Chapter 331: Malakai & Solaira - I
This intrigued Solaira. She had truly seen nothing but pain and suffering since her arrival, and she found herself wanting to know if there was more to this world than mere chaos.
Wishing to discover the answer, she saw no harm in going along with the Son of the Fire God. She had heard from the Goddess herself that, just like her, he had been born for the same purpose.
Besides, if there was anyone she could remotely trust, it was him. They were in the same position, bound by the same destiny.
Glancing at his extended hand once more, she raised her delicate one and placed it in his.
As soon as she did, a jolt of electricity ran through both of them. Their eyes widened briefly as their hearts began to flutter in unison.
Wordlessly, Malakai pulled her toward him.
He smiled as a sharp gasp escaped her lips, and a second later, his flames swallowed them whole. When Solaira opened her eyes again, a cold wind whipped across her face.
Her eyes widened in surprise at the sudden change in the landscape.
Pulling away from his burning touch, she turned to look at the endless mountain range peeking through a blanket of fluffy clouds. Beside them stood a giant willow tree, its branches swaying as they stood together at the very edge of the cliff.
Malakai calmly watched as the woman’s wet hair whipped against the biting mountain wind. There was something so mesmerizing about the sight that he found the direction of his own thoughts strange.
Even so, he continued to stare at the curve of her back as water droplets clung to her. Her beautiful golden eyes took in the new surroundings he had discovered only a few days prior.
"This is...." She trailed off before turning to meet the man who stood silently behind her. His molten orange eyes stared intensely, as if urging her to continue. She finally found her voice. "....different."
Walking back toward him, she stood before him and asked, "How did you find this place?"
"Searching for a moment of respite, just like you," Malakai replied. "I teleported myself randomly, only to stumble upon this location."
"I see," Solaira replied, asking no further questions. She looked to the side, continuing to take in her surroundings while Malakai took in her majestic form.
"You are soaked, and so am I," he said softly. "Come with me. I found another place nearby where we can rest."
Before Solaira could ask another question, he began walking ahead, leaving her with the choice of whether or not to follow.
After staring at his retreating back for a moment, she decided to go with him. A smile that Solaira could not see bloomed on Malakai’s face at the sound of her quiet footsteps behind him.
Soon, they reached a clearing within the forest where multiple tents had been set up at regular intervals, occupied by humans.
Upon noticing Malakai, a robust man with long brown hair and green eyes approached at once. He bowed in deep reverence. "My Lord! You have returned!"
"Zevran, this is Lady Solaira. She is just like me," Malakai introduced her.
Zevran’s eyes went wide as he beheld the ethereal warrior goddess. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and for a moment, he was left utterly speechless.
Malakai noticed his subordinate gaping at Solaira, and a flicker of irritation crossed his face, though he did not understand why. He quickly tried to dismiss the feeling.
Everything was foreign to him, especially emotions.
He turned back to Solaira, who maintained a cold, detached expression as she observed the man.
"Solaira, this is Zevran," Malakai spoke again. "He is one of the humans who fights by my side on the battlefield."
Now it was Solaira’s turn to be surprised.
She shifted her gaze from Zevran to Malakai. "Fight beside you?" she repeated, as if she could not grasp the concept.
"Yes. Humans know much about the terrain and the strongholds of the dark ones. Zevran helped me locate them and fought with great valour. Because of that, he and several other men decided to join me in my fight," Malakai explained.
He turned toward Solaira completely. "Since you have been fighting alone all this time, why don’t you join us? We have the same goal in the end, after all."
Solaira looked at him, then her eyes wandered to the other humans who had emerged from their tents. They peeked at her, their expressions filled with a mixture of curiosity and awe.
Clearing her throat slightly, she replied, "I am not used to fighting with others by my side."
Once again, Malakai understood her perspective, for he had felt the same way. "I understand how you feel. But consider this, as it will only help us wipe them out faster if we have a clearer direction. You do not have to answer now... you can tell me later."
He then turned to Zevran and commanded, "Take a clean set of clothes to my tent for the lady."
"Y-yes, milord!" Zevran snapped out of his daze and hurried to fulfil the order.
Following that day, Solaira remained at the camp. She spent much of her time beneath the willow tree where Malakai had first brought her.
As two weeks passed, she began to learn many things about humans. She observed how they stayed together like a family.
They lived, dined, and made merry in each other’s company. It was all so foreign to her, yet the more she observed, the more intrigued she became.
She realised that these humans fought to protect those they called family. That was their driving force, the reason they had not yet lost the battle.
With that, she began to speak with Malakai more frequently. She asked him about anything she found interesting, and he would share his own perspective on things.
In this way, they began to exchange thoughts whenever something piqued their curiosity. They were almost always together, and Solaira began to feel a sense of familiarity with him. It was a foreign sensation, unlike anything she had ever felt, especially in such a short time.
She noticed a few women in the camp who would try to catch his attention every now and then, but they would always scramble away whenever they saw her by his side. She wondered why that was.
She had been sharing the tent with Malakai, though they did not share the same bed. Still, every time she stepped outside, she could feel negative emotions directed toward her from those women. However, with a single look from her, they would always scurry away.
But today was different.
As she walked toward the tent after bathing in the nearby stream, she saw one of those women stepping out of the entrance of his tent. A deep blush was plastered across the woman’s face as she scrambled to get her clothes in order.
She ran as if desperate to avoid being spotted, and for some reason, Solaira felt something boil in her blood that she had never experienced before.
It was an emotion that slithered beneath her skin so deeply that she was seconds away from destroying the peaceful camp.
Instead, she dumped her clothes by a nearby tree and left without a word to anyone. Now, sitting under the willow tree, she let out a heavy sigh. She realized this was why she chose this secluded place, far from the camp, seeking respite from the fickleness of human emotions.
But no matter how much she tried to suppress it, the image of that woman leaving Malakai’s tent burned through her mind. He had been asleep when she left the tent early that morning. Then, what had that woman been doing inside?
This question continued to claw at her until she was unable to sit still any longer. With another frustrated sigh, she rose to her feet.
Dressed in a thin, flowy, white sleeveless gown, she spread her arms and closed her eyes. Her body glowed with a golden light before two beautiful, slender swords materialised in her hands.
She began to move, performing a graceful yet deadly dance, slicing through the air with absolute precision. As a divine warrior maiden, she was naturally well-versed in every art of the blade. She continued her rhythmic strikes while the sun shone upon her radiant form. Her golden hair swayed with every elegant motion, yet her eyes remained shut.
The more she tried to concentrate, the more that particular image burned in her mind, making her angrier by the second.
As time passed, she sensed a familiar divine presence close by. Yet, she refused to acknowledge it, continuing her lethal, celestial dance like the goddess she was.
The presence continued to grow closer until she felt it right behind her. Moving as fast as lightning, she spun and pointed her sword at his neck. The blade stopped only a centimetre away from cutting through his skin, halted by the firm grip of a hand around the weapon.
Panting, she opened her eyes. They glowed golden as she stared into molten crimson eyes that watched her as if he were mesmerised.
They continued to stare at each other in silence until she willed the swords to disappear into thin air. She took a step back, ignoring the cut her weapon had caused against his palm.
Just as she turned around, she announced, "I am leaving."
