Death Reaper's First member

"What? Surprised to see me alive or surprised to see me here, Winter Ashkin?" Alistein questioned with a cunning arch of his brow, complacent of his position in Death Reaper's ranks.

A flood of questions rapidly streamed into Winter's head as he was left utterly speechless, and he inhaled a sharp breath, processing what he was seeing before his eyes. He and Alistein had a complicated relationship ever since they first attended the dragon-slaying academy, and they had barely managed to sort out their indifferences before he, the son of the Lunargard Emperor, was dead. It was in 'that' expedition, in which the survivors abandoned him in the dungeon to flee, before returning to report his death to the council.

"Oh, that's right. I forgot the two of you came from the same faction. But I don't really care, I just don't like the betrayer having special treatment because he's friends with the first member." Augustus didn't have any ill feelings towards Winter though his expression remained its usual contempt, but he was strict when it came to abiding by the rules.

"Do you want me to f*cking kill you, big guy?" Malileah forcefully removed her hand from Augustus' grip, the situation aggravating as hatred burned in her eyes, reflecting on her bright aura. "Did anyone ask for your f*cking opinion?" She had been annoyed with him since earlier, acting almighty because of his strong appearance. However, she was confident in her prowess to fight the biggest guy in the hearth of the dungeon.

"Let's not fight among ourselves, please!" Indigo said. "Let Jargus handle this. Winter is doing this since he doesn't have a choice. He wants to save his woman…I think there's nothing wrong with that." She calmed everyone with her god-given soothing voice, whispering in everyone's ear like a heavenly trumpet to flip the tense atmosphere. A lackluster smile plastered onto her lips as she witnessed her success.

Jargus couldn't help but smile. This woman was certainly that 'Enchantress' the people knew. Almost everything about her was immaculate; she was the true personification of quintessence! How could a woman be human, yet so beautiful at the same time?

With that, Augustus squinted his eyes in a furtive manner. His eyes left Malileah's and he cocked his head to the side, turning to look at the others' backs. 'What's with this woman? She is so full of herself. Should I just kill her?' Augustus wondered. He surrendered, temporarily, and lumbered across the dungeon grounds, sagging with his back against the far wall.

As the dungeon filled with comforting silence, Jargus turned to his subordinate, his interest piqued by Alistein's suggestion. "Alistein…what is your real intention?" the leader asked curiously as he remained hidden in the dark.

"Let's hold the woman hostage for a while, Leader," he answered, "In a few days, I want her to deliver my message… It amazed me, the Ember Tribe's downfall. Who would've thought that Winter would do that much to enter our organization?"

He turned. A sharp, manic smile stretched his lips, a dangerous glint in his eyes replacing his previous calm, cold demeanor as he raised his open palm to their eye level…and then he closed it tightly in front of Winter's eyes to emphasize his stored hatred. There didn't seem to be anything pleasant worth bringing up in their little reunion.

"You amuse me, Winter," he said through his clenched teeth. "You sure changed a lot… With that, I can finally execute my plan for revenge on my father."

Winter's brows knitted in disbelief. "Time passed and the Emperor is still dysfunctional, barely able to do his job because of his only son's untimely death. And now you're saying you want to have your revenge?!" Winter asked maliciously, hovering towards him like a threatening storm. "You should be ashamed of yourself, Alistein. How can someone like you be the Emperor's son?

He'd regained his composure thanks to Indigo's calming voice, but he didn't hold back to question Alistein's ill intent towards the Emperor, his own father. Did Alistein forget, who was the boss between Winter and him? Heck, back in the dragon-slaying academy, Alistein would've never even had the chance to become the third-fiddle if he and Blake didn't assist him! So, how did he become so arrogant?

Alistein took a step back, his expression faltering upon Winter's reaction. He let out a bitter smirk. "Heh…I thought you changed, but it seems there are a few things that still remain the same. You still have a knack for getting on people's nerves, just like that woman. As always, you and Blake would do anything just for her… But, that's none of my business anymore, is it? Then…" – he leaned forward just slightly, the look in his eyes looking as if he was looking at a cheater – "tell me about Alexandria. Did she know your relationship with Blaze?"

Inside, Winter panicked. His eyes shook hearing a dead person's name, but on the outside, he remained his unbothered façade to hide the truth from Alistein. If he found out, who knew how he would react…and what he would do next?

Almost everyone in their batch knew that Alistein held feelings towards Alexandria Hastamvidé. But she couldn't even look at him, for Winter and Blake received all the praises from the higher-ups in the academy even though the son of the Emperor stood with them in the same batch. It was only natural for Alexandria to fall for the best…and for Alistein to reluctantly respect her wishes and watch her from behind. And because Winter and Blaze hid their relationship from everyone let aside Blake and Colleen, no one else knew…it was just right for Alistein to suspect him.

Certainly, Winter was risking everything for this!

Should he say that he was only trying to save a survivor from his tribe? No, there was no way Alistein would buy that! Alistein was worried that Alexandria, now dead without his knowledge, was being cheated on by this man right in front of him.

And so, Winter pressed his lips together in irritation. "…You know I don't have any feelings nor relationship with Alexandria. Your problem about her not giving you attention because of me is none of my business. It never was!"

Alistein glared down at him, his eyes drilling into his before he whirled back around in defeat. "Fine," he said, and he straightened up, regaining his composure as he inclined his head back towards where Jargus sat atop the rock.

"I'll let you decide what you would like to do with Winter, Leader. But please heal the woman, I need her to do something for me…"