The Demon King's First General
Chapter 181: Sol

Chapter 181: Sol

Before midnight, Uoiea and Zeno managed to return to the secret passage leading to the princess’ secret chamber, the place with a huge tree standing at its center.

At first, this was one of their secret meeting places, but as the demon left the demon army, it became his personal home.

Zeno stared at the large magical tree; even though he had seen it several times, he still couldn’t understand the mystery behind the thing.

It was like a separate dimension, something like a deity’s place, but he knew for a fact that it wasn’t. After all, the place was too cramped for them and their battalion of angels.

"We’re here," Zeno whispered and glanced behind.

The princess was sleeping soundly on his back while the red lion was following their trail in silence.

"Uoiea, we’re here," the demon repeated.

This time, he gently tapped the woman’s head to wake her up from deep slumber.

"Hmmnn," Uoiea hummed, still with her eyes closed.

Then, she leaped down from the demon’s back, but the moment her feet touched the ground, she swayed like a drunkard and lost her balance.

If not for Zeno’s immediate response, catching her the moment she fell backward, she would have plumped on the grass like a cut log.

The silver-haired demon stared at the princess sleeping on her arms. He shook his head while the edges of his lips curled upward.

Then, Zeno bent down and wrapped his other arm under her knees before lifting her up. He carried her once again and gently placed her back, leaning on the tree.

Afterward, the demon sat beside her and let her head rest on his shoulder. Meanwhile, the red lion just stood right there, staring at them, but the moment Zeno gave it a glare, it averted its gaze and sulked in a corner.

"Uoiea," Zeno uttered again, but the woman was still in a deep sleep.

Thus, he grabbed her hand and locked his fingers against hers. Then he closed his eyes and joined the princess in her nap.

Without anyone disturbing, and despite the extreme brilliance coming from above the tree, both of them had a nice, peaceful rest.

Uoiea was the first one to wake up; her eyes blinked in slow motion before she rubbed them while yawning. Then she noticed the demon’s hand holding hers, and a smile blossomed on her face. She looked at him sleeping at her side, staring at the sharp features of his face, even the long lashes and those lips.

"Ze... No..." she whispered as she let her finger run on his pointed nose.

The demon’s eyes began to open; they glanced at her, and the princess’ smile turned even wider.

"Did I wake you up?" Uoiea asked.

But the man didn’t reply; instead, he grabbed her arm and pulled her towards his chest. With their faces only a hair’s breadth away, their eyes locked in a silent exchange. Then the princess leaned forward, just enough for their lips to meet in a gentle caress.

"Good morning," Uoiea uttered with the sweetest tone she could muster.

However, the demon’s response was a little bit rough. Without saying a word, he lunged at the woman’s lips, giving them a deep, passionate kiss.

Their tongues intertwined, dancing as their heads tilted after each second. This lasted for several minutes until they both stopped to catch their breath.

"What is that for?" Uoiea asked before burying herself at the demon’s chest.

"I’m going to leave. It will take a few days or maybe a week," Zeno answered, ignoring her question.

This made Uoiea lift her head in surprise, her maple-colored eyes asking why.

"I have something to do, but don’t worry, I’ll definitely return," the demon added.

"But a week is too long," the princess replied, her voice laced with sadness.

Upon hearing her response, the demon gave him a soft flick on the forehead.

"Don’t worry, I won’t leave after this one; this will be the last," Zeno stated, trying to pacify the princess’ worries.

Uoiea pouted like a child, but she knew that it would be selfish of her if she stopped the demon from going out, and besides, she believed that she could handle it for a week, so she gave her permission.

Thus they both stood up, and Uoiea hugged him with a warm embrace while the demon gave her a gentle kiss on the forehead before leaving.

. . . . .

Uoiea returned to her everyday life as a normal human being secretly in love with a demon. She attended to her duties as a princess on the day, but when the first night came, she couldn’t sleep in peace.

Her mind was clouded with thoughts while missing the demon’s embrace. The time continued to tick, and the bell chimed twelve consecutive times, indicating that it was already past midnight, and yet, the princess’ eyes were still wide open.

’Where are you right now, Zeno?’ All that she thought was about the demon.

Thus, she got out of her bed and sneaked out of her room. Careful not to be caught by anyone, she went to the passage leading to her secret place.

The first to greet her was the red lion lying in comfort next to the tree. It gave her a glance before walking in her direction.

"Are you hungry?" Uoiea asked, smiling.

The monster became a tamed beast just because of Zeno’s presence. It lost its aggressiveness and turned into a giant pet for Uoiea.

With its wagging, blazing tail, it stood using its hind legs and licked the princess’ face.

"Hey, stop that," Uoiea chuckled as she caressed its burning mane.

For the rest of the night, the princess played with the beast, and she learned a lot of things about it; it could feed on flame to restore its energy and could even shrink its body enough for it to crawl on top of her head.

"Now, I really don’t want to give you to my father," Uoiea stated as she hugged the creature.

"Oh, I must give you a name," she added.

While contemplating, she noticed a small scorched mark on its front left paw, resembling a sun with several rays.

"Sun? So-lar? Hmnn, how about Sol? Do you like it?" Uoiea asked, her eyes glimmering in delight before falling asleep with the beast on her side.

. . . . .

Then, the second day came; the palace was busy for the celebration, with butlers decorating the garden with ribbons and accessories while maids prepared different kinds of dishes, perfect for the feast.

Carriages filled with extravagant gifts from different places came one after the other.

It was supposed to be a joyous and wonderful day if not for something unexpected happening.

A scream reverberated in the whole palace. The servants stopped all their activities; knights rushed towards the emperor’s chamber where the cry came from, and all they saw was the empress wailing next to the emperor’s body.

"Call the palace healer!" One of the knights yelled in a hurry.

No one dared to approach the empress; all the people present just waited and prayed in silence. However, as soon as the medical expert arrived and checked the emperor’s state, grief painted their faces.

"The emperor is dead," the healer stated in a deep, sunken voice.

The palace wailed for the sudden loss of their phoenix, their very own light. He was a good leader that always prioritized his people.

. . . . .

Several hours later, after the heart-shattering scene, Uoiea opened her eyes; the warmth coming from the lion cuddling on her chest woke her up from deep slumber.

"Good morning, Sol," she uttered with a smile, but the creature was still in a deep sleep.

So she put it down and caressed its mane for a bit before walking out of the place. However, the moment she stepped outside, she felt the heavy atmosphere lingering in the air.

Uoiea furrowed her brows in confusion; it was her father’s birthday, and yet there was no loud music playing. The servants she met in the hallway had all been wearing the same gloomy expression.

Then, upon reaching the garden where the event would take place, her eyes widened in surprise that the decorations were still not done despite the sun already being high above.

’Is the event cancelled?’ She asked inside her thoughts.

Confused by what was happening, she went inside the palace and sauntered towards the emperor’s chamber, but her hands trembled as she reached the gallery.

"There’s no way such a thing would..." the princess said; her voice trailed off.

A scene where knights dressed in black uniforms along with white flowers wrapped around their spears lined up at both sides of the hallway.

No one was saying a word, and nobody dared to look into the princess’ eyes.

Uoiea walked towards her father’s room; with every step she took, she felt her strength leaving her body, causing her to take a while to reach the doorfront.

Afterward, she pushed the giant piece of wood open, and as if time stopped for a while, she found herself sitting on the floor as her legs lost the ability to stand.

"Father," with a deep, heavy breath, she lamented.

Tears rolled down her cheeks as her eyes stared at the white casket placed at the center of the room.

. . . . .