"You really have a habit of blackmailing people, huh."
Inna remarked as she carefully wore the beautiful bangle on her wrist.
Rhys laughed and he couldn't help but agree with her.
"I'm afraid to say that it has become a habit nowadays."
Then, he stared at the bangle with a glint in his eyes as he spoke.
"But seriously, don't feel too bad about taking it. It's something that can let you enter and leave the Combat Department easily once you show it by the main gates. Just think of it as a guest pass of some sort."
Inna raised her eyebrows as she admired the ivy designs that seemed to wrap prettily around her wrist.
"Well, why didn't you say so! I wouldn't reject something that's useful!"
Rhy joined her in admiring the bangle on her wrist while he spoke.
"Just… don't show it to others in the combat department aside from the guards. And go straight to the oak dorms, okay?"
Inna found the conditions he set out strange but she didn't think much into it.
He probably didn't want it to get exposed much since it might get stolen by someone.
Well, luckily her sleeves were long enough to cover her wrists so the only way they could be seen would be when she either raises her arms or her sleeves.
Then, when she moved her hand slightly, the bangle started to dangerously slide out of her wrist. Fortunately, she noticed it just before it could completely slide off and she quickly brought her hand and the bangle towards her chest in fear of it falling. Feeling her heart hammering out her chest, she sighed in relief when she saw that the bangle was safe.
"Oh my god, that was close. Hey, is there any way for this thing to… shrink a bit? I'm afraid that if I so much as flick my wrist, the thing might go flying off to the other side of the world."
Rhys furrowed his brows as he tried to recall its mechanism. He made it years ago and almost forgot about it so he had trouble recalling which trigger made it shrink. Giving it a try, he held her wrist as he tapped on the red ruby's engraved rose which he himself crafted.
"Scrincan."
The ruby reacted to the magic poured in by Rhys making it glowed brightly. And much to Inna's amazement, the ivies started to convulse and move, soon compressing themselves as they fit around her wrist snugly.
Rhys checked to see whether it was too tight or just the right size but seeing Inna's bright happy smile, he figured that it must be just the right size.
"So, if you want it to remove it, just trigger the spell inside it. The word for making it bigger is 'streccan' and in a second, it'll go back to its original size."
Inna nodded obediently and she decided to try it out.
"Streccan."
The red gem glowed bright and the ivies started to elongate and move back to their earlier position.
"Scrincan."
Just as Inna expected, the red gem glowed brightly once again and it shrunk back into place.
Barely holding in her excitement from the magical effects, she squealed in delight.
Oh sweet mother of all, this is the first time she ever had such a cool effect on jewelry. The black diamond necklace she had from Ulima seemed like a rock by the side of the road if she compared it to the thing she currently had on her wrist.
When he saw her face lit up from such a simple spell, Rhys couldn't help but chuckle.
"Since I gave you that, better visit me soon, okay? It's been a while since I had so much fun. And I feel like it's been forever since I had someone to talk to and tease. Though I had to admit, we started off in the worst possible way."
Inna laughed as she agreed.
She couldn't even believe that all of the events and the thrills she had only happened in a single day.
And seeing them right now, she couldn't help but laugh again at the ridiculousness of how her day concluded.
Rhys tried to hurt her.
And she tried to kill him.
But look at them being friends at the end of the day.
Just the thought of it was enough to make her laugh for weeks.
Noticing the bright glare of the moonlight, Rhys knew that Inna should get back to the other side. Although he knew that, he still didn't want to end what they had right now so he decided to just draw out their conversation until she herself decided to leave.
"Hey, Nana."
"Yes?"
"Say my name."
"Rhys?"
"Nana."
"Rhys."
"Nana."
Inna furrowed her brows.
Where was he going with this?
"Yes, Rhys?"
Wracking his brain for a question, Rhys looked at her with innocent eyes as he asked her with a serious expression.
"What does 'asshole' mean?"
Inna choked on her saliva as she tried to keep a straight face.
"Uh…. why are you asking?"
Rhys replied with a glint of curiosity as he recalled the time she said it.
"You always call me that. And I have a feeling that I should be offended when you do but I don't know what it means so I can't be sure."
Inna gulped as she shakily smiled.
Would he be pissed if she really told him the real meaning?
She decided against it and instead chose to play a prank on him instead. Well, it's not like he'll learn what it means from someone else so she decided to have her small revenge from him teasing her.
With an amused smile, Inna began to explain what it was while trying to hide the laughter that was dying to come out.
"Actually, 'asshole' is a term I give to handsome powerful men. And so when I saw you, I immediately knew you were an asshole."
Rhys looked at her suspiciously as he spoke.
"Are you sure it's not a derogatory term? I always feel some malice whenever you say it.
Inna's eyes widened as she sputtered an excuse.
"Ah… uh... that's because I was pissed at you! Anything I say will have malice when I feel angry while saying it."
Rhys saw that her excuse was plausible so he didn't question it further. Instead, he smirked as he focused on something else.
"So, by calling me that, that must mean… you find me handsome and powerful?"
Inna shakily smiled at him, witholding the laughter she so badly want to release, as she spoke.
"Yeah, you're the best example of an asshole."