Cosmic Ruler - Chapter 81

Chapter 81: Sophia
Sophia was born from the embodiment of the gentle currents of the ancient river, her essence intertwined with the ebb and flow of its waters. As a water nymph, she embodied the spirit of the river itself, her presence bringing life and vitality to its shores.

From a young age, Sophia felt a deep connection to the natural world around her. She spent her days exploring the lush banks of the river, communing with the flora and fauna that called it home. Under the dappled sunlight filtering, Sophia grew up in a small village nestled amidst lush forests and winding rivers. From a young age, she was taught to value independence and self-reliance, instilled with the belief that women were just as capable as men, if not more so. Raised by her mother and grandmother, both strong and resilient women who had faced their fair share of hardships, Sophia absorbed their teachings like a sponge.

It was all due to her not so reliable father, Sophia’s father, Marcus, was not the nurturing figure he should have been. Instead of providing love and support, Marcus was often absent, consumed by his own demons and vices. He struggled with addiction, spending long hours away from home, leaving Sophia’s mother, Isabelle, to shoulder the burden of raising their daughter alone.

As Sophia grew older, she became increasingly aware of her father’s shortcomings. She witnessed firsthand the toll his behavior took on her family, as Isabelle struggled to make ends meet while Marcus squandered their resources on his addictions.

Despite Isabelle’s best efforts to shield Sophia from the harsh realities of their situation, Sophia couldn’t help but feel the absence of a father figure in her life. She longed for the love and guidance that her father should have provided, but instead, she found herself growing resentful and distrustful of him.

Due to this, Sophia’s mother left Marcus and took Sophia to her parents’ house. With Marcus gone, Sophia’s mother, Isabelle, found solace and support in her own parents’ embrace. Despite the challenges she faced, Isabelle was determined to create a better life for her daughter.

At her grand parents’ house, Sophia found herself surrounded by love and stability. Her grandmother, Sarah, took on the role of caretaker, pouring her heart into caring for both Sophia and the orphans who resided with them. Sophia’s smile became a familiar sight as she played and laughed with the other children, finding joy in the simple pleasures of childhood.

Meanwhile, Isabelle found purpose in her role as the caretaker of the orphanage. She dedicated herself to providing a loving and nurturing environment for the parentless children under her care, pouring her love into each and every one of them. As she witnessed the happiness and laughter of the children, Isabelle couldn’t help but feel a sense of fulfillment, knowing that she was making a difference in their lives.

But once again, fate brought a harsh reality to Sophia. One day, while she and her friends, along with the boy she had a crush on, were playing near the river, a Dark Light Shark attacked them. Though it was only an E-rank monster, it proved fatal for Sophia and her friends, who were just 8 years old at the time.

In the chaos of the attack, the boy Sophia liked used her as bait to escape the shark’s range, leaving her and the others vulnerable to the predator’s vicious assault. The traumatic experience left Sophia with deep physical and emotional scars, shattering her trust and faith in the boy she had once admired.

From that day forward, Sophia’s hatred for men grew even stronger. The betrayal she experienced at such a young age reinforced her belief that men were selfish and untrustworthy, willing to sacrifice others for their own gain without a second thought.

As she struggled to come to terms with the trauma of the attack and the loss of her friends, Sophia withdrew into herself, building walls around her heart to protect herself from further pain and betrayal.

She built a false mask of seductive allure, using it to manipulate men to her liking. One day, she set her sights on the Rank 1, determined to seduce him and make him her pawn. However, to her surprise and frustration, Jake Dreamstar regarded her as just another competitor, unaffected by her charms.

Sophia couldn’t believe it. Every boy she had encountered before had fallen prey to her wiles, but Jake remained resolute and unmoved. Frustration gnawed at her, leading her to suspect if he was gay or simply incapable of being swayed by her seduction.

Despite her best efforts to ensnare him, Jake remained steadfast, treating her with nothing but professional respect. Not only did he not fall for her, but he even outsmarted her, making off with the Ruin item she had obtained after defeating the shark.

“I will thrash you to my heart’s content,” Sophia thought grimly as she watched Jake enter the plains. She gestured by showing a coin, and when Jake nodded, she tossed it high up in the air.

“You might think controlling water is my specialty, but you are wrong, fufufu~” Sophia thought as she drew out a Swamp Croc Sword, a Ruin item she had acquired after defeating a Swamp Croc in the Swamp Ruin.

“My Deep Sea core also nourishes and strengthens my body,” Sophia thought with a sharp glint in her eye as she rushed forward the moment the coin touched the ground.

“Fool,” Sophia mumbled, observing Jake attacking with his sword.

“What?!” she exclaimed as she realized he could match her strength and was overpowering her.

“Sea Spike,” Sophia mumbled, causing ice spikes to shoot up from the ground beneath Jake. However, Jake managed to dodge by jumping.

“Now how can you dodge in mid-air?” Sophia questioned in disbelief.

“Rising Dragon Cut!” A massive blue energy slash, shaped like a dragon claw, attacked Jake, but once again, he countered in mid-air with a sword strike of his own.

‘I will win’ Sophia battled but she wasn’t able to over power him.

getting up from the ground she looked at Jake who is standing still, ‘Why didn’t that fool use this opportunity to attack?’ Sophia thought and..

“As expected of Rank 1. I am two minor ranks above you, and yet you are overpowering me,” Sophia said, a smile playing on her lips.

“You’re also good. Most one major rank above me won’t even know when they’ve died,” Jake replied.

“Hahahaha, I guess I should feel happy then,” Sophia laughed, though inwardly she thought, ‘What a monster!’

‘He is regarding me as nothing’ Sophia bitterly thought,

Shaking the thoughts out of her head, she took a stance and said, “This is my final attack.”

‘I will use this technique that is so powerful, I shouldn’t use it on fellow student but I think he can take it’ Sophia thought and started chanting.

As she was chanting she saw Jake started chanting too, ‘Of course now you are taking me seriously’ Sophia felt happy being acknowledged by Jake.

As she finished her chant a silhouette of mythical Kraken appeared at her back and it shot towards Jake who has a silhouette of a beautiful golden hair women, the golden hair women shot a spear of light,

Sophia used the tentacles as shield but it was futile as the spear tore through them, ‘I need to focus all of my energy on a single one’ Sophia thought and directed all the energy to a single tentacle and it seems it worked but nest moment it broke too.

Puchi!

“It hurts,” Sophia gritted her teeth as the Spear of Light pierced her abdomen and emerged from her back with a tap, tap.

She glanced at Jake, who was approaching her. “You lost, right?” he asked with a smile.

“This bastard is mocking me to no end,” Sophia thought, narrowing her eyes at Jake.

Weirdly, despite his mocking tone, Sophia noticed a purity in Jake’s eyes that made her pause. Maybe she had misunderstood him. “Are you mocking me?” she asked, seeking clarification.

“No, I just enjoyed this match,” Jake replied calmly as he began to heal her wounds.

Sophia felt her cheeks flush as she noticed the warmth of Jake’s hands. “His hands are so warm… What am I thinking?” she chastised herself. “It’s probably because I’m injured. Yes, that’s the reason.”

“Are you alright?” Jake inquired, noticing Sophia’s flushed face.

“Do you think I’m fine?” Sophia retorted angrily. “He pierced me with that big… no, that came out wrong. He attacked me with that Spear of Light, and he’s asking if I’m fine?”

“I am sorry, you were so great that I wasn’t able to control myself” Jake apologized as he healed her wounds while Sophia felt dizzy with Jake compliments.

What she heard was ‘you are so beautiful I lost control of myself’ She totally twisted the words of Jake.

“Sophie”

“huh?” Jake tilted his head as Sophia said something.

“I will allow you to call me Sophie, It ‘s an honor only my l-lo…people close to me call me that” Sophia face flushed as she said those words.

“Ahh, okay” Jake scratched his head and thought ‘I didn’t hit her head did I?’

[…] Nexus looking at them felt speechless.

[If not for Emily taking the lead, this guy might have died virgin] Nexus thought.