155 Winter and Julian (1/2)
TILLY'S brows furrowed when she saw Ainsworth's mouth move.
But she wasn't able to read his lips.
What is he saying?
She was irritated. But she was more frustrated that she couldn't make the Golden Tiger kneel even though it was never her goal to make him do so. Was she feeling this way because of his unclear provocations?
Just why does he want me to make him kneel anyway?
Her thoughts were just cut-off when all of a sudden, the Golden Tiger leapt at her. The next thing she knew, he was already holding her shoulders tight despite the flame that was now burning his arms. He winced, but he didn't let go.
”Are you trying to get yourself roasted?” Tilly asked in confusion. She noticed that the Golden Tiger's grip didn't hurt. But it was firm enough for her to be stuck where she stood. ”And I didn't give you the permission to touch me.”
”Well, you have to excuse me,” Ainsworth said with a grin. But it was obvious that he was in pain. Also, his arms were starting to seriously get burnt. ”Supreme, listen to me carefully. If you want to survive with your family, leave the Royal Capital while you still can.”
”What–”
”Go to Mount Sola,” Ainsworth said seriously, looking straight into her eyes. His reddish-brown eyes were glowing as if he wanted her to believe him so bad. ”You'll find the island where you belong.”
She was about to demand him to explain.
But all of a sudden, sharp ice spears pierced through his shoulders– forcing him to finally let go of his now burnt shoulders.
Kiho!
When the Golden Tiger jumped away from her, she turned around to face her husband.
She was surprised to find Kiho already standing beside her. Now that her husband was here, she felt safe. It was probably the reason why the flame around her ”extinguished” on its own.
Kiho checked her out quickly, probably to see if she was injured. ”Are you okay, honey?” he asked worriedly, then he fixed his glare at the Golden Tiger who now stood before them while effortlessly pulling the ice spears out of his body. ”Did that wild cat hurt you?”
”I'm fine, hon,” she assured him. ”But I'm irritated because I wasn't able to hit him with my iron crab mallet.”
Her husband smiled and patted her head gently. ”I'll let you hit him as much as you want once I caught the wild cat for you, Tilly.”
She smiled at that.
”Hey, stop talking as if I'm not here,” Ainsworth complained. It was amazing how he could still look very intimidating even though his arms were burnt. Plus, both of his shoulders were also bleeding. Damn, what a cat. ”Well, now that the stinky little snake is here, it's time for me to go.”
”Kiho isn't stinky,” she said, irritated. Plus, no part of his body is ”little.”
”And I'm not a snake,” Kiho added. ”Why do more and more people call me ”snake” these days, huh?”
The Golden Tiger just smirked.
Kiho tried to go after the Golden Tiger but he suddenly stopped when she suddenly collapsed on the ground.
Oh?
To be honest, she only realized that her knees gave up when her husband caught her in his arms. Even her hands felt weak. She even dropped the iron crab mallet that disappeared and returned to her wrist as a tattoo.
”Tilly, what's wrong?” Kiho said worriedly. Then, he carried her in his arms effortlessly. ”Are you hurt anywhere?”
”No,” she said in a tired voice. Oh, that was it. ”But I'm exhausted. I think using my flame when I'm not fully-recovered yet is taking a toll on my health.”
Guilt crossed his sad golden eyes. ”I'm sorry I was late, honey,” he said apologetically, then he kissed her forehead. ”But thank you for protecting our family while I was away. I��m very proud of you.”
She smiled at that. ”Thank you, hon. Now I feel very refreshed. I think I can take down a wild beast at this rate.”
”Yes, you can. But not now,” he scolded her lightly. ”You have to rest first.”
”Okay.” She noticed that he didn't move. He just stood her while staring at her face. That made her giggle. ”Why are you just staring at me, Kiho? We need to help the servants and the guards that lost consciousness so hurry up.”
”Let me admire your beauty for a minute,” he said in a gentle voice. ”This is the first time that I saw you tie your hair like that in a while. And damn, you look hot in your outfit.”
Tilly couldn't help but laugh at his praises. Gosh, he really never failed to give butterflies to her stomach. And she needed that. Although she had a lot of things to worry about, sometimes she would still feel ugly because of the changes in her body. She was lucky that the way Kiho looked at her never changed. That helped her recover her confidence. ”Thank you, hon.” She touched his face. ”And I mean it.”
Kiho smiled, then he leaned down to kiss her on the lips.
Yes, I am loved.
***
”IT really exists,” Tilly said in disbelief while looking at the empire's map on the bed. ”Mount Sola is real.”
Right now, she was in their room with Kiho and Winter.
The head maid and the head butler were taking care of the knights and the servants who were affected by the Golden Tiger's presence a while ago. Since Luna wasn't home yet, they called a doctor to treat the injured ones.
She sent Sentinel to act as the host in place of her and Kiho. The doctor understood that she and her husband couldn't entertain him personally because they had to look after their ”weak” son. Outside the people of their mansion, everyone else thought that Winter was still in the incubator. And they preferred it that way.
Anyway…
”I've heard about Mount Sola once when I was dispatched to the East region before,” Kiho said. ”It's in the Redsun Desert, Tilly.”
She turned to her husband to ask why he sounded worried. But she stopped when she saw how cute he was with their son.
Kiho was leaning against the headboard with a pillow on his back. Winter was lying on his stomach comfortably on top of Kiho's chest. Her husband secured their son's position with a protective hand on his tiny body.
”Aww, you two look so cute together,” she said. But her brows furrowed in a mix of confusion and amusement when she noticed that Winter was silent. And his eyes... it seemed like their little cinnamon roll had been listening to her conversation with Kiho. ”Our baby looks so serious for some reason. What does a newly born cinnamon roll have to think of so deeply?”
Kiho tilted his head to look at Winter's face, then his brows furrowed in confusion as well. ”You're right, honey. Winter, what's wrong?” he asked. Much to their surprise, Winter moved his tiny head to look up at Kiho. ”Oh. Did you understand what I said, little rascal?”
Winter seemed like he ignored Kiho when he went back to pressing his cheek against his father's chest. Then, he closed his eyes.
”Our baby slept on you,” she said with a laugh.
”He's really a sleepyhead,” he said, then he gently tapped Winter's back.
Now that she wasn't distracted by their son anymore, she went back to business.
”Kiho, why did you sound worried when you said that Mount Sola is in the Redsun Desert?” she asked curiously. ”This is the first time that I've heard about that place.”
”It's probably because you were born a lady of a high-ranking noble family.”
She pouted. ”What does it have to do with my background?”
He smiled and gently pinched her cheek. ”Most nobles like you had lived their life without knowing about the Redsun Desert because it's a place known to be hell.”
”Why is that so?”
”Apparently, the most hardcore criminals all over the empire are thrown in the Redsun Desert,” he explained. ”Those criminals were fed-off to the Crades of the desert.”