The Tyrant's Pet

"Dani."

Aries looked back when a hand grabbed her wrist to stop her from leaving. She raised her eyes and tilted her head as soon as she locked eyes with Dexter.

"Yes?" she asked.

Dexter let out a quiet huff and let her go. He glanced at the entrance behind her, and then around the room. Everyone already left while Roman was resting to recover as fast as he could. It was best to talk to her now regarding her 'plan.'

"Leave," he remarked, causing her brows to furrow. "After this, leave. Don't go back to Haimirich."

"What?"

"Listen to me, Dani." Dexter advanced a step, holding her biceps. His eyes were solemn. "Abel... he isn't just that, Dani. I hate to break it to you, but coming back to Haimirich and sticking with him — with us  — isn't the wisest decision. You don't know him completely."

Aries returned his gaze for minutes before her lips parted. "I don't know him?" she whispered, eyes gleaming with clarity.

"Abel is more than just what he seemed to be, yes. He is a monster who kills without conscience, he survives by taking another person's life, and sometimes, for fun. His existence alone is a sin. The world is at risk just because he walks on the surface of this world and is not rotting a hundred feet under." Aries laughed weakly, eyes shaking slightly. "I don't know him completely? He is fickle and violent; a person who is unpredictably dangerous. He is someone who doesn't care about anything else, but his own interest. A walking red flag. Tell me, brother. What else can you say about him I haven't known yet?"

For a moment, Dexter was unable to respond. All he could do was stare back at her, trying to find his lost voice. When he did, a low voice came along under his breath.

"He will kill you," he confessed, squeezing her biceps lightly. "This... is not forever, Aries."

"Hah..."

"Trust me. Think of yourself as his new Haimirich. Back then, he would do anything for Haimirich and then you came, and he shifts his obsession. There will be a time when someone new will come, and you... will share the same fate as Haimirich. He'll leave you alone and go to another land." Dexter solemnly stressed his words so she would understand his point.

"How long did he obsess over Haimirich?" she asked after a minute of silence. "A millennium?"

Aries smiled bitterly, holding his hand that was on her bicep. "If he gets tired of me after a millennium, then I can say I had a millennium with him. Even if it's a decade or just a year, brother. I don't care. My sentiments will be the same." She squeezed his hand, nodding encouragingly at him.

"It might sound banal, but I had already decided and I know I might it regret later. However, denying him, you, and everyone... I will still regret it forever," she continued. "I know you're simply trying to make me reconsider, but there is nothing to reconsider anymore. Because if I changed my mind, I'd rather kill myself after this."

"That had always been my plan, after all." Aries let go of his hand and after several seconds, Dexter released her shoulders. "I appreciate your concern, but you really do not have to worry about me, brother. I don't plan to change Abel or his nature, neither I have plans to change you and how you perceive him."

"I just want to live my life according to my values." Her lips curled up ever so slightly. "I'll be on my way. Please look after Roman. I need him."

Aries idled for a moment and simply looked him in the eye. When a minute had passed in silence, she turned on her heel and walked away without looking back. Meanwhile, Dexter stood in the same spot even when her light footsteps vanished.

"She's so stubborn," he whispered, balling his hand into a fist. "If you already knew you will get hurt in the end, why don't you listen to me?"

"Because that is love." Dexter turned his head in the bed's direction where Roman was lying.

Roman weakly opened his eyes and instantly caught the burnt ceiling. He was supposed to rest and sleep, but he couldn't and accidentally overheard Dexter and Aries's conversation.

"Love is an uncontrollable force that is stupid to fight or stop," he voiced out his sentiments, understanding the crown princess's reasons. "It is moronic, but you'd rather get hurt than let go of the infinitesimal chances of becoming happy even for a moment with that person. That person might hurt you intentionally or not, but it doesn't matter."

Roman gulped to soothe his drying throat. "You just want to be there for them in good times or bad, even if we're not in that person's happiness any longer. You might not understand that, but that is how I understood Her Royal Highness. Because at the end of the day, even if Princess Violet turns out to be a monster, I'll feed her my limb if that means she will survive for a day."

"That's why you're lying there now." Dexter dragged his feet and perched on the armchair beside the bed. "Because of your own foolishness."

"But I don't regret it," Roman argued, glancing at the marquess. "I don't regret the blood I had spilled and the lives I had taken. My only regret is letting her get swept by a fraud and watching her suffer and done nothing."

"Even more foolish now," Dexter remarked, watching Roman move his head until their eyes met.

"I can say the same to you, my Lord. You're foolish to think you can even stop her, knowing she won't change her mind."

"I had to do what I need to do." He shrugged. "We might not share the same blood, but she's my sister. If not for her, even if His Majesty won't do anything to this place, I would."

Roman studied Dexter before he peeled his eyes away from him. "I won't stop you because this empire deserves destruction. It used to be a wonderful place… how are you certain I will recover? These injuries won't heal with just rest and even if I recover, I would be handicapped."

"That person Curtis had a more serious problem, but he's fine now," said Dexter, waiting for Roman to look back at him. "Rest as much as you can. In that case, you can fight the blood that will heal you."

Roman's brows furrowed after Dexter's remarks, but he didn't ask any questions anymore. All he did was study Dexter's emotionless countenance before he nodded.

"As long as I can fight for a day, I'll try."

"Your standards of life are far too low," Dexter replied. "Her order is to make sure you get out of this in one piece."

He leaned back, propping his jaw against his knuckles, eyes closed. "She knows she might get a tragic ending, so she is trying to play a hero or a matchmaker. You should propose to that princess once everything is over. There's no use in idling since humans have short lives."

"How dare I…" Roman cleared his throat.

"Grow some balls, will you? It's funny how you take another person's life without batting an eye, but can't even confess to a woman you'd been fantasizing about for years. Give the lady some slack and never allow her to initiate before you. You'd kill a lady's spirit." Dexter's voice was lazy, rolling his eyes underneath his shut eyelids. "It's now or never, Prince."