Chapter 100: The Knight Who Refused to Bow

"Do you two know each other?"

Old Vine had been watching the sharp tension rising among them after barely two exchanged sentences. Clearly confused, he stepped in, hoping to smooth whatever strange mood had suddenly filled the room.

"Grandpa, that’s him. That’s the jerk I told you about; the one who bullied my sister and me yesterday."

Firebrand had seen the flash of anger on the Knight’s face, and the sight sent her heart into an unsteady rhythm; a messy blend of fear, guilt, and a fresh surge of indignation. Tears threatened at the corners of her eyes, and for one terrifying second she nearly let everything slip, nearly gave herself away.

Old Vine’s question saved her. She steadied her breathing, pressed her emotions back down, then shifted her gaze away from Marcus entirely, too flustered to meet his eyes. Instead, she clung to her grievance and her grandfather like a shield.

"..."

Marcus could only stare, stunned. Who was bullying whom here? He felt like a saint being hauled up on charges.

"Grandpa, he’s the one. He refused to help us, just stood there while monsters came at us, and then said he’d take a share of the gear we picked up."

"..."

Again, Marcus was left speechless. ’She’s really going with that version?’ The girl was gifted, he’d give her that; but her storytelling talent was being put to evil use.

Sure, he’d said those things at the very start. But he’d charged in and saved them minutes later, and he’d even offered them all the gear afterward. They were the ones who refused it. How was any of this his fault?

Why mention only the first five seconds of the story and ignore everything that came after? How did that make sense?

No wonder people said you couldn’t reason with women. Marcus was learning the lesson in real time, painfully and thoroughly.

"Grandpa, you have to take my side. Make him apologize to me and my sister."

Firebrand’s voice softened, wounded, her expression full of a fragile charm that could sway any man who didn’t know better. Anyone looking at her would assume Marcus had spent yesterday tormenting her for sport.

’Did I really bully them?’ Marcus caught himself hesitating as he watched her performance. She was that convincing.

He gave up trying to defend himself. He didn’t even want to argue anymore. What was her grandfather going to do to him, anyway? He wasn’t afraid of either of them.

Apologize? For what? He hadn’t bullied anyone. If anything, he deserved thanks. Under normal circumstances he might’ve teased the girl, but yesterday he’d played the hero. He should be getting praised, not put on trial.

"Grandpa, look at him. He doesn’t even care. You have to help me, my sister and I were horribly bullied."

Her anger spiked the moment Marcus ignored her, though beneath the irritation, a flicker of unfamiliar fear stirred. Had she pushed too far with her usual temper? Had she actually made the Knight angry?

If he really was angry, what was she supposed to do?

But Marcus said nothing. He just sat there with that unreadable expression, giving her nothing at all to work with. Firebrand felt her nerves tighten. She clutched her grandfather’s sleeve as if to steady herself.

Since he was sitting with her grandfather, clearly the two men knew each other. That thought steadied her, gave her confidence. If Grandpa stepped in, no one would dare ignore him. At worst, she might not demand an apology. She was willing to bend that far. The Knight’s silent anger was unsettling, and she had no idea why she cared so much.

’Why am I even feeling like this?’ No one had ever made her both furious and nervous at the same time. The combination left her flustered and short of breath.

Marcus watched her spiral and could only think, ’Unbelievable.’ She was completely unreasonable. He should have teased her while he had the chance yesterday. Now look where he stood; falsely accused and robbed of even that small satisfaction.

"Firebrand, that’s enough. Stone is my client. I’m helping him auction some goods, and I have no authority to order him around."

Old Vine gave his granddaughter a gentle, indulgent smile, the affection in his eyes impossible to miss. She was clearly the apple of his eye. Then he shot Marcus a quick, subtle wink, silently asking him to offer a small apology, just to smooth things over.

’Hmph.’ Marcus had done absolutely nothing wrong. Why should he apologize?

He pretended not to notice Old Vine’s signal, or at least acted like he didn’t understand it.

"Firebrand, ignore him. He’s not worth getting upset over. Come on, let’s walk the market for a bit."

Seeing Marcus brush off his hint, Old Vine shot a helpless look toward Icefall, silently asking her to help untangle the situation.

Icefall glanced at Marcus’s unmoved expression. Her own remained as calm and frosty as ever, but irritation stirred beneath the surface. Why was this Knight so impossibly stubborn? If he’d just say a few gentle words to Firebrand, give her something to hold onto, this entire mess would disappear in seconds.

He was tall, solidly built, and carried himself with a quiet strength that could easily draw a woman’s eye; a real man’s man. And yet he insisted on being this petty. Why argue with a young girl? Why insist on sorting out who’d been right or wrong in the heat of yesterday’s chaos? Why cling to pride when one soft sentence would ease everything?

Had this man never charmed a girl before? Did he truly not understand that Firebrand was just pouting, just playing up her grievances?

’What a hopeless guy, Icefall’ complained inwardly. He has no idea how to deal with women.

"Firebrand," Old Vine said, seizing the chance while Icefall was present, "Stone and I still have auction matters to handle. I’ll help you settle accounts with him later."

With Icefall supporting him, Old Vine finally managed to coax Firebrand into calming down. Without her sister’s presence, he doubted he’d have succeeded at all.

Firebrand had sworn she wouldn’t leave until the Knight apologized. But he stood there saying nothing, not even sparing her a proper glance. The longer he ignored her, the heavier her chest felt, and her pride wilted under the pressure of wanting to cry.

She’d never endured such humiliation in her life. If she stayed another minute, she was sure she’d break down. And if she cried in front of him, that arrogant Knight would definitely smirk. She couldn’t let that happen.

Grinding her teeth, she let her sister pull her away.

"Grandpa," she threw back over her shoulder, determined not to leave without landing one more blow, "that Knight helped us kill, but he took my Mage Staff. You have to get it back for me!"

"..."

Marcus stared after her in disbelief.

Yesterday, he and FreshwindElara had practically begged her to take the Ironwood Staff, and she’d refused it outright. Now she was accusing him of stealing it. The sheer creativity of her indignation was astonishing.

Fortunately, he’d already built up some resistance to her dramatic accusations. If not, he might’ve honestly lost his temper.

And yet, looking at her as she stormed off, remembering the way her lips had pouted and her voice had wavered with that wounded charm, Marcus had to admit, reluctantly, that even her tantrums were strangely captivating.

’Sigh. A beauty was a beauty, no matter what. Even at her most unreasonable, she was still disarmingly lovely.’

"Haha, Stone, don’t mind her. Both girls are spoiled. Firebrand especially; she’s been pampered since the day she was born. She loves to pout. Don’t take it to heart."

"It’s nothing, really. Nothing at all," Marcus replied with a polite smile.

To be fair, he knew he’d been petty today. Ordinarily, he’d have tossed a few smooth lines the girl’s way and called it a day. But for some reason, he’d felt a sharp urge to let both sisters stew a little, to poke at their pride without lifting a finger.

"Old Vine," Marcus said, shifting back to business as the girls disappeared from sight, "I had good luck yesterday. Picked up some Level Twenty-Five and Level Thirty Blue equipment. Handle it however you think best. You have full authority for the auction."

With the sisters gone, he pulled the gear from his inventory, wanting to finish the conversation quickly and get clear of the area before either one of them could return and drag him into another scene.