Chapter 44 The Master's Request
"Master? Master, wake up! Master, please wake up!" She said. She looked panicked as her master fell unconscious after the battle.
She had overused her powers, resurrecting the souls of the dead buried underground to aid her troops, causing her energy to drain rapidly. It wasn't because she was incapable, nor was she weak, but because she was half-human, with limits and unable to fully control her powers like the gods.
Leonidas opened his eyes when he felt Petra's gentle kiss. He loved this kiss, a kiss that soothed all the pain he felt.
"I love you, Petra," he said softly as his eyes slowly opened. Petra gazed at him tenderly, relieved that her master had survived.
"Master, I hope you won't push yourself too hard. Your wounds are still healing, so if you leave everything to me, it will bring victory to Evangelia," She said. Leonidas touched her lips, feeling the depth of his love for the girl before him.
He lifted his head after feeling a little better, not wanting to waste any time. For him, the battlefield was a place to prove who was the strongest and most capable of conquering.
Evangelia was the largest kingdom that had invaded other kingdoms for hundreds of years, and as crown prince, Leonidas chose to continue the legacy of his ancestors.
"I will win this battle and capture Orion, making it part of Evangelia. If I succeed, I want you to give me a fitting reward."
"Reward? What reward do you desire, Master?"
"I want you to marry me and become my future queen. Are you willing, right?" He pleaded. But Petra didn't answer immediately. Leonidas' request was exactly the same as her first master's, the one who created her, Diavolos, the demon king.
There was no request she could refuse; she was created to obey the master who gave her her name, regardless of whether he was of divine or demonic descent.
"Very well, Master. Let us marry," she said.
For her, the order to marry wasn't a difficult one, as long as it was her master's wish. However, the reality was that such a simple order often caused pain if it lacked a special feeling, a feeling called love.
Leonidas was silent for a moment, as if he couldn't believe what he had heard. Petra had been with him for decades, and during that time, he had loved her. This woman never grew old; she had always looked the same since the first time they met.
But somehow, even though he heard Petra say yes to his proposal, his heart didn't feel truly happy. He felt as if he were chained to a promise he had made to his late grandfather, the former King of Evangelia and Petra's owner before she was given to him.
"She is a soulless sword, she will only function if someone wields it. Therefore, Leonidas, don't use your feelings for her. Don't weaken yourself. You can use her to kill and destroy your opponents. But don't use her to kill yourself."
He didn't know what to do or where to take these feelings. The figure standing before him was a stunningly beautiful woman with dark hair and captivating amber eyes. She smiled, but he couldn't feel anything.
Leonidas pulled her hand away and hugged her tightly. He had a strange fear, a fear that Petra might slip from his grasp. A fear that he would no longer be her master.
"Don't leave me, do you understand? Don't ever leave my side, ever. Even when I die and reincarnate, don't ever leave me!"
"I will never leave you, Master! I am yours, as long as you hold me and don't erase my name, I will always be with you, Master."
Jacob opened his eyes after the dream slowly faded from his subconscious. He saw Nami's face, looking very worried, as if she were about to cry.
"Ugh...it hurts so much." He winced in pain as the pain spread throughout his body.
"Y-you're awake? Thank goodness, where does it hurt? Tell me, where does it hurt?" Nami asked, panicking and trying to help Jacob up.
"Tch, don't touch me!" Jacob immediately slapped Nami's hand away. Remembering what had happened to him, he felt annoyed that she had humiliated him yet again.
"Oh no, what's going on here?" A middle-aged woman exiting the library was the first to notice the chaos unfolding in the quiet corridor.
She was shocked to see Prince Jacob sitting near a cracked, nearly collapsed wall. Although she didn't know what had happened, it was enough to send her into a panic and hysterics.
"Your Highness Prince Jacob, what happened? Your head is bleeding? Oh no! I'll call for help!"
"W-wait a minute, that's—" Nami didn't have time to stop the woman, who immediately rushed away upon learning that the great prince was injured.
"This is bad..." Panic rose as blood began to flow down Jacob's forehead. Without warning, she immediately picked up Jacob, who was much taller and larger than her, and carried him as fast as she could to get help.
"Hey, idiot, what are you doing? Quickly put me down!" Jacob struggled, but he couldn't free himself as Nami ran at lightning speed through corridor after corridor, hall after hall, drawing many glances in her direction.
Few people realized what had just passed: a woman running at breakneck speed, the same person who had lifted Mariah's body last night. But to her surprise, this time the person she was carrying was a king's son, the prince who was said to be the strongest man in existence. However, this strongest man had now fallen into the arms of a strange young woman who was running at the speed of light.