Chapter 635: Do You Want Me To Introduce You To My Brother?

Even though Aqua asked with palpable anticipation, Aisha didn’t immediately answer.

Instead, she looked at her with a knowing smile.

No, not just knowing.

It was almost pitying.

Like she was looking at someone who was about to have their entire world turned upside down.

Like the truth she was about to reveal would shock Aqua so much that she might actually faint.

Aqua noticed the look immediately.

"What’s wrong, Aisha?" She asked, confusion creeping into her voice. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Aisha’s expression didn’t change.

"Don’t tell me..." Aqua continued, a note of worry entering her voice. "...that the person you know has told you to keep their identity a secret?"

"Even if they did, can you please ask them if I can meet them! I promise I won’t tell anyone else about them!"

She said in a rather frantic manner.

"I just want to meet them, praise them, and also—if I can have the honor—discuss some topics with them. About magic."

She then started fiddling with her fingers, looking down at the ground as she said in a pityful manner,

"To be honest, right now, I’m in rather desperate need of learning and advancing my own skills and magical capabilities." She said softly. "So if I were to meet them and improve because of them, just like you have, it would be really good for me."

"It would really help me a lot. More than you know."

Hearing this, Aisha’s smile faded. In its place came a look of genuine concern.

"Aqua?" She said, her voice gentler now. "Are you okay? You’re not someone who gets worried about anything, no matter what it is. So why are you looking like something bad is going to happen?"

Aqua hesitated, as if she didn’t want to burden Aisha with whatever was on her mind.

"Come on." Aisha pressed, stepping closer. "You always try to make me tell all my secrets and whatnot. This time, it’s your turn. Tell me what’s wrong."

Aqua was silent for a moment.

Then, finally, she let out a deep sigh.

"It’s about my engagement."

The moment those words left her mouth—

Aisha’s face darkened instantly.

She scoffed.

"Of course." She muttered. "Of course it’s about your engagement. Why didn’t I think of that?"

Aqua blinked, caught off guard.

"Wait—you know about this as well? You know about my engagement?"

Aisha rolled her eyes dramatically.

"Of course I know." She said dryly. "Who do you think I am? I manage the intelligence and safety of this entire estate."

"There is no chance in hell I wouldn’t know about something as public as your engagement."

She uncrossed one arm to gesture sharply.

"And don’t even get me started on it. The first time I heard about it, I almost tore the report in half. It’s so ridiculous."

Aqua opened her mouth, but Aisha wasn’t finished.

"I understand he’s your teacher. I understand he’s the strongest mage in the entire human kingdom. But this is absolutely doing too much!"

Her tail was lashing behind her now, her ears flat with indignation.

"Just because he taught you, he’s basically forcing an engagement upon you to his son? That’s absolutely ridiculous!"

She started pacing, her voice rising with each word.

"If he’s supposed to be a teacher, then he should just teach! He should be proud of his student and stop right there! Why in the world is he trying to force you into a situation like this?"

Aqua hurriedly shook her head.

"Wait, no, no, Aisha! He’s not forcing me! He simply wants me to join his family because he’s proud of my skills. That’s all it is—"

Aisha stopped pacing and fixed her with a hard stare.

"That’s only what you think, Aqua."

Aqua faltered.

"Because he taught you, you look at him with sugar-coated lenses."

Aisha continued, her voice firm but not unkind.

"But from where I’m standing, from what my intelligence has gathered, he’s simply forcing you into his family."

"I also already know how much you resisted. I know how you tried to push against it, citing your own goals and aspirations."

She stepped closer.

"But he’s been persistent with you the entire time. He’s basically pushed this entire marriage thing upon you, regardless of what you wanted."

She locked eyes with Aqua.

"Don’t even try to deny it just because he’s your teacher."

Aqua’s face fell.

She looked away, her cheeks coloring with embarrassment, and didn’t say a word.

Because she couldn’t.

Because everything Aisha said was true.

Seeing her silence, Aisha let out a deep sigh. The hardness in her expression softened.

"Why am I even shouting at you?" She murmured. "You did nothing wrong. You were simply caught in a helpless situation."

She reached out and squeezed Aqua’s hand briefly before pulling away.

"So." She said, her tone shifting to something more analytical. "I’m guessing the reason you want to learn from this person is because you want to maybe learn from their skills?"

"You’re thinking that will help you advance to a Supreme Mage faster in the future, so that you’ll be able to nullify the engagement?"

Aqua’s head snapped up and her eyes lit up like stars.

"Exactly!" She exclaimed. "That’s exactly what I was thinking!"

She grabbed Aisha’s hands excitedly.

"As soon as I become a Supreme Mage, the engagement will be completely cancelled. I won’t have to marry his son at all."

Her voice lowered slightly.

"But it’s not easy. I’ve been trying to improve at a faster pace, but nothing has worked."

"But seeing this..." She gestured at the notebook still sitting on the desk "...seeing all of these new revelations, these new mechanisms and advancements."

"I feel like if I get into contact with this person, I’ll definitely improve my skills to another level!"

She held Aisha’s hands up toward her chest in a pleading gesture.

"So, please, Aisha! You have to bring me to them!"

"I can pay them as much as they want! I can give them rare relics or ingredients or anything they desire!"

She paused, then added with a cheeky smile:

"Of course, not my body. That’s off limits. That’s only for the person I love."

Aisha snorted despite herself.

"But other than that." Aqua continued earnestly. "I’ll do anything. Just please bring me to them."

Aisha stared at her for a moment.

Then she said slowly, with a mysterious smile she said,

"I wouldn’t say I have to take you to themsince..."

"...they’ve been with you all along."

"...What?"

"Was that a riddle?" Aqua asked suspiciously. "Do I have to solve something before meeting them?"

Aisha just shook her head and said,

"It’s nothing and honestly taking you to them isn’t a big deal."

Aqua nearly jumped in excitement.

"Really?!"

But Aisha didn’t answer and instead started walking toward the door.

"Before that..." She said casually. "...since you want to see whether you can improve from that person, do you want me to show you how much I’ve improved?"

She glanced back over her shoulder.

"After all, they’ve been teaching me a few things here and there."

"Yes!" She exclaimed immediately. "Of course, Aisha! I wouldn’t miss it for the world!"

"Not only will I be able to how much my favourite cat has progressed." Aqua continued excitedly. "But if I see something new, I might make some advancements in my own skills as well!"

"And right now, without a doubt, I need that. I don’t even mind if it’s just a little bit, or anything like that!"

Aqua hurried after her, excitement practically radiating off her.

Because for the first time in months—

There was hope.

Before, she had felt trapped.

Cornered.

Like she was destined to become the bride of her master’s son no matter what she wanted.

She didn’t want that.

She didn’t want to marry anyone else.

She wanted to spend her life with Cassius.

She wanted to stay in the Holyfield estate.

Live with her brother.

Laugh with his wives.

Research magic peacefully.

But the engagement loomed like a shadow.

Now?

Now there was a crack in that shadow.

If she could grow stronger—

If she could reach Supreme Mage—

Everything would change.

She smiled brightly, almost glowing with determination.

Aisha, walking ahead of her, glanced back and couldn’t help shaking her head.

How oblivious...

Because the person Aqua was desperately searching for—

The genius who had created that spell—

The one who might change her fate—

Was the one Aqua loved more then anyone in the world.

And she still hadn’t realized it.

—

As the two of them stepped out of the building and onto the training field, the air felt open and bright.

The clashing of steel echoed faintly in the distance, but Aisha led Aqua further away, toward a quieter, more isolated part of the grounds.

And right now, Aqua was glowing.

She was going to meet this mysterious genius.

She was going to learn from them.

She was going to advance her skills and become a Supreme Mage and escape this ridiculous engagement and live happily ever after with her brother and—

"So..."

Aisha said suddenly, her voice casual but her eyes gleaming with that mysterious gaze again.

"How’s that brother of yours? How is he doing? Are you two getting along?"

Aqua’s brain completely short-circuited.

After everything that had happened this morning—the mention of Cassius made her face flush bright red in an instant.

"Y-Yes! Of course!" She stammered, quickly turning her head away. "Why wouldn’t it be? Everything between me and Cassius is going fine! More than fine! Great, even!"

"Why are you asking?"

Aisha simply shrugged, though her eyes sparkled with amusement.

"No reason. No reason at all." She paused, then added smoothly, "The last time I visited you, you were quite excited to meet your brother again. So now that you finally did meet him, I just wanted to know how you’re feeling about it all."

Aqua felt herself calming down slightly.

A genuine smile—warm and soft and real spread across her face.

"Since you’re asking." She said softly. "I’ll just say that the truth is...I’m genuinely having the best time of my life."

She looked up at the sky, her eyes dreamy.

"Every single day—even though I haven’t even been here that long has been absolutely heavenly. I’m not even thinking about going back to the capital right now. I just want to settle here."

She clasped her hands together.

"Honestly, just being anywhere near my brother? That’s more than enough for me."

Aisha raised an eyebrow, a teasing lilt in her voice.

"You really do love your brother, huh?"

"Of course I do, Aisha."

Aqua nodded without hesitation.

"I already loved him so much years ago. But then my father—who I still haven’t met yet, which I really should do—separated me away from him. I spent so many years without seeing my brother."

Her voice grew thick with emotion before her eyes became bright again.

"And now, all those feelings that built up over all that time...upon meeting him once again, they just came bursting out all at once."

She paused, then added with obvious pride,

"Not to mention how amazing my brother is now."

"He’s charming, respectable, kind—everything you could want in a person. I expected him to be timid and soft, like he was in the past."

"But I guess he’s completely taken a turnover and changed his entire demeanor and personality for the better."

She turned to look at Aisha, a teasing gleam in her eyes.

"And you know what, Aisha? I should introduce you to my brother properly. Like, a real introduction. If both of you could get super close, then you could formally join my family!"

Aisha’s expression flickered, but Aqua was on a roll and didn’t notice.

"I know you don’t like men." Aqua continued, waving her hand dismissively. "I know you’re not interested in them and you’ve dedicated your life to being amazing and independent and all that."

"But still, you have to meet my brother. He’ll definitely make you change your mind."

She wiggled her eyebrows.

"Just give him one hour. I guarantee he’ll make you not want to leave him."

She leaned even closer, her voice dropping to a playful whisper.

"So what do you say, Aisha? Do you want me to set you up with my brother?"

"I can arrange a date between both of you. A nice dinner, maybe a walk under the stars—"

Aisha stopped walking.

Completely stopped.

Right there on the training field, she froze in place and turned to look at Aqua with squinted eyes full of utter disbelief.

It was the kind of look you gave someone who had just said the most ridiculous thing you’d ever heard.

Aqua blinked, confused.

"What’s wrong, Aisha?" She asked. "Why are you looking at me like that? Did I say something wrong?"

She tilted her head, trying to understand.

"Don’t tell me you got offended just by the fact that I’m introducing my brother to you."

"Sure, I know he has a lot of rumors about him—really bad rumors, actually—but don’t believe any of that! He’s a really good, genuine person. You should definitely get to know him."

Aisha just stared at her.

The silence stretched until finally, Aisha shook her head slowly, almost pityingly.

"Aqua." She said quietly. "Do you not know?"

Aqua’s brow furrowed. "Know what?"

"I mean..."

Aisha hesitated, choosing her words carefully.

"Do you not know about me and your brother? About how our relationship is?"

Aqua leaned forward, curiosity piqued.

"No, not really. Why?"

Her eyes widened with sudden concern.

"Don’t tell me you’re already fighting or something. With your feisty, hot-headed personality and how my brother is quite teasing and quite the womanizer, it would make sense that both of you had already butted heads."

She frowned thoughtfully.

"If it’s like that, it might be kind of difficult to get you both together. But I’m sure with a little—"

"No, Aqua." Aisha cut her off firmly. "It’s not that."

She took a deep breath.

"Sure, in the beginning, when I first met him, we butted heads. A lot, actually. But soon after that..."

She looked away, then back, her cheeks flushing slightly.

"Everything changed. And right now?"

She paused for a moment, gathering herself.

"After all, I-I’m his..."

Aqua blinked. "You’re his what?"

Aisha met her eyes directly.

"...I’m his woman."