THE DARK STALLION

The day to depart for the wedding came like lightning.

Steeds and carriages were in front of the mountain's entrance. Some mounted on their horses, mostly men, and some settled down in their carriages, mostly women including the headmaster's daughter-in-law.

Megara stood beside her old uncle, both of them holding onto their horse reins waiting for everyone to settle down so they can start their voyage.

Out of nowhere, she felt someone gazing at her so she wandered her eyes around, her heartbeat skipped when her eyes met  Evenor's. He sat on his horse ever so elegantly, looking like a true warrior. As gentle as his features were, his eyes were cold. He stared at her with a stern expression not tearing his gaze away even when he was caught by her.

She felt a sudden pain in her chest. She gripped the reins tighter and lowered her eyes, turning her face away from him. She knew why he was giving her such looks and she wouldn't blame him. She has been ignoring him ever since she has been marked. She does not want to ignore him, it hurts her too. 

Her heart bleeds too.

Her lips are desperate to call out for him.

But fate is so cruel.

She knew if she kept hiding it from him, it would only hurt him more, so she decided to tell him sooner.

Such sharing of gazes was caught by Zale and he could not help but ask her.

"Is there a dispute going on between you and Evenor?" He raised a question and she quickly shook her head. Her face was straight, her expression were stern but her eyes were twinkling. Those eyes said something was truly going on since she denied he didn't push her much.

 Soon everyone settled down and they started their voyage. 

Megara silently rode her horse, in front of her was her uncle and Master shin, they were busy talking about something with their backs as straight as a wall. Even if they dressed as a commoner, their elegance cannot be ignored.

Her grip tightened on the reins when she saw a familiar horse from the corner of her eye, she wanted to fasten her pace but the horses before her didn't give her any chance to run away.

She was now riding right beside Evenor. 

She gulped and kept her face straight. She's the best at hiding her expressions but sometimes her gaze betrays her.

"Master Megara." 

Once this voice landed on her ears, she could already feel the wall around her heart cracking down. 'Master Megara' was a name he rarely ever called her from. 

"Master Evenor." 

She slightly turned towards him and nodded. Evenor and Megara have known each other for more than a decade. Both of them were comrades along with Marco and Master Agnes. Agnes got married four years ago to her soulmate who belongs to the clan 'Shu'. So she is no longer part of the Front Liberation denomination and is now a respectful Master of the 'Shu' clan.

"Have I done something wrong to offend you? In any way, I wasn't aware. I apologize." He said, his voice calm but a little desperate. She snapped her gaze towards him and quickly shook her head.

"Respectful Master Evenor has done nothing wrong to offend Megara. It's just this...this ungrateful one has been in a bad mood...lately." She said, pausing between her sentences. The man in front of her was gentle, calm, and strong, he respected her even when she ignored him without any reason. He stood beside her when no one did. His love is pure but 'oh' this fate. Instead of this gentleman who cherished her, she was destined with a ruthless stallion who was opposite to her love interest. 

Where this man as pure as a jade stood in the light and wanted to grab her hand, fate pushed her back into the depth of darkness...to the man she was fated with.

"Whenever Master Megara was in a poor mood she used to look for me. What has this man done that she didn't come looking for me instead keep running away? I must have done something wrong." He said unhurriedly. His voice is soothing to listen to. He kept blaming himself even when he did nothing wrong. She can't even imagine what look he will have when he will know about her mark. Her shoulders were heaved with guilt and her head felt even heavier.

"Master Evenor. You have done nothing false. Please don't apologize. You're making me feel bad. It's just...." She halted, pondering on different words stumbling in her mind but couldn't even speak a word.

"I understand." 

He said and lowered his gaze. She looked at him, her heart dissipating into pieces upon seeing his face. 

'What did you understand?'.

They both silently rode their horses beside each other, the people around them passing them gazes. The silence was too heavy so she started to speak. She had nothing in mind so she started to talk about those evil stones. He gently and calmly answered her every question and talked to her as if he wasn't just pushed away by his only shoulder.

Once the sun went down they stayed in the inn in the nearby village before setting off for a voyage again once the sun was up.

It took them one night and two whole days to reach their destination. By the time they reached the mountain, the sun was already down and the black clouds had taken their position. This mountain was even colder than the Liberation front Sect. It was as if it was the middle of winter. Half of the mountain was surrounded by mist. The mist wasn't hefty but faint, and people around can be readily seen.

There were a total of thirteen people including Megara who were attending Marco's wedding from the liberation front sect. Once they entered the sect they were met by a lively market. People going here and there, and kids running around. Tea houses were crowded along with other shops. The market was bustling with lights and laughter. Every corner of the mountain was decorated for his wedding.

"Heh, he always has been extraordinary," Megara said with a smile on her face as she looked around the lively mountain sparkling with lights. "Yes." Evenor answered with a smile on his face as well.

"Is Agnes also attending the wedding?" Evenor asked and she slowly shook her head. "I'm not aware. The last time we talked, she was busy with her duties as usual"  Blossom answered with a faint smile on her face as she looked around.

Once they entered the market they were met by two of the masters who belonged to the cross-squad sect. They greeted them happily and guided them to the inn nearby. It was the most massive, expensive, and fancy inn in the sect especially arranged for the people attending the wedding. 

Their horses were taken away from them as all of them went towards their respective rooms in the inn. As soon as Blossom entered her room, she threw herself on the bed and blankly stared at the ceiling.

Her blank mind was now in chaos.

She turned to the right side and stared at the wall in front of her. She has been in pain almost every night. She is having dark circles under her eyes and almost looks like a dead person. If this goes on she will soon die but even if she met him, she refuses to sleep with him or be with him. She refuses him as her soulmate, not only because he is a bad human being, she has her own reasons.

It's not like he wants her either or he is not yet aware that she is his soulmate.

But once anyone comes to know that she is mated with Evandros, anyone who hates her will do anything to get her kicked out of the sect, not by her uncle but by others. Her clan won't expect her either. Why does God have to be so bad to her? Why does God have to mate her out of nowhere? She was pleased with her life.

She was happy with Evenor but now everything is scattered.

She felt tears brimming the edge of her eyes so she quickly sat up on the bed and took two deep breaths before standing up and walking out of her room. She decided to roam around the sect for the time being. If she stays alone she will ponder on the matter more and more and get depressed.

She took a deep breath once she was out of the inn and started to walk into the market. Her hands were behind her back and her stance was straight. Her pace was steady and her expression blank. 

She walked elegantly among commoners. Each could not help but spare her a glance. She sniffed a deep breath of powder and cosmetics, deliberately halting on her degrees and turning her head to the right side. 

She looked around and found lots of young women standing near the veranda, seductively waving their hands at young men passing by. Their faces dipped in powder, their clothes tightly clutching onto their bodies. Almost half of their bosoms were out of their clothes, they were full in shape and huge like watermelons making her wonder if they were real.

She was petrified to find a brothel right in the middle of the market. Marco has no shame as usual. No one would enter here out of shame but she was even more disturbed when she saw men entering the brothel grabbing onto their favorite woman and going inside. Some men came out while fixing their clothes, some were holding onto their swords and some were just commoners. 

As she was examining the area with a disturbed look on her face, she didn't even realize when two hands grabbed onto her right arm, tugging onto it. She turned her head to the right side, instead of looking up she was looking down at a girl. She was also dipped in powder, her natural beauty hidden beneath. Megara slightly frowned when the girl tightened her grip on her arm, her full bosoms were rubbing her arm deliberately. 

She kept looking at her with blank face until realization struck her like an arrow and she felt her spirit cracking. She was shocked, disgusted, and offended.

"Young lady, I'm not a man." She said coldly. Her expression was stern but she was coughing blood within. Her cheeks turned red in embarrassment and her hands clenched into a fist, almost trembling due to disgust and anger.

"It is rare to find a strong woman like you, who holds such a cold look within those green eyes, colder than any man." She said with a smile on her face. Her shameless behavior was driving Megara to the edge of losing herself. She grabbed the hilt of her sword and gently tried to pull her arm away but the woman was too clingy. 

"I'm still a woman." She firmly declared.

She wanted to murder someone and it was Marco.

She wished she didn't stop here. The girls standing near the veranda were giggling and whispering to eachother while looking at them.

‘WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THIS?’

"It's okay, you don't have to pay either." She said and started to drag her, but Megara stood firmly on her feet, making the girl bump into her chest. She quickly grabbed her arm and slightly pushed her away.

She was trying her best to stay calm and gentle. Losing her mind here will be like losing her face. Such small things do not drive a warrior like her crazy. She looked down at the girl and she was looking up at her with a disgusting look in her eyes making Megara shiver.

It was extremely forbidden to use any magic or spell on commoners, it was a rule. If a rule is broken the upper hand of the sect will know about it and they will be punished, whether master or disciples.

Her jaw clenched in irritation and she shot a glare at her but the girl was acting like a total Masochist. 

This was outrageous.

"Look, young lady, you don't grab onto someone on your own. You better let m-." Before she could complete her sentence, a loud voice of a man echoed in the market. All the heads turned towards the entrance of the market where a large group of people were entering. There were two carriages and many horses around it. People started to whisper to each other. Some quickly draped the curtain of their shops down and some ran away to the back side of the market. The laughter and chatter died and the market was indulged in eerie silence. Only the sound of horses walking on the ground and the sound of the wheel can be heard. 

Suddenly the brothel door was shut down and all the maidens who were standing outside the veranda were now closed inside. Those who got the chance to run away took it and those who couldn't stand straight and kept their head low.

Megara turned straight, and the girl who was clinging to her arm, tightened her grip even more, hiding behind Megara. 

"It's the L-Linya Clan." 

The young girl behind her stammered, holding onto Megara as tightly as she can. It was like Megara was her prince trying to save her from the villain.

Once Megara heard this, her green orbs shrank in shock. The huge Linya Clan flag came into her sight. "Did your headmaster invite him too?" Megara asked the lady behind her.

"Yes, he did. Out of formality since he's the master's cousin but we didn't think they would come." She spoke out.

Megara stared at the group, the same two sect masters who led them inside were now guiding the Linya Clan. They had fake smiles on their faces and they were sweating in such a cold climate.

She slowly stepped back making the lady step back too for the group to pass. She stood like a wall with a stern look on her face but her heart was trembling. After all, he was someone...someone she saw darkening with her eyes.

There was a black horse in front of the carriage and on that dark black stallion sat a man. He was wearing a black clock and black leather gloves which didn't cover all of his fingers as he held onto the reins of the stallion. He wore long back shoes with a black robe within. His long black hair rested on his shoulders and sometimes fluttered in the air with the gust of wind. His back is straight and his posture is a lot bigger and more muscular than others here. His skin was pale and his eyes cold. A long sword hanging around his waist resting in a fancy scabbard. 

He was so handsome one could not look away but these features were less vicious than his horrible personality and deeds. Her chest almost hurt as she remembered how he easily bodied her previous time.

Nobody dare to look at him, she was the only one staring at him as the group passed by. 

Feeling no one gaze but hers, he snapped his cold black orbs to the right side but his gaze didn't meet hers as she turned toward the woman standing behind her. He kept staring at her back which looked rather familiar. His grip tightened on the reins he was holding onto. 

Blood rushed towards his eyes as he pored holes in her back, feeling his cold gaze on her back she almost shivered. He tore her gaze away and fastened his pace, startling the two sect masters standing in front. They almost ran behind him to guide him toward his respective inn. The group walking at a snail's pace was soon gone from people's sight.

Everyone took a breath of relief.

Megara, who was in her thoughts, felt something cold touching her cheeks. She snapped out of her thoughts and found the girl cupping her cheeks as her own hands were resting on the girl's waist. She was so panicked by his sudden gaze she didn't even realize what she was doing. This looked so wrong.

She quickly pulled her hand away along with her face and stepped away from her. "You are so generous. You tried to block me away from his gaze. Who knew if that monster saw me, he would take interest in my beauty and force me to come with him? You are truly amazing." She said and stepped forward to grab Megara's hands but Megara stepped back.

'That man didn't even look at you, he was boring holes in my back for some reason. I should have let you stand in front of me instead. He will be horrified with all that powder.’  

She passed her a glare and turned around to go back to her inn only for the young lady to cling to her left arm. 

She lost her patience, she is ready to take punishment.

"Don't move." She said, her voice low so only she can hear. The girl stopped moving, her eyes widened once she realized she couldn't move. "You will be able to move shortly," Megara said and pulled her arm out of her grip as the girl stood like a frozen statue looking here and there with wide eyes.

Megara quickly stomped away from her. Her lips curled up as she almost laughed at the people who were giving the statue girl looks, thinking it was her some kind of play. Some rich yet dumb people put some money on her frozen hand.

At least, she helped her with something.

Her mind was fixed on two things.

One: If Evandros is here she will face him one way or another, even if she avoids him she is afraid she will face him.

Second: 'DO I LOOK LIKE A MAN?