Chapter 33: The Demon Queen of Flames part 2
"So, back to you girlfriend. Based on what I've heard so far about your status in school being one of its brightest stars, I'm assuming that she is someone who stands on equal footing as you. So, what was her title when she became a Hero?" Natas immediately expressed her curiosity to Kayn's first girlfriend.
"That's where you are mistaken," Kayn shook his head. "Unlike me who is merely a Superhuman, my girlfriend on the other hand is already an official Hero. One of the most respected and well-known in the Moon Dragon City on top of that,"
"Her title was Empress of Flame,"
"You're kidding me?!" Natas instantly felt disbelief the moment he heard Kayn mentioning the title 'Empress of Flame'. It wasn't because of the fact that any Heroes with the title 'Empress' or 'Emperor' on their name would automatically entail that they are powerful in a specific category. Rather, it was because the person who holds this title was someone important and dear to him.
"I know, I know," Kayn totally understood the kind of reaction that Natas is showing. Honestly, this was the reaction that he gets every single time they learned of who his girlfriend was — disbelief. "How on Earth did you get such a high-value and status woman as your girlfriend? Well, my only answer to that question is; I don't know, because, in the first place, it wasn't me who pursued our relationship, but her. I guess all I could say is, I am one hella lucky guy,"
"Oh, don't be mistaken and get ahead of yourself with those narcissistic thoughts of yours," Natas immediately interrupted with a roll of his eyes. "I wasn't feeling disbelief by the fact that you got such a woman as your girlfriend. After all, you are someone who would become the number one Hero on Earth in the future. So, something like this was within my expectations,"
"What I am in disbelief about is the fact that we were unknowingly connected in some way already way before I took noticed of you,"
"What do you mean?"
"'Empress of Flames' was my incarnation. Simply put, she was the only Hero that I picked to sponsor after your father decided to offer his life in exchange for you,"
"Don't joke with me! It is already well-known information that the individual who you chose to sponsor was the 'Demon Queen of Flames'!"
Demon Queen of Flames. She was one of the new companions who followed him after everyone on Earth decided to abandon him. At first, he didn't trust her the least bit. That's because she was a Villain who had nearly destroyed the Church of Fate and the Church of Messiah. Obviously, this was the time when he was still clueless and ignorant of the truth.
Although at that time, the Demon Queen of Flames explained to him that her true goal for doing so was to reveal to the world the blasphemy committed by these two World Leaders. But because of some unforeseen events, her plan didn't come to fruition and she failed to save everyone. Even after hearing her explanation, he still didn't believe her since she holds the title 'Demon Queen', which is a title that only the greatest Villains on Earth or inside the 'Tower' would hold. It's akin to the title 'Empress' and 'Emperor' for Heroes. Who knows if she was really telling the truth back then or if it was just a lie to trick him?
Only now did he truly understand that everything was indeed the truth…
"Knowing your goals now, I finally understood why Demon Queen of Flames decided to help me. I really can't believe that the people who I thought to be my greatest enemies were also one of the few individuals who still believe and put fate on me. For that, thank you," Kayn slightly bowed his head to express his appreciation to Natas and the rest of the Gods. He was also feeling a bit apologetic now that he knew the truth.
"No, you are wrong!" Natas abruptly shook his head. "I didn't tell her to help you. It was her that personally decided to do it,"
"Wait, if you weren't involved…"
"Empress of Flames and Demon Queen of Flames is but a single person. She was known as Empress of Flames when she was still a Hero, but when she became a Villain, she earned the title Demon Queen of Flames,"
"So, you are telling me…"
This time, it is Kayn that felt disbelief.
The woman that she decided to abandon after an unfortunate event turned out to be the person who would help him a lot when everyone abandoned him. And it wasn't just any ordinary help, she literally offered her life for him.
Empress of Flames…
Demon Queen of Flames…
Seriously?! Why did he only notice now the similarities between these two titles?
The word that changed was basically the title 'Empress' only. It changed from 'Empress' to 'Demon Queen'.
"This is ridiculous!"
"Even I couldn't believe it,"
This was something that both Kayn and Natas weren't expecting to learn from each other.
"No wonder she insisted on helping you and went against my original order for the first time. To tell the truth, she was supposed to be our last hope to save us from the 'Tower' after seeing you losing your mind. But because she followed after you and even offered her life for you, we were left with no other choice but to go with the first plan," Natas heave a heavy sigh. He strongly believes that the main reason why she offered her life for Kayn was out of her love for him because by doing so they would choose to return their support to him. After all, she knew the truth from the moment she became his incarnation as he had informed her of the risk that she would have to shoulder the moment she accepts him as her sponsor.
"You're not trying to trick me or something, right? Because I seriously hope that you aren't lying to me at this moment,"
"And what do you think I would get if I lie to you? Think about it, if what I told you was a lie, would I stand to gain something?"
"Well, you won't, but I definitely would!" This was his girlfriend they are talking about. If he accidentally offends her, there's no doubt that he'd experience the same fate as Rys and Albert despite him being her boyfriend.
"Fair enough… But, don't misunderstand, I have no intention of doing that," Natas immediately turned stern. "Weren't we supposed to look for new allies from the start? Now that it turns out that your girlfriend is one of your new companions, what would you do?"
Hearing Natas' question, Kayn suddenly stopped walking. "I am not going to lie. The first thing that honestly came into my head just now was to immediately recruit her. Practically speaking, her abilities are undeniably one of the greatest and she'd be more than helpful to me if she becomes one of my allies. After all, this is the 'Empress of Flames' and the 'Demon Queen of Flames' we are talking about. In the future, she would become one of the legendary Heroes on both the Earth and the 'Tower', and when she became a Villain, she became even more dangerous to the point that she nearly destroyed two of the Ten World Leaders. It'd be a waste not to get her to be a part of my team, right?"
"However…"
"Another thought inside of my head is telling me not to," Kayn turned silent.
"Why?"
"I genuinely don't know what I have done that I ended up receiving her love and affection. Look at me… Right now, I basically have nothing to offer to her. I am just a poor lad who was fortunate enough to be chosen by her. Just the fact alone that I became her boyfriend could already put me as one of the luckiest dudes alive. But to choose to make her sacrifice her happiness again is a completely different story… Especially now that I know that she wouldn't even hesitate to offer her life for me,"
"Right now, I am debating whether I should let her go this instant or continue with this relationship…"
"I know that it sounded like I am overreacting or something, but just think about it. My problem has nothing to do with her right now, and I also have the opportunity to make her not go through what she had to encounter in the future and perhaps make her live a life completely different from what she decided. Simply put, I hold the variable for her to be happy in the future. At least in the third life, I want her to be happy,"
"How can you be so certain that she would be happy with you gone? It was already proven in the future that even after being separated from you, she would still choose to be by your side and fight side by side with you in your time of need. Supposed you will leave her today, are you confident that you can make her happy and prevent her from the same fate again?"
"With me knowing the future. What makes you think that I don't have that ability?" Instead of answering, Kayn decided to reply with another question.
"Fair enough," Natas resigned. As much as he dislikes it, Kayn is right. With the current him, even if he is still considered a Superhuman, he could easily do what he intends on doing as long as he desires to really do it. After all, information is key to winning all wars. So, it is useless to continue with their argument.