They looked at Jacob and quickly tried getting as far away as possible without looking scared, going up to the walls and standing behind tables, just trying to keep as much distance between themselves and the smoldering young man. Even the elementals in the air seemed to cower in fear and flew higher up, some leaving stains on the pristine ceiling. But none of these inferiors were of concern to Jacob, only the two bastards that had talked about him mattered.
And only these two bastards were worthy of the tiniest sliver of respect.
The ice-cold bitch, Jacob didn't care if someone was looking at his thoughts, was only respected because of the royal ties the two of them had. Other than that, he knew that she wouldn't be able to win if they fought. They had already done that once when their parent's had them spar each other, and he had come out on top, even being rewarded by his father with a nod. That had made him so happy that he didn't mind it when his father doubled his training to make sure he didn't let that small victory get to his head. If, anything, it meant that his father wanted to see him get stronger.
But that wendigo. That bastard that had bested him in combat made Jacob seethe in rage, honing his wrath to a singular edge like a bladed weapon. Oh, how he hated and loathed that wendigo, to the point that his magical flames had increased in potency just to attempt to match his temper. Yet he couldn't bring himself to disrespect it. Sure, he would best it in combat, maybe even kill it. But he knew, just as well as anyone else, that wendigos are equal in power to dragons. If only his blood was purer, if he was as lucky as his useless older brother, he would have won for sure.
But enough of that, he let out a “harrumph” before walking over to the two that were brave enough to look him in the eye. He knew for a fact that the wendigo did have eyes in the back of its head, since it didn't even bother turning around. Either that, or it was an untamed beast with no sense of respect for others. Jacob, for his own mental health, refused to believe it was the latter because anything that could best him couldn't be such a primitive thing.
He walked towards Rachel, who he had bested in the past, and the wendigo, who had bested him in the present. The surrounding people who stood near the two, Diana not included, hurried to somewhere where Jacob wouldn't be able to see them. Hiding behind Vita seemed like a good idea.
And while he was walking, Rachel had the tiniest wrinkle show up on her otherwise stoic face. Obviously, she hadn't invited him and certainly didn't approve of Jacob's attitude. And as the distance between the two got shorter and shorter, the ambient magical energy in the air grew more and more volatile. It felt like hours before Jacob stopped in front of Rachel, Vita, Diana and stared the three of them down.
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“Jacob, your appearance was unexpected.” Rachel said with a tone much colder than the one she used previously and with an endless ocean in her eyes. But Jacob didn't buckle under the weight.
“It's Rubert-Ree Jacob Firebrand to you, weakling. And I only listen to those that are superior.” He replied with venom and glanced up to Vita's towering figure. While he did hide it well enough, there was a tiny flicker of uncertainty when he met Vita's glassy gaze. Vita, however, didn't seem bothered by Jacob's presence and continued sampling the food like a machine.
Trying her best to deescalate the situation, Diana stepped forward to greet the prince, but was stopped before she got a word out.
“You don't get to speak, weakling, you let the wendigo do quite literary everything during the fight. You don't deserve the title of champion or to be attending any of the universities.” The words hit her like a hammer, leaving her dumbstruck.
“I don't appreciate the disrespectful wording, Rubert. If you believe that having a bond with a powerful creature makes one weak, then you are just like her.” Rachel countered with ice in her voice, the elementals seeming to grow braver and slowly approaching. But Jacob easily countered by increasing the surrounding temperature, forcing them back.
“The power I hold is my own, something I was born with and learned to wield. But using a pet or relying on numbers is a trait of the weak.” Jacob answered back, his back standing straight and cruel sparks burning in his eyes. The guests started to slowly try and leave the area, feeling more and more like their lives were in danger. Diana felt unsure of what to do, standing slightly behind the towering figure of Vita and held onto a vine and weakly tugged on it.
One of Vita's many eyes looked down at her, and after a moment before the fight started, Vita's spoke in that voice made out of many things. Letting out a long, drawn out noise that seemed to unnerve not only the people in the large room, but even the elementals seemed spooked.
“Keep ruining the night, and I'll eat both of you alive.” The words rolled out of Vita's mouth like rocks grating on each other, but the threat was made. The room went silent with the pure shock. Threatening a royal?! That's enough to get you killed, legally or in a dark alley. Rachel was baffled at the audacity and was going to act when, to her surprise, Jacob withdrew his hostility to a much more tolerable degree. By the throne, he even looked apologetic!
“My apologies, my original intent was to merely visit to better socialize with others.” Jacob did a small bow, another shock to the crowd, and stood there, slightly unsure of what he was supposed to do next.