Chapter 12: Master and a Contracted Beast

What was that about?

Ziro paused her breath in a fair second and think of the hurtling voice inside her head was somewhat similar to that of what just the swordsman did before – a telepathic ability. But far from her concern, the two extrasensory skills were completely different from each other.

As she was still filled with tears, she dabbed her eyes towards Dmitri. And to her surprise, the swordsman already kissed his knees on the ground. Out of the blue, her astonishment turned her emotion into a complete hundred eighty.

"…?"

"I'm very sorry, Your Highness. I didn't mean to enrage you. I am in the wrong this time. Please forgive my denseness."

Even though she couldn't clearly see the swordsman's face, Ziro immediately felt the tension on his voice, and sparks of dejection from his presence only shut her words.

His composure was incomparably different from before.

It was a good thing that her heavy speech slapped some news onto his head but only that, her annoyance had yet reached its damping.

That's it? That's just it? Only a voice of that Highness and this swordsman immediately owned his mistakes? Wasn't that a bit superficial concede?

Ting!!!

Not long, a verdant light exploded from the spirit stones as it engulfed every nook of the shadowy cave until all colors were eradicated, and only spared a blinding white.

" – Ah."

Ziro and the swordsman firmly shut their eyes until both of them were swallowed into brilliance.

With its powerful lumen, every soul beast it touched took no second to be smudged into a pile of dust. One by one, until only four soul beasts, survived – the stealthy sigbin, swift mantis, and two other – as it hurried back towards the ingress of the yard.

Still lingered an aromatic scent effusing from the air, the effulgent had gradually dimmed.

~Both of you… return to the heart at once!~

A barrage of domination and anger of a maiden's voice rolled inside their heads once again.

Ziro could not simply lift her lips to answer or even give a decent telepathic reply. She didn't even know whom she talking to, at worse, she has no idea what it was.

"Right away, Your Highness."

But the swordsman was totally in its character of serving his ever praised liege.

"…"

Quietly recovered her thumping heart, Ziro clamped her lips and waited for Dmitri to be back on his feet. How she wished Dmitri would always be like this.

She couldn't just help but to think just how powerful was that lady waiting in the heart of this cave to make this swordsman wagged its tail upon hearing her voice.

Come to think of it, Ziro hadn't seen any person at the seemingly called heart, where she woke up. And also, she had no idea where this swordsman hid in the first place.

"Hey. Why are you not following? You still want me to carry you? I really want to clear this with you. Though I mistook you for a beautiful maiden, I absolutely have no interest in guys."

Ziro took a few shutters of her eyelids when she was dragged out from her thoughts. Dabbed her eyes, she realized Dmitri was already a few paces ahead of her trudging towards the heart, already recalled his summons.

Meeting the guy's bluish eyes under its already furrowed eyebrows to which faint traces of glumness could be seen, soaked her chest into an ironical irritation.

"Want to carry… who? As if! I would rather die than being carried by a guy like you…"

She shrugged her last fabric covering the lower part of her body. With a loud scoff, she continued.

"And rest assured, I have no interest in guys…"

…pausing for a second when a quick realization took over her. Well, technically, she liked guys, but just for her condition right now, she purposely must not fall for them in this world, but for a second thought…

"… I hope."

The swordsman's expression didn't change a bit as though he didn't hear what she just added.

And maybe it was for good. She thought. She couldn't imagine if this gallant swordsman finds out she liked guys. Maybe his annoying attitude might morph into something even more irritating.

Even so, all possible outcomes exposing her interest would definitely sour their already soured relationship.

"Glad to know that. Well, I would say this first already. All throughout what you said before, I still dislike the likes of you."

Ziro's eyebrows felt a stinging sensation. She was amazed by how this new guy really burst her bubbles off out of nowhere. If it weren't for this guy's appearance, she already thought he was her former stepbrother.

If it so, she would rather be relieved because from here in through, she'll definitely have the chance of slapping his face and vent out her anger from her stepfather.

'This guy…really pisses me off.'

"Well, I have no intention of befriending you too. I just merely snug along just to survive and get out in this cave."

"I wouldn't say that if I were you. But, just for my Highness' sake… I would gladly take the initiative giving an apology for what I just said. I maybe went a little too overboard."

The more the swordsman talked, the more complicated she felt.

'What kind of apology was that? And a little too overboard? That was actually beyond overboard!'

"Seriously? Is there really a need for you to strongly point out your initiation?"

The swordsman's eyes went indifferent in a sudden.

"Fine. Forget it."

"Alright. Alright. Geez, I'll accept it for now. But I still don't –"

"Come on. Let's go."

Abruptly interrupting, the swordsman forwarded his foot and took a breaking glance at Ziro.

"The hell, a minute."

Ziro just scratched her head unable to refuse.

"Hurry up, plodder. I don't want my highness to wait."

"I heard you twice already. Noticed you dropped your 'your highness' greeting towards me."

"I just realized you're not a prince figure after all."

"Ha? What makes you say that?!"

"First, you're a cripple. Second, you're frail. Third, you looked dumb. Fourth, you talk differently. Fifth... –ugh! You destroyed my everlasting hope. Sixth, y-"

"Hey! Wasn't that too many?! Also, what the hell are you talking about? Tell you one thing, I can't really stand y…"

As the two traipsed towards the very heart of the Cave of Death, distant echoes were gradually reduced to murmurs until only the hisses of wind could only be heard.

******

"So, this giant… rock is the heart?"

Ziro dug her feet on the cavern floor when the only perplexity ran through circles inside her head.

A minute ago, her anticipation to meet the ever praised Highness of the swordsman, was already at the brink of spilling.

But now, her complicated expression was perfectly aimed towards the upright slates girdle in a rose-like pattern with jutted claw-like thorns at its sides. Just as before, constant flickering verdant glints danced above the imposing rocks infusing a magnificent light show.

'These fireflies…'

Her gaze fell on to those fire-couriers hovering above which she feared from before. Was her intuition wrong? But she felt a grumble quake beneath these slates earlier. Was it not a soul beast?

"Indeed."

Without pertaining to Ziro's reaction, Dmitri slowly walked towards the slates and knelt before it.

Couldn't be more perplexed, Ziro raised both of her eyebrows.

'Okay? So that rock was Her Highness?'

"We're back, Your Highness."

Dmitri gently threw out a gesture of respect as he bowed his head at ninety and held his hand in front.

'I knew it. These rocks…'

"…"

Ziro slowly shuttered her eyelids, patiently waiting for any response. But…

Silence…

"…"

This time, she rolled her eyes towards the fireflies. Well, of course, they were still fireflies as they were before, what did she expect? Then onwards, down to the crouching spirit stones on the cavern floor.

Nothing...

'What's happening?'

Creases form on her forehead. Should she kneel too? Or just wait until something appears? Wouldn't it be really dangerous if she just froze behind? What if a beast suddenly sneaks towards her? What if…

…like those questions minced her brain.

However just before she lost to her conundrum…

Grrrr.

A whispering grumble faintly cried… and it didn't escape Ziro's ears.

'Something's coming.'

Firmly ingraining her feet on the ground, she plunged her senses into a deeper awareness…

…and waited…

GRRRRR!

…until the grumbles were replaced by rock-shattering quakes, which sent the whole cavern into tremor!

"…!"

Pebbles began hurtling down from the towering ceiling. The hovering lights were startled as their lithe aerial dances were immediately turned into a disheveled medley.

Crispy cracks from the spirit stones broke an immeasurable number of glass fractals rustling above the cavern floor.

"Ah. Dmitri. I don't think this is a good place."

Gazing above, Ziro's visage turned pallid when her mind already thinking the ceiling was on a brink of collapse.

"Mmh."

"… Mmh?"

A sting in her eyes immediately blistered an irritation. Ziro shot a glance towards the swordsman.

"Don't just 'mmh' me. I'm serious. Are you really sure that your highness wouldn't kill us? To me, she'd already dug our grave this very minute."

"...you're scared, aren't you?"

By that, the swordsman's elfin lips were hooked in a grin.

Ziro immediately frowned.

"… Ha? Why would I be scared? I just value my life."

"Valuing your life doesn't mean you should be wary at all times."

"What that's supposed to mean?"

"…"

But Dmitri seemed to be halted from his reply as though he realized something.

"…well, I-I…don't want to start a conversation."

"…"

'What the hell was that?'

Rumble!!!

"…!"

'What now?'

The ground reverberated.

This time, the perfectly spiraled slates trembled. And just try to peer a little bit closer, its roots from the ground seemed to be breaking apart! Slowly, one by one… until the entire massive rocks crawled in a swirling pattern as though it looked like a creeping snake.

Moreover, its claw-like thorns eventually moved, as it budded out along with the hoary sediment, it surprisingly appeared to be crescent jade claws waiting to be unclenched!

GRRRR!!!!

"…!"

Ziro's eyes widened when all the pieces of slates came together and formed giant scales just along with those jutted jade claws.

Not a later, as the very center of the spiral, began its course up, an indistinct figure crawled on top.

'It's… It's a woman.'

But just as it revealed its whole form, Ziro lost her blood.

It was a giant woman with a lower part of a snake! Her hands were claws, her scales were slates, her eyes were jades, her skin was green, and her hair was spirit stones. About forty feet tall, her span was immeasurably long.

GRRRRR!!!

Easing its curled serpent tail, the cavern floor almost lost its glue on the mantle. Bags of dust celebrated their journey up air leaving a murky and eye-irritating surrounding.

After seconds, the silence returned. The verdant light-couriers paced back on their former light show, giving enough lumen for Ziro to see the woman's gigantic face. Not to mention, the woman's eyes alone were of the size of Ziro's head.

At this time, Ziro's complexion was no better than the snake-girl, as her visage turned pale green. She didn't know what to feel; fear? Excitement? What the hell are those? She was completely muted.

She'd seen enough through the past few hours; those soul beasts, human-sized mantis, vanishing sigbin… but never in her mind would she able to meet this completely incomparable gargantuan monster, or was it really a monster in the first place?

~Fear not, Long Zhao, Son of Miro. I am no harm. Come.~

Ziro's feelings became even more complicated when a sweet maiden voice whispered on her head lulled with a faint trace of familiarity.

She didn't want to believe that it came from the snake-girl, however just as her mind refused, the woman in front immediately beamed a smile towards her.

Ziro couldn't help but pull a forceful smile. She then took a glance towards Dmitri who besides the giant half-half woman, having an assuring expression as though telling her that it was safe.

'Fine.'

Letting out a long sigh, she completely shrugged her tensed shoulder and paced towards the woman.

"I am Zhao Long indeed, but Ziro would be better, Your Highness. So… may this humble person ask who you are?"

She cupped her hands upfront and paid respect.

~The name's Ketu, ruler of this cave, guardian of one of the seven Pearl Treasures.~

"…"

'Pearl Treasures? What are those?'

Just as her expression said it so, she turned her gaze towards the swordsman and was immediately understood what she meant.

******