Angel Monarch-Chapter 531: What is Love?

Early in the morning, the group of eleven gathered outside the mansion. Nick was still asleep, so the mothers and sister couldn't say their goodbyes.

It wasn't a huge issue, though. If everything goes well during the hunt, they'll be back in a few days.

"Okay, listen everyone!" shouted Sera, bringing everyone's attention to herself. "Vicky will open a portal to the Village, where we'll set up camp during the hunt. Afterward, scouts will be sent to where Yggdrasil slumbers, while most of us stay put under the Village's protection..."

"We won't act until the scouts are back with much-needed information. Then we'll make a plan of attack, and hopefully we'll be back by the week's end... Understood?"

The entire group nodded, and a few moments later, Vicky opened the portal leading to the Village.

Yesterday, Sera sent Vicky to warn the villagers about the hunt and the appearance of many unfamiliar faces... Right now, Sera began regretting her decisions...

Instead of the small welcoming delegation, which Sera expected, they found hundreds of armored knights standing along the wide road, which led to the council hall.

The knights' silvery armor gleamed under the gentle rays of sunlight shining through the thick foliage above. The hunters and guards who wore monster skin were no more. These were true soldiers, capable of fighting off even Corrupted monsters.

At their forefront stood a tall, powerfully built man. He held his Angelic Metal helmet under his arm, revealing his black skin and short, dark hair. In his other hand, a long, polished silver spear glinted, reflecting the sunlight like a mirror.

Whakan, the Leader of the Guards, stood with a straight back. His usually grumpy expression was nowhere to be seen as he grinned at the approaching Angel. However, his eyes soon moved away from Sera towards the giantess walking a few steps behind her.

Sera was tall for a woman, but Whakan towered over her by one and a half heads. He was considered one of the tallest people in the Village... He finally understood how everyone else felt when standing near him. Compared to Astrid, he was a Dwarf!

After a brief greeting, during which Whakan couldn't keep his eyes off of Astrid, he led them to the residential area. They prepared rooms for everybody. They also gave an extra, emptied out room with a single wide table at its center, which became their base of operations.

The other leaders awaited and greeted everybody near their rooms.

They all gave curious glances to Astrid, for obvious reasons, but Cass and Lilith also stole quite a few glances. Cass, as a Succubus was more seductive than anyone these villagers had ever witnessed, while Lilith still wore her dark robe with the golden seven-pointed star.

Weirdly enough, Kangee didn't even give a second glance at the beautiful woman. Even when he looked, there was clear respect in his gaze. He also controlled his tongue and didn't make any rude comments.

Sera raised a curious eyebrow, then saw Migsi, the shy scientist who was responsible for the Research/Chemical Branch. She stood beside Kangee, with her delicate arm wrapped around his. It seemed she had finally acted on her feelings and confessed to the Hunter Branch's leader.

She gave a knowing nod to the scientist as she walked by. The short woman blushed heavily, but nodded back towards Sera with a wide, joyous grin.

The group of eleven soon moved into their base of operations, where they discussed who'll go scouting. It was quite obvious though, and a few minutes of talking later, Cass, Henry, Astrid and Faith left through Vicky's portal.

Cass can use her illusions to aid and hide everyone. Henry can turn back time from a safe distance, which can save everyone's lives. Astrid can defend against any type of attack. Faith can move unnoticed through the dark great forest and can teleport everyone a couple kilometers away.

Everyone else left the base of operations and began exploring the Village. Hestia stayed behind to clean the rooms. Even after Sera ordered her to come with them, the petite lady's caring personality didn't let her Mistress live inside a semi-clean room.

Along the way, Sera stopped at the Workshop Branch, where she created a lot more items and raw materials after hearing Aponivi's request.

The Village began upgrading the elevators, so they worked on Angelic Metal pulleys and chains, which increased their carrying capacity. Right now, they had a giant elevator, which brought entire monster corpses onto the Cooking Branch.

After helping the engineers and mechanics out, they explored some more, until they reached the Research/Chemical Branch.

This time, Melinda stepped forward and asked for dozens of water-filled vials. She touched each and pumped them full of different bacteria, viruses and fungi. Some were antibiotics, or could destroy virus and fungi infections, while others increased natural healing or boosted immune systems.

Migsi, the lead scientist, gave a tearful hug to Melinda afterward...

While the hunters and guards weren't afraid of physical injuries anymore, because of the Angelic Metal armor. Many still lost their lives to diseases and horrible afflictions. However, Melinda's miracle cures could help them fight against and even prevent these illnesses.

They continued exploring the Village, helping people out, chatting with locals, etc.

The scouts continuously made reports, or at least Henry did. They were still looking for Yggdrasil's exact location, since Vicky had only teleported them into her generic area.

The day went by fast, and night soon arrived. The Village prepared a feast for Sera and her friends, but she didn't plan on attending.

She gave a discreet apology to everyone, then dragged Bea into an elevator. They traveled upwards towards the Scout Branch.

The light breeze played with Sera's golden locks, while Bea leaned against the elevator railing. An alluring smile spread across her blood-red lips as her greenish-gold eyes gazed at Sera's perfect face.

"So, where are we going? The villagers might take offense and feel disrespected because you skipped their feast."

Sera glanced at Bea with a knowing smile. She turned towards the magnificent woman and leaned against the railing opposite Bea.

"Vicky will convince them, but it's unlikely they'll care. They just use my presence as an excuse to have fun and party together. Also, Pakwa must've already scouted out what I've planned for this beautiful night!"

Pakwa was the Scout Branch's leader. She often explored around the Village out of boredom, so she definitely found the spot Sera chose for this special occasion.

Just as she finished talking, the elevator came to a silent stop, and its metal gate opened. They left it behind and moved up through a winding staircase, away from the Scout Branch.

Upon reaching the path's end, Sera said, "Cover your eyes, please. Don't ruin the surprise!"

Bea followed the Angel's instructions, and soon a pair of wooden covers appeared over her eyes. Technically, she could've seen through these covers, but it would've been rude to ruin Sera's surprise.

A pair of gentle arms moved behind Bea's knees and back as Sera lifted her into a princess carry. A moment later, her pristine white wings beat the air, propelling her through the last layers of foliage.

The wind brushed against both women's skin, yet all they could feel was each other's warm breaths. Bea felt her body become hot from the vulnerable position and the tender feeling of Sera's arms wrapped around her body.

Sera also struggled to concentrate, but luckily, their destination wasn't far away. They were airborne for only a few seconds, and soon Sera placed her partner down beside herself.

"You can remove the blindfold," she said, her voice full of excitement.

Her steps echoed through the silent night. She stopped a few meters away from Bea, then trembled with anticipation as the wooden covers grew back into the magnificent woman's greenish-tanned skin.

The world soon came into focus. Sera stood beside a beautifully carved table with two seats, packed with dozens of different types of meals. A few candles burned with fervor, illuminating the table, while a pair of Rune-covered mugs rested near their plates.

The set table was alluring in itself, but Bea's true awe came from the surroundings. They stood atop the highest of branches, with nothing covering the clear night sky.

Stars shone brightly above as the moon rose right behind Sera, giving her a halo of light, elevating her beauty way past divine levels. She looked like an actual goddess in Bea's eyes, but not because of her looks.

The violent thumping of her heart... The desire burning in her body... The deep, uncontrollable breathing of her lungs... They all added together, creating the perfect image of a perfect being...

Nobody could describe love with ease. The emotion itself is ambiguous and differs from individual to individual...

Sometimes, love's ignited too fast, which burns both partners... Other times, love isn't reciprocated on either side, and its fate is a slow, pitiful death...

Love can empower someone, or totally ruin their lives... It can save and destroy... It can move worlds or force them to stop... It carries the purest desires within, yet it can rot away even the purest of souls...

Everyone feels love differently. Some feel a burning ache, an unhealthy need for their partner. While others could only feel the barest of sparks, the light warmth flowing across their bodies when by their partner's side.

Bea herself was somewhere between these two. On one side, she wanted to rip Sera's clothes off, then instead of the tasty feast, she wanted to eat her on the table. But deep down, she also felt a spark and warmth gently flowing across every inch of her body.

However, while she had trouble controlling her desire, she knew something for certain...

She loved Sera!