Lakshman and Sumara stood there in between the sun while shaking their hands firmly in accepting their partnership. Watching them from a certain distance was one of Lakshman’s wives, Emilia. She watched them through narrowed eyes with an air of suspicion surrounding her as she observed her husband’s strange behaviour.
She finally sighed and thought, “I’m going to have to deal with this.”
***
Once they bid the Manjuvad Demon Clan goodbye, the Eternal Turtle used the Teleportation Zone to disappear from that island and appear on what appeared to be open land. The wind blew and lightly touched their faces, welcoming them back to their home continent; the Human Continent.
Magic Titan questioned whether they should head straight to the Floria Kingdom, but Lakshman decided that can wait. Instead, he requested her to take them to his home that was set further from there, but on the same open land. She nodded at them and spoke to the Eternal Turtle, which roared back in understanding before slowly heading in that direction.
Lakshman turned around and saw Emilia standing there with a stern look on her face, which caused him to immediately go on alert. She simply asked him to come to their living quarters before she left. He watched her go with a strange sensation in the pit of his stomach as if something strange was going to happen.
***
“Okay. Thanks for coming when I called you all here,” said Emilia with a pleasant smile on her face.
“No, it’s nothing,” said Sumara as she returned the smile. “So, why did you ask me to be present here as well? I take it this is some sort of meeting between Lucky and his wives?”
Emilia nodded her head at her and said, “In a way, yes, but it also involves you.”
Everyone in the room were surprised as they said, “Eh?!”
“What do you mean, Emilia?” Venezuela asked her with her eyes narrowing slightly. “Suddenly calling all of us and even bringing Sumara along… What’s this about anyway?”
“Yes. About that…” Emilia began slowly and she turned her attention to Lakshman, who was sitting next to Venezuela. “Tell us… Do you love Sumara?”
There was a momentary silence in the room as her words echoed around, in the room, but in their heads. It took them a moment to allow these words to sink in before letting off wild screams of shock.
“EEEEEH?!”
Lakshman’s eyes widened with shock as well as he said, “Huh?! What?!”
“Don’t give me that…!” Emilia said as she rubbed her ears, which hurt from all of their shouts. “You heard me the first time. Do you love Sumara?”
He began to splutter from shock and surprise while saying, “Um… I… Uh… I… Mmm…”
“Lucky loves me…?” Sumara asked in a quiet voice with a very surprised expression on her face as she turned to look at him.
Lakshman noticed her looking at him and he quickly turned to her as he stumbled for words.
“Um… S-Sumara… I mean, I… W-Well…”
Hearing how badly he sounded from being all too nervous, Venezuela suddenly raised her hand and gripped his head firmly. She was angry and he realised this with her she letting off a dangerous aura as she turned to look at him with sizzling eyes.
“What. Is. The. Meaning. Of. This?” she asked him in a slow, but dangerous voice with her grip increasing with each syllable.
He wore a pained expression on his face from the amount of pressure his head was experiencing from her grip. He ultimately decided to speak about it since it would do him and them no good if he kept silent about it.
“Y-Yes…” he muttered finally.
***
The entire room had gone silent after he explained about the feelings he had all this time for Sumara. She was looking at him with a great surprised expression on her face along with a blush that seemed to make her look unhappy for some reason.
Venezuela nodded her head in understanding as she had her arms folded to her chest. His other wives were also nodded in understanding, but they were looking a little bit troubled, which was voiced by Venezuela with her next words.
“Seriously… You’ve been loving her all this time and you never bothered to inform us about it?” she asked him with a disappointed expression on her face. “What? Are we not your family or did you feel we were not worth knowing about this?”
Lakshman blinked in shock and he quickly said, “No, no, no! Not at all! I didn’t mean to hide it from you all, but… it’s just…”
“You felt nervous about telling us openly about it,” said Ondine with a sympathetic look on her face. “On top of that, there was another reason you wanted to keep it from us, right?”
“Yes…” Lakshman said quietly with a nod of his head. “I… I wanted to try and approach her with my feeling firmly… because she’s…”
He trailed off nervously, which was completed by Emilia as she said, “Because, she’s the eighth Destiny Queen. Right?”
Lakshman widened his eyes in amazement and he looked at her in surprise, as did Sumara.
“I-I’m the eighth Destiny Queen? What do you mean, Emilia?” Sumara asked her in a shocked voice. “I mean, I’m… I’m already quite surprised that he loves me, but… me being Destiny Queen? What lead you to believe it?”
“That’s because I’ve been observing the recent interaction between you and him. Quite seriously, I wondered why Lucky was behaving in such a manner around you like he did with me initially. So, I deduced that the Divine Protection of Love was making him behave in such a way.”
“D-Divine Protection of Love?” Sumara asked with a puzzled look on her face. “What’s that?”
“One of the Divine Protections that Lakshman currently possess,” explained Ondine. “The other two we know are Divine Protection of Sun and Divine Protection of Moon. That’s actually the main reason that Lucky doesn’t feel the heat and cold until it’s super-hot or super-cold.”
“Oh… So, it’s something that the gods blessed him with…?” Sumara asked with a look of amazement on her face.
“Anyway, coming back to the main topic,” said Venezuela gruffly and she turned to eye Lakshman beside her with an annoyed look on her face. “What I want to know is when the Divine Protection of Love activated and why in the world Lucky didn’t inform us about it…?”
“Yes… My thoughts exactly…” Emilia said slowly with a single nod of her head as they all turned to look at him.
With all of their eyes on him, Lakshman heaved a sigh before he said, “I don’t know when it activated and all, but I wanted to try and show my love to Sumara on my own without anyone’s help. I mean, all this time with the other Destiny Queens and fate leading us to be together, but I’ve never once been able to confess my love to any of you on my own. I’ve already had help from my wives and it made me feel a little helpless and— Ouch!”
He exclaimed in shock when the top of his head was suddenly hit hard by Venezuela, who was glaring at him with an annoyed expression on her face.
“Seriously… You’re so stupid…” she said and startled him as he clutched his head.
“I don’t agree with you there, Lucky!” Silvera said with a sad look on her face. “I’m sorry you think like that, but it’s wrong. You’re not useless or anything… Rather, it’s because of you that we were able to come together like this…”
“Yes, I agree,” Tetra said in agreement. “I don’t exactly have much of a memory to remember of the past being that they are sealed along with most of my power, however, I know that we are brought together by the hand of fate. The rest was conducted by us working together to create the love that bonded us together for life!”
“Yeah-nyaa! Thanks to the fate of love and all, I finally escaped from that boring home of mine!” Cantia said energetically with her eyes twitching and her tail swirling around behind her back.
“Cantia… That’s your birth place… You shouldn’t say such things about the place you’re born at,” said Tetra with a scowl.
Cantia simply shrugged her shoulders and said, “I don’t even remember my own parents and that place never felt like a real home-nyaa. So, the home of lover is the home that I belong in-nyaa!”
With that, she lunged forward and hugged Lakshman happily while purring like an overgrown cat. Lakshman smiled widely at seeing how happy she was before turning his attention to look at everyone.
“I’m sorry everyone… It seems that I didn’t fully realise the implications of our fates…” Lakshman said and he looked unhappy with his himself.
“Don’t be like that!” Ondine said with a cheerful smile on her face. “Everyone makes mistakes, but what’s important is that we learn from those mistakes as we move on to the future.”
“I agree, so make sure not to repeat this again,” said Venezuela as she hit him hard on his head. “I won’t be lenient enough to let you off with just a knock on the head.”
“R-Right… I’ll keep that in mind,” said Lakshman with a pained expression on his face as he rubbed the top of his head even though it actually did not hurt, but realised he would be in trouble if he did not act like he was in pain.
Emilia smiled at him before turning to look at Sumara, who had an extremely worried expression on her face. She narrowed her eyes slightly in knowing the feelings that were colliding inside of Sumara as she fidgeted with her hands.
“Sumara,” she said and snapped Sumara back into reality. “We know that Lucky is in love with you, but… you also love him right?”
“Eh?!” Sumara exclaimed in shock as Lakshman stared at her in wild surprise. “I…”
“You don’t have to hesitate anymore when the truth’s already out in the open,” said Emilia in a reassuring voice. “I can understand Lucky being very nervous about coming out in the open and saying it because he lacks experience. On the other hand, you’re far older than all of us here and should have more than enough experience to come out in the open to confess your feelings for him, right? What’s stopping you?”
Sumara did not immediately respond, but remained sitting there in silence for a few seconds before finally speaking again.
“I… I do love Lucky…” she said and at those words, Lakshman almost toppled out of his chain in shock. “I don’t know when it all began… I only treated him like a student and my protégée from when I taught him magic back when he was just a kid. Somehow, seeing him after more than ten years, I was overcome with strange feelings…”
“Feelings of love, worry and respect, correct?” Emilia asked as she corrected deduced the feelings that Sumara had experienced.
Sumara nodded once and said, “That’s right… I… Seeing him lying unconscious as he struggled for life made my heart almost stop beating with shock and sadness that I just didn’t know how to explain. Then, seeing him awake relived me so much that I spontaneously wanted to hug him that very moment, but… I don’t know… I just… don’t know…”
From the side, Lakshman moaned and was answered with a strong elbow smacking hard into him, performed by Venezuela as she listened to the conversation between Emilia and Sumara.
“I can understand how difficult it had been for you when you first realised that you loved him…” Emilia said in an understanding voice. “It also didn’t help matters when you discovered that he is destined to be together with the Destiny Queens, making you question whether you were a Destiny Queen or not.”
“Yes and that’s why… I decided I would keep my feelings hidden from him the best I can until we discover who the next Destiny Queen is and all,” said Sumara as tears slowly formed in her eyes.
“Come now… No need for tears with us,” said Tetra with an expression of sadness on her face. “We know you’re the eighth Destiny Queen!”
“Yes, but… I never thought… I’d be able to… to love Lucky…” Sumara muttered as she sniffed as she tried her best to wipe the tears from her eyes.
Emilia looked at her for a moment in silence before she said, “You see, Sumara… Before I met Lucky, my life was one hell of a mess. I literally mean it with the kind of life I lead as a slave.”
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
Sumara blinked at her in surprise as everyone turned their attention to listen to her continue retelling her past.
“As a slave, I was never allowed the luxuries that I enjoyed when I was a kid with my parents. It firmly led me to believe that I’m truly a cursed child like what everyone in my village called me, but that all changed one day when I first met Lucky. I believe he was with Ondine and Tetra that day, but I only had eyes for him as the hero that came just in time to rescue me from the horde of monsters driving towards me after killing the other slaves working for the same master as me.
You can say it was love at first sight, but the feelings were so strong and unfamiliar, I became very scared and even to the point of looking away from when he clearly was asking me about my health.”
“Oh… So, that’s why you didn’t speak to me normally and only talked to Ondine and Tetra,” said Lakshman with a look of amazement filling his face.
“I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings that day, but… yes…” Emilia said with a sad smile on her face before she turned her attention back to Sumara. “Anyway, I fell in love with him at first sight and thought that he was the man that I had been deeply asking to rescue me from the hellish world that was destroying me. At the same time, I wondered if I had that right… if I was worthy to receive such affection from a man as powerful as him.”
“Emilia!” Lakshman said sharply, but she simply waved at him to calm down as she continued her story.
“Still, we continued to run into each other more and more often from then on. I knew he was rather oblivious and immature, lacking basic knowledge of love and all from the way he treated Ondine and Tetra, but I liked it. I loved the innocence in him, which was rare in many men as they either seek money, woman or glory. So, my love for him only strengthened more for him.”
“Yeah, well… Marrying a wealthy guy that has an attitude problem is really terrible,” said Venezuela as she remembered Adebola Gramstone that was meant to marry her according to the wishes of their respective parents.
“So, wait…! Are you telling me that you didn’t love me when you proposed to me and asked me to accompany you to meet that idiot?” Lakshman asked her and his eyes narrowing sharply, causing her to smile at him.
“No. I really did love you and not just because you’re the Phoenix Titan, but because of your wonderful nature,” said Venezuela and to all of their surprise, she leaned towards him and kissed his cheek lightly.
“Vena…!” he said with an embarrassed look on his face, causing her to giggle slightly as she wore a happy smile on her face.
The rest of the girls laughed as Emilia turned back to Sumara before she said, “Well… As you can see, Sumara… We’re a group of really different people coming together because of loving the person for the many qualities that differ him from so many other men.”
“Yes… I can see that,” said Sumara and she nodded in agreement. “He’s strong, brave, slightly reckless and a bit of a dimwit,” which caused Lakshman to look a little stricken, “but above all, it’s his niceness, happy attitude and his strong feelings for the people he loves and cares about.”
“These qualities are not exactly what most of the women would consider a strong trait in any man,” said Venezuela as she remembered back to how dreamy the noble women were. “Most women seemed to dream of marrying a wealthy, respectful man that just goes to boost their ego. Right now, many of them are worse off than us because they were either tricked or betrayed by their own dreams, which makes me feel glad to have married Lucky.”
With that, she turned to smile at him with a smile full of love and respect that he rarely sees in her. In response, he simply smiled back at her and placed a hand on her head before rubbing it gently. Normally, she would not allow such an action, but she accepted it quietly while closing her eyes blissfully.
Erza chuckled and said, “We really don’t know how things turn out, but they always work out for us or against us by the decisions we make in our lives. Like for instance, I came from another world because there was nothing left in my world that kept me from going after the man I really loved. So, I’m quite happy to be here while enjoying my sweet time together with everyone.”
“That’s great,” said Emilia as she smiled at her happily and Erza nodded back at her happily.
Sumara watched the wives being very happy together without the slightest hint of animosity amongst them. In the story books she read when she lived in the Human Continent, many of the wives married to a single man would plot to overthrow the others to make him favour her more. Here, however, she saw that all his seven wives got together well and it pleased her very much to see them like this.
“Now then,” said Venezuela a few seconds later in a loud voice that called for all their attention. “I feel a confession is necessary between Lucky and Sumara.”
“Wait, what?” Lakshman asked with a confused look on his face, which was reflected on Sumara’s face as well.
She smiled at the two of them as she rose to her feet before she said, “You heard me right! She is the eighth Destiny Queen and on top of that, the two of you love one another, so it’s only natural that you exchange vows in front of your wives, right?”
Both Lakshman and Sumara were shocked by her words while they were greeted with much enthusiasm from the others. The two of them turned to look at each other before looking away with embarrassment filling them up, which Venezuela saw and she highly disapproved of it.
“Come on! On your feet!” Venezuela, along with Ondine, pulled Lakshman and Sumara to their feet.
The brought them together to stand facing each other, but they kept trying to avoid looking at each other with embarrassment filling them up. Unfortunately, Venezuela did not accept it and held Lakshman’s head firmly to face Sumara, causing him to close his eyes inadvertently.
“Alright!” she said firmly with all his wives gathered on the bed to watch the proceedings. “This may not be the proper way of getting people married off, but it’ll do. So, may Lakshman Reddy and Sumara Manjuvad confess their feelings and be recognised as married couple?”
Sumara was very embarrassed before she said, “Ah… T-This is all too… sudden…!”
“Things happen suddenly and we must be ready to react quickly to them,” Emilia reassured her with Ondine keeping the water demon woman at bay. “Don’t worry because this is quite good.”
“In what way is this good?!” Lakshman demanded as he was forced to stand there facing Sumara with his eyes closed. “This is so forced…”
“What’s so forced between a man and woman that love each other?” Tetra asked with a bemused expression on her face. “Rather, I feel this is an excellent chance to exchange vows and be married, right? I mean, sure it lacks glamor, but love only cares about the feelings between the people.”
“Tetra…” he muttered helplessly as he finally opened his eyes to look at Sumara. “You’re not helping…”
“I am,” she said with a sweet smile formed on her face. “Now, go on… Your future wife awaits.”
He turned his attention back to Sumara, who was trying her hardest to keep her calm, but the embarrassment and shyness was starting to make her appear flustered.
“Go on… It’s time…” Venezuela muttered to him and he tensed up before heaving a huge sigh.
He blinked several times at Sumara in silence before in a slow firm voice, he said, “Sumara… I… I… I… I love you!”
He hesitated a bit as he kept repeating the “I” four times before finally saying the magic words. The force of those words were so strong that it stunned Sumara into going completely silent. She blinked at him as if she was wondering if this was a dream or everything that had happened, all the way to his confession, was real.
Realising that everything was real, she formed the most wonderful smile Lakshman had ever seen on her face. It caused him to blink at her in surprise as it suddenly brightened her beauty that he thought he was used to up until then.
“Yes… I also love you…” she said in a slow voice that made his insides dance with joy. “All this time… For all the time… I will always love you.”
Venezuela nodded approvingly as the rest of the girls watched this happy scene unfold with joyful smiles on their faces. Cantia was purring from the chain that Lakshman had been sitting on previously as she watched her husband and her new sister perform the marriage. It reminded her of the time back when she married him at the backyard of the castle, causing her to giggle happily.
Lakshman and Sumara, without being told by anyone, slowly walked forward and looked at each other for a few seconds before finally leaned towards each other and kissing for the first time. This was not Lakshman’s first kiss, but it was Sumara’s first and it somehow ended up being so passionate that the girls became embarrassed just by watching it.
“I pronounce you two married with the gods and your fellow wives being the witnesses!” said Venezuela with a wide grin on her face. Realising they were not listening to her, she increased the volume of her voice and said, “Um… You can separate now, you two.”
Lakshman and Sumara broke apart and stepped away while breathing a little quickly. He was a little surprised at himself at how excellently he had performed the kiss, which had taken Sumara by surprise. She stood there touching her lips where he had kissed before looking at him with a blush that was slowing covering her face.
“Finally… I’m finally… married…” she muttered in a low voice.
“Um... Uh…”
Lakshman was hesitant to say anything, but that was not necessary as she quickly walked forward and hugged him tightly. He and the rest of his wives were startled by her hugging him all of a sudden when they noticed how tears of joy streaming down her face.
“Thank you, Lucky! Thank You…!” she said while crying happy into his shoulder. “I’m finally married… I… finally… I’m… a wife!”
He was a little surprised by her words and realised that she had been self-conscious of her growing age and realised the sadness that she had been carrying deep within. So, he did the best thing he could have done in that situation; hug her back tightly. Allowing his warmth to swallow her up allowed her to finally let go of the guilty consciousness she had about her age.
His other wives watched the warm scene playing out before them before putting their hands together and energetically clapping for the newly wed husband and wife, happy at the union of Lakshman and Sumara.
Thus, Lakshman acquired the eighth Destiny Queen in a matter of hours after spending more than twenty days pondering how to approach her. He was happy with the result produced by his wives to bring them together. This made him love them very, very much and feel glad to have them as his wives.
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Author's Note
Hello and thank you for reading this wonderful chapter! It took me a while to get this point and to finally reach 300 chapters! Last year alone, when I was up to writing chapter 89, I kept doubting that I would reach even 100 chapters because of how daunting the task of writing each chapter was, along with the added bonus of having to deal with so many trolls and criticism! Now, I feel I can keep continuing thanks to the support, encouragement and everything my fellow wonderful readers are so kind enough to do for me. I really do appreciate it all! With that, I hope to see you all next time as the story progresses onward!
Since, I reached a whooping 300 chapters, does anyone want me to write some sort of special or something? I mean, I originally thought of writing a Author POV special once I reached 300 chapters count, but I can think of doing something else if people just suggest the idea. On the other hand, I won't do mature content stuff because please... this story isn't about pervertism crap, haha. Anyway, feel free to post your ideas by commenting or replying to this post!