Setsuna was feeling nervous.
Extremely so. Even as she took her bath and washed away the sweat, grime, and horrid smell she accumulated from the training, she could not help but be nervous whenever she thought of her upcoming confrontation with Sol.
For Setsuna, it went without saying that Sol was, without a shred of doubt in the world, someone extremely special. As a child – after losing everything she had and everyone she could call her own, including all those she loved and cherished from the bottom of her heart – it was only the extreme instinctual desire, of the beast within her, for survival and her absolute irrevocable hatred for her uncle that helped her holding her sanity and her life as she trudged helplessly in her path of exile.
Walking miles after miles after miles upon miles, escaping from the pursuit of the mad hounds of her hated enemy, and facing the ugliness of the world for the first time in her life at such a tender age. All those horrifying things would have broken her if she was not born with an iron will and the beastly instincts of an apex predator.
Even so… There was nothing unbreakable in this world and the psyche of a young kid like her wasn’t an exception from that unfortunate rule.
What saved her from the depth of the abyss that she was slowly but surely crawling toward was none other than the little boy named Sol.
Even though she went from a loved and respected princess to a slave in name only in record time, she never completely complained about her fate nor did she fall into the darkness that the path of revenge insinuated one toward because she had someone she knew she could rely and depend on.
Sol Dragona Luxuria.
A young boy who shone as bright and majestically as the sun itself.
Their first meeting wasn’t particularly the best encounter one could have hoped for. But it was also thanks to their meeting, and the circumstances that followed, they were able to create the sturdy walls that bound their relationship with each other.
In order to become stronger, she trained like a deranged lunatic, an addict whose only passion was training, training, and more training. She even joined the coliseum willingly and rose to the highest rank.
But even then, it wasn’t enough for her. Be it to become Sol’s knight or to take vengeance for the murder of her parents, her strength was not nearly enough for her to even think about those avenues.
All of this stemmed from a great feeling of confusion about what her truth should be.
Indeed. What really was her Truth?
Should she base it on the power of elements that she instinctively had dominion over and be done with it as Kali had said so?
Without a doubt, Kali was the absolute proof that such a path was indeed viable and also far-reaching. By using the simplest forms of elemental power, she rose to become a powerful being that even the goddesses couldn’t take lightly.
But there was also no denying that Kali's ultimate goal had been that of Destruction – an all-encompassing power to decimate and annihilate everything from reality and bring forth nihility – and the four elements were just the foundation of her powers to reach that end goal.
Then… Should she follow the path of the sword?
She had been trained in sword arts all throughout her life and she was skilled enough to train even the Black Knights. The fact that Lilith let her become Sol’s teacher in swordsmanship was an attestation of her skill and talent on the path of the Ultimate Sword. But even so, it was hard for her to say that the sword was really her true calling in life. The truest base of her Ultimate Truth.
It was then and there that Setsuna was able to come face to face with her sad reality as she finally realized her true problem.
She was just half-baked in everything she did.
A princess who was not really a princess.
A slave who was not really a slave.
A swordswoman who did not truly love the calling of the sword.
An elemental power user who looked down on those elements themselves.
And finally…
A beastman who looked down on her very own innate being.
Setsuna in a way was merely a jack of all trades but a master of none. She was born supremely talented but that talent itself caused her to become lost on her path to power. She was great at everything but not absolute in any one thing. Her talent had become her only hindrance. What an ironic fate…
But until now… There was still one constant in her life. The very thing that allowed her to continue to trudge on to this day.
—Becoming Sol’s first partner. The first one to sign a contract with him and become the main pillar of his powers and support.
Sadly, even in this firm and abdicated belief of hers, she had become half-baked with the advent of Isis.
She could only become his second partner and even that was not a certainty at this point due to her reality.
After coming back from the Astral Realms… Sol had reached a realm of power that made her question her usefulness at his side.
It wasn’t just a question of self-debasement or lack of confidence in herself. But this was born from a look at the reality of this world.
Unlike Mars, his father. Sol did not choose to have just one contract. Then, with his pedigree, surely in the Astral Realm, Sol could have signed a contract with other even more talented Divine Beasts than the measly Storm Wolf like her.
She had heard Isis talk about how popular he was in that place and how he had officially earned the title of the Dragon Prince and was unofficially considered The Dragon Emperor — The second coming of Tiamat and maybe even more.
If he signed a contract with two or more dragons, his security and the power that it would provide for Lustburg would be considerably strengthened.
But he did not do that…and the reason for that was painfully obvious — Her.
Far from helping and making him stronger, her existence was holding him down and weakening him with each passing moment.
There was nothing more hurtful for her as a woman in love and a knight full of loyalty and subservience to her master than the reality of that truth.
The inevitable absolute fact that… In the end… She was just dead weight hanging on the thighs of her most beloved.
And thus was the crux of her agony.
———
When Setsuna approached Sol’s location, she could see the back of a woman leaving the hallway leading to him.
‘Lilith?’
Setsuna frowned, bemused. She had registered the scent of all the important people in the Tower but the current scent Lilith emanated was totally different than what she once did. It was like she was a completely different person altogether.
‘Is it the result of whatever Sol did to her?’
She shook her head, now wasn’t the time to ponder on that matter…
“Hi…”
“…Hi?”
Sol tilted his head in wonder at the sight of this rather awkward greeting coming from the wolf girl. It seemed like today was a day of personality shift. After all, the Setsuna he remembered was a serious, honorable and proud knight who was always stoic and level headed.
“Are you alright, Setsuna?”
Sol approached Setsuna and placed a hand on her forehead as if he was trying to check on her temperature. Unlike Lilith, Setsuna didn’t have the excuse of going through a second life. So he wondered what occupied her mind.
Though…With his experience with Nefertiti, he had a small inkling about what it could be.
Setsuna swatted his hand in jest and smiled a little more comfortably at his terrible act, “I am sorry. It's just that it has been a while since we spoke alone like this. Though it seems like I interrupted your discussion.”
Now it was time for Sol to feel guilty inside.
He realized that he had not been very attentive toward this loyal wolf of his. He approached Setsuna and hugged her tightly in his arms.
“You know you can come to me at any time. No matter what I am doing, I will drop everything to spend time with you.”
It was important to not forget about those that he cherished. Power and influence were just a means to an end. Not the end in itself.
He wanted to become someone who could shield his family from all harm and he also wished to spend as much time as possible with them.
A light blush covered Setsuna’s face while she lowered her head and placed it on his shoulder. She knew that she was being silly right now. It was downright funny how simple words from Sol could make her lose all her bearings and composure while bringing her so much happiness.
She knew very well that she had it down bad for him.
“I don’t want to bother you,” she uttered in a small, meek, and slightly powerless voice.
He frowned and made some space between them for him to look at her— really look at her for the first time in a while, “There is no way in hell you can ever be a bother to me.”
He gave her a serious look before bending down and placing his lips atop hers.
She closed her eyes and opened her lips to accept his. The two hugged each other in a more tight and passionate embrace and she felt an all-encompassing love melting most of her stress like snow under the radiant sun.
‘You are really unfair, my love…’
Setsuna complained silently at the unfair kiss that made her weak in the knees. Her heart was beating so fast she felt like it would explode at any moment. She was embarrassed since she knew that…with his keen senses, Sol should be able to hear her excited heartbeat.
What made her calm down though was that she could also hear his strong beating heart accelerate upon this act.
There were many things she wanted to say.
But for now… She would just enjoy the kiss. The first true kiss she had with her beloved in a while…
Oh… How she missed this feeling…
———
(AN: Not gonna lie, Sol causes depression in his wake everywhere he goes. Haha. But don’t worry guys. This is gonna be a chill volume. We all want simple and cute moments for Sol to chill and relax with every now and then…)
(EN: Good, cause I am tired of depressing shit. It doesn’t help that my creativity shoots through the roof when there’s a tragedy. Which means more work for me, and I hate it.)
