That evening, they gathered in a modest two-story house that had once served as a barracks for soldiers or merchants, lent to them by the village chief as a temporary home. Ard sat at a long wooden dining table. To his right sat Eva, Alicia, Milia, and Patricia; to his left were Beatrice, Rosalind, Mirea, and Claudia. Meanwhile, Geoffrey, Ainsley, and Irwin had already retreated to their own rooms. Everyone remained silent, including Ard.

As he looked at each of them—Eva, Alicia, Milia, Patricia, Beatrice, Rosalind, Mirea, and Claudia—their faces seemed calm, though a bit stiff. The tension in the room was so thick you could cut it with a knife despite the silence. Ard's mind was racing.

He realized that Eva had been with him since their time on Earth. Alicia had been by his side in both his first and ninth lives, even joining his rebellion in the first. Rosalind turned out to be Linzi, his wife from his second life—a dragon knight who had fled her kingdom to become a merchant with him.

Milia had been his lover and fiancée in his third life after she lost her noble status. Claudia was also his fiancée back when he lived in this very barbarian village. Patricia—or Pyria—was his companion during his days as an adventurer and his lover in his fifth life.

Beatrice had chosen him as her personal guard in his sixth life, even refusing arranged marriages because of him. And finally, there was Mirea, his mentor in his seventh life, whom he had lived with as a partner. Now, they were all sitting right in front of him, each claiming to be his fiancée.

Ard's heart hammered against his ribs, his emotions a tangled mess that left him speechless. As the atmosphere grew increasingly strained, Eva finally turned to him.

"Ard, say something," Eva said.

"I don't know what to say... my feelings are a total mess right now," Ard admitted.

"We all know about your nine lives. We realize we were each bound to you in those different lifetimes. It makes sense that your head is spinning; I don't blame you," Mirea said.

"Hmm, maybe we're all drawn to you and love you because of those past-life connections... but wait. In this timeline, those nine lives technically shouldn't have happened yet, right?" Milia asked, thinking out loud.

"Yes, that's how it should be, since everything has been reset," Mirea answered.

"No... personally, I don't agree that my feelings exist just because of some bond in another life. Ever since the King introduced us when I was seven, I've liked my Prince. Over time, that grew into love, even back when everyone called him the trash prince. So for me, I've been nurturing my love for him all this time on my own. It's not just some timeline connection," Alicia declared.

"I think Alicia is right. I feel the same way, even if I haven't known him as long. Ever since I saw Ard talking to dragons and how easily he helped Princess Beatrice when her dragon went wild, I was impressed. But as time went on and we saw each other every day... I realized I had fallen for him," Rosalind said.

"It's the same for me. I'm an elf posing as a human. From the first moment I saw Ard in the ranks and watched Princess Eva bring him forward, my heart started racing. To be honest, I liked him then, and I felt like we were in the same boat as commoners. Then, for the same reason as the others—seeing him every day even if we didn't talk—my feelings grew into love. At the time, I didn't even know who he really was. When I finally found out, I actually got scared," Patricia, or Pyria, added.

"Same here. I started paying attention to Ard when he fought Eva during the entrance exam. Then he saved me from that pig prince, and I became even more interested. I knew the competition was stiff, which is why I was so desperate to win him over, but it turns out I just ended up loving him even more," Milia added.

"Well... me too. At first, I just wanted to annoy Eva. But after he saved me when I fell off my dragon... feelings started to surface. Eventually, yeah, I fell for him too," Beatrice joined in.

"Actually, for me, it was because we spent a week together in the library. I found him fascinating... so yeah, it really has nothing to do with those other timelines," Mirea said.

"Yep. Ever since he asked about my father on the first day of the academy, I've been watching him. Somewhere along the way, I found I couldn't take my eyes off him... and here we are. I'm sorry that I'm the reason you got dragged into all this trouble," Claudia said.

"I don't really need to tell my story again, do I? I've loved him for 3,000 years. I was only scared because the rest of you were here, so I kept my guard up," Eva added.

After that, the room fell silent again. All eight girls turned to look at Ard, and they were caught off guard by what they saw. Ard's face was bright red. His arms were tightly crossed, his legs were fidgeting non-stop, and he kept his head down. His mind was in a complete tailspin after hearing all eight of them confess their feelings so directly. He opened his mouth slightly as if to speak, but no sound came out. He was completely at a loss for words.

Seeing Ard looking so overwhelmed, Eva reached out and took his hand. Ard flinched at the touch, but he didn't pull away. He just couldn't bring himself to look at Eva or any of the other seven girls.

"Even with the nine repeating lives, I still have feelings for them. On top of that, they're now declaring it directly as if I'm not even standing right here. How am I supposed to respond? What do I actually want so I can answer their feelings?" Ard wondered to himself.

Ard went quiet again. Eva's hand helped steady his mind, and he began to think—really think—about what he truly wanted. Back on Earth as Ace, he had died at thirty-one with Edith. He woke up and remembered his past at fifteen, then became Azroth at thirty-one after seeing Esmeralda's execution. He woke up as Ashton at fifteen and died shortly after Evelina—both at thirty-one. After that, his life repeated nine more times, always beginning at fifteen and ending at thirty-one.

Ard let out a long sigh. A tear traced its way down his cheek. He brushed his hair back with his eyes still closed and finally uttered a phrase he had never truly meant until this moment.

"I'm tired," Ard said, the words slipping out unintentionally.

The eight girls immediately turned to him, sliding their chairs closer to look at him intently.

"I just want to live a quiet, peaceful, happy life until I'm old... I just want to live a normal life," Ard said slowly.

"I understand. I've felt the same way all this time," Eva said, looking down.

Ard immediately pulled Eva's hand and drew her into a hug, which she returned. Then Alicia, Milia, Beatrice, Rosalind, Mirea, Patricia, and Claudia all smiled at the sight.

"Then let the nine of us live together until we're old, until death finally parts us," Mirea said.

"Exactly. I'm sure we'll all be happy," Alicia added.

"A peaceful, quiet life until we're old," Milia chimed in.

"Yep. It doesn't matter where we are—it doesn't have to be a palace," Beatrice added.

"Don't worry, all of us here are willing to stay by your side forever," Rosalind said.

"I'm an elf, so I might be the only one left once you're all gone. But I'll never forget you, and I'll be happy with you for as long as I live. Especially you, Ard. You'll be my husband for the rest of my long life," Patricia added.

"That's right. Don't worry, I'm willing to leave everything behind just to be with you," Claudia said.

Ard was stunned. He looked at the faces of Eva, Alicia, Milia, Beatrice, Rosalind, Patricia, Mirea, and Claudia one by one. Then, a faint smile touched his lips. Seeing him smile, everyone immediately brightened up, including Eva. Suddenly—"Thump"—they all lunged at once, hugging Ard until they collapsed in a tangled pile.

"Hey! I was hugging him first!" Eva shouted.

"Well, you already had your turn! It's our go now!" Alicia yelled back.

"Yeah, don't be greedy! We promised to share, didn't we?" Milia cried out.

"In every culture, the eldest goes first!" Mirea added.

"Wait... I'm going to be the oldest eventually! Me first!" Patricia countered.

"Grr... I'm a princess! I understand Eva, but the rest of you should wait for me!" Beatrice argued.

"Forget the princess title! Even if you're the princess I serve, there are no ranks or titles when it comes to this!" Rosalind shouted.

"Please... don't fight, or I'm going to get mad!" Claudia added.

Watching the eight girls bicker as usual while they piled on top of him, Ard broke into a wide grin and then burst into hearty laughter. The girls stopped their arguing and looked at him, all of them wearing smiles of their own. Then, images of Geoffrey, Ainsley, Irwin, Baalbel, Reese, Count Dimitri, Vahn, Drago, Gleld, and Chief Osgrelf flashed through Ard's mind. He finally understood what he had to do.

"That's right. There's still something I must finish in this life before I get what I want," Ard thought. "Everyone, how about we build a new kingdom? We want to live in peace and happiness, right? Once that kingdom is established, we can retire from the world," Ard suggested to the eight girls still pinning him down.

Eva, Alicia, Milia, Beatrice, Rosalind, Patricia, Mirea, and Claudia stared at him with such shock it was as if Ard had grown two heads. But when they saw the firm, steady look on his face and that confident smile, they all beamed and nodded.

"We've been waiting a long time for you to say that," the eight of them, including Eva, said in unison.

"Alright then. Let's build our kingdom. But first, we're still going to the Rellios Kingdom. At least I can finally meet your father, right, Beatrice?" Ard asked.

"Yep! Absolutely!" Beatrice replied, overjoyed.

"This time, we aren't just running away. We're building something," Ard said.

"Of course. And we're all ready to stand by your side," they said together, though they immediately glanced at one another afterward.

Then everyone, including Ard, burst into laughter. Meanwhile, in their rooms, Geoffrey, Ainsley, and Irwin—who had been eavesdropping—got excited too. They laughed silently, terrified of getting caught peeking.

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