Heir to the Kingdom of 1.4 billion people

Chapter 154 Hagoromo, I love you! Dorothy's renewed efforts
Bloodfang Arena.

"who are you?"

Hagoromo looked down at the purple-haired girl who was clinging tightly to his leg, puzzled.

He hadn't expected that the figure revealed after the crimson magic dissipated would be so fragile, which was why he allowed the other party to approach him.

Ladis raised her head, gazing intently at the man's handsome, chiseled face above her. Unable to contain her love any longer, she shouted with all her might:
"Haghox, I love you!"

Hagoromo: "???"

The girl's declaration of love, under the influence of magic, instantly spread throughout the entire arena, causing an uproar.

Especially the young noblemen in the stands who were being played around by the girl like Tom, their faces immediately turned ashen, and some even burst into tears.

It turns out, she doesn't dislike meeting people or being around men; she just doesn't like you.

But the girl's declaration of love wasn't over yet. After her bold confession, she continued to gaze longingly at Hagkex and said in a loving voice:

"Haghex, from the moment I saw you, my heart has never been able to leave you."

"Your body, as strong as bronze and iron, and your heroic face, are like those of a great hero who has stepped out of a mythical age!"

"They called you a beast, but I could see the loneliness in your golden eyes."

"No matter what lies ahead, whether it be thorny thickets or raging blizzards, I am willing to walk alongside you, to soothe your weariness after battle with my hands, and to accompany you through every cold night with my body heat."

"Accept my love, Hagoromo, I will give you my heart!"

Everyone could feel the girl's love in her deeply affectionate words, and they held their breath, silently waiting for the Molten Titan's reply.

After all, if a beautiful young woman were to publicly express her love to a slave in front of countless people, and they were to actually become lovers, it might become a poem in the mouths of bards, and would still be sung for thousands of years to come.

Hagoromo looked down at the petite girl who was barely knee-high, and was completely bewildered.

It's fine to send him to fight monsters, but to ask a gladiator who was sent to the arena for brutal training from birth, who has only known how to fight for 21 years and was even illiterate before, to understand love is just too difficult!

But can she tell that I'm lonely?

A strange flutter stirred within Haggex.

In the countless sleepless nights he had endured, tormented by sin, he had also fantasized and longed for a girl to keep him company through the long nights.

No matter what lies ahead, whether it be a path strewn with thorns or a raging blizzard, I am willing to walk side by side with you.
Hagoromo silently recited the girl's earlier words of love. He began to wonder if, if he accepted her proposal, someone would accompany him forever, never to be separated, even if his enemies were the villains of the entire world.

Seeing the wavering expression finally appear on the man's expressionless face, Ladis felt as if she had been struck by her own blood-boiling spell, her blood boiling.

“My beloved, Lord Simon Clay, the Piercing Lord, is my loving adoptive father. If you can accept the heart I offer, I swear to God that I will risk everything to persuade him to restore your freedom and grant you the status of a free man, so that no shackles can ever bind your shoulders again.”

In order to impress Hagoromo in one fell swoop, the girl excitedly swore an oath to the gods.

Simon's face darkened when he heard these words in mid-air.

Damn it, does this spendthrift know how expensive Hagoromo is now? He's worth at least thirty gold dragons!

However, if Radith could truly become lovers with Hagoros, they would essentially be under her command, and returning Hagoros's freedom wouldn't be out of the question.

After all, a powerful and promising force in the future can no longer be bought with mere coins.

Haggex, who was about to respond to the girl's declaration of love, froze upon hearing Simon's name.

What? She's Simon's daughter!
Could all of this be Simon's scheme to subdue me?
My loyalty has long been given to Your Highness, and besides, he is nothing but a villainous bastard who tramples on the flesh and blood of slaves to make money!

Thinking of this, the emotion on Haggiks's face gradually faded, and he became expressionless again.

"Hagerks, you..."

Ladis, who had been staring intently, keenly noticed the change in his expression. She wanted to ask him why, but suddenly felt a powerful force surge towards her.

It was the giant Hagoromo that stomped his foot, and the vampire girl who was clinging to his leg was flung far into the air like a kite with a broken string.

Swish!
If a crimson shockwave hadn't appeared in time to protect her, she would have likely collided with the solid protective wall behind her.

"Why?!"

The girl, recovering from the shock, stared at Haggex in disbelief and pressed him for an answer.

To her dismay, the imposing giant merely glanced at her coldly before turning his head and disappearing into the narrow passage without looking back.

"Hahaha, to confess your love to a slave and get rejected so rudely!"

"I used to think she was quite elegant, but now... tsk!"

"But she is really brave."

At the same time, countless bursts of laughter erupted from the stands.

After a moment of silence, Ladis fell to the side and fainted.

She knew that from then on, she would probably be completely "dead" in the slave capital.

In the North, as always, the biting wind cut through the gray sky like a knife.

The earth was submerged in ice and snow, and the vast, boundless ice field stretched to the horizon.

Lansen stared blankly at an open space not far away. This was the first time in ten years that he had not seen the girl practicing her swordsmanship in the cold wind in this open space.

"Sir Knight, what's wrong?"

Some passing knights from the Eastern Frontier noticed his unusual behavior and asked him about it.

“My lord, my lady has been traveling day and night for several days to kill Lucas, and only returned to the village late last night. It would be perfectly easy for her to want to rest more.”

After Lansen explained the reason, they replied dismissively.

Even after the knights left, Ransen still had a furrowed brow.

Choosing to give up sword practice due to exhaustion is the choice of an ordinary person, but it is by no means Dorothy's choice, otherwise she could not have achieved the peak of Crescent Moon at the age of twenty.

There must be other reasons why she did this.

Thinking of this, the knight commander could no longer suppress his worries, and his tall figure transformed into a gust of wind as he rushed towards the girl's residence.

Knock, knock, knock, Lansen gently knocked on the door.

"Come in, Uncle Ransen, the door's unlocked."

A moment later, Dorothy's weary voice came from inside the door.

He pushed open the door and saw a girl with long, icy blue hair sitting alone on the bed, hugging her knees, staring blankly at the light snow falling outside the window, lost in thought. Her beautiful, emerald-like eyes were now as if veiled in gray, dimmer than ever before.

This scene immediately tugged at the heartstrings of the middle-aged knight who regarded the girl as his own daughter.

"Dolovie, you are the lord I serve, and the person I cherish like a daughter. May I ask you to tell me your worries? Perhaps I will have the honor of answering them for you."

Lansen knelt on one knee and asked in the gentlest voice he could muster.

Seeing this, the girl quickly helped him up gently, then sighed and recounted her experience after encountering the Pale Witch in a slightly sad voice.

"The villagers of that village, in order to gain the ability to survive by eating snow, were willing to be turned into monsters who could never feel warmth. And what's most terrifying is that this is not the first one; perhaps many villages in the North have already become like this."

As she said this, a hint of despair appeared on Dorothy's pretty face.

“Uncle, the North is too vast. If we want to completely change this, we must overthrow the Gluttony King’s rule. But it will take me at least several decades to reach the Sun Wheel rank. By then, the common people of the entire North may have already become monsters covered in frost!”

Thinking of that terrifying scene, the girl's hands fell limply to her sides, and her whole body trembled slightly.

Ransen fell silent.

He knew just how heavy the burden was on the girl's not-so-broad shoulders.

Family feuds, national hatred, and the suffering of the people—the Mason family always seems to see everyone's suffering as their own, and the tears of any innocent person as their own responsibility.

Perhaps it is precisely because of this that they are so dazzling, causing a group of knights who could easily live a life of luxury through force to travel thousands of miles to the barren villages in the North to eat black bread and suffer, all to protect the only bloodline left by their lord.

"Dorothy, are you free to come out with me now?"

After thinking for a long time, Lansen suddenly spoke.

"Okay." The girl agreed, though she was puzzled.

On the snow, two streaks of light, one blue and one green, flashed by at a terrifying speed that was completely imperceptible to ordinary people.

The snow on the ground was whipped up by the gust of wind brought by the streaks of light, surging like white waves, and then gradually subsided after they went away.

Finally, the two streaks of light stopped in front of a village, which was none other than Ice Deer Village, which had once been ravaged by famine.

At this moment, the dilapidated houses have been repaired, and the children, whose bodies are no longer swollen, are chasing each other and playing together. Some villagers are sitting around the village entrance, eating and chatting while holding bowls of wheat porridge.

The once lifeless village has now been revitalized.

"It's the beautiful older sister who delivered the food earlier!"

The children pointed at Dolores, who was standing in front of the village gate, and shouted excitedly.

The villagers were taken aback for a moment, but when they came to their senses, they didn't dare to delay and quickly ran to report to the village chief.

Before long, the old village chief, who didn't even bother to put on his shoes, ran over barefoot.

"My benefactor, what brings you here?"

The old village chief, beaming with delight, opened the village gate as he spoke, welcoming Dorothy and Lansen into the village.

When Lansen inquired about the current situation of Ice Deer Village, it was as if the old village chief had been given a floodgate of information, and he began to talk incessantly:

"Not long after our benefactor left, Lucas, the former lord of the Icefield Territory, was killed by a valiant nameless knight. I heard his death was particularly gruesome; he even lost his manhood, hahaha!"

At this point, even the usually stern village chief burst into hearty laughter.

However, he quickly realized that it was inappropriate to discuss these things in front of a young girl like Dolores, so he quickly coughed twice and returned to his serious demeanor.

"The newly appointed Lord Roman is a good man. He not only sent relief food to all the villages in his territory that were suffering from famine, but he also stopped the Clay merchants who were about to leave the territory and redeemed the villagers who had been sold into slavery at a price lower than the original price, so that these children could be reunited with their parents."

"Thank you again, my benefactor. If it weren't for you, they would have found their child's remains when they returned."

The old village chief spoke with deep gratitude, and the villagers silently gathered around, bowing deeply to the girl and kneeling on both knees.

Upon seeing this scene, the girl, who had been listless since her return, finally showed a hint of emotion on her pretty face.

"Uncle Ransen, what do you want to tell me by bringing me here?"

After the two left Ice Deer Village, Dorothy asked.

The man who was walking forward stopped, turned around, and looked solemnly at the girl in front of him.

"Dorothy, I know that you, like your father, are someone who likes to take on the suffering of all the people on the continent. That's fine, but it's too tiring."

The knight spoke softly, his gentle tone making it impossible to reconcile with the "Wrath of Blue Steel" that once struck fear into the hearts of his enemies.

“I know how heavy the responsibility is on your shoulders, and I’m sorry that I’ve always let you bear this responsibility alone.”

"But I also want you to know that every knight in Snow Sheep Village, including myself, is willing to sacrifice their lives for you at any time."

The knight knelt on one knee and bowed deeply.

"You are never alone."

"The road ahead may indeed be so long that it is despairing, and people may suffer at any time, but your efforts are by no means in vain."

"Isn't the village behind us, and the vast icefield territory, blessed with happiness because of you?"

"Just as the sage of the South said, a road will always appear when the carriage is right in front of it."

“A kind person like you will surely be protected by the Creator who created this world.”

"If your father, my former lord, Grand Duke Mason, knew that nearly ten million people in the Southern Territory had found happiness because of him, he would surely find peace in the underworld."

“In fact, I’ve always suspected that the Grand Duke’s death might have been voluntary. He was blessed with spiritual vision, and perhaps he saw some kind of future before he was willing to die.”

"So, even if we ultimately fail, isn't it good enough if someone is saved and finds happiness because of us?"

Dorothy: “.”

She remembered her father who had broken her neck, the crimson flame that had fought alone in the past, the prince who had continuously brought her precious provisions, and the members of the Starfire Hall.
The next moment, a surge of emerald green magic erupted from the girl's body, catching her off guard and even causing Lansen, the Crescent Knight, to instinctively assume a defensive stance.

"Uncle Lansen, in the previous battle, I seemed to have touched the barrier of the Crescent Moon rank. Could you be my sparring partner?"

The girl spoke calmly, the light in her emerald eyes so dazzling that it was impossible to look directly at her.

“Very well, I’d be happy to,” Ransen said with a smile.

He knew that the resolute knight who had practiced swordsmanship diligently for ten years had returned, and was even stronger than before.

(End of this chapter)