"Oh shit, I am late! Stupid me for oversleeping!"

A knight in heavy blue armor was dashing through the mansion as fast as he could. For the first time in his career, Luvik was late for work. Every day, at sunrise, he would normally be by the side of his master by now and would accompany her till the moment she retired to her chamber at the end of the day. And even then, the commander would sometimes insist on staying right outside her room all night just to make sure nothing would ever happen to the priestess again, especially after the incident with Owen.

However, every human had their limits and Luvik was no exception. Forcing himself to stay up late like that with barely a couple hours of sleep every day all while maintaining a full concentration on his surrounding was too taxing for both the body and the mind of the knight. Luckily, nothing has happened since then and more guards have been sent to protect the mansion so Luvik was put to peace of mind for a bit and perhaps what you would call a slight negligence of his duty, which has led to this lateness.

Still, usually at this time, Cynthia would have just woken up and it has only been a few minutes from the time he was supposed to be there. Surely nothing could have happened during that short moment. As he ran hastily across the halls, alarming all the servants to push aside against the walls thanks to the clacking sound of his armor, Luvik forgot one important detail: he must not enter the room unless Cynthia has given him permission to do so.

Storming inside the room, the knight immediately apologized for his lateness without realizing what he just stumbled upon. "My apologies, milady! I.........*gasp*!!!!!!!!!!!!!" For a moment, commander Luvik of the old Zagon Empire has found himself in heavens. In front of him, an angelic half-naked maiden with nothing covering her upper half was in the midst of undressing herself to change from her sleeping attire to her priestess cloth. The woman has just woken up after all and had barely any time to prepare herself. That was why she warned her knight to stay outside and only when she was done could he enter. Although, one could argue this lateness was deliberate for a certain insidious purpose. But of course, Luvik was too much of an innocent man to resort to that kind of tactic.

"Aiieee!" seeing the knight who was dropping in awe with such a happy face, Cynthia shrieked with perhaps what could be regarded as the most girly voice anyone has ever heard from her, before directly crouching down to cover her upper half. Such a womanly voice was like music to the ears of a humble knight, like the soothing wonderful song of morning birds that woke him up instantly.

"What are you doing here?" she shouted at him.

"I....I just...." The image of the naked maiden has been imprinted in his mind. He would never forget this moment for the rest of his life. "THANK YOU!....No I mean, I am sorry, milady!"

"What are you staring at? GET OUT!"

The priestess used one arm to cover her bosom as she used the other to reach out to a nearby pillow and threw it at the knight, stirring him up from his delusion before he quickly turned away, rushing out of the door with a bright red but ecstatic face.

.....

After Cynthia has changed her cloth and walked out of the room to go to today's meeting with Morrigan and the others as part of the negotiation schedule, during the entire trip to the palace, she didn't say a word to her protector nor did she even look at him once although they were sitting in the same carriage. In Luvik's mind, it was all over. Ever since they met, this was the first time he saw Cynthia so angry at him to the point of refusing to speak to the poor guy. So even someone as philanthropic as a saint like her could be this emotional. In a certain way, that was kind of cute, thought Luvik. But now it was not the time to indulge himself in his fantasy. The situation was as cold sober as one could imagine. He might lose this job he held so dearly. Could it be that this would be the final day he would ever serve his mistress? Was this how things would end between them?

Refusing to let this silence to be the final moment they shared with each other, Luvik decided to take the initiative.

"Milady, I have no words that can express how deeply sorry I am for my vulgar behavior earlier. But I swear to you that it was not intentional. Even in my wildest of dreams, I would not dare to insult milady in such a way. Please, if you can forgive this humble servant for this regrettable, stupid mistake." Luvik bended down from his waist to the woman while still sitting from his seat, surprising his mistress quite a bit.

"Luvik...." The priestess uttered.

".....Yes, milady....?"

"...I am disappointed."

As if the world has crushed down upon him, her words have torn apart any last hope he had. Of course, she would not want such a useless servant like him by her side who could not even protect her when she needed. Furthermore, for someone to dare insult her in such a way, even by mistake...he didn't deserve to be by her side. Or so Luvik thought. But then...

"I thought we agreed to call each other by our name, not by title."

"Milady? Are you not angry about earlier?" asked Luvik.

"Of course I am!" the maiden retorted. "Every woman would be angry in that situation....But I know you are not that kind of person. Besides...." Cynthia clenched her fist. "It's not like anyone would want to see this grotesque body anyway. Maybe it should be me to apologize to you for showing you such a unsightly scene."

"That's not true! I am sure all men out there will find you attractive!" Luvik shouted.

"Have you paid any attention earlier? Did you see those scars on my body? Look into my eyes and answer me, Luvik! If I ask you to take me now, would you be able to do it?" Cynthia taunted.

"I...can't..." the knight muttered with his head lowered.

"That's what I thought too." Cynthia grumbled.

"No you misunderstand me, milady! I cannot in good conscience do anything to you just to prove your point. When I look at you, I don't see any scar. All I see is the most beautiful maiden in this entire world. I...I don't really know how to say this....I am sorry that I am not that educated to be able to give you some flowery words that can describe my thoughts but...

What I mean is you can't just let any man do that to you...only the one you love..." The knight scratched his head, thinking hardly about what he could say to the priestess. But alas, he used to be a farm boy, born with humble background and was not always a man of words but actions. Yet, even though he could not express it with words, his feelings seemed to have somehow managed to reach her.

Cynthia was not the kind of woman who would be afraid of showing her body to strangers. The time she voluntarily exhibited every inch of her skin to the young demon lord back in Malatas was proof of that. Perhaps, to her, being naked in front of others was nothing compared to what she had to endure in her miserable past. Yet, it didn't mean that Cynthia was willing to let anybody see her like that. Not because she was embarrassed but because of those scars. Those horrible marks, testaments of her previous life, were so repulsive in her eyes that she would not rather looking at them. However, she didn't want to erase them either as it served as a reminder of the cruelty of men, of the world.

When Luvik saw her in that room, she was afraid. What if he was disgusted by her scars and would no longer have feelings for her? She would lose her pawn. And if he told someone else, there might be a chance, a slimy one but still a possibility, that someone could decide to investigate about her past and make the connection to Owen's death as part of her revenge. Even worst, it would und everything she did so far and would send the negotiation effort a few major steps back. But to her surprises, her escort was not that kind of person. At that time in the room, Luvik didn't see a scarred woman or a used tool by men. He saw past that damaged shell of her.

How funny was it for Luvik who claimed to be an uncultured man due to his background, to be the only person who managed to see through that while many of those literate nobles saw her only as a pleasure tool?

For a moment, something inside the priestess wished to touch the knight in front of her. An illogical aspiration even to the person herself. How was it possible that she had these strange unknown feelings, unrecognized by her own mind? Seeing the commander so clumsily trying to explain to her in his own words, Cynthia gave out what could only be described as the most genuine smile she has had in years before bursting into laughter.

"Milady?" unsure what to make out of this situation, especially when they were arguing with each other a moment ago, Luvik was left dumbfounded.

"You are a strange man." Cynthia, exhaling in deep breath to calm her laughter, uttered.

"I am sorry...." The knight lowered his head.

"...I don't have that kind of man." Her words were spoken in such a low tone that it made Luvik wander if he was hallucinating.

"Milady?"

"It's Cynthia, I told you so Luvik!"

"Yes...Cynthia...My apologies!"

"Stop apologizing! I am not angry at you."

"Yes, madam!"

Unfortunately for our valiant knight Luvik, even after years of military experiences and with many near-death occasions, he still could not figure out what his mistress was thinking. 'So what? Is she still angry with me? But she did laugh...But women always say they are not angry at you but it's actually a sign to say they are definitely. How am I supposed to know? Can I ask her? NO! She would think that I am stupid....But I am stupid...Oh God why?' such were the thoughts of a confused knight who was one of the many unable to understand the most complex things of the universe: woman.

And Cynthia's behaviors did not help either. Instead of making it clearer for her knight, the priestess was actually enjoying the situation, teasing him around. When was the last time she experienced something this fun? Not for years at least! And her hand and fingers were twitching. They wanted to reach out and touch him. For a very long time, Cynthia has not felt like this: an urge to touch a man. Her past has left her with this horrible ailment to be unable to calm herself upon physical contact of a member of the opposite gender. That dread, result of the bad things that have happened to her, has been imprinted in every inch of her body and it would not go away that quickly. Yet now her mind was telling her to do it, even though her body was reminiscing the gruesome memories, trembling in fear. Maybe she could never be cured of this ailment, maybe. But somehow, Cynthia felt like she could do it, to touch a man, not just any man but only this one.

"We have arrived at the castle, milady!" a voice from outside called out to the couple inside. They were so immersed in their thoughts that the two didn't realize the carriage has stopped for a few minutes now.

Quickly regaining his composure and wear his helmet, Luvik opened the door on the side and walked out before reaching his hand to his mistress in order to help her get down. As Cynthia took her first step from the carriage, she did something unexpected to both Luvik and herself. Taking advantage of the high ground, the priestess bended down and gave a kiss on the helmet of her knight, stunning him. It was indeed a sneaky and effective attack that left the commander frozen in place. He could feel her warm even through this thick piece of metal. Her aroma, with rosy sweet fragrance of an adult woman, almost sent him to ecstasy.

"M...Mi....Milady?" Luvik uttered, looking at Cynthia with confusion.

"Just a lucky charm and a reward for your hard work! I am sure now you know that I am not angry at you." Cynthia grinned before taking off toward the palace's entrance.

"I shall never wash this helmet again!" the knight said to himself with probably the most joyful smile on his day.

* * *

"Alright everyone, I think it's enough for today. We will resume this discussion tomorrow. The meeting is adjourned." The Empress of Valhalla proclaimed inside a large luxurious chamber. Along with a few other dozens people sitting around a round table, Morrigan has just finished the agenda today.

As part of the peace negotiation, these kind of meetings have been quite frequent recently to discuss about various from the final steps of the merging of Caelum, Zagon and Malatas to the incoming war with Ceadric. Not to mention there was also the Discovery Accord and negotiation with Ragna that were underway.

While Morrigan herself was the Empress and therefore had the full control of her country after Svelt's death, it was necessary to have the other leaders and main figures present as part of the meeting in order to make sure that everyone was on the same page.

Among those figures from nobles to lords, a few stood out.

The first were the two priestesses Cynthia and Eris as the representatives of the elves and also their governors under Empress Morrigan.

The second was Father Maxime who has been unanimously elected as the representative of the Church and the people of Caelum. His rise to power has been rather uncontested and while he was reluctant to take the position at first, the bishop eventually accepted.

By Maxime' side was the Champion of the Whispering Forest, Viviana the summoner as the ambassador of the beastmen and spoke in place of the Beast King Zen.

On the other side, we had a half serpent half man: Martel, Consort of the lamias and Duchess of Ragna. Being sent here on behalf of the enigmatic demon lord whom no one has met or even heard about, Martel was supposed to take on the negotiation and made sure to ease the tension between the demons and the primes. Needless to say, her presence here has turned a few people unsettled as for many, it was their first time to be so close to a demon. But thanks for her human features and alluring charm that made the majority of the nobles in a confused state to whether or not they should fear her, Martel has managed to gain a somewhat stable relationship and erased a few doubts in their mind. Of course, it was impossible to just have a peaceful relationship right away as these things took time to develop. But the more time and effort spent into it, the more solid the foundations of that peace would be.

And to be honest, the reactions so far have been quite positive. Not a single major incident has happened and the people were starting to get used to the demons' presences in their cities. If there was one difficulty that needed to be mentioned, it would be Viviana and Lucas. After the attack in Caelum, their hatred for demons has been deepened to the point they almost burst out to attack Martel upon their first meeting.

"I believe this concludes our meeting today. We will resume this discussion tomorrow." Martel said.

"I don't think it's up to you whether the meeting is finished or not." Viviana groaned with a displeased expression. While she has tolerated Martel's presence, her ideas about demons did not change. Still, she had to remain calm as she was currently the ambassador of the beastmen with the peace between her people and Valhalla resting her shoulder. This meant that the girl could not be so outspoken as she usually was.

"My apologies, miss Viviana. I have overstepped my boundaries. It's indeed up to Empress Morrigan for this kind of decision." Martel spoke politely.

"At least you know where you belong." The cat girl huffed.

"Viviana, there is no need to be rude. I thought we are over this." Morrigan intervened.

"If you don't mind me speaking, your Highness, but how come the demon lord only sent one of his retainers to such an important meeting while he was the one asking for it in the first place? It's ridiculous." Viviana said.

"Miss Viviana, I believe you are also here on behalf of King Zen, aren't you? Well, I am the same." Said the lamia, remained unfazed by the girl's comments.

"That is ....that is different."

"To answer your question, my lord is currently taking care of a few matters in Oros. Upon his return, he promises that the first thing he will do is to come here in order to meet with all of you." Martel replied in a graceful manner. This was what Alastor has told her to say if someone ever asked about this so called mysterious demon lord. In reality, it was just a strategy to buy time for him until he found his replacement.

"And what are these matters you are speaking of?" asked Viviana.

"I apologize but I don't have the liberty to say. All I can tell you is that it's crucial to the negotiation and requires my lord's personal attention." The woman conveyed.

"That's quite suspicious don't you agree? I feel like he is just trying trick us." said Viviana.

"My lord only thinks of his people and this peace treaty means everything to him. I would rather not have you insulting him in such a manner." The serpent uttered.

"Insulting? I am simply stating the fact. If you demons want peace then you have to be honest with what you do. Else how are we supposed to trust you?"

"You did raise your point. However, let me remind you that what we want is to find a common ground that will allow our people to coexist with each other. But that doesn't mean we are giving ourselves unconditionally nor will we allow our nation's and the people's interest to be overlooked. That's why there is this negotiation meeting in the first place. We are not here to make friends, miss Viviana. We are here to protect the future of our people." Martel preached. "We have all lost someone dear to us, have things taken from us. But if we let ourselves lost inside this cycle of hatred, we would never be able to move on. And this is not just about the two of us but about our people.

Miss Viviana, if you are unable to restrain your own emotions for the sake of your country, you are inadequate for this position."

"How dare you think that I don't care for the lives of my people?" shouted the cat girl angrily.

"ENOUGH! I am tired of this charade. Take this somewhere else but not here!" the Empress demonstrated her authority with a loud majestic voice. "Seriously, there are much more important matters on our hands. But it's enough for today. The meeting is adjourned."

With her words, the other nobles and lords quickly dispersed from the room, leaving only the main figures which coincidentally were all important figures who have met Alastor at one point of their lives. And the funny thing was each of them has seen a different side of him, or at least their vision of him was different. To some, a loving son while others a respected and powerful comrade.

"So frustrating...all these meetings and I can't even see my son." Morrigan sighed with a tired expression. Now that the nobles were out of the way, she could finally relax a bit. Alastor has told her all about these people and while some of them might not agree with each other's view, they were all good and trustworthy individuals.

"Where is Alastor by the way? I would have thought he would definitely participate in these meetings." Asked Viviana.