A protective barrier

"You should leave." Norah declared in anger. If he tried to spout nonsense again, she would kick him instead of her daughter.

Lady Winter sighed and nodded in response. Glaring at her useless son, she grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the house.

"Sorry." Lia deeply bowed to Norah before following her queen out. Xavier also bowed ashamed of his brother's behavior, and left the house.

Ivan sighed as the chaotic family disappeared. He slumped on the couch and recalled the scene. His sister didn't deserve such treatment, and he regretted not punching Jack the jerk. Glaring at his mom, he grumbled, "How can you be friends with them?"

"That guy is a piece of trash."

Norah sighed and sat on the adjacent couch. She didn't want to hear what went wrong in the mall but Zayden's words disappointed her. She disgusted people who lacked basic decency and respect. And he met all the conditions.

"Don't dare to invite them again." Ivan ordered, aware of his mother's nature. "He can never step into this house again."

"If he does, I will break his bones." he said as a mere apology would not suffice. Whatever might have been his relationship with Ziana in childhood, that didn't give him the authority to play with her emotions.

Norah sighed again as her son dashed upstairs. He was protective of Ziana, even though he was at her throat every day. And if someone hurt her, he would kill them instantly. That's how siblings were supposed to be, but her heart swelled in remorse rather than happiness.

One day his sister would be dragged into hell and he could only watch helplessly. She would be forced to grow up too soon, suffering the same fate as her father. And he had to accept the heartbreaking fate just like she did in the past.

---

Meanwhile outside the house.

Lady Winter dragged Zayden and stopped in front of the car. She crossed her arms, waiting for him to explain but sighed when he furiously glared at her.

"You keep disappointing me."

"Like I care." Zayden snapped.

She gritted her teeth and fumed with frustration. This annoying brat was at it again, causing chaos and meddling too much in human affairs.

"Change your attitude before I skin you alive."

"Just send me back if you're unhappy." Zayden grumbled and crossing his arms, he added, "I am no longer interested in staying here."

I no longer want to stick with that annoying woman. That was what he meant in reality. No one had ever raised his voice against him, less slapping twice, and his ego was brutally hurt. And letting her get assaulted by demons was the right price for disrespecting him.

"You have signed the contract and there's no way back." Lia remarked only in an effort to appease his anger. He deserved this mental frustration.

"But I haven't sealed it."

"It doesn't matter." She shook her head. "If you break the contract, you will be dissipated according to the terms."

Zayden sneered at her. Of course, he doesn't wish to turn into dust. But living with that woman also annoyed him. Huffing out loud, he entered the car and slammed the door.

Screech.

The trio sighed as he drove at lightning speed.

"They despise each other." Xavier commented making the ladies sigh again.

"Let's just hope they get on good terms soon." Lady Winter replied turning around to face the house. "They need to fight together, not against each other in the coming days."

Lia and Xavier sighed in response. They looked at the home that would soon be a wreck. But they needed to protect their members and keep their promise to Kaylan.

"Let's seal it with a barrier first." Lady Winter declared and they nodded. Ziana had been through enough attacks and they couldn't afford to endure anymore.

Now that they were very sure of her role, they had to guard her at all costs. Keep her safe from darkness until she was ready to fight it alone. And that would take a few months or years.

Xavier stepped forward and lifted his index finger. A purple flame bloomed over it and he squatted. Tracing a small line on the ground, he got up and waited for his magic to encircle the house completely.

And as they stepped back, the purple line lengthened and began to encircle the house. Soon, a magical dome formed and shimmered in the evening light. It illuminated brightly, swearing to shield the area from darkness.

Lady Winter smiled and sighed satisfactorily. She saw Norah staring at them through the window and nodded at her. Norah smiled in gratitude as she saw the barrier.

Lady Winter took one last look at the barrier and sighed. "Let's go." She said walking towards her car.

They still need to take care of broken barriers as well as their annoying prince. He was the hardest to please when angry and she might need to lure him with incredible offers.

---

Zayden drove through buzzing traffic. His blaring horns, rash driving, and aimless turns irritated passing drivers but they were powerless as even the cops couldn't stop him.

He reached a high-end bar and stopped in front of the entrance. Throwing the keys to the valet, he stormed inside to quench his anger with alcohol.

"Get me a private room." He ordered reaching for the counter and his intimidating voice made the bartender gulp.

"I'm sorry, sir. But right now they're all booked." The poor man apologized nervously. "Would you mind having a private table?" He shut his mouth when Zayden glared at him.

Zayden sat down on the bar stool and demanded, "Get me the most expensive drink." The place didn't matter as long as he could drink peacefully and calm his frustration.

"Yes, sir." The bartender nodded and quickly brought him a glass. This man looked like a typical arrogant heir and he didn't wish to get on his wrong side. They were the scariest creatures on the planet.

[A few minutes later.]

"Sir, you're drinking very," The bartender shut his mouth and filled another glass as Zayden glared at him.

This man was a beast chunking his tenth glass in just a couple of minutes. And he was seriously worried about his health. But Zayden kept drinking as his inner demon threatened to break out.

He was mad, furious, frustrated, and a part of him was also hurt. Yes, just a simple slap caused all those emotions to rage inside him and these drinks weren't helping him.

"Get me a different one." He ordered placing down his empty glass. The bartender hesitated but quickly rushed to bring another expensive booze.

"Hey, you look angry." A woman wearing a short sequin dress approached him. Zayden ignored her as she sat beside him and waited for his drink.

"Do you need some company?" She asked leaning forward and he groaned in frustration.

Why were these humans so clingy?!

"Scram off, bitch." He sneered and the bartender gasped in shock. This man had just insulted a regular customer and a riot was imminent.

"Pour it!" The poor guy was startled by Zayden's loud voice and quickly came out of his thoughts. Shaking his head, he poured another glass as the woman stormed out in anger. He just hoped no bones would be broken tonight as she seemed pretty upset.

And as per his guess, it didn't take much time and a group of men approached them. The bartender quickly moved back and hurried to bring his manager leaving Zayden in confusion.

With a grumble of annoyance, he took the bottle and poured himself. But suddenly, a man grabbed the bottle and snatched it away.

"What the fuck?" Zayden cursed and glared at the man. How dare this lowly human touch his whiskey?

The man didn't stop there and went to grab Zayden's collar. He grasped it tightly and forced Zayden to stand up who was stupefied by his action.

His eyes blazed in anger and he grabbed the bulky man's wrist. He tried to twist it but his powers didn't support him. He tried again but something was off and frowned at the realization.

Damn! Did Lia forget to unblock his powers?

Horror filled his face and he looked at the man in disbelief. He was stronger than him and his grim expression caught his nerves.

"We we can talk." He mumbled, sounding pathetic like a rat stuck with a tiger.

"Did you call her a bitch, bastard?" The man glowered and Zayden gulped in fear. His hand instantly retracted back and freed his wrist.

Here he was again, caught up in human affairs! And he couldn't even connect with his subordinates as his powers were blocked.

"Oh my god!" A familiar voice echoed in the background. As the man was blocking his sight, Zayden bent his head to look and his eyes grew wide again.

"Did he just call her a bitch?" Ziana gasped again and covered her mouth in shock.

"Well, that's disrespectful." She exclaimed, shaking her head in disapproval.

What the hell was she doing here?!