"Celis? What's up?"

She smiled softly, though her next words seemed unsure as she tilted her head.

"The presence of thy relic… 'tis a bit familiar…"

Nero blinked.

"Familiar how?"

The question hung in the air between them.

Celis went quiet for several seconds, her half-closed eyes staring at the sheathed blade at his waist with an expression that was difficult to read.

When she finally spoke again, her voice carried something he rarely heard from her.

Uncertainty.

"I… knoweth not how to describe it properly. Mayhaps I have felt such a presence before, in times long past…"

There was melancholy in her tone.

Hope too, faint but present.

And something else that felt like recognition struggling to surface through layers of forgotten memory.

Nero noticed the shift immediately.

The way her fingers twitched slightly at her sides, the subtle tension in her shoulders.

Before he could press further, Celis shook her head gently.

"Nay, it must be mine imagination. Forgive me, Lord Nero."

Her expression smoothed back into that serene mask she wore so naturally, though her eyes lingered on his weapon for just a moment longer.

The serious atmosphere stretched uncomfortably until—

"MASTER!"

The gathered warriors swarmed forward like an enthusiastic avalanche.

All pretense of professionalism evaporated as they crowded around Nero and Aurelia with enough energy to power a small city.

"That was insane!"

"Did you seriously just beat Lady Aurelia?!"

"The sword changed into gauntlets! And a staff! What kind of cheat weapon is that?!"

The wolf-eared warrior practically vibrated with excitement.

"Master, you gotta teach us that gravity reversal trick! That was genius!"

"Forget that, I wanna know about the extending blade move!"

"Can we hold it? Please? Just for a second?"

Nero couldn't help but look in their direction.

Noticing how he wouldn't be given the time to think about Celis's words, Nero chose to first calm down these enthusiastic ladies in front of him.

"Alright, alright, calm down."

He raised both hands in mock surrender, though his expression was smug as hell.

"I know witnessing greatness can be overwhelming, but try to contain yourselves."

"Overwhelming? Master, you literally cheated!"

"I did not cheat. I strategically utilized available resources."

"You kissed Lady Aurelia to win!"

"That's called tactical distraction. Perfectly legitimate."

The group erupted into laughter and mock complaints, their banter flowing naturally as several of them mimicked his exaggerated confidence.

Nero leaned into it shamelessly, throwing in an overly dramatic laugh that would've made cartoon villains jealous.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA! I won! Now, tremble before my—"

The overexaggerated villainous laugh died mid-way.

His brain caught up to the fact that he'd completely forgotten something important.

"Oh crap."

Everyone paused, confused by the sudden shift.

"Celis."

Nero's head whipped around as he called out to the First Saintess, who still stood quietly near the edge of the group.

She blinked in mild surprise as attention redirected toward her.

"Yes, Savior?"

He reached into his inventory with a quick mental command.

Golden light shimmered briefly before materializing into solid form in his hand.

The gathered summons went silent as they recognized what he was holding.

A necklace.

Delicate thin gold chains catching sunlight, links so fine they looked woven from threads of liquid metal.

The pendant drew every eye immediately.

A teardrop crystal, perfectly crimson, with something swirling inside that looked almost alive.

Patterns shifted within the gem like memories trying to take shape, pulsing gently with a rhythm that felt strangely intimate.

"..."

Celis's mouth opened slightly in genuine surprise.

The serene mask cracked just enough to show the shock underneath.

Nero stepped forward and held it out toward her.

"This is for you. SSR-tier support relic. Figured you'd get more use out of it than anyone else."

His tone was casual, but his eyes watched her reaction carefully.

Aurelia stood off to the side with her stoic expression firmly back in place, though anyone paying close attention would notice she didn't look surprised at all.

She'd expected this.

Of course Lord Nero would gift something to Celis as well.

Though the other summons weren't nearly as composed.

"Wait, another gift tons lady?!"

"How many women does he want to make his lady?!"

"That's the third one today!"

Their whispers built into a low buzz of shocked murmuring that made Nero's eyes twitch a bit.

But also a hint of nervousness was on his heart.

He couldn't tell if Celis actually liked the gift or if she would just accept it politely.

Her expression remained carefully neutral as she reached out with both hands.

The necklace settled into her palms with barely any weight, and the crystal pulsed once as if recognizing its new owner.

Silence stretched.

Celis stared at the necklace, her fingers tracing the delicate chain with a gentleness that suggested she was handling something precious beyond measure.

Then she opened her mouth.

Closed it again.

Opened it once more.

"Lord Nero…"

Her voice came out softer than usual, carrying warmth that made something in his chest tighten.

"I have a request to make… if 'tis alright?"

Nero blinked.

"Yeah, of course. What do you need?"

"Wouldst thou… put it on for me?"

The question landed like a stone in still water.

Several of the watching summons made choking sounds.

Aurelia's eyebrow twitched almost imperceptibly.

Nero felt his brain short-circuit for approximately two seconds before rebooting.

"... Yeah. Sure."

Smooth, real smooth.

Celis smiled, that same gentle expression she always wore, then turned her back to him.

The movement was graceful and unhurried, but it hit with the force of a tactical nuke.

Because from this angle, Nero had a perfect view of her figure.

The curve of her neck where golden hair fell to one side.

The elegant line of her shoulders.

The way her posture accentuated every dangerous curve of her voluptuous body in a way that should be illegal for something serving so holy.

'Don't stare. Don't stare. For the love of everything holy, do NOT stare.'

His hands moved on autopilot as he lifted the necklace.

The delicate chain draped around her neck with practiced ease, and the clasp clicked shut with a soft sound that somehow felt significant.

The crystal pendant settled perfectly at the hollow of her throat, pulsing once with warm crimson light.

Celis turned back around.

And smiled.

Not her usual serene half-smile.

A genuine, full, radiant expression that transformed her entire face into something so beautiful it physically hurt to look at directly.

"..."

The training ground went dead silent.

Every single person present, warrior and spectator alike, stared in stunned disbelief.

Even Aurelia felt her breath catch slightly.

She'd seen Celis smile before, but never like this.

Never with such unguarded joy and warmth radiating from every feature.

It was beautiful.

Objectively, undeniably beautiful.

Aurelia's thoughts drifted briefly to her own reactions when Lord Nero had gifted her Sollien earlier.

… Had she smiled like that?

Had her expression shown even a fraction of that genuine happiness?

"..."

A faint blush crept across her cheeks at the thought before she forcibly suppressed it.

"Thank you, Lord Nero."

Celis's voice carried gratitude so sincere it made the air feel warmer.

The moment should've been romantic.

Should've been a perfect storybook scene.

Then the whispers started.

"Even the beautiful holy woman fell!"

"Nothing escapes the clutch of our Master."

"As expected! Our Master is a Lady Killer!"

The comments rippled through the crowd with increasing volume as the gathered summons processed what they'd just witnessed.

The supposed romantic atmosphere shattered like cheap glass.

Nero sighed helplessly.

Of course they couldn't let him have one nice moment without commentary.

A soft giggle drew his attention back to Celis, who was covering her mouth with one hand while her shoulders shook with barely contained laughter.

Then she did something that made everyone rowdier than ever.

She stepped forward and boldly grabbed his arm.

Her body pressed against his side as she looked up at him through those half-closed eyes.

"Thou art quite the charmer, my Lord. Mayhaps I should guard mine heart more carefully in thy presence."

The playful tone mixed with genuine affection in a way that left him completely defenseless.

While the busybodies cheered and teased their Master who was cornered.

But beneath the surface, behind the warm smile and teasing words, different thoughts ran through Celis's mind.

Thoughts she kept carefully hidden.

'Thank you, Savior — no, Nero… Truly.'

Her fingers tightened slightly on his arm.

'I shall cherish this moment. This gift. These precious days we have together.'

The crystal pulsed against her throat in time with her heartbeat.

'Even though the time we have is short… I will treasure every second.'

***

Somewhere else in the villa, Felt practically vibrated with excitement.

Her hands shook slightly as she stared at the alchemical formula displayed across her research notes.

It worked.

After weeks of relentless experimentation, material substitutions, and enough failed attempts to fill a warehouse, it actually worked.

A low-cost alternative to standard healing elixirs that maintained 80% effectiveness using materials that were a fraction of the price.

This was huge.

Revolutionary even.

She needed to tell Luna immediately.

The high elf had been instrumental in helping her break through several theoretical bottlenecks, and sharing this success felt like the natural next step.

Felt grabbed her notes and practically ran toward Luna's laboratory.

Her boots echoed through the corridor as she burst through the door without bothering to knock.

"Ms. Luna! I did it! The substitute formula finally—"

The words died in her throat.

Luna stood frozen in front of an analytical machine, her heterochromic eyes wide with shock.

Papers were scattered across the desk around her, covered in complex magical notation and theoretical diagrams that hurt to look at.

But Luna wasn't looking at any of that.

She stared at the display screen with an expression that suggested her entire understanding of reality had just been violently rewritten.

"Ms. Luna?"

Felt's voice came out uncertain as she stepped closer.

The high elf didn't respond.

Her lips moved silently as she processed whatever information the machine had just revealed.

Then she spoke.

"... I have finally figured out the origin of that guy's system…!"

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