Hades’s hand, which was winding the silver hair, stopped at the words of his raised reputation.

The dark fingers wrapped around the silver hair were quite contrasting, but like wearing a silver ring, they complemented each other very well.

“It’s rain after 20 years without water. If we hadn’t come up to the high ground, we would all have died. We all show our awe for your command and miracle, Ignite.”

Manut saluted Hades sincerely.

“Useless.”

“Even if you predicted the rain by looking at old records, the fact that you even thought of that is really amazing.”

He spoke excitedly to Hades.

But Hades was not entirely pleased.

Hades had to remain not as a charismatic presence in the Grand Bazaar but as a mad dog who could wreak havoc at any time.

Because that was the only way he could live.

The sky had cleared after a long time without rain, and it was so clear and blue that not a cloud could be found.

Having never seen such overwhelming blue sky even in the Empire, Latifa looked up at the sky with her head thrown back.

The endless blueness was dizzying.

‘In this vast and wide world, I was nothing but a tiny speck of dust. The world I had seen was too narrow.’

Around her, desert soldiers were sharpening their blades or chatting, so she pulled her robe over her head and loitered only at the entrance of the barracks.
At that time, she was struck dumb with shock at the sensation of someone pulling her.

“Heek!”

“Shh. Who allowed you to go outside the barracks?”

Without looking back, Latifa Glaesia answered Hades Caleb Ignite’s voice.

“It’s just right in front of the barracks.”

Perhaps thanks to the ground still holding moisture, the weather was clear, and there was even a cool breeze blowing, so the part of her that he had heatedly touched was at just the right temperature.

But that didn’t mean she could completely trust Hades because of the warmth, so she shook off his hand.

He didn’t mind her wary behavior and began to twist her silver hair that peeked out from the hood of his robe around his finger.

“What is it?”

“It’s pretty.”

“Eh…!”

She was at a loss for words again at his sudden compliment. To her rigid reaction, Hades added teasingly,

“Just to clarify, I mean the color is pretty.”

‘This guy!’

Her fist clenched involuntarily at his tone.

“Have you taken your medicine? How’s your body? Can you move around today?”

“I did take it, but…”

From behind them, a desert soldier craned his head and reported.

“General Hades, the scouting parties have found a cactus cluster.”

With a thin smile, Hades tapped Latifa’s shoulder.

“See, women love flowers, right?”

“Flowers?”

“Yes. Like I said before, I’m not a trivial man. I’ll show you properly today.”

Looking a little excited, Hades tightly grasped her hand and led her to his camel.

About an hour’s ride on a camel.

“There.”

Hades pointed to a barren sand dune and slowed the camel.

‘There’s nothing, not even flowers?’

Latifa cocked her head at the empty sand dune. But she was almost bowled over by the spectacle that spread out below the dune.

“Ah…!”

Below, red and purple flowers were blooming profusely.

No, ‘profusely’ was an understatement.

It was like a vast and beautiful sea made of petals.

“Due to the rains equivalent to the empire’s annual rainfall, cacti buried in the sand came up and bloomed.”

“I’ve never seen anything like this before in my life!”

“It’s a rare sight even for desert people. Woah, let’s stop here, desert puppy.”

He grabbed the camel’s reins and jumped down in one go, then helped her down. As she clung to him on the way down, Latifa couldn’t take her eyes off the floral feast.

Even the imperial palace’s garden, which had indulged in the height of luxury, hadn’t been this beautiful.

“Ordinary men try to appease women with a bunch of flowers, but don’t expect such trivial things from me, an Ignite.”

With a rather gentlemanly posture, Hades took the hand of Latifa, who was still gawking, and headed towards the sand dune covered in blooming flowers.

“I present this spectacle to you, who might become my frau.”

Overwhelmed by the grand and beautiful desert landscape, Latifa couldn’t continue speaking.

The sight of tens of thousands of cacti bursting into fresh red blossoms all at once was too grand to express in human words.

“You can’t see this scene in the empire…! The desert… The desert is really…”

Without finishing her sentence, “The desert is really a wonderful place,” Latifa reached out to touch a large purple flower bud.

The soft petals that she felt between her fingers seemed like a dream.

“Latifa.”
Among the fully bloomed red petals, Hades, with black hair and an exotic skin tone, extended a red cactus flower to her.

Hades Caleb Ignite.

At that moment, he did not seem like the savage and cruel mad dog, but rather looked no different from an ordinary man.

How could the man, who had been so terrifying, appear just like an ordinary man standing among the flower garden? Finding it unbelievable even to herself, Latifa Glaesia smiled broadly, her lips curving up.

“The brightest smile I have ever seen.”

“Flowers really don’t suit you.”

He clicked his tongue and slowly approached Latifa.

“The desert cactus flower has a small amount of honey, so you can eat it as is, and if you dry it well, it becomes good food.”

“Ah, with this, we can secure more food!”

Suddenly, a red flower was thrust in front of Latifa’s lips as she spoke. Then Hades’s low voice resonated dreamily.

“Latifa. Will you, become my Frau?”

“……!”

“If you become my Frau, I will grant you the glorious first bite.”