'I recalled my whole life in that short period, all my regrets, my unfulfilled wishes, my disappointments all of them flashed through my eyes. I saw the people I care about, my nanny, my brother, and the one I disappointed the most, my father. Even till the last moment we never cleared away the wall that set us apart after my mother's death.
I closed my eyes as I waited for the pain to wash over me as that heinous snake takes my life... I waited but the death I was waiting for never came and neither did the pain, I slowly opened my eyes.
The scene shocked me, a single man, stood in the air wearing a white robe, his dark hair fluttered, swayed by the wind, his held-out hand grasping the head of the snake emperor.
I thought of pinching myself but the ghastly wound on my arm confirmed it, I was definitely not in a dream, this was real but how could a human possibly hold back a disaster-class creature by himself and with just a single hand? It struggled but it couldn't get away no matter how hard it writhed and hissed.
Finally, the man put an end to the snake's struggle as he grasped tighter the snake burst... Yes, it burst, and its flesh and blood flew around but somehow miraculously none of them fell on me or that man.
The man turned around and looked at me directly in my eyes, my heart skipped a beat, how could a man this handsome possibly exist? I too looked into his golden pupils and a sense of exhaustion passed through my body. I couldn't let myself become unconscious because I wanted to take in more of his face, my eyelids were getting heavy but I still tried to keep them open.
He walked towards me and extended his hand as he held my chin, I blushed. Just being near him gave me a sense of warmth and security, I finally fell asleep after I heard him say "Woman you are too damn noisy". I think he picked me up after that as I felt his warm embrace.'
Carsina's eyelids twitched as she heard the sweet chirping of birds, she slowly opened her eyes and sat up as she pulled down her blanket. She looked around only to find herself in a simple yet elegant room with designed tiles. She saw looked down at her former wounded arm, but she realized that it was completely healed and there were no traces or scars from that wound.
"where am I?"
Suddenly, the door creaked open as Zane walked in holding a bowl of hot steaming soup. Carsina couldn't help but gulp at the sight of the handsome man who had saved her the night before, till now she still couldn't believe everything that had transpired.
Zane walked towards the bed with an indifferent expression on his face, but it still came off as charming with that face of his. He was not too muscular but he was also not very skinny, he had a lean and straight figure which oozed confidence and dignity. He pulled a chair and sat beside the bed where Carsina was. Carsina wanted to open her mouth to say "Sir, please marry me" but decided against it as it would come off as being too shameless and he would mistake her for an easy woman. She finally decided to calm her heart and muttered "Thanks for saving me"
Zane looked into the eyes of the shy beauty and said "Mm, Here."
He stirred the hot soup as he took a spoonful and blew on it to cool it down a little, he held out the spoon towards her mouth.
Carsina's face was tinted red, as a royal princess, and a talented sorcerer she has always carried out her lessons and studies by herself and never had any male friends. Seeing how she was going to be handfed by the man in front of her, she blushed but still, she opened her mouth and slowly drank the soup. She savored the taste and was amazed, it was delicious. Her eyes brightened.
Seeing her satisfied with the food, Zane nodded.
He took another spoon of soup to feed her but instead of readily eating it he saw Carsina trying to say something "I am-"
Zane interrupted her "It's alright we can finish with the introduction after you are done eating"
Carsina nodded as she gulped down another spoonful. They didn't talk anymore while he was feeding her. She finished the bowl of soup as Zane wiped her mouth with a slightly wet cloth.
He sat back on his chair and said "Go on"
Carsina's expression turned serious, she bowed her head and said "First of all, I would sincerely like to thank you sir for saving me from the Kyroserpent emperor, If you wouldn't have appeared my death was certain. My name is Carsina Cy Lyondyll, and I am the princess of the Lyondyll empire. Please allow me to welcome your esteemed self to our empire, you will surely be treated with respect and you can demand anything you wish once my father returns to the empire"
Carsina was sure the man would agree as Lyondyll was one of the greatest empires of the central continent and he was someone who could not only fight against a disaster-class monster but overwhelm it with his single hand. If he decided to return with her then he could keep her safe until her father returns. And once he does she will convince the emperor of Zane's strengths and marry him, who would give up such a chance? But Zane's response shocked her.
"Greetings princess, My name is Zane Aurelius. And about your offer, No thanks, I quite like it here." he paused for a bit and then asked "You said you are a princess, right? What are doing in a place like this?"
Carsina was a bit disappointed to see Zane refuse her offer without any hesitation but she understood that someone who could kill a demigod like Kyrosnake emperor without breaking a sweat was not a simple being and was not someone who could be invited over so easily.
She said "As my father, The Emperor is not currently in the empire, the high-ranking nobles are making their moves. I was being chased by men hired by a certain duke. So please, I know I am being selfish but could you please come back to the empire with me, sir."
Zane raised his eyebrows at the sudden revelation. He closed his eyes for a bit and thought to himself 'It seems like she has lost some memories including those of the chant with that part of her soul she offered in the spell.'
He opened his eyes and said "I won't involve myself in your country's affairs"
Carsina's eyes dimmed
"but..."
She looked up at the sudden change in his words. Zane smiled "You can stay until you can recover your vitality or until your father comes back. But it's not for free, you have to handle some chores"
The princess blushed when she saw the handsome man's smile for the first time and she was delighted by his offer.
"You have my gratitude, esteemed sir"
She said with a bright smile painting her face.
Zane got up and was just about to leave when he heard the princess asking "Sir Zane, did you change my clothes"
He froze in his tracks as he looked back "Umm...."