Rory had forcibly put an end to Reina’s and Amelia’s fight, and had done it in such a way that they two couldn’t be stubborn and continue to fight. The reason being that, pushing the fight would lead to a severe punishment by Rory himself.

As such, the two couldn’t help but back down.

“Reina.”

Christi quickly approached the badly wounded Reina, and started to check on her.

“I’m fine. It will take more than this to kill me.”

Reina told the worried prince.

She then looked at Amelia with a glare, to which Amelia responded with a glare of her own.

‘That animus of hers has a lot of fire power.’

Reina thought.

‘She’s pretty tough. I wonder how the fight would’ve ended if we had continued?’

Amelia thought.

They both acknowledged each other’s strength, while deciding to be cautious around each other.

Rory on the other hand felt like he was having a headache.

‘Ah, this is the worst. They both obviously have animosity towards each other now. It will be hard for them to put aside their differences and work together in the future.’

He thought.

He then looked towards Serket, who looked quite pleased with herself.

‘You shitty hag!’

He shouted in his mind while gritting his teeth.

As if she’d guessed what he was thinking, she stuck out her tongue in a playful manner.

‘Old hag!’

It was as if a bomb exploded in his mind when saw that.

‘How old do you think you are, you bag of bones!’

He shouted in her mind while gripping his hair as if he wanted to rip it out.

“Hahaha. He still can’t take losing.”

Serket whispered after seeing Rory’s reaction.

“You’re probably the only one that can make him act like though.”

Richard said beside her.

“That’s because I know the right buttons to press.”

Serket said with a laugh.

Rory forcibly regain his composure after he noticed everyone’s gazes were on him.

‘Calm down, Rory. Don’t let her get to you.’

He chanted in his mind.

He then released a long sigh, and calm returned to his face.

“Tsk. He recovers quickly.”

Serket clicked her tongue and said.

‘Alright, think positive.’

He looked at Amelia.

‘Elia has developed her first animus, and its super powerful. Looks like she can even control wind to the point that she can fly for long periods of time with it.’

He thought to himself.

“Hm?”

Amelia noticed his gaze and looked at him.

“?!”

That’s when she noticed that the look in his eyes were extremely cold.

He rose his hand up, and a sudden oppressive sensation covered the area. The Black Orochi rose up from out of his shadow, instead of forming around his fingers.

“Grrr….”

It watched Amelia with hungry eyes, and then-

*Snap*

They pounced at her after Rory snapped his finger.

“Oh, shit!”

Amelia sensing danger towards her life, quickly creates a rainbow barrier around her. This barrier was made of all the elements that she could control, and had all of their properties.

She braced herself for the Orochi’s attack.

*Bam!*

The Orochi crashed its body into Amelia’s barrier and forced her out of the air and into the ground.

“Roar!”

The Orochi roared furiously as it attacked her with its 8 heads.

“Cut it out, Rory!”

Amelia shouted in desperation when she saw that her barrier was beginning to crack.

“This is too much of a test!”

The moment she said that, the Orochi stopped attacking her and disappeared.

“Oh, you knew?”

Rory asked with a smile.

“That wasn’t funny, Rory.”

Amelia deactivated her barrier and said.

“Sorry, sorry. I just had to see how power it was.”

Rory said.

“But I have to say, I’m impressed. For you first animus to be this powerful, it makes me proud.”

“Ha! I’m the one who instructed her. You have no right to be proud.”

Serket cut in a said.

“Corpse, you crawl back into your grave and be quiet.”

Rory glared at Serket and said.

“Oh?”

A vein started to pulsate on the side of Serket’s head.

“Looks like I need to teach you respect your elders all over again?”

“Be careful, you might break a hip if you move too fast.”

Serket started fuming when she heard that.

Rory ignored her and looked at Amelia again. He then looked at Reina and Christi.

‘Elia’s developing a powerful animus is a plus, but her displaying her skills came at the cost of worsening my relationship with Reina and Christi. It’s literally taking one step forward and then two steps back.’

He sighed.

‘Now then, how should I deal with this?’

He started to think.

‘Reina and Elia’s relationship is now solely animosity. Since I’m openly always on Elia’s side, Reina will also feel animosity towards me, because she believes that I will ultimately side with Elia no matter what. Well, she isn’t wrong.’

He thought.

‘If I isolate myself from Elia, I should be able to get close to her. But that would mean trading Elia for her…..I really don’t want that. I’m a take my cake and eat it too, type of guy. I prefer to have them both.’

He frowned.

‘But as it stands, that will be difficult.’

He looked at Christi specifically.

‘Before this I was starting to gain his trust….But does he still trust me after seeing how badly Elia hurt Reina? Should I try to regain his trust again? But how? Should I try to heal Reina?’

He shook his head.

‘No, he can already do that himself. It won’t seem like a legitimate gesture.’

He started to scratch his head.

‘Damn, this is so frustrating.’

He thought. After a while at racking his brain, he released a long sigh.

“Looks like I have no choice.”

He said.

“Elia, go with the fossil for now. I have some stuff to talk about with the prince and Reina.”

“What if I don’t want to?”

Amelia replied.

“You know, there’s a limit to my patience.”

Rory looked at her with a smile.

“Don’t push it.”

“……..”

Amelia didn’t say anything. She could tell that Rory has been upset for a while now. Her insisting to stay would only upset him more. Since she didn’t really wish to upset him that much, she decided to step back and don’t push him too far.

‘I might’ve teased him a bit too much.’

Serket thought with a wry smile after seeing how upset Rory was.

“Come on, Amelia. Let’s leave the child alone so that he can throw a tantrum.”

She said while walking away.

Amelia nodded and then followed her. She looked at the smiling Rory one last time and then left with Serket.

Rory then looked back at Reina and Christi. The smile on his face vanished in an instant.

“Let’s talk somewhere more private.”

He turned his back to them said, before walking away.

“……..”

“…….”

The two looked at each other before following him. They had the feeling that they no longer had the option to decline.

Rory led them to a house outside of royal yard and in the middle of town. Because the three were capable of moving with stealth, no one noticed them on the way to the house.

“Liam gave me this house as a gift. He said I could use it whenever I wanted some privacy.”

Rory said as he gestured the two should make themselves at home.

“He apparently thought that I would appreciate a place where I could get intimate with women without the eyes of public knowing.”

Reina glared at him when she heard that.

“Calm down. I didn’t bring you to somewhere filthy. This is the first I’ve ever been inside myself.”

He said before taking a seat before them.

“So what do you want to talk about?”

Christi asked.

“I’m not in the mood to beat around the bush, so I’ll cut to the chase.”

Rory said.

“This is country is on the verge of destruction. I know this, and you this.”

Christi and Reina remained quiet when they heard that.

“I’d like to blame you three brothers for this, but this is bigger than you three.”

Rory continued.

“This involves your country surrendering its authority to the Sacred Church.”

He said.

“The sacred church for years has been taking control of numerous countries and using their resources and citizens to strengthen their forces and the Sacred Race as a hold. They use the cover of religious crusades to overthrow monarchs and take the countries as their own.”

Rory pointed at the prince.

“And their next target is this kingdom.”

He said.

“The church despite being the worst type of scum, always attempt to use peaceful actions to take over a country. They sometimes approached the monarch of a country with a partnership were both sides can benefit. This way the church can peacefully spread its influence.”

He continued.

“However, monarchs are mostly arrogant and unwilling to yield their power, so the partnership tends to fail ever so often. When that happens, the church gives the country another chance at peace by approaching a relative of the monarch or a high ranking official of the country, and ask them for their help to either convince their monarch or find a way to claim the throne.”

Christi frowned when he heard what Rory said.

“So you’re saying that I’m that individual this time around?”

He asked.

“Are you saying you’re not?”

Rory asked.

Christi shook his head.

“No. You’re so accurate that it’s scary.”

Christi said.

“I’ve seen it happened countless times already.”

Rory said with a small laugh.

“Then you should know the end result if I fail to inherit the throne or convince my father right?”

Rory nodded.

“The Sacred Church will call in the Aficionado to sweep through the country and slaughter the royal family.”

He said.

“The Aficionado is a really dangerous bunch, even for me. They are fanatics that believe that the Sacred God and the church can do no wrong, and that all is just if it’s for the sake of their religion. A bunch of lunatics.”

“The one that you fought a while back was pretty strong too.”

Reina said.

“That was nothing but a nobody who was sent to keep an eye on things. True members of the Aficionado are far more powerful and far more insane.”

Rory replied.

“If they come here, then it’s game over for all of you.”

“We don’t need you to remain us. We already know.”

Christi said.

“Now, calm down. I’m not here to rub salt in your wounds. I’m here to provide a solution.”

“A solution?”

Rory nodded.

“I originally planned to keep it a secret, but recent events might cause you to drift away from me, which isn’t good for you. So as a gesture of trust, I share it with you.”

Rory then began to explained his plans. After he was finished, both Reina and Christi looked at him like he was a monster.

“Y-You….Do you even have a heart?”

Christi couldn’t help but ask.

“I wonder that myself sometimes.”

Rory said with a laugh.

“This isn’t no laughing matter! Your plans will result in thousands dying!”

Reina shouted. Rory’s plans were just that cruel.

“True, but the only way for the country to survive and make sure that something like this doesn’t happen for a long time, it must bathe in blood.”

Rory said. He then spoke with a smile.

“But don’t worry, I told you two different plans didn’t I? A peaceful one and an extreme one.”

“Peaceful? There’s nothing peaceful about thousands dying.”

Christi said.

“True, but this way you’ll all survive.”

He then showed a cruel smirk.

“Or do you want me to use the extreme plan? If I do, other than Serket you all will die.”

Christi and Reina gulped when they heard that.

Rory was right. The extreme plan would result in far more deaths and destruction than the other one. And more importantly, it would result in the destruction of the royal bloodline.

“You now see the reason why I need your cooperation. In fact, for my plan to work I need all of your cooperation. Otherwise, it’s death for all of you.”

He said.

“The problem is that other than you who don’t really want to be king, your brothers might not agree right away. No, I can convince Liam. The problem is James. He’s too much of a conqueror. He won’t yield that easily. But if Serket is the same as I remembered her as a kid, she won’t allow him to do anything stupid.”

“And if she isn’t?”

Christi asked.

“Then let me answer with a question of my own.”

Rory then asked with a straight face.

“Do you have any funeral clothes?”

Christi felt a chill down his spine when he heard that. He immediately knew that Rory was willing to kill all the Princes for the chance that the country will be born a new. He didn’t even care that they were his foster mother’s children. It would only hampered things a bit, but that’s it. He would still destroy them.

“You see, I don’t show mercy to fools who let their stupid ambition blind them from what really matters. If any of you stand in my way, in the name of your ambition, then I’ll will personally rip your hearts out.”

Rory said.

“Why would you go so far? You haven’t been here in over a century. This place shouldn’t mean anything to you.”

Reina asked.

“True. It shouldn’t.”

Rory answered honestly.

“But Reina, if I set my mind on accomplishing a goal and seeing through to the end, I will go to the extreme if I have to.”

He said.

“It’s the same for when I desire something. I will do anything to get it.”

“….It’s just like I thought. You’re a very evil person.”

Reina said.

“Thank you.”

Rory replied.

“Now, you two should already know what it signifies for me to reveal my plan to you.”

He looked at them with a sharp gaze.

“I need your answers here. Are you in, or are you out?”

“We’re in.”

Christi replied.

“That’s fast.”

“No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t think of a way for all of us to survive. But you’ve presented me with such a way, there’s no way I could decline. No matter how big the sacrifices will be.”

Rory laughed when he heard that, and stretched out his hand.

“It’s a good thing that you don’t want to become king, because you would’ve been a horrible one.”

Christi laughed and extended his hand and Rory’s.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”