When Varian and Isadora stepped out of the space crack, they were greeted by Hazel who was patiently waiting.
The fairy was adorned in a black and white maid uniform, a black top with a generous V-cut on the chest, a skirt that ended on her knees and white stockings to finish it off. The 'maid' Hazel looked at Varian with not-so-hidden anticipation.
Isadora's brows frowned at the visual and she looked at Varian with contempt.
"I…" Varian didn't know what to say.
He never asked Hazel to do anything like this. All they talked was work, work and work. So, what the fuck was this chick thinking?
"From now on, you're wearing this."
With a wave of his hand, a large yellow costume, the kind that cosplayers wear in children's parks, enveloped Hazel.
Except for her face and wings, nothing else was visible.
"Wh-What?" Hazel was confused.
"I guess that's not enough,"
With a flip of his palm, a thick veil covered her face.
Nodding in satisfaction, he turned to Isadora. She was looking at him in anger, as if saying he was too evil for arbitarily forcing Hazel into an uncomfortable outfit.
Varian clutched his forehead.
He forgot something. Isadora was in a bad mood. Whatever he did or didn't, she'd still get pissed at his actions.
"Forget it. Do what you want. I don't care what you wear anyway." With a wave of his palm, the costume disintegrated, leaving her back in the maid uniform.
"…Are you gay?" Hazel blurted out, once again. This woman had a loose tongue, alright. This wasn't the first time and it surely wouldn't be the last.
Varian rolled his eyes and nodded in her dumbfounded gaze. "Yes. So, don't use those clothes to score points."
Hazel's jaw dropped and she clutched the hem of her skirt. "I-I have a cousin who's also into men. Three, in fact. One is muscular, one is lean and handsome, the other is cute. According to your tastes, I can arrange…"
The more she spoke, the more Varian's face twisted. He tried to calm himself down but couldn't help his chest heaving up and down as anger threatened to burst out.
Hazel misunderstood these signs and gave a little smile. "Oh, are you that excited already?"
"Pffttt!" Isadora burst out laughing, bending over and clutching her stomach.
Varian's hardened expression eased and he looked at the princess in surprise. Her laughter was unexpected, beautiful and contagious. It was all the more welcome given that her mood hit rock bottom just a while ago.
Hazel misunderstood once again.
"So, should I call for a meeting, one-on-one or three-on-one?" As she said those words, she lowered her head with a blushing face, clearly thinking something unhealthy.
Varian couldn't bear it anymore. "It was a joke, joke alright! I have three beautiful wives. Your actions were just making my fiancee misunderstand."
"F-Fiancee?" Hazel raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, the gorgeous lady here," Varian pointed to Isadora, who froze at his words and then shot him a glare.
"Konstant Varian, what nonsense are you spouting?" The coldness in her voice caused Hazel to shiver and hide behind Varian.
"Common sense, madam, common sense. You can't just eat two-thirds of a dish and call it finished. You have to eat the last part too. Or someone else might. And I am very, very posessive. I will not only finish the dish, I will take away the plate too."
"What's with that crazy analogy? Am I dish now?" Isadora said with an angry exression.
Varian leaned closer and said with a smile. "Yes, a dish I'll eat up."
The blatant flirting caused her mouth to open in confusion before she came to her senses. "Stop! Stop this instant! You womanizer, I shall not fall for your cheap words!"
"You're the only one who didn't recognize it yet. But the moment you woke up, your fate is already set. It'll happen sooner or later. I can't leave you out in the family. Don't worry, I got their acceptance. So, you can go ahead and fall. Fall hard for me, Princess~"
"…You're delusional if you think that's ever going to happen." Isadora said with a frosty expression and turned to Hazel.
"Hey, you there! Where is the target now? I'll cut him into pieces and go home. I can't stay with this womanizer a second more than necessary."
"Th-That…" Hazel stutterd with an awkward smile.
"Software problems?" Isadora cracked a joke but her eyes weren't smiling.
"There is a squad of Orions in the capital planet. A squad without any rank 8s but with veteran peak rank 7s. One of the captains is staying very close to him. Compared to just one person earlier, there's a whole squad to pass. I think it's too dangerous."
"Cute, but you don't get to decide the level of danger." Isadora said in a blunt tone.
"Eh, sorry for overstepping."
Varian rolled his eyes at the exchange. "Isadora, this isn't even your mission. You're just tagging along."
"…" Isadora stiffly turned her neck and looked at him with a marvelous glare.
As she expected, Hazel started giving her a werid glance. 'So she's just tagging along but making so much fuss?'
"Anyway, I have the details of the palace. We can proceed straight to assassination."
A few holograms floated in front of them.
"How did you?! I tried a lot but I couldn't even…"
"A certain someone." Varian put a finger on his lips.
Isadora's face darkened.
It was…Sonya. It hurt to hear that name now. If possible, she wanted things to remain simple and hate that girl without holding back. But now, she couldn't bring herself to do that.
"That certain someone was planning to destroy the palace and kill off the royalty. I'm 'borrowing' her resources. Standing on the shoulders of gia—well, not really a giant." Varian shrugged.
Hazel's eyes widened. "No way! That princess! You caught her?!"
"Of course." Varian smirked. "I gave her a single hit and she fainted right away!"
Hazel's eyes sparkled with worship while Isadora looked at him with contempt.
Even though he did say the truth…was he seriously bragging about winning a heavily injured and defenseless Sonya?
'As expected, he has no shame.'
