Chapter 102

[Third Person's PoV]

As the entire VIP section filled up with people, Iris sat there pretending as if nothing had previously happened, as if it was all a figment of her imagination.

"Lady Iris, are you excited about the finals too? Which participants seem the most interesting to you?" a girl of high nobility asked as she sat down in Iris's direction.

Cid started to zone them out, not really paying attention until he heard Iris mention the first God of War Festival championship.

"That's right, Lady Beatrix is here in the capital," Iris mentioned with a serious expression.

Cid thought to himself, 'That's right, the woman who is most likely Alpha's aunt…' He closed his eyes and spread his observation Haki.

Finding her, he saw Beatrix wearing a black hood covering her face while walking around, before she quickly snapped her back, looking behind her.

Beatrix turned her head in confusion and muttered, "That's weird, I just felt the gaze of someone behind me… but there's nobody there."

She looked around for a while longer before dismissing it and continued walking, but not before putting her guard up.

'She's sharp, she was able to detect my Observation Haki on her. Well, I expected no less,' Cid thought to himself with an inward smile.

As Claire's first round began, Cid stood up and started walking away.

"Where are you going?" Iris asked in confusion. "Your sister's match just started."

"Bathroom," Cid answered without looking back. "Plus, there's not really any reason to stay. She's already won."

As Cid walked towards the arena, he passed a hooded figure who quickly stopped in her tracks.

"I smell the scent of an elf on you. Do you have any elven friends?" she asked, slightly turning back towards Cid.

"Perhaps," was all Cid answered as the hooded figure pulled down her hood, revealing her face.

It was none other than Beatrix, who looked like Alpha, not exactly the same, but not so different.

(Images)

"I'm looking for one that looks similar to me. She's the child of my late sister. Have you seen her?"

At first, Cid didn't answer immediately and continued to look into her eyes for a bit before replying with the same answer he gave her previously, "Perhaps."

Almost instantly, Beatrix's hands went towards her sword, but as she touched it, she saw a vision.

Cid showed her the future using Observation Haki. Each forearm would be sliced into pieces, each falling to the ground as blood flowed out of her and splashed onto the floor, before a sword came and touched her neck.

As the sword touched her neck, the vision stopped. Beatrix jumped and slid back away from Cid, sweat dripping down from her forehead as she started breathing heavily.

Her hands, which were on her sword, started to shake as she looked at Cid with a frightened expression. This was surprising to anyone who knew her, as she usually appeared emotionless.

'What's this… when was the last time I felt like this… when was the last time I felt true fear?' she thought as she saw Cid looking down on her with cold eyes.

Touching her neck, she remembered the feeling of the sword touching her skin. 'That felt too real, way too real for it to have been fake.'

As Cid looked at her coldly, he said in an equally cold voice, "You, as a warrior and a swordsman with countless experience, should know a sword isn't something one draws out to simply threaten people.

One should draw a sword when one is prepared to kill, and if one is prepared to kill, they should also be prepared to be killed as well. So choose your next actions carefully."

As Cid had stated, Beatrix was a warrior who had lived a long life and had countless experiences, so she was able to quickly take control of her breathing and calm herself down.

'He foresaw that I would threaten him before I even had the chance to fully grasp my sword, and then those realistic visions... they felt more like the future than anything else. Does he have the power to see the future and show it to someone else?' Beatrix pondered, but before her thoughts could spiral out of control, she quickly calmed herself and thought of her next course of action. She looked towards Cid and saw him examining her, waiting for what she would do next.

With a sigh, Beatrix closed her eyes and released the hold of her sword. Her expression returned to one of indifference as it always was, and she apologized. "I'm sorry for my actions, but I have been looking for my niece for a very long time and lost my cool when I heard that you may know of her whereabouts. Can you please tell me where I can find her? She's the very last thing I have of my sister, and I want to make sure she's alright."

Hearing this, Cid's cold expression disappeared as he let out a sigh, running his fingers through his hair. "Yeah, I know who you're looking for, or at least I think I do, since the two of you look like you could be related."

A flash of hope came over Beatrix's eyes but froze when she heard his next words.

"You're probably looking for my wife."

"Eh?" Beatrix was taken aback.

Cid just nodded his head, hearing the little sound she let out.

"Your wife?" Beatrix repeated in disbelief.

Cid continued nodding with a satisfied expression before motioning for her to wait a minute.

Using his connection to her, he sent her a telekinetic message, 'Come to me, there's someone who wants to meet you.'

Beatrix looked confused before she saw Cid's shadow expand slightly, causing her eyes to widen in surprise.

"Hubby–" Alpha's voice was cut short as she was quickly embraced, something she wasn't expecting.

Turning to look at the person embracing her, Alpha's shock was evident.

Beatrix had tears in her eyes, her indifferent expression leaving her for the second time today. "I finally found you, you're alive. I was beginning to think the worst and that I was too late in finding you–"

Before Beatrix could say her name, Alpha covered her mouth with her hand, already anticipating what she was about to say.

"It's Alpha. I died the day I was announced to have been suffering from 'demon possession'. My master and husband was the one to save me that day, and because of him, I was born anew. He cured my 'demon possession' and made me who I am today. So that name is no more. From that day forth, I was blessed with the name of Alpha."

"Well, you girls can talk about yourselves. I have something to do," Cid said as he kissed the top of Alpha's head before walking away, waving at them.

As Cid went towards his match, he transformed into Julius Blindman, while continuing to watch their conversation through their shadows, curious about what they had to say.

"So he really is your husband…" Beatrix couldn't help but mutter.

Alpha just looked towards where he disappeared into and nodded her head proudly before looking back at Beatrix and letting out a sigh. "It appears we have some things to discuss, don't we?"

Beatrix just nodded her head, happy that she was finally reunited with her niece after searching for her for so many years.