But he wouldn’t be able to take Fantasia away from Hughesin if he didn’t have his sister help him. He was damned if he did and damned if he didn’t.

He and Hughesin had hypothesized before that Fantasia was an insurance of some kind for the Sovereignians. The shadow to Flania in the case the latter was unable to appeal to Hecaris III.

At least he was reassured that Fantasia wasn’t an informant or spy. She couldn’t possibly be such childish actions like that. It was a side to her that made little sense if she really was one of the two.

There were a few things Somiret had yet to tell Hughesin. The matter that Fantasia and that surprisingly powerful apprentice, Elric, had intertwined fates, was not known to Hughesin. The man didn’t even know the two were connected to one another. Of course, Hughesin also didn’t know that Fantasia was a Sworn.

The most important secret was actually how adamant Somiret was on attaining Fantasia’s hand. It was something he refused to divulge to Hughesin and for two good reasons.

The first reason being that their fight over Fantasia would cause the dissolution of their alliance. As much of a womanizer Hughesin was, he was determined to make Fantasia his. This determination was clouding his usual judgment and would most certainly lead to cracks forming in their alliance should Somiret confess his attraction to her.

This was a huge problem considering how Hughesin was as a person. The man was stuck on an eternal journey to find a place to belong like a hermit crab in search of the next shell. It was a desire the man had since childhood, even if he never spoke about it out loud. Like the hermit crab, Hughesin was constantly changing out shells in search of the most perfect one. It was perhaps because he was still looking for this perfect shell that Hughesin allied himself with Somiret, but the latter knew that the alliance wouldn’t last for much longer once the man did find that perfect shell.

So, as much as it pained the man, Somiret couldn’t allow Hughesin to find it. As long as Hughesin was without it, there was no fear of their alliance being broken. Hughesin would never leave Somiret until then.

The second reason was far more personal. From the very beginning, even when Somiret had no idea whether or not Fantasia was an informant, spy, assassin, or anything, he was interested in her. She was different from the other women he met before. A prized gem whose very presence demanded admiration and to be cherished in a collection.

But Fantasia’s true worth could only be valued when in a specific collection—his own private one.

Hughesin and his sister were both flirts and womanizers, Somiret could accept that. But it was their reasoning behind it that he couldn’t accept. Hughesin wanted a place to belong, a shell to keep. His sister wanted attention so she could never be lonely. They were excuses and not at all worth being called a womanizer.

Somiret believed himself to be the ideal. He was not a man that would be swayed by his emotions and would only claim a woman for his own collection when he saw fit.

Before Fantasia, Somiret never really saw any woman worthy enough to fight and put in his collection. It wasn’t that he never saw a beautiful woman before, far from it. His own sister was considered the most beautiful unmarried woman in Waldsk! The Sovereignian princess, Flania, was also a stunning beauty in her own right. Then there was Siren, the Grand Duchess of the Sramos Duchy belonging to the Rheidyn Union. Each one of the three were beautiful and had Somiret itching to add them to his collection of beauties, but their personalities led much to be desired. Beauty was one thing, but personality was just as important. Without a good personality, Somiret had no interest.

If he had to make a comparison about the three of them, then his own sister was a baby rose growing at the tip of an iceberg. Alluring in its beauty, but still prickly at the touch. Captivating at first, the iceberg beneath it would cause all those who viewed the rose to feel intimidated after a while. It was a fitting comparison if he thought about his sister’s previous suitors. Many attempted and gave up after they learned of His Majesty the emperor also being a potential suitor.

Many would assume the emperor used his status to force his competitors away, but Somiret knew differently. The emperor was not such a man to use his title for such a thing. The man had a competitive spirit and lived for it. Only in competitions could he feel alive! Love was something that was already quite free in Karthian traditions. The Karthian pursuit of love could even be said to be quite radical in comparison to the other countries of the continent. That was why Somiret was so certain that not even an alliance could withstand the trials of love.

Princess Flania of Sovereign, on the other hand, could most aptly be described as being the sacred rose sprouting by a volcano. She thrived only on dangerous grounds and could live nowhere else. To take her out from the volcano would mean to lose what beauty she had. Such a flower was completely devoid of beauty to Somiret. What point was there adding Flania to his collection if she’d lose her spark in it? He wanted a woman with individuality, not an empty shell of a beauty!

Then there was the eccentric fairy of a Grand Duchess, Siren. Not only did he find her displeasing, but Hughesin as well. The two of them had no interest in a woman who was like the ‘demon’s blood’, a species of agave that grew on Pirate Island and was as beautiful as it was poisonous. Somiret knew Siren held a second side to her, one utterly repulsive to him. It was precisely because of this second identity that Somiret described her as a demon’s blood. The more of its nectar that was drunk, the more intoxicating and poisonous it became. Somiret had no interest in something like that.

At last came Fantasia. She was an enigma to Somiret just like Siren was. But unlike Siren, Fantasia’s true identity didn’t matter much to him. She was like a tulip, one that was both innocent and harmonious with its surroundings. It wasn’t poisonous like the demon’s blood, or as prickly as the baby rose, or as environmentally dependent as the sacred rose. No, this tulip was something Somiret could easily pluck and use to decorate himself for his own enjoyment.

There weren’t many beauties with the same amount of innocence and natural harmony as Fantasia, nowadays. Flowers made from silk and string were the current trend amongst the women of Karth. To Somiret, the beauty of Karthian women were similar to those artificial flowers. They were beautiful, yes, but in an artificial manner that lacked originality and individuality. Scented water could be added for a fragrant aroma, but it failed to compare to the natural aroma of the real thing. Different colors could be added on through the usage of makeup and dye, but natural beauty was still preferred by the chancellor.

No, artificial beauty was better suited for the commoners. He only desired what was real. His collection demanded those flowers beautiful enough to earn epithets. There was no meaning in having a beautiful replication if he couldn’t have the real thing. He didn’t want any flowers that required some touching up in order to be beautiful, either. What pleased those of the lowborn was not something he wanted any part in.

Fake flowers had no beauty or value if he added them to his collection. He only coveted the flowers of fame, such as the naturally beautiful tulip.