A Demon's Journey

"…W-What? Wouldn\'t he find it weird if you both also don\'t come? He might cancel the plan altogether," Serena sounded a bit worried.

At this moment, Lily spoke, "Then just convince him. Don\'t forget that you only have this one opportunity to allure him with your charms. I will do your makeover and select your dress, alright?"

"I wouldn\'t have it any other way," Serena spoke.

While they were chatting, Emily wondered aloud, "…From what I saw, Sir Rueben seems to treat Aurelio equally. And you mentioned that Aurelio is an archer who is as good as Sir Rueben when they fought the Demon Kings. So how come I have never heard of such an archer before?"

"That\'s indeed strange. Someone of his talent shouldn\'t have stayed hidden for so long," Lily added.

"I don\'t know, and I can hardly care about this fact," Serena rolled her eyes. She added, "He might have had his difficulties."

"Whatever you say," Emily responded while shrugging and sharing a look with Lily.

"It\'s a pity that Sir Rueben is busy or else we could have spent the day with him," Lily murmured with a disappointed expression.

"Yeah," Emily shared her look of disappointment.

Unbeknownst to the trio, Rueben had extended his Ardor and was eavesdropping on their conversation.

His reason for eavesdropping on them was quite straightforward. He was slightly suspicious of them and wanted to know if they had any plans of harming them.

However, upon hearing their conversation, a smile appeared on his face as he realized they were innocent and harmless.

His reason for helping Serena build up romance with Aurelio was somewhat selfish. Rueben wanted Aurelio to build a strong connection with someone in the Pinhian Republic.

He had witnessed Aurelio\'s strength in that spar against him and the battle against the Demon Kings. And frankly, Rueben felt it would be disastrous if Aurelio ever decided to fight for the Berian Kingdom against the Pinhian Republic.

And according to what he has observed, Rueben felt that Aurelio would never attack the home nation of his lover. In fact, he would prevent a war from occurring.

The Pinhian Republic was in dire need of this temporary peace, which implied that they could not afford to initiate a conflict with the Berian Kingdom.

~~

The next day.

Serena was excited to show Aurelio around Rondor City, and she wanted to make it a memorable day for him. She met Aurelio outside the inn they were staying in, wearing a beautiful emerald green dress that accentuated her curves and a matching headband with her blonde hair tied in a loose bun.

He was surprised to only see her and asked her, "Where are you friends?"

"They mentioned that they wanted to do some shopping today," Serena gave a weak excuse.

"Won\'t you be uncomfortable without them?" Aurelio asked.

Serena was really nervous and summoned her courage before speaking, "No, Sir Aurelio. I would never consider it uncomfortable to roam around with my hero."

"Your hero?" Aurelio murmured and a bright smile appeared on his face. "And here I thought people only liked Rueben here."

"N-No. Actually, I think you were much more amazing in that battle than Sir Rueben. You even endured the attacks of those demons and set up those barriers to protect us," Serena spoke up rather strongly.

Aurelio was taken aback by her enthusiasm and smiled, "Nice, nice. I am liking you more and more now."

Serena\'s heartbeat quickened upon hearing how Aurelio was liking her more and more. She had to console her excited heart by thinking, \'He doesn\'t meant it that way…yet!\'

"So, what do you have planned out for today?" Aurelio asked curiously.

"Well, I thought we could start by checking out the beautiful lake near the city. It has a really interesting history," Serena said, grabbing his arm and leading him towards the lake.

As they walked, Serena pointed out various buildings and landmarks, describing their historical and cultural significance. When they finally arrived at the lake, Serena rented a small boat, and they started rowing.

Aurelio looked around, mesmerized by the natural beauty of the lake. Serena, on the other hand, couldn\'t stop glancing at him.

"This is beautiful, Serena," Aurelio said, taking in the scenery around them. "Thank you for bringing me here."

"I\'m glad you like it, Sir Aurelio," Serena said a little shyly. "It\'s one of my favorite places in the city. The lake is known for its legends, too. They say it was created by the tears of a goddess who wept for her lost love."

Aurelio looked at Serena with a hint of curiosity. "Really? That\'s quite a story. Do you believe in it?"

"I\'m not sure," Serena said, a smile playing at the corners of her lips. "But it\'s a nice thought, isn\'t it? That someone can love so deeply that it moves the heavens and the earth."

Aurelio nodded, the hint of a smile on his lips. "It is a nice thought."

Serena felt a shiver run down her spine as she noticed Aurelio\'s deep, thoughtful eyes. They looked so beautiful in the sunlight.

They spent a peaceful hour in the middle of the lake, enjoying each other\'s company, and Aurelio felt his guard drop around her. They laughed, shared stories, and enjoyed each other\'s presence.

Suddenly, Aurelio spoke, "We are already familiar with each other, so you should stop adding Sir and just call me by my name."

"O-okay, Aurelio," muttered Serena nervously.

After they returned the boat, Serena suggested they head to the historical ruins of Rondor City. They walked through the remnants of an old fort that had been destroyed years ago.

As Aurelio and Serena made their way towards the old fort, she narrated the history of the fort, its grandeur and its downfall. They walked up a steep hill to reach the fort\'s entrance, the ruins of the fort towering over them.

"Yes, it was," Serena said, "This fort was built during the reign of King Valtair, who was known for his love of architecture and art. He spared no expense in making this fort a symbol of his power and wealth. But it was later abandoned and forgotten, like many other structures of that time."

Aurelio listened intently to Serena\'s stories, amazed by her knowledge of history and culture. As they explored the fort, Serena pointed out the unique features of the fort and described how they were constructed.

"This is an old armory, and the roof was made of rare hardwood that could deflect arrows and was fire-resistant. The walls were coated with a special type of plaster that made them impenetrable," Serena explained, pointing to a structure inside the fort.

Aurelio nodded in appreciation, impressed by the advanced technology of the time. "It\'s fascinating to see how they used to build things back then," he said.

As they made their way to the highest point of the fort, Aurelio marveled at the breathtaking view of the city from up high. "It\'s beautiful," he said.

As they walked around, Serena noticed Aurelio looking at her more often. She started to feel nervous, wondering if her feelings were as transparent as she thought they were.

"It\'s incredible how well you know the history of this city. You\'re quite the tour guide," Aurelio said, smiling at her.

"I\'m glad you think so," Serena said, returning his smile. "I\'ve always loved history and the stories behind everything."

As the sun began to set, they made their way back to the heart of the city. Aurelio turned to Serena and said, "I had an amazing time today, thank you for showing me around."

As they walked towards the restaurant they were going to have dinner in, Serena\'s heart was pounding. She had been waiting for this moment for so long. She took a deep breath and said, "Aurelio, I hope it\'s not too forward of me to say this, but I really enjoy your company. Spending time with you today felt like a dream come true. And I might have developed feelings for you."

Aurelio\'s eyes widened, realizing the romantic hints Serena had been giving him all day. He smiled at her, his heart feeling full. "I admit that I find you an attractive and intelligent woman. In fact, I would have loved to accept you, but there is a certain reason I can\'t," he said.

Serena\'s eyes dropped upon hearing those words as she did her best to control her tears, "…I-is it because you have feelings for someone else?"

Seeing her distressed appearance truly troubled Aurelio as he quickly explained, "Nothing of that sort. In fact, you are the closest a woman has been to me emotionally. My master forbid any contact with a woman until my training was over."

"…T-then what is it?" Serena asked.

Aurelio remained hesitant after some time as he didn\'t know whether he should tell her the truth or not.

However, as he gazed into her innocent yet curious eyes, Aurelio decided to act according to his intuition and spoke, "I am Aurelio Vulso, the Generous Blazing Archer of the Berian Kingdom."

"W-what?!" Serena was startled to hear that statement.

"I truly enjoyed our time together, Serena. But the national borders…I can\'t make light of them," Aurelio spoke seriously.

Serena remained silent as she heard his words. She continued to think for some time and then asked softly, "…Do you mean you would have dated me if we were from the Berian Kingdom?"

Aurelio\'s eyes widened in shock as he realized the implication of that statement.