Chapter 181 - On The Way
Pavel, Rhea, Rosemary, and Arnold were in one carriage, and Pavel was driving it. The carriage had a door on one side and windows on both sides, but it looked normal.
Nero, Emilia, Sophia, and Asteria were in the other carriage, and the carriage looked luxurious compared to the other carriage.
Nero was in the form of one of the guards, and he used it to get out of the town safely without causing any commotion.
It was midnight, and both of the carriages were passing through the dark and empty forest.
It was so dark that even the path wasn't visible, so Nero was driving the carriage in front and using his god's eyes to get a better look at the path.
Everyone in Pavel's carriage had fallen asleep as they were awake since the morning. However, Pavel hadn't slept a wink. He could ask Arnold to drive the carriage, but even though Arnold was mentally a lot older, physically, he was a seven-year-old boy. His body couldn't last long, and he needed rest often.
However, the scene was different in Nero's carriage. For once, Emilia and Sophia were sitting next to each other, and they were sweating continuously in nervousness.
Asteria was sitting on the opposite seat and staring at Sophia and Emilia with a smile on her face.
SIGH!
Nero sighed and changed his appearance to his real form.
"It wasn't supposed to be like this," he muttered.
He couldn't forget what happened after he went upstairs to check up on Emilia and Asteria.
When Asteria woke up, she hugged Nero and called him 'Master Zeus'.
That was enough for Nero to figure out she was not Asteria, but she was Princess Asteria.
At first, Nero was reluctant to admit it, so he chose to confirm it by testing her.
He took Asteria downstairs with Emilia and asked her if she recognized anyone.
As soon as Asteria's eyes laid on Sophia, she recognized her.
"She is Sophia," Asteria stated.
Nero pointed her finger at Rhea and asked, "Do you know her?"
Asteria looked at Rhea for a while and uttered, "Is that… Rhea?"
Nero then pointed his gaze at Pavel and asked, "What about him?"
"He is Pavel, right? I met him once."
Then, Nero pointed his finger at Rosemary and asked, "This one?"
"She is Rosie. She helped Ma recover after you healed her."
"And what about this kid?" Nero pulled Arnold in front of him. "Do you recognize him?"
After staring at Arnold for a brief moment, Asteria shook her head and uttered, "I don't. Who is this?"
Nero looked into Emilia's eyes and turned Asteria to her: "Do you recognize this girl?"
"I… don't," Asteria answered. "But she somehow looks familiar for some reason. I don't know… why."
At that point, Nero knew without a doubt that it was Princess Astrea.
"What's going on, Master Zeus? Last I heard, I was told you were sealed. But I am so happy to see you again."
She glanced around the inn and uttered with a confused and puzzled look on her face: "But where are we? I was at the palace and… and…"
Nero hugged Asteria tightly and didn't let her think anymore.
'This is the worst,' he uttered to himself. 'Not only Asteria is not her, but Princess Astrea doesn't remember that she has already died.'
'Her memories are a mess. Just what happened to her after I was sealed?'
Nero had never seen such a case of reincarnation.
"M-Master Z-Z-Zeus! Why are you hugging me like that?!" Asteria exclaimed with a flushed face.
After that, Nero somehow managed to convince Asteria that they were on a secret mission.
After eating dinner, they drove on the carriage and left the town.
"It was supposed to be like this," he muttered again.
"Zeus!" Pavel called out to Nero.
Nero slowed down the carriage and let Pavel catch up to him.
"What is it?" Nero asked.
"We have been driving this carriage for over eight hours now. I think we should make a quick stop and rest for a while," he suggested. "Also, I am exhausted as I haven't slept in four days, and I seriously need some sleep. So I will let Arnold take care of the carriage."
Nero activated his God's eyes and scanned the area to make sure everything was fine.
"There is a cliff nearby. Let's stop there."
Pavel nodded and followed Nero. They parked the carriages near the trees and walked to the cliff alone.
The sun was about to rise, but the birds had already begun chirping.
"Say, Zeus." Pavel turned to Nero and asked, "Do you remember how we first met?"
"I met you when you had a bounty on your head, and I was hunting you down," Nero replied with a soft smile on his face.
"I don't remember anything, but I trust you," Pavel asserted.
Pavel's memories reset every month, and he always forgot everything. That was until he met Rhea.
When Rhea and Pavel were in love with each other, Pavel had forgotten about Rhea many times.
Rhea knew she had to do something to stop that, so she gave him a magical ring that stored the most important memories of Pavel in it.
So whenever Pavel's memories reset, he would look at the ring and remember Rhea again.
"When I disappear, I want you to take care of Rhea," Pavel uttered in a solemn voice.
Nero quietly gazed at the sky and didn't say anything.
After a brief silence that looked like an eternity to Pavel, Nero asserted, "What do you mean by taking care of her? Do you want me to become her babysitter?"
"She had a crush on you, but you rejected her when she confessed to you. Saying, 'I don't plan to get in a relationship with anyone.' But soon after, you fell in love with the high priestess."
"That was eons ago. And I had rejected countless girls at that time; Rhea just happened to be one of them."
Pavel took a deep breath and exhaled slowly: "What I am trying to say is now that you have multiple girls, I want you to accept her feelings."
Nero frowned his face and grabbed Pavel's collar: "Are feelings and relationships a joke to you? She is your wife, and she loves you. And I am not laying my hands on a taken girl; it leaves a bad taste in my mouth."
"If you want her to move on after you disappear, then tell that to her yourself," Nero asserted with a hint of frustration in his voice.
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