"I''m resisting what!? Can you please just stop talking in poetry!?"


    "Oh my, oh my…"


    And even with Rhys clearly already showing his frustration with the situation, the woman seemedpletely unperturbed and unbothered by the sudden loudness of Rhys''s words as she was lost in her own thoughts.


    She then looked Rhys in the eyes before just letting out a gasp as she approached him again… standing awfully close to him to the point that her forehead was almost sticking to his chin when she looked up.


    "Hm…" The woman just closed her eyes, almost as if she was enjoying the warmth that was escaping out of Rhys''s perturbed breaths.


    Rhys might have made a mistake in judgment — perhaps this woman was not elegant at all, but was actually a closet pervert. But as the woman opened her eyes again very slowly, Rhys saw some sort of longing hiding deep within them.


    No, it wasn''t longing at all, but yearning. Yearning for something that could not possibly be hers. Rhys knows the expression all too well, because he too, has lived it once… but it would seem she was still living hers. A few moments more, however, any trace of yearning was removed from her eyes as she suddenly rested her forehead on Rhys''s chest.


    "...This is so exciting," she whispered very gently, "I am afraid I only have but a moment more before he awakens… but I am d to have met you."


    "Wait, who even are you…?" Rhys did not really know what to do as a beautiful stranger was now just casually resting on his chest, "Are you… part of the Royal Family?"


    "Oh…" The woman''s voice once again trembled as she leaned away from Rhys; her eyes, also somewhat trembling as she looked Rhys in his covered eyes, "...How rude of me to have not introduced myself, it would seem I may have underestimated my excitement to this encounter."


    "My name is Wilder, Ma''am," Rhys could really only sigh as he opted to introduce himself first, "Rhys Wilder."


    "Rhys Wilder, that flows very well with the tongue. A beautiful name."


    "...Thank you."


    "As for who I am…" The woman, for the very first time in their conversation, seemed even more confused than Rhys, "I…


    ...who… am I?"


    "You don''t know?" Rhys could really only look at the woman''s confused gaze. But after a few more moments, the smile returned on her face as she raised a finger.


    "I believe I''m… I was called Aethelc," Aethelc seemed like she was still not sure what her name was, but for some reason, Rhys could actually feel great dignity escaping her voice as she introduced herself, "But now, I am but a ves—You must go!"


    And almost as if the Fates themselves prevented her from telling what she wanted to say, a deafening howl suddenly echoed throughout the tiny garden—no. It was more like a yawn if anything, a roaring yawn that caused Rhys''s entire body to tremble along with the once peaceful garden.


    "What''s… happening?" And for some reason, Rhys felt extremely sorrowful as all the colorful nts started to wither away, causing all the life within the garden to just dissipate and disappear, "Wh—"


    "He''s waking up, you must go!"


    And before Rhys could even finish his words, Aethelc suddenly pushed him away — it was a light push, and yet Rhys found himself unable to even get back on his feet as he just continued to fall to the ground—no, he continued to fall even further, sinking into the ground as he saw Aethelc''s silhouette disappear farther and farther into the distance.


    "Wait!" Rhys yelled, "Who is waking up!? Why don''t you just—"


    "Rhys, wake up!"


    And all of a sudden, Rhys''s confusion went through the roof as he opened his eyes again, when they were clearly just opened moments ago while staring at Aethelc. Rhys blinked a couple of times to try and recover himself from his extreme stupor, only to see Lina sitting on the floor beside him, and as soon as he saw her about to p some sense into him, he quickly grabbed her hand to stop her.


    "Ah! What are you even doing here, Rhys!?"


    "Huh…?" Rhys looked Lina in the eyes as he was still a little… groggy from what was happening. He then turned to look at his surroundings, only to see some of Lina''s cousins also staring at him in the hallway.


    "We have a room, Sir," Lina could really only let out a small but very deep sigh as she struggled to get Rhys up, "If you wanted to sleep, you could have just slept there. Seriously, we all know you''re a big muscr man from the Underworld Corps, but we have beds here."


    "I just…" Rhys decided to help Lina as he lifted himself up. He didn''t really know what to say in the situation so he just once again started looking around for any clues of what exactly just happened to him. And as his eyes darted toward the wall where he was found unconscious, he saw arge portrait hanging on the wall.


    Extremely old, but still very much well taken care of. There were already cracks on the dried oil paint, but the image they painted still seemed very much alive. And Rhys… Rhys could not help but just stare at the face of the subject of the beautiful painting.


    She had the same exact face as Aethelc, with just one difference — the woman in the portrait had purple glowing hair.


    "...Is there something I''m not seeing here?" Lina also stood in front of the portrait, tilting her head as she looked back and forth between Rhys and the portrait, "Why are you staring at the OG?"


    "OG…?" Rhys nced at Lina before turning his focus back to the portrait, "Aethelc?"


    "Wh—you know her name?" Lina could not help but widen her eyes. Even her cousins, who were looking at Rhys like he was some sort of mental patient looked at each other in wonder, "Don''t tell me you studied Ennd''s history since I''m from here?"


    "N—"


    "Eep!" Lina squealed as she leaped onto Rhys and wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, "You love me that much, Rhys!?"


    "Who… is she?" Rhys whispered as his eyes remained fixated on the portrait.


    "What are you saying? I thought you knew?" Lina giggled as she also turned her focus back to the portrait, "That''s the first King of Ennd, the OG. King Aethelc."


    "The first King…" Rhys''s eyes slightly widened as he breathed in. Could it not be the same person? They did have different hair colors… but their name and face were exactly the same, "Wait…


    …did you just say King?"


    "Pft," Lina finally got off Rhys as she thumped his chest several times, "Yeah, he looks like a woman, right?"


    "He looks like you."


    "I''ll take that as apliment," Lina once again giggled as she held Rhys''s hand, "King OG was said to be the most beautiful man in the history of Ennd, to the point that he bewitched even men since he looked like a woman."


    "Hm…" Rhys squinted his eyes at Aethelc''s hair again — if the woman…if the man he met just moments ago was truly the same person, then…


    …did they change the color of his hair to avoid his corrtion with Lowborns?


    "Ah!" Lina gently held Rhys''s face, "But you''re still the most handsome man in the world, Rhys. The OG looks like a woman, but you… you''re a man-man."


    "...A man-man?"


    "He is said to be the first to be born out of all the demi-gods in Ennd," and all of a sudden, Vicky stepped forward and joined in on the conversation, "They thought he was going to die since he was born 3 months early, and yet that did not even matter since he ended up leading the battle against the monsters and reiming Anklnd, Ennd as it is known now."


    "Thanks for the history lesson," Lina smiled at Vicky, "Now go, go—my… my fiance and I are tired."


    "King Aethelc has the power to induce and enter dreams," Vickypletely ignored Lina as she stood in front of Rhys, looking up at him and staring him in the eyes, "King Aethelc suddenly disappeared, however, after his firstborn, Edwund, was born. There are legends that say that King Aethelc…


    …now lives in the dreams of people and wees them when the time for their eternal slumberes. I think I had dreams of him once, and then I found myself waking up at that very spot we found you."


    "O… okay," Lina quickly stood between Rhys and Vicky, "No need to get so close, Rhys is my fiance."


    "No," Vicky, however, did not back away as she just returned Lina''s re, "By the power vested upon me as the firstborn to the heir of Ennd, I invoke the right of First Marriage and take Rhys Wilder as my future prince consort."


    "Wh—"


    "Any or those opposed to this right is free to challenge me," Vicky did not let Lina utter a single word as she stepped back and ced her fist right at the center of her small chest, almost as if she was holding a sword,


    "Step forward now, or my im will be ab—"


    "-solutely not!" Lina let go of Rhys''s hand as she stretched her hand toward Vicky, almost as if also holding a sword and pointing it at Vicky, "If fighting is what you wanted…


    …then I will dly give it to you."


    "Uh…" Rhys, who was watching this exchange happen, could not help but just furrow his eyebrows.


    Does… he have no say in any of these at all? Is this what the peasants felt before the gods granted the humans their blood?


    "Ah! I also challenge that im!"


    Rhys then turned to look at Lina''s cousins, only to see all of them also stretching their hands toward Vicky. All of them…


    …Even the men.