For the first time in more than a decade, a man had made her heart skip a beat.
She needed a moment to collect herself, and in the end, could only flash a slight smile.
When he saw her smiling, Zaroth felt like he was going to lose his composure for a second, but he pushed through it anyway.
The waiter arrived and placed both of their steaks before them, pouring wine into their glasses.
Zaroth, remembering the lessons that Roran had taught him, began to eat as elegantly as he could, while not forgetting to keep his back straight the entire time.
Elysia, meanwhile, looked at him with amusement. After a moment, she spoke.
"Is that why you skipped all the lectures after the first? You were learning how to act more mature?"
'How did she learn that I didn't attend any of the later lectures? I know she has ways of getting information, but to do it so fast… or maybe she was actually following my movements?'
Knowing that Elysia could tell when someone was lying, Zaroth knew there was no point in lying, so he answered honestly.
"You caught me," he tried to add some humor as he averted his eyes to the side, as if he was giving up.
Elysia leaned back in her chair and sighed.
"You know, it's rare for someone to be completely mysterious to me. You are one of those people, Zaroth."
He grinned a little.
"Do I take this as a compliment?" he teased.
"Take it however you wish," she didn't budge.
After a moment of silence, he asked her, "I think you are a much more interesting person yourself. Before, when I invited you on a date, you refused, saying I was 'too young for you.' What changed?"
Elysia took a deep breath as she looked to the side.
'There is no way I am going to tell him that he helped me prove a point to the emperor…'
"I just thought that I could give it a chance, I guess. It was the perfect excuse to get some rest from my work. Plus, seeing how persistent you are and how seriously you're taking this, I guess you're more mature than the other 18-year-olds your age."
Zaroth closed his eyes for a moment.
'Am I?' he asked himself, quickly coming to one conclusion, he wasn't.
At least not in the conventional sense. Due to his past, he had never been able to live without constantly worrying about the future. He had been forced from a young age to grow up. But he didn't regret it one bit. If his efforts had eased the pain of his mother, even a little, in her last days, then he wouldn't hesitate to do it all over again.
'Mother…' Thinking about her still filled his heart with pain. He could remember her last wish for him to live for his desires.
What were his desires? He wanted to kill the gods, make them suffer for creating the curse that she had suffered so much from. But was that all he desired?
No, he wanted more.
Much more.
Everything—that was what he wanted. He wasn't a hero, a person living with the intention to help other people. Nor was he some kind of villain, killing and stealing for the sake of it.
He simply took what he wanted.
If he had to ally with people who were morally in the wrong, that didn't concern him.
Morals were nothing to him. The moment he had to eat the corpse of a dead rat just to avoid starving, he threw all his morals out the window.
Whatever he wanted, wherever he desired, he would take.
Zaroth shifted his gaze to Elysia, her black dress accentuating her already alluring figure, her black eyes that screamed danger. Her full red lips and the way she opened them slightly as she took a sip of her wine.
In this moment, Zaroth wanted her. Now, he had to make her want him too.
This is why he was here. This is what everything had been leading up to.
She glanced at his green eyes, noticing how they narrowed like a hunter's.
"After we're done here, there's a place I want to go. Would you happen to want to prolong the date?"
She placed her delicate hands on the table and leaned forward a bit.
"You know that I'm very busy with work, Zaroth."
He smiled in response, his smile was not fake but genuine. He truly enjoyed her company.
"I know, but it feels nice right now, doesn't it? No constant stress about anything. These moments are rare, no? So one more hour won't hurt, right?"
Seeing the resolve in his eyes, she couldn't help but smile slightly.
"Sure, it will be my pleasure."
*****
The rest of the dinner went perfectly well. Most of the time, they ate in silence, enjoying the music playing in the restaurant. The silence wasn't awkward in the slightest. Instead, it was pleasant, as if the two of them were at peace.
After the dinner was over, which Elysia paid for, Zaroth tried not to look at the price as he didn't want to pass out. Both of them walked toward a certain destination.
"I must admit, I've never been here before," Elysia said as she glanced around.
"To be honest, it's the same for me. But a friend recommended the spot, so I wanted to try it out."
Zaroth made a mental note to thank Lily later when he had the chance, as the place she had recommended had been perfect.
They were currently in a secluded spot far from the center of the capital, with a nice view overlooking a large part of the city and a small part of the river also visible.
Zaroth knew that Elysia had spent a long time in the capital, so she'd most likely visited all the famous places. But what about this spot? It had an incredible view and only one bench on the cliff.
Lily really was a genius. This was the best way to impress Elysia—by showing her new things, things she hadn't experienced before.
"It's beautiful," she sighed as she rested her hands on the iron railing that kept people from falling over the edge.
"It is," he admitted, also leaning beside her.
The view was breathtaking... and yet,
Zaroth shifted his gaze to Elysia. "But there is something more beautiful here."
She met his gaze as her eyes narrowed. One of the pluses was that she was able to tell when a person lied, and she would know that Zaroth's compliments weren't just empty words.
He meant every single word.
"I still don't get it... Why are you wasting your time on me? Wouldn't it be more appropriate to chase after women your age?"
"Because," he interrupted, "I'm greedy, and I want the very best. And from everything I've seen up until now, you are the best there is."
"So, what are you trying to—"
Zaroth didn't let her finish. He rotated his body toward her, slowly placing his hand behind her waist.
How does one approach this situation? He had asked himself this question hundreds of times. Not only that, but how does a mature person approach the situation?
The answer he came to was simple, he would make it clear what he wanted, with the hope that the person before him would respond to his feelings.
Elysia didn't stop him as he slowly pulled her toward himself, tilting his head up. Discover hidden tales at My Virtual Library Empire
A moment later, their lips met for a brief kiss.
"I want you, Elysia. Just the way you are right now."
In response, she didn't say anything. Instead, she placed her hands behind Zaroth's head, pulling him in for another kiss, one much deeper than the last.