Though Ivan's words annoyed me, I ordered Illumia to stop via divine sense, not because I intended actually to speak with him, but because I didn't wish the Angel to die somehow, considering he was currently at the man's mercy; he was very special, and the only one allowed to kill him would be me.
"Fine, I'm listening, Ivan; however, let's make this quick; I have places to be and things to do." Said Elif calmly with a frown as Illumia returned to her usual spot behind Elif.
"I knew we could be civil, Elif, so then, what is the reason for such hostility between us?" Asked Ivan with a friendly smile while occasionally glancing at the women behind Elif, mainly Idonea.
'Heh, what did I say, Idonea? You've got that charm.' Said Elif via divine sense.
'I specialize in fighting, not seducing, your Highness; please remember that.' Said Idonea via divine sense while glancing at Elif, though her voice was still just as dry.
"I have no hostility for you, at least as of right now; it's just that your servant is blocking me from acquiring my Angel, which I had found, so if it isn't too much trouble, could you order him to move?" Replied Elif calmly, though his eye twitched every time Ivan called him by his name.
After I spoke, Ivan adorned a troubled expression while constantly shifting his focus between the Angel and me, seemingly pondering something, though this just further served to annoy me as he was simply wasting my time. Ever since I realized the Angel was the one who caused my intent to enter an active state, I've lost nearly all interest in Ivan; the only reason I haven't completely disregarded his presence was that he was still the prince of an Immortal Hegemony so that at least warranted some interest.
"I don't wish to make things difficult for either of us, Elif, but while you may be the one to discover the Angel, it was done in my territory, not to mention it was my man who subdued him, so by all accounts, this angel belongs to me. However, since I'm someone reasonable, I'll allow you the opportunity to acquire the Angel, but not for free, of course; how about I propose a trade? A few of your servants for this Angel; that seems fair." Stated Ivan with a thoughtful expression before smiling while eyeing Elif, though this time, his focus was on the woman behind.
"Haa, there you go again, using the word opportunity as if to undermine me; however, since I'm still somewhat in a good mood, I'll ignore it for now. So, since you came up with this idea, how many people would I have to offer up before you consider it an equal trade? I don't suppose those three would work?" Remarked Elif with a frown while shaking his head and pointing at Idonea, Marley, and Mandy before shifting his focus to Ivan.
As I pointed at them, I could feel how they also looked at me, and when I glanced at them, although their expression remained neutral, I noticed confusion and slight uncertainty in their eyes, yet I didn't say anything to soothe their concern.
"Haha, it seems you've seen right through me, Elif; yes, those three women would be perfectly adequate, in my opinion. So, I assume we have a deal?" Said Ivan lightly while lustfully eyeing Marley, Idonea, and Mandy.
"While I'm at it, I might as well add Illumia to the deal; is that fine?" Asked Elif with an amused smirk, his words causing Illumia to glance at Elif before closing her eyes again.
"I didn't know you were so generous, Elif, and it would be rude of me to refuse your gift; however, I don't wish to take advantage of you in this exchange; I'm an honorable person, after all." Replied Ivan with a noble expression.
"Understandable; Illumia is too much a woman for you to handle anyways." Said Elif lightly while nodding his head.
When I said that, I saw Ivan's expression sourer, and Illumia's chuckle didn't seem to help the situation either, which I will say is a rare thing to hear.
"So, since we both agree upon the deal, I'll give you the Angel, and you'll give me those three servants." Declared Ivan as his expression returned to normal, while Elif nodded in agreement.
"Yes, those three are now yours. Just come and get them; I'm sure they will be somewhat reluctant to leave me. After all, it's not every day you get the chance to serve someone as heavenly as me." Stated Elif with a narcissistic smirk while eyeing Ivan, his words causing him to frown.
While Ivan and I had been conversing, I could feel the gazes from the three women behind had intensified, yet I still didn't say anything and just waited for Ivan to approach me, which he did after intently staring at me for a few seconds. When Ivan arrived just a few meters before me, I suddenly smirked and vanished from the spot, moving at my fastest speed.
"You three, let's go; you're now my servants, so-" Said Ivan, yet he was interrupted as Elif suddenly hit his chest, flinging him far back to his original spot.
"Hmm, what are you doing all the way over there, Ivan? Your servants are over here." Remarked Elif with a confused expression, reappearing in his previous spot after hitting Ivan as if nothing had happened.
With my words, he just angrily eyed me before looking at the man who had been pressuring the Angel this entire time.
"Why didn't you protect me, Kalen!?" Asked Ivan angrily while eyeing Kalen.
"If I were to make a move, I would be breaking the unspoken rule, Prince Ivan; besides, even if I wished to make a move, she would've stopped me." Replied Kalen with an anxious frown while eyeing the smirking Elif before shifting his focus to Illumia.
"Unspoken rule!? You're telling me I was just attacked by someone in the same generation as me, yet I could only discern a blur!? Impossible!" Exclaimed Ivan in disbelief while eyeing Kalen.
"Is everything the matter, Ivan?" Asked Elif with a seemingly friendly smile.
"NO! Someone from your side had just attacked me!" Said Ivan with anger while eyeing Elif.
"Well, I can assure you it wasn't Idonea or Marley; they are weaker than me, so if they were the ones to attack you, I would've definitely seen it. It also wasn't me, considering you never saw me leave my spot." Replied Elif with a smirk, his words causing Kalen to frown intensely.
Seeing Ivan completely ignore my innuendo, I had to suppress my laughter; otherwise, I would've been exposed.
'Hehe, to think all he perceived was a blur when I attacked him.' Thought Elif while using his quạt tay to hide his smile.
After Ivan finished arguing with Kalen, his servant, he glanced back in my direction and began walking towards us while keeping his senses locked on us, which only served to amuse me, seeing how clueless he was. When he arrived before us, he stood there silently, seemingly waiting for someone to attack, and just when he was about to open his mouth to speak, I again vanished from my spot. Appearing in front of him, I slammed my palm on his chest, which didn't injure him, but it flung him back near his servant.
"Ivan, are you sure there isn't something wrong? Do you not want these servants? They are standing right here; all you must do is come and get them." Said Elif, seemingly worried about Ivan, though to him, it sounded like Elif was mocking him, which he was.
"ENOUGH!? Show yourself, who is the one who attacked me!?" Yelled Ivan in extreme anger from being humiliated twice.
"Hehe, hahaha!" Exclaimed Elif, no longer able to hold back his laughter.
"Tell me, who attacked me!?" Questioned Ivan angrily while eyeing the laughing Elif.
"Hahaha, give me a second to catch my breath, hahaha, it's too funny." Said Elif in between his bouts of laughing, though it seemed like Ivan had enough as he attacked Elif out of anger.
Sensing Ivan attacking me, I merely smiled while disappearing from my spot before reappearing behind him, though luckily for him, he could barely track my movements, even if it was simply in the form of a blur.
"You. it was YOU!" Said Ivan as he once again attacked Elif, who easily evaded it.
"Yes, it was me, you fool; it took you long enough to find out. Maybe if you didn't spend your time sleeping with women, you'd have actually noticed it was me the first time." Remarked Elif with a smirk as he mocked him, much to his anger.
"I don't care about the deal anymore! I'll kill you, then take your servants and rape them above your rotting corpse!" Exclaimed Ivan in blinded rage as he summoned a straight sword with a bedazzled hilt.
"Ho, those are very bold words, and while usually, I wouldn't mind entertaining someone as strong as you, there is someone much stronger and more interesting than you, so I'll make this quick." Stated Elif with an amused smile as he summoned Hokori and instantly unsheathed him, seemingly taking this fight somewhat seriously.
Looking at Ivan, I saw him inject a good chunk of Qi into his sword before slashing it at me, causing the blade to glow brightly as a white sword wave headed toward me.
'Imperial Slash!'
Seeing the incoming attack, I had to give credit where it was due; besides the Angel, Ivan is definitely the strongest opponent I've faced to date, yet it still didn't amount to much. Tightly grabbed Hokori with both hands, I raised it above my head, and for the first time in years, I swung Hokori down, launching a full-powered Heavenly scar. Seeing the massive purple sword wave emerge from Hokori, which dwarfed the white sword wave, it rapidly approached Ivan's attack. The moment they collided, there wasn't any explosion or anything like that as my attack cleanly sliced through the white sword wave and destroyed Ivan's attack while continuing its trajectory.
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Created a discord server, so if anyone wishes to join, [https://discord.gg/TGc9yymDJP]
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Elven Legacy (Chapter 241: Elven Cuisine Pagoda) || Hero of Harmony (Chapter 123: Adventurer Tour) || One Piece: Chaos Kong (Chapter 211: Pandemonium Set Sail!)|| Marvel's Black Steel (Chapter 168: Back In Queens) at [patreon.com/Ozonelayer691]