CHAPTER 51

SOLLEL, HAKKEN, Zassia and Grath were huddled together as they went deeper into the desolate land valley. Their backs were to each other while looking around vigilantly. The valley was called desolate because it had nothing, and it was nothing but the truth. The soil was dead, it was almost barren. The trees had long died and no sign of vegetation anywhere.

Zassia contained a gasp when she saw skeletons and carcass everywhere. Some were fresh, some were rotting, and worms were feasting on it. As they continue, the rotting smell of death grew stronger each step.

"This is scary..." Zassia whispered while mustering all her courage to move her feet to continue. She was about to pray when she remembered that the one she was praying too for courage was beside her. And that thought calmed Zassia.

Meanwhile, Grath, who was on the front had his flame claws ready for anything. Hakken already draw his sword while Sollel's blood flame was at the ready.

"Hakken," Sollel whispered to Hakken who was beside her. "Do you know a safe route?"

Hakken shook his head and sighed. "Unfortunately, there is none, my lady. No route is safe in this desolate valley. There are some routes with less monsters, but it's still not safe. Usually, if a part of desolate valley had little monsters, that means a strong one is making it his territory."

Sollel nodded. "Let's take that route."

Hakken didn't ask his lady if she was sure, he immediately exchanged positions with Grath and lead the group to the route he mention to his lady.

Their journey was arduous, they had to stop, hide, and sneak past monsters that was fighting and some beasts that were eating their dead preys. With the help of the flower Hakken provided, their scent was safe.

"What is that...?" Grath asked in a whisper with incredulity seeing the insects four times bigger than him eating a carcass.

"It's a primal sowbug." Zassia answered in a shaky voice. "According to the book I read, they like munching on humans."

Grath grimaced. "What are we going to do, Lord Hakken? Should we go around it or kill it?"

Hakken eyes roamed around before his tongue clicked. "We can't go around. There's a bone-eating Peripatus on the left and a hoard of man-eating Psocids on the right. If we go around them, it'll take us days to return to this route and we're not sure how many monsters are there."

Sollel sighed while hiding behind a dead tree trunk. "Is there a monster in this valley that doesn't enjoy flesh, bone and blood of men? Maybe some vegetables?"

Zassia and Hakken answered at the same time.

"No, teacher."

"Not one, my lady."

Sollel sighed again. "Let's kill it." Everyone turned to look at Sollel and Sollel shrugged. "I get that our fighting might attract the attention of other monsters, but if we stay here and wait, some monsters might also come and feast on us. Let's just fight, then run."

Zassia looked at the massive sowbug again. Its skin was like metal. "I don't think my flame can penetrate its skin."

"I'm not sure if my flame can too." Sollel confessed too. "But we can't stay here. Who knows what kind of man-bone-flesh-eating monsters might come? There's an ample space between that bug with skin-like metal, that creepy long bug and those transparent looking ant-bug. We can make a run for it."

In their dire situation, the three couldn't help chuckling at how the queen called the three humongous monsters blocking their path.

After chuckling at his lady's adorableness, Hakken made a plan. "Grath, Zassia, you run as fast as you can while we're fighting the sowbug—"

"No. You run with them." Sollel interjected. "I'll fight it."

Hakken's face hardened. It was an order from his queen that didn't sit well with him. "My lady, I don't want to be away from you ever again. If you're fighting, so am I."

Sollel shook her head. "I'll be attacking with my full strength. If you're on the battlefield, I will be worried about hitting you with my flame, and I won't be able to focus. Just wait for me and protect Grath, and Zassia. There might be monsters around while they're running. They need you more than I do. Please, Hakken?"

The queen pleaded and Hakken had no choice but to agree. He knew his lady was strong, she's the Mistress of Flame, but as a man who love and care for his queen, he couldn't just agree to it.

"Let's go. We have no time to waste." Sollel stood up. "I'll get its attention."

Sollel didn't wait for anyone's reply. She ran towards the sowbug and throw a flame in the air, just above the metal-skinned bug. And when her flame caught its attention, it was too late, her flame multiplied into four and bolts of flame strike the sowbug.

Bolts of flame were one of her attacks that had strong penetrating strength, but against the sowbug, it was nothing. The bolts bounced back, like it hit an impenetrable wall.

Sollel had no choice seeing that Zassia, Grath, and Hakken was already running.

"Blood of flame!" Lava-like liquid swirled in Sollel's eyes. "Come forth, and heed my call! Flame prison!" All the flame near them disappeared, as if it had sucked by the soil and then from nowhere, four pillars erupted from the ground, caging the humongous sowbug.

Unlike the enemies Sollel cage days ago, this sowbug was massive and could easily destroy her flame pillars.

"Run!" She shouted at Zassia, Grath and Hakken. The three had their own battle too. There were small sowbugs blocking its path and Hakken was slathering them with his war blades.

Seeing that the little sowbugs were being slaughtered, the massive sowbug inside Sollel's pillar prison slammed its many feet on the grounds, making the ground shake and break!

Sollel could see that it was just a matter of time before her flame pillar breaks. To subdue the monster before it escapes her flame prison, she made a ball of flame above it, reaching the same size as the colossal sowbug, and manipulated the flame to shape it into a gigantic flaming sword aimed at the sowbug.

The flaming sword was too gigantic that the trio, Zassia, Grath, and Hakken unconsciously stopped just to marvel at its incredulity.

Zassia's jaw fell. "So big... Her Highness had become stronger."

Grath swallowed, feeling the air sizzle as if reacting to the gigantic flaming sword. "What kind of strength is that...?"

"That's only the half of the Mistress of Flame's strength." Hakken whispered in awe and happy at his lady's strength.

"Just half?" With wide eyes, Zassia turned to Hakken in shocked.

"Yes. We have to go now." Hakken said in a hurry when he saw the gigantic flaming sword descending. "Let's go! Let's go!"

Seeing what Hakken was seeing, the trio run as far away as they could. Hakken was on the front and Grath was on the rear. Protecting themselves from incoming monsters. But those monsters were not after them, they were after the owner of that formidable strength. The Mistress of Flame.

Aside from the monster who were drawn to Sollel's formidable flame, a group of the kingdom of Treterra's sorcerers, descendant of Sapphers and Adral warriors saw the that gigantic flame. It was kilometers away from them, but its alarming strength and massive size were enough to draw their attention and stop on their track.

"What is that?" A water sorcerer asked, seeing the flaming sword in the sky, slowly descending.

My queen. Hakkeran immediately thought after seeing the sword. Only his queen had the strength to conjure a gigantic flaming sword in the sky. A monster might've blocked her way. With half of her strength finally recovered, making that gigantic flaming sword was a piece of cake.

And Hakkeran was right.

Before everyone's eyes, the mammoth size flaming sword split into three, but the power it holds didn't diminish. It tripled, even. And it left everyone in astonishment.

"Look at my queen, Gabin," Hakkeran spoke proudly in a low voice. "She's slaying it out there."

Gabin sighed at how smitten his excellency looked. "Your Excellency, don't look so proud."

"But I am."

"Not in front of the people you're trying to deceive."

"Oh." Hakkeran immediately fixed the emotion on his face into uninterested even though he wanted nothing than to marvel at his queen's strength. That's my queen right there.

"I think that's the Mistress of Flame." Someone pointed out. "Only she could wield such power."

"Follow that direction!" General Kar ordered and everyone obeyed even though they felt fear after what they just witnessed.

But their movement halted once again as they find their balance when the three gigantic flaming swords, they were looking at earlier descended, causing a massive explosion that shook the ground of desolate valley. The impact was too immense that it was even felt in the hallowed valley.

Flame roared, exploded, and shook the ground, but it was not enough to Sollel, to make sure that the sowbug was dead, another gigantic flaming sword appeared in the sky. However, before it descended and deliver a Shockwave that could make the ground shook again, someone appeared besides the queen amidst the flame and picked her up.

"My lady, it's already dead. Let's go."

Sollel just let Hakken carry her in his arms as she looked around. When she saw the transparent looking ant-bug crawling fast towards their direction, the flaming sword that was still in the air, tilted as if changing its aim and then Sollel dropped it on the transparent ant-bug, squashing and burning it to death.

Sollel smirked seeing her flame's destruction, then she turned to Hakken who was running amid the flame, with her in his arms. Afraid that her flame might hurt him, Sollel wrapped him with his flame essence to protect his body.

Sollel rested her head on Hakken's chest. "I still want to burn more monsters."

"I'm sure you'll be able to do that, but for now, let's run."

Sollel looked over Hakken's shoulder to see the destruction she caused. "I thought I wouldn't be able to hurt it. Guess, I was wrong. There's not even a carcass left."

Hakken didn't reply and just focused all his attention on running and retracing the direction he took with Grath, and Zassia earlier, but his focused broke and he nearly went tumbling when a hand cupped his face and a soft and warm lips pressed against his.

Hakken became mindless, his whole body was on fire and even though monsters surrounded them after abruptly stopping, he didn't move and just stared blankly at his lady in shock, while Sollel was enjoying the emotion playing on Hakken's face.

Seeing that Hakken won't be back anytime soon, Sollel left his arms and stood in front of Hakken. And with her blood flame, she surrounded them with flame reaching their height, stopping the monsters from attacking and she did all that with her eyes never leaving Hakken.

"My lady..." Hakken finally found his voice and words, but she could only speak two words.

Sollel smiled and thought, it was worth the wait. She cupped Hakken's face again and softly pressed her lips on his. She thought it'll be the same as their first kiss, but Hakken opened his mouth this time and snake his tongue inside.

A soft groan escaped Sollel's lips as Hakken started devouring her mouth aggressively. Different from the prude Hakken whom she used to tease; his mouth was hungry and dominating her. One of his arms was wrapped around her waist and the other was on her neck, his hand cupping her nape to deepen the kiss.

Sollel kissed Hakken because she wanted to. But Hakken... He was kissing her like he missed her. Like he wanted to own her but controlling himself. His kisses were deep, hungry, and dominant. And to Sollel who was used to dominating, she didn't mind being dominated by him.

But alas, they had had to breath.

Both panting, they pulled away at the same time and Sollel smiled playfully when she saw how red Hakken's face was.

But Sollel's plan to tease Hakken didn't push through seeing him leaned down to rest his forehead on her shoulder like he was drained.

"Is this part of your teasing, my lady?" Hakken's voice was so low, as if he was afraid to hear Sollel's answer.

Sollel wanted to tease Hakken so bad, but she figured it was not the time. She had a feeling that Hakken might be disappointed if she teased him. So, she gave her honest answer. "No. I just really want to kiss you."

Turning his head to look at her from the side, his head still resting on her shoulder. "This is not one of your jokes?"

"No."

"This is really real?"

"Yes."

Hakken didn't ask more and just gathered her in his arms and embraced her tightly, as if now wanting to let her go.

"I... I waited three lifetimes for you." Hakken whispered softly and Sollel's face softened. "My plan is to just be there for you, to not ask for anything, either attention or affection. But now, my plan is crumbling." His voice was shaky, like he was afraid that something was going to change and that changes scares him. "What am I going to do, my lady? Holding you this close to me, kissing you and tasting your lips... I don't think... I still have the strength to hold back."

"What a silly man you are," Sollel affectionately patted Hakken's back before pulling away from his embrace. "Who told you to hold back anyway?"

"Myself. You don't need the distraction. What you need is someone useful and strong."

"And I'm pretty sure you're still useful and strong even if we kissed countless times, Hakken." Said Sollel with a soft smile before she sent bolts of flame to the beasts who managed to enter her flame. "I don't think your dependability will diminish just because we kissed."

"What if I got addicted to your lips?" Hakken was genuinely worried that he looked adorable. "I don't want to be thrown away because I'm not useful anymore."

Leaving him in the forest really did a number on him, Sollel thought before she fixed Hakken's messy hair. "Don't worry too much. If I don't want you to kiss me, I'll burn you."

Hakken stilled, deeply thinking, then he nodded. "Yes, that'll work. You can burn me anytime if you think I'm getting addicted."

Sollel chuckled and was about to tease Hakken again when they heard Zassia and Grath's voice.

"Teacher!"

"Your Highness!"

Sollel immediately lowered the flame surrounding them and saw Grath, and Zassia fighting the monsters around them.

Sollel clicked her tongue in annoyance before she raised her foot and stamp it on the ground, making the flame around her and Hakken react by exploding, dealing damage to the monsters around them.

"Annoying bugs." Sollel muttered under her breath before she waved her hand and almost immediately flame covered the whole ground, except where Hakken, Zassia and Grath were standing. And with another wave of Sollel's hand, the flame formed into a spike, empaling every little bug in the vicinity. "There. Done. Let's go."

Zassia was relieved, Grath was impressed and Hakken was smiling while watching his lady's back.

Such powerful being kissed me, Hakken couldn't get it out from his head as he followed everyone to continue their journey. My beloved queen, the Mistress of Flame.



CECELIB | C.C.