6 Banquet at the manor (IV)

"-strong!"

'Incredible! she has completely surpassed Mei in terms of cultivation!' Xieren noticed.

"Hahaha! Indeed she is, Akagi is gifted with talent and has probably surpassed me by now..." Ikki stated and looked a little sad after saying so.

"Lord Xieren, if I may... which realm are you currently in?" Akagi asked him softly, clearly intrigued by the reaction from the man.

Usually they would say she was pretty and what not, but this one... he seemed like a cultivator with a good head on his shoulders and not between his legs...

"Akagi, it is rude to ask something so private! apologize immediately!" Hōjo Ikki frowned at his daughter's lack of courtesy.

"No no, it is fine... Lady Akagi, I would prefer not to speak of it here. However, if you are willing, we may converse somewhere else privately?" Xieren turned to the Hōjo Patriarch and then at Akagi who was veiled.

"It would be my pleasure" Akagi nodded elegantly and walked over to his side, completely shocking his father and family, many of whom thought she would reject his humble offer.

She then turned to Ikki who nodded almost immediately, hoping the other party would see it as an offense...

"Adiós Father!" Xieren said and left with Akagi who bowed at her father before leaving.

"A-Adios?" Ikki mumbled in confusion as Duke Qiu massaged his temples and explained.

"That is my son's way of saying goodbye... he claims it comes from an ancient language from the west..." Ikki nodded slowly as he felt as if he gained a lot of knowledge from him.

"He truly is a knowledgeable personage..." Ikki replied as Duke Qiu looked proud.

"Of course! Xieren managed to comprehend the meaning of our clan's cultivation scroll by the age of eight! Sometimes I feel like he is too gifted..." Duke Qiu laughed and walked towards the garden.

'...When was the last time I spoke so fondly of my children?' Ikki smiled sadly realising he had made multiple mistakes in his life...

•••••

"Lord Xieren, how did you see through my false cultivation?" Akagi asked curiously.

The duo was moving through a bridge, glancing at the various statues and ornaments in the garden.

Her maroon eyes staring deeply at his face as if she was trying to find a clue...

"before we go over to that, how did you manage to get into the Celestial realm?" Xieren asked her in amusement.

"Fufufu Lord Xieren, you are truly very interesting..." Akagi giggled, the simple movement disturbed the veil which moved ever so slightly but it was enough for Xieren to see a bit of her face for a split second.

"To think such a beautiful woman is hidden underneath a silk veil..." Xieren laughed merrily confusing Akagi.

"My Lord, why are you laughing?" She asked him.

"Nothing much, I was molested awhile ago by several daughters of those noble families that were invited..." He responded with an amused smile.

"I too was thinking of concealing my face" Xieren continued while Akagi scoffed.

"Don't think too highly of yourself, your face is so-so in my eyes!" Akagi said playfully as Xieren faked a sad expression.

"You wound me Lady Akagi, my confidence is now shattered!" He replied as she laughed.

"You know, from your previous behaviour, I thought you were one of those ice women" Xieren told her as she smiled.

"Lord Xieren, you are the only person I can talk to this way. If I had said something like that to someone else, they would have gotten offended and made a big issue out of it" She explained as Xieren shrugged.

"I guess I am unique in that sense?" He smirked as she shook her head.

"if I give you an inch, you take a yard... I merely spoke of the truth, do not get conceited my Lord" Akagi replied and closed her eyes, she realised she had ruined the conversation with her straightforwardness and also offended the man.

"Pfft Hahaha" Xieren laughed again seeing her act so timid suddenly.

Akagi's eyes turned to slits as she realised she had truly not understood the man at all.

"Why aren't you getting angry?" She asked him, her voice a bit quieter this time.

"But why would I get angry?" Xieren asked back.

"Because you are a man?" She answered.

"A man huh? while I do know that most men do so, I find no satisfaction in such behaviour. I would have explained this to you however you are not yet ready for the words I might say" Xieren sighed.

"What is that supposed to mean?" She asked him again.

"People are still barbaric in their own ways" He replied as she let out a breath of air.

"You are not wrong with that one, my Lord..." She agreed with his words and gazed at the moon.

"When my mother gave birth to me, my father had promised her that he would not chase after other women, but like an animal in heat, he had impregnated three more..."

"And for a while, I was neglected by him. But I still thought he loved me when he came over to 'visit' my mother, The next morning I saw a bird feeding it's chicks diligently and realised that I had yet to receive love like that. My mother until her death, thought it was because of me that father left us, because I was a girl and the child he had wanted was a boy." Akagi said.

"She would often say hurtful things to me and pin all of her problems too, on me... Seeing how much love animals have for their young made me question if we were truly civilised, if 'not loving' your children was not barbaric in the eyes of nobility then what is? Can you answer this question of mine, my Lord?" Akagi smiled.

Xieren who had stayed quiet until her little speech was left to think about everything she had just said.

He then stared into her eyes that were covered through her veil.

"I cannot answer your question, Lady Akagi. However, I can say that you have lived a tragic life. Unlike yours, mine was one with the presence of parental love so it contradicts to what you said. It is true that your life has been dark but if you don't look clearly you won't see the good in it. And also, just because a few made mistakes, won't make it the responsibility of all..."

"We are not perfect, Lady Akagi. I'm proud to say that I'm a hypocrite, because I know that, saying so will justify my actions." Xieren then pat her head gently causing her to stiffen which he felt.

"Please forgive me, it is force of habit!" Xieren apologised immediately, as he did so, she smiled at him cheekily.

"My Lord, it seems like I cracked your persona!" Akagi then placed his hand back on her head and closed her eyes shocking the man.

"It feels strange when you did so... but I don't mind it" Akagi said quietly.

Xieren could see her ears turning red and shook his head.

"Lady Akagi, please tell me you are engaged to me" Xieren asked her.

"What gave it away?" She replied with a mesmerising smile to which Xieren responded by saying,

"My father slipped up"

"Slipped up?"

"It means, to give away" Xieren scratched his face with an awkward smile making her giggle.

"You have very weird ways of saying things, my Lord" She said as he felt something amiss.

"Oh shit! I think we spent way too much time here!" He cursed, shocking the noble lady that presumed him to be a noble through and through...

"Surprised? I hate the uptightness in nobility, so forgive me if I do use vulgar language here and there, my lady" Xieren said as he received a voice transmission from a tag his father had given him.

"Brat, how long are you going to talk with the lady?! The emperor is coming soon!" His father roared at him making Akagi chuckle at him.

"I hope you do not mind this!' He said and grabbed her by her waist and left the bridge.

"Ah!" She could only shout in confusion before feeling dizzy.

•••••

"Father, we are back" Xieren informed Duke Qiu who nodded and turned to the gate, he noticed something and turned back to his son again.

He had a black eye and was apologising to his fiancée profusely.

Duke Qiu smiled and waited for the dumb idiot to arrive at his manor...

"Lady Akagi, I'm sorry alright?" Xieren pleaded showing just how sorry he was for his actions.

It was a sight to behold as the genius young master now sporting a black eye apologising to a girl.

"Hmph! Only this one time..." Akagi responded with a smile, Xieren's black eye immediately disappeared making her frown again.

"So it was a lie? I thought I had hurt you and was worried..." She said coldly as Xieren looked away awkwardly, realising that he got caught.

The two then stayed side by side, enjoying each others company silently...

Until it was ruined by the man that hates Xieren the most.

"Lady Hōjo, what a pleasant surprise!" The two heard a familiar voice and groaned, including Akagi much to Xieren's shock.

"I believe this one is yours..." Xieren whispered into her ear making her shiver and then glared at him.

"I swear if you leave me here with that guy, I will..." She stopped, not knowing what to say.

"Yes, exactly. I need to find my disciple, she is still too young for these things and might cause a scene later on" Xieren smiled and pat her shoulder and left.

"...Baka" Akagi smiled but frowned when the person got closer.

"Lady Akagi, it has been some time since we met" Yang Ning said with a gentle smile, but his eyes did not seem to hide his thoughts.

"Young master Yang, I apologise but I do not wish to converse with other men when my fiancé is nearby!" Akagi said immediately causing Yang Ning's smile to disappear.

"I'm sorry... what?" He asked her silently as his face darkened considerably, Akagi narrowed her eyes at this annoying smelly bastard.

"Young master Yang, not only have you disturbed me but you have also offended me with such rudeness, Please leave me alone immediately!" She warned him coldly.

Xieren who had just arrived saw the tense atmosphere and walked over to Akagi and stood close to her defensively.

"What is the matter, Akagi?" He asked her, trying to take a jab at the man who had always been a Grade-A asshole his entire life.

"M-Milord!" Akagi spluttered at his sudden intimacy and glared at Xieren who smiled widely, behind him was a little girl of about twelve years old that hid behind him shyly.

"You..." Yang Ning's whsiper sounded malicious and full of anger and envy, he thought Xieren and Akagi hadn't heard him and put on a gentle smile.

"So the two of you are engaged? haha, my apologies, please forgive me Lady Akagi, my emotions had gotten the best of me!" Yang Ning then turned around and left.

His face was morphed with insanity and his eyes were blood red...

"I have a bad feeling..." Both Akagi and Xieren said at the same time and looked at each.

Xiao Ling felt awkward, there was a very weird atmosphere around the two of them, you could almost see the pink background and roses floating around.

"Muuuuuuuu!!" She pinched Xieren's leg making him yelp in pain as he looked at Akagi who turned away quickly and then turned to Xiao Ling who smiled at him.

"Master, Don't ignore me!" She pouted cutely making him feel bad for something he didn't even know he did and hugged her tightly.

"Happy?" He asked her.

"Un!"

"What a sweet little girl!" Akagi squealed and took her away from him.

"Umm... Akag-" One glare shut him up as he saw her smile brightly when she spoke to his disciple...