章節 500: CH. 525-527: Dragon Hater
Some commotion occurred over Asahi's challenge but he didn't pay it any mind. Instead, he took Ais to her room and tucked her in bed. She hugged his arm to her chest as her soft breath tickled his skin. She was clinging to him as if he was her last straw of hope.
Asahi touched her hair, channeling the energy to soothe her troubled mind. 'Klyscha, show her some adventurous dreams.'
(Consider it done, my love.)
"She is a stubborn girl," Riveria said as she entered the room with delicate steps as to not wake Ais up. "She said nothing when we were inside the dungeon. Acting like everything was fine when she was struggling inside. I'm sorry for letting her down…"
Although she was dealing with her own issues of frustration and exhaustion, she didn't shy away from accepting the blame for not properly looking after Ais.
Asahi clasped her wrist and pulled her. Lifting her off with his telekinesis, he made her sit on his knee. "It's not your fault. It's mine. I should've checked up on Ais during the training. I was negligent."
Riveria didn't resist him this time, as that would disturb Ais. Rather, she couldn't go against him when he showed his stern side, which charmed her senseless on every occasion.
With much effort, she snagged her mind from the dawning daze. "...I'll not yield, however. I am guilty. You'll not deny it."
As the Familia Executive and Ais' caretaker, she wanted to be held responsible for neglecting her duties.
"Are you that eager for punishment?" Asahi whispered with a smirk and licked his lips. "I never knew Mom was that kinky."
Riveria believed she got used to Asahi's frivolous remarks. Yet he somehow found ways to make her blush. "I am a responsible person. Don't paint it as a perverted fetish."
"I see. How about splitting the blame? Ninety percent on me, ten percent on you."
"How kind of you to carry my burdens…"
"You're my Mom. It's only natural," he said with a smile. "Wait, I am acting like Ais' father right now, and you're acting like her mother. Hmmm…"
Asahi's face softened as he pointed out their current dynamic. Riveria felt as though the wind had been knocked out of her, her mouth agape as she took in his words. All she could do was look away, mutely accepting the truth of his assessment.
While she was speechless, he moved in and pecked her lips as if it was the most natural thing to do in this situation. "Don't be shell-shocked, my adorable princess. You leave and prepare for the fight. Leave Ais to me."
He would've done more than a kiss if Ais wasn't clinging to his hand, and he wasn't a man with the utmost dignity. Riveria was being cute, provoking his innocent heart on many levels.
Riveria pressed her hands against his chest and pushed him before retreating. A few steps away, she touched her lips in a daze. "You kissed me…"
"I won't stop with a kiss next time." Asahi waved his hand. "Your lips are pretty soft but your ass is softer. I wanna kiss it someday."
Riveria glared at him even as her face flushed crimson. "Dummy."
He raised his brows. "Don't go tsundere on me, Mom. It doesn't suit you."
He was fine with one tsundere elf. Well, Ryuu stopped being shy a long time ago. She acted more dere now.
Riveria stomped the ground briefly, then left the room. There was no use fighting him when she could use that time to prepare for her biggest challenge.
(Grayfia just reported something. A devil noble is seeking an audience with you.)
'Who is it?'
Grayfia wouldn't bother asking Klyscha if the guest was some random noble. She'd have handled it herself.
(Serafall Sitri.)
'Oh.'
Serafall had pledged her loyalty to him after he saved Venelana Gremory. She also took the task of finding a fitting name for his clan.
'Took her so long to come up with names.'
Asahi hoped she didn't bring some magical girl style names, or he'd be forced to spank her as punishment.
'Tell Serafall to wait. By the way, what's Ddraig doing?'
Ddraig's name had become synonymous with spanking, even more than the soft masochist Saeko.
(Sleeping in your bed while wearing your shirt.)
'Woah. Did you meet Ruby after that time?'
(I called her once to help her with her Dream Authority. She can awaken the power to overlap reality with her dream manifestation.)
'Damn.'
(You can awaken it too.)
'Beating down people is my thing… but I'll learn it if you teach me.'
It'd give him an excuse to spend more time with Klyscha, something she needed after Ddraig's departure from the dream realm.
(Of course, my love! Let me prepare my sensei suit.)
'Things are gonna get spicy.'
He slipped under the blanket with Ais and hugged her. Since Ais wouldn't let him go, he may as well enjoy a nap with her. Before he could fall asleep, however, he sensed Haruhime's presence homing in on him.
She was rushing to meet Ais.
As Haruhime arrived at the door, Asahi gestured to her with a finger on his lips. Haruhime observed the situation first, as she did in the dungeon nowadays, then walked inside on her tiptoes.
"Otou-sama," Haruhime whisperer, climbed on the bed, and snuggled up to him without his consent.
Two warm bodies enveloped him from either side.
Asahi rubbed Haruhime's head, which made her ears and tail dance back and forth.
'It's a nap with lolis today.'
His life couldn't get any better.
***
"My, oh my, Serafall went above and beyond for His Imperial Majesty."
"Fumu. I mobilized our clan to search every library in the Underworld."
Grayfia found it extremely awkward to sit in the same room as Venelana Gremory and Serafall Sitri. Venelana claimed she came here to accompany Serafall, but in reality, she wanted to inquire about the progress on her request.
Venelana noticed Grayfia's silence and smiled, her eyes crinkling. "You shouldn't show such a sad face, child. I'm not at odds with your husband."
Grayfia could hardly think of the woman before her as someone who lost her husband and child. There was no blame or vengeance in her eyes. Just pure happiness, as if she was delighted to be alive.
There was a time she admired Venelana, the Brown-haired Ruin Princess, for her strength. The war caused by her ruined the life of the woman she admired.
Yet Venelana didn't have any hatred for her.
"I'm feeling a little lightheaded," Grayfia said with a sigh and nudged Shizuka. "Can I ask you to entertain our guests?"
Shizuka simply smiled, as if understanding Grayfia's trouble. "Take it easy. Ddraig and I got this."
"I was sleeping so peacefully…" Ddraig whispered, looking back and forth between the cheerful Serafall and bewitching Venelana. "Why am I even here?"
The meeting had no place for brutes like her.
Shizuka giggled. "Aa-kun will come soon. You don't want to miss the chance to meet him, do you?"
"You talk like he is some celebrity."
"Is he not?"
Venelana nodded. "His Imperial Majesty has many admirers. They are fondly calling him 'the Apostle of Justice.'"
"Didn't he usurp Underworld's throne?" Ddraig asked. "Why are they loving him now?"
Shizuka glanced at Grayfia, who was about to leave the room. "She had a plan."
Grayfia wasn't lounging after Serafall and her clan pledged their loyalty to Asahi. She changed Asahi's picture in the commoners' eyes, the most important and majority of the Underworld. She did that by 'ordering' new nobles to publish articles on growing corruption between their ranks, some facts about the previous Devil Kings, as well as how their greed for world domination would ruin their race.
By pulling several strings, Asahi went from public enemy number one to the hero who saved them from a terrible outcome. The ruler of both Heaven and Underworld, who sought peace above all.
She also introduced new gadgets that improved their daily lives and helped them in their jobs, changing their perception with invention.
"I did what had to be done," Grayfia said with a smile. "I'll be in my room if you need anything."
She wouldn't usually like this but staying with Venelana just felt wrong. So, she took her leave.
"That poor child," Venelana whispered. "She is burdening herself with guilt."
Venelana saw right through Grayfia's feelings. There wasn't much Venelana could do besides comforting Grayfia over and over. She wasn't missing her husband since he barely spent time with her. She, however, missed her son.
"That is a thing, huh?"
All eyes turned to Asahi, who appeared with two young blonde girls on his side, Ais and Haruhime. Ais narrowed her eyes on Ddraig, or more specifically, the scales covering various parts of Ddraig's body and those twisted horns. More than the physical features, Ais felt the bottomless eeriness of the aura coming from the silver-haired woman that pressured her. There was an ominous feeling about the dragon woman that set the alarms ringing in Ais' body.
Her hand unconsciously towards her belt that held her swords. She wasn't carrying any right now.
Ddraig sensed the hostility directed at her. An unfiltered rage that came from one's soul — a girl no older than fourteen carried this animosity towards the dragon kind.
If it was before, Ddraig may have shut the girl down with no hesitation. She somehow didn't feel like engaging the girl with a bitter fury.
"Asahi, can you please ask her to stop glaring at me? I don't like receiving hostility without a valid justification."
With all the guests present, she acted politely towards her mischievous mate.
A soft touch tugged at Ais's wrist as a warm aura enveloped her to console her. Asahi scraped away the rigidness from her doll-like face with his warmth.
"Onii-san… who is she?"
She knew her Onii-san had connections with dragons but seeing a dragon in humanoid form still astonished her. Something inside her seethed at the sight of scales. She avoided looking at Ddraig to calm down these boiling emotions.
"She is my wife. Don't be wary of her."
She had overcome her hate for dragons, or so he thought after she didn't mind his dragon aura. However, her hate for dragon kind returned as soon as she saw a new dragon, as if this hatred was etched on her soul.
(It could be… You know the anime rules.)
He shook his head slightly. No matter the circumstances, he'd make Ais love dragons, especially dragon women. They deserved all the love in the world, not unreasonable loathing.
"I haven't agreed to marry you yet!"
His declaration riled up Ddraig, making her say strange things. He narrowed his eyes, his eyes brimming with authority. "You have no say in that. Shut up and marry me."
His domineering answer quelled down any would-be retorts. The turbulent atmosphere flowing through the room came to a halt, and Haruhime felt like she could breathe. The brewing hostility between Ddraig and Ais only troubled her since any wife of Asahi had somewhat of a right to call her daughter.
"Are those fox ears?" Serafall, the lover of cute things, was the first to open her mouth after a potential family conflict. The young devil gazed at Haruhime's fox-ears with stars in her eyes. "Is she a Youkai?"
"Youkai?" Haruhime asked. "What is a Youkai?"
Asahi rubbed her head. "I'll explain later."
He lifted Ais as if she was a child and plopped her on Shizuka's lap. He sat down with a beautiful but dignified posture that embarrassed Serafall as it reminded her of her lack of etiquette in formal gatherings.
"Nee-san."
Shizuka waved him off. "I know." She rubbed her chin in Ais' soft hair. "I have a new imouto."
Who better was to treat Ais' mental issues than Shizuka? If given time, she could heal Ais' heart and make Ais accept the bitter reality about the dungeon's end and One-Eyed Dragon.
Ais looked at Asahi with an almost teary look, as if asking why he abandoned her. "Onii-san… traitor."
"Uh… Spend some time with Nee-san and I'll give you a surprise."
The mere mention of surprise brought some light to her eyes. "I will."
Shizuka giggled and hugged Ais. "She is like a plush."
Watching the drama, Venelana took a sip of tea as she asked, "Your Imperial Majesty, is this cute girl your younger sister?"
The jumbling mess of Asahi's family tree intrigued her. Shizuka was Asahi's older sister and lover but she was calling Ais her younger sister.
'Perhaps adopted sister?'
"Ais isn't related to me." Asahi confirmed her speculation. "But she is a younger sister in my heart. She also sees me as her older brother."
Ais nodded seriously, imagining how things could have been if she met Asahi when her family was intact, not torn to shreds by the dungeon and the One-Eyed Dragon.
'Onii-san as my real brother…'
The thought provoked a beautiful smile on her face.
Haruhime smiled, seeing Ais happy. "Otou-sama, can I explore the place with Ais?"
She never saw a room quite like this one. It made her curious about the rest this palace offered. Ais silently nodded, agreeing to get away from Ddraig's presence.
Asahi let the two go about their business, since they didn't need to be involved in the talk that was about to take place in this very room.
"Your Majesty has a cute daughter." Venelana giggled. "I wish I had a daughter."
"I can help you with that. Getting devils pregnant is easy for me."
The hint of playfulness in his voice matched with his mischievous gaze. Yet Venelana found some sincerity within those words. Despite reaching unimaginable heights of strength, Venelana could see hints of his youthfulness in his actions. He was young, driven by instinct and lust.
"My, is that a proposal to include me in your harem?" Venelana asked as she placed her hand against her face. "How romantic."
She had already forgiven the tyrant emperor. After all, he truly didn't mean to harm her family. It was her son who provoked her into doing the unthinkable, Ajuka admitted so in front of her. It'd be foolish to hold a grudge against him after he promised to bring her son back to life.
Serafall widened her eyes, almost comically. "This can't happen, Aunt Gremory!"
"You should worry about your own love life, Little Sera." Venelana suddenly narrowed her eyes with a sharp look. "Could you be aiming for His Imperial Majesty as well?"
"W-What?!" Serafall furiously shook her head. "I-It's not like that. I'm just a lowly vassal."
"Venelana, you're a strange woman," Asahi whispered. The very man who shredded her life until she was in a coma — she wasn't against the thought of marrying him. "Then again, all women are strange, including my kinky Nee-san here."
"Aa-kun~."
"Just kidding me." Asahi winked innocently. "Grayfia looks to be stressed about Venelana's situation. Shall we talk about it, Venelana?"
He had to resolve the issue before the marriage. Having a relationship with Venelana could wait.
Venelana assumed a solemn expression, placing a hand on her chest. "As the cause of her guilty conscience, I'll offer my full support."
Asahi expected no less from a mature woman like Venelana. "Well, the first step is returning your son. Just show Grayfia your life didn't drastically change after the war. Can you do that?"
Venelana showed a look of pure surprise. It didn't take her another moment to nod her head over and over. "Yes, Your Majesty! I can, no, I will do it!"
She was in for another shock once Asahi brings back Sirzechs.
"That settles the first step. Before I go."
Asahi pinned the young devil with his eyes and revealed an amused smile. The future magical girl was wearing a modest white dress that covered all of her body — a dress far too formal for the bubble of energy named Serafall.
"Is that my list?"
Serafall looked down at the stack of papers resting on her lap and nodded. "Yes."
She passed the list to Asahi, who read them while messing around with Ddraig's tail. The listed names came from every popular language with meanings and a brief overview. Serafall tried nothing out of the norm with the list, something he always expected from the future magical girl.
'Sirzechs' death changed her.'
As he pondered, one name caught his attention.
"The hell is the Antichrist doing here? Don't you know my relationship with Heaven?"
"I-I'm sorry," Serafall stammered, trembling. "I thought His Imperial Majesty might l-like it."
Asahi waved his hand and read the rest of the list. None of the names originating from Christianity matched with his Japanese name. The ones that matched were taken, either by devil clans or some individual.
"Nee-san, what's your opinion? Should I go with Akuma?"
Shizuka raised a brow at his question. "Isn't Akuma the boss of that fighting game you play with Gabriel? It's very Aa-kun like to take a villain's name."
"Let's pretend Akuma doesn't exist."
Akuma simply translated to the Devil in Japanese, which was the biggest race of the Underworld.
"Yup. I'll take it," Asahi said and smiled at Serafall. "I appreciate your hard work. What do you want as your first payment for your service? Perhaps my body~?"
Serafall's mind wandered to a territory, and the byproduct left her with cheeks redder than a tomato.
"My, how cruel of you to tease a young maiden's heart."
Asahi wasn't smiling despite the rather alluring sight before him. Ddraig had the same stunned expression as him.
"Ddraig."
The dragon woman jumped at him, her body shaking in pure terror. She tried making herself as small as possible in his arms. "Asahi, take me somewhere. I don't want to be here. I'm begging you!"
Venelana was just as confused as the rest of the women in the room… until a heavy presence invaded her net of devil senses. The presence of a dragon known to wreak havoc in the Underworld — Venelana felt pure terror coursing through her veins.
Chaos Karma Dragon Tiamat returned for Ddraig.
***
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