Mated To The Cruel Prince-Chapter 671: A Villain Could Never Be A Hero

Music Recommendation: All Your Exes - Julia Micheal.

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"Why don’t we make this more interesting? Care for a little friendly competition, brother?" Aldric’s taunting voice sounded from behind. freeweɓnovel.cøm

Oh no. Islinda’s heart dropped, and she turned around to see the dark Fae striding towards them with purpose. His face was unreadable, but his expression was as tight as she’d ever seen it, a storm brewing in those cold steel eyes.

Thanks to the fiery intensity of his gaze, Islinda realized her proximity to Andre and quickly jerked away as if she’d been electrocuted. By the gods, she now understood where Aldric’s—or rather Eli’s—anger was coming from. He must have seen Andre teaching her how to handle the bow and misunderstood their closeness.

"El—" Islinda corrected herself at the last minute. "Aldric—" She tried to explain the situation, sensing his sinister intention.

But Aldric didn’t give her a chance. He swiftly wrapped an arm around her and pulled her away from Andre, holding her possessively by his side. The gesture didn’t go unnoticed by Andre, nor by the crowd around them. Whispers and murmurs began to rise from the onlookers, curious about the unfolding drama.

Islinda’s cheeks flushed, both from Aldric’s possessive gesture and the eyes of the crowd upon them. They had drawn quite an audience, everyone abandoning their activities to watch the drama unfold.

"Nice of you to finally join us, brother. You know, I have been expecting you for a while now. Thankfully, Islinda was here to entertain me, else I would have been bored to death," Andre said with a teasing note, yet the gleam in his eyes unsettled Islinda. It almost seemed like the Autumn prince was inviting trouble, itching for a chance to provoke Aldric. The gods help her, because Islinda was definitely not in the mood to watch them engage in a childish pissing contest.

Aldric’s grip on her waist tightened slightly, his eyes never leaving Andre’s. "Is that so? It seems to me like you were having so much fun you probably didn’t want me around to disrupt it," he challenged.

"Aldric," Islinda said, her voice tinged with a mix of frustration and embarrassment. "This isn’t what it looks like—"

"What didn’t it look like? A little archery lesson, isn’t it?" Aldric taunted, his expression hardened into something cold and harsh.

Fuck, she hated it when Aldric was like this—stubborn and hot-headed. Islinda had thought Eli would be more level-headed than the alter ego he was impersonating, but it seemed both he and Aldric lost their cool whenever a competitor was around her.

Even with the storm brewing in the distance, Andre was unfazed by Aldric’s display. "Indeed. It was just a friendly competition, brother," he said, emphasizing the last word with a hint of challenge. "You were not here to teach her, so I was simply giving her pointers."

Islinda could feel the tension radiating from Aldric, but she also saw an opportunity to diffuse the situation. "Yes, Aldric," she said, forcing a smile. "Since you’re here, you can take over from where he stopped, don’t you think?"

Aldric finally tore his gaze away from Andre to look at her, his eyes shining with mischief. "Exactly, what a brilliant idea."

Islinda swallowed, not liking Aldric’s tone. It felt like she had just given the worst idea to Eli. And her thoughts were confirmed when he announced, "Just as you said, I will take up teaching you from where Andre left off, while my lovely brother continues being the helpful tutor he is."

Even Andre’s brows raised this time, suspicion etched deeply on both their faces.

"What do you mean by that?" Islinda asked, unease growing in the pit of her stomach. Although it was Eli, he was still one and the same with Aldric, and Islinda knew Aldric enough to recognize when he was scheming. His plans couldn’t be anything good.

Aldric didn’t answer right away. Instead, he summoned his shadow, which picked up one of the bows. He tested the string and then announced, "I have seen Islinda in action and she’s already a skilled archer. What she needs right now is a challenge."

Islinda gasped when Eli pulled her to his side, pressing their bodies close together. He directed her hands on the bow alongside his. The scene was so intimately hot that Gabbi reached out and covered Milo’s eyes, while Ginger shielded Wayne’s eyes from the sight. But like Wayne, who snarled and scratched at Ginger in annoyance, Milo wanted to watch too.

Islinda felt a thrill wash over her, forgetting how to breathe as Aldric placed his head on her shoulder, always turning to speak into her ear and causing goosebumps to erupt on her skin whenever his hot breath hit her face. Not to mention his hands on her waist, caressing her through her tunic. The gods rescue her, Eli would be the death of her.

Eli said, his smirk challenging and pure evil, "While I take up the role of Islinda’s tutor this time, why don’t you be the target, dear brother?"

Islinda let out a startled gasp, unconsciously trying to pull away from Eli’s embrace, but he held tight and she couldn’t move. She wasn’t the only one with such a reaction; shocked gasps rippled across the training ground, and everyone looked on with tense anticipation. Just when they thought their high lord prince Aldric was becoming a better person, he proved that a villain could never be a hero.

"Aldric..." Islinda tried to interfere.

"Shhh," Eli whispered, kissing a sensitive trail along her ear. Her breath caught in her throat, and she trembled in his arms. "Don’t butt in. This is between us brothers. Simply enjoy the show."

As if Islinda could sit still and watch them brothers tear each other apart, or in this case, let Aldric use her to shoot Andre down with her arrow like an animal. Except she didn’t exactly have a choice.

Then his attention shifted to Andre. "What do you say, brother? Like I said earlier, why don’t we make this game a lot more interesting?" He smirked fiendishly, his arms wrapped possessively around Islinda.