Siona paid the other elves no mind and came down to the opening of the catacombs, where the rest of them were waiting.
Klein moved slowly, sensing the number of people and familiar faces among the crowd. Halfway along the path, he noticed Elowen standing beside the golden-haired elf. She uttered his name wrongly, noticing him.
Waving his hands, he threw a pressed smile in her direction. But soon his attention darted to the looks Siona was giving Maelora. They stared at each other as though the rest of the group didn't exist.
Klein might not know much about women, but by the looks they were shooting at each other, it could only mean one of two things. Either they want to fuck each other, or they really want fuck with each other. The first involved a steamy scene of two curvaceous high elves, naked and pressed against each other in an obscene image, while the other was exactly the opposite, both of them gunning for each other, trying to kill the other.
The body language of the other elves proved it was no new development between the two of them. Some withdrew a step or two, disinclined to involve themselves in their rivalry, while others made their allegiance known, creeping closer to Maelora.
A few elves tried to join Siona, but the silver-haired elf shooed them away with a curt glare, as though she had no need for them.
Maelora opened her lips to say something mocking to Siona. Klein couldn't help but feel it was a pity that such a gorgeous girl had such a bitchy personality. Well, Siona wasn't perfect either. During their first meeting, she had literally shot arrows at him.
In return, Siona simply stared at her, before her eyes moved to the huge white tiger standing behind Maelora, then turning to the obscenely handsome elven man beside it.
She said something to him, and soon his head slumped down before Gawn turned to Maelora to say something in an apologetic tone. Then he moved from her camp to Siona's, along with the huge white tiger.
Maelora's expression ashened, and she cursed at Gawn, but the fellow didn't stop and stood beside Klein with the huge beast in tow. A couple of others in Maelora's group looked like they wanted to defect to the other side, but Siona paid them no mind. She said something to Maelora with a sweet smile, before walking away.
Man, this could have been good television if I knew what they were saying, Klein thought, tailing the group. He turned to give Elowen one last glance as they made their way into the great expanse of the catacombs.
****
Elowen watched the group of four leave and turned to her cousin Maelora. Her mind told her that Maelora got what she deserved, but looking at her ashen expression, she kept her mouth shut.
As far as she knew, Maelora was great at lashing out at others for her faults. While this might not have been her fault alone, Gawn had still abandoned her. Elowen could imagine how far her cousin had gone to win his affection, but all that was lost with just a few words from the little princess.
"Mae, are you all right?" Elara, the archer of their group, asked.
"Any of you want to join her?" Maelora said, turning her glare on them. "What about you, cousin Elowen? Even your simpleton companion joined her. Do you want to join too?"
Honestly, Elowen would like that, but even a fool knew that was not the answer here. She wasted no time making her allegiance known. "You got it wrong, cousin," she said. "Ki Lien doesn't understand anything; he doesn't even know the princess."
"Care to explain why he's with her then?"
"Maybe she manipulated him somehow," Elowen said, thinking inwardly, just like she did to me.
"Obviously she did," Maelora snorted. "Everyone believes Siona to be a pure, honest maiden, but the truth is that she's a manipulative bitch. See how she manipulated Gawn."
Maelora released a sharp thrust of essence from her body on impulse, which thumped against the group, sending dirt and grime flying.
Just then, a figure came running up at an easy speed, his eyes wandering about the group.
"Looks like I'm late to the party," the newcomer said. "Hey there, Maelora, having a tough day?"
"Get lost, Emir!" Maelora snapped, shooting a glare in his direction.
"That's a little inappropriate for a greeting, don't you think?" Emir said, flashing his know-it-all smile.
"That's because I'm not greeting you."
"Maelora, if you talk like that, others will get the wrong impression that you hate me."
"I see nothing wrong with that," Maelora snorted. She didn't wait for him to say anything more and began pacing in the direction Siona had left, her group following in tow.
"Don't go away," Emir shouted, chasing after them. "I think we can help each other."
"Funny thing, I noticed you scheming with Siona the other day."
"Come on, that's nothing," he said with his iconic smile. "Turns out she's a little too vicious for my taste. But you, though... I can help you win against her, all you need is—"
"Go away, I don't need your help."
"Well, the offer is open if you need me," he said, slowing his pace.
Maelora picked up speed as the group ventured deeper into the inheritance ground.