Apprehensions & Fear
The dimensional gap was a mass of void and odd colours, nothing but nothingness and spatial torrents, it wrapped the universe and set the limit between what existed and what didn't. In this place, nothing that didn't have magical protection or a physique strong enough could survive.
Richter arrived together with Grayfia in the dimensional gap, he was panting and looking all around finding anything that resembled what he knew, but there was nothing.
Grayfia's wings flapped trying to catch him until she eventually did, taking him between her arms.
"Master, please... listen to me... you need to listen to me" She knew that he was having a panic attack, once he calmed down, they'd be able to talk again.
"Where is my treasury, Ether, everything?!" He yelled, a lot calmer than when he woke up, but still frantic. It was a huge shock to have all of his scopes changed in a single second.
Grayfia held his cheeks between her palms and pushed his face in between her breasts tightly, shushing to calm him down, even going as far as to wrap him in warmth with her wings.
"Shhh, master... relax. Everything is okay, I'm here... no one is going to attack you... no one is going to kill you... I know where we are, please calm down."
"..." Her words were sort of effective, Richter rubbed his head against her breasts once and twice, wrapping her in his arms rather tightly, she felt like he was crushing her but didn't say anything as long as it could calm him down.
"It's okay master, everything is alright... I'll explain... this is not our world, this isn't the multiverse of Helius. But we can go back, there has to be a way to go back... I came from this world into yours, so we can go back."
Her words were extremely effective, Richter allowed calm and serenity to come back into his mind, overruling his dragon and survival instincts polished and sharpened by endless massacre and struggle.
He allowed Grayfia's breasts and wings to soothe him; the latter also enjoyed this sort of situation and allowed both of their bodies to drift in the nothingness of the dimensional gap until she felt his heart begin to settle down.
"I know where we are master, remember? I mentioned it to you, the dimensional gap... this is it" Her hands caressed his golden hair.
Richter inhaled and exhaled, as the last memories of the trial drifted back into his mind and he regained serenity.
Grayfia didn't know what to say, but she had to do something... A single release of his power had already caused so much devastation and although she didn't check, thousands if not dozens of thousands must have died with that fist.
"Sorry... I lost my calm there" He sighed, reevaluating everything.
He had lived as a Primordial for more than ten thousand years, his mind was connected to countless multiverses; all the gold that was in them. His senses were always focused on the treasury realm and a particular cave of that treasury: Monique's tomb.
'Monique...' He groaned, not feeling her anymore... the first time ever since she passed that he couldn't sense her.
When all of that disappeared all of the sudden he didn't know what to do, 'If Grayfia wasn't here...' as he thought of his maid his gaze lifted up with a frown and she knew exactly what he was going to ask.
"Why are we in your world?"
"I don't know, but master..." She wasn't lying, Grayfia had no idea what was going on, "I need to tell you something, just please calm down first" She needed to tell him now, clearly, there was a mistake, the system was supposed to send her back once she accomplished the target, or so she thought.
"Grayfia, what did you do?" He was convinced she was going to say something ominous.
She bit her lips, 'I actually never thought about it...' because she stopped focusing on the mission at some point and because she never wanted to leave her master's side... Grayfia forgot to consider... once the mission was accomplished, 'wouldn't I be sent back on my own?! or was Richter-sama supposed to come with me from the beginning?'
Even as the confusing thought lingered in her mind, she decided right now was not the time to think about that.
Grayfia held her master in her arms and checked the system.
[Name: Grayfia Lucifuge]
[Gender: Female]
[Titles: Demon Goddess Lucifuge of the Frozen Underworld, 1st Apostle of Primordial Gold]
[Age: 123 y/o]
[Race: Higher Devil-> Demonic Dragon / Goddess]
[Evolution: Demon Goddess - (6th Tier)]
[Strength: B+]
[Magic Power: A+]
[Dragon God's Affection: 52% (More than friends, less than lovers)]
The system is still there, but it is refusing to answer any of her questions. It is as she expected, his affection wasn't even close to a hundred per cent, 'Why was I brought back ahead of time and why is he with me?!'
'System, answer me, what's going on?!'
The system kept quiet, but she recalled that lately, it had been outputting some sort of nonsensical language, she imagined something must have happened to this system.
"Master..."
Richter separated from her, still frowning. He kept her in his grasp disallowing any escape, "What do you have to tell me?"
She gulped before taking his face between her palms and pressing their foreheads together, "Master I love you."
"..."
"This is the truth, I'm madly in love with you... I just... no matter what your reaction is, I need you to know this".
Richter was starting to feel apprehended as if she was about to say she was the one that killed his mother or something like that.
"The entity... sent me over to your world... with the purpose of conquering your heart".
"..."
Her heart went into disarray, she just said it…
"Master I accepted that mission to save my race that was at the edge of extinction, I didn't know what to expect, but I have fallen in love with you, please... I don't want you to think that what we have lived in Helius is artificial!" she was at the border of crying, thinking that he would shove her away and forsake what they had gone through, she wouldn't be able to take it.
Richter frowned and held her shoulders tightly, filling her with apprehension.
"Is that all?"
"..." Those were words she didn't expect, thinking that he didn't understand what she said clearly, she repeated herself.
"I was sent here to conquer you, master... that's all... this entity has been giving me tasks that I believed were for the purpose of us to grow closer... after I conquered your heart, that entity would save my race and... send me back here. I have a way to know if you're in love with me or not, you aren't... that's why I'm as confused as you. I don't know why we're here!"
It took a while for Richter to process everything she said, he only frowned at the mention of missions.
"What tasks, Grayfia? depending on what you tell me… even if you're now my apostle, I won't forgive you"
There was killing intent in his voice and Grayfia knew her next words would determine her fate.
'I can't lie anymore…'