"I used to be a royal knight, and I dabbled in a bit of magic too," Zafira said, taking a sip of the wine. "But before all that, I was just some simple girl living here. My parents weren't really special either."
"Not special?" Rael raised a brow. "If they managed to raise someone like you, then they're more than special."
Zafira giggled. "My mother used to be a cook, and my father was a boutique owner. I know it seems a little mundane, but they're a bit higher up on the food chain now."
"Oh yeah?" Rael said. "Even higher than you?"
"Yes, much higher than me." Zafira smiled. "My mother became the Sovereign Queen. Basically someone who can control the other queens of this continent however she wishes. My mom's currently the one who secretly helped me avoid the war. I'm really grateful to her."
From a cook to a Sovereign Queen... well damn, Rael whistled. "So is your dad also something similar then? A Sovereign King perhaps?"
"Nope, nothing as grand as that," Zafira replied, shaking her head. "He's a merchant now, and he owns 40% of all trade routes on this entire continent."
"Yeah... you're a big shot," Rael remarked, earning a smile from Zafira.
"What about you?" she asked and grabbed a slice of pizza. "You didn't just pop up out of nowhere, right?"
"Well..." Rael scratched his cheek. "I kind of did. I woke up inside a dungeon a month ago. When I came out, I accidentally stumbled into your city the night before your coronation."
"...?" Zafira tilted her head. "What do you mean?"
Rael sighed. "Would you believe me if I told you I'm not originally from this world?"
"Why not? I've seen elves, dwarves, and other races. Some of them came here from their home worlds," Zafira replied plainly.
However, Rael merely shook his head. "That's not what I meant. You remember those immortal wanderers? I'm from their world... but not at the current time, I guess. More like in the future?"
"Mhm..." Zafira nodded skeptically. "I can try to believe you... but go easy on me, it doesn't sound very believable."
"Obviously." Rael chuckled. "I'm honestly surprised you didn't call me an idiot... but yeah. I know about most things that are going to happen in the next 15 years or so. One such thing is your dethronement."
Zafira froze, nearly choking on the pizza slice. "When?"
"Next month, apparently, though I'm not sure what the cause was. I never found out," Rael replied. "But if I had to guess, the people rebelled because you accepted the deal with Yrgon. They no longer felt safe as the threat of war was constantly looming."
"But I didn't accept it?" Zafira said, puzzled.
"Yep, not this time," Rael affirmed with a smile. "If you had accepted, Celestara would've just become some regular old city within Yrgon."
He didn't exactly like talking about politics, but if he wanted to tell her everything, he had to let her know certain things in advance.
Maybe then he could understand what actually happened in the past.
It seemed like Zafira had fallen into thought for a few moments, but soon, she spoke.
"What about you then? What were you like in that so-called future world?"
"Me? I was..." Rael trailed off with a sigh. "I was a pretty shit person. I gambled my money and got mixed up with loan sharks... it all started back when I was 16, I think?"
"What happened when you were 16?" Zafira asked, and before he could answer, leaned in and stuck a pizza slice into his mouth.
He ate it with a chuckle, and then gave her a slice as well.
Truthfully, it was hard to answer that question, but he'd try anyway.
"I remember I was kidnapped. It was for a ransom, and I can't exactly recall who saved me... but the only things I remember from before I turned 16 are that I was a loner, I apparently had a sister, and that my so-called parents left me with a large debt I couldn't pay off."
It was a lengthy explanation, but that was basically the gist of it.
Amnesia, then thrust into shit circumstances, basically made him a piece of shit.
He was just glad he could put that life behind him now.
"I see..." Zafira muttered, and pointed to the grill behind him. "The ribs are on fire, by the way. Literally."
Shit. Rael shot up to his feet and immediately got it taken care of.
In the meantime, he heard her giggle to herself, which made him let out a relieved sigh.
Nonetheless, he swiftly plated the ribs on golden plates and placed them on the table.
He gave Zafira the juicier cut, obviously.
Yet just as he was about to dig in, Zafira's eye contact made him halt.
"You know... I feel like despite knowing a bit more about you, I don't feel like we've bridged the distance yet," Zafira said with a small smile.
"Oh?" Rael tilted his head. "What makes you say that?"
"It just... makes me wonder if you'd still care about someone like me, here and now, without all that knowledge." Zafira said flatly.
"Zafira," Rael leaned over and gently placed a hand on her cheek. "I care for you more than you know. Despite my future knowledge, we weren't exactly friends. Heck, we didn't share a conversation even once."
A slight blush appeared on her cheek as she nodded. "Sorry. I guess I might've been overthinking it."
"No, I understand what you mean," Rael said as a serious look appeared on his face. "I care about you, and I hope you begin to see that too."
A moment of silence ensued as neither of them spoke. However, it was soon broken by Rael clearing his throat.
"We should probably get back on track, right? I don't want to make our date too depressing."
"No, it's fine..." Zafira shook her head. "Getting to know a bit about you and your past was nice... but your sister—what happened to her?"
"I have no idea," Rael replied with a shrug. "Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if she just ditched me."
"Come on..." Zafira leaned in and playfully pinched his cheek. "Don't say such things, okay?"
Rael stared at her for a few moments, and instead of answering, he simply tore off a rib and held it in front of Zafira's mouth.
"It's pretty tasty. I'd know since I used to be a grilling expert."
Zafira giggled. "I'll hold you to your word."