THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS VIOLENCE THAT MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR SOME READERS
Damon laid on his chest with his head on her stomach as he laid between her thighs. His arms were wrapped around her like she was the safest thing while she let her beds headrest take her weight. The room was quiet, with the only sound being the soft, rhythmic brush of her fingers through his hair.
"How did your mother take the Seraphine problem?" she asked softly.
Damon murmured into her stomach. "This is going to sound absurd. But since you asked... Mom tortured her. And then Nyra threw her into a volcano."
He felt Natsuki's Ki tighten. It wasn't anger. It was fear—a sharp, cold spike that made his own chest pinch. Her hand stopped moving. He looked up and saw her eyes, wide and glassed with a shock she couldn't hide.
He hated it. He hated that the first story he told her on his birthday involved torture and lava.
He sat up, shifting so he rested against the headrest, pulling her between his own thighs to hold her. "Hey. This doesn't happen all the time," he said, his voice low, trying to ground her.
"Seraphine betrayed my father. She betrayed the kingdom. Also actively working with the Devil from what we know. My mom and Nyra... they were just letting the anger out. It's nothing for you to worry about. Okay?"
Natsuki let out a long, shaky breath. "Yeah... I know. I know your world is different. But sometimes I forget how different. It's intense. "A moment of silence. "At least she's gone now. I didn't like her from the start. Not after she tried to kiss my hand."
Damon laughed, the sound vibrating against the curve of Natsuki's neck as he rested his jaw there.
She exhaled slowly, the tension draining out of her. Then, her expression brightened. "Oh! I just remembered something."
"What?"
She leaned back against his chest. "That time you took me to Woewyn. Your mom told me... when you were a small little cutie, you were hungry. But it wasn't lunch yet, and you'd just finished breakfast."
Damon groaned. "I think I know where this is going."
"She said she went into her room, and you knew she always checked the clock. So you dragged the dining chairs and a couple of stools over. You climbed up, turned the hands of the clock forward, and then knocked on her door to tell her it was afternoon."
Natsuki laughed, turning her arm to cup his cheeks. His ears warmed instantly.
"She was so surprised," she giggled. "Until she saw the trail of chairs you forgot to put back. You were so desperate for food."
"Don't judge me, okayyy." Damon muttered, leaning into her touch. "I was hungry."
"Of course. Your love for food needs to be studied," she smiled.
The silence stretched, turning serious as the moon climbed higher.
"Natsuki," Damon said. "It's January now. Next month... it's February."
"Yes. Why are you stating the obvious?"
"I'm graduating this year. I'm not sure how often I'm going to see you. Or if I can at all for the next couple of months." Damon said.
Natsuki's smile softened into something bittersweet. "Oh… I didn't think about that. I'm graduating soon, too. It's my last year. I have to focus if I want the grades."
"Well, let's see," Damon teased. "The only person you haven't been able to beat in exams is me. And I won't be there much longer, so you'll be fine."
She elbowed his side, while pouting. He laughed. "Okay sorry! But look, I gave you Luma. She's a perfect AI from another world. You already ace everything without her—with her, you'll practically be dominating."
Natsuki smiled "I wish I could hear you say that before I actually started."
A soft shimmer appeared. Luma materialized beside the bed. "I have a skill called Echo-Memory," the AI stated. "I store all of Natsuki's experiences. I can replay them whenever needed."
"See?" Damon said.
"Thank you, Luma," Natsuki smiled. The AI vanished into a spark of blue light.
Damon shifted, his heart thudding against his ribs. "So... since I might not see you for a while... will you be my Valentine?"
Natsuki laughed, a playful, mocking sound. "Damon, I'm your girlfriend. Who else would be your Valentine?"
"I see people asking those they're already in a relationship with," he said defensively, his face heating up. "I just thought I should ask."
"You're cute," she whispered.
"What do you want me to do for you, then?"
Natsuki began to play with the bracelets on his wrist. "Well, I've been watching something recently. Are there poor people on Woewyn?"
Damon paused. "Eternum is a plane. Like a multiverse. Woewyn is a third of it, so it's definitely divided into sections. I haven't seen the deep parts cuz I live in the capital. But from what I've seen, everyone is happy."
Natsuki snuggled closer. "That's good. I was just asking because I rewatched the Robin Hood movie. He fought like you. It reminded me of your first fight with Kuroshi."
"Kuroshi..." Damon murmured.
Natsuki's eyes widened. "Damon... can you take me to his grave?"
Damon look a little bit to surprised at first. Then "Hmm? I don't even know if he's real."
"He is."
"And how do you know that?"
Natsuki explained "I asked Luma to help me find out and he's buried in Britain obv, but Luma showed me a map from 1794 showing a place on it called Robin Hoods grave. She says historically he's from Nottingham or Sherwood I don't remember but his grave should be there, right?"
Damon laughed lightly "Okay but... why do you wanna see it?"
"I just want to." She said turning to stare into his eyes.
Damon looked into her eyes. He saw the genuine wonder there. "Okay. Luma can be the map."
She stood up immediately. Happy.
"Are you sure you want to go back to the sky?" Damon asked. "Remember last time—"
"You said the Purge is triggered by training, right?" she cut him off. "And for you, it's only been a day. You haven't trained since the court, have you?" Natsuki said leaning into him with convincing eyes.
"No...?"
"So logically, a purge shouldn't happen soon. And the chances of a random one are low, right?"
Damon stared at her. This girl has been analyzing me more than Tolrex does.
"Okay, okay. You're right. This... might sting a bit, though."
"What?"
"A better option would be to make an oxygen dome with wind, but I can't do that yet. The only difference between humans on Eternum and Earth is Eterna levels and yours are low. If I put raw Eterna around you, your body will absorb it like a bear seeing honey." Damon explained
Natsuki laughed. "Really?"
"Really." Damon thought for a moment. "Soooo… I'll make a fast circulating layer of eterna instead."
Damon placed a finger on her forehead. A deep blue glow spread across her skin. She smiled.
"Why are you smiling?" Damon asked with a smile on his own face.
"It's warm," she said. "But it's blue. You think of cold when you see blue. Is this how you feel all the time?" Natsuki said softly.
"Only when I'm using it."
He gathered her into his arms. In a blur of displaced air, they vanished. They were in the upper atmosphere, with her in his laps. The world below was a vast, curving marble of sapphire, white and some traces of green.
"Woah," Natsuki whispered. "How did we get here so fast?"
"Prince Damon moves at extreme speeds," Luma's voice drifted through the Eterna field. "Your skin is only intact because of the layer he placed on you."
Damon didn't look at the Earth. He looked at her. Her eyes were full of a light that no star could match.
"Robin Hood's grave is this way," Luma said, a glowing arrow pointing toward the dark mass of England.
"She's enjoying the view," Damon said. "We'll stay as long as she wants."
Eventually, Natsuki looked at the clouds below them. "Damon... can I touch them? I want to hold them."
"You know you can't do that." Damon said pinching her nose.
"Not unless you make a thin dome of wind around it."
Damon sighed, but his lips curved into a smile. He dove.
He descended until they were hovering in the mist. He wove a thin, transparent shell of wind around a cluster of vapour. Natsuki reached out, her fingers pressing into it like a fluffy ball of silk. And she smiled.
After playing in the clouds, like children on a field. They landed in the quiet of a churchyard. The stone was old, worn by centuries of rain. Luma projected the translation of the Old English script:
Here underneath this little stone lies Robert, Earl of Huntingdon. Never was archer so good, And people called him Robin Hood. Such outlaws as he and his men, will England never see again. He died 24th of December, 1247.
Natsuki knelt. She closed her eyes and prayed. Damon knelt beside her, matching her silence, and prayed. She placed a few flowers on the cold stone.
"You know," she whispered softly. "I think about what you do. You fight for real. And sometimes... I remember you could die."
Damon turned to her. He could hear the tremor of worry she tried to hide.
"But you told me God's real, the Eternal One, right?" She looked at him and he nodded. "So... I pray for you. To the Eternal guy. Just in case."
Damon's heart bloomed. It was a feeling more powerful than any Eterna burst. He leaned in and kissed her—a long, slow promise that said I love you better than any words could. She understood what he was trying to say and cupped his cheek, embracing his presence.
When they pulled apart, snow began to fall. The white flakes caught in her hair. Her ears were turning red from the chill though she only smiled inches from his face.
Damon pulled out the flat shard Tolrex had given him. He clicked it twice. A mini-dimension tore open in the air, and a soft scarf and coat floated out. He wrapped her in them, his fingers lingering on the collar. She locked her arm into his and rested her head on him as they walked into the streetsv of Britain.
"You know we're in England illegally, right?" Damon teased.
She smirked. "One of the perks of being a prince's girlfriend."
Suddenly, a scream pierced the snowy silence from the city beyond the graveyard.
Damon's head snapped toward the sound.
"What's wrong?" Natsuki asked.
"A lady is in danger." He looked at Natsuki, his brow furrowed. "But, I can't just leave you here."
Natsuki squeezed his hand. "Go." She teased him with a smirk. "Damon... I'll be fine. I'm your Senpai, remember?"
Damon looked away, his face going red. He placed her on a nearby rooftop where she could see the street. Then, he moved.
Natsuki watched from above. She didn't see a boy. She saw a shadow. He moved through the men at the bar like a ghost, every strike precise, every movement calculated. No wasted energy. No mercy.
"Prime Assassin's Creed," she whispered to the falling snow with a scarf half across her pick lips. "No. Prime Robin Hood."