"Well then, Queen Morgaine Dominare, I hope you show some mercy to the useless peasant when you ascend your mighty throne..." Ryuk replied with a bootlicking expression as Morgaine hmphed.
"Maybe if you start treating me well and stop being a dickhead, then I won't mind you being on the throne with me..." she replied.
Ryuk's smirk paused on his lips, and Morgaine's eyes widened in shock when she realized what she had just said, causing her face to turn a full peach-red once more.
"No, no! I didn't mean that! I swear it, you dickhead!" Morgaine said, reddening up as her fist flared gold, and she punched at Ryuk's nose, a sharp Ka-Cha sound resounding.
Ryuk felt the sharp tinge of pain, causing him to hold his nose tightly.
"You! You did it again!" Ryuk said, his hand moving to his nose, twisting it back in shape. His Nanobots rapidly knitted it together, returning it to what it once was.
"You deserve it... for embarrassing me!" Morgaine said unapologetically before laughing in mockery when she saw Ryuk roll a few centimeters away from her.
"You can't escape me, you dickhead!" Morgaine declared, rolling after him.
Soon, it became a rolling contest, which Ryuk quickly lost as Morgaine eventually caught up to him, pinning him to the ground with her body.
"Got you!" she said triumphantly.
Ryuk slowly turned his head to his waist before replying with a smirking, perverted expression.
"I think I'm the one who did."
The words seemed to bring Morgaine back to her senses. She looked at her awkward sitting position, and her face grew red again.
Scurrying off Ryuk like a startled rabbit, she pointed at him in outrage.
"You! You pervert!"
KA-CHA!
"Ow! You did it again!" Ryuk groaned, feeling another stinging pain on his nose, finding it broken once more—only for his Nanobots to quickly fix it.
"That's for daring to take advantage of the mighty fallen princess," Morgaine replied with a snort.
Ryuk could only ignore her, but then, he suddenly remembered something.
"Hey, Morgaine..."
"Yeah?"
"You remember what you said before I left for the trial?"
Morgaine's eyes seemed to pause in deep thought. But then, her eyes widened as Ryuk continued.
"Something about wanting to tell me something after I returned?"
"No!" Morgaine fired back, the shade of red growing on her face once more.
Ryuk looked at her for a while before he sighed.
"Welp, seems like I was too late then?" he replied, turning his head to the sky.
But then, he felt the warm touch of a hand gently bring his gaze back to Morgaine. He found her face just a couple of inches away from his own.
"You're not too late for it..." Morgaine whispered, her shade of red appearing once more. But this time, she didn't seem to fight it back.
"So... what was it you wanted to tell me?" Ryuk whispered back.
The sound of a fast-beating heart echoed loudly, further carried by the breeze that surrounded them, sending strands of hair flying around.
Ryuk didn't need to lower his gaze to know the source of the increasing heartbeat—it was none other than Morgaine's.
But what happened next took him by surprise.
A hint of reconciliation flashed in Morgaine's eyes. Like one who had finally decided to cast aside their fears, she suddenly leaned forward—and he felt a soft touch on his lips.
Ryuk's eyes widened to their absolute limit as he looked at Morgaine, who had her eyes closed, a peaceful expression on her red face. Slowly, the deep red faded into a light pink hue.
And Ryuk felt himself giving in.
His rapidly beating heart from the shock slowed down, his eyes gradually closing as he embraced the sensation.
No word in the world could describe the feeling he felt.
[A/N: Because unfortunately, the author is still a dumb virgin. Hehe.]
Time passed, but it didn't seem to matter to either of them.
After an unknown amount of time, they slowly separated.
Morgaine looked into the dual-colored irises before her and gently whispered,
"I love you."
The words came as a shock to Ryuk.
Even though his expression didn't clearly convey it, a louder sound of a beating heart began ringing through the silent area—coming from none other than Ryuk himself.
"I love you."
"I love you."
"I love you."
The words seemed to resonate through his head endlessly, filling his heart with a strange yet warm sensation.
Yet, his logical brain went to work.
'If those old men in Grade E were right, this is what a confession means... even though, I also seem to remember them saying the male does it first.'
'But more importantly... do I love Morgaine?'
He asked himself as his mind flashed with images from the past.
Images of his first time meeting Morgaine in the cafeteria.
Images of their spar.
Images of him in the fallen castle.
Images of them leaving on the bus to the Ascension Academy.
Images of their walk to the cafeteria in the Ascension Academy.
And two more images that didn't seem to relate at all—yet held the answer to his question.
One was the memory of when Ryuk had hurriedly retreated from Lydia, the female elf when she had leaned towards him for a kiss.
'Why did I lean away from her and not accept her kiss?'
'Why didn't I lean back when Morgaine kissed me?'
Then, another memory surfaced.
---
"You know, the bed is much warmer than the seats..."
"Thank you, but I'm afraid a certain person wouldn't like that..."
---
It was when Lydia had asked him to stay on the same bed for the night, and Ryuk had refused her.
'A certain person? Had it been Morgaine all this while?' Ryuk mused to himself.
He hadn't really been thinking straight when he simply told Lydia that a certain person wouldn't want that.
He had never even asked himself who that certain person was.
But now, looking into Morgaine's golden eyes, the answer became clear to him.
"You know... it's fine if you don't feel the same..." Morgaine tried saying when she felt the awkward silence and the strange pain that assaulted her heart.
Slowly, her gaze dropped to her feet, a painful expression forming.
But then, she felt a cold touch beneath her jaw.
Ryuk gently raised her face back to meet those golden eyes.
"I think I like you too."
The words struck Morgaine's heart like hammers, causing her to pause in shock.
Then, without warning, tears began spilling from her eyes as she suddenly moved toward Ryuk, hugging him tightly.
Only now did she realize—
The pain in her heart had been the fear of rejection.
And as she melted into his embrace, that fear faded away.