?Kestria & Friends POV

Everyone agreed and stood up but was interrupted by a group of boys from the Starlight Academy based in the Summerfield Duchy in the south.

Kestria watched as a blonde boy who looked a few years older than them spoke with an unknown glint in his red eyes. ”Hello Ladies. I’m Lucas Everrose. Do you want to join us? We are enjoying some rare eastern tea.”

Briella answered instantly. ”No, thank you. We’re busy.”

After that, they started walking away before entering the trees. The four girls, bundled up in warm coats to fend off the cold, ventured into the snow-covered forest.

The air was crisp, and the ground crunched beneath their boots as they made their way through the pristine snow. Tall trees stood like silent sentinels, their branches adorned with glistening white.

As they walked deeper into the forest, signs of life became evident. Beasts roared in the distance, their echoes reverberating through the chilly air.

Small beasts scurried away, startled by the approaching footsteps, leaving a trail of displaced snow in their wake. The four girls?exchanged glances with excitement and caution in their eyes.

The ordinarily peaceful forest now hummed with an undercurrent of wild energy. Kestria’s father had warned her of the beasts that roamed the woods of Pluoria. As they continued their journey, the trees began to thin, and the sound of rushing water reached their ears.

Kestria saw a breathtaking sight awaited them as they emerged from the maze of trees. A magnificent waterfall cascaded down a cliff, its waters unfrozen even in Frostwinter.

The waterfall sparkled as the sunlight caught the droplets in mid-air. The surrounding rocks were covered with a sheet of ice. A pool of crystal-clear water lay at the waterfall’s base, its surface reflecting the winter sunlight.

Kestria and her friends stood in wonder, their earlier caution replaced by wonder. The roaring waterfall seemed to drown out the distant calls of the creatures, creating a serene sanctuary in the snow-covered wilderness.

Her bright pink eyes widened, and Lila exclaimed, “This is amazing! I never thought a forest could be so beautiful!”

Fiora nodded in agreement, her grey eyes reflecting the marvel of the scene. “Nature never ceases to surprise me anymore.”

Brielle added with a hint of admiration in her green eyes, “Yet, life thrives even in this frozen world.”

As the group lingered by the waterfall, they marveled at the harmonious coexistence of nature’s raw power and delicate beauty in the forest’s heart. The four found a place to sit for a while but suddenly heard a stick break.

Their heads snapped behind them to see the blonde boy was earlier. Kestria rolled her eyes as they all stood up. But that’s when more students from the trees and Fiora commented calmly. ”Why are they here?”

Lila responded without taking her eyes off the boy. ”Look at the lust in his eyes.”

The boy got closer and gave the group a fake smile. ”Ladies, it was rude to turn down my request. I know each of you, apart from the brunette, are daughters of counts. My mother is the Duchess Everrose, so you should feel honored I showed interest in any of you.”

Kestria bristled with rage as she stepped in front of friends who tried to pull her back, but she shook them off before commenting. ”Go away, Lucas. We don’t want your company, and you shouldn’t be following girls into the forest with a pack of boys.”

Lucas smirked before commenting. ”We just wanted to escort four beautiful girls, but one seems to have an issue with that.”

That’s when his eyes widened like he just remembered something. ”Oh, you’re an Ashguard girl. A few of you are attending the College Of Magic this year.”

He looked at each girl before licking his lips. ”Well, I’ve heard that you’ve been shunned for what you did to your big brother, who happens to be the continent’s guardian at this point, and you disrespected him.”

Kestria looked shocked before replying in a defiant tone. ”I’ve never hated Big Brother. Yes, I admit I did nothing to stop it, but what could I do? I was a little girl whose parents never listened to me!” .

She remembered all the times she had to watch Archer suffer, hated every second, and continued ranting. ”I wish he never suffered like that, but there was nothing I could do. Take it up with my older brothers and not me, or are you too scared of them?

All the students surrounding them and those still joining started laughing, causing Lucas to get annoyed as he barked out. ”Your father is an idiot to throw away something that could have benefited the empire.”

Kestria looked at him like he was an idiot before informing the boy. ”You do know he’s engaged to Leira Avalon, right?”

This time, Lucas was perplexed, prompting her to chuckle at his expense. “You march over here, playing the defender of Big Brother as if you’re some valiant hero. What you fail to grasp about Archer is that he doesn’t need anyone to stand up for him. He’s strong enough on his own, and his women are equally formidable. So, kindly, ** off and go find another place to make yourself look like an idiot.” .

She turned around after speaking to drag her friends away, but a bad feeling washed over her, prompting her to quickly turn back around, only to see Lucas’s fist covered in flames as he swung at her.

His punch connected with her face and sent her flying. Kestria crashed to the ground with a thud, causing her to get hurt even more. Lucas approached her with a wicked smile on his face and went to kick her, but a sudden slice was heard.

Then his leg flew into the bushes, causing him to scream in agony as he fell over. All the students were shocked to find an extremely handsome boy standing in front of Kestria and looking down at her with sadness.

She was struggling to get up, with blood running from wounds all over her face, while smiling when she saw who it was. ”Big Brother.”

Brielle’s eyes widened as she nudged Lila but got no reply. She looked at the blonde girl staring at Kestria’s brother with love hearts in her eyes.

That’s when Fiora spoke in a dreamy voice. ”He’s very handsome and caring. Look at the way he is tending to her.”

The grey-haired girl looked at the two girls like they were weirdos, then approached the two. When she got close, a glow surrounded Kestria. Brielle saw all the wounds heal, and a smile appeared.

She shook her head and asked. ”What are you doing to her?”

He turned to her with a smile that caught her off guard and caused her heart to beat fast. Briella shook her head and introduced herself. ”I’m Brielle Ashguard. I’m assuming you’re my cousin Archer?”

She noticed his gorgeous violet eyes shone as he looked at her before speaking. ”Give me a second. Have to deal with the others.”

The black-haired girl nodded as he walked toward the approaching student and sidestepped the boy’s clumsy punch. She watched as Archer smacked the boy with his slender tail. Lila and Fiora approached her and asked. ”What did he say?”

”He asked me to wait for him.”

The two girls smiled as they turned toward Kestria, who was sitting up rubbing the side of her face as she watched Archer deal with the Starlight boys.

As the four watched him approach the rest, they rushed at him. They saw Archer dodge every attack thrown his way while slapping them away with his tail. Brielle got excited as she saw this and wanted to fight him.

The other three laughed when they saw this. Fiora turned to Kestria with a smirk before commenting. ”I think your big brother has two more admirers. Like all love stories, you’ll go the taboo route and get with your brother.”

When Kestria heard this, her face went bright red as she shrieked. ”I’d never marry him! He’s my brother, you idiots! You’re one to talk, Fiora. You’ve got that girl-in-love look in your grey eyes! In fact, I see it in all your eyes, you three succubuses!”

The three girls looked at each other briefly before nodding and turning back to Kestria as Lila spoke. ”It’s not illegal, you know Kes. It’s just frowned upon in society.”

Brielle jumped in and teased the brown-haired girl. ”But you admit that he’s very handsome?”

”Yes.”

”If he wasn’t your brother, would you ask him out?” Lila commented with a grin.

”Yes.”

Fiora ended their teasing. ”Now imagine him making love to you after a long day off adventuring with us girls? How good would that feel?”

When Kestria heard that, she went even redder, causing the other three to laugh before telling her they were joking, but that didn’t stop the images running through her.

If there are any mistakes, point them out, and I’ll edit it. Thanks

Updated from 𝘪.𝘤𝑜𝘮