I Only Love My Greatest Enemy

Armand, Lord Hapsburg, and Lady Hapsburg stood in front of a beautiful room. The inside was decorated with gold and red. Expensive scented candles covered a set of shelves on it. He stepped inside and felt the bed. It was filled with the finest feathers.

“We made sure that this room was of the highest quality,” Lord Hapsburg stated.

“Thank you,” Armand said.

"They put so many expensive things there Lord and Lady Hapsburg must be very grateful that I “saved” their daughter. I don’t know how they died the last time around, but I swear that I will keep them alive, no matter what,” he thought.

"There's no need to thank us. You've done more than enough for our family," Lady Hapsburg smiled widely. "And we'll make sure that every member of our house will understand that you're perfect for Eris."

"If they knew the full truth, they wouldn't say that."

The sound of footsteps reached my ear. We turned to see a servant approaching us.

"You may speak," Lord Hapsburg said.

"Sir Felix the Red has arrived," she stated.

"Ah, good. Let's get Eris and greet our guest."

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Sir Felix the Red was a tall man with red hair. His blue eyes shimmered like stars. The blue eyes that adorned his face contained both the hardness of war and a kindness to them. He wore a suit of shining armor.

"He should be 17 around this time. Most knights aren't dubbed until they're 21. I'll try to befriend him again, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to. I don't even know why he switched sides from the Hapsburgs to my faction," Armand thought.

"Welcome, Sir Felix. I'm honored to have you instruct Eris," Lord Hapsburg said.

"The honor is all mine," the knight replied.

"You're a friend of Karl's?" Eris asked, putting on an innocent face.

"That's right. It was my honor to fight alongside him in bandit hunts," Sir Felix answered.

"Maybe Armand can make sure he stays on my side?" Eris thought.

Sir Felix's gaze turned from Eris to Armand.

"You must be the Concord boy," he said.

"My name's Armand. It's nice to meet you."

"So it is," Sir Felix's voice was cold. "I must say that this marriage is foolish. I do not approve of it."

"This marriage is perfect. It'll end the feud between the Hapsburg and Concord families, increase the power of both by merging our lands, and Armand is a perfect little gentleman. If anyone can make Eris happy, it's him. Eris took a shining to him too," Lady Hapsburg said.

"Most nobles don't get the opportunity to marry someone they love, so I'm glad that my daughter has this chance," Lord Hapsburg stated.

"Then perhaps I should train Armand too? This could give him and Eris a chance to bond," Felix suggested.

"That's a good idea. Just make sure to not be too hard on either of them."

Despite agreeing, there was suspicion in Lord Hapsburg's voice.

"What is Sir Felix plotting? He wouldn't assassinate a child, so he can't be planning on killing me," Armand thought.

"Karl must have put him up to this. Having me train with Armand wouldn't be too unusual but anyone who objects to our marriage would try to keep us separate without a plan," Eris pondered.

"Don't worry," Felix said. "I understand that Armand is a weak, sickly boy. I'll make sure that Eris goes easy on him too. I have no doubt that she's the stronger of the two."

Lord Hapsburg turned to his daughter.

"Armand might be sickly now, but he'll get over it sooner or later. Then, he'll get much stronger," he assured her.

"That's right. Armand was sickly as a child. I almost forgot," Eris thought.

"Many women like men who are stronger than they are. Felix must think Eris is one of those women," Armand contemplated.

"Which means that if we train together, it'll become clear that Armand is too sickly to fight me to a standstill at this point," Eris pondered.

"Then that means Sir Felix's plan..." Armand realized.

The two of them came to the same conclusion at the same time.

"Is to make Eris/me fall out of love with me/Armand."

"At full strength, Eris was my equal. I can't win as I am now. Dammit. If only I could have performed the final ritual before now, I'd be able to fight her to a standstill. Now, Eris could humiliate me if she wanted to. She might love me, but she's still a monster," Armand thought.

Eris' mind pondered her next move.

"Now's my best chance to humiliate Armand. I could make him pay for all the trouble he's caused me. And why shouldn't I? He was a nuisance at every turn. That bastard..."

She had to resist slapping her face.

"What am I doing? If I did that, Armand would hate me. I need to make him like me."

"I don't want to hurt Armand," Eris said. "Sir Felix, I promise that I'll go easy on him."

"As if she'd do that. This is the perfect opportunity for Eris to get payback," Armand thought. "If she does go easy on me, I'll get her some flowers."

Sir Felix's face was coated with surprise.

"You don't mind him being sickly and weak, Eris?" he asked.

"No. I like Armand. I don't care if he's weak," she answered.

"By the gods," Sir Felix muttered. "I hope Armand's parents realize how lucky he is."

He turned to Count Hapsburg.

"Could you show me to your training grounds?" he asked.

"Of course. It's right this way."

Eris and Armand followed the two of them. As they walked, Eris approached Armand.

"How are you feeling, Armand?" she asked in a whisper. "Still sickly?"

"Yes," he answered and thought. "She'll figure it out when we spar, so there's no point in hiding it."

"Don't worry, Armand. I wasn't lying when I said I'll go easy on you. You're going to be my husband, so you should stand proud at my side. I don't want anyone to think you're unworthy of me," Eris said.

"I'll see if your words are true when we train together," Armand replied.

She nodded and took a deep breath.

"Armand, I will make sure you keep loving me. So, please make me fall for you," she thought.