23 Chapter 22 (2/2)

”Get Aisha to a safe place to lie down and rest, talk later.” I was exhausted beyond belief and desperately needed something to eat. Thankfully, Ahmya was able to lead us to the Jolderiks house. The place was further away from the palace and didn't get destroyed in our fight. We made our way to there, and we left Aisha to sleep in one of the beds while Sanji cooked us a feast.

While we were eating, I was able to explain what happened earlier, and how I gained those new abilities. I told them that I had managed to ”Awaken” my Rubber Devil Fruit, and my control over rubber has exponentially increased. I'm only able to give rubber properties to things that I am directly touching, and I can't control the rubber outside my body, but now I have complete control over my body.

At some point, while we were eating, I heard some movement outside the house, and moments later the King walked in. The second he entered the dining room, he fell on his knees and begged for forgiveness.

He told us how the tradition of the kingdom came to be a hundred years ago. The Asena Kingdom was a newly built one at that time, but they were all exceptional hunters. One day, the Prince at that time, found an injured wolf while hunting. The Prince deciding it would be a good idea to tame the animal to help him hunt, brought him back to the palace so that he can nurse him. The wolf made a fast recovery, but it didn't help the Prince with hunting, rather the Prince started bringing him a fox as an offering every month. The people of the kingdom followed the footsteps of their Prince and started taming wolves and giving them a sacrifice every month, believing that would give them better luck the following month.

The Prince grew older and became a King, but continued to offer a sacrifice to the wolf. At this point, the wolf was given the name Alarick and was already considered a Sacred Beast to the Asena Kingdom. The kingdom had flourished at that point, and the World Government even recognized it by sending them a Devil Fruit as a gift, the Mutt-Mutt Fruit model Arctic Fox. The King gifted it to one of his daughters, but that's when things started to change. The next month the King wanted to offer her as a sacrifice to the wolf. His wife and other children tried to dissuade him, but he was adamant about it. He ordered his guards to imprison them all and gave his daughter as a sacrifice to Alarick. He released his family later, but the deed was already done, and the Queen was never the same after that. After giving birth to Dolphus, the current king, she passed away.

After telling us our story, the King begged us again for forgiveness and thanked us for liberating them from Alarick. He left after that, saying he needs to go and help his citizens.

After having my share and listening to his story, I went to visit Aisha and to bring her something to eat as well. When I walked into the room, she was quietly laying there and staring at the door. I left the food on a table nearby and sat on the bed. She slowly started to get up, and I tried stopping her, but she protested and sat next to me.

”Thank you.” She silently whispered.

”Don't worry about it! I'm just glad you are safe. You scared me back then, and I thought I lost you.” Aisha blushed, but she slowly hugged my arm.

”I should be glad I met you back then. My life got ruined, and you were the one that helped me. You saved me, you gave me a reason to continue, and then you dealt with the reason my life got turned to hell. Thank you for everything that you have done for me.” She was looking straight into my eyes while talking, and I get mesmerized by her beautiful blue eyes. I was enjoying their beauty, and I didn't realize they were becoming bigger. Before I knew it, she gave me a quick peck on the lips.

”I'm so sorry, AUCH.” She quickly moved away, but that aggravated the wound. Nonetheless, she hid under the bed covers and continued muttering how she is sorry.

I tried telling her that I'm not mad, but she kept apologizing without listening. I removed the blanket she was using to hide under and got right into her face.

”I said I'm not mad so stop apologizing.” I saw her trying to say sorry again so I did something that I might regret later on. This time I initiated the kiss, and it wasn't a simple peck like hers. At first, the kiss was small, but it got more intense and it continued for a minute. After releasing the kiss she was left panting with a mad blush on her face.

”Rest now, and we will talk about this later, okay?” She meekly nodded, but quickly gave me another peck before hiding under the bed covers again.