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The newcomer\'s back was slim, and her hair was almost grey with shades of purple. Nikolai recognized her identity by the pair of red horns on her head, as they were big enough to be seen from behind.

"You are..." Master Edward frowned. "This does not make sense. You must be the daughter of the Bestial King, the one banished from the family. So what are you doing here?"

"My husband has summoned me," she said with a joyful grin.

"I beg your pardon?" blinked Nikolai with confusion as he tilted his head.

"What a sneaky fellow, Lyle," Lucas gave a thumbs up with an idiotic smile. He was genuinely similar to Sergio in every way, which might be why Nikolai considered him a friend.

"This was the agreement. You have to become my husband in return for my help."

"I did not ask for your help but only answered your invitation."

"A marriage invitation," frowned the horned girl. "What did you consider it to be?" there were traces of killing intent laced in her voice.

Nikolai did not answer, but he was glad that most of his face was hidden from view. After all, he was utterly speechless by this development. It made sense that the one within the darkness was her, but the invitation was to marry her?

"That is not... how people get married..." he managed to utter, and her face crumbled.

"Are you trying to back down after making me show my face?"

Nikolai gulped down because her hostility shifted from Master Edward toward him. As he stared at her face, he realized that she looked quite young, perhaps as young as he is. If not for the aura of monstrosity, it would have been cute.

"I would never back down from my word," said Nikolai while placing a hand over his heart. "I accept your offer with utmost pleasure."

"That is a relief," she sighed and turned toward Edward with a smirk. "What are you going to do now, bloodsucker?"

At her words, Nikolai\'s eyes widened as he snapped his neck toward the strategist. It has not occurred to him until now, but how did it slip his mind that this man can control blood?

There was a time where Nikolai absorbed a vitality stat from a bloodsucker, creatures who fed on others of their kind. In other words, the strategist was...

"You are a cannibal?" Lucas muttered with shock as the face of the strategist turned darker.

"You foul creature," he glared at the horned girl who revealed his identity. "How dare you disrespect me like this?" his hair flew beside him as his grip tightened around the spear.

"I thought it was obvious since you did not hide the stench of blood," smiled the woman. "I thought you knew already, darling," she said toward Nikolai.

"I could tell that something was off about him, but I never thought that the king\'s brother was one of them. After all, this man led the purge of that cult years ago."

"It seems he gained more than just fame from them," smiled the woman with approval at Nikolai\'s explanation. "How do you want me to handle this, darling?"

Nikolai felt gooseflesh because of how she addressed him. He planned to play along with this crazy woman before he ran away from her, but he felt like jumping from one trap into another.

At least this trap did not want him dead but as a husband.

\'Married to the daughter of the Bestial King? I would be the ultimate traitor of humankind, even more than my past life.\'

"Handle me?" laughed the strategist while staggering back. "You are all so arrogant because you have never witnessed true power. Let me show you what the world has to offer."

Blood leaked from his wrist and started covering his body as he threatened. This was the armor he used against Nikolai in the vision. The man\'s presence changed, and it was suffocating to stand in front of him.

"It seems I have no choice but to fight," Nikolai glanced at the cabin as he took out his scimitars.

"You are still too weak, darling," the woman turned to him. "I will handle it this time. However, you need to grow stronger before our next meeting."

"Our next meeting?" Nikolai was confused as the woman walked toward Master Edward.

"I cannot take you as my husband just yet," she strolled. "You are still too weak. However, there will come a day where we meet again, and at that time, you will be my darling."

"Why me?" he couldn\'t help but ask even though Master Edward was rising through the sky like the final boss. The woman turned to him with a smile as a bony mask of a goat started forming around her face.

"Because you are the only one who has as much darkness as I am," the bone mask formed around her face, and a pulse of energy radiated from her that caused an explosion.

The ground around her began to disintegrate because of the amount of energy that she wielded. Nikolai and Lucas were thrown far away because of the explosion, and the cabin was unrooted from the ground.

Nikolai rolled on the ground a distance away, and he raised his head to stare at their fight. Master Edward flew across the sky to strike the woman, but she was calmly standing in her spot.

Then, she raised her hand, and the darkness pulsed. The cube inside of Nikolai began shaking as the light disappeared from the world and the darkness gathered in a single spot.

"This is the last time you threaten him," she said. "If you dare, I will kill you."

And the darkness exploded, covering the world. The last thing that Nikolai remembered was her whispering voice. It had no threats but only happiness and love.

"I will see you again, darling. The darkness will guide us toward each other. Until that time, do not die."

***

"Lyle," a voice called out for him. Then, his mind shook as burning pain appeared on his cheek. Nikolai opened his eyes, but the world was nothing but a blur. "You are alive."

His eyes began adjusting toward the light, and Nikolai groaned. The person who woke him up was Lucas, who sighed in relief when Nikolai finally woke up.

"What happened?"

"I have no idea, but I can tell you that it was crazy," sighed Lucas as he looked around. "I wonder if we were dreaming, but it does not make sense."

Nikolai struggled to get up, and he managed to look at the surrounding. They were still in the forest, but the damage was limited to the land around the cabin.

The cabin was gone, and so was Master Edward. But, most importantly, that woman was gone too. Nikolai did not even manage to get her name, but it seems she has already considered him to be her husband.

"It seems the archeologist is still alive," turned Lucas toward the cabin. "I never thought we would go through so much just from a two days adventure. First was the Fairy Queen, and now this."

"You are jinxed," said Nikolai as he steadies himself after standing on his feet. "After all of that, we are still alive."

"You are the one who is going to jinx us," Lucas looked hurt. "Your mask is gone, so you might want to wear a different one before the archeologist wakes up."

"My mask?" Nikolai touched his face, and it was indeed gone. However, there were no traces of it being destroyed, but it was simply gone. "I bet it was that lunatic."

"You cannot badmouth your future wife like that," frowned Lucas. "I will be your best man at the wedding, right? After all, I was your matchmaker."

"... you are as crazy as she is. That thing is not human, or have you forgotten that darkness?"

"You use the same thing," Lucas grumbled, and Nikolai paused. His secret was revealed because of his fight against the spirit, where he used his darkness. "Are you worried?" asked Lucas with a grin.

"It seems you are a threat," said Nikolai as he wore a different mask. "How are we going to handle this?"

"You are going to trust me not to report you to the kingdom."

"That seems worse than a bad plan, a horrible one."

"Then why aren\'t you attacking me already?" asked Lucas with a laugh as he walked toward the destroyed cabin. "I would have backed down against Master Edward if I cared about such things."

"Are you okay with me being a dark being?"

"The world is cruel," stopped Lucas in his place without turning to Nikolai. "We do whatever we need to survive. There are no evil powers. The only evil in this world is weakness."

"I am afraid that is also wrong," said Nikolai, which prompted Lucas to turn toward him. "There is no good or evil in this world.. Weakness is not evil, but we made it that way."