Villain: The Play of Destiny

Keith amusedly sat by the side of a crystal clear lake watching Rebecca, Amelia, Iseul, and Yingying playing with each other in the water.

They had discovered this place only half an hour later after they entered the forest which was situated to the north of the Palace.

The moment the ladies saw how clear the water was, they were all tempted to take a dip in it, and Rebecca loved water a little too much. She did not even think twice as she quickly took off her clothes and jumped right into it.

Since there was no other living being in this place except for them, the girls were not concerned about unwanted eyes, and Keith was enjoying watching them play with each other like little girls.

If it was a few years ago, Amelia and Yingying would have never been so comfortable and carefree around anyone, but time had made them develop some sisterly bonds within the family, allowing them to drop their guard and reservations, at least, once in a while.

Suddenly, a torrent of water was sent his way, but it crashed into an invisible wall, making the blonde culprit pout a little.

"Behave." Keith playfully admonished her, invoking a smile on her lips.

"Join us!" Rebecca invited him, but he just shook his head.

"Not in the mood." He smiled. "I am enjoying what I am seeing."

"Is that so?" She smirked at him as she traced her hand up her abdomen, onto her belly, before reaching up to grab her left boob and squeezing it. All in an attempt to tempt him.

"Rebecca!" Amelia, who was a little embarrassed at the actions of her sister-wife, reminded her of their presence, but the blonde simply winked at Keith, giggling, and then raised her arms in the air, giving him a good view of her beautiful mounds right before exhaled the air in her lungs, letting herself sink into the water.

She knew that Keith was not going to give in, so she just decided to go down and explore the lakebed.

Even though the lake looked shallow because of its crystal clear water, it was actually more than 300 metres deep. And Rebecca took her sweet time exploring it.

Her prolonged absence eventually prompted the rest to go down into the water as well to explore the lake, probably feeling that the blonde had found something interesting, which was why it was taking her so long.

Keith stared into the water for a while, keeping tabs on their forms, but then he just raised his head and looked far into the sky-piercingly tall and folding mountains, a sight that immediately reminded him of a glimpse he saw during the Trial of Time.

The scenery he saw in the Trial was even more breathtaking than the one before his eyes. The mountains were even taller, the Sky was of a different shade, and then there was the screech of an alarmingly powerful Beast that rocked those peaks. But he knew that it was the same world, this very world inside the Steele of Time & Space.

What he was not sure about was whether the sight was from the Past or the Future.

In any case, he was tempted, and his mind was already working on making plans for this world and to bring life to it. After all, no matter how beautiful it was, there were no living creatures here, and it felt desolate.

His thoughts came to a halt when he focused on his daughters approaching him as they locked on his Blood, having done so to find him, and in a matter of seconds, two blurs rushed out of the woods, one silver, the other Azure, and both Kiara and Minami stilled and stared at the scenery before them.

"What is this place?" Kiara wondered and asked, looking around in fascination.

It all felt like a vivid dream...

"It has no name yet. But this is the world inside the Steele of Time & Space." He informed them, and both of them looked at him in surprise even though they had this guess. "Why don't you pick a name for it?" He smiled at them, which was reciprocated by both before they looked at each other and immediately started discussing the name of this place.

He was a little amused as they only took a minute before they approached him with smiles plastered on their faces.

"We have decided." Kiara happily informed him.

"Eden?" He smiled and asked, having heard what they had discussed.

"Yes." Minami nodded her head. "The Eternal Eden, Aerzaar."

"Are you sure?" He asked, and they both nodded their heads in unison.

Keith looked at the two of them for a few seconds, not saying anything, trying to tease them, and as he expected, both of them soon gave him their puppy eyes, which made him chuckle.

"Fine." He shrugged his shoulders and agreed to the name, and both the girls grinned at each other and high-fived.

"Yes!"

He let out another chuckle at their antics and then stood up, giving them each a kiss on the forehead.

"It's a fitting name." He honestly told them.

"We know!" Kiara smugly replied.

The two of them had chosen a name in their language, the language of their Blood. And funnily enough, he had thought of the same name.

"You fought well." He suddenly said to them, and Kiara's smile ceased as she lowered her eyes.

"I fainted."

It was so clear from her voice that she was immensely displeased with herself, but then her eyes comfortingly closed when he caressed her head.

"All you need to do is train, and I know you will only grow stronger and wiser." He flicked her nose at the end of his words, and she pouted at him.

"That's not exactly comforting."

"Well, you fainted in the battle. That's inexcusable." He bluntly said, and she frowned and lowered her head, feeling more displeased with herself.

Keith had been very clear to them in their lessons and always stressed the importance of using the Aura and Mana in the most efficient of ways when the battle had stakes as high as the one they had been drawn in.

Kiara also realised that her decision was their best option at that time, a gamble worth taking, and it had paid off since the enemy ended up getting gravely injured and his momentum was broken.

However, she would have not had to pour everything into the last attack had she been careful and conserved her Aura and Mana as Minami did during the battle. But she had gotten a little carried away as she was enjoying the battle and the feeling of Invincibility that coursed through her.

The surge in power was dangerously addicting, and she needed to work on it so that she would not get carried away by it in the future.

Kiara nodded her head to the thoughts in her mind, and then followed Minami's gaze and looked into the water.

"You can join them if you want." He offered, but both of them shook their heads.

"Later," Kiara said and then looked at him in the eyes. "The Palace is huge!"

She still could not believe how huge the Palace was.

Even though she and Minami had not gone closer, they saw that it reached over a thousand metres in height, and even from their distance, it looked like it was some Palace of Giants.

"Who made it?" Minami curiously asked, and Keith smiled, not answering her question.

"It's our Palace now, and it's very special."

The two of them curiously looked at him, and he told them a reason why it was special.

"It's a Living Palace."

"Living Palace?" Both of them became even more curious, not understanding what he meant, but they had a few ideas now.

"We want to see it!" Kiara excitedly stepped forward and grabbed his hand, urging him to take them to their new home.

"Why don't you go and check the grounds? I will meet you there with the rest when they come out."

"Okay!" She happily nodded her head and then left together with her sister.

The two of them very more excited than everyone else.

Keith sat down again, and leaned back, waiting for the girls to come out of the water, and then he just closed his eyes, deciding to take a nap.

It proved to be a good idea since he was woken up a couple of hours later by Rebecca, who was all dried and dressed up again, impatiently waiting for him to take them to the Palace.

"So, how was the lakebed?"

"It is littered with crystals and pretty stones. I guess they must be quite valuable." She playfully said, but pouted when he just nodded his head and stood up. "You seem tired." She commented, and Amelia, Yingying, and Iseul curiously looked at him.

"I am." He nodded his head.

"Why?"

"Taking control over the Steele was not easy. My mind needs some rest. It feels like I haven't slept in an eternity." He smiled and then flicked her nose. "Let's go." He said and then disappeared from his place, and before the girls could react to his sudden disappearance, they too were teleported to the front of the Palace.

"Hey!" They heard a girl call out to them, and they turned to look in her direction.

Kiara and Minami approached them as fast as they could, holding some roses in their hands.

The girls were mesmerised by the crimson roses that were more beautiful than any they had seen in their lives, and when they smelled them closely, they felt a little dizzy as the fragrance was just too enchanting.

"The Gardens have so many pretty flowers!"

The little Miss of the Demiliore Family happily informed them, and all of them were now tempted to go and visit the Gardens, but Keith soon grabbed their attention when he placed his hand on the titanic door of the Palace, which caused the World to start shaking.

They were hundreds of metres away from the door, but when it suddenly opened, parting in two, the mere sound of it made their hearts thump hard.

"!!"

Amelia, Kiara, and Minami suddenly gasped when they looked inside and immediately rushed forward, and the rest soon followed after them.

They had never been in their lives so utterly surprised and mesmerised by something than they were right now, and they had never felt more speechless either.

Minutes went by, and the girls stayed in their place, at the entrance, looking inside the Palace that made them doubt if it was all just a dream...