The Deal That Changed Fate

Third-Person POV:
In the City of Serenity...

"... Eiri-niichan, are you sure you want to come with us? You still look weak..."

"Don't worry, Darien, I'm fine. Besides, I can't let you be taken by this pervert without me... Who knows what they'll do."

"I'm glad your bro-con spirit is back, Eirian, but the way you said that sounds like I'm someone who likes kids."

"You are, and I don't like you."

"I don't like you either, your brother-complex kid."

"..."

Darien gave his brother a judging look and then turned the same look on Aidan. The two were already at each other's throats. Eirian looked irritated, giving Aidan a suspicious and disgusted look, and the spy just rolled his eyes and gave him a blank face.

The novel's writer sighed tiredly, massaging his forehead. 'Does Eirian have to be hostile with everyone he meets? I know he has a brother complex, but I didn't expect it to be this bad,' Darien thought, with a look of being utterly done with this.

"Darien-kun, does your brother really dislike everyone, or is it just my imagination?" Hirayuki whispered in his ear, not wanting the blond boy to hear.

The hazelnut boy just shrugged with a nonchalant face. Hirayuki sweatdropped and shook his head before looking ahead when he noticed Eirian was glaring at him from the front with a look of dislike.

The carriage continued to move, oblivious to the awkward atmosphere inside the space between the four people.

'... He really is a bro-con...' Hirayuki thought with a facepalm.

How did the four of them end up together? Let's flashback.

Flashback...

" I have an idea for that," Aidan said with a bored look, but his eyes were shining mischievously. When his Venus-blue eyes met Darien's crimson-red ones, he gave a small smirk that made the writer immediately regret asking the man for help.

'...Oh, no...'

"What's your idea, Aidan-san?" the old judge asked, full of curiosity for Aidan, who immediately put his mask back on. No one noticed the smirk except for Darien.

"Not here. I need to take this hazelnut boy to the main gate and show you all myself. You can all watch from the palace tower through the crystal orb. It's just a feeling I have, or... whatever people call it. 

So, I'm not sure if it will work. Your Majesty, may I have your permission? I can't guarantee it will succeed, but if we don't try, we'll never know, right?"

The King seemed to be in deep thought while everyone in the room was silent, watching the King, then Aidan. The atmosphere there became quiet again, with only the sounds of heartbeats and breathing filling the air.

Sigh. "I can actually guess what you're trying to do. Can you guarantee the safety of this boy and everyone in Serenity? I don't care if it doesn't work, but if anyone is affected by this, will you take responsibility?" the King asked. Even though his tone was normal, you could feel the worry and warning in it. This time, everyone turned to look at Aidan.

Everyone knew him. This spy never involved himself in these kinds of problems. He didn't care about anyone except his team members and the people he genuinely cared about, even if he didn't admit it.

Aidan gave a small smirk with a confident face, "Yes, I will take responsibility and ensure no one gets hurt." The King stared at Aidan with a serious look that made everyone nervous, but Aidan looked unbothered.

Sigh. 'What do you really want from this boy, Aidan? I know you,' the King thought, even though he didn't say it aloud. Aidan could see it in the King's eyes. He just responded with a look as if challenging the King to find out for himself.

"Good thing you're a close friend of mine... This boy is daring to challenge me now, sigh..." the King mumbled to himself, but his Queen heard and gave a small chuckle as if amused.

"Maybe you should bring Hirayuki-kun too. He's the closest to these boys. At least, he'll have someone he knows by his side," the Queen suggested with a sweet smile. Aidan nodded in understanding, and then someone pulled on his sleeve, making him raise an eyebrow in confusion.

When he looked back, he saw no one, but he felt his sleeve being pulled again, and this time he looked down immediately. He met a pair of mint-colored eyes that looked unhappy and annoyed, along with a pair of crimson-red eyes that looked nervous.

He didn't know when these two brothers had gotten behind him. Maybe it was because he was too busy talking to the King earlier. Aidan didn't ask why, but his confused expression was enough for the two brothers to speak.

'Oh? They look like they already trust Aidan?' the chief judge thought with an amused smile, finding it funny. She seemed to imagine Aidan as a single father to these two cute kids. Even though Aidan looked young, he was 28 years old and still single.

"Where do you think you're taking my Darien? We're still here, okay? If you want to take him, you have to take me too, even if you don't allow it," Eirian said with a suspicious and annoyed look and a cold tone. It didn't belong to a 7-year-old boy who should be cute and innocent.

"Eiri-niichan, stop it," the younger brother whispered to his brother in a worried and nervous tone. He tried to pull his brother away, but he didn't succeed because Eirian didn't move at all and didn't let go of his small but strong grip on Aidan's sleeve.

"... You are not cute at all when you speak with that tone and face," Aidan commented with a straight face. The two brothers' mouths immediately dropped open, and then they shivered as Eirian pulled his hand away like just touched the garbage.

"Pervert," the two brothers said at the same time, one with a look of disgust and the other with a look of fear and shock. "I'm not a pervert, and stop looking at me like that."

'Fufufu, I can already see Aidan's future,' the chief judge thought, feeling more and more amused at the sight happening in front of her.

End Flashback...

And that's how the four of them ended up together. Aidan looked like he was already regretting bringing Eirian along, Darien looked like he was already done with his brother's brother-complex, Eirian was still giving Aidan his disgusted look, and lastly, the young detective, Hirayuki, was just crying inside, thinking about his drastically changed fate or asking the god why he needed to be together with them.

The carriage driver outside and the guards beside the carriage could also feel the awkwardness coming from inside. They all felt confused and awkward, too, because it was now completely silent.

Throughout the journey, Darien tried to peek from the window curtain and saw how dark it was outside, as if it was already nighttime, which made him feel weird. He thought it was just dark inside the carriage, which was why there were lights on, but seeing the condition outside made his premonition feel stronger.

Anxiety built up in him, thinking that the darkness outside was caused by him.

All the residents were outside now, on the streets, in front of their homes and shops. Some were looking up with looks of fear, worry, awe, and confusion. Meanwhile, others were whispering to each other, but they were still looking at their carriage with so much curiosity and wonder.

The novel's writer wanted to know more about what they were looking at above. He had an idea of what he had done, but he wanted to make sure first before he was pulled back inside, before he could get his head completely out of the window.

It was Hirayuki who pulled him, then made him sit back down on the expensive and comfortable red sofa as if he were a doll. "Don't, Darien. We haven't arrived yet, and no one knows yet except the people in the palace know who did all this.

We don't want to attract more attention than we already have at the main gate now," Hirayuki said, with a look as if he was scolding his own brother, but with a worried tone. Darien blinked many times before nodding his head in understanding.

"I don't think that will be a problem, Hira-kun. When we get there, everyone will know who did all this. They spread news like wildfire, especially since there are a lot of reporters there too."

"What!? How--Ugh... It must be the gossip gang. We need to do something about them."

"After all this is over, I'll tell the King about that."

Eirian, who had been silent with his arms crossed, looked at Hirayuki, then Aidan, as if he wanted to ask something. Darien, who was sitting in front of him, saw what his brother was doing. He tilted his head to the side with a confused look at what the blond boy was going to do now.

'Eirian... I'm begging you, don't pick a fight again,' Darien thought with a deadpan face this time.

"... Why do you need my brother to solve this problem? I know it's his fault, but... what do you need him for? You won't put him in a dangerous situation, right?" Eirian's question immediately changed Darien's thoughts.

He had forgotten about that. What did Aidan really need him for now? The novel's writer felt uneasy, and when he remembered what Hirayuki and Aidan had said about the reporters and everyone knowing who the culprit was, which was him, it gave him a pit in his stomach.

He didn't know what would happen because this was not his idea in the first place. This world is already out of his control. 

The writer also looked at Aidan, who was beside his brother, with a worried and scared look. Hirayuki blinked at the blond boy's question before he also looked at Aidan. And Eirian, even though he looked calm and serious now, his eyes showed worry.

"That's right, Aidan-san. What are you actually trying to do? Isn't it a bit dangerous to bring them outside now? When everyone knows that Darien-kun... umm, did all this, they'll look at him differently, even if the truth is he didn't do it on purpose. 

They won't care about that. And that's not including the villains, organizations, and the demon king outside who might already be aware of his existence. He'll be safer inside the palace, right?"

Darien could feel his heart beating faster because of the fear and reality that was sinking in. He could feel the pit in his stomach getting bigger.

Eirian clenched both of his hands tightly while biting his lip as if he was trying to control himself from choking the spy beside him now. He was giving Aidan a chance to explain everything.

"... Sigh... Yes, it's true that he'll be in danger. Everyone will look at him differently, and villains will come for him. He will be safe in the palace, but I don't think this problem will be solved if he doesn't solve it himself."

"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Eirian asked, losing his patience.

"... Let's make a deal."

"What?" the three boys said at the same time, looking at Aidan as if he had grown a second head.

"A deal that will bring good to both of you. Right now, you two don't have a home or a guardian, right? No distant relatives either."

"So?"

Aidan leaned back on the sofa he was sitting on with his arms crossed and a relaxed expression. "This is the deal. If you or your brother succeeds in solving this problem, I will take you two under my care, and I will guarantee that you both will be safe, and I will protect you no matter what happens."

The three boys' mouths dropped open so dramatically, their eyes blinking many times with looks of shock and disbelief at Aidan's statement, but he didn't care and continued to explain the deal.

"bt if you don't succeed, don't worry. Because we know you can't succeed on one try. So, throughout that time, you two will still be in the palace, just with stricter supervision. All the judges, including the King and Queen, have decided to give you a second chance, and I will try to teach you guys how to control your powers.

With the changes in this world, it will take time for me to know how your two powers work. So, right now, we are on our way to the main gate of Serenity, and I want to see if you can destroy it."

"... Destroy what?" Darien asked in a small voice, and then his brother asked, "But, what's the difference between us being under the palace's supervision or under your care? That means, if we succeed, you will adopt us?"

"Yes."

"!!!"

"Eh!? Are you sure, Aidan-san? As far as I know--"

"Ahem. With my family name, at least, no one will dare to mess with you two, especially Darien. Because after this, after the world knows who you are and your power, everyone's perspective will change, and so will their treatment of you, Darien.

You two can also be freer and safer with my family name and be better taken care of. Being in the palace doesn't give you freedom, right? What if what happened before gets worse?"

The two brothers became silent because what Aidan said was true. When Darien thought about it again, it would be better if they had a guardian, and their guardian was someone with power. He remembered what Kiito did before.

Because he could already imagine how people would look at him, whisper about him, and how they would treat him later. It would be worse than his life before this world changed. They would be scared and call him a monster or a demon's son.

Eirian would also receive the same fate because of his connection to him. And thinking about the villains outside gave Darien a shiver and a pit in his stomach that made him want to throw up now.

He would rather put himself in danger than put his brother in danger more than before. The bullying would get worse.

"We have arrived."

'... I have to change our fate. I have no other choice but to make Aidan our guardian. I will accept this deal.'