Tyrant of the Ruined Sun-Chapter 169: Nights of Masquerade 12

Her sudden query caused my smile to further expand in wanton bliss, as I seriously replied, with all the previous casualness in my voice now purged, so that no misunderstanding may be born as a result of it "Because since the very start, I have had but one person in mind for such a position, and that person is you."

She was visibly taken aback by the revelation of my words, another expression she had rarely shown me in our past lives, which once again reinstated my previous foolish grin back upon my now aching lips, who were not accustomed to maintain such an expression for prolonged periods of time, as I then added with a returned tone of joviality.

"Besides, if I had indeed placed another in command of such an operation, then it wouldn't do to present you with such a basic second hand product for our first meeting, wouldn't you agree?"

My words once again stunned her, even if she knew they were humorously said, before she then asked with an edge as she asked "...Do you mean to say that you have been preparing this bargaining chip for the better part of four years specifically for me?"

"Indeed, I have." I did not refute her words, affirming her seemingly insane conjecture.

"You knew so much about us from back then?!" She asked half in disbelief half in exclamation.

"Yes." I truthfully answered.

"How?!" She demanded with a raised voice, even standing as she did, causing the shadows cast by the cascading moonlight through the glass windows in the room surrounding us to slightly quiver in response, like terrified servants afraid of their mistress' wrath.

"I already answered you, did I not? My esteemed ancestor struck a deal with the God of Time to return me back to my youth, when the entire Pantheon deemed it necessary to retake the test to determine the master of this world of ours." I calmly replied, my voice as sincere as I could make it sound, yet I could tell that they still had minimal affect on this stubborn woman.

"...Then contrary to your previous words, wouldn't it have been a better card to play if you had, instead of decimating the criminal underworld, simply replaced the previous leadership with your loyal men, and then offered it to me?" She then suddenly said, as she retook her seat before me, her voice awash with lingering scepticism and hardened desire to dislodge the veneer of a mad man's truthfulness, she believed I still hid behind, which is why she thought her special gift, that allowed her to see through any lies or attempted deceit, continued to insist that I had given nothing but candid responses.

'Seems like she is still trying to find a flaw in the words I speak.' I glumly thought, before confidently answering, as a helpless sigh escaped my lips, realizing that getting her to once again put her trust in me might be even more of a challenge now than when I first met her in my past life, which was decades later from the present timeline.

"If I were trying to woo someone other than you, then yes, what you say is correct. But because it is in fact you, then such a method would have both dissatisfied you, who is so averse to the thought of being handed pitying charity, while simultaneously failing to qualify in your father's eyes, eventually rendering such a gesture and card, not just useless, but a poison to you."

My calm explanation left nothing for rebuke or criticism, which was evident by her following silence, as she found hard to form a coherent rebuttal to continue justifying her continued distrust of me, before she then asked, her brows even more furrowed now "And what do you gain from all this in exchange? My subservience?"

A slightly exaggerated sigh escaped my lips then, as I sternly retorted with an exasperated tone "Do you still think your subservience to me is what I most desire in this world! Even after all I had done to show you my honest sincerity?!"

I then spouted my last words with a severe sense of finality "I have plenty of servants Eve, and I have no need for another. What I offer you is a partnership, as in an equal, not a hierarchal relationship, do you understand?"

A crack finally seemed to emerge upon the bastions she protected herself behind, making me wonder why she was so averse to trusting me, even more so when we first met in my past life.

'Eve was never a woman who easily allowed someone into her inner circle, rarely ever entrusting her back to anyone; and though I never expected her to be the same exact woman I originally fell in love with, she is undoubtedly a far more paranoid and distrustful individual than I originally knew her as... But what could have caused this?' I silently pondered as I kept staring in worry at the woman before me.

"...And to what end?" She finally asked, nearly a minute later.

"What do you mean?" I asked, not understanding her intention.

"I mean, what is it you gain from all of this?!" She nearly yelled in response. "You said that you would offer me the perfect place to achieve my goals, along with all the aid I would ever require from you, an emperor of one of the four cardinal empires of this world, and in exchange you would gain that which is most wanted by you in this world, something even a man of your power and influence can't easily obtain; so I initially thought that it was greed for the power of my house, acquired by making me feel indebted to you, but now you claim the opposite by wanting to create an equal partnership between us, despite the fact that I currently have neither the ability to equate the scales of this clearly lopsided deal, nor do I possess a guarantee that I will measure up to whatever fantastical plans you plainly hold for the future, so I ask again Eclipse emperor, what is it you want?"

"You." I instantly answered, my tone painfully direct.

"What?" She asked, almost as though she doubted the competency of her ordinarily reliable ears.

"What I most desire in this world. It's you." I repeated, with even more clarity this time.

"...You better be careful with the choice of your words Eclipse emperor, because if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were trying to court me at the moment." She said with a hint of anger in her tone, but that is not what I noticed most, for my eyes were now gawking disbelievingly at the shy blush, barely creeping it's way onto her cheeks.

'I suppose even she was once an inexperienced lady.' I thought in joy, having just seen a side of her I had never done so before.

"That's because I am." I again clarified, continuing "And not as a concubine or a lover, but as my wife and empress. I want someone who can stand shoulder to shoulder with me and share in the responsibilities and the burdens of the future. I want you."

Eve looked as if she had not heard what I said, as she remained perfectly in place her mind and senses working as fast as they could to assess the current unexpected change of events, yet even after several minutes she remained in the same state, prompting me to eventually ask, as I suddenly stood up "May I see your eyes?"

She flinched at this, momentarily frozen by my abrupt request, which only escalated when I then reached her side, making her feel more unease as I loomed over her, yet before she could even lift her head to gaze defiantly at me, as was her instinct to never cower or retreat before anyone who would try to intimidate her, she felt me kneel down beside her, with my own head now hovering below hers, as I asked again "May I see your eyes?"

She hesitated for a moment, her face a mask of disbelief and confusion, as she continued to sense me kneeling before her, which only grew more intense when she then felt her limbs unconsciously abide by my request and reach behind her head, untying the knot that held her eye covering.

Once the black clothe fell away from her angelic face, and I beheld her amethyst globes, open wide in surprise at her own involuntary actions, a sense of peace I had not felt for so long bloomed inside of me, manifested from the sight of these two unfocused but still inherently prideful orbs.

"Why me?" She questioned a few moments later, her face never deviating from mine, despite her inability to see me.

"If I told you that in our past lives, you and I were the closest of lovers, would you believe me?" I playfully answered, but I could see that she no longer disregarded my words as the mere piffle of an honest mad man.

She then grew quiet again, submerging us both again in that same serene silence of earlier, before once again asking "And if I refuse?"

Her words this time even gave pause to me, which made her feel slightly anxious, as I then replied "...Then I will accept your choice." But upon hearing my words she felt greatly more at ease, but that all vanished as she heard the continuation of my words, that were venomously laced with a maddening obsession "But then I will ask you again, and again, and again, and again, no matter how much it takes, until you accept."

"...That doesn't seem that I have much of choice then do I?" She replied, and for the first time since meeting her on the balcony this night, she spoke to me with ever the slightest hint of playfulness back to me.

"Be mine Eve and together, you and I, will rule over this world." I eagerly proclaimed, as I carefully cupped her hand in between mine.

My ambitious words only made her pride flare up, and briefly, her amethyst eyes eyes flared up in divine light, causing the man shadows around us to sway, almost as though they were dancing in celebration of their mistress' mood.

Yet so enraptured I was that night with my first talk with Eve in centuries, I completely forgot that today too signified a second cataclysmic beginning for this world's future, one now bore in dreams and oracles of a nineteen year old boy, currently sweating and heaving in bed, as confusing images of wars, destruction and Hellfire engulf his screaming mind.