Leveling Up by Seducing Milfs-Chapter 143. Love and Respect From The Demon King

They sat in silence for a few minutes, and both of them only wanted to talk about important things.

Rick thought. "Uh... this is getting awkward..."

Zara finally spoke.

"He used to bring me here every morning," she said in a low voice. "He always made time to watch the sunrise with me, no matter how busy he was or what crisis needed his attention."

"He said it made him remember why we fought so hard to keep this world safe."

Rick said, "He cared a lot about you."

"Before the corruption took him over completely, his last thoughts were of you..."

"He told me...to look after you."

Zara can’t keep her flat expression, and new tears shone in her eyes. "I don’t need help..."

"I’m a general. I’ve lived through three hundred years of war. I can deal with grief."

Rick said, "I know you can, but that doesn’t mean you have to deal with it by yourself."

She looked at him properly for the first time, her eyes searching his face. "Why did he pick you?"

"You’re at level 22 and young for a demon. What’s even more surprising is that you’re just human."

"You shouldn’t have been able to do that."

"To be honest?" Rick said with a weak laugh, "I have no idea."

"All I am is a man who endured a humiliating death and received a second opportunity, yet I believe Zork recognized something within me that I’m only now beginning to recognize in myself."

"And what is that?"

"That failure doesn’t make you who you are."

"That...it’s fine to be weak as long as you keep working to get better, and being able to get back up after being knocked down is worth more than never falling in the first place."

For a long time, Zara was quiet, taking in what he said. "He said something like that to me when we first met."

"I was a young warrior who had just lost my whole squad in an ambush. I blamed myself and thought I would never be able to lead anyone again."

"What did he say?"

"He said that caring about people costs us guilt."

"Good leaders feel the pain of every life lost while they are in charge."

"And that the day I stopped feeling bad about it would be the day I lost my senses as a demon." She smiled, but it was a sad smile. "He could make wisdom sound so easy."

Rick reached out and took her hand in a gentle way, and she didn’t let go. "Zara, I know I can never take Zork’s place."

"Hell, even I won’t even try, but what I said at the funeral was true."

"I will honor his sacrifice by being the best Demon King I can be. And I will honor his last wish by being here for you in whatever way you need me to be."

She looked down at their hands, which were clasped together, and something in her face broke. "I don’t know how to do this," she said softly.

"I don’t know how to go on when half of my heart is buried in ash."

"One day at a time," Rick softly uttered.

"That’s all we can do. And you don’t have to do it all by yourself."

"I’m here. Natasha and Carmilla are here. Sylvia, Liora, and all the demon warriors who look up to you...we’re all here."

Zara’s tears finally came out, and she turned to Rick, burying her face in his chest as she sobbed. He held her close and let her cry without saying anything or judging her, and being there for someone was sometimes the best way to comfort them.

Rick held Zara for a long time while she cried out years of pent-up feelings. After a while, her cries turned into hiccups, and she pulled back a little and wiped her eyes out of shame.

"I’m sorry."

"That wasn’t very general-like of me."

Rick said plainly, "Fuck being general-like."

"You can be human or a demon...whatever you like as long as it’s still you..."

That made her laugh, even though it was watery. "Rick Rolland, you’re weird."

"Zork was correct about you."

Rick agreed, "He was right about many things."

"Choosing you as his wife was one of them."

"He said you were the strongest demon he’d ever met, not because you never broke, but because you always knew how to put yourself back together."

In the moonlight, Zara looked at his face, and her expression changed. "He also told you to make a Spirit Bond with me, right?"

Rick was surprised and blinked. "How did you—"

"I know my husband."

"He wouldn’t put the future of the demon realm in the hands of just anyone."

"He would want to make sure I was close to his successor for both political stability and my own safety." She was able to smile a little. "He was always three steps ahead."

Rick quickly said, "I’m not going to put pressure on you, though."

"I know that the bond needs both people to agree and really care about each other."

"We can wait as long as you need if you’re not ready."

"And what if I told you I wanted to make the bond during your coronation ceremony tomorrow?"

Rick’s eyes got bigger. "Tomorrow?! Are you sure?"

"That’s really quick, and you’re still sad—"

"Rick," Zara said softly to stop him. "I’ve been thinking about this for three days."

"Three days of feeling lost and like I had no purpose without Zork. And do you know what I figured out?"

"What?"

"Zork’s last gift to me wasn’t just picking a worthy successor. It was picking someone I could eventually learn to care about the way I cared about him.

"It wasn’t the same love, it wasn’t a replacement, it was something different." She held his hand again.

"I felt it during the fight."

"The way you jumped in front of that Corruption Titan to save me and the way you jumped into Zork’s broken body to save him."

"How you’ve been nice and respectful to me without expecting anything in return."

"Zara, I—"

She went on, "I’m not saying I love you yet."

"I won’t lie to you because that would be wrong, and I won’t insult Zork’s memory, but I can see myself falling in love with you over time."

"I believe that is enough to make a Spirit Bond. As we work together, our love will grow stronger on its own."

Rick’s heart was racing. This was happening faster than he had thought it would, but when he looked into Zara’s eyes, he could tell she was being honest.

She wasn’t doing this because she had to or because it was politically necessary. She really wanted to move on and honor her husband by accepting the future he had planned for her.

"O-Okay," Rick said in a soft voice. "Tomorrow, at the coronation ceremony, we’ll make the Spirit Bond."

"Together."

This time, Zara’s smile reached her eyes. "Together."

She leaned in and kissed him softly, with lips that promised more than passion. Rick could see a spark of life returning to her face when she pulled back.

This was the first sign that she was starting to heal.

"Thanks," she said softly. "For being the person Zork thought you could be."

"Thanks for letting me try."

They stayed on that boulder all night, watching the darkness slowly turn into dawn. Rick thought he could understand why Zork had loved this view so much when the sun finally rose and painted the sky in shades of gold and red.

It was a reminder that morning always comes, no matter how dark the night.