way.

in other words no one can take it off including me?

Handy, isnt it? Since even you cant take it off, it means that your family cant force you to hand over the ring.

I should have known!! She always has a trick up her sleeve! The temperature in the room was rapidly dropping, the air turned stifling, yet Elaru still continued smiling as if nothing was going on. Kiel brought his right hand to their eye level, showing his ring. Through gritted teeth, he spat out. Handy isnt the word Id use.

Seeing Kiels twitching hand that seemed to want to wrap around her neck and strangle her, Elaru unexpectedly started giggling. Its about your hand, so I think handy fits quite nicely.

The relatively calm atmosphere in the room was instantly shattered by a loud slam of Kiels hand against the table. I cant believe you thought that making a ring that cant be taken off was a good idea!!

Its not that it cant be taken off I mean, there are ways to get it off

Like what? Kiel growled.

Elaru scratched her head sheepishly.

Like having someone cut off my finger for the sake of obtaining my divine artifact?! Kiel spat out. If eyes could kill, Elaru would have been deader than dead.

The red-headed troublemaker, however, showed no sign of being agitated. She rubbed her chin in thought. Easier said than done. It is stuck to the base of your finger. Its practically impossible to cut your finger off. All attempts would just end up cutting either your hand or the ring instead of your finger.

Kiel stared at Elaru in a complete lack of words. As if she didnt notice his gobsmacked expression she continued: Although, to be honest, if someone wanted your ring that badly, it would be easier to just cut off your entire hand at the wrist. She then proceeded to make a chopping motion with her hand. And then, just disintegrate the hand, leaving only the ring behind.

With a violently twitching eyebrow, Kiel stared at Elaru in silence for several seconds before he finally managed to squeeze out: How reassuring instead of losing a single finger, I lose an entire hand

Elaru attempted to give Kiel a reassuring pat on the back, but when she saw his expression, which looked like that of a rabid lupax that would bite her hand off if it came in his proximity, she decided against it. I hate to break it to you, Iceblock. But if you run into someone crazy enough to cut off your hand, the chances are that they are crazy enough to kill you too. If youre dead, it would make little difference whether you are missing a finger or a hand.

Control yourself. Dont strangle her. You can do it. Self-control! Great. That makes me feel so much better. Its good to know that theyll have to pry the ring off my dead fingers. The sarcasm dripping from his words couldnt be any more substantial.

Elaru gave him a solemn look. Lets not get ahead of ourselves. There wouldnt really be any prying involved here. I mean, it wont come off even if you die. Have to She once again repeated the chopping motion.

Kiel, whose mental faculties were too preoccupied on not strangling Elaru, didnt manage to stop his hand in time, and he ended up giving himself a facepalm. So, my only choices are an incomplete corpse or taking the ring to my grave? Fantastic!

Oh, come on Kiel Elaru rolled her eyes as if she was talking to an immature child. If youre dead, youre dead. What does it matter if your corpse is complete or if you take the ring to your grave? Dead people dont have feelings.

I bet thats what graverobbers tell to themselves! Kiel growled out. Let me guess, papa made you try that line of business as well?

Elarus nonchalant behavior suddenly disappeared, replaced by an awkward cough. Touch

Seeing Elarus visible embarrassment made Kiels anger suddenly dissipate into thin air. He lifelessly fell back on his seat like a deflated balloon. I cant believe I just said that. He looked up towards the ceiling and let out a sigh. That was a low blow

He looked at Elaru from the corner of his eyes, but she didnt seem to be upset by it. That tinge of embarrassment quickly passed, and she was back to normal. In fact, judging by her aura, Kiel could tell that she wasnt mad at him at all.

He closed his eyes tiredly and let out another sigh. What if one day Aetherneal bond gets broken? Am I supposed to carry a useless ring on my finger for the rest of my life? After all, his initial intention was to find a way to sever this bond.

If Aetherneal bond gets broken? Elaru rubbed her chin in thought. You mean if I die? She suddenly clutched her heart in an exaggerated motion. Oh, how cruel! Your soulmate dies, and you cant wait to get rid of the last thing she left you. How heartless, my only token of affection! You cant even wear it to honor my memory? Why not just rip out my heart and stomp on it.

Kiel couldnt help but glare at her. Continue down this line of thinking, and I just might do it. At least then Id be rid of a giant pest.

Elaru stuck out her tongue cutely.

Kiels glare deepened. But now, even if I get rid of said giant pest I will never be able to forget it, for I cant get rid of what it left behind. Kiel, once again, brought his right hand to their eye level, showing off the ring.

Awww! How sweet! You wont be able to forget me until the day you die. Elaru looked at him with large eyes and exaggeratedly started fluttering her eyelashes, then she proceeded to sigh in a sickly sweet way.

Arrrgh! Or Ill just cut the finger off myself! Kiel jumped on his feet in agitation, wanting nothing more than just strangle this annoying redhead.

Elaru too, could take it no longer, and she finally burst out in merry laughter. Oh, Kiel! Im just messing with you! Of course, there is a way to remove the ring. Did you really think that I forgot to include a way out in my spells? Im not an amateur.

ELARU WAYVIN!!!!! This is not funny!!!!

The musical giggle that couldnt be more pleasant to the ear echoed inside the room. It kinda is.

Tell me how to remove it right this instant!

Nope. Elaru shot it down instantly. Its better if you dont know how to remove it. That way no one will be able to force you to hand it over.

Right. Theyll just cut it off instead! Kiel snorted, his body shaking with suppressed anger.

Elaru rolled her eyes. This again? She sighed. If it ever comes to the point where you have no choice but remove it to retain your limbs, Ill just telepathically tell you how to remove it.

Kiel breathed in and out deeply for a while, trying to calm down. He pinched the bridge of his nose and stood still for a while.

Even though he was angry at Elaru for teasing him like this, even though that the idea of wearing something he cant remove made him uncomfortable, he had to admit it made sense. If his grandfather suspected that his ring was worth something, he would surely force Kiel to hand it over. The only way that Kiel could peacefully keep his ring would be if he didnt know how to remove it.

Venric Rroda was a heartless bastard, but he wouldnt go as far as to cut his finger off. At least not while Kiels father was alive.

Elaru could be obnoxious, but her plan was well thought out. It was so well thought out that Kiel was convinced that hiding his mark wasnt the only reason why she made him wear the ring on his right hand. The little redheaded vixen probably also wanted him to conceal the future influx of mana that Kiel would be transferring through their marking. This way, everyone would think he was channeling mana through the ring to purify it. It wouldnt be strange if there were a lot of mana around the ring.

No matter how displeased Kiel was with her, he couldnt quite bring himself to hate her. After all, Elaru Wayvin was doing all of this for his sake. She spared no effort to make him this ring.

Also, no matter how much he hated to admit it, Elaru Wayvin was absolutely brilliant. She was brilliant to the point of him being unable to stifle the respect that was blooming inside of him, making his heart beat rapidly.

* * *

Zelaih, Capital City of Halnea, Rroda manor

Inside the Rroda estate within Zelaih, there was a large office.

Within that office sat an extremely handsome, middle-aged man whose face looked as if he didnt know how to smile. His short black hair speckled with vividly azure strands, coupled with his icy blue eyes, gave him a sharp look that could chill a person to the bone.

The aura the man exuded wasnt oppressive or chilling, but it still left one feeling like an insignificant wyrm in front of him.

The man stared seriously into the icy blue eyes of a young man standing on the opposite side of his desk. What do you want?

The young mans face fell, and his stance suddenly changed to make him look like a hurt and vulnerable little tiwi. What? Cant I just visit my father?

His pitiful appearance invoked no sympathy from the middle-aged man. Cut the crap.

Rhur Rroda sighed. Alaric Rroda was a no-nonsense kind of person. Although he wasnt as cold-hearted as Venric Rroda, he wasnt easy to deceive either. There was no point in playing the sympathy card.

Little brother came to Ashar a few days back. I took him to Black Pearl for lunch earlier today. Rhur Rroda spoke out, a soft smile playing on his lips.

Alarics eyebrow instantly jumped up. Kiel came to Ashar? How come no one notified me of this?

Rhurs soft smile suddenly turned into a sad smile, and he let out a soft sigh that clearly expressed how depressed and pitiful he felt. However, it seems that little brother held some resentment towards me inside his heart, because he played a trick on me. Rhur again sighed sadly as if the events that transpired pained him greatly.

Alarics eyebrow rose even further up, almost reaching his hairline. However, he remained silent.

Rhur continued. When I asked him what wine he would like to drink, he ordered Lileron Passion.

Alarics pupils widened, and suddenly he let out a raspy cough, designed to mask the laughter that was threatening to erupt.

Alaric Rroda, as an esteemed councilman of Halnea, often had business dinners and attended all kinds of high-class parties. He naturally knew of Lileron Passion.

Alarics solemn look still adorned his face, but the corner of his mouth kept twitching. Lileron Passion! Good one!

Rhur Rroda didnt need to continue with his story. Alaric had already caught on to the main point. Nice try. Alaric barely contained himself from rolling his eyes. He spoke up, interrupting Rhurs tear-jerking play. A mans debt has to be paid by his own hands. What is the point of you taking your brother out for a meal if Im the one paying for it? It would make your entire gesture of brotherly love meaningless.

Brotherly love? Rhurs eyebrow twitched. The old man was clearly mocking him.

Rhur smiled wryly. Of course you wouldnt help me out. You are always on his side.

But I expected as much.

Author Note

Check out to see answers to reader asked questions about the story.

Coming up in the next episode:

You are not lying to me, are you? Alaric couldnt help but exclaim. Hed be more inclined to believe that his younger son was gay than he would believe that he got himself a girlfriend. In fact, Rhur had even tricked him into coming to a brothel once, yet he still walked out without as much as touching a woman.

As expected of my eldest son. Alarics glared at him icily. Money cant buy happiness my ass! This is blatant extortion! You little brat! So, this was your plan all along!

As soon as Rhur exited his fathers office, his mouth broke out into a smirk. Your weakness is glaringly obvious making you too easy to manipulate, father.

She looked at him with a solemn expression and spoke out in grave tone. Lets talk about sex.