Her words seemed to be effective on the king since he frowned and a sad look appeared on his face.
"I didn't do anything…" He muttered as he looked down like a scolded child.
Tania sighed and looked at Acht apologetically. She knew that this was the only way to deal with her overprotective father despite it being a tad unconventional.
"Anyway, we can't talk while standing here. Let's go inside. I want to get to know you more, boy." He said with a fake smile that clearly held hidden motives.
The three then entered a big door close to where they stood. It looked like the throne room since it housed an extravagant-looking chair on the far side of the room.
The king then walked to it and sat down elegantly as if it was the millionth time he did that.
"So, Acht, how did you meet my daughter?" He asked while resting his hand on his gilded armrest.
"I don't remember," Acht said nonchalantly.
This answer seemed to anger the king and his glare intensified. Nevertheless, he managed to keep calm enough to respond.
"How could that be? Is my daughter that unremarkable to you, hmm?"
At first, Acht planned to feign ignorance just like before, but he caught the sight of Tania looking at him with a hint of interest in her eyes. She seemed to want to know what he thought about her.
"I wouldn't say anything like that. Tania is… an impressive person." He said as he eyed her periodically.
That was the safest answer he could think of, so he went with it.
"How is that? Could you elaborate more?" The king kept cornering Acht just so that he would make him feel troubled.
What made it even harder was the fact that Tania forgot about helping him, and became more interested in what he would say.
"Hm, let's see…She's quite capable and strong. She also is a very calm and composed person. I think that's really admirable."
Even with all that against him, Acht was able to keep control of the conversation.
It also seemed to work wonderfully since Tania seemed to brighten up when she heard how he complimented her. In a sense, it wasn't really a heartfelt compliment but more of professional praise that didn't have any emotions behind it.
The king kept looking at Acht for a while before sighing loudly. Then he said,
"Tania, could you please leave us alone for a moment?"
"Pap-"
"I won't do anything bad to him…Don't worry." He responded, cutting her off.
Tania didn't move immediately as she felt lost. She trusted her father but she also was very nervous since he could end Acht in a heartbeat if things went wrong.
In the end, she decided to believe him and hesitantly walked out of the throne room.
When the door closed, the king took a deep breath and gazed at Acht. His previous harsh demeanor softened considerably.
Then with a low voice, he asked,
"I can see that you already consider me a weird parent, right?"
He directed Acht a question but the latter decided not to answer since he wasn't keen on the idea of disrespecting a king.
"I can't blame you though. I also see myself as a really bad father. But, I had no other choice. Tania was never a… normal kid. She didn't live a normal childhood like most kids her age. Her mother and I had always been very careful when dealing with her since she was our youngest daughter."
He then lifted himself slightly to sit up straighter.
"That's why… When I heard that she was staying with a kid her age, I had really complicated feelings about it. I was happy that she was finally making friends but I also feared that she might have been tricked or taken advantage of in some way."
Acht listened quietly to his story without much of a reaction. However, deep down, he was also feeling a little empathetic toward Tania.
She did indeed live a good life in contrast to his miserable childhood. However, that didn't mean she could grow up normally. There are a lot of ways to make someone live an abnormal childhood and poverty is only one of many examples.
So, he could understand to some extent the king's troubles.
"But, from what I have seen until now. You are not a bad person. Or at least, you don't harbor any ill intentions toward my daughter."
Then, he stood up and walked down until he reached Acht before he extended his hand for a handshake.
"I hope you could be friends with my daughter. She may be an oddball but she's very kind and caring deep down."
Acht looked at the extended hand, then at the man.
'He doesn't seem that against the idea of me being close to his daughter. That's weird.'
Only a few minutes ago, he was glaring at Acht as if he had murdered his whole family. Yet now, he was asking him to take care of Tania.
Anyhow, Acht still accepted the handshake. Then, he looked at the king and said,
"Your daughter is a mature person. Don't worry about her. As for staying friends, I can't give you a clear answer about it. If we are destined to stay friends then so be it."
"I see… I'm grateful for your honest answer." The king nodded his head, seemingly satisfied.
"You can leave now if you want, even though Tania might want you to stay."
Acht chuckled calmly.
"I can't do that since I have things to do. But we will surely meet again soon, I'm sure of it."
Then, he walked out of the room. Outside, there was no trace of Tania.
There was only Winstor standing nearby, waiting for him.
"If you're intending to leave then please follow me."
'I thought she would be here waiting. Ah, whatever.' Acht shook his head, erasing such thoughts from his mind.
Winstor then opened the portal for him so Acht could leave.
'Next time we meet…The Mystic Soul Convention.'
Then he walked out of the castle and back to the bustling streets of Lagradon.
He had to do many things before going to the convention and he had a very tight schedule. So, He hurried along to his next destination, oblivious to what was happening back in the Translucent Castle.
************************
Back in the castle, inside the throne room, the king who was sitting down calmly asked the girl in front of him.
"Are you sure about this, Tania?" He asked her with worried eyes.
The girl nodded her head immediately without any hesitation.
"Making me say that to him is really weird. Is he really against staying friends with you?"
"No…Acht…good." She responded.
She said to her dad with an innocent tone. Her eyes were sparkling with happiness. All of this meeting was a plan she had made before they had even left the forest.
She knew that Acht didn't really consider her as an important person to him so she wanted to link him to her, no matter the cost. So, she came up with the idea of making him meet her father.
All of the things about him being overprotective and everything else were nothing but a ploy she had come up with to make him get attached to her more.
Although Acht didn't totally fall into the trap, she still was able to let him know more about her past and how she lived her childhood.
All of this needed her father's cooperation to make it work and he was more than glad to do so since he thought that she just wanted to introduce her first friend to him.
All of this had one single purpose, to make Acht gradually fall for her even if he didn't know it at the moment.
Taking drastic measures became a necessity ever since Tania started feeling threatened. Acht was very charming, his demeanor and his attitude makes him like a sweet nectar for any girl. Tania was aware that sooner or later, beautiful girls will start approaching him, so she needed to secure a place in his heart and make him hers before anyone could snatch him.
Even if it was fake, even if she had to make him fall into an illusion she created by herself, if it all ended up making him fall for her, then all is good.
Unconsciously, a small smile appeared on the corner of her mouth. She really enjoyed the show she had created especially for Acht since it made him praise her unconditionally.
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