Heartmate | ✔️

t h i r t y o n e

He glared at her angrily. I saw her give him a cold look.

"Surely, you don't think Her Highness is incapable of fighting against me. She is after all, like you said, our future Queen. We wouldn't want a weak one, do we now?" She mocked. My fists were so tightly clenched that I could feel my nails dig into my palm through the bandages.

Murmurs ran through the room. Aiden clenched his jaw, throwing them a look that formed instant silence. The Chief Commander entered the conversation.

"Is there a problem, Your Highnesses?" He inquired. Something told me he listened on in every word but didn't want to show it.

"There isn't any, Commander. If you will, the next battle will be between Lady Isabella and myself." I said.

He glanced at Isabella and then back at me. Something danced in his eyes. I swear I saw a fleeting smile on his lips before he masked his expression.

"Very well. The rules from before stay. Only strike to hurt not maim. Absolutely no use of magic." He announced.

The last part seemed to be directed at Isabella even though he didn't spare her a glance. I got different responses from the soldiers. Some seemed to have faith in me but a few still gave me looks of doubt. Something stirred in me again.

Isabella, still smirking, went away to pick her weapon. Derek pat my good shoulder, albeit a little awkwardly, before walking away with the Chief Commander.

I felt Aiden boring holes into my head. I looked at him with an equally pissed look.

"What?" I snapped when he didn't say anything.

"Why are you doing this? I told you how dangerous she could be." He said, voice rising. A few soldiers nearby gave us both weird looks.

"You don't think I can win a petty fight against your little girl toy?" I fired back.

"She means nothing to me and you know it." He gave me a look.

"What's that on your neck then?" I asked.

"It's nothing." He said looking away.

I stared at him.

"After everything we talked through, I don't mean much to you, do I?" I said. Even though it was rhetorical I expected that he would atleast deny it.

"I didn't mean for it happen. It just did and I swear I tried stopping her but her spells are hard to break through." He finally said, looking defeated. He stepped closer.

"You can't keep letting your past demons get to you. You have to put in some effort to fight back at some point." I whispered. "Let me help you."

"I don't want you to get hurt. I know what she's capable of." He whispered back.

"There is no demon that can't be slain." I said. I took a step back when I realised how close we were. "Wish me luck."

I walked away without waiting for a response. I was handed a sword by one the soldiers. When he lingered for a moment longer, I lifted an eyebrow in question. He hesitated. He couldn't be any older than I was. But I can't be too sure about that. The people here aged way differently than I was used to. His hazel eyes flickered behind him where the rest of his comrades stood watching.

"Most of us believe in you even though we might not show it. Ever since you stepped into this castle, we've felt your presence even without you physically being there in front of our eyes. I saw you fight Ridian. He isn't somebody who can be defeated very easily." He paused. A few others were listening in now. Some even nod their heads in consent.