Competition

Rychard was a man who was very good at controlling his emotions. In fact, his patience had been displayed for a long while now. He had practically taken over what remained of the race to Heirship without lifting a single finger. In fact, now that he had Gradeyr's brother in his possession, it could be said that it was all over now. Gradeyr had been his only real competition and he no longer dared to fight against him. 

However, those that saw him as a weak man now simply didn't understand just how infuriating the last two weeks had been. He had never experienced such a continuous and relentless assault on his ego. It was mind numbing. 

At first, he had tried to be cautious and beat around the bush with Aina, but then she had caught him completely off guard. 

~

"Are you trying to court me?"