The ground beneath them stirred, and the green grass they stood on danced and proliferated as Achilles released the Territorial Domain III of the Organic and Inorganic Terrestrial Planetary Body.
Rose watched the scene unfold, her eyes shining with wonder.
It was the same look she always gave him whenever he displayed his fantastical abilities- a gaze filled with marvel and adoration.
Even now, she looked at him and their surroundings with the same awe, and it was in these small moments that Achilles remembered why he had fallen in love with her all those years ago!
A simple glance, a quiet joy at the smallest things.
Things others might consider ordinary, but for Rose, they are utterly extraordinary.
It was all these little things that captivated Achilles and bound him to her.
At this moment, he enclosed them within a domain of vines that shimmered with a verdant hue as he observed these same patterns again.
Inside, the green grass grew taller as vibrant flowers and vegetation blossomed. Shining with red, pink, purple, and blue lights, they filled the space with unfathomable beauty.
It was as though he was crafting a garden just for her.
Meanwhile, not too long ago, a similar ability was used to kill an Empusa!
Achilles possessed terrifying abilities, having absorbed the qualities of a planet, and now he was using them to create something extraordinary for the woman he loved.
"My Little Fatty, what is all of this?"
Rose's voice, filled with curiosity, pulled him from his thoughts.
Even while marveling at the breathtaking sight, her focus was still on him.
Achilles took in her figure, savoring the moment as if she might disappear at any second, and his voice echoed softly as he spoke.
"I told you before that there was something I needed to confide in you. Something I've only just discovered myself…"
He breathed out slowly as his fingers brushed against the vibrant flowers glowing all around them. Their life force seemed to pulse and give him strength to say what he wanted as he continued.
"The reason I can do what I do, unlike most Advanced Humans, mine...it all goes back to my father. He wasn't someone of this world."
Rose's eyes gradually widened in shock, her expression one of utter disbelief as if she slowly understood what he meant.
She covered her mouth, as though the words were too impossible to believe.
The man who had taken her in, alongside Achilles' mother, was associated with something not of this world?
Achilles nodded lightly, his eyes steady as he continued.
"He came from a distant place- one that I don't even know of. And the biggest revelation came from a memory I had not too long ago where he appeared before me and told me his true identity."
"He told me that he was an ancient king where he came from. The Eighth Adrastia Emperor King. A King that he was hunted and gravely injured before he arrived here. Why he was hunted is complex and even I do not entirely know. But his power was genuine. His Bloodline was genuine. And that through his blood, it makes me…"
He hesitated for a moment before the words left his lips.
"A King. The Ninth and Last Adrastia Emperor King- A King by Bloodline alone."
"The blood of my father, the blood I carry within me- it is the reason I can take in and devour the qualities of others and make them mine. A type of power that is uniquely within my family- of which I am the last of. A Lineage that comes from an ancient place even older than this world."
He looked at her, his voice tinged with vulnerability as he did not wish to hide anything from her.
"He told me all of this, and I've been trying to figure out how to tell you without sounding crazy. Without making you feel that I was different. I am still me, Rose. I've always been me, regardless of the power or bloodline I carry."
He went closer to her as he continued.
"Yet my father emphasized one thing to me- that I am destined to carry the mantle of this bloodline and the dangers it carries because those who hunted him may almost certainly come to hunt me."
"And I'm telling you all of this because as corny, ridiculous, dangerous, and fantastical as it might sound- if I'm truly destined to be King, then there's only one person I would ever want as my Queen. I say all this knowing about the terrifying Ancient Ones that are beginning to stir and rise. I say this knowing about the dangers that are coming for all of us."
He felt a little foolish saying the words aloud, but they were his truth. He no longer wished to hide or mask his feelings!
In the past, he might have been embarrassed or ashamed to express such emotions freely.
After all, he was a man. And men were not supposed to be emotional, right?
But still. He spoke freely!
Even if his eyes were closed, he could see and feel every slight twitch of her facial muscles, every subtle movement Rose made.
And then, from her eyes…
Her gaze turned into crescent moons, and she smiled the happiest smile he had ever seen from her.
Her voice, as sweet and soothing as nothing else he had heard before, echoed through the space amidst her tears.
"So your father, who was hunted and passed away, appears to you in a memory, tells you about your terrifying power, and that it comes from an Ancient Lineage, " She shook her head gently, her smile never fading. "And the biggest worry you had was whether I would agree to be your Queen?"
She spoke as though the answer had always been obvious, and he was just too dense to see it.
As though it was something she didn't even need to be asked.
Wiping her tears away, she locked her gaze with his and spoke seriously as if he needed to etch these words deeply in his mind.
"You were the sun that lit up my days years ago when I was ready to give everything up. When I was ready to die, Achilles. You're still that same sun, the one that pulled me back when I was lost not long ago in a hospital bed."
Her voice grew softer, but its intensity was undeniable!
"Whether you're a king or a peasant, it doesn't matter to me. But if you truly are an alien king from some distant place…"
"Then I can't think of anything I'd rather be than your alien Queen."
She stepped closer, taking his hands gently into hers.
For Achilles, time seemed to freeze.
Even though everything around them moved as usual, this woman before him made him feel as though the world had come to a standstill!
"Did you hear me, Little Fatty?"
Her warm breath brushed against his skin, the heat from her green flames dancing around her body with excitement.
Her voice pulled him from his daze, and he nodded softly. He had heard her every word.
She looked deep into his eyes as she finished.
"No matter what happens in the future… no matter what terrifying challenges come our way or what monsters come for you because of your lineage…you will be my King, and I will be your Queen."