"You did not just summon him! Nothing happened! Our daughter is happy!" Kagura yelled and stood up.
"Now this is quite interesting. It reminds me of when Ashen summoned the Dragon Guardian on me. This is quite the show." Ashen's stepfather said and watched.
"If you all must know, I am against this wedding for one reason alone. I don't mind our kingdoms uniting, but this is how it will go...Soca, our Sacred Hero will remain here to keep Prince Ashen in check." Ericus said.
"You're against Ashen and Pandora getting married? Why? For the days she's stayed with us they've been all lovey dovey with one another. Ashen has spent more time with her in the eleven days she was here than he's ever spent with anyone and Pandora adores him!" Kinona said then stood up. "The Hero of Legend is said to have a goal of defeating the Ultimate Evil! What are you trying to say about MY son?"
"In due time, the truth will be revealed to you, but just know... Your son holds more darkness than one might think." Ericus said then looked at Soca.
Soca looked at everyone and sensed a powerful presence nearby. He looked behind him then noticed Cipi and turned to her. Cipi looked at Soca then lightning crackled around her body. Dragon markings began to appear and shine on her body then she dashed toward Soca.
"Halt." A voice said then Cipi stopped.
Ashen walked onto the courtyard with a half awake Pandora, holding onto his arm. Ashen looked at Ericus and his eyes shined a bit. "We are not to be enemies with one another. We just united and you want to throw all of that away?"
Ericus looked at Ashen then chuckled. "It is not I who will be throwing this alliance down the drain. It is you. Once everyone figures out what you truly are...you will have no one. I don't know how you got Pandora, future Queen of the Mythics, to take your hand in marriage so quickly, but it will not last long. You're incompatible."
"Father..!" Cecilia said then noticed Ashen hold his hand out to her. She looked at him then back at Ericus.
"We had a Royal Battle when she got here. She lost." Ashen said.
Ashen's stepfather's grin grew wider. "Oh? And your reward was to marry her? If she was to be eliminated, you could've had Aestrea in your fingertips."
"That isn't my goal. By uniting our two nations, we have effectively become unstoppable. The power of a Dragon and a Mythic is unmatched. When she told me about King Xavier's attack, it only made my choice much clearer." Ashen said. "If you wish to throw away your one chance at defeating King Xavier then by all means...go ahead, but the moment your Hero strikes me, Cipi will wreak havoc against you and all your people. I will have her wipe your entire nation off the maps."
Kagura looked at Ashen then looked at his eyes. "Ericus, those eyes don't lie. He isn't bluffing. Stand down!"
"Is that fear I sense..?" Ragnarok chuckled and appeared next to Ashen, suppressing his energy. "Kagura is scared of you. Perfect for getting her on our side. Use this opportunity."
Silas looked at Kagura then gulped. "Mother is right. We can not carelessly waste this opportunity to take down Xovia together. They are powerful, commanding one of the Seven Knighthood, the Knight of Courage to be more specific. They hold divine energy no normal being can overpower. We need Ashen and his army."
Ericus chuckled and crossed his arms. "Fine then, but Soca stays...just in case. You may never know with vile beasts like him."
"You-"
"It's alright, Mom. I think you've overstayed your welcome, King Ericus. We march for Xovia tomorrow. Anyone who's coming with us may stay in Exithia. I will provide you all with personal quarters. It is a long travel from here to Xovia. A week or so to be exact." Ashen said.
The people who decided to stay was Silas, Cecilia, and Pandora's bodyguard, Hime. Ericus chuckled and walked off. Kagura was hesitant about going with him, but did. She looked back at her children then went off with Ericus and his troops.
"Lord Ashen, how did you get here so fast?" Cipi asked.
"I used a secret passage. I felt your energy and his. I couldn't allow you two to fight." Ashen said.
"Not yet anyway." Ragnarok added.
"Sorry about our dad...He's extremely impulsive. He gave it no second thought before pulling this stunt." Silas sighed.
"It's fine. I anticipated it anyway which is why Cipi was here just in case I wouldn't be able to prevent things." Ashen said then looked at Pandora. She held onto Ashen tightly and leaned against him. "I'm going to take her back to bed, rest well everyone. We will need it for when we take on Xovia."
"Goodnight." Silas said, watching Ashen and Pandora walking back to the castle.
Soca watched Ashen and didn't sense anything so he walked off as well. "No evil is here. Ashen is an ally."
Cecilia watched Soca then sighed. 'Even if he is a monster...Sis loves him. Loves him enough to spend eternity with him. Ashen obviously cares about Pandora enough to prevent anything bad happening...what if he's wrong about Ashen..?' Cecilia thought to herself.
....
The next day arrived...
Pandora rolled over on the bed and didn't feel Ashen beside her. She opened her eyes quickly then sat up and looked around. "Ash?"
She got out of bed and wandered to every nook and cranny of Ashen's room, looking for him. She walked to the bathroom then tried to open the door and noticed it was unlocked. She walked inside then noticed Ashen naked drying himself off. She got a bit of a nosebleed and stared at him.
Ashen turned around and smiled. He walked over to Pandora then kissed her cheek. "I heard you looking for me. Very cute."
Pandora blushed then looked into his eyes. "W-Well I just.."
"Wow you're clinging onto him heavily. You can't even wake up on your own anymore." Ruination said.
Ashen began to get dressed and looked at himself in the mirror. "Today we march to Xovia. After we take Xovia down, we have to take down Ericus. What he did last night was not acceptable in the slightest. Forget getting on his good side..."
"It was interesting to watch, but everything went according to plan aside from Soca being awakened." Ragnarok said.
"WAIT WHAT?! SOCA IS AWAKE?!" Pandora yelled in shock.
Ashen nodded and put his hair in a ponytail. "Your imbecile of a father awakened him. For whatever reason, we may never know. This does certainly put a wrench in our plans because I was planning to destroy Xovia for my uncle. I will kill every member of the Knighthood and avenge him."
"No no no no...This is bad. VERY bad! That means we can't make use of our newly awakened Ember Abilities! We had sex for no reason then!" Pandora said.
"I mean it wasn't for no reason." Ashen said then looked at Pandora. He held her hip and looked into her eyes. "Even if we didn't awaken it, it certainly has me craving for more of you.."
Pandora blushed a lot and locked eyes with him. "No one has ever said that to me before...That was so hot.."
Ashen chuckled then kissed her lips. Pandora kissed back and wrapped her arms around his neck then began to kiss deeper, slipping her tongue into his mouth.
"Alright, alright. Any more of this and neither of you will make it to the march." Ragnarok said.
"Yeah, as much as we would love to watch you make love to each other, Pandora still needs to get ready." Ruination said.
Ashen broke the kiss then chuckled. "Right.."
Pandora whined and looked at Ruination and Ragnarok. "Just five more minutes."
"Alr-"
Ragnarok interrupted Ruination and crossed his arms. "No. We have people to kill."
"Hmph! Fine." Pandora sighed.
...
"Where's Ashen and Pandora..?" Silas asked and sighed, looking at the sky.
"Probably in his room, devouring each other's faces. I'll get them." Ishia said.
"No need." Ashen said then walked toward the group.
"We're here!~" Pandora said, hurrying behind Ashen.
"My liege." Harold said then walked toward Ashen.
Ashen stopped walking and looked at Harold. "What's up?"
"Lady Kinona wants you to have this blade." Harold said, holding out a dragon sword.
Rakurai or also known as Dragon's Wrath is a sword crafted by two ancient dragons named Akumu and Shibui. They managed to infuse godly draconic energy within the blade making it perfect for battle against godlike beings. It can even slay other dragons unlike most weapons that can't even scratch their scales.
Ashen took the sword from his hand then looked at it. "A weapon only trusted Ryus can wield. It doesn't unsheath for anyone except those who are worthy enough for its power."
"She said it was time for you to use it. You are to become king at the end of this month." Harold said.
Cipi looked at Ashen then crossed her arms. She smiled at him then noticed Soca walking toward him. "Hey!"
Soca stood in front of Ashen. "Prince Ashen. Your presence is menacing. Then again, a dragon's presence is naturally intimidating."
Ashen looked at Socu then smirked. "You have nothing to fear. I won't turn my blade against you."
Soca looked at Ashen then walked off. "Looking forward to fighting side by side with you."
Pandora watched then looked at Ashen. "This is so weird..."
Ashen nodded then looked at his allies. "Listen up everyone! Today we march to Xovia! We will strike down King Xavier and all other enemies that stand in our way! We will take no prisoners. We shall expand our nation and end this war swiftly!"
Ashen's allies roared then they set off on their march to Xovia.
....
A knight hurried to the throne room. "Lord Xavier, we've got news that the kingdoms of Aestrea and Exithia are marching to our kingdom."
Xavier opened his eyes and looked at the knight. "So Aestrea and Exithia have allied with one another to strike me down. This is news if I ever heard news before. Summon the Knight of Courage. We shall prepare our forces for an all out battle."
"Yes sir!" The Knight saluted then hurried off.
Xavier looked at his clock then stood up. He summoned his retainers and they appeared before him in cloaks. He looked at them and crossed his arms. "You three, stall the enemy forces while my army prepares. We must not let them win under any circumstances."
"We're on it!~" One of his retainers said.
"This is a mission we shall not fail." The other retainer said.
"Yes sir. This task shall be completed with swiftness." The third retainer said.
"Go, we have not a second more to waste." Xavier said.
The three warped away then Xavier walked down the stairs then walked down the isle of the throne room. He left the room to go to the training area to help his knights and officers train.