New Chapter in Highest Tier (May 2021)

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Archangel Uriel (Flame of God)

First Guardian of the Garden of Four Seasons

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It was the night where Merle was finally free to go home when the exquisite blooms of last spring bore fruit in the late fall.

She can finally get the special fruits she wanted so badly in this garden ever since the first day she arrived at the gates.

In the first few weeks, Merle was consistent with her wish to save the Fae in her village from demons.

But all that changed when he and Merle got closer as they established a stronger bond while they waited together for the Tree of the Four Seasons to bear fruit.

They were two different creatures who had no choice but to talk every single day for the duration of almost three seasons.

Archangel Uriel didn't want to be arrogant, but would it be safe to assume that Merle changed her priorities because of him?

He couldn't deny that they were strange moments where she made him clutch his heart every time she arrested him with words that made his heart flutter.

They know many things about each other, and unfortunately for him, that made his feelings grew more intense as the days went by.

And that wasn't good for an Archangel like him.

Why did her presence feel so natural when she was by his side as if she belonged to him?

He had to figure out ways to un-love her before it was too late.

The more he tried to get rid of it, the more he became plagued with the thoughts of her leaving the garden while he sulked her absence under the magic tree she came for. It wasn't him.

Archangel Uriel found it amazing that his lady knight endured her stay in the Garden of Four Seasons with him all this time.

They were times where he played the part of a moody and detached angel, answering her questions about heaven in a few single words—mostly, yes, no, maybe.

She was giving her a suspicious gaze when he did this.

Merle knew that he was a bit distant as their separation neared, but he was adamant not to reveal his feelings, and he was afraid that she could sense them.

It was a bit strange that Merle was slow when it came to plucking the fruits out of the Tree of the Four Seasons compared to before, where she was harping on him every single hour of when this magical tree would produce the one thing she most coveted.

That made him smile.

When he caught himself in the act, he frowned.

What did she want aside from fulfilling the mission Archangel Ariel had given to her?

Right. Because in all honesty, Uriel knew.

Merle was glum because she had professed her love to him only to be—

Archangel Uriel disliked hurting her feelings because he did like her.

Very much.

Not only did he like her, but he loved her with his pure, angelic heart—an everlasting love a true Archangel could give that she would never forget. In her ears, his words might be full of cold indifference, but he never failed to show her how much he cared about her.

A love full of respect and without the unbearable lust to own and to possess the lady.

He was ready to set her free and wish her well.

He promised to himself that he would just be contented loving her from afar.

Anything more than that, he will be severely punished by God, so he kept their relationship platonic—as to how a guardian angel should act around his ward.

He was determined not to turn into a fallen angel, just like what his brethren had done for the sake of a woman.

This was why the Earthly Realm was suffering from demons because the evil had successfully corrupted angels who have fallen into temptation.

He will not be like the 'gregori.'

But was it selfish for Archangel Uriel that he didn't outright reject her whenever she professed her love to him and just changed the subject every time she brought it up?

She made herself known, not hiding her feelings for him, and he didn't know what to do with it except avoiding it.

How time flew and how their attitudes have changed.

An eternal scowl scrunched her cute face the whole day, so Archangel Uriel can't understand why she was pouting like a spoiled child who didn't get what she wanted instead of jumping for joy.

She had the thirty fruits in her drawstring bag, and he had given her his blue feather, turning them into a necklace, to protect her on her journey home so that demons would avoid her when they sensed that she was under his protection.

Now that she had everything she prepared in the small tent he made for her in this garden, Archangel Uriel followed merle as she made her way to her 'rouncey' tied at the tree trunk to stroke its neck and shoulders while she fed it with a carrot.

Her horse made a massive improvement in its body condition after he taught Merle how to discern a good pasture in the gardens so that it could gain healthy weight.

The 'rouncey' happily munched on it as it released a big sigh, lowering its forehead and pushing gently against her chest.

Merle replaced her perpetual glower when she saw her horse relaxed as its nostrils flared happily.

After that, Merle left her horse near the tent Archangel Uriel made for her and proceeded to walk towards the river, carrying a thick, fluffy robe he gave her to dry herself and the tunic she will wear when she finished her moonlit bath.

Archangel Uriel constantly reminded himself that this was her last night in his garden, and he needed that fact to sink into his brain and train himself to be alright with her near departure.

When they arrived at the side of the riverbed, Archangel Uriel never expected Merle to take her clothes off in front of him.