Reborn as the Tyrant's Son

Chapter 25

Chapter 25

"Iris' reason for serving me?"

That got Loki's attention.

The most mysterious woman on his side is going to tell him the reason why she's working under him. He's curious. Really curious. So curious that he forgot about how annoyed he was earlier.

"Your Highness, will you believe me if I say that I was a criminal before?" She smiled softly.

"Ha?" Gulat na bulalas ni Loki.

Criminal...? Sino? Si Iris? Ha? Tama ba yung narinig niya?

Iris chuckled after noticing Loki's reaction.

"I steal, I guess?" Shrugging her shoulders, she smiled at Loki who's curiously looking at her. "I always get away with it though, but one day, I stole something so valuable, I know I can get killed for it. Gano'n iyon ka-importante."

Loki noticed how Iris' blue eyes turned to sadness as if she remembered something. She's still smiling softly though. Despite the sadness written on her face, she still looks so pretty. Kahit ano atang expression sa mukha ni Iris ay babagay pa rin ito sa kaniya.

"I thought Iris is an actress because of her beauty." Loki said that snapped Iris out of her trance.

Natawa si Iris. "I was a theater actress before too!" She excitedly said. "For Your Imperial Highness to say that, am I that pretty?"

Loki hummed, nodding his head enthusiastically. "Iris is very pretty!" He beamed brightly.

"And Your Imperial Highness is very handsome. Paano na lang kaya 'pag tumanda ka na? I'm sure you'll get girls flocking all over you." Iris worriedly caressed her cheek.

"The only women I want in my life are Mama, Ate Hera and Iris!" He cheered.

Iris shook her head. "Your Highness, what if you fall in love? You still won't want the woman who you fell for?" She bopped his nose. "You'll never know, Your Imperial Highness, so 'wag magsalita nang tapos."

"I'll fall in love with Iris' beauty!" He continued to praise her.

Iris stared at him before laughing loudly but it still looks elegant though.

"You're really good with your words, Your Highness. Talagang maraming magkakagusto sa 'yo niyan. Maybe I should start thinking of excuses para mailabas kita sa sitwasyon kung saan nakapalibot silang lahat sa 'yo." She wiped the tear that escaped her right eye from too much laughing. "Though I doubt makakalapit sila sa 'yo. I'm sure your siblings and Her Imperial Majesty will be so protective of you."

Loki giggled as he finally saw the sadness in Iris' eyes was gone. "I'm not that handsome. Baka nga mas marami pang magkagusto kay Kuya Hades at Kuya Ares eh. Or kaya si Ate Hera! She's so pretty, I think she can pull all gender."

"Your Highness..." Iris' smile dropped. "Why are you saying that? You're the third most attractive person I've met."

"Third?"

Hindi ba kapag ganito ay dapat ang kausap mo ang inuuna mo sa listahan mo to boost his/her confidence? 'Yon kasi ang napansin niya sa mga tao eh. They will say that you're the most attractive person in their eyes if you're feeling low then says the same thing to another person when he/she's also feeling low.

"Well... Her Imperial Majesty is the second most attractive person I've met." Iris brightly smiled.

Loki blinked, finding himself agreeing.

His mother is really beautiful though. It's a fact everyone knows. Even though they hate her, they can't deny the fact that the Empress is beautiful. You might even mistake her as a young lady kung hindi mo siya kilala. She doesn't look like her age after all.

"Then, who's the first, Iris?" Loki asked.

Someone who's much more attractive than his mother? This is making him curious.

Iris froze for a bit but was able to compose herself immediately.

Bumalik siya sa pagkwe-kwento. "When I stole the valuable thing, I regretted it immediately. I'm not someone who's willingly laying my life on the line just to have that. Anong silbi ng struggle ko para mabuhay kung hahayaan kong mamatay ako, right?"

"Right." Loki agreed.

"Someone saved me that time. He settled it easily. After that, he took me under his wing. Since I'm a criminal, I have to hide my identity. I have to kill me."

Hindi iyon naintindihan ni Loki since it seems deeper than what Iris meant. He just kept quiet, letting her reveal her story.

"And that's when I met the most attractive person I know."

"Is it your lover, Iris?" Loki noticed how Iris' eyes gleamed in happiness.

Iris chuckled, shaking her head. "No, Your Highness."

She stared at the kid longingly as if she's seeing someone else in him.

Umiwas tuloy siya ng tingin, gaze dropping in the ground. "He's my enemy."

"Enemy...?" Mas naguluhan si Loki sa narinig.

"Yep! Ironic, right?" Iris laughed again as she, then, stared in front of her na para bang inaalala niya ang mga pangyayari noon.

A sigh left her lips. "Well, we're not entirely enemies. We just don't get along well despite being on the same side under the man who saved me. He's like the boy version of me before at ika nga nila, most sa mga ka-ugali mo ay hindi mo talaga kasundo. But soon enough, we got along!"

Another sigh left Iris' lips, but this time, it's a sad one. "He's like an older brother to me despite being annoying. Like, he annoys me all the time!"

"Then...?"

Iris bit her lower lips, trying her best not to cry in front of the kid she's taking care of.

"Then... He became a hero, I guess!" She shrugged. "Because of his stupidity..." She mumbled that part.

"Where is he now?" Loki wanted to meet him, if ever man. He's important to Iris so he's really curious about him. Kahit isang beses lang, gusto niya itong ma-meet. "I wanna meet him!"

"He's..." Iris' gaze landed on Loki's necklace na hindi napansin ng bata.

She felt her heart throbbing in pain after Loki's remarks.

"6 feet under the ground, Your Imperial Highness. You can't meet him."

Loki froze.

He's... dead?

"I-i... Ano..." He should apologize. "I'm..."

"And now... I'm here!" Knowing what he was about to say, Iris cuts him off. "I want to look after his treasure just like how he gave up his life to save everyone. Instead of living to have a happy life, he chose to become a hero. Such an idiot, huh? He has never been selfless. He's someone who'll choose his life over another. It's just..."

Iris licked her lips.

"It's just, he wants to make it a safe place for his treasures, that he's willing to become selfless to achieve it."

Iris stared at him with a loving gaze.

"Is it alright if I ask kung paano siya namatay?" Loki carefully asked.

"He died in a war, third world war to be exact."