Richard went silent.
He has no idea how to answer such a question.
After all, her tone was rather accusatory. Almost like she believed he was following her around.
He clicked his tongue,
"Little princess, I haven't been following you around you know. We just happened to run into each other by coincidence."
Celine raised a brow and folded her arms,
"Is that so..."
Richard shook his head,
"By the way, what are you doing here?"
Celine shrugged,
"I was out shopping."
Richard finally noticed the grocery bags in her other hand. He was even more surprised,
"Don't you have an entire entourage of maids waiting on you? Why go get groceries for yourself?"
Celine's expression turned fierce,
"What exactly are you trying to imply?"
Richard took a step closer,
"You look like a rich girl and act like a rich girl. But you want me to believe you aren't?"
Celine pushed past him,
"I'm living in my own. And I'm not just some spoiled, snot-nosed brat leeching off her family fortune."
Richard followed after her with a grin,
"Interesting. How very interesting."
Celine grimaced,
"Why are you still following me?"
Richard shrugged, "For one, you are headed to the parking lot, right? I just so happen to have a car as well."
Celine's face crumpled, but she said nothing.
Watching her walk forward, Richard couldn't help but he moved a bit.
Her steps were elegant and refined, but they were also proud and dominant at the same time.
Her plain white dressed fluttered in the twilight. It paired beautifully with her platinum hair and dazzling eyes as well.
If he didn't know any better, Richard would have tried pursuing her as a romantic interest.
He paused then shivered.
Not only was the beautiful white princess a wicked serpent in disguise, her grandfather would make his life a living hell of he dared so anything to his poor baby.
"What are you doing?" Celine glanced back with raised brows.
Richard noticed he had stopped in the center of a busy walk way, earning himself a few annoyed stares and shoves.
Chuckling awkwardly, Richard jogged up to meet her pace.
Staring down at her, the thought was further cemented in his mind.
'I should probably give the young mistress a respectable distance if I want to live a quite life.'
He sighed as he walked, keeping his eyes to the sky.
There were a lot of things to admire about the night.
The everlasting moon.
The dark clouds and the twinkling stars that peeked through the gaps.
Quite frankly, it was a beautiful sight indeed.
He sucked in a deep breath of evening air.
To the side, unbeknownst to him, Celine glanced up at him with a complex twinkle in her eyes.
Unknowingly, Richard had jinxed himself with his own thoughts.
"It's pretty, isn't it?"
Richard raised a brow and glanced down at Celine.
She also seemed to be staring at the beautiful sky.
He smiled wryly,
"It is."
"When I was younger, my mom told me a story of angels coming from the sky, one of them in particular, from the moon. She said her name was Haniel, and she came to this world to offer us humans knowledge on the stars."
Richard paused for a moment.
They had reached the dark parking lot.
Here, the only people around was them.
Celine also stopped, turning around to face him.
Her eyes glistened like dew drops with the light from the street lamps.
Richard was momentarily stunned, unable to speak.
"So whenever I look at the moon, I think about that story sometimes. Maybe the angel will return one day."
She smiled softly.
Richard didn't think he had seen such an expression on her.
"When you look at the moon, what do you think of?"
Richard was immediately feeling with a strange feeling in his chest. It was warm and fuzzy.
Suddenly, his eyes widened. Horrid pictures that belonged only in the darkest of nightmares flitted through his mind.
His stomach dropped immediately and the fuzzy feeling vanished.
His face paled, but Celine couldn't see these changes because of the lack of lighting.
He sighed and quickly composed himself.
"Although we got off on the wrong foot, I think we can make due with what we have and work together for our own benefits without problems."
He paused for a moment, then added,
"I agree. I may push your buttons a little, but I don't intend you any harm. If anything, I plan to keep you alive for as long as possible."
'Or your grandfather will have my head.' That part, he didn't say out loud.
Celine huffed,
"Although I hate your guts, I can't deny it..."
Her face turned a bit sad,
"You are legit. It is rare to see a Second Rank Sorcerer take down a Horror-class with just a single blow, so I'll give you that."
She took a step closer.
With this, they were just inches away from one another.
Richard tried his hardest to keep his calm,
"Young Lady..."
He was a bit taken aback when she stretched her hand forward.
Then he grinned as he raised his, taking her hand in a firm handshake,
"I look forward to working with you, Sorceress Celine." He said, giving a mock bow.
Celine chuckled and gave a curtsey of her own,
"Likewise, Sorcerer Richard."
Under the silver moonlight, on this fateful night...
Two fates had been unknowingly sealed together forever...
With a firm handshake.
"Have you had dinner yet?" Richard asked.
Celine shook her head,
"No. I was—"
Richard grinned mischievously,
"Then how about we grab something to eat?"
Celine's cheeks turned a bright red.
'I-Is he asking me out? Already!'
She fought back the urge to agree as she shook her head,
"I should be getting back home. Maybe next time."
Richard nodded,
"I'll see you to your car, then."
Watching Celine climb into her car and drive off safely, Richard let out another sigh.
His stomach sighed alongside him.
He looked down at his stomach.
'I only had a light breakfast. I didn't have anything for lunch.'
He hadn't eaten any lunch because he had been so exhausted from the morning 'activities'.
'Let's go get something to eat, shall we?'
***
Finding a place for a late night bite wasn't hard.
However, most of the locals had regular spots they visited.
For Richard, his preferred spot was a place on an old road. It was a shall shop run by the old owner and his wife.
'They might have moved it something. Maybe they are dead?'
He shook his head. They were old, but not that old from what he remembered.
Sure enough, it didn't take him long to spot his target destination.
A small noodle shop with old decorations hanging from the signpost.
Driving his car to a secluded area, he quickly parked and got down, completing the journey in foot.
Standing in front of the shop, his expression changed a bit. This shop was one he had visited a couple times in the past when he was younger. To the point where he had become somewhat of a regular patron of theirs.
'I wonder if they will recognize me.'
He doubted it.
Still, stepping foot into his past threw him off his game a bit.
"Eh?! You there! What the hell are you doing standing in front of my shop with that creepy look?! Are you a leecher? A pervert?"
Hearing a familiar voice, and an even more familiar string of words and curses, Richard could help but turn around.
There, an old woman with lightly greying hair, holding a large basin in her hands glared at him with a frown.
A flood of memories immediately rushed into his head. The woman had a kind look on her face despite wearing a frown. The years had been kind to her indeed, Richard thought to himself.
Suddenly, the woman rushed in closer, a suspicious look on her face,
"Hold a minute. You look familiar."
Caught off guard, Richard stumbled into the noodle shop. The patrons in the shop all glanced at him simultaneously.
Silence...
"Well, would you look at that. I can't believe my old eyes."
The old woman adjusted her glasses by the frames as she looked down,
"Honey, come take a look at what the night dragged in!"
A yell came from the kitchen,
"Has that animal, Old Mao come back with my money?!"
A red-faced burly man walked out of the kitchen, an apron around his torso and four bowls of noodles balanced on his hands.
Till this day, Richard couldn't help but be impressed by this.
The old chef nearly stumbled at the sight of him,
"Richard?!"
The old woman cackled,
"Well, if it isn't the old Richie boy."
Richard smiled wryly,
"It's good to see you again, Marlene."
Tears formed at the corners of the old woman's eyes as she gave him heavy pats on the shoulder before pulling him in for a tight hug.
"Welcome home, Richie boy."
Richard was stunned for a moment.
He glanced up. Pete, the head and only chef in the small noodle shop was busy wiping tears away from his eyes as well.
Richard smiled. It was a genuine smile.
"I'm glad to be back." He muttered as he gently returned the warm embrace.