Moon Glaive

Chapter 17: Indu

"Hello, Indu."

"Hello." She blushed and looked away. He heard everything I said! Wait, no, why am I embarrassed? He's the one who betrayed my trust in the first place; why should I be considerate of his feelings?

Her expression hardened as she gazed at Axer with cold eyes. He visibly flinched and looked away. Indu felt a little bad from his reaction, but he deserved it for playing with her emotions. The more she stared at him, the more her anger and disgusted feeling grew. She turned to look at the man sitting next to him but was shocked by what she saw.

With healthy tan skin and ocean-like dark blue eyes, the man possessed an intellectual charm as compared to Axer's rugged, more barbaric allure.

"Gremio?" Indu's eyes widened. "You came to see me? Where's Maxi?"

"Ah...well, as soon as I heard you collapsed, I rushed over here. I haven't had a chance to tell Maxi yet."

"How long was I out for?" The pale moon's radiance shone through the infirmary's window, but she couldn't tell the time just from that.

"You've been out for an hour. It's around three in the morning." Her father answered. He remained by her side, gently squeezing her hand. Aniya sat in her lap while Indu's other hand caressed her hair.

"Three?! You guys should have gone home and rested. Why did you wait for me?"

Her father frowned.

"What type of father am I that would go home and leave his ill daughter alone in an infirmary? I went without sleep for three days straight when my mercenary group was surrounded by a horde of werewolves. A night of sleep won't kill me."

"Even still, you're injured!"

"Please, that same night those werewolves surrounded me, I was covered in deep cuts and black bruises. I'm not so weak that little wounds like this would kill me." Her father said with a proud expression. "I'm still decades away before you need to begin worrying for my health, Indu. What I'm more concerned about is your well-being."

Indu couldn't say anything to that. His overwhelming love for her radiated in the air like a palpable sensation. She smiled and hugged her father once more.

"But still, now that I'm okay, you should go rest. Even the esteemed archmage said I'm okay, so you needn't worry about me, Father."

"No, let's go home together." Her father turned towards the respected archmage, who nodded his head in approval but said nothing else.

"Before you do, may I have a private word with you, Indu?" Axer asked with a sincere expression. Her father frowned at his request.

"My lord, my daughter is tired and-"

"Fine." Indu cut her father off and agreed. Her father looked back at her in surprise, his eyes confused.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I will only take a couple of minutes." Indu squeezed his hand once more. She understood his concern, as she had returned with tears after speaking with Axer in private the last time. He wanted to protect her from those negative feelings, especially after all she had been through, but Indu wanted to know what Axer had to say. Would he apologize? Would he make excuses for his actions? She wanted to know and put closure to the turbulent emotions that surged in her heart the past week.

"Alright, but if something happens, call for me immediately." He picked Aniya and leaned her against his shoulder, walking out of the room, followed by Camdyn and Gremio, who both nodded at her before exiting through the oak-wood door. Now, the only two left in the room were Indu and Axer.