I Grabbed the Tyrant’s Heart - Chapter 250
“Pfft.”
When Tess laughed, the Southern Emperor’s face turned a mix of red and blue.
“Damn!”
However, despite his anger, he seemed to recognize he was at a disadvantage, as he immediately conjured fireballs around him.
He scattered the fireballs, likely trying to increase the distance between us.
Clang!
A sword blade came flying through the thick heat, but it was easily deflected.
“Oh, did you think I couldn’t block this?”
The Southern Emperor twisted his face, seemingly trying for a decisive blow. He disappeared, likely teleporting away.
“Push the Southern Empire soldiers into one place!”
At the commander’s command, our forces charged toward the Southern Empire soldiers without hesitation.
“Uoooooo!”
The ground echoed with the roar.
The leaderless remaining Southern Empire soldiers were wiped out.
“A great victory!”
General Panet looked pleased. After carefully asking Tess and me about the dragon and the Southern Emperor, he gave us our freedom.
Of course, Tess and I, as if we had made a pact, conveniently left out the part about the Southern Emperor having God’s blessing.
When we arrived at the bedroom, Tess took a sip of water and sat in a chair. I stood in front of him, arms crossed.
“So, am I the only one who was always scared your heart might break?”
“I told you, no one can break my heart.”
I thought you were just too cocky about it!
“…How much did I struggle to get it back after it was taken by the Southern Emperor…”
It’s easy to talk about it, but do you know how much strain I put on my whole body to survive?
“That guy probably found a way to break it.”
Tess gently whispered as he fiddled with my hand.
“My body, and his, are both unusual. We’re humans, but not entirely. The heart stays strong as long as it’s inside the body, but it weakens once it’s outside.”
Ugh, then why did you expose your heart to danger like that!?
I wanted to grab him by the collar and shake him, but I held back.
It was the most precious thing he had, and he gave it away… What could I even say about that?
“And I bet that guy took some serious internal damage. He’s not immortal, he just doesn’t die easily.”
Tess smiled broadly.
“Tess, then how did past Southern Emperors subdue the rampaging Northern Emperors?”
“Literally subdued them. There’s probably the body of the first Emperor of the Southern Empire hidden somewhere. I bet they locked up a captured Northern Emperor in there. It’s the perfect prison.”
“So that’s why the Southern Emperor knew there’s such a room…”
The Southern Emperor, who had infiltrated Alin, had told Ruby about this. Ruby, disguised as a priest of Lux, had then informed the prince. The Northern and Southern Empires really do have a lot of similarities.
“And there’s a way to fake death too. If you stab the heart repeatedly, the regeneration speed slows down. You can also cut off the limbs.”
“I get it. I get it, stop.”
That wasn’t exactly pleasant to hear.
“But Tess, there’s something definitely off about his body.”
“Why?”
“His blood was cold.”
The red liquid that spilled out from his body sent a chill through me when it touched my skin. The cold sensation from it was extremely unpleasant.
“I guess he gave up something in exchange for gaining the power to control dragons. Probably something to do with his warmth, like the warmth of his body, maybe?”
Warmth.
It didn’t seem like much, but knowing how Tess’s body is always lukewarm, I instantly understood. Body warmth is one of the things that proves a person is alive.
The Southern Emperor, pretending to be compassionate, was actually a human without any warmth. Or, is he even human?
Unless he’s killed, the war won’t end.
“I wish the God of Light would just take his life instead. It’s a pity.”
“Hahaha.”
“Tess, you didn’t lose anything strange, did you? To the demon?”
“The demon tried to take my body completely, so no, that didn’t happen.”
…I’m not sure which is better.
Suppressing a sigh that was about to escape, I touched Tess’s tousled hair.
“The Chancellor doesn’t seem to be talking about it, so maybe he doesn’t know, but I should ask if there have been any cases of someone blessed by the God of Light getting hurt or dying. Anyway, I also received a message from Weathering to come to the palace for a while. Ah, Tess.”
“…I know.”
Tess slowly took my hand and lowered it. He kissed the calloused palm of my hand with soft lips in circles.
“Go. I’ll stay here to keep watch.”
Bowing my waist, I said I’d be gone for a while, and immediately, a tired man entered my line of sight.
“After the war ends…”
“…”
“We’re getting married, right?”
The tired red lips curved into a smile, and a sparkle appeared in his dark eyes. But perhaps because of the war, Tess’s overall mood still felt subdued.
“I’m waiting for that day.”
A finger of mine disappeared into Tess’s mouth. At the soft flesh that met the tip of my finger, my mouth instinctively opened.
“I’ll be back soon.”
Swallowing my burning thirst, I stroked his silky hair.
“Okay, I’ll wait.”
Tess whispered with his eyes wide.
* * *
I kept the fact that I went to the capital a secret, and as soon as I arrived, I quietly headed to the Magic Tower.
“Is there any chance I could meet the prince?”
“It’s not difficult, but may I ask what this is about?”
“It might be meaningless, but I want to ask about the pendant.”
What Weathering had handed me was the necklace that had been hanging around the prince’s neck.
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