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”Wouldn’t it be safer if I went with your daughter and you went with Shaheera? That way both groups are protected in case the third person starts something.” Ashanti suggested.

“That presumes I trust you with something like this. I don’t.” Arjuna countered with a straight face. “For all I know, you’d try to take my little girl hostage.”

“I’m hurt. Really. That you’d imagine me doing something so heinous cuts me deep. I mean I would if I thought the payout was worth it, but I’m still insulted you see me that way.” Despite his words and tone, Ashanti looked mostly amused.

Shaheera shook his head at the two masters going at it. “So, it looks like we’ll be going together.”

“Hmm, I’d still give it about fifty-fifty odds.” Karna countered. “Father might not trust Ashanti, but the point was well made. It would be safer.”

"You're not worried my master will try something?" Shaheera asked curiously. He’d gotten used to everyone imagining the worst when it came to Ashanti.

“I’m cognizant of the possibility, but I don’t think he would. He can be brutally practical at times, but he doesn’t strike you as someone who would go out of his way to do something dishonorable like that. Not without a good reason. From what I’ve seen so far, he’s more likely to work out a deal that would work to everyone’s benefit. If he couldn’t make a deal, then he might pull out all stops, but…” She speculated.

“I have to hand it to you. You’re a good judge of character as usual.” Shaheera nodded at the accurate assessment.

“Well, I don’t know about that. You managed to surprise me with your little tracking trick.” She pointed out.

“Perhaps, but can you honestly say that it was an act that was outside of what you assumed my character to be? Not saying you should’ve seen that specifically coming or anything, but was it all that unexpected really?” Shaheera asked, already knowing the answer.

"No, I suppose not," Karna answered as he had expected. Her eyes suddenly grew sharper. "We're about to get some company." She announced.

She could sense power gathering at the nearby tree line and felt some heavy hostility directed towards them. What surprised her was the fact that nearly all of it seemed to be focused entirely on her. "Step aside. This is for me." She said, just as a large glowing bolt of golden energy was launched directly at her.

She was just about to erect a barrier to block the offending missile, but she suddenly felt something whisper to her. It felt as if she’d gotten a sudden hunch, except she knew it had come from the outside. Deciding to follow that hunch, she materialized the gauntlets she’d recently acquired and pointed the right gauntlet palm first at the incoming projectile. Just before coming into contact with her arm, it seemed like some force took hold of the glowing ball of energy and it seemed to be absorbed inside the gauntlet.

At the same time, she noted that one of the runes carved into the bracelet portion started glowing just a bit. A tiny part of the rune had acquired a very faint shine, as if someone had highlighted that part of the rune with fire. Simultaneously, she noted that one of the gems socketed into the bracelet had a tiny fraction of power inside of it. That gem had definitely been empty when she first acquired the gauntlets, and the power inside had not come from the attack just now. She had no idea where it had come from, as she was completely certain she would’ve sensed it if the item drained power from her, even if the amount drained was the tiny smidgen currently inside the gem. So where did it come from?

As if to remind her that now was not the time to get distracted, a very angry woman that looked like a moderately attractive human strode from the tree line towards her, chanting a spell. "…and I ask that you bring down the judgment of heaven on this thieving cat!"

“A what now…?” Karna was confused. She recognized the woman as one of those she had attacked earlier, but even if she had wounded one of them, this seemed like an odd reaction.

To the surprise of everyone, dark clouds seemed to gather above them out of nowhere, just before a thick bolt of lightning struck down towards Karna. If the appearance of the tribulation had been a shock, what happened next stunned even the woman who had called it out. The lightning shot towards Karna but suddenly seemed to slow down before stopping in the air above her. The lightning energy just stalled there for a moment, before all of them could swear they felt as if the lightning had just changed its mind before slinking back into the clouds.

“What the fuuu…” Shaheera voiced what they were all thinking.

“Yeah, about that…” Karna started off. She wasn’t sure if she should explain that this was just her Tressym luck and bloodline at work, but she didn’t get the chance to.

“Why?! Why would even the heavens deny me the rightful opportunity to punish this skank, this thieving bitch that tries to steal what is mine?!” The woman was screaming. She continued cursing and sending holy spells towards Karna, but they were all being absorbed by her gauntlet.

"Uh, daughter, anything you want to tell me?" Arjuna asked, not sure if he should intervene. On one hand, his precious daughter was under attack, but on the other hand, she seemed to have the situation well under control. Sort of.

“Resentment like that can come from only one thing.” Ashanti grinned. “What was the saying about fury and scorned women? Things just became a lot more interesting. I didn’t know you had time for romance during the tests Karna.”

“I have no idea what brought this on.” Karna defended herself. She’d seen a lot, and she’d had quite a few jealous women come after her in the past, so she recognized the behavior, but usually she’d done at least something to deserve it. She did have a bit of a lusty and playful side to her, so she wasn't above outrageous flirting and teasing, even if the partner she was flirting with already had a lover or admirers. In fact, usually they had admirers since those kinds of people were the most fun to flirt with and most attractive. So yes, she was used to jealous women, but this time she was quite innocent. Who was this woman even jealous about?

The woman seemed to only grow even angrier at the futility of her attacks, so she decided to make things more personal. She took a hold of her staff like it was a spear and lunged towards Karna. Her staff didn't have a sharp point, but the top glowed with a nasty golden light that suggested that it would not be healthy to get hit. Karna easily moved out of the way of the thrust and parried the impromptu spear aside with relative ease. The woman was actually quite good with her improvised weapon though, and she didn’t overextend. Instead, she managed to pull her weapon back and launch into a series of attacks aimed at Karna’s vitals.

Even if the target was good with her weapon, it was also clear that she hadn't trained her body with close-quarters combat in mind, and she moved way too slow to ever hit Karna. On her side, Karna was more curious about the situation than angry or threatened, so she flowed around the strikes, occasionally rapping the angry woman on her hands or flanks as a sign of yet another hit she could’ve made lethal. The whole thing was so non-threatening that she was finding it hard to take it seriously. “While this is fun and all, I do want to know what this is about.”

“You will never take my man you thieving cat!” The woman actually hissed, somewhat ironically considering what she’d just called Karna, and actually tried to spit at her opponent.

Just as she was about to ask more questions, Karna noted that the rest of this woman’s group burst from the same tree line. They didn’t have their weapons drawn and seemed more worried about the woman than planning an attack. That was pretty much the only reason they didn’t immediately get skewered by Arjuna, as they ran closer to pull the angry woman away from Karna. The spear-wielding warrior stepped forward to negotiate and gave an apologetic bow while the others were struggling with the woman who had attacked Karna.

“I’m so sorry about that. We have no idea what our comrade was thinking. I hope she didn’t go too far?”

Ashanti stepped forward and waved the concern away, while at the same time taking control of the situation. “This was actually somewhat entertaining. She ran at our friend here, spitting and hissing, but she doesn’t really have the power to harm any of us.”

“I’m relieved to hear that. We were just planning to come here and make a proposition concerning this test, and I’m sure you can imagine what type of proposition we had in mind. Suddenly she became enraged and decided to attack you instead.” The apparent leader of the group bowed again and prepared to start negotiating with Ashanti.

In the meantime, Karna was observing the newcomers and figuring out the dynamics of the group. She really wanted to know who she had supposedly stolen. Even if the other three pulled the angry woman back to start a shouting match conducted entirely in whispers, it wasn’t hard to judge the situation from body language alone. “Wait, she’s attracted to the guy who shot me? And the one I wounded? How in the name of Divines does that translate into me stealing him away?” She asked no one in particular.

“The hearts of women are impossible to decipher. I keep telling you that.” Shaheera, who had overhead, replied in a joking tone. “And look, it seems like the guy is really not into her or putting up with any of her crap.” That much was obvious from the way the archer man acted.

“She has a one-sided crush on the guy, and somehow it’s my fault he’s not returning her affections?” Karna scoffed. Sometimes her own gender baffled her. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the first time she’d run into the type. Those kinds of women tended to be extremely obsessive, delusional, and they also exhibited the ‘if I can’t have him, then no one can’ -type of behavior. The female version of an obsessive stalker or a superfan.

Karna really disliked the type. They grated on her nerves. Not only did they objectify the target of their affection, but they also tried to limit the target’s free will and freedom to choose. It wasn’t the business of the woman if the object of their affection chose someone else. It was possessiveness on a very unhealthy level. Unfortunately, Karna also knew it was just one more expression of a trait shared by many reincarnators. Many reincarnators lost parts of their sanity over the years, and one of the more common ways that exhibited was by showing off a very entitled way of thinking and behaving. They began to believe that the universe owed them something, and that since they were special and, in many ways, better than others, they could take what they wanted. And sometimes that something was people.

That kind of thinking led to some of the most heinous kinds of crimes and behaviors Karna had seen, and it was usually those sorts of reincarnators that she wound up killing permanently. Luckily, this woman didn't seem to be that far gone. That didn't mean Karna would tolerate her behavior of course, but it did mean she didn't need to take extreme measures. She might have to teach her a lesson though…

------

Hou Yi and his companions had feared the worst once they’d seen the tribulation clouds gather, as they knew Heng’e had the skill and power to call for one. Luckily by the time they arrived to prevent Heng’e from doing something that would doom them all, it didn’t seem like she’d managed to do anything too bad just yet. Heng’e had chosen to get up and personal with the target of her anger for some reason, and it wasn’t going well. They all knew Heng’e had been a master of the spear in a previous life, but her lack of practice and physical prowess was now showing, and she was being toyed with and rather effortlessly at that.

As they managed to pull Heng'e away and Yao went to apologize to the other group, Hou Yi's usually rather calm emotions started to boil over. "What the hell were you thinking?!" He whisper-shouted angrily, keenly aware that the other group could try to listen in.

Heng'e had tears of frustration in her eyes. "I just don't want to lose you, Hou Yi. The mere thought of that skank stealing you from me is driving me crazy.”

“Heng’e, I’m not some kind of possession for you to lose. I keep telling you, I have no intention of getting together with you. This isn’t about her. You hardly know her, and this is the first time you’ve seen her. You know nothing about her, and there should be no reason for such vitriol.” Hoy Yi tried to be patient, for one last time.

Heng'e bit her lip for a moment, before seemingly coming to a decision. "When I was born, there was a prophecy. In my village, it's common for the village seers to bless children with visions of the future, though most of the time it’s something inconsequential. The prophecy I was given told me that I would marry you. We'd be happy together and even reach the Divine Planes together, where we'd become a pair of fated Deities. The seers told me that it was one of the most powerful visions they'd ever had, a sign that it was certain to come true if I worked hard for it!"

That was news to everyone as Heng’e had never explained the roots of her obsession. "Wait, so did this prophecy mention me by name?" Hou Yi tried to make sense of the situation.

“Well, no, but I recognized you immediately from the description, and I fell in love at first sight. Besides, our names also match the old mythologies. In the myth, Hou Yi was a famous archer, and he’s known also as the husband of Chang’e, the Goddess of the Moon. Chang’e is also known as Heng’e.” She explained patiently.

“Ok, so we’ve established that the prophecy isn’t even necessarily about me, and you might be reading too much into a coincidence with names. And we all know prophecies are shaky at best when reincarnators are involved.” Hou Yi didn’t dare to mention that he’d actually been the Hou Yi of the legend many lifetimes ago, and he’d just kept the name due to his bad naming sense. “If your obsession with me is fueled by your faith in a prophecy, then why are you so wracked with jealousy and insecurity? Surely you should have nothing to worry about if you’re right?”

“You have to fight for your love!” Heng’e replied with a heated voice filled with conviction. “Love doesn’t just happen. You have to work for it! Just because there’s a prophecy, that doesn’t mean I don’t have to make an effort. It’s because of my effort that I can be sure.” No one wanted to be the one to point out her circular logic. “I was worried about you when she attacked, and that worry turned into anger when you didn’t deny she was attractive. I have to defend what’s mine! I mean, look at her!” She suddenly pointed at Karna, who raised an eyebrow at the sudden attention, even if she hadn’t heard what was being said.

Even with a veil covering her face, it was quite obvious that she was what could only be called divinely attractive, which wasn’t all that odd considering Hou Yi had already sensed her divine origin. And the veil didn’t do anything to cover the rest of her. Karna was moderating her attire in the company of Arjuna, but she still had a lot of both Tsumi’s and Duskclaw’s influence in her attire, which showed enough to make it obvious just how much more she had to show.

“Fair.” Lakshmi judged with a serious tone.

“Fair.” Zhao Yun joined in on the chorus.

Hou Yi couldn’t really disagree, but he certainly wouldn’t voice his opinion out loud. He wasn’t that stupid. “So, you decided to attack a random woman because…what? She’s a little pretty?”

“A little?” Lakshmi asked with a tone that conveyed just what she thought about his attempt to dodge the issue.

Their argument was interrupted with Yao approaching them. “We’ve reached an agreement. Two of us will proceed with them, while the rest of us will remain here with the other Leonid to wait for another group to come to an agreement with us. We’ll go with the split we decided on earlier. And no Heng’e, you can’t go. You destroyed any possibility of that with your attack.”

“But..!” She wanted to protest.

“No. That’s final. Reflect on your actions.” Yao shot her down. He was the only one who could really exert any control over her, and that was mostly because he rarely did so.

“Have you decided who’s going?” The large and powerful Leonid called out as he approached them with surprisingly stealthy steps. He was standing next to the veiled woman they had just been talking about, while the shadow mage stood next to a young Leonid male.

“We have.” Zhao Yun said, and he was prepared to go with the first group, but Hou Yi had another idea.

“I’ll go with her. Despite it pissing Heng’e off, she’s still dangerous, and I want to keep an eye on her. Besides, for some reason I feel like I’ll be much more likely to reach the goal with them.” He explained away his instinctual reaction.

The two groups stood ready to leave, with Heng’e grinding her teeth in frustration. They were just about ready to activate the transfer, but the veiled woman stopped them. “Ah, there’s one more thing I need to do.” She suddenly approached Heng’e, and everyone was worried she’d retaliate due to the earlier attack, but instead she leaned in to whisper something into the other woman’s ear. No one could hear what she said, but Heng'e exploded with anger and was about to attack her again before the veiled woman actually used Shundo to reach Hou Yi and the Leonid man.

“Now we can go.” She stated with a smug tone, and the Leonid man seemed all too eager to oblige as they disappear in a flash of light.