Chapter 34: Two Souls, One Heart
Following Day
Walking through the streets of France at the dawn of a new day, I made my way toward a nice restaurant for breakfast with the biggest smile on my face.
The reason was simple.
Today was my date with Astra.
We had agreed to meet at a specific location a short distance away from the restaurant at her request since she wanted to experience what a proper date was like, and of course, I had agreed.
To make sure I didn't peek at her appearance beforehand, she had me temporarily turn off my senses and close my eyes while she manifested in a body she had prepared beforehand inside the hotel I was staying at.
Then, before I could sneak a look, she immediately teleported away.
Probably because she could feel exactly how tempted I was to peek.
Not all of her consciousness had left, of course.
I could still feel Astra inside me since we were essentially two souls inhabiting one existence.
Most of her consciousness was currently operating her physical body while the rest remained connected to me.
Astra had vehemently refused the idea of transferring herself completely into a separate body, insisting that as long as we lived, she would never be apart from me.
The memory almost brought a tear to my eye.
I didn't mind her possessiveness or clinginess in the slightest.
After all, I felt exactly the same way about her.
It didn't take me long to reach our meeting spot.
Partly because of how fast I was walking.
The excitement was simply too much for me to stroll at a normal pace.
I wanted to see my Astra as soon as possible.
I didn't even need to search for her.
All I had to do was follow the small crowd she had unintentionally gathered.
Making my way over, I pushed aside a man who refused to move and finally arrived at the source of the commotion.
The sight before me made me want to laugh.
And punch several people at the same time.
Coming to a stop, I finally beheld Astra in all her glory.
She possessed beautiful light-blue hair that reached all the way to her thighs and golden-orange eyes not unlike my own.
Long light-blue eyelashes framed her gaze while a beautiful red dress and black heels accentuated her figure.
A red rose accessory nestled within her hair completed the look.
In short—
She was breathtaking.
Her fair skin and graceful figure alone were enough to draw attention, but there was something more about her.
An almost divine aura that seemed to make her glow in the eyes of those around her.
Which was probably why all these vultures were circling nearby.
Pushing that thought aside, I focused entirely on the woman in front of me.
The person who had been with me since the very beginning.
The person who had never left my side.
My gaze slowly traveled over her as I finally took in her human form properly.
“…Wow.”
The word slipped from my lips before I could stop it.
My heart pounded loudly in my chest.
And to my surprise, I could feel my cheeks growing warm.
Despite all the noise around her and the numerous men trying to get her attention, Astra immediately picked out my voice.
Her golden eyes locked onto me.
Then, as if she had forgotten everyone else existed, a shy smile appeared on her lips.
A beautiful blush quickly spread across her cheeks.
The crowd immediately noticed the change.
Following her gaze, they spotted me standing there.
Several men instantly scowled in jealousy before slowly dispersing after realizing exactly who she had been waiting for.
Taking slow steps forward, I eventually came to a stop directly in front of her.
And then...
I just stared.
The longer I looked, the deeper Astra's blush became until it spread all the way to her ears.
“…Y-You’re staring too much, Caius-sama,” Astra muttered shyly as she played with a lock of her hair and looked away in embarrassment.
“W-Well?” she continued in a small voice. “H-How do I look?”
Hearing those soft words spoken from her own lips and seeing that bashful expression made my heart race even faster.
Before I knew it, a smile had spread across my face.
“…A goddess.”
The words left me without hesitation.
“I’m in love with a goddess.”
My voice was soft as I took another step forward and gently cupped her cheek.
“God—or whoever made this possible—I hope I’m not dreaming right now.”
I let out a quiet laugh.
“Or somehow stuck in a coma and imagining all of this.”
Fluttering her eyelashes, Astra placed her hand over mine and leaned further into my touch while looking deeply into my eyes.
A happy smile graced her lips.
“You’re not dreaming, Caius-sama.”
Her voice was warm and gentle.
“This is real.”
Then she turned her head slightly and pressed a soft kiss against my palm.
“I’m real.”
For a moment, I simply stared at her.
“…I’m glad.”
Relief washed through me as I gently caressed her cheek with my thumb.
Then my smile widened.
“So, shall we get on with our date?”
“Yes.”
Astra nodded happily.
She pulled my hand away from her cheek—
Only to immediately intertwine our fingers together.
Smiling at the gesture, I led us toward our destination.
My attention remained entirely fixed on her as we walked.
The rest of the world faded into the background.
I ignored the countless gazes directed our way.
I wasn't a vain person.
Still, I knew my current appearance was far from ordinary.
Every evolution seemed to improve it further.
Honestly, I was a little curious—and slightly concerned—about what would happen once I eventually evolved into a True Dragon or acquired Divinity.
The original Rimuru had become so beautiful that most people instinctively viewed him as some kind of divine being.
I had every reason to expect something similar.
So I couldn't really blame the people around us.
As Astra and I walked together in our own little world, men and women alike glanced our way with all kinds of expressions.
“How does it feel to have a human body?” I asked curiously while idly rubbing my thumb across her hand.
“Hmm...” Astra hummed thoughtfully.
“A little strange, if I’m being honest.”
Then she scooted even closer and rested her head against my shoulder.
“But there are some positives.”
A small smile appeared on her face.
“Like being able to physically interact with Caius-sama like this.”
She squeezed my hand slightly.
“And being able to do things together with him.”
“Hmhmhm, I knew it~”
I immediately grinned before leaning down and kissing the top of her head.
“You were jealous of the others, weren’t you?”
Astra immediately let out a cute huff.
A second later, I felt a pair of teeth gently nibble my shoulder.
“You’re imagining it.”
“Wahahaha! Of course I am.”
I laughed happily at the instant denial and familiar catchphrase.
Hand in hand, we continued walking together.
Before too long, we reached our destination.
After the waitress finally snapped out of her daze from staring at me, courtesy of Astra coughing into her hand and all but gluing herself to my side, we were escorted to a private booth for two.
“Not jealous, huh?” I muttered with a growing smile.
Astra completely ignored me.
Instead, she raised the menu high enough to hide her face from view, though it did little to conceal the faint blush on her cheeks or the small pout on her lips.
We ended up ordering breakfast crepes with eggs and cheddar, along with some kind of fancy cake topped with yogurt and almonds for dessert.
The food turned out surprisingly good.
Throughout the meal, my smile refused to leave my face as I committed every one of Astra’s expressions to memory while she experienced many of these foods for the first time.
We even took turns feeding each other bites of dessert.
What made me happiest, however, was seeing how much fun Astra was having.
For who knows how long I had only been able to feel her emotions through our connection.
Now, I could actually see her smiling and enjoying herself with my own eyes.
That alone made the day special.
Once we finished eating, I paid the bill and we left the restaurant arm in arm.
Astra remained firmly attached to my right side, holding my arm possessively against her chest while humming happily.
“Where to next, Caius-sama?” she asked as she looked up at me with shining eyes.
Smiling, I pulled her slightly closer before leaning down and giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.
Her blush deepened immediately, though her smile only grew brighter.
“Well, how do you feel about visiting an amusement park?” I asked.
Astra tilted her head curiously.
“I have to admit, I’m interested myself,” I continued. “I’ve only ever been to smaller ones before.”
“Then let’s go!”
Astra immediately nodded.
“If it’s something Caius-sama wants to experience, then I want to experience it too.”
“Awesome.”
Grinning, I wrapped an arm around her waist.
“Then away we go!”
A moment later, we vanished from sight as though we had never been there at all.
The next several hours were spent exploring everything Universal Studios had to offer.
Even though Disney World was bigger, I refused to go there on principle, viewing the company as nothing but trash in the modern era.
With eager smiles, Astra and I rode every attraction that caught our attention.
Throughout it all, I couldn't remember the last time I had laughed so much.
Astra wasn't far behind, her cheerful giggles accompanying me as we spent the day together like a normal couple.
For once, there were no wars to prepare for.
No looming threats.
No worries about reaching the Central World.
Just us.
When lunchtime arrived, I took us to Mexico.
We spent the afternoon sampling local cuisine and wandering through the city while enjoying the atmosphere.
It was there that I discovered an interesting fact about Astra.
She absolutely could not handle spicy food.
By the end of the meal, her face was completely red while I struggled not to laugh.
My efforts failed spectacularly.
Astra responded by sending increasingly adorable glares in my direction.
For the afternoon, I took us to the beaches of the Philippines and spent several hours having fun with Astra on a private beach that we had warded from normal people.
It was there that I got to witness Astra in a bikini for the first time, and the best part was that it was a sight reserved solely for my eyes.
She emerged from the changing room wearing a blue bikini and immediately froze when she noticed me staring.
The view was honestly divine.
The swimsuit highlighted her curvy figure perfectly and drew particular attention to her ample chest and shapely hips.
Astra's face quickly turned red under my gaze, but even while embarrassed, I could tell that she was secretly pleased at my attention and even seemed to puff out her chest or stick out her butt when my gaze wondered.
Almost without my consent, I would find my gaze drawn to her bouncing breasts or shapely butt.
In retaliation, she would playfully flick my nose whenever she caught my eyes wandering for too long but wouldn’t say anything else.
Of course, that only encouraged me further and the scene would replay itself minutes later.
We spent the next few hours swimming, playing volleyball, building an absurdly elaborate sandcastle, and simply relaxing together beneath the sun.
More than anything, I enjoyed how carefree Astra looked.
Every smile.
Every laugh.
Every embarrassed reaction.
I wanted to remember all of it.
Before long, evening arrived.
For our final destination, we traveled to New York.
There, we enjoyed a quiet dinner together consisting of a delicious meat dish accompanied by red wine.
As the city lights illuminated the streets outside, our day slowly came to an end.
=====
Getting back to our hotel in Germany hand in hand, I led us to the bedroom, all too aware of Astra’s growing embarrassment and excitement as she shyly looked down at the floor, refusing to look anywhere near my direction.
As we reached the bed, I let go of her hand only for her to immediately turn around and give me her back.
“P-Please give me a moment to change out of these clothes, Caius-sama,” she muttered under her breath, barely loud enough for me to hear.
Before I could respond, she practically bolted toward the bathroom and shut the door behind her.
It was honestly adorable.
With our abilities, we could change clothes in a literal instant without needing to do it manually, but seeing how flustered she was, I decided to let her do things however she wanted.
“This girl is seriously too cute sometimes,” I chuckled quietly.
Following her example, I removed my own clothes and stored them inside my Imaginary Space until I was left wearing only my boxers.
Then I sat down on the bed, leaned back against the headboard, and patiently waited for Astra.
A few minutes later, I heard the bathroom door open.
Turning toward it, I paused.
For what was probably the fifth time that day, my breath caught in my throat.
A blush covered Astra’s rosy cheeks as she slowly stepped forward with her eyes turned away and one arm crossed beneath her chest while the other held onto it nervously.
She was wearing a black lingerie set along with a garter belt and matching stockings that left very little to the imagination.
Noticing my expression from the corner of her eye, Astra’s blush deepened even further.
Yet despite her embarrassment, a small smile slowly appeared on her face.
Gathering her courage, she finally met my gaze.
“C-Caius-sama... please say something,” she whispered shyly while fidgeting with her fingers.
Snapping out of my daze, I took a deep breath despite feeling all my blood rushing south and looked directly into her eyes with a serious expression.
“Are you sure about this, Astra?” I asked softly.
“Y-Yes,” Astra answered immediately, nodding her head. “Nothing would make me happier.”
Hearing that, I felt my shoulders relax.
Standing up from the bed, I walked around it until I was standing directly in front of her.
Seeing the mixture of shyness and determination in her expression, I smiled before leaning down and capturing her lips in our first kiss.
Astra responded instantly.
Her arms wrapped around my neck as she pressed herself closer until our chests were touching. I also silently noticed two hard nubs poking into my chest that made my boxers even tighter.
I allowed the kiss to linger, savoring the softness of her lips while committing the moment to memory.
Eventually, I pulled away.
Looking into her beautiful golden eyes, I smiled.
“Very well,” I whispered. “Then from this moment onward, we will finally become one. Not just in soul and heart, but in body as well.”
Astra returned a shy smile, her cheeks glowing red as excitement shone in her eyes.
“Yes,” she said dreamily. “Today, I become Caius-sama’s first wife~”
The smile on her face was the happiest I had ever seen.
There was also a trace of smugness there that made me raise an eyebrow.
‘I see. So that’s what she was worried about. I should’ve known,’ I thought in amusement.
Astra had never been opposed to me having other women in my life.
But she still wanted to be first.
With a smile, I took her hand and gently led her toward the bed.
After all, a long night awaited us.