The Conquerors Path

"Yes, as I told you, it's just to fool the Imperial family," I said for the fifth time as Mira kept giving me a hard gaze. She seemed not happy with me, her lover going on dates with Olivia. Even if it is for acting to show the royal family, Mira now looking at me with a narrowed gaze muttered.

"But I still don't like it."

Her words made me helplessly shake my head as I kissed her forehead.

"You know if you keep being this cute to me, I won't be able to let go of you and will keep you by my side always."

The words of mine made Mira smile as she responded.

"That's something I would love to do, but it's hard to do now."

"Sigh... that's true," I replied back to Mira's words with a frown, my hands once again going to pat her back with light steps as I started to speak.

"Even I don't like this, but as you know, I can't just say no to the proposal Empress Lora put forth. That would make things sour between us, so this is the only way. I just have to show Olivia that we aren't compatible, and I don't think it will be hard to get her not to like me."

Mira nodded slowly at my words, she understood the depth of my action but it still didn't make it easy for Mira to accept.

"Your family is on board with this?"

Mira asked, thus hiding my inner feelings I spoke.

"Um, I told them I am not interested in this, though it came with the cost of my mother grilling me about the girl I like, for you know she isn't stupid not to understand that there is something deeper at play."

These words of mine make Mira flinch, she seemingly feels a bit guilty at the fact that she is hiding this from my mother, well, what other choice is there? Mira to jump to my mother and say that she is in love with her nephew and has done things that no family should cross?

'Though in that regard I crossed that line long ago.'

"Sigh... I just don't like lying to Grace so much," Mira spoke with a light tone, her face being rubbed against my chest, making sure to take in all of my warmth as I patted her back, taking a feel of her silky hair in my hands as I spoke.

"We won't hide this forever; once everything is settled, perhaps we can tell my family."

My words soothed Mira as she raised her head in surprise to look at me, her eyes focusing on mine as she asked.

"Really?"

I smiled lightly at her eyes, my face being reflected in her pupils as I spoke with a nod.

"Indeed, in fact, I want the world to know of my true love for you. Maybe the world might condemn me, but will they dare to throw down on me when I am the hero of the world?"

The last of my sentence was enough to make Mira's eyes dim a little, once again I was being held in a similar lock of her hands holding my cheeks, rubbing them with her thumb as she spoke in a light vulnerable tone.

"I don't want to lose you, I don't want to see you hurt, my love. I also don't want you to be some hero, just always safe, and for that, I will try, but something tells me it won't be easy, and thus I just want you to promise me that if things get too risky in your endeavor for the world, you will leave, let it go, cause I am coming to understand the fact that I wouldn't want to live in a world without you."

The pure love in her words even shook my heart, the gentle love and care in her eyes being fully genuine as her hands on my face tightened. I could see the fear passing in her eyes at losing me, and I didn't directly reply to Mira's words, my face passing around with several emotions, especially hesitation.

A minute passed by like this till I closed my eyes, my head being pulled away from her hands as I leaned myself to the chair, my head relaxing as I started to take deep breaths, in a sense several of the mana around me being tense, while the emotions that I am sending Mira being extremely complex and complicated.

Love, happiness, sadness, despair, light, freedom, acceptance, and more...

The very classical feel of a man who has suffered through so much yet is trying to get better.

"I always seemed to be unlucky, my father dying because he had to protect me and in that darkness, all I had was you, a light in my broken home, and that's why I love you more than anyone else. Even when I defeated my darkness, a duty of protecting the world fell into my lap and I broke through it all with your smile in my heart."

"Austin....."

A pure amount of pain filled Mira's voice as she called at me, all the emotions and my expression being more than enough for Mira to understand the depths I had fallen to, and it only went its way to show how much I love her when I speak of all this and even above that it shows my character of good that outshines all evil.

"When I came to the academy, I just wanted to get one last touch of your embrace and I thought I might be able to break you away from me, that I might be able to embrace my role as the hero but it was all for naught. I can't let go of you, and that's why it means the whole world to me that you accepted me."

A trembling-like silence filled the room, the only sound being the deep breaths that kept leaving Mira's mouth, the tremble in her body as she reached her hands to my face, she was overwhelmed with all the love I have for her being sent to her, along with my acceptance for her.

"That's why my love, my Mira, I can now promise you that I will try to keep my life above the world for you."

The end of my words being laced with my eyes opening up to see the light tears falling from Mira's eyes, they slowly falling down the edge of her cheeks, a troubled look coming over my face as I took my hand to touch the right side of her face, my thumb lightly washing away the single drop of tear.

"Please don't cry...."

I begged, to which Mira tried her best to smile, both her hands coming to hold my single hand over her cheeks, her hands pressing against my hand with power as she kept lightly shaking her head, her words slipping out from her mouth as her purple hair fell a bit over her face.

"It-It's just I never thought I could ever be loved like this, it just... just feels... amazing...."

Mira's muttering falls with her light tears from her face, they bring a mix of happiness and sadness. Slowly, she leaned herself to me, pressing her forehead against my chest, my hand still being held to her cheeks, while I felt the light tears of hers staining my chest.

"It just feels stupid now that I felt jealous..."

She muttered in between her light sobs, while she did so, my free left hand went to her back, slowly moving up and down.

"Would you look at this, the ever impressive future ruler of mana, Mira Lionheart is a crybaby."

I muttered in a teasing voice, earning a chuckle from her as she lightly pressed her forehead against me harder.

"You really seemed to know how to get my eyes running....."

She muttered in a complaining voice to which I replied.

"Well, that's what happens when you are in love."

My reply in its energy was filling Mira's body as she whispered.

"Love....."

I smiled at her words, though that froze a bit as something popped up in front of my eyes.

+999999 affection!

'Yeah, I'm not even surprised anymore...'