Son of the Hero King

Listening to his words, Milia tried to intervene, “Your Highness.” But Sol waved his hand to stop her.

“I am not whining. Oh, woe me. It would be hypocritical, don’t you think? And while I am undoubtedly quite the hypocrite, I do not want to hide my head like an ostrich. As the crown prince and future king, I own Lustburg and all its citizens. At the same time, I owe Lustburg and while I cannot put it as my first priority, I must make sure the people are safe and able to live fulfilling life.”

Sol had many ideas he wished to implement and unlike his predecessors, he had the resources necessary to do so. He did not think that he was a messiah who could change the world but he had people he knew he could count on. People he knew would move even the earth for him if he so asked.

Once he became a demigod, he would be able to cover the entire mortal realm without much of a problem and by then he might even be able to bring a modicum of peace.

“I am sure your highness can bring peace.”

Sol shook his head, “I cannot. As long as free will exist, evil will always exist. This is an absolute reality. The only way to get rid of evil for good would be to get rid of free will in its entirety. But getting rid of free will is perhaps one the greatest forms of evil that could exist.”

Sol did have such a great goal as getting rid of all evil. He simply wished to bring happiness to those he cared for and those he had a duty to care for.

“Milia. Do you remember, you told me that I should not sign a contract with you because it would be a waste of my precious capacity?” He asked with a soft voice. Since Milia was standing behind him, he could not see her expression but he could feel her heartbeats increase.

But these weren’t the only things that were wildly moving. The gears of fate itself were moving, changing, adjusting. The choice he was about to make was not the most optimal if logic was solely observed and the strings of fate itself had decided that Sol should take Nuwa as his 4th contract rather than Milia.

This was the logical choice between the two. No matter how one looked at it, Milia was nothing more than a bad copy of Echidna and an inferior version of Nuwa. For all the power she possessed, she was flawed and the power she wielded could not compare to that of Echidna and Nuwa.

But — So what?

Sol grinned as a faint golden luster shone in his eyes before swiftly vanishing. His goal had always been to fight against Fate and to control his own destiny. He refused to simply be a lapdog that followed the Threads of Fate without trying to think. Doing so would be the same as accepting that Fate was absolute and could not be changed.

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Milia, standing behind him became flustered, this was a feeling she was not used to. After all, she had always been the one in control of the situation and as well as her feelings.

“Your Highness…” She took a deep breath and steadied her feelings, “Sol. I believe that you are making a mistake. Even if you have enough capacity to have Nuwa after me, keeping the remaining capacity for a possible alliance would be better. Furthermore, once you bond with Nuwa, you will realize that the power we gave you is the same. Only, Nuwa is the superior version.”

A contract allows one to obtain power. Even though Sol’s combat style was already pretty much complete, there was nothing wrong with having more skills. Furthermore, it would be possible for Sol to sign a contract with an elf or a dwarf and thus have an alliance with those kingdoms.

She knew that Sol needed the earth element from what he told her and surely he could obtain it from her but once again having a contract with a dwarf would give him the same element.

No matter how she looked at it, there were only losses and no advantages to signing a contract with her.

“Your Highness, I understand that you wish to do right by me. Perhaps you are confused because I am the first woman with whom you had a relationship. Perhaps you feel pity because I am the weakest out of all those close to you. But please do not let emotions cloud your judgments. My loyalty to you is eternal and my love will not waver. I need no proof of the feelings you have for me either.”

Her voice started breaking a little even as she spoke those last words and she lowered her head or at least she started to but she was stopped by a large and warm hand that cupped her cheek and raised her face.

With the sun at his back, she could barely see the expression on his face but she could only become dazed by the sight of a halo-like light forming around him. She had the impression that she was surrounded by nothing but love and warmth and at the same time, she felt like she was standing in front of a being larger than life.

“Milia, listen to me.” He lowered his face and brought it closer to hers, “I am not a confused boy nor do I feel pity for you. Milia, you are my rock. You are the one I know I can count on more than anyone else. You are the shadow to my light and there is not a single person in this world I would wish to have as a bond more than you.”

Their foreheads gently touched, “I know you feel inferior compared to those who surround me. I know that you only have my best interest at heart when you say that you do not wish to form a contract with me. You always did this and I am thankful for everything you have done for me. But this time I am not talking to you as simply a servant.”

His voice was oh-so gentle and oh-so-sweet even as he continued to address her, “I ask you, Milia. Not the perfect maid you portray yourself as, not the leader of the crown shadow nor even as experiment number 26. I do not ask for reasons or logic. I only wish for you to answer. Do you wish to form a contract with me? Do you wish to stand beside me for all eternity as the shadow that will grow with my light?”

Tears gathered at the corner of her eyes and for the first time in years, Milia cried as she uttered the words that she had been keeping close to her heart.

“Of course I do!”