TBATE-ONESHOTS

Crime and Passion 5

Tessia Eralith POV

A blanket of darkness washed over me as we entered the earthen building their boss had created. I looked around, trying to see my surroundings, but the inside was too dark to make anything out.

He made a left turn and moved toward what seemed to be the wall, and I begrudgingly followed him. We came to a halt, and he pulled out what looked like a torch from his dimensional ring.

He placed the torch in what resembled a sconce on the wall before he took his hand away and lifted his index finger. A small flame came to life above his finger, and he poked the torch, igniting it. The inside of the building was engulfed in the light from the torch, and I curiously looked around to study my surroundings.

The earth floor we were standing on had been flattened and smoothed out, most likely to prevent us from lying on the uneven rocky ground. Next to one of the walls was an earth pillar with a makeshift earth chain attached to it. On the wall opposite the earth pillar was a makeshift earth stand with a bowl, which resembled a bird bath of sorts. Lastly, my eyes fell onto a small earth table, which had two smooth earth-made cups.

"Fancy," I mocked.

Their boss looked away from the torch, looking around the room. He chuckled before his eyes fell on me, "While it may not be up to the standards of a princess, I'm sure it can accommodate you for a night."

"My title does not define me," I snapped without thinking.

His eyes widened slightly in surprise before they narrowed and looked me up and down curiously for a brief moment. I half expected him to say something, but he ended up just shrugging my remark off, and we walked to the earth pillar.

We approached the pillar, and he grabbed the end of the earth chain that was linked to it. He turned to face me and placed the end of the chain between the mana suppression cuffs. The end of the earth chain broke apart and reformed around the cuffs, chaining me to the pillar.

"Wouldn't want you slipping away," He said casually.

"I wouldn't dream of it," I said sarcastically.

He eyed me amusingly before he let go of the chain. He pulled out a bedroll from his dimensional ring and laid it on the ground next to the pillar.

"There, a place for you to lay down," He said, gesturing to the bedroll. His gaze fell to my dress, "And don't worry. I've smoothed out the floor. You shouldn't get that pretty white dress of yours dirty."

I gave him a fake smile, "How considerate."

He gestured to the bedroll, "Go ahead and lay down. Your feet must be tired from all the walking today."

"I'm not some glass sculpture," I snapped with a narrowed gaze. "I feel just fine."

His brows raised in surprise before he shrugged, "I never said you were." He turned to walk away, "Feel free to stay standing if you wish. But the bedroll is for you."

He walked over to the earth stand that had the bowl, and I followed him with my eyes. I looked down at the bed roll, not wanting to use what he gave me. After a brief second of thinking, I sighed before I begrudgingly sat down on the bedroll. I made sure I sat facing him, as I didn't want him out of my sight.

He approached the earth stand and stood beside it so he was facing me. He reached up and grabbed his hood and pulled it down, revealing a set of auburn hair he had tied back, which seemed to shine off the fire from the torch. He next grabbed his balaclava and lowered it, revealing his smooth facial features.

To be honest, I didn't know what to expect. A bearded man with a scar. A man with a disfigurement, or someone ugly in general. However, what I ended up seeing made my brows subconsciously rise and my mouth go slightly agape.

He had to be around my age, with facial features that were elegant and refined. His smooth skin glowed in the torches light, with his smooth lips curved up in a slight smile, and his azure eyes complimented his auburn hair.

"Do I have something on my face, Princess?" He teased with a smirk, and his eyes flicked to me.

I quickly closed my mouth and narrowed my gaze before looking away. I tried to come up with a snarky remark, but I found myself at a loss of words.

I heard him chuckle, which was followed by what sounded like buckles being undone. I curiously looked back at him out of the corner of my eyes, and I watched as he began to unbuckle his torso gear. He first took off the sword sheath he had strapped to his back, followed by three pouches of what looked like throwing knives, all of which he stored in his ring.

Next, he began to undo his armor, taking off his gauntlets, then moving to his torso area. He undid his torso leather armor, took it off, and stored it and his gauntlets into his dimensional ring. He was now left in a black T-shirt and black leather pants and boots. He reached down, grabbed the bottom of his shirt, and with both hands.

My mouth went slightly agape, and my head slowly moved to look straight at him as he slowly lifted his shirt. He took his shirt completely off, and my eyes looked him up and down, seeing his flawless skin, magnificent eight-pack, and chizzled chest. His arms were incredibly muscular, like mana flowed through every fiber of his muscle. His shoulders were broad, and he had a narrow waist and hips.

He stored his shirt into his dimensional ring, and his eyes flicked to me with a smirk. I quickly looked away and mentally scolded myself for being caught staring at him again.

"Enjoying the view?" He teased.

I rolled my eyes and looked back at him, "You wish."

He chuckled and shrugged. He raised his left hand and hovered it over the earth bowl. I watched him curiously, wondering what he was doing. Suddenly, water mana began to gather under his palm and pour into the bowl.

I went wide eyes in disbelief, seeing him using water magic after he had just used fire and earth.

"W-what...?" I breathed out.

His eyes flicked to me, and the right corner of his lips raised into a small smile.

My eyes flicked to his in confusion, "How?"