Chapter 103 - Roping Him Over

''There is no one around,'' Liz whined.

Keith nodded, ''You are right. But what are you doing here?"

''I was just passing by,'' Liz looked at him with limpid eyes.

''You look different,'' Keith stroked her hair.

''It must be because I am tired.''

''I will escort you to your room,'' he turned around to walk in that direction with a hand resting on her waist but what he missed was the way her lips curved up as soon as his back was facing her.

…

Esme knocked on the door twice.

''Who is it?'' came a young voice from inside the room.

''It's me,'' she replied.

Soon, her ears picked up the sounds of hurried footsteps as Arlan approached the door and opened it for her.

''Sister, you don't need to knock,'' he flashed his usual toothy grin at her.

And Esme was momentarily dazed. For a moment, it felt like they were back in the old days where her Aunt would scold her, smear dirt across her face, and Arlan would flash this foolish smile at her to make her laugh.

But then, those days were long gone.

The slap of reality was too harsh for her. Never in her wildest dreams did she think that Arlan was not her own brother, but her eldest uncle's illegitimate child.

But that did not change her feelings for him. She grew up looking at him as her own little brother and nothing will ever change her heart.

''How can I not knock?" Esme stepped inside the room, ''You are not a child anymore,'' she patted his shoulder.

He was almost as tall as her, if not a bit taller.

Arlan smiled shyly. ''Sister, how have you been?" he asked as they sat on the wooden throne chairs near the table.

''I am alright.''

''You look much better now. I like seeing you like this. I hated our Aunt for making you ugly on purpose every day. Now, you look like a princess and my only sister,'' he nodded.

Esme ended up laughing, ''But she used to do it for our good.''

''She tried to hide us away from the world. What good is there in hiding?" Arlan's voice was laced with disdain, ''Those who hide have something to be afraid of.''

''You know our uncle…''

''I know that he was after us, he wanted to kill us. But hiding from him made our lives more miserable,'' Arlan looked at the ceiling, ''We lived like rats because Aunt wanted us to but I have never liked that feeling. I'd rather die a glorious death than living such a disgraceful life.''

Esme glanced at him quietly.

He averted his gaze from the ceiling to look at her, ''Be honest with me sister. Don't you think like this as well? All these years, haven't you detested the way we lived?" he held her hand and looked into her eyes as if he was trying to look for an answer in them.

She averted her gaze and blinked, ''Arlan, what were you doing?''

Knowing that it was an indication that he wouldn't get an answer to this, Arlan sighed, ''I was training,'' he raised his hand and an orange glow flickered at his fingertips but it was so faint that one can barely discern it.

Esme frowned, ''What happened to your powers…'' Before she could finish speaking, the glow disappeared.

Arlan scratched the back of his neck, ''Maybe because I have not trained properly in the past few days.''

Esme narrowed her eyes.

Arlan shifted in his chair.

''Then you can train properly now,'' a masculine voice came from the entrance of the room, and in the next moment three golden strikes aimed at Arlan's forehead.

He moved out of reflex and jumped off the chair. The chair burst to smithereens and Arlan flipped on the floor before pushing himself to his feet, ''Brother-in-law,'' he glanced at Aleister with worshiping eyes.

Esme: "_"

She did not turn to look at the man who entered the room.

Aleister, on the other hand, was certain that nothing else sounded like music to him the way this 'brother-in-law' did at this moment... The corner of his lips tugged up briefly. The elder brother-in-law was half maniac. And now that he has ended up provoking Esme, he knew he had to try to rope over the younger brother-in-law to his side.

''Sister, did you glare at me?" Arlan turned to look at Esme when he felt her burning gaze on him.

Esme smiled like a kind elder sister, ''Your sister is not married yet so don't address him as such. You should address the Prince properly,'' she pushed herself to her feet. 

Arlan blinked, ''But he is the only brother-in-law I have. Why can't I address him as such?" Moreover, he did not think he would find someone more appropriate for his elder sister. Just based on the looks alone, all other men will fade when compared to the great Prince of Visteria.

Esme's lips thinned, ''What if I end up marrying someone else?''

''How can that be? Only brother-in-law can be my brother-in-law. He is so powerful as well and I won't have to worry about you all the time. Although you are my sister, I can't lie and say that you are strong when you don't have an ounce of power in your body,'' Arlan nagged, ''I am worried all the time that you might be blown away by the wind.

Esme pursed her lips at his constant jabs. It was true that all the members of royal families possessed magical powers but she didn't. Comparatively, she was blessed with some sleepwalking traits. She mocked it in her mind.

''It's the first time you are meeting him. Don't jump to conclusions,'' she said when she noticed Arlan's glowing eyes focused on Aleister.

''Brother-in-law, what's that golden thing? Uh… Can I call you brother-in-law?"

The corner of his lips tugged up and Aleister opened his mouth, ''Yes, you…''

''Arlan,'' Esme interrupted him.

Arlan turned to look at his sister when he heard her solemn voice.

''We need to talk.''

''But…''

''You have yet to tell me what happened to you during this time when you went missing,'' she interrupted Arlan and watched as he visibly stiffened at her words.

...

A/N: If you like it so far, don't forget to vote. And I'll appreciate it if you can take some time out to write a review. 

The new cover will be out tomorrow ;) 

Have a good day/night <3