The three of them walked past numerous guards and servants who were carrying drinks and food around to make sure that the festival never ran out of alcohol, and all the servants would stop and bow to the three whenever they were passing. Jason nodded and smiled at any servant that seemed friendly enough, but by the time Jason was getting close to the room where he was meant to meet with Farlow, he couldn’t help but sigh as he felt a familiar magic signature from behind the door. Gina turned to Jason to ask him what was wrong, and the moment Jason told Gina who was behind that door, it was as though the temperature of the entire hallway dropped by fifty degrees! Gina’s eyes narrowed into a glare, and she watched as the two guards standing on either side of the door opened it to reveal a large meeting room. There was a long table in the middle of the room with multiple velvet chairs arranged on either side, and in the middle of the table was a Crystal Ball used for communication. Farlow was sitting on the chair at the head of the table, and standing beside the table with her fan covering her lower face was Queen Hesabeth.
The tension in the room was thick enough to cut with a knife, and all of that tension was coming from Gina as she glared at Hesabeth in annoyance! Gina had still not forgotten the way Hesabeth took Jason away from her for that one week, and even though Gina knew that she gained a lot from her training while she was away from Jason, that doesn’t mean Gina was just going to forgive Hesabeth for what she did! The moment Jason and Gina appeared, Hesabeth’s eyes first trailed towards Jason, and she smiled at the curious look on his face. Jason had used [King’s Substitute] to leave Hesabeth behind and get to Arandelle as quickly as possible, and Jason could only wonder what Hesabeth was planning by coming here like this. Hesabeth turned from Jason towards Gina, and Hesabeth sighed internally when she saw the look of anger in Gina’s eyes.
’This is going to be harder than I anticipated.’
This thought went through Hesabeth’s mind, and she frowned for a moment before she finally sighed calmly. Hesabeth snapped her fan shut, and she walked forward until she was standing in front of Jason. Hesabeth put the tip of her fan on Jason’s chest, and she spoke up in annoyance.
"You abandoned me on Merivo’s Paradise."
"I think abandon is a pretty strong word. It’s not like we agreed to leave together."
Hesabeth actually pouted at that, and she huffed slightly as she said.
"You will pay for such insolence, but for now, I shall overlook it since there are other, more important things I must attend to."
Once Hesbaeth said this, she finally looked towards Gina, and she saw the glare the taller woman was giving her. Gina’s eyes were narrowed as she looked at Hesabeth, and even though Hesabeth felt no fear in the face of Gina’s glare, Hesabeth knew that she had to calm Gina down if she was going to talk to her. Hesabeth turned to fully face Gina, and she spoke.
"I’d like to talk to you, in private."
Gina’s brow furrowed in slight surprise, and she turned to Jason to see him staring at Hesabeth with a look of slight surprise on his face. It was obvious that Jason also didn’t know what sort of game Hesabeth was trying to play here, and Gina decided that she wasn’t interested in playing Hesabeth’s game. Gina turned away from Hesabeth and answered with one word.
"No."
Hesbaeth’s face immediately soured into a frown as the ground under her feet rumbled! How dare Gina refuse! This was the first time Hesabeth would be asking anyone to do anything in such a polite way, and Gina dared to refuse her!
"Hesbaeth."
Jason’s deep voice suddenly cut through Hesabeth’s anger, and Hesabeth turned to Jason to see him staring down at her with a slight frown. Hesabeth pouted slightly when she saw the anger on Jason’s face, and she finally sighed and turned to Gina again. The words she spoke next took all of the willpower inside of her!
"I’d like to talk to you in private... please."
It was as if the world was about to end. Both Farlow and Jason looked at Hesabeth like she had just grown a second head, and even Gina turned to Hesabeth with shock written all over her face! They couldn’t believe it! This was the same prideful Hesabeth who spoke rudely to everyone, including some of the strongest people in this domain! The same Hesabeth who would prefer to see the world burn before she allows anyone to look down on her! And yet, here she was, saying please. The shock of hearing the word ’please’ from Hesabeth was enough to throw Gina for a loop as she went silent for a few long seconds, and just from the look on Hesabeth’s face, Gina could tell that this was one of the most difficult moments for the prideful woman. Against her better judgment, Gina decided that she actually wanted to hear what Hesabeth had to say. If Hesabeth was so desperate for the conversation that she would even utter the word ’please’, then Gina knew that it had to be important. Gina turned to Jason and spoke through their mental link.
"Babe, I’ll go and see what Hesabeth wants. I’ll be back soon."
Jason hummed curiously and he asked Gina if she was sure.
’You don’t have to go if you don’t want to.’
Gina just smiled and said that she was sure, and Jason nodded as he leaned down and kissed Gina softly before she turned and began to walk out of the meeting room. Hesabeth gave Jason a complicated look from the side and smiled at him before she followed after Gina, and Jason watched them go for a few seconds before he finally shook his head. Jason wasn’t worried about Hesabeth hurting Gina because he knew that even though Hesabeth was an unpredictable person, she cared about him, and that meant she wasn’t going to hurt the people he cared about. Jason turned to Farlow as he heard him speak up.
"Please leave us."
Farlow had been talking to Leona, who was still standing beside the door for some reason, and Leona quickly nodded as she left them alone. Once she was gone, Farlow invited Jason to come and sit, and Jason sat at one of the chairs on the left side of the long table. Jason glanced towards the crystal ball, and he raised a brow as he asked Farlow what that was.
"It’s a communication device between members of the Council. You should be getting one as well if you join us."
Jason didn’t bother to say anything in response to that last part, and he just glanced to the side as a tab appeared in his system.
[Appraisal] has been activated
——
Heart of the Crystal Giant
Rank: TITAN Rank II
Durability: 97%
Boosts: Nil
Description: A unique Artefact that can only be retrieved from the dead body of the Crystal Giant found in the Sunken Lava Pits in a Rank III world known as Garav. The Crystal Giants are known to communicate with one another using a special frequency that cannot be tracked or tapped into by any regular or magical device, and that characteristic can also be found in the crystal ball retrieved from their hearts. Although their location and strength are very well known, the Heart of the Crystal Giant is considered one of the rarest Artefacts to acquire since there is a special set of conditions that must be strictly met for the artefact to form. If the Heart is not harvested during the very brief window when the conditions are met, then it will take centuries before another heart can be retrieved.