Asura sat comfortably in his expensive carriage, the red velvet seats cushioning the bumpy ride as the interior was painted a navy blue and white with clear windows on either side.
Slowly breathing the crisp morning air beside him, the beautiful Mu Xue quietly looked out the opposite window with a pout, a reflection of her lips shimmering both glossy and wet from their previous kiss.
"M-M-Master.... can we stop k-kissing...!?"
"Oh? Are you sure you want to stop?"
"Mmm..."
He looked at Mu Xue, so red in the cheeks that she might explode at any moment, tapping his cheek for a moment before leaning forward so close she could feel his warm breath blowing against her cheeks.
"Really? Do you want to stop because you dislike it?" A charming smile came to his face, seeing how radiant she looked as the gentle flickers of ice danced around her body with a beautiful shimmer of azure frost.
"Mmm... what if people see your fiancée? Even if I like it, they might...." Mu Xue lowered her head shyly, her eyes looking down while he gently grabbed her chin to lift her gaze to meet his own.
"So? People will know how much I love my fiancée."
"Don't... How can Xue'er say no to that?"
Asura parted his lips before kissing Mu Xue again, tasting her lips' sweetness as the carriage rocked back and forth while they continued travelling towards the capital city.
"Then don't say no, accept it. Xue'er."
"Nnn." Her heart raced, feeling Asura's tongue sliding against her own as the sensation of warmth spread throughout her chest.
Mu Xue blushed, wrapping her arms around Asura's neck as she pressed her breasts against his chest, melting into his embrace while he pulled her into his lap, one hand caressing her slender waist while the other tenderly massaged the softness of her supple rear.
Her thoughts were hazy, only wanting to indulge in Asura's passionate embrace as he slowly pulled away, licking Mu Xue's moistened lips with a seductive grin.
"You're too cute~," He said, resting his forehead against hers while he felt the cold chill of her breath softly tickling his cheeks.
Mu Xue blushed even more, hiding her face in Asura's neck while he wrapped his arms around her waist, tightly holding her in his lap.
Asura's thumb gently pressed against her soft pink lips, wiping their excess drool away as he felt the small amount of energy gathering inside his body. Like a dehydrated man in a desert being given a water bottle, his body began to awaken.
The frosty mana of Mu Xue entered his body through their lips before being transformed into blissful energy that warmed his body and veins, pumping around after being injected into his heart, improving his physical and mental capabilities.
"Master, we shouldn't..."
"Silly girl, I speak of you when the word fiancée is mentioned. I won't marry that selfish Drakkur woman."
"Drakkur woman...."
Asura chuckled, nibbling Mu Xue's ear as she squealed in surprise, almost jumping off his lap before being caught by the waist, hugging her tightly with a mischievous grin.
"But... Master... aren't we just servant and Master?" Mu Xue questioned, resting her head against Asura's broad chest as her ears burned red in embarrassment.
"Why not? I like you. Do you dislike me?" Asura replied, gently stroking Mu Xue's waist as the carriage continued rocking them back and forth while the driver navigated the bumpy road ahead.
"No! I don't dislike Master... but..." Mu Xue mumbled, burying her head in Asura's shoulder while her entire body tensed nervously, unsure if this was real or a dream.
"Then be my fiancée, silly girl. I will handle everything, including helping you become a third circle Magic Knight." Asura grinned, lifting Mu Xue's chin as he planted another kiss on her pink lips, making her heart race with indescribable joy.
She had no idea why, but every time she kissed Asura, her mind would turn fuzzy as if she was drunk, unable to think clearly until she calmed down after a short rest. Yet, after that rest, she felt her entire body was energised and filled with vitality and power.
Mu Xue smiled, nuzzling Asura's neck while he gently rubbed her back, soothing the tense nerves in her stomach before relaxing her entire body as she melted in his embrace.
After enjoying the peaceful silence together for a few hours, Mu Xue suddenly lifted her head as Asura curiously raised an eyebrow, wondering why she had such a serious expression.
"Master... there are bandits ahead..." Mu Xue whispered, opening the carriage door to leap out as Asura watched her jump high into the sky, using her icy mana to create glistening wings of ice before flying several metres above the ground and taking out a longsword from the air like magic.
He looked on—the group were just like in his memory, but there should be three others that would attack from the other side. Asura's eyes narrowed before he stood up, a strange change in his atmosphere as if the man with Mu Xue was a gentle mirage, a soothing dream.
And the current him, a fearsome nightmare.
'How do I fight? Which monolith will guide me?' His thoughts were arrogant, questioning the Monoliths as he unlocked the opposite door and stepped down slowly.
His black tunic, wrapped in a black and red noble coat made of fine leather and velvet, draping down to his knees, the symbol of Fenix on his chest, a flaming bird with a crown atop a castle.
Asura didn't falter—although weak, he was no coward. Listening to the sound of blades and magic clashing on the other side, his eyes watched the three normal men with a quiet gaze.
"Oh? The target shows his face while the guards are away?"
"What's wrong, young Master? Did you get frightened by the fierce men?"
"How about you come with us, and you won't get that pretty girl hurt? Maybe we can return her to working conditions after some fun."
"Gyahaha."
"Hahaha, no way—captain loves breaking the cute girls."
'Answer me, which of you will teach me how to use this sword and kill these fat, burly vermin!'
[Devour] and [Devil] glowed with a dark glimmer, the sword in the [??????] sword slowly forming a realistic blade as it faded from his mind, the blade formed in his hand.
A black greatsword over one hundred and twenty centimetres, with a bloody blade, as if it drank the blood of a hundred men.
Countless words entered his mind, but Asura rejected them.
'Teach me the basics and one good sword art for learning. I do not wish to be a paper tiger or a tinfoil knight. My mind could compete with those using magic to boost theirs in my last life! And with this wonderful power, I will surpass them again!'
Somehow, hearing his arrogant voice filled with pride, the glow brightened around all monoliths, but the Devil and Devour were the brightest as the information he asked for began to flood his mind, etching strange runes that he should never dream of understanding in his brain and he knew every single word.
A whole language gifted in an instant.
Upon seeing the eerie and dark sword, the three bandits looked at each other before drawing their cheap, crude weapons.
"Look at that expensive sword; it screams spoilt noble!"
"Get him! Hehe, and let's make him watch us make that girl scream before killing him."
⟪Devil Arts⟫
—Soulfire Blade
A surge of red and black flames emerged from the tip of his fingers, wrapping the handle and dancing along his guard before enveloping his crimson greatsword.
The flames weren't hot—instead, they were cold yet gave off the illusion of fire, creating a mesmerising effect as the bandits froze momentarily, entranced by the beautiful flames before Asura rushed forward.
He was not a mage nor a true warrior. His moves and body didn't fully match, but the large sword gave him a reach advantage as he swiped at the leading tubby bandit with a mace.
The first swipe missed, almost sending Asura spinning off course, exposing his back as he desperately used the sword to stop his advance, the tubby bandit had dodged, but he too was shocked by the cut that opened across his face, a line of blood seeping down.
⟪Devour Arts⟫
—Blood Reaper
An invisible wave of black energy erupted from Asura's palm, pulsing like an eerie claw. It spread outwards as it surrounded the bandits before sinking into their skin, like a [vampiric grasp] sucking a minuscule amount of health and vitality, increasing Asura's strength and stamina.
Seeing Asura charge, the bandits shook themselves awake, raising their weapons to clash against his crimson sword, sparks of fiery black flame igniting.
His crimson blade flickered, leaving afterimages as the three bandits stared blankly at the blurry figure, watching Asura swing his greatsword easily as if it were a feather.
"Phew...!"
An arc of black flames burst from Asura's blade, cutting across the chests of two bandits, burning their clothes as if acidic, eating away at the cloth as they screamed in shock, dropping their weapons.
Asura quickly followed up with another slash—the bandits were affected by the fear caused by the Devil Arts because they were normal men. Mages would never have been tricked.
'Time to die!'
Like an executioner wielding a heavy axe, Asura's greatsword swung down a second time, splitting the screaming bandit's head in half before falling silent.
Blood splattered across the road, painting the dry dirt path with a layer of scarlet red. Asura turned to the other two men, frozen in place, staring at the bloody-faced Asura, who had a twisted smile despite killing a man so easily.
"Aren't you going to run?" Asura asked, stepping forward as the bandits finally snapped out of their daze before trying to run into the woods, screaming and crying.
*Woosh*
The sound of the grim blade cutting through the air sliced their legs off, causing them to fall onto the ground, bouncing and screaming from the bad angle as Asura approached calmly, lifting his sword.
Another pulse of eerie energy erupted from his palm, draining their life force as the two men cried loudly, begging for mercy as Asura looked at them, floundering on the ground helplessly as if they were already dead men.
Raising his sword, Asura stabbed the first bandit's head, piercing his skull before kicking the corpse off his blade.
'The heavy feeling in my arms, the ache of my muscles. I might never forget these three bandits and my first kill... Yet my body, my lips show no fear or anxiety.'
Asura sighed, approaching the remaining bandit as tears rolled down his cheeks, sobbing pathetically. "I'm sorry—please, spare me!"
"Die." Asura stabbed the bandit's chest, twisting his blade as his victim struggled and spat blood before laying still.
Looking at the corpses, he found a strange calmness as if his soul had ascended from his body, floating above himself as he witnessed his actions from a third-person perspective.
Asura cleaned his blade using their clothes, wiping the blood off before a sudden suction force began to surge from his chest—the bodies of the three men trembled before a strange blue orb, small to view like an egg, ripped from their stomachs and floated towards Asura.
Suddenly, the orb cracked into a beautiful storm of tiny blue stones and powder and shot into his body.
When it happened, his lips released a groan of pain as he knelt to the ground, veins bulging under his flesh as the black sword vanished, replaced by a regular iron greatsword...
"A-Asura!!!"
A moment later, Mu Xue appeared to see the state of the corpses and her Master.
She rushed to his side and hugged him tight—seeing his body trembling, blood oozing from his nose, he convulsed in her arms.
Mu Xue copied his actions in the carriage, remembering how it felt warm and soothing to her, kissing his lips before sharing her icy mana between their breaths, hoping to relieve his pain.
After ten minutes, Asura stopped trembling before collapsing into Mu Xue's arms, his eyes closed as she panicked, checking his pulse before sighing with relief—he was alive, albeit exhausted.
"Master... You can use magic?" Mu Xue hugged him tight, with tears in her eyes, feeling that his long years of suffering were finally ending, as she watched his sleeping face with a smile.
"I will keep your secret until you wish to share it."