while noticing the air around Azrael change, it felt like a dormant tiger is starting to wake. 'Yo yo! I'm still here, I'm still a toddler, I won't be able to handle your aura! Looks like I have to go for the adorable attack mode!' To protect herself from the situation she's finding herself in, Sakura lightly tapped Azrael's face to get his attention, when she got it, she looked up at him with her bottom lip in a pout.
"I'm Hungwy", she said it in a baby way and tilted her head, while rubbing her tummy. Her plan worked and she was able to fully gain Azrael's attention and calmed him down.
'Fuck!! I can't believe I was able to do that so smoothly, is my mind adapting to this body quickly?'
While worried a bit of how she was able to do that without a need to cringe and choke herself.
She felt Azrael stand while adjusting her in his arm.
'Oh~? Looks like he adapts quickly as well. Just a few hours ago he was all stiff and awkward with me in his arms, but now he is able to adjust his grip without anyone's help.'
While leaning on him, she just let him carry her inside the building.
‘Looks like no blood will be shed, well I am a bit hungry so this is actually good news for me
‘
But before she can relax, she can hear a man's voice call out to Azrael.
"Azrael Soul, the commander of the royal knights, right?" Azrael heard his name being called and his eyebrows furrowed in dislike, but he decided to ignore the man as if he hadn't heard his name being called.
"Will you act as if you can't hear me? It seems that the emperor hasn't really taught his knights to show respect to visitors."
The man seems to poke at Azrael sore spot on purpose, just to rile him up and see if he can provoke him, because his words were able to provoke the other royal knights when he insulted their emperor and their commander.
And it may have worked on Azrael too, because Azrael stopped in his steps, his whole body was tense, if he turned around, they would be able to see his eyes turn a cold chill. His expression would make people wonder if they were staring at the grim reaper himself, ready to reap your soul away if you show a moment of carelessness. Before he could act, another voice answered the man.
"You. Not. Inbited. No. Nothice" the childish yet loud voice of a child can be hear in the quite training hall, spreading to each corner to remind this "visitor" that he wasn't invited, and he arrived with no notice to their empire, so they don't deserve the respect of a visitor.
Everyone turn to the voice, only to see it belong to a toddler, being held by Azrael, her head appearing over his shoulder to look back at them, her mouth marred with a pout and her eyebrows furrowed into an attempt of a glare, everyone there can see she was looking at the holy knight when she said that.
Before the holy knight can say anything back, another voice interrupts, " I agree with her highness 100 %, you arrive with no prior notice, and walk around without an escort as if you own the place, I wonder if the divine religion hasn't taught their knight to respect others, seems more like a group of gangsters rather than knights."
"Who dares!?!".
"I" Seraph appears through the door Azrael was trying to enter from and and was standing straight, his steps showing pride and boldness, he had no fear when he spoke up against the holy knights.
"I, as the high minister of this empire, have the audacity to say so, do you have an issue with that?". Seraph held his head high as if he was looking down at the holy knight, as if to provoke him to do something.
'Oh-ho! How the tables have turned, wonder how he'll take that.'
Sakura made herself comfortable and rested her cheek on Azrael's shoulder to look at Seraph and the holy knights showdown, but before the holy knight could snap at him, the other one that came with him stepped up and raised his arm to stop him, which it did.
'Hoo~? Seems that this guy is the leader, since just one hand movement stopped the guy before he can say anything regrettable. But why didn't he stop him sooner?'
Sakura looked at the man with more displeasure than she did with the other knight, because this man seems the type to move behind the scenes.
"I apologize, my companion sometimes doesn't think twice before he says anything, Joseph! Apologize for your actions, remember we came here at the last minute without informing them, we are at fault this time." The man said with a calm smile, but his eyes were void of any emotion, it was hard to tell what he was thinking.
"But-!... tsk! I apologize for any discourtesy I have committed, I haven't thought about what I was saying and only spoke without thought," there was a deep glower painted on his face, but he still bowed to Seraph as a show of respect, even if his face and clenched hands show otherwise.
Seraph can point that out but decided not to, he felt like this amount was good enough, if he pushed it, then an even bigger situation can occur from this.
"All is done and forgiven, I can see your sincerity, now let's not be so rigid and speak in a more friendly way, how about it?" Seraph said with a kind smile on his face.
'Wow, just wow, now that's what you call fake, he was ready to ruin the man's career if he said anymore, but now that he can't, he acts all friendly and kind, no wonder his son grew up to be quite the two faced brat.'
Sakura felt as if her worldview widened from watching this interaction.
'But looks like the other side has a fox-like, or better yet snake-like attitude.' Sakura looked at the holy knight that commanded the holy knight named Joseph, and waited for his response.
"Haha how very hospitable you are, I bet all guests that are received by you must have so much to say about your friendliness."
"Of course, I am kind to all welcomed guests, they believe I make a great host haha," Seraph emphasizes to all welcomed guests as if to say 'yeah I'm courteous to those welcomed, while those who aren't, then they should get out!' While the snake-like man used sarcasm to say Seraph doesn't know how to welcome people.
'If I had popcorn, I would be eating it by now to watch how this will go on'.
Sakura feels as if she can see a fox wearing monocle glasses and a white snake hissing at each other.
"Well let's speak more in his majesty's throne room, he wishes to see you guys to welcome you to our empire, after all you still haven't shown up to see him."
Seraph lets out a sly smile, giving him a mischievous appearance, while the other man's smile disappears.
He knows he lost this round, because when they enter any castle or palace, the first thing to do is meet the king or emperor, yet they haven't done that, they went directly to see the royal healers, especially Uriel.
"Yes, you're right, it almost crossed my mind that we still have to meet him, I apologize for that minor mistake."
"No, no, it is fine, anyone can make mistakes, even those who are said to be messengers of the 'divine' god."
Seraph poked in their sore spot, which caused all 5 holy knights to grow blue in anger. The snake-like man was no exception either, but he knew not to show it too much.
"I believe it's time for us to go no?." Seraph turns and waits for those holy knights to follow him, he didn't have to wait long, they began to follow him. Before the man leaves he stops beside Azrael and turns to Sakura, catching her off guard when he leans close.
"You must be her highness Sakura, the only child his emperor, Mihkael had, it is a pleasure to meet you, my name is Caspian, I hope we can get along," he reaches his hand to pat her head, before she can lean away, Azrael took 3 steps back, but those few steps caused a huge gap to appear from Sakura to Caspian and for extra measures, Azrael used one hand to rest on the back of Sakura's head so Caspian can't think of touching it.
Caspian's hand froze yet he nonchalantly put it down and just smiled.
"Let's meet one another, another time princess, do take care."
He then turns away and follows Seraph to the throne room. Sakura felt a bit of discomfort and wariness when she noticed she received this man's interest.
'I don't think I'll be able to live a calm and free life like I wanted'. While wondering what to do to lessen his interest, she doesn't know that Caspian started to ask Seraph questions about her.
"So... her highness, if I remember, is only 3 and a few months old, yet she seems quite bright for a child her age, the very opposite of what I first heard about her."
Seraph wasn't a fool and noticed Caspian's interest in her highness, which brought him to know this isn't good.
"Her highness is a bit brighter than most children, but nothing to really brag about."
He tried to sound nonchalant about Sakura, he didn't try to purposely lower her, yet enough to just say she is a bit above average, but not a gifted protege, just so his interest can lower.
"Hmm... I see," Caspian has a calm smile on his face, yet it was hard to see if he really dropped the matter or not.
"Sorry for not being able to stop them, I told them I had a prior appointment in the royal knight quarters, I didn't think they would want to follow me all the way here," Uriel can only sigh and look exhausted when he remembered the situation that they were in, it almost reached an all out battle if Seraph wasn't there to ease up the situation.
Or better yet, if the princess hasn't interfered. Uriel looks at the child that is being fed a spoonful at a time so she can chew her food, the one feeding her is Azrael who seems to find a type of entertainment when he sees her cheeks fill up like those of a hamster, especially when she closes her eyes in bliss and kicks her legs in joy when she eats.
Noticing Uriel's gaze, she turns to him and smiles out to him while her cheeks are filled with food, distracting Uriel from his thoughts, he smiles back and decides to think about this at a later time.
"It's only 1 right now, in a few more hours, we will switch with Ariel and Gabriel, but I'm truly sorry princess for not being able to accompany you from the early morning.
"It is. Fien" her words were a bit muffled since she was still chewing her food.
"I'm glad her highness forgives me, you are truly a kind and forgiving princess." Uriel smiled while gently brushing away crumbs that are sticking to her cheeks, and without thinking he licked the crumbs from his thumb.
'... if I hadn't known about his background because of the game, I would have thought he was flirting with me.' It was a different type of appeal from the others, he had that delicate feminine appeal, yet when he does things like this, it gives off a tempting vixen type.
'I didn't think the term vixen would be used for a man, yet that's the only thing I can think about right now.'
"Seducing the princess isn't allowed." Azrael said to Uriel, surprising him and causing him to cough while eating a cookie.
"Cough! Cough! Whe-Cough! When did I try to seduce her highness!?" Uriel was beet red, his cheeks appearing as if he added blush to it.
'Nope, that's all natural, no wonder the sisters in the church messed with him as a child.' remembering his backstory, she felt like laughing yet crying for him.