The innate defender

The man turned around upon hearing Ziana's voice but didn't release his grip on Zayden's collar. A frown appeared on his face as his eyes scanned the average-looking girl up and down. She was dressed in a plain sweater, blue ripped shorts, and carried a small backpack. Did she mistake this place for her tuition academy?

"Have you developed a liking for slaps?" Ziana joked as Zayden looked miserable under the man's grasp. "You seem to attract them for free," she cackled, only to receive a glare from him.

Why was Ziana even here? He didn't have time to discuss it and argue with her.

He was in a greater mess and his mother was certainly right. He was constantly meddling in human affairs, and that was ridiculous.

"Oh, you can try something different this time."

"A punch maybe?" She mumbled and with a lazy grin, added, "Trust me your nose will get a free makeover."

"Oh, you guys can also try kicking." She suggested, her eyes shifting to the bald man. With a smile, she turned to Zayden and added, "I am sure he won't mind it."

The bald man and the rest of the group frowned, not understanding this nosy girl's intentions but her evil eyes begged for drama. But Zayden knew it very well. She was bullying him and that was infuriating.

'Damn, Lia.' Zayden cursed internally as the man pinged him like a cloth drying on a hanger. Thanks to her stabbing wound last night, he was unable to move and take risks. The only way out was to talk and negotiate with the man. That's how humans usually escaped predicaments. Right?

Ignoring Ziana, he looked at the man and started, "Let's sit and talk about it. I was frustrated earlier and,"

"Tch Tch." Ziana cut Zayden's pleading off. Shaking her head, she commented, "You are bullshitting instead of apologizing to the poor girl."

"Your arrogance needs pruning, Zay."

Her words spurred the bald man's anger and he curled Zayden's collar. Zayden gritted his teeth and glared at Ziana who was enjoying it thoroughly.

"A mere apology won't be enough. We need to teach him some lessons." Someone from the gang said and everyone agreed to it.

"Then maybe you should make him kneel and beg for mercy?" Ziana suggested again and Zayden fumed in frustration. "I think that will cut his ego out." She added.

"Yes, that would do." The woman responsible for this riot agreed to Ziana's suggestion. She crossed her arms and nodded at her brother who looked back at her.

The man freed Zayden and he stumbled a little because of his strength. Adjusting his shirt, Zayden glared at Ziana who sweetly smiled back at him.

Ahh, this was incredibly satisfying. Ziana thought as she crossed her arms. She had come to heal her wounded heart and this situation was better than the drinks. This creature would pay for all her agony today.

"Kneel down, man." One of the men from the woman's group ordered as Zayden kept glaring at Ziana. She smirked and pointed at the ground, her eyes reaching her shoes making him clench his fist.

No, he would never kneel in front of these pathetic humans!

Only if he had his powers, he would have made all these morons including her kneel instead. Currently, he was just an average man, but his pride was too big to let go.

"No, I won't." Zayden declared in a high tone.

He waited for the man to accept defeat and negotiate with him. But he was forgetting the fact that humans were after all their seeds, and they behaved just like them sometimes.

Thud

Someone kicked Zayden's knee from behind and he ended up falling to the ground. The man didn't stop and twisted his hands behind his back. "Beg her for an apology." He demanded furiously.

Zayden's eyes widened in shock while his face paled in realization. His actions were too quick for him to defend and he was currently kneeling on the ground.

He, the prince of the afterlife, was kneeling in front of these earthlings? His eyes blazed, golden hues encircling his orbs but no one cared about it.

"How dare you?" He roared and struggled to get out of the man's grip, but he was too strong. His eyes shifted to Ziana, glowering in rage but she was too busy sipping her beer that she managed to get from the waiter.

A part of her rebuked this behavior and reminded her that she was a better person. But she ignored it and enjoyed the show. It was just payback for everything he did to her. She needed to show him what humans could do and warn him not to look down on them anymore.

"Beg her!" The bald man sneered pulling back Zayden's hair.

"No, I won't." Zayden grumbled struggling against the man's grip. People around them looked at him with pitiful eyes and he despised it.

His body was hurt, his powers were blocked, and his wound was opening up to such an extent that he felt pathetic. He hated himself for being so weak and nimb against this bunch of humans

"Say it, bastard!" The man roared again and when Zayden boldly stared at him, he tightly clenched the bottle in his hand.

Crack!

He slammed it against the counter and a few women screamed in reaction. The bartender and manager flinched, hiding behind as they couldn't do anything as the bar belonged to him. They were just mere employers, and could only pity the kneeling man.

"You son of a," The man raised the broken neck to hit Zayden who instantly closed his eyes.

He waited for a second and frowned when nothing hit him. He opened his eyes to Ziana holding the man's wrist. She stared at the man while the man glowered at her audacity.

"You shouldn't cross the line." She said with a serious look and Zayden blinked in confusion.

Was she now siding with him now? After causing all this drama? He scoffed internally.

"It's none of your business." The bald man yelled at her in anger. He tried to free his wrist but Ziana's strength was on-par with him.

"I am a detective," Ziana bit her tongue and corrected herself, "I will be soon and I cannot tolerate assault."

"It's better if you engage in a verbal fight. Hitting would be fine too but no bloodshed." She suggested and twisted the guy's hand, causing the crackled bottle to fall to the ground.

And a few people in the room gasped at her powers. Even Zayden was confused but somewhere he guessed it was just the innate Defender inside her.

"You, bitch." The bald man shouted and tried to punch her with his free hand, but Ziana dodged it easily. She freed his hand and moved a bit backward, and as he tried to attack her again, she grabbed an opportunity to punch him.

A hard hit landed on the man's nose but Ziana wasn't finished. She quickly swung her leg around, hitting him hard in the side with a swift kick.

The man grunted in pain and stumbled back in reaction. She swirled and kicked him again, helping him land comfortably on the floor.

It just took her a few seconds to defeat a bulky man like him. The man sat there and touched his bleeding nose in disbelief. He looked at her bloody fingers in disbelief and glared at the witch.

"Kill her!" He glowered and his men came out of the shock. The scene was so stunning that they were lost in awe.

Even Zayden who was silently watching her from behind nodded in amusement. Her moves were impressive and hard for normal humans to grasp. Her combat skills were inherited from her father. He was pretty sure of it.

"Will you keep standing there?" Ziana's annoyed cry brought him back to the world. And only then did he realize two men were keeping her busy.

"What should I do?" Zayden calmly asked and leaned back against the counter.

"HELP ME FIGHT THEM!" Ziana roared swinging down one of the men's arms. She glanced at him and sneered as he didn't move.

Seriously, he was just a worthless, pompous prince. A two-legged puppy in her opinion.

"Well, my powers are blocked and I can't help you." Zayden replied crossing his arms.

"Use your fucking hands and legs!" Ziana screamed kicking the other man. She dodged a lunge and cursed when more joined.

"I prefer not." Zayden mumbled and shook his head. "My wound is still fresh."

Ziana looked over her shoulder and glared at him.

Puppy? No, he was just a fricking lazy pig!