Strongest Warlock - Wizard World Irregular

"I've been waiting for this moment for three hundred years," Lady Hecate said with a smile. "Well met, Ethan Gremory."

"It is an honor to be in the presence of the one who introduced magic to the world," Ethan returned the greeting in kind as he pressed his hand and fist together, then gave Lady Hecate a respectful bow. "I came here to talk to you about something very important to me."

"Ramona's soul, right?" Hecate asked. "She's also been waiting for you for hundreds of years. How can you keep such a charming, lovely, young lady waiting?"

The words of the Progenitor sounded playful, and it even reflected in her eyes. However, Ethan understood that this was just a prelude to the real negotiation that the two of them would be having in a few minutes.

"Indeed," Ethan replied. "I have made her wait long enough. I'm here to respectfully ask Lady Hecate to please free her soul so that the two of us can reunite at last."

"Well, that was my original plan—but…" Lady Hecate glanced to her right side, where a young lady was trapped in a block of ice. Ethan followed her gaze, and his face hardened.

Seeing his reaction, the smile on Lady Hecate's face widened a bit. She had already expected this kind of reaction from Ethan.

She had just come from a war in the Lands of Saraqael and had hurried back to return to her Domain because a portion of the enemy's forces managed to break through and enter Midgard through her territory.

But when she arrived, the battle was already over, and all the invaders had died in battle.

She was impressed by the young man's strength, as well as his determination to travel to her home just to reunite with the Princess who had risked her life to see him again.

"But what, Lady Hecate?" Ethan's voice was still polite, but his expression had become a bit sharper. "Is there some kind of problem?"

"Problem? I don't see any problems," Lady Hecate answered. "It's just that, I thought that you would come to see me alone. However, you've brought others with you. Wait, let me rephrase that… you brought other women with you."

The Progenitor of Magic then shifted her gaze back to Ethan with a smile that held a different meaning.

"Your women," Lady Hecate stated. "You brought your women here."

"Nicole is my best friend," Ethan said. "The Catkin who is with me, Lilith, is my fiance and the two of us are engaged. As for Lyall, she is my sister-in-law."

"Oh?" Lady Hecate arched an eyebrow. "Sister-in-law? So you're already married?"

"Yes," Ethan answered. "I am already married."

"Hmm…" Lady Hecate rested her chin on the back of her hands as she stared down at Ethan from her throne. "Ramona did mention that you already had lovers hundreds of years ago. So I guess it's not so surprising for you to be married despite your age.

"So, how many wives do you have right now? Lastly, how many fiances do you have at the moment? Ah, before you answer, I remember a certain fish telling me that she's your number one. Is she your wife perhaps?

"A fish?" Ethan blinked. "What fish? Since when did I marry a fish?"

Ramona approached Ethan and lightly tapped his shoulder. She then motioned for him to lower his head for a bit so that he could whisper something in his ear, which Ethan obliged.

(A/N: To avoid confusion, I'll refer to Hecate as Ramona and the Progenitor as Lady Hecate.)

"She's talking about Illumina," Ramona whispered. "I can vaguely remember that when she accompanied me here hundreds of years ago, she declared that she's your number one. She even got your first kiss as proof."

Ethan blinked once then twice before coming to a realization.

"Ah… she did get my first kiss." Ethan nodded.

Lady Hecate smirked before opening her palm.

A moment later, a blue orb of light glowed faintly above it.

When Ramona saw it, her breathing became ragged as she placed both of her hands on her chest, feeling a strong urge to grab hold of the orb and merge it with her body.

But her common sense won over because she understood that the Progenitor would not give it back easily.

"You've come here for this, right?" Hecate asked. "The soul of the Princess who loved you very much. It's really a fascinating tale, and it almost moved me to tears when I heard it."

Ethan remained silent because according to Godfrey's story, the Progenitor of Magic truly looked sad as she held onto Hecate's body after she had taken her soul away from its vessel.

"Can I please have her soul back?" Ethan inquired in a respectful tone. "Please, Lady Hecate. Show mercy upon Ramona's soul."

He already knew what was going to happen next, but he thought he'd try to ask in case the Progenitor of Magic changed her mind.

"Of course, you can have it," Lady Hecate answered. "But if I give this to you, I must take something back in return."

The Progenitor of Magic once again shifted her gaze to Nicole, making sure that Ethan understood her intentions.

"Ethan Gremory, I will have you choose right here, right now," Lady Hecate said. "Who do you want to save? Princess Ramona, or this young lady trapped in ice?"

Lyall, Conall, and Merric had been briefed by Lilith as to the true reason why Ethan had come to meet the Progenitor of Magic.

She deemed that keeping this a secret from them would not help their current situation, especially since they were within the Domain of the Progenitor of Magic.

The more they understood Ethan's circumstances, the more they would be able to think properly given their current predicament.

Seeing that Ethan wasn't responding to her, Lady Hecate chuckled.

"Was my question not clear enough?" Lady Hecate inquired. "Then I'll make it simple. You can only choose one person to save. So, who will you save? Will it be Ramona or this girl named Nicole? There are no other options, and I'll only give you one minu…"

"Please wait," Ethan replied, which made the Progenitor stop whatever she was going to say next. "Before I give my answer, there's something that I need to do first."

Without even waiting for Lady Hecate's reply, Ethan rested his hands on Ramona's waist and looked her in the eye.

The young man then gently pressed his lips over her forehead, giving her a kiss.

When the kiss ended, he then cupped her face and stared at her eyes with an affectionate gaze.

"Ramona, do you trust me?" Ethan asked.

"Yes," Ramona replied in a heartbeat. "I trust you."

"Good." Ethan smiled before lowering his head to give her a kiss.

The kiss lasted for a few seconds, but when everyone thought that it was truly over, the young man kissed Ramona again.

When that kiss ended, he kissed her again, and again, and again.

Making Lyall feel like joining the two of them.

However, Lilith grabbed her arm firmly, preventing her from ruining the moment.

A few minutes later, Ethan finally pulled back and gave Ramona a hug.

"I'll take your soul back," Ethan whispered softly. "I promise."

"Un." Ramona nodded as she hugged Ethan back.

Seeing this, the Progenitor chuckled.

"So that's your decision?" Lady Hecate asked. "Congratulations, Ramona. It seems that your wait, which lasted for hundreds of years, finally bore fruit."

Ethan reluctantly pulled back from hugging Ramona before shifting his gaze to the Progenitor of Magic, who still held the Princess' soul in the palm of her hand.

The young man then walked toward Lady Hecate's throne with firm steps, not backing down in the slightest.

When he was standing only three meters away from her, the Progenitor nodded her head in approval.

"Have you made your decision?" Lady Hecate asked as if doing it out of formality.

"Yes," Ethan replied.

"And your choice is?"

"My choice is…"

Ethan spread his arms wide, as he shouted his answer with all of his might.

"Celestial Aria!"

A moment later, Lady Hecate found herself inside Ethan's Celestial World, where she found countless spells flying in her direction.

For a brief moment, she thought that the young man was joking.

But seeing that he had also summoned his spear and was about to stab her with it, she finally understood that this young man had definitely gone crazy for daring to attack a Progenitor like her.

—--------

A/N: I am going to travel with a friend, and I might only be able to post one chapter for two days. But, if the journey is smooth and we arrive early at our accommodations. I will post two chapters when I can.

This day was a bit hectic, so I was only able to write one chapter for this novel.