The Lavender-Eyed Omega

Chapter 3

The night expanded like black angel wings, conquering the moonless sky. The tall trees proudly spread their enormous crowns, making it impossible to get a glimpse of the sky from the floor of the dark woods. The forest floor, woven with ancient tree roots, was covered by layers of dried fallen leaves. The dark woods release the sounds of a plethora of nocturnal ghosts within the hug of grey shadowed night.

In such an eerie atmosphere, two figures were standing facing each other, ready for a feud. Seventeen-year-old Alastair Maynard was standing tall and confident with a smug smile on his lips. The other person was wearing dark purple robes while her face was covered with a hood, making it impossible for a person to recognize her. The chilly wind blew their clothes around. Seeing the atmosphere, one could easily say that the feud wasn't going to be an easy one.

"Alastair Maynard, I am not in the mood to challenge you. Don't force me!" A cold threatening voice of a lady echoed in the silent forest.

"Introduce yourself first, and I'll let you go," Alastair spoke confidently, forming a circle of fire around her, making it impossible for her to escape.

Having left with no other option other than to fight, her lips curved upwards into a confident smirk. Turning her hands into the supine position, she clenched her fingers suddenly. The next moment the fire circle around her was disappeared. Alastair's brows knitted together, forming a deep frown.

How did she put out the fiery circle?! It wasn't some ordinary circle!

Irked by failure, Alastair spun his hands, summoning the thunder to create a fearsome atmosphere. Spreading his palm, he projected lightning from his fingers, directing it towards the lady.

The lady seemed calm, unaffected by Alastair's tactics. Spreading her arms, she closed her eyes, chanting a spell. Before the lightning could harm her, a magical purple barrier formed around her, protecting her.

Alastair didn't expect that the lady would defend herself. Eyes widening in bewilderment, he clenched his fingers, increasing the frequency of the lightning, as well as summoning heat to break the protective barrier against her.

The lady felt the change of the atmosphere around her. As the attacks became more powerful and composed, she realized that she underestimated Alastair Maynard's capability. Crossing her hands, she cantillated a spell, summoning a storm that added protection to her as well weakened the opponent's pace of attack.

Due to the unexpected storm, Alastair Maynard's intensity of attacks weakened, unable to withstand the force. Taking advantage of the situation, the lady clenched her fingers, bursting out the magical barrier around her, sending out a gush of purple smoke, throwing the other person a few feet away.

"You think these mere tricks will defeat me?!" Coughing, Alastair stood up, obstinate to accept defeat. Breathing heavily, he took the position to attack.

"How persistent!" Lips curving upwards, the lady scoffed. "I hate stubborn people." Her eyes narrowed in determination.

A purple glow appeared on her hand as she opened her palm. The moment she spread her fingers, a stream of purple sparks emitted from the purple glow, hitting Alastair Maynard. No sooner had the sparks touched him than he winced in pain, falling on the ground.

"I already warned you not to mess with me. Now bear the consequences," the lady said in a cold tone, observing the poor soul whimpering in the unbearable pain.

"W-What did y-you do t-to m-me?" the young man tried to get up with the support of his elbows but failed. He could feel his muscles spasming, internal organs twitching.

"Poisoned you," the lady uttered without showing any remorse, voice as cold as ice. Standing in front of him, she spoke, "You think you will win this world with that weak body of yours? How ignorant!" Lips curving upwards into a smirk, she continued," you wanted to know who I am, right? I am a witch, your foe. This time I spared your life. If you dare to show up in front of me the next time, I'll make sure that it will be your last day in the world."

"W-wa-it..."

Sneering, she turned her back. Her dark purple cloak was blown by the wind, implying her as a powerful witch. Adjusting her hood, she side-glanced at the whimpering person. Spreading her fingers, she left a magical symbol on the bark of the nearby tree, declaring her visit. The symbol that had a star with smaller stars at its spikes was the representation of her race.

"Farewell, Alastair Maynard."

Before Alastair could say anything, she jumped onto one of the tall trees, disappearing from his sight. He saw the magical symbol drawn as a tattoo on her hand just before she disappeared.

"N-o...W-ai-t..."

Alastair could feel his eyesight was getting blurry. He could see the world around him was turning black. His eyelids started to feel heavy when he felt like he saw someone was running towards him.

"Alastair! Alastair, wake up! ALASTAIR!"

"Hah!"

Sitting up with a jerk, Alastair found himself on his bed. Beads of sweat covered his forehead; his breathing was ragged. He was in a daze when he heard a familiar voice.

"Alastair, are you alright?"

"Mother?" Alastair blinked upon seeing his guardian looking worriedly at him.

"You were trashing in your sleep. Did you again have a nightmare?" Uphara asked, making him drink water.

"I am sorry for making you worry, mother," sighing, the young man messaged his glabella. "That incident had become a nightmare for me."

"That witch?" The lady asked, walking to the table where the jug of water was kept.

"You remember?" Alastair asked, astonished.

"How can I forget the incident which left a deep impact on my son?" Voice turning into grim one, Uphara sighed. How can I forget that particular witch? The poison that she had inserted into him wasn't some ordinary poison, but some venomous scorpion poison, which is very rare and is the unique speciality of the scorpion race. As long as the witch is alive, Alastair has a potential enemy to deal with.

"If you didn't come that day at the perfect time, I might have d-"

"DON'T YOU DARE TO COMPLETE THE SENTENCE!" Uphara growled, eyes turning white, showing her dominance as the most powerful demon. "As long as your mother is alive, don't you dare to speak about your death!"

"My apologies. But I still cannot ignore that a mere witch defeated me," Alastair uttered dejectedly.

Getting down from the bed, he splashed water from the bronze container, washing his face. He continuously splashed the water on his face until he felt like he cleared out the gloomy feelings that were gnawing him up.

"Alastair, till now, I didn't tell you anything important about that witch," Uphara shook her head, witnessing Alastair's dejected self. "That witch doesn't seem like some ordinary witch. She seemed to possess the poison of a scorpion, the most venomous poison in the world. Since I have scorpion blood in me, I cured you easily."

"Scorpion blood? Isn't the scorpion race one of the rarest races?" Alastair frowned.

His eyes fell on a circular wooden object. Using his telekinesis ability, he held it in his hand. Running his calloused thumb on the rough surface of the object, he traced the shape of the magical symbol drawn on it.

It was the same symbol which the witch left behind five years ago. He preserved the piece of wood, turning it into a circular object to fuel his ambitions of taking over the world.

"Yes."

"Until we capture that witch and establish Wrisian's dominance over all other kingdoms, I cannot sit idle." Alastair asserted, unconsciously clenching his fingers against the object.

"My son, forget about conquering the world today. Prepare yourself for the marriage ceremony first," Uphara chuckled. "You need to impress Dralia so that they won't dare to raise a voice against us in the future."

"Certainly," Alastair grinned.

"I am taking my leave."

Alastair bowed as the lady left his room. No sooner had she left than Alastair let out a deep sigh.

"These marriage alliances are such a pain in the neck," he slumped into his bed.

He aimlessly stared at the ceiling, eyes devoid of emotions. Subconsciously, he blinked his eyes, only to realize that a drop of tear escaped from his eye. Chuckling without humour, he wiped his tears that were threatening to escape from his eyes.

"Wow! Tears? Am I crying again?" His chuckle turned into humourless laughter. "I cannot believe that I am still crying like some teenager. How lame! How can a grown-up man like me cry?" Shaking his head, he huffed. "I am the King of Wrisian, and I cannot shed tears like weaklings. Tears don't suit a strong man like me; it's for weaklings."

Taking a deep breath, he stood up, intending to get ready for the marriage ceremony, before the sadness could conquer him. Undressing his upper garments, he looked into the mirror. Suddenly, some old memories popped up in his mind.

"Reina...I am getting married again. Can you believe that this Alastair Maynard who promised not to have any other wife other than you is getting married again! No matter how many weddings I have, no one can take your place in my heart. You are my darling, my sweetheart, my everything. Only if you were beside me, you would have become my Luna and the only Queen of Wrisian." Unconsciously, tears rolled down his cheeks. "I am sorry that I couldn't protect you. I am so sorry that I was incapable of protecting you from those bastards. If only I was a little more powerful, I would've protected you. Reina, I miss you every day, every second. I miss that every moment when we used to spend our days without caring about anything: only you and me holding our hands. I wish I could feel the warmth and comfort of you. I wish I could go back to those days. Everything seems so cold and distant here. I cannot feel the warmth that I used to feel back then. I feel like the coldness around me is creeping into my skin. I feel so tired. But I cannot show this weak side of me to anyone, not to even my mother." Sighing, he got into the bathtub. "I hope you are happy and healthy in heaven. Please take care of yourself. I love you forever."