Chapter 130 – Shock

That same morning, inside the room of the Prince of Hood, Sarah stood silently, her ocean-blue eyes settling on the Prince himself.

He had just stepped out of the bathroom, naked except for a pair of boxers, looking at his black-and-red clothes neatly laid out on the bed.

So here Sarah was, with no real choice but to stare at Raven’s muscled body — which made her throat tighten — while watching the slow, almost mechanical and stiff motions of Raven dressing himself.

Sarah’s face was neutral.

Well, at least that was what she told herself, while being fully aware it was anything but that.

She had known, without any falsehood, that it would be a daunting task to control herself around the Prince. That was true even more when the Prince had absolutely no shyness in front of her, willing to be entirely naked in her presence if he felt the need.

Yet even with all that mental preparation, it seemed Sarah had greatly underestimated the effect the Prince had on her.

An effect that had grown in intensity and urgency since she had quietly decided, in her own heart, to be more than just a bed warmer. To be someone he could respect. Someone he could look in the eye without immediately wanting to see her undressed.

She certainly didn’t want him to see her only as a woman ready to go to her knees for his pleasure — which was, in part, quite the case — but also as a woman ready to support him in his goals.

A woman worthy of respect.

That was what she wanted.

However...

’It’s so hard.’ She hissed inwardly, gripping the hem of her clothes tightly, her eyes unable to settle anywhere but on her Prince. ’It’s so hard to control one’s own desire. Even more so when you have actively decided to control it.’

It felt as though the desire itself had become rebellious.

And so she found herself thinking about it more often than usual, her thoughts slowly corrupted by unending whispers urging her to simply give in.

’Give in.’ The desire would whisper, like a devil perched mischievously at her ear. ’Why does it even matter? You know, my dear, that the Prince will never love you. You know that Lady Anesthesia, no matter how much of a bitch she can be, has the Prince’s heart and devotion in its fullest. With all due respect to your current motivation to be better, you cannot compete. Just for a moment, try to be in his place. Is it really so hard for you to understand, my dear Sarah? It isn’t. You, more than anyone, can understand why the Prince cannot love you...because you cannot love anyone else but him. His love for her is the same — perhaps even greater — as your love for him. So tell me. What can you do? What can you, a worthless common girl, actually do in a situation like this?’

Then the devil would slow down, the whisper growing fainter and fainter, yet somehow only louder and louder inside her mind.

’Just accept it.’ The devil would continue, and at that point, her desire would ignite so hard, so hot, so all-consuming that her fingers would find themselves between her legs before she was even aware of it. ’Accept your fate. The Prince loves you for your body. Just give it to him. Don’t try to seek more... don’t try, Sarah, for there was once a being who tried to seek more by flying too close to the sun...he burned to ashes. Know your worth.’

Then the devil would stop, proud of its work, watching Sarah’s mind slowly absorb its sinful words, readying herself to let go and be consumed by the fire of desire.

It was far more comfortable for her not to try to be more than she already was. Because trying meant exposing herself to more pain and more failure, and her heart and mind might not be strong enough to bear that.

Yes. In those moments — which were happening far more often lately — Sarah was indeed ready to let the boat sink.

And she would have...if her mind were as forgetful as other people’s.

But Sarah did not forget. She could never forget.

And because she could never forget, she would never forget the dreadful eyes of Cassius, smiling upon her, warning her that if she dared to waste his time by failing to hold to his orders...

...then death would be her most favourable outcome.

So with those memories as her anchor, and added to that moment when the Goddess herself had spoken directly to her, Sarah managed with tremendous difficulty not to fall into the devil’s temptation.

’Praise the Queen!’ Sarah shouted inwardly, and she almost made the sign of the Wheel before stopping abruptly, noticing that Raven had finished dressing and was now walking toward her.

She straightened instantly, pulling her face into the most serious expression she could manage.

"Is everything ready?" Raven asked.

"Yes, my Prince." Sarah answered. "The cooks have already prepared breakfast. Lady Anesthesia is already in the dining hall. Only you and Mr. and Mme Desdemona are left."

"What about my parents?"

"They have matters to attend to, as I was informed by the Head Maid."

"My sister, Esmeray, then?"

Sarah fell silent at that, making a rather difficult face.

Instantly, Raven understood, and he sighed under his breath, exasperated yet inwardly worried for his one and only sister.

"How many are there this time?" He asked, only to shake his head immediately after. "No. I don’t want to know. I might kill them all. Let’s go. But before that..."

At that point, Raven’s hand found itself on Sarah’s left thigh, slithering toward her ass. Sarah’s body shuddered in both excitement and dread. Her eyes widened as she watched Raven’s face lean toward her, clearly going for a kiss.

Instantly, as if a bolt of lightning had been struck through her body, she jerked, flicking Raven’s hand away and taking several quick steps backward.

Dead silence.

A silence so loud it amplified the dread, the fear and the lingering excitement as Sarah’s shaking, dilating blue eyes landed on the Prince, whose expression was the very picture of shock.

So much shock that his body nearly dropped to the floor, his mind momentarily forgetting it needed to pay close attention to his own body in order to keep it from going rigid.

He caught himself just in time, yet his movements were stiff now, like a puppet whose puppeteer had suddenly lost focus.

The Prince’s red, shocked eyes found Sarah, searching for a reason behind what had just made him lose almost all composure.

Sarah bit the inside of her cheek, then rolled her tongue slowly, having no idea what she was supposed to say. But her survival instinct kicked in, and her mouth moved before her mind caught up.

"I have someone in my life now." She blurted out, cheeks flushed red, heart pounding, body quivering. "I can no longer... I can no longer let you touch me, Prince Raven. So please, respect me... me and my man."

Those words nearly made her lose consciousness, her mind going hazy.

She had expected the Prince to lash out, to shout, to look at her with contempt. But as he looked at her face, Sarah saw nothing but the face of a man who had just lost his only lifeline in the middle of a storm.

"W-What...?" he croaked.

And Sarah’s heart broke at the sight of him.

Yet she could not back down. Not anymore. Not at any cost.

So she reined in every instinct and feeling telling her to run to him and give him everything he wanted, and parted her trembling lips.

"A man loves me." She said, hands clenched tight. "And I want to love him back. So, Prince, forgive me but..."

She bowed her head.

"...my body now belongs to someone else."

"But your heart..." Raven whispered, utterly lost. "...your heart belongs to me, right? Right?"

Sarah bit her lip. "For now." She said, bowing deeper. "For now, Prince."

Raven fell silent, staring at Sarah for a long time, unable to believe what he was hearing, unable to know what to do with the sudden, wrathful emotion flooding his heart.

Who?

Just who had taken what was his?

And how did Sarah dare to be with someone else? To give her body to someone else? To forbid him — the Prince — from touching her?

Me? How dare—!

"...the breakfast, Prince." Sarah whispered again, redirecting his attention.

He said nothing, only staring at her. Then, regaining his bearings after almost a full minute, he strode forward, past Sarah and straight toward the door with visible fury.

He grabbed the handle, twisted it open and stepped out of the room.

His voice drifted back one final time, landing directly inside Sarah’s head — cold and sheathed in anger.

"...just who?" he hissed. "Just who would want a used body like yours?"

Without waiting for her answer, he disappeared into the corridor, leaving Sarah rooted to her spot, his last words replaying in her mind over and over.

Her face shifted, hardening toward defiance. "Spitting out the water you have been enjoying all this time, huh?" She scowled silently, remembering how Cassius had told her to respect herself before expecting respect from others.

"Fine." Sarah said with quiet resolve, following behind. "I will show you who wants this body."

...

At that same time, Emrys Stormblessed stood inside an open-air garden filled with golden flowers shaped like lightning bolts, the sky overhead an enchanting blue dense with clouds that seemed to sizzle with electricity.

The atmosphere was gentle, with a whispering wind softly fluttering his clothes and hair, making it a place of pure relaxation.

Yet Emrys felt none of it, his blue eyes nervously fixed on the old woman seated before him. She appeared to be around sixty, with golden hair braided into one large knot and blue eyes full of a quiet gentleness. She leaned her body against the golden deer sleeping behind her.

She looked at Emrys intently, then smiled sweetly, causing him to shudder even harder with dread.

"What did you say, my dear boy?" The Fifth Elder said, tilting her head slightly.

"I..." he began, then swallowed nervously. "...I have lost the Tier Two ACS you gifted me, Fifth Elder." He added quickly, "I am so sor—!"

"How did it happen?" She cut in, her voice still soft.

"I don’t know, Fifth Elder." He sighed in frustration. "I lost it during the chaos of the attack. My whole ring went with it."

The Fifth Elder stared at him for a long moment, then her smile slowly widened. "You have lost a Tier Two ACS, my dear boy. You have lost an item I obtained as repayment of a debt. A debt large enough to kill you a thousand times over."

She paused, tilting her head even further. "Do you understand the situation?"

Emrys lowered his head in shame. "I am sorry."

"Being sorry does not resolve the situation, my dear." She replied, then slowly lifted her index finger, its long red nail pointing toward the sky overhead. "If incomplete, worthless Tier Five monsters were enough to make you lose your composure... then perhaps, my dear boy, you need a little more training."

Emrys’s body shivered uncontrollably. A lethal sense of death seized his entire soul in such a tight grip he nearly fainted from the shock.

He snapped his head behind the Fifth Elder, noticing the Golden Deer — its eyes made entirely of red lightning — gazing at him, while the Elder’s pointing finger crackled with that same red lightning.

In a second, the garden was swallowed by frightened shadows as dark, furious clouds blanketed the sky, sizzling with crimson lightning.

"W-What are you doing, Fifth Elder?!" He shouted, heart lurching, his hand tightening around his sword.

"What else?" She said lazily, still smiling. "I am showing you the level of threat you should fear at your current rank. Not your peers. Not some Tier Five monsters. But this, my dear boy."

"You will kill me!!" He bellowed.

"Then you must survive." She replied, producing from her space ring another Tier Two ACS and setting it in front of her. "The first ACS was a gift out of my goodwill toward you. This one, my dear, you need to earn. Perhaps that way you will be more careful about losing it."

Her smile widened. "Am I wrong?"

Emrys didn’t have time to answer.

"I will attack in five seconds."

Crimson lightning began to sizzle and crackle all around him, transforming the garden into a sea of lightning.

Emrys’s instincts flared and he screamed inside his mind. ’Unseal everything! Unseal all the power of my sword! Fast, Golden Beggar, fast!’

[You will die!] the Golden Beggar retorted. [You are not strong enough—!]

’I will really die if I don’t use it! Can’t you see? She is serious! Damn it, fast!!’

Hesitating yet knowing he had no other choice, the Golden Beggar accepted the request of his Blessed.

The sword in Emrys’s hand crackled, and vanished from his grasp.

The Fifth Elder smiled widely as she released her attack.

"Lightning Bolt."

The sky roared. A bolt of red lightning thundered down from the heavens, driving straight toward Emrys, destroying the very space of the garden and burning all the golden flowers even before it reached him.

And when the Lightning Bolt was an inch from Emrys — about to reduce him to ashes — his eyes snapped wide open, revealing pupils shaped like golden lightning bolts.

He parted his lips, showing an interior made of nothing but lightning. At that moment, Emrys was barely human.

"Third Manifestation..."

The crimson Lightning Bolt landed just as his final word echoed.

"...Zeus."

In one instant, the attack and the Fifth Elder’s personal realm were swallowed entirely by golden lightning.

—End of Chapter 130—