Chapter 84: Wolves Welcoming the Sheep (2/2)
As Arthur gazes at the Viscount, the man turns and casts a penetrating look towards him, making his Champion's aura create pressure around Arthur.
This pressure isn't as overwhelming as the one Aria placed on Josephine, but Arthur feels his body become heavy and breathing becomes difficult. 'Is this the power of a Champion?'
'This definitely seems out of our league now!' Nyx shares her energy with Arthur, helping him withstand the pressure from the Viscount, but it causes sweat to drip down his face.
Josephine notices what is happening, but before she can think of what to do, Oliver steps in front of Arthur, and the Viscount feels his aura immediately contained. 'What the heck?!'
He looks at Oliver with a shocked expression, but then feels a terrifying aura coming from the house. 'Who???' He looks up to see one of the curtains being closed behind a window on the fourth floor.
No one but him noticed that aura, but Josephine can see that something happened. "Your Excellency?" She calls to him with a curious tone.
"Ahem," He tries to shake off the fear that the terrifying aura instilled in his body and turns his gaze back to Arthur. "You must be the boy Anastasia mentioned so excitedly..."
"I guess so," Arthur speaks in a casual tone, and all the nobles around the Viscount make shocked and hostile expressions, while Josephine and Oliver smile.
The Viscount isn't upset but rather more curious. "You're not from here, right? Perhaps you don't understand our customs, so we might overlook one or two mistakes, but even our patience has limits."
Although Arthur can rely on his mother's power, he doesn't want to be dependent on her, so provoking an enemy he isn't entirely sure he can kill is definitely a mistake. So, he contains his emotions and smiles coldly. "I understand."
"Good, good... We adults do not meddle in the affairs of the young, but actions have consequences, so I hope you are prepared for them." The Viscount comments in a threatening tone as his children cast hostile glances at Arthur.
Josephine steps in front of the Viscount with a friendly expression. "We shouldn't keep the others waiting, right, your Excellency? Let's allow the young ones to settle their disputes in the arena, as our ancestors did."
"Of course," He nods slightly towards Arthur and Oliver before gesturing for his wives and children to follow him to the patio. "I am sure the spectacle will be memorable today..."
The Viscount's children show different reactions as they pass by Arthur, some laughing provocatively, others with merely hostile looks, and his daughter has a lustful gleam in her eyes; the girl even tries to touch Arthur's face, but he steps back, avoiding it.
The Viscount's wives try not to look at him but all end up glancing at him, even if only for a second, impressed with his appearance.
The last to pass, stops and looks directly into his eyes. "Anastasia is mine alone, and I won't let your stupid servant get away with this!"
Arthur feels his blood boil when the woman insults Margaret, but again he knows he can't deal with the Viscount alone now, so he contains his fury and stores it in his heart to use at the right moment.
The woman is surprised to see Arthur's face as cold as a block of ice, "Humph," She turns and follows her husband.
'That bitch! I'll kill her!!' Nyx exclaims furiously in Arthur's mind, but he tries to stay calm. 'In the right time, dear... I'll leave her to you,'
Unaware of Arthur's thoughts, Josephine and Oliver are surprised by his calmness. "Are you okay, Arthur?" He asks.
"Yeah," Arthur nods, but he notices Josephine's curious look, analyzing every action of his. "Shall we start? I really need to beat someone right now."
"Hahaha," Oliver laughs as he walks towards the patio. "Let's go, I'll let you face that bitch's son, you can hit him as much as you want."
Arthur is eager due to the idea and follows Oliver while Josephine continues to gaze at him in the same thoughtful manner. 'How cold must he be to not show his emotions like that?' She remembers how Arthur became violent to defend Margaret, so she is sure that he will not forgive the Viscount and his family.
Josephine follows the duo, and they arrive at the patio, where the noble families are separated into three large groups: there are the Drummonds, who are in the minority but are the single bigger family there; then there's Dmitri and his allies, which includes the family of the Viscount and those related to his wives.
The third and largest group consists of neutral families who currently prefer to support the Viscount; some of them were invited by Dmitri and others by Josephine, and although many of the young people from those families are competing against the Drummonds, they are there to participate in the event, not to support Dmitri.
Everyone sits around the arena and begins to be served by Josephine's servants, with food and drink aplenty; people don't stop talking about the young competitors, but since the competition isn't starting, Dmitri becomes impatient.
"What are we waiting for, Josephine?" He asks in an annoyed tone.
But she just smiles gently. "Just a minute, we are waiting for my last guests of honor."
Most of those nobles are confused, but Arthur knows whom Josephine is talking about, and just as he thinks about them, the trio appears, drawing everyone's attention.
Little Eve, in her childlike dress, looks like a princess already, convincing everyone that in the not-too-distant future, her beauty will be enough to cause the downfall of entire kingdoms.
Behind her is Margaret, wearing her black and white dress, the finest and most elegant piece Josephine has ever made, adorning her natural beauty perfectly. Her beauty makes those around even more envious because she does not come from noble lineage and yet is more beautiful than any woman there, except one...
That is, of course, Aria, who now wears a blood-red column-style dress with golden adornments covering her lower body entirely but highlighting her perfect curves; the dress is sleeveless, revealing her delicate shoulders, but has a full neckline, not showing even an inch of her ample bust.
While Eve has her hair tied back in a ponytail, Margaret and Aria have similar buns, both adorned with delicate braids around and some loose strands gracing their faces like a waterfall; they also have light makeup on, especially lipstick leaving their lips a deep red and eyeshadow around their eyes.
All the men on the patio are left speechless at the sight of these women, who can only be described as goddesses, making their women look like complete trash.
Oliver is the first to manage to look away and punches Arthur in the shoulder, "Damn, man!! Is this some kind of torture???"
Arthur laughs, but he also feels a bitter taste in his mouth as he looks at Aria, so beautiful that it awakens immoral feelings in his heart. "I think it might be..."