Why did people in Zealandia marry at an early age?

The answer was pretty simple.

It was because most of them died early while fighting at the gates. Having kids at nineteen was a norm, in fact the more kids one could have, the more they celebrated you.

To her, this was reasonable. After all, people that could use elements and spell casters were dwindling. Moreover, Lycans had been in hiding and were not participating in any fighting against the demons or dark ones alike.

What was not reasonable was a king forcing people to marry each other. Between nobles a marriage alliance was quite common, especially for powerful ones like her family. However, a human and a dark one\'s marriage was just something that had never happened before.

Speaking of dark ones….

Cassandra eyed Prince Hunter and his brother who were \'exchanging some techniques\' in the training grounds. She could sense the high level of testosterone but chose to ignore it and enjoy the juice in front of her. She sat on the wrought iron chair and enjoyed the soft breeze wafting through the tall trees behind her.

She watched as the Prince brandished his sword towards Carmichael who easily avoided it. Shrugging, she inhaled and felt a faint fragrance float into her nostrils. It reminded her of spring and her childhood and simpler times. Wild flowers.

Spring was in the air and the smell of rain soaked ground around her was evident. However, this only meant that the summer that she dreaded the most was close behind.

As someone who had grown up near the gates where the weather had always been colder than the rest of the world, experiencing the heat of the sun was something that she wasn\'t used to. Until now.

"Lady Cassandra… "

"Hm?" Cassandra half-opened her eyes and looked at Steve who bowed next to her.

"The Young Lord is wounded."

"Oh?" she shifted her gaze towards the Prince and her brother. Just as her brother had said, the Prince\'s swordsmanship was indeed better than his. Plus, the man could be a dark one, however that was possible. If that was the case, he would be stronger and faster even without his elements.

The smell of blood and iron assaulted her before Carmichael could approach the tent near her. She eyed the thick scarlet liquid flowing out of her brother\'s arms. "You have become weaker," she mused.

"Shut it!"

She could understand her brother\'s frustration but she didn\'t offer any words of consolation. On this side of the world, weakness could easily kill you. She wasn\'t going to tell him that the Prince was really strong because of what he was. "The Prince is a general and so are you," she added. "But the gap is—"

Before she could continue her words, a fireball suddenly appeared in her brother\'s hand. Without any hesitation, he used it on his wound, burning the cut, preventing the blood from flowing. Fire wielders had a special bond with fire. It could burn their skin but the burn would disappear in a few minutes. Meaning, the wound would disappear along with the burn. The technique was quite popular for fire wielders like them.

Sadly, it could only heal superficial wounds.

The sizzling sound of his skin made her want to laugh at her brother\'s childishness.

Show off.

Cassandra rolled her eyes inwardly before she shifted her attention towards the Prince\'s tent.

Unlike his brother, the man had a smile on his face. He waved at her and stood from his chair. Then he grabbed a coat and used it to protect his shirtless body as he walked towards her. "Impressed?" His voice was warmer this time.

"Not enough," she answered.

"Your brother is good but too impulsive. I understand it\'s because of his fire element."

She didn\'t answer him. Instead, she looked at Carmichael, worry flashing in her eyes. Carmichael had been acting casual around her. As much as she liked it, this was also making her worry. After all, the last time that she had seen him two years ago, her brother had been aloof and distant.

Moreover, the conversation that she had had with him when she had woken up might be proof that he knew more than what he was saying. And this was making her worry. Actually, Carmichael was the exact opposite of her impulsive nature. He was a planner, a calm one at that.

However, the fact that Hunter was actually the one who had asked for this marriage to happen might have riled him up.

Seeing that she had turned silent, the Prince chuckled, easing the awkward atmosphere between them. "How about you redeem your brother\'s loss?" he asked.

"Pardon me?"

"A fight. Against me."

She lifted her gaze and looked at him, the fact that he was showing off his strong and well-defined abdominal muscles made her wonder if he was doing this on purpose to irritate her. Too bad for him, she wasn\'t planning to ask him to cover up.

Cassandra scoffed. "I am not that good with swords." This was a fact that she was well aware of. Her talent in elemental manipulation was actually far better than her swordsmanship.

"Oh? Is it because you are scared that this cripple would beat you?"

"It won\'t work," she said. "You can say whatever you want. I\'m not fighting." What is the best way to get rid of an annoying fight crazed monster? Ignore them!

And she was planning on doing just that.

He chuckled. "Walk with me?"

Was he planning to walk around this place without wearing a shirt?

As if sensing her thoughts, he quickly excused himself and went back to his tent to grab a shirt. But for some reason, he left most of its buttons open, revealing his muscles that could seduce any woman. Except her, she thought.

However, when Carmichael saw them, he immediately said, "I will come with you."

"General, do you want to listen to me talk about my emotions towards your sister?" Prince Hunter smirked. "I wasn\'t aware that the general actually has the tendency to listen to other men talk about their feelings."

Carmichael\'s gaze darkened. "You— "

Seeing the situation about to explode, Cassandra was quick to intervene "It\'s fine. I will take him on a tour around the training grounds. Why don\'t you ask our people to treat that?" To her surprise, her brother didn\'t listen as he grabbed Cassandra\'s arm and pulled her towards him.

"Michael!" she exclaimed.

"He is dangerous!" Her brother squinted at the Prince. "He is hiding his strength!"

"I know!" She hoped her words would act as enough assurance. "I can handle him."

This piqued her brother\'s interest. "What the hell are you planning?"

"Just—Can you just let me take care of this?"

"Alright. Promise me that you will be careful."

She sighed inwardly. Her overprotective brother is back. But for some reason, a part of her felt a little uneasy with Carmichael.

She was missing something!