Chapter 4: Lucian’s True Form

The weight of his words and the burning intensity of his gaze burned a hole in her retinas was enough of a warning. She exhaled, trembling, her knees gave way, swooping down as her strength wasn't enough to keep her from falling against the cold stone of the balcony railing. 'Has he seen through me already?' She wondered if it was out of habit that he called him the 'Demon Lord' or if that was what he was known as after he betrayed her, that everything comes out here naturally. "Videri occultum, aperire verum, ostende animam daemonis!" "You, on the other hand..." Lucian's eyes narrowed dangerously, his suspicion cutting through her like a blade. "Ways that seem... unnervingly specific," he muttered. And how—" he took a deliberate step closer, the air between them charged, "—how is it that you know I'm a Demon Overlord? I've never told you that." "You see me," he said, more to himself than to her. Then his gaze snapped to hers, a mix of anger and astonishment. "You've been hiding this all along." 'I wanted to know if you are him,' she thought; it was a gnawing curiosity in which she didn't care about the repercussions that came with it. 'Phew! That was way too close,' she told herself, with a pressed shaking palm against her chest to calm her racing heart. She is riddled with questions, doubts, and an ever-growing fear. Lucian was everything she had been taught to loathe, the embodiment of destruction and darkness. "S-so..," He paused She stood there silent, as she wanted him to continue the result of my action, the good and the bad. It didn't matter. His response is everything to her, now that he knows that she revealed his true form. But then again, it was only the two of them alone, and he knew that much to make a big deal out of it was nonsense. Her heart ached at the sight, but she quickly pushed the feeling aside. He was still her enemy. No amount of shared moments could change that. Once, she found him alone in the grand library, his fingers trailing over the spine of an ancient spell book. As he dusted it with his hands and blew away the soot. His expression was far away, almost wistful. "Well, your highness. As per the instruction of my title as your warrior. I am to keep you within reach at all costs." As Kael recited the royal decree with such passion. "I have to go!" she interrupts him. "Where are you off to?" Kael. His lips curved into a slow, predatory smile. She mocks and babbles out his mannerisms. "Hey! Why I oughta?!" Kael proceeds to tickle her in the fullness of their bond. "What are you moping for, your Highness?" he sarcastically implied while leaning on the stone entrance with his arms crossed. Had she already made a mistake? Had he seen through her facade? No, she stood firm in her belief. If he truly knew, she wouldn't still be alive. He was putting her to the test, poking at the seams of her defences to see if she would crumble into a hot mess. "To an old friend." "Even monsters need distractions," he replied, his tone light but his eyes heavy with something unspoken. Her breath caught, but she forced herself to meet his gaze. He laughed softly, the sound dark and dangerous. "You're better at this small talk than I expected." She finds herself salivating over how devilishly handsome he is. A pure intention that stems from their past together as a couple before she jumped into the Do-Over System. "So is the 'Demon Overlord' himself," she countered, her voice steady despite the tremor in her heart. "Surprised?" He answered with such poise and finesse that it made him look more attractive than his usual self. Then again, 'I can't keep my hopes up, can I?' she thought as to crossed her fingers in hope that she meant well. Lucian took an involuntary step back, his expression unreadable, but his voice low and dangerous. "You're not just any mage, are you?" His voice dropped, dark and accusatory. "Wait... aren't you a—" The spell lit up a large neon red sigil circle with splurges of power revolving around him and beneath him. Thus, his true form was revealed as to say, his whole get-up from the obsidian hard glossy horns on each side of the temples of his head to the hard black armour that had silver accents and gold trimmings, and not to forget his large, immaculate bat wings that made him more intimidating than ever before. 'I couldn't let this happen. Not on my watch' Determined, she paces back and forth. Thinking of ways, fool-proof solutions, not that time-consuming (not that time was the issue here, but saving time will have a higher success rate than most), and most importantly, perfectly executed at the right time. 'Hmm...' As she was thinking, "A book?" She questioned. As she caught him off guard, but he turned with such ease that maybe he had a third eye of some sort now that nothing surprises him. 'No, it can't be.' She taught that it haunted her more and that everything would restart before it ever began to change it. The horror. "How long have you been there, stalking me?" She jested, and it made Kael intrigued and baffled. BACK AT THE ELVEN KINGDOM "Mind if I tag along?" Kael intervenes, and she shakes her head in denial. "I'm sorry, Kael. I promise to be back before supper," as she left without a minute's notice. Knock! Knock! Knock! "I didn't think a Demon Overlord had time for hobbies." BACK IN HIS CASTLE She couldn't afford to falter—not now, not ever. A knocking was heard that distracted her. It was none other than...Kael Thalorin has been her childhood friend ever since they were toddlers. He is now an official guard and personal warrior for Princess Aeliana by royal decree. His next words caught her off guard, and whatever drink she was consuming, she immediately spat it out.