Tyrant's Favorite | Sukuna Ryomen x Reader

020. I Don't Get You

"My king!" You screamed desperately from the top of the tree.

The three-headed bear was rapidly climbing the tree. Its snout sprayed white foam every time it roared in hunger. Its claws tore at the trunk as it climbed, warning you of what it would do once it reached you. Your heart was stuck in your throat in the midst of panic of being a meter away from death. You backed away as far as you could to the last strong branch that could support your weight. Tears flooded your sight as you realized this was your end. You would die, you were sure.

"Jump," your savior ordered you from the safety of the ground.

King Sukuna was waiting for you to obey him with his arms crossed. A smile appeared on your face before wiping away the tears as you realized everything would be okay. You gathered willpower and threw yourself into the abyss, falling with your arms outstretched, hoping that his strong arms would catch you, but something ended up breaking.

You let out a scream of pain that pierced the forest. You slammed against the ground, breaking your leg in two. You cried, in agony, seeing that the fibula pierced your skin, tearing the muscle completely. You begged the king to help you until you looked into his eyes. Those red eyes full of annoyance that forced you to shut up once and for all despite having a bone outside your body. You bit your lower lip in an attempt to control your terrible crying.

"Silly human." Sukuna tilted his head in pity, pushing your leg with his foot in search of a reaction. "Why would I help you?"

Your heart fell among the dry leaves at those words. Your most primitive side was activated in the face of imminent danger. With all the adrenaline rushing over your body, you tried to get up again to flee from the beasts, but your right leg was so hurt that you only ended up falling to the ground again. Again and again, each attempt hurt more than the last. Sukuna passed by you, completely ignoring you. You crawled on the ground to follow him at all costs. Your arms could barely support your own dead weight. You screamed with all the desperation in your soul as you watched him walk away from you to return to the castle.

"But I...!" Sobbing, you barely crawled. "I hate you, you stupid fucking king!" You exclaimed before you felt the bear's hot breath on the back of your neck.

Your eyes snapped open, and you sat up in bed. You looked around, the bed with pink sheets, the wooden dresser, and the window with the bloody rose. You felt the length of your legs, making sure they were healthy and whole. You cupped your forehead as you calmed your labored breathing, one inhale and exhale at a time. It had all felt so real, but it was just a stupid nightmare. It was already the fifth time you had dreamed of King Sukuna betraying you in the last fortnight.

It had started the day the king had suddenly let go of you while you were dancing. You didn't understand how something as simple as that had shocked you so much, just as you didn't understand his sudden change of attitude towards you. He had defended you from your companions, saved you from a fearsome bear and given you all the luxuries he could give you, but he had purposely let you go in the middle of a ballroom dance. Something wasn't right, but whatever it was, you had to stop caring.

You didn't care about being liked by him anymore. You didn't care about seeing him anymore. You didn't care if he proposed to you anymore. You were still alive, surprisingly, and you were just doing what you had to do to keep going. You woke up early to practice archery, trained after breakfast, and studied the rest of the afternoon. You did enough to not be considered a hindrance, but the minimum to not stress yourself out for no reason.

The fresh air welcomed you before another day of archery practice. You breathed deeply, saving as much oxygen as possible in your lungs. You straightened your back to get into a T-position and pulled the string, tightening it against your fingertips. Your sight focused on the center of the target, as you had done so many times before, until you were tired. Your skills had improved quite a bit in the last few months, so much so that you could hit the center 9 out of 10 times you did it. You let go of the string and the pink-feathered arrow flew, landing perfectly in the center. A satisfied smile crept between your cheeks before you pulled out another arrow. A perfect shot.