"I like you Lorcan!" she repeated her earlier confession after not receiving any reply from him. Her heart was thundering inside her chest as she waited for his answer. She tried her best to remain only as his friend for life but her heart had its own mind.
"Please say something...." she said bending her head with tears in her eyes. Rejection was alright as long as he remained her friend, but this confession was very important to her, she wanted to be brave in front of the man she liked. Astrea didn't want to run away from her feelings, he is her first love, accepting or rejecting her feelings was his responsibility whereas telling the truth was her duty.
The Demon lord blinked his eyes dazed. As soon as those words left her mouth, Lorcan's consciousness was fighting his to come out. His heart was beating rapidly looking at the girl in his arms. Then something flashed in his mind and images of his past life lurked in his eyes.
A beautiful woman with golden hair was seen lounging in the garden filled with countless flowers. He stepped toward her, and the woman slowly turned to him with a smile on her lips. His breath hitched and he widened his eyes when he saw the familiar emerald green eyes of the woman.
The woman smiled at him. Her eyes were filled with love and longing, "I missed you, Max"
"I missed you too lady Charis.....I missed you so much" a voice replied to the woman but everything after that started to become a blur for the demon lord. Bright light fell on his face making him close his eyes. He tried to look back for his memories but a sweet voice interrupted him, "Lorcan.....Lorcan are you alright?"
He snapped out his thoughts and opened his eyes and looked at Astrea. Tears started to sting his eyes as the woman in his memory's face overlapped with Astrea's face. Now he understood the familiarity between that woman and Astrea. Both had the same eyes and facial features, "Found you..." following those words, he hugged Astrea tightly.
She was surprised by his sudden hug but soon reciprocated it. Her lips tilted up into a smile, "You scared me..." she really thought he would reject her confession.
The demon lord pulled away from her and bent his head to capture her lips. Astrea's eyes widened, this felt like a dream. The kiss started gently at first but soon turned feverish. After kissing for a few minutes, they were out of breath. Lorcan lifted her from the ground and Astrea clasped her legs around his waist. He moved towards the couch inside his chambers and squatted with her still on his lap.
He gazed into her eyes and rested his forehead on hers. Astrea kissed his eyes to make him stop staring at her like a predator looking for its prey.
Lorcan chuckled and pecked her nose and lips, "You like me?"
She nodded and he raised his brows, "Why do you like me?"
Astrea tilted her head and blinked her eyes innocently. Why did she like him? Because of his handsome face? Yeah, she had to admit that his face played an important role in making her fall for him but the real reason was...She didn't know, "I don't know" she felt awful for saying that. It was not like his personality was likable, his arrogance and dominance sometimes irked her but still, she liked him, "I really don't know Lorcan"
He tried his hard to suppress his laughter but it was futile. She was so adorable, "Alright, tell me some things that you like about me"
That was easy. She looked at him seriously and started talking like a parrot, "Your handsome face, Your ruby red eyes, golden blonde hair, fencing skills, the way you walk, talk and annoy me with your endless banter" then she took a deep breath and continued, "The way you frown when you dislike something, Your straightforwardness, the way you always look at me with a gentle gaze....." she stopped and gazed at him and added, "I like all of you, Lorcan Radcliffe"
The demon lord tried his best to suppress Lorcan's consciousness. This was his moment, he wanted to spend more time with her but it seemed impossible. He kissed her lips, please not now.....he pleaded but soon he was sucked inside the abyss.
Lorcan blinked his eyes when he felt soft lips against his. His confusion was soon answered when he remembered Astrea confessing to him. His head still hurt, but he ignored it in the euphoria of kissing his beloved.
Soon their kiss ended and Astrea beamed at him. He too smiled and hugged her, "My Rea....."
"My Lorcan...." she mimicked him and earned a bite on her earlobe.
"You rogue!" she exclaimed at him while holding her ear which he bit, "I'm not talking to you"
Lorcan panicked, "I'm sorry...I did not mean to, please don't stop talking to me"
Astrea turned her face away feigning anger. Then she glanced at him from the corner of her eyes and his pitiful face melted her heart, "Oh, Alright.....I won't stop talking to you, don't be sad"
"Promise?" he asked looking at her with his pitiful eyes. The only crown prince of Nethilor whom everyone feared making such a face was absurd but a fool in love, Astrea believed him and hugged him, "I promise sweetheart"
Lorcan smiled triumphantly burying his face in her chest. 'My clueless and adorable Rea' he thought inwardly.
Inside his mind, the demon lord opened his eyes. It was the first time Lorcan remembered everything that transpired after he took over the body. This meant only one thing, "We are unifying as one....." he felt both happy and sad by this. Happy because now he too can remain in his body but sad because his appearance would slowly start to change into his old self. Didn't his Rea like his present appearance? "I have to do something"
This is why he headed toward the emperor's study the next morning as soon as he woke up and asked him to suppress his presence using the scepter.
Emperor Henrick Radcliffe was stunned to hear the demon lord's reason for bringing out Lorcan.
"Your powers will get forever sealed if you merge like this...Are you sure?" Henrick asked.
Two presences staying inside one body means abandoning the past life and powers of that life. Henrick narrowed his eyes and repeated, "Are you alright continuing living as the crown prince of Nethilor, Lorcan Radcliffe, and not as demon lord?"
"I'm sure" replied Lorcan. He was alright with forsaking his demon as long as she lived with him. He clenched his fists and said with determination, "I'm Lorcan Radcliffe from this moment"
"Very well," remarked the Emperor, "I'll do as you say. As long as I don't lose my son, your presence inside his body is acceptable"
Lorcan nodded but soon his eyes narrowed at Henrick, "I promise to coexist with your son in this body. But you have to promise to never separate Rea from me...."
Henrick maintained his straight face at his threat, "Lorcan loves her too, she is his fiance and I have no intention of separating them"
After that, he used his scepter to merge Lorcan and the demon lord. By doing this, both consciousnesses would remain together all the time.
Henrick observed his wife's face after recounting his past encounter and agreement between him and the demon lord, "I had no other choice than this..."
Lilliane looked up at him and glared, "Do you think you could keep someone like a demon lord inside our son's body just like that?" her anger raised the more she talked, "Do you think he is a werewolf or something?"
The emperor sighed. His wife's words were true, just like werewolves having an inner wolf, the demon lord too decided to stay awake inside Lorcan. But the difference here was that the inner wolves were never more powerful than their master but the Demon lord was someone capable of taking over his son's body entirely.
"Then what should I have done?" he asked getting irritated by his wife when he saw her contemptuous look.
Lilliane closed her eyes, she berated herself for getting mad at her husband even after knowing his purpose in doing such a thing. She would have done the same thing in that situation, "I'm sorry Rick.....I got carried away by my emotions"
Henrick's eyes mellowed, he got up and sat next to his wife, "I also apologize for not informing you sooner"
She leaned against his shoulders, her eyes filled with tears, "What should we do now Rick? What if lady Astrea is really dead?"
"Let us think positively" he reassured her, "Lorcan is confident that she is alive, I will do everything in my power to keep her with him. Her parents who opposed their engagement in the past are dead now. I can just bring her back and announce that the Campbell family was framed by some other noble family. So it will be easier for her to get adopted by a notable family in the royal faction, then she can continue being the crown princess and an empress in the future"
"That's right" Lilliane asserted. She didn't care for others as long as her son was safe and happy. If Astrea was Lorcan's happiness and an asset in keeping the demon lord inside him in check, she would go to any length to tie that girl with her son. Her son was not a bad person, he was the future emperor, and that girl too liked him, so it was not a problem Right?