A loud thunder woke her up in the middle of the night, followed by Princess Asteria's balcony door opening from the loud breeze. Her white sleeping gown brushed, and she could feel her bare skin showing.
A tall figure suddenly appeared, and footsteps echoed on the ground.
Princess Asteria instantly grabbed her dagger hidden in her pillows. Good thing she prepared an emergency tool in situations like this.
She stayed still and closed her eyes, stabilizing her breathing as her heartbeat quickened. Goodness. One sudden movement, and she'll plunge this dagger into his neck.
The footsteps continued until they stopped just at the foot of her bed. She felt the man was about to grab her feet when in one quick motion, she instantly lunged at the neck of the attacker.
The sky thundered, giving her enough time to see who the man was against the dark night.
Looking up, she looked at the fiery red hair of Lord Eros as his green eyes meet hers.
"Good job. You know how to defend yourself from an attacker," Said Lord Eros with a small smirk, grabbing the dagger from his neck and licking it.
This time, his usual long red hair that reached his waist was now cut off to his shoulders as he tied it on his back. He also wore glasses now compared to last time at the cave when she first met him.
Princess Asteria, still in shock, blinked and relieved a sigh of relief. But then she removed her hand from him and stood up to face him properly. "What are you doing here?"
"I decided to pay you a visit. Missed me?" He asked.
In one swift motion, her hand shot up to his face, "Missed me? Really? That's the first thing you say after you and your scammer twin abandoned me last night? I actually thought I was just having a delusion!"
Anteros appeared from the dark suddenly. "Forgive us. We have recognized your importance to us-"
She cocked an eyebrow at them, "You mean you recognized how useful I am to you, right? After promising to help me control my power and taking advantage of it.
Anteros sighed, "We were in the wrong, again we apologize."
She shook her hand and pointed at Lord Eros. "I don't want to hear from you, Anteros. What about you Lord Eros?"
Lord Eros cleared his throat, "We'll tell you the truth. Princess Asteria, the bearer of the fifth and rare elemental mana, I am tied to you. Since it's you who woke me up, I have to be by your side or else my heart will stop."
She let them process what he said. What kind of bull is that? She want to curse at them but gritted her teeth instead. "I don't believe you." She smirked.
"Then what do I have to say for you to believe me? What do I have to do?"
"Do what your twin promised me. Train me and my mana."
"Alright, I think I have important matters to attend to. See you, princess!" At that, Anteros instantly left them and Asteria furrowed her eyebrows at him leaving in the middle of a conversation. Gosh, the audacity!
Lord Eros stayed, "Darling it won't take just overnight. It will take a long time for you to master it. And we need to get you to the mountains and meditate and cleanse your energy."
She nodded, "Then do it."
Lord Eros cocked his head to the side, "Did you understand-"
Princess Asteria scoffed, "You can't right? I see how it is. Just don't mess with me again if you don't have any plans in taking me seriously. Plus, you just destroyed my beauty sleep, Lord Eros."
"What can I do? I've been waiting for you from outside since I have to stay close to you."
She rolled her eyes, "You should have just asked my maid to get you a nice room then."
He nodded, "Aright, I'll keep that in mind."
She shook her head, then clicked her tongue, knowing he can't understand sarcasm. "What do you really want, Lord Eros? Say it already and stop bugging me if you don't want to make my wish come true."
"What was your wish again?" He asked, "I seem to forget."
Gosh, she's really one moment away from hitting him in the head. "I wish that you'll help e not get married."
He scoffed, "I'm afraid I couldn't grant that, princess. I can't control your father or the kingdom's vote. Since you're a princess, you have no choice but to be married off to some other prince like a trophy."
It irritates her how he's completely right…
He then continued, "But I could grant your other wish. Marrying me."
She gasped, "NO, that was not my wish-"
He had a lopsided grin on his face now, "You forgot? you instantly proposed to me the moment you revived me."
"It was different, I was-"
"Let me sleep here. For the night." He suddenly changed the topic.
"If I won't agree?" She taunted.
And he shrugged, "Then I'll sleep beside you. It's raining outside and I would be drenched in the rain if I continue sleeping on your balcony."
Tsk. This man. To think he won't even remember that she is an unmarried woman. What would people think if they see him in her room now?
They would surely judge her to death.
"You're a dark mage, can't you do something about the rain?"
"It's not my specialty. I'm a fire elemental type, remember?"
Oh..a fire is weak under water…
Sighing, she nodded. "You know what? Just sleep on the sofa. Do not, I repeat, come near my bed without my permission, alright? And make sure to leave before my maid sees you." She said tiredly, now yawning.
"Alright." And with that, Princess Asteria saw how Lord Eros lay down on her sofa.
"Don't try anything weird, okay?"
He paused at that, "What kind of weird thing are you referring to?" He asked and she just ignored him, too tired to deal with him.