Chapter 73: The Elemental Lord

Fifteen minutes later, the six Succubi had carried the Council’s man out of the hospital. No one was detained, and Meira did not pursue them. She simply had the hospital staff examine the six women’s injuries before they left, an act that left them even more uncertain about how to face her.

As for Nivoria, Elowen had voluntarily returned to her room after the disturbance outside ended. Nivoria still did not trust anyone, but at least she was no longer trying to rip out her IV. Carmilla and Runi also returned to the neighboring room.

Erik had intended to remain a little longer when someone suddenly grabbed his wrist.

"Come with me," Meira said.

Without waiting for an answer, she pulled him toward her private office at the end of the corridor. Erik looked at the hand dragging him along, then at her perfectly straight back. His mind was still filled with the image of the pitch-black sky and six Succubi being sent flying with a single lift of her hand.

Click.

The door closed.

Meira locked it.

Before Erik could ask anything, the aura of the Elemental Lord who had silenced the entire hospital vanished without a trace. Meira turned around, walked directly to the sofa, sat down beside him, then leaned her entire soft body into Erik’s arms. She buried her head against his chest and wrapped both arms around his waist.

Erik fell silent.

Meira rubbed her face against his shirt. "That was so scary..."

Her voice was soft and quiet, and it even carried a slight tremble that was very obviously deliberate.

Erik looked down at her. "Who are you talking about?"

"That man just now."

Meira held him tighter. Her full breasts pressed against his side, warmth seeping through his clothes. One of her legs also rested across Erik’s thigh, her body nearly curled up entirely in his embrace.

"Master’s little dog was scared half to death."

Erik looked out the window. The black clouds had yet to disperse completely, and a distant flash of lightning still appeared from time to time. Then he looked back at the woman nestled against his chest.

"He frightened you?"

"Mm."

"Who was the one who changed the weather?"

"I don’t know."

"Who sent six Succubi flying?"

"Probably not the little dog either."

Erik said nothing.

Meira looked at him for several seconds, her green eyes curving into crescents. "Does Master not care about me?"

Erik sighed, but his hand ultimately came to rest on her golden hair and gently stroked it. Meira immediately closed her eyes, her entire body relaxing. A comfortable sigh escaped her lips.

"That’s right..." Meira tilted her head slightly, rubbing against his palm. "Right there."

Erik stroked her hair once more.

Meira immediately smiled. "Is the little dog good?"

"You just knocked people across an entire corridor."

"But I didn’t kill them."

Erik did not know how to respond.

"So I was good," Meira concluded on her own.

There was truly no arguing with that logic. Erik continued slowly running his hand through her long hair. After enjoying it for a while, Meira suddenly raised herself. Her mature body was now practically sitting sideways on his lap, one hand resting on Erik’s chest to maintain her balance. The distance between their faces immediately shrank, and her fragrance filled every breath he took.

The white dress she had worn during the fight had been straightened, but its neckline was still slightly askew from the wind. The pale skin of her collarbone and the upper swell of her full breasts were more exposed than usual.

Meira noticed his gaze, and the corners of her lips immediately curved upward. "What is Master looking at?"

"Nothing."

"I don’t believe you."

She leaned closer, her lips gently touching Erik’s neck.

A very slow kiss.

"Meira." Erik tilted his head slightly.

"Hmm?"

She kissed him again, this time closer to his jaw.

"Sit properly."

"I am sitting very properly."

"You’re kissing my neck."

Meira thought for two seconds. Then her soft tongue slowly traced the exact spot she had just kissed. Erik’s body stiffened ever so slightly. She immediately laughed, her eyes filled with delight.

"Now I’m not sitting properly."

Erik placed a hand on her waist and pulled her back slightly. But Meira simply took the opportunity to wrap her arms around his neck, pressing her body even closer.

"The little dog was frightened." She rubbed the tip of her nose against Erik’s neck. "She needs Master to comfort her."

"You’re taking advantage of what just happened."

"Mm."

Meira admitted it without the slightest shame, then giggled softly and nestled back into his arms. This time, she did not tease him too far. She merely lay still and allowed Erik to stroke her hair.

Several minutes later, Erik looked out the window. The wind had gradually weakened, and the black clouds were beginning to disperse, but the earlier sight remained difficult to believe.

"Meira."

"Hmm?"

"What is the true rank of your aptitude?"

The hand playing with the buttons on Erik’s shirt paused. Meira slowly raised her head. "Why are you suddenly asking that?"

"It isn’t sudden." Erik pointed toward the window. "I just watched you summon an entire storm."

Meira laughed. "I only borrowed a little of nature’s power."

"A little?"

"Mm."

"Then what happens if you borrow a lot?"

Meira blinked. "The weather might get a little worse."

Erik stared at her without speaking.

Knowing that she could not brush him off, Meira smiled and lowered her head to gently kiss his neck. "What outsiders know isn’t entirely wrong. My Natural Elements talent was indeed once recorded as Epic rank."

Erik immediately caught the wording. "Recorded?"

"Mm."

"Before I became a Succubus, I was a pure-blooded Elf." Meira rested her chin on his shoulder, her voice slowing. "That era was different from the present. The races still retained most of their old evolutionary paths, and Elves had their own system of magic."

She paused. For the first time, Erik saw a completely natural pride in the woman’s eyes.

"And I was one of the three most powerful elemental mages in the entire race."

Erik raised an eyebrow slightly. "Three?"

"Mm."

"Which one were you?"

Meira smiled. "Does Master want his little dog to brag?"

"I’m asking."

"There was no exact ranking." She gently stroked Erik’s chest. "All three of us had different specialties. But if we were judged solely by our ability to control multiple elements at once, I don’t believe the other two were stronger than me."

Erik remained silent for two seconds. It was certainly arrogant, but after what he had just witnessed, he did not feel that she was boasting.

"Your title?"

Meira slowly smiled. "The Elemental Lord."

Outside the window, one final bolt of lightning flashed among the dispersing clouds.

Erik looked at her.

All right. No further proof necessary.

Meira laughed when she saw his expression, but her smile gradually faded. "Then the laws of the world changed. The old paths were no longer suitable, and many races began to weaken. We were forced to find new ways to adapt."

She looked down at her hand. "I agreed to merge with the Succubus bloodline. After that, I became part of the first generation to enter this world and form connections with human men."

Erik nodded slightly. So everything the crowd had said earlier was true, only incomplete.

"Then what does Epic mean?"

"My public record."

"Why was it listed lower?"

"It wasn’t entirely listed lower." Meira thought for a moment before explaining. "After the bloodline fusion, the system reevaluated me according to its new standards. Natural Elements was recorded as Epic, while much of the data concerning my original aptitude was never made public."

Erik looked at her. "Then what is your true aptitude?"

Meira did not answer immediately. She shifted closer, her knee lightly touching Erik’s hip as one arm curled behind his neck. Her golden hair slipped across his shoulder, and her lips approached his ear.

"Legendary."

The word was whispered so softly it was nearly breathless.

Erik stiffened and slowly turned to look at Meira. She was still smiling.

"Legendary?"

"Mm."

"Not Epic?"

"No."

Only now did Erik understand. Elowen’s awakening of an Epic talent had caused the hospital to run the examination multiple times. Carmilla possessed Epic aptitude, had once reached Diamond, and was known as the Succubus War Goddess.

But Meira was Legendary.

One of the three strongest elemental mages in the entire Elven race before the world changed.

The Elemental Lord.

Erik suddenly realized just how severely he had underestimated her. He had always regarded Meira as a wealthy Healer who could occasionally be dangerous in an entirely different sense. He had never imagined that he was living with someone who had once stood near the pinnacle of an entire race.

Meira studied his expression, clearly very pleased. But that pride lasted only a few seconds. Immediately afterward, she buried her head against Erik’s neck again.

"But it doesn’t matter."

"Why?"

"Because the little dog has found her Master."

Meira rubbed her cheek against his chest, her arms tightening around him. "Being the Elemental Lord is exhausting. You have to manage others, maintain your dignity, and always be strong."

She raised her head. Her green eyes were now mere inches from Erik’s face.

"I don’t need to do any of that with Master. The little dog only needs to behave."

A soft kiss landed at the corner of his jaw, followed by another against his neck. The tip of her tongue lightly touched skin warmed by her breath.

"So Master can stroke her head, hold her..." Meira whispered. "And pamper her."

Erik felt the soft body pressed tightly against his own. This woman could summon thunder across the entire sky, yet she could also nestle in his arms and speak in a voice so sweet it seemed deliberately designed to ruin the listener’s reason.

The contrast was overwhelming.

Erik sighed, his hand unconsciously continuing to stroke Meira’s back. Her eyes immediately narrowed in pleasure. "Master is so kind."

"Don’t push your luck."

"Mm..." Meira made an extremely obedient sound, but her body shifted even closer.

Erik ignored her. His mind had already turned toward something else.

Primal Bestowal.

Elowen had undergone an obvious transformation after receiving only the Epic-ranked Spirit of Wind. If he signed a Contract with Meira, formed an official connection, and then used Primal Bestowal on a Succubus who already possessed Legendary aptitude, granting her an additional S- to SS-rank power...

Erik frowned slightly.

What would she become?

Meira could already influence the weather despite not having fully recovered. If she gained another compatible bloodline or talent, perhaps he truly would have to erase the word Support from his mind altogether.

Noticing that he had suddenly fallen silent, Meira raised her face. "Master?"

Erik looked into the green eyes before him. They were very close, her golden hair still lying across his arm, one hand resting directly against his chest. At that moment, not a trace of the Elemental Lord’s majesty remained on Meira’s face. She looked only like a woman lying comfortably in the arms of someone she loved.

Erik thought for several seconds, then suddenly asked:

"Meira, do you want to sign a Contract with me?"

Meira’s body immediately went rigid.

The hand resting on Erik’s chest became motionless, and her smile vanished. Her green eyes slowly widened. For several seconds, the woman who could command wind and lightning and send six high-ranking Succubi flying was completely incapable of reacting.

Meira’s lips trembled slightly. She stared at Erik as though afraid she had misheard him.

"You..." Her voice was barely audible. "What did you just say?"