SON OF THE HERO KING

Edea Asmodeus, the witch of time, tentatively known as the Witch of the West.

Edea was his teacher in magic studies, even though he couldn’t use mana until his awakening. Even then, her teachings weren't something he could use, he wouldn’t be able to learn witchcraft, for it was something only witches themselves could do. An inmate talent of theirs that set them apart from other humans. Still, he was glad to have her as his teacher.

The distance between the resting quarters of the upper floors and Edea’s domain was quite far so it took him a while to finally reach it, walking at a steady pace as he did. It didn’t help that he was slightly exhausted after his earlier sensuous moments with Milia.

When he finally stopped his walk, he was now standing in front of a very ordinary-looking wall, so ordinary that one might be puzzled about his next actions. Taking a deep breath, he slowly knocked on the wall three times with a certain rhythm — a secret code shared between master and disciple. Anyone looking at his actions would have been positively confused and wondered what he was doing. But for Sol, this was nothing more than an old ceremony, that he had to perform every time he came here to study, or perhaps, spend time with his teacher.

The moment he finished knocking, a weak turquoise light seemingly scanned him from head to toe before the part of the wall he stood in front of, transformed into a black door, a motif of a scarlet snake eating its own tail was meticulously engraved as an insignia of a certain God beast.

This was the representation of Asmodeus. One of the fourteen divine divine beasts of this world. In this country, he was a respected entity as the representative of Goddess Luxuria.

“How long do you plan to stand there like a dunce, come in?”

A sweet but regal voice pulled him out of his contemplative musing. He knew that he had already made her wait and one shouldn’t mess around with Time in front of the Witch of Time, now, should they? Straightening his clothes and mustering the brightest smile he could show, he pushed open the door and entered his teacher's private space — or world as she liked to call it.

———

Unlike what one would expect, the door did not lead to an indoor room but something vastly different, something that tugged at the deepest fantasies of the mind.

‘Every time I see this scene I can’t help but marvel at this wondrous sight.’

On the other side of the door was a large green pasture, seemingly unending as it stretched beyond the horizon…

The wind stirred gently, the sun shined high above in the dreamy blue sky, and a little far away, seated around a white table and sipping tea from a seemingly expensive teacup was what looked like a young girl in her teenage years, not unlike Sol. If one had to choose two words to describe her, it would be white and black or monochrome if they were to keep it down to one.

Even from here, the view felt like it was directly taken out of a fairy tale.

Of course, like all fairy tales, the outward beauty was in fact hiding another darker side.

Her young appearance and gentle manner would make one mistake her for a weak and helpless girl but there was nothing more wrong than such a sordid assumption. For she was in reality a being far older than the very Kingdom he was an heir of and could be said to be one of the founding members of the nation of Lustburg.

But for Sol, all those titles did not matter. All he cared for was that she was his dear and irreplaceable teacher.

“My, my, are you still going to gawk at your teacher?”

The moment she raised her head, Sol was startled awake by her gaze. If people were asked what her most striking feature was, some people would answer her jet black dress that seemed to be made out of pure darkness itself, sucking the light out of everything surrounding it. Meanwhile, some would answer, her long white hair that reached her feet and seemed to reflect all light in its purest form.

But for Sol, what stood out the most was her eyes. Heterochromia, it is called. One of her eyes was as red as a sea of blood, while the other eye was shining gold, reminiscent of the sun.

As he walked towards her, he slowly genuflected and took her outstretched hand in his as he gave a kiss to her bent fingers.

“Of course, teacher. You know well how legendary your beauty is.”

A small enigmatic smile formed on her youthful face as she spoke in an amused tone.

“You are such a flirt, you really remind me of your ancestor. It was also how he tricked me into this tower.”

Sol let out a bitter smile at this accusation. He knew that even though she seemed dissatisfied, she didn’t hold any animosity against him. He didn’t understand why though. After all, in her place, he would have most likely gone crazy if his loved one betrayed him after promising him everything.

“Fufufu~!! Don’t make such a face. You know very well that I do not see Jupiter's actions as a slight against me. I have never regretted giving everything I had to him.”

“But-”

“Enough about that, I shouldn’t have brought this up in the first place. The weather is pleasing today, why don’t you have some tea?”

She chided him gently as she pinched his nose with affection.

Sol frowned a little, before sighing as he got up under the loving look of Edea, she murmured as he took place in front of her.

“Each day as I look at you, it fills me with joy. You are growing so well. You are already a little taller than me. I still remember the little kid who entered this zone by accident with his slave but looked at me stubbornly as he protected her behind him.”

“Teacher!! Please stop. No need to remind me of that embarrassing day.”

The door that led to this world could only be opened by the blood of the royal family and no one else. Back then, Sol and Setsuna were playing in this part of the tower when she slightly wounded him accidentally with her protruded claws. Little as she was she didn't have full control of the more beastly side of her race.

It was nothing but a little accident. Something that happened regularly since as far as he could remember. But on that day, this little accident changed everything as droplets of his blood splashed on the door, thereby opening it against the wishes of Edea.

'Back then I thought I would faint from fright.'

Meeting Edea had been quite the shock. After all, at her level, she was already outside of what mere mortals could understand. Since she had been surprised at their sudden appearances, she had no time to rein in the natural pressure she emanated just by living and breathing — a trait of all the existences that stood at the very peak of this world.

For Sol, it had been like facing a giant and horrible monster in the dark with nothing and no one to protect himself. Thankfully he managed to not make a fool out of himself in that situation. Though, if he had to be honest, had he been alone, he would have cried and begged for his life without hesitation. Sol could only marvel at how strong not wishing to look uncool in front of your crush could make some people become.

Unaware of Sol’s comedic thoughts of the incident, Edea continued the discussion. "So, tell me, it seems like those two days were particularly busy for you."

Sol nodded without bothering to try hiding anything. If it wasn’t evident by now, Edea was in reality not a guest in this place.

In fact, initially, this tower itself wasn't created to serve as a castle but as a prison — a prison that the First King used to seal Edea.

Thankfully, Edea wasn't just any witch. In the first place, she would have never been sealed if not for her not fighting back when his ancestor betrayed her. The proof was that she managed to change what should have been a prison into her very own Witch’s lair. She had full control over all the defense system, and could also see everything going on inside the tower if she so wished.

The discussion between the two of them continued gently until Sol posed a question that had been tugging at his mind.

"Teacher. Tell me, how was my father?"

He had never really been curious about his father until now. On one hand, as someone from another world, he already had parents and didn't really see Mars as his father. As if that wasn’t enough, since his parents died too soon, the ones to actually raise him were Lilith, Milia, Camelia, and in a certain way, Edea.

Sol knew how Lilith saw his father but he also knew that she was totally crazy over him. As such, he wished to have the opinion of others who had spent time with him.

Edea stirred her tea as she crossed her legs. Her thigh showed a little hint of skin from the slit of the gown she was wearing.

She wasn’t really surprised by Sol's sudden question for she knew what had happened with Lilith not long ago. She wondered how she should approach this matter.

She had many fond memories of Mars but she knew that Sol didn’t just want an embellished version of the truth about who his father was.

"Your father… If I had to say, your father was a charismatic idiot."

As she spoke, she looked up at him with a large smile, very uncharacteristic of her usual elegant demeanor.

"Mars was also a student of mine as you know. But the way he found me was a little different. The one who brought him here was little Lilith. She was curious and didn't believe in the legend. So she brought him here and opened the door."

It was clear that she could still see the scene play in her mind. Her smile was so dazzling. The fact that Edea was still sealed in the tower was a fact few knew even to this day. For others, her existence was more akin to a legend or a tale told to children as bedtime stories.

Of course, as a witch, she was rarely the good guy in those stories.

"When they entered they reacted the same way you and Setsuna did. They were frightened, but Mars didn't hesitate to stand in front of Lilith, and though his legs were shivering. Fufufu~! Just remembering this scene makes me laugh so much."

She liked how both son and father reacted the same way and tried to protect the one they cared for. It was a heartwarming vision for her who had been betrayed. This helped her understand that not everyone had an ugly heart.

"The moment I saw Mars, I immediately understood that he was different. Even though he was far from being 15 years old back then, he could already use mana. Albeit unconsciously.

"At 15, he did something that hadn’t happened since the era of Jupiter and managed to contract with a mythical beast. Your mother — Blaze Dragona. As if that wasn’t grand enough, Blaze wasn’t just any dragon. She was the direct and most cherished daughter of Tiamat, the divine beast of Pride."

Sol nodded, him being half-dragon was one of the reasons he was so much stronger than normal people despite not awakening yet.

Speaking of Blaze, Edea's tone became a little more excited.

"Blaze was a true monster. With her pedigree, the fact that your father managed to make a contract with her was seen as legendary. But it didn't stop there. At 17, he was already recognized as a Mythical class being. At 20, he was crowned as the strongest king in all the history of Lustburg."

Sol’s hand shivered at those words. He could basically see the trail of what could only be called a true legend. In five years, Mars walked a path most could never hope to reach. In fact, for most beings in this world, reaching the Legend-class was already a feat worthy of acclamation. It was only after reaching that level that one walked out of the gate of Mortality.

"But in my opinion, his greatest quality wasn’t his talent, but the way he pulled people towards him. It was honestly scary to see. In a few words, he could change an enemy into his best friend. He was loved by all the populace and no one dared to defy his reign.

"The same applies outside the walls of our kingdom. He had friends in all the six other kingdoms. Princes, Princesses, Religious leaders, Generals. He was also the sole man who was able to travel the Astral realm as he wished."

The Astral realm was a zone where all divines beasts and special creatures outside of the six main races lived. Humans in the mortal realm could only enter that realm once in their entire lives and it was the moment they needed to bet their everything to find a suitable partner.

But this rule didn’t apply to Mars. After all, the moment he surpassed the Mythical level, he wasn’t really a human anymore.

"Sol," Edea uttered, her eyes blazing with conviction, "Your father was a true monster. If he was still alive, there was no doubt Lustburg would have stopped being a kingdom and would have transformed into an empire, perhaps it would've ruled the entire world."

This was the truth of Mars Luxuria. Truly a great man he was. Still,

"Despite all of that, he was such a kid when facing women, especially the more forward ones. When they approached him, he'd start stuttering like a kid got caught doing something bad by his parents fufufu~!"

Her smile changed into a teasing one as she continued.

"Frankly, I'm more convinced it was your mother who proposed rather than your father, I just can't imagine him being proactive with women, with how they can easily lead him by the nose."

,m Sol gave an awkward smile. It was really sad how whenever Mars was praised, they would immediately pull out his dark history with women.

All the great images he was etching in his mind of his legendary father, all of them, broken like shattered glass with just one declaration. He could only lament at that thought.