chapter 12: Confrontation in a spiritual crusade

It's been far too long ever since Toffee had left with Marco to save Star from Belos. The others kept asking themselves what could be taking them so long, praying everything was under control. Their curiosity was quenched, when the trio returned from their confrontation with the witch hunter, however their appearances suggested that it was a life threatening experience, mostly for Star. The blonde teen was soaked and carried by Toffee bridal style. The black-haired septarian transferred the custody of Star to Rasticore via giving the girl to him, ordering his second-in-command to take the child to the castle so she can dry herself before catching a cold or worse. Rasticore obeyed, taking Star with him and the two left the scene immediately.

The other members of the gang carefully inspected Toffee's appearance. Like Star, he was wet as well, but he didn't show any signs of discomfort. Instead, he had the same stoic expression on his face. His hands were clenched into fists and his back was erected and maintained in a straight line, like a true soldier. However, Lilith was starting to worry that his condition might affect his body temperature very rapidly. She decided to approach him carefully and tried to get his attention.

- You should go too.- the witch spoke gently.

- Where are they?- Toffee ignored her suggestion. He didn't even look at her.

- Who?- said Luz.

- Mina Loveberry and her army.

- Looking for me?- a familiar voice answered the septarian's question.

During the battle, the majority of Mina's army retreated, deeming their chances of winning as very unlikely. Septarians proved to be worthy adversaries. Well-trained, cunning and last, but not least- merciless. Also, a lot of those mewmans had families, and for them living long enough to be with their loved ones was far more important than burning Septarsis to the ground. Who were they kidding?! It should have been obvious from the beginning who would win in a battle between mewmans and septarians.

Mina, however, did not share the sentiment. She was a Solarian warrior, after all. A soldier, whose mission was to vanquish every single monster in existence. That was the oath she had given, upon joining Solaria's army. While every single one of her comrades died in a battle or due to complications, caused by Solaria's strength-enhancing spells, Mina survived each of the struggles that came with being a Solarian warrior.

- This is far from over, you monster!

Mina kept gloating, but Toffee paid no heed to her monologue. He was slowly approaching her with clenched fists.

- I will get more soldiers and...

BOOM!

Before Mina could process what was going on, she found herself soaring through the air, sans any sort of equipment, namely a parachute, though. Toffee had kicked her so hard, he sent her flying back to the Butterfly kingdom.

- What about Belos?- Lilith asked.

- I'll find him.- Toffee replied.- I swear to Seth!

- And you?- the blue-haired witch continued.- You need to dry yourself.

Her attempt at reaching out to him seemed barren. He showed no visible reaction to her concern, as if he heard nothing. Lilith was not meaning to deal with his stubborness at the moment, however, so she approached him and this time, she was planning to be more assertive. She aggressively placed a hand on his cheek, thus forcing him to look her in the eyes.

- I'm serious, Toffee.- the witch frowned.

When their eyes met, Toffee's mood suddenly changed. All he could see now was Lilith's frustrated glare. He felt something in his chest. Something, which was hard to describe with words only. The closest explanation for that odd sentiment was that the septarian did not want to disappoint, nor disrespect Lilith in any way, so he simply nodded, finally ready to listen to her.

The whole gang returned to the castle, all feeling very tired.

While Camila was busy babysitting Razzles and Masaru, with the help of Luz, Toffee was taking a shower to warm his body up, after the sudden swim in the lake. Weirdly enough, he could not stop thinking, in the meantime. He thought about Star and how she almost drowned, due to the shock, caused by Belos' attack. Star claimed she didn't know why she didn't just swim her way back to the surface, but Toffee knew better, or at least he had a theory.

It was probably because the blonde girl was reminded of that time, when she almost drowned in corrupted magic, because of Toffee. It was only natural for an event as traumatic as that one to give PTSD to a child like her.

Then he remembered Belos' speech about the two of them being quite similar.

"We can assist each other in that endeavor of releasing the world of magic. Once and for all!"

Those words kept echoing in the septarian's mind, as if they were a song, played by a broken gramophone. As humiliating as it was to admit, Toffee and Belos, were indeed very similar, at least in the aspect, regarding the destruction of all magic. It was not an intimidating notion, as much as it was a repulsive one. It was clear as day, that Belos was a delusional supporter of counterfeit righteousness. He was arrogant, prideful and hated losing.

The revolting image of the witch hunter was quickly replaced by one of his targets- Lilith Clawthorne. Toffee was quickly reminded of the time they were face to face, and he had the opportunity to see her eyes up close. She looked so stern and confident. Total contrast to her usual upbeat and somewhat clumsy personality. He couldn't deny that he really liked that side of her. In fact, he liked everything about her. Her courage, her intelligence, her kindness, her humility, her stamina. Suffice to say, he enjoyed being in her company. Not only was she a reliable teammate, but also a fascinating individual.

The more time Toffee spent thinking about Lilith, the faster his heart was beating. He could feel his temperature rising and his body getting warmer. Strange and unfamiliar mental wavelengths occupied his mind. Things he has never thought before...nor even felt before. What the Hell were those feelings?!

He should really stop there before going to places, from which he couldn't return.

Walking down the staircase in the corridor, Toffee's eyes witnessed the muse of his latest mental monologue- Lilith. She was observing the balusters of the stairs. The balusters had specific designs, different from what she had seen before- long wavy lines, as if left by septarian claws on the smaller ones, and breathtaking illustrations on the bigger ones, depicting septarian warriors during a battle. She was admiring the balusters for their beauty and exquisite designs, and writing down in her notebook all the epithets she could use to describe them.

Looking at her was an irreplaceble view for Toffee, so he couldn't help but smile. She was filled with passion, only a few scholars or scientists could boast with. She was drawing the balusters, acting as if she was still yet to notice the host's presence.

- Lilith.- Toffee tried to get her attention.

Once back to reality, Lilith finally raised her head and turned to the black-haired monster.

- Feel any better?- the witch asked him with concern in her voice.- Did you get warmer?

- I'm fine, my dear.- the septarian replied, as he got closer.- Don't worry about me!- he decided to change the subject.- You seem to appreciate the local architecture.

Lilith nodded enthusiastically.

- Balusters!- she said with a lot of excitement in her voice.- Septarian balusters! They're gonna be a wonderful addition to my discoveries. As long as that's not a problem, of course?- she asked with an innocent smile, as she pushed her glasses.

- Of course, not!- Toffee answered, and he gently took her hand.- Enjoy yourself, my dear!- and he kissed her hand.

Lilith blushed again, but this time she didn't feel as embarrassed as before, in spite of being confused by this act. She didn't hate it, but she could not understand the purpose of it. Was he only trying to be polite or was it something...?. No! It can't be anything else! He wasn't that type of man.

Toffee also had mixed feelings, regarding his actions. On one hand, he craved to get closer to Lilith. On another, it was debatable whether or not it was the correct decision. They literally belonged to two different worlds, after all. Their relationship was supposed to be only transactional. And yet, when he looked at her...

- Can I ask you something?- Toffee asked her. When Lilith nodded, he gave her a small request.- Could you take you glasses off for a second?

The blue-haired witch raised an eyebrow, visibly unprepared for the odd request, but she still obeyed. She took her glasses off, exposing her entire face to the host.

There she was! Without the glasses, he could enjoy her face for its complete gorgeousness. She was just so beautiful! Should he tell her? She probably wouldn't care if he said it to her.

- What did you want to see?- she asked.- Is there something on my face?

- Nothing to worry about.- Toffee responded, torn between telling her and keeping it to himself.- You're perfect!- he said as she put her glasses back on.

A mixture of both being embarrassed and flattered, Lilith smiled, while her cheeks turned red again.

Making sure to keep his presence as discreet as possible, Rasticore had watched the entire scene with glee. Used to seeing the king expressing ennui to either the environment or his multiple suitors, it was different, and yet, refreshing for Toffee to be genuinely impressed by someone.

Rasticore's head got filled with thoughts, all of which led to the same conclusion. Two major factors played their role in that. The first one was Toffee's smile. The way he was looking at Lilith was different than how he was looking at anyone else. There was a hint of sincere joy in the general's eyes. A feeling, which was a rarity for Toffee. So far, only Razzles and Masaru could achieve that. The second, and the more distinguishing one, was the hand kissing. Normally, for the majority of individuals, hand-kissing was preserved for formal occasions only. A way for one to express their respect. Toffee, however, didn't follow that principle. For him, kissing as a whole, was preserved to express affection for loved ones only, ergo he'd never kissed anyone's hand before.

Rasticore's eyes widened upon realization. Was it possible, though? Was Toffee actually...flirting?

Toffee found privacy, sitting on the castle's roof, looking at the sunset. Unbeknownst to him, Star was feeling mischevous at the moment. She crept up behind him and jumped right on his back, while making an impression of a loud roar.

- I got you, right?- she said with a cheeky smile.

- Sure!- Toffee replied, unamused. Then he placed a hand on her forehead, checking her temperature.- How are you feeling now?

- Come on, Toff!- Star groaned.- I'm fine!

- You might catch a cold or worse, if you don't take proper care of yourself.

- Always the life of the party, huh?- the blonde teen snarked.

Toffee squinted his eyes in disapproval, making Star worried about his next move. The septarian raised an arm and wrapped it around Star, thus pulling her in a tight embrace. With his other arm, he rubbed his knuckles on her scalp, as a form of an unexpected noogie.

- Hey!- Star shouted.- Toffee! Stop it!- she struggled to release herself, but he was pretty strong. However, he finally released her after a minute or so and pulled her for a hug, while patting her head affectionately, as if she was his daughter.

- Toffee?- Star asked in a concerned tone.- Are you okay?

- Just making sure you're healthy.- was the simple reply.

The night was surprisingly tranquil. All the residents of the royal castle in Septarsis were fast asleep. Sleeping blissfully and undisturbed, with nothing to interrupt their midnight peace.

As even the nights could not bring Toffee any peace, tonight was no different. His current dream began in quite the unusual manner. It began with a grey landscape, with very dull silhouettes as the only distinguishing features. From what he could tell, those shadows indicated the presence of soldiers, mewman and monster alike and they were fighting in a violent and viscious brawl. The landscape was voiced by quiet whispers, which sounded as if someone was saying "Your fault!"

- Sad, isn't it?- a painfully familiar voice called. Belos.- Those foolish creatures have spent so much time fighting, but alas their vitriol has brought them nothing productive.

Toffee was curious where this pointless speech would lead to.

- If only they could see the bigger picture.

Suddenly, a giant floating object materialized mid-air, causing the shadows to vanish, leaving Toffee alone with the witch hunter. The object took the form a gorgeous purple parasol, with a small sphere on the top- Eclipsa's magic wand.

- And the queen is probably the guiltiest party of them all.- Belos said, with the indication of venom in his voice.- You still think I am the correct adversary?- no answer.- I am a human. I am above this. You may be a monster, but I know what you're going through. You've spent your whole life at war, with the simple goal of rising above those who've wronged you. Working every single day, pretending to have put the past behind you, but your mind remains in the same place. And the part that frustrates you the most, is that you are alone in your endeavor. A leader with no followers.

Toffee faced Belos and finally spoke.

- I am already asleep, so there is no need to bore me with your hypocritical anthropocentric balderdash.

The septarian slowly approached the human and continued.

- Save your breath, Belos! I am the puppeteer!

Before he could respond in defense, Belos received a painful punch from Toffee.

Toffee was awoken by the sudden cry of his infant son in the middle of the night. Deep down, he was grateful he didn't have to be seeing Belos' wrinkles anymore. Without wasting any more time reminiscing, Toffee got up and took the baby from the crib. He was whispering in order to calm his son down and gently patting the child's back. After a few minutes or so of being in his father's arms, Masaru stopped crying and gave a big yawn, signaling his fatigue. Interpreting that as a sign his son was ready to sleep now, Toffee slowly and gently put the infant back to the crib and pulled the bedsheet, draping it on Masaru, thus keeping him warm. The little one shut his eyes and fell asleep again. His father patted his head and kissed him on the cheek.

The black-haired septarian went back to his bed with the intent of finishing his slumber. Next dream was about him and Lilith, all alone in a beautifully decorated room. The one to make the first move was Toffee. He took both of the witch's hands and kissed them one by one. He looked her in the eyes, no glasses. He gently touched her cheek and kissed her on the nose. Next thing he knew, she forcefully turned him around, his back against her and embraced him. She began kissing his neck and moved to his cheek. Interesting thing was...he didn't want her to stop.

Next morning, while basking with the children, Toffee could not stop thinking about that dream with Lilith last night. Although they were only kissing, he couldn't help but feel as if he was taking advantage of her image. He knew he couldn't control what his subconscious chose to feature in his dream. After all, the brain could not invent new faces and instead it had to use already existing ones- in this case, it had picked Lilith's face. It was a way of the brain to satisfy the libido. Like that wasn't enough, but the dream could never become a reality, as Lilith made it clear she had no interest in dating anyone.

An alarming thought, and yet a pointless one. He should just ignore.