Jasmine's Plan

"Your Majesty, it is an honour to meet you," Raymond said half-heartedly with a slight bow of his head, though his eyes remained fixed on the emperor.

"How uncouth," Julius, who was standing beside the throne, tutted disapprovingly.

"You need to kneel in the presence of His Majesty!"

He declared loudly and in a rather skillful display of his prowess, unleashed his aura towards Raymond, wanting to subdue him.

"Brother, no!" Scarlett shouted but was a step too late to stop her brother.

Raymond disappeared from his spot with a snort of amusement. Before Julius could realise what was happening, he found himself tumbling down the golden stairs.

"I won't be kneeling even in your dreams," Raymond chuckled as he appeared beside the throne where Julius was previously standing.

The emperor stared at him wide-eyed and slumped back on his throne. Hearing about the young man's strength from his daughter was one thing but seeing it for himself was another.

The emperor could not even make out his silhouette when he moved.

"You!"

Julius roared furiously while trying to stand up, rubbing his sore bum where he had felt a foot slamming.

"Shut up, boy!" The emperor shot back snappily. Even though he was quite overwhelmed by what had transpired between his eldest son and her daughter's friend, he was quick to regain his bearings.

"You will not make a fool out of yourself in front of my guest," he huffed irritably, eyeing his son with a warning look.

"Yes, Y…your Majesty," Julius cowered as he was helped by his mother to stand up properly.

"Ahem, young man, we started off on the wrong foot. I apologise for my son's rudeness," The emperor said much to the shock of Julius, who was for the first time seeing his father asking for forgiveness.

"Your Majesty, I would appreciate it if you called me by my name," Raymond requested as he descended the stairs. He didn't want to pursue the matter any longer than necessary and further embarrass the emperor, after all, this guy was his father's best friend.

"Of course, of course, Ray," the emperor said cheerfully, pleased that Ray didn't take his son's impertinence seriously. "And you are to call me Elmer as well. I don't suppose a man of your calibre would recognise imperial authority."

Raymond chuckled as he nodded. He too felt reluctant to use that title since he wasn't able to use it with the respect it deserved. And just like the emperor had said he didn't consider him as his ruler.

"I must say, we, the imperial family, owe you a debt that cannot be repaid easily. If there is anything we can do for you, just say the word," Elmer said in a sombre voice.

"Of course, Elmer," Raymond agreed, subtly glancing towards Scarlett. "I will be sure to ask what I want."

Scarlett nodded in relief. She had been worried ever since her brother acted out.

"Good. Then let's head towards the Coliseum. We can discuss your reward later," the emperor clapped.

A servant hurriedly entered the grand hall from the side door and knelt in front of the emperor.

"This is our honoured guest, show him the way towards the guest room in the Coliseum," he ordered the servant.

Just as Scarlett was thinking of following Ray, her father's voice reached her ears.

"Scarlett, go with your mother and greet the young lords,"

"As you wish, Your Majesty," Scarlett said reluctantly.

The emperor stood up with a purpose. He still had to meet the gathered nobles and hold a meeting to discuss the matters concerning the empire before the festival started.

*******

Jasmine was getting impatient waiting inside the carriage. It had been a while since he had gone inside. If not for Lyla, she would have gone with her master.

She dreaded to think about the imperials knowing who her master was.

Ever since she had heard how Lyla was wanted by the emperor, her worries have been doubled.

Her selfishness to be the first woman to her master aside, she didn't want Lyla to leave them. She had come to accept her as a sister, it wouldn't sit well with her to abandon Lyla now.

No, her master shouldn't have anything to do with the imperial family. That was for the best.

She could continue to be her master's first and Lyla could still be a part of their life that way.

Jasmine clenched her fist harder, her nails digging into the soft flesh of her palm. She was determined to pull him away from the Capital.

It didn't matter if her master had already revealed his identity to the imperials. She knew exactly how to manipulate her master to do her bidding.

"Jasmine, why are you fretting like that?" Lyla asked from the shadows. She had been hiding under Jasmine's feet and was constantly feeling the tapping of her feet, which irritated her to no end.

"Urgh, I don't want Master to get closer to the princess," Jasmine grunted. "I should have gone with him inside the palace."

"..." Lyla was struck speechless by Jasmine's words.

"Why? Are you jealous?" She asked.

"No," Jasmine scowled. "I am worried about us. What do you think the princess will do if she finds out you have attempted to assassinate her father once?"

Lyla gulped nervously.

"Don't you think Ray will handle it?" She asked hopefully. Even though her darling had assured her to not worry about it, she couldn't help but feel worried.

"No, Master is stupid," Jasmine said matter of factly. "He doesn't take these matters seriously. He will just tell her to forgive you and probably forget about this matter."

"Really?"

"Yeah, just wait till he finds something interesting. He will forget about everything else," Jasmine groaned, thinking about his one-track mind. "You don't know how he was before. He used to train in the mountains all day, without a care in the world."

"What's wrong with that?" Lyla was puzzled.

"What's wrong?" Jasmine's nostrils flared in anger. "You're asking what's wrong? He trained for four years like a madman. He just kept running and running for years, I was driven mad just by watching him for a few days."

"What? He just kept running?"

"Yeah, he kept running until he fell exhausted just to stand up like nothing happened and run again. He did that for four years!"

[Damn, girl. Your man is just as crazy as you!]

'Shut up!' Lyla barked at Heartsbane.

Her darling was not crazy, he was the most awesome person she had ever met. Who would be so dedicated to running like that?

No one.

Her darling was the only one.

[Tch, you're hopeless.]

Heartsbane was again reminded of how much her host had fallen in love. There was no coming back for her.

"Isn't it cool?" Lyla asked.

Jasmine had nothing to say to that. Even she was drawn to him for his perseverance and determination. No matter how much she complained, she couldn't deny the fact that her master was at his best when he was training.

But she couldn't ignore the glaring fact that he had completely pushed aside everything else for the sake of training. That was why she had been trying hard to make herself more important in his eyes. With Lyla by her side, Jasmine was more confident that she would succeed.

"Say, Lyla," a bold idea came to her mind as she thought about how strong he had become as a result of that training. "Master is stronger than the emperor right?"

"Uhm, he-he is," Lyla hesitated seeing the sinister smile on Jasmine's face. "You're not planning anything, are you?"

"Hehe, how about you come out in front of everyone? Then, master will be forced to fight the emperor to defend you!" Jasmine said, the more she thought the more she felt like this plan was perfect.

"I will do no such things!" Lyla was quick to respond. "I don't want to cause any trouble for Ray."

"Tsk, tsk, didn't you say he is stronger? It will be no trouble at all," Jasmine spoke like a shady merchant who was about to sell a fake product to a gullible customer. "Just trust me on this one, everything will be fine."

"Fine, my ass!"

-Thud!

The carriage door was slammed open as Raymond glared at Jasmine.

"Kyaa! When did you get here?" Jasmine shrieked.

"When you were calling me stupid," he climbed onto the carriage. "What the hell were you cooking up while I was away?" He twisted her ear.

Thankfully, he was back in time to hear about her plans, or else he would have been pitted against an entire empire due to her foolishness.

"Arrgh, you are going to tear off my ear!" She screamed in pain.

"You better stay put until the day is over," Raymond let go of her ear as he warned her. "We don't want any trouble, do you understand?"

Jasmine nodded tearfully.

Raymond breathed a sigh of relief, at least Lyla was sensible enough to say no to Jasmine's plan.

"Lyla, you're looking too beautiful today," He complimented. "Come here, let me look at you."

"Hehe," Lyla smiled bashfully as she appeared on his lap. Her body turned into jelly as she felt his hands petting her head.

"Don't worry, Jasmine is being silly. I won't forget you," he stroked her head lovingly and whispered in her ears.