Calian stared at the middle-aged man sitting across from him with a piercing, highly intimidating gaze.
Feeling stared at so intensely and sharply by the figure of the future ruler of the empire, Eralio was instantly startled. His body reflexively tensed on the sofa.
Why? Eralio thought in confusion, his heart starting to beat faster. Did I just make a mistake?
Amidst the tension that began to choke the merchant's neck, Calian finally opened his mouth.
"Can you keep this secret with your life, Mr. Eralio?" Calian asked, his voice laden with a stern warning.
Hearing the question coming from the prince's mouth, Eralio instantly let out a long sigh.
Thank goodness... I thought I had made a mistake that offended him. Eralio thought, feeling immensely relieved. He then adjusted his sitting posture, straightened his back, and looked directly into the purple-haired youth's eyes without fear.
"I swear in the name of the Gods, I will guard this secret until I die!" Eralio answered with a loud and confident voice. "My life principle is honesty for the sake of dignity, Your Highness! If you trust me with a great secret, then of course I must guard the trust you have placed in me with all my heart and my entire soul."
While Eralio spoke, Calian continued to stare into the man's eyes to find a lie. However, all he saw were words spoken with unwavering resolve and sincere loyalty.
"I trust your words."
"Then... what is it that you actually wish to convey, Your Highness?" Eralio asked carefully.
"According to the previous agreement between my mother and I, I will only be inaugurated as the emperor at least twenty years from now." Calian answered calmly, beginning to express what was weighing on his mind. "Two decades is not a short amount of time. I am worried that you will soon grow old and die first due to illness or age before I truly become the emperor to replace my mother's position."
Hearing that, Eralio perfectly understood what the prince sitting in front of him was worried about.
I feel the same way. he thought in agreement, sensing the bitter reality of human mortality. But, I truly did not expect that he would only become the emperor twenty years from now. At my current age... making it through another twenty years is a massive gamble. I also don't know when death will come to pick me up.
"Now, I will give you two choices!" He continued his sentence. "The first! Do you want to become young again? And the second! Do you want me to halt your aging process so that you remain in your current physical condition for decades to come?"
The two choices Calian suddenly gave him successfully shattered Eralio's reverie. He fell silent with a blank mind, completely failing to understand the meaning behind such impossible offers like becoming young again or halting the aging process.
What is he actually saying right now? Eralio thought in confusion, his brain trying to process everything he had just heard.
Amidst his bewilderment, Eralio's memory spun back to the moment near the gates of Sellon City, when he had completely failed to read Calian's information and blessing when he used his [Valuation] blessing on the prince.
Wait! Is this offer directly related to the mysterious blessing this prince possesses?
"So, what is your choice, Mr. Eralio?" Calian pressed softly, demanding an answer.
Instantly, Eralio's chaotic thoughts were dispelled. He immediately shifted his gaze and looked at the prince's face with a questioning expression.
Should I ask him directly? he thought hesitantly. However, his curiosity won.
"Forgive me for my presumption, Your Highness." Eralio began to reply, his voice trembling slightly. "But... is the offer you are referring to right now closely related to the blessing you possess?"
Calian only nodded slowly, confirming the merchant's suspicion. He then turned his head to the side, looking at Wolvin who was sitting casually, and aimed his right hand at his spouse.
"Look at this carefully, Mr. Eralio."
Reversion!
And then, a highly shocking anomaly of natural law occurred right before the merchant's eyes.
Wolvin's tall body slowly shrank at an unnatural speed. In a matter of seconds, the Night Wolf youth reverted into the figure of a little boy around five years old. The clothes he was wearing were now oversized, drowning his tiny body.
Seeing the unexpected event that defied all common sense unfold in front of him instantly made Eralio widen his eyes with his mouth hanging open, utterly unable to believe what he was currently seeing.
"W-Why did His Highness, the future empress consort of the empire, suddenly turn into a little boy?!" Eralio exclaimed in panic, pointing at the tiny Wolvin with a trembling hand.
Calian lowered his hand and stared at the merchant, who was shaken by severe shock, with a flat gaze.
"I'm the possessor of the [Time Loop] blessing." Calian answered in a calm voice, revealing his greatest secret. "I can manipulate the flow of time as I please. Reversing time on an object, accelerating its age, or even halting it absolutely."
Eralio's shock intensified even more upon learning that Calian possessed a time blessing, which was the power of a God.
How terrifying! Eralio's inner mind screamed in horror, the goosebumps all over his body rising. It turns out he is the possessor of a blessing with the power of a God. No wonder... no wonder his movements when fighting the S-class fugitive bandit group back then were completely beyond reason. As it turns out, he stopped the flow of time without us realizing it, so that we, who were in the normal time dimension, only saw him teleporting and slaughtering enemies at a speed that the eye could not follow!
Seeing Eralio still immersed in his shock, Calian leaned his body forward, but his gaze remained locked on the figure of the man sitting in front of him.
"Now you understand, don't you? I expect you to hide this great secret, Mr. Eralio." Calian stated firmly, his gaze warning. "If my blessing were to spread widely, a massive uproar would certainly occur. And if that uproar happens, you surely know what will happen next to this world, right?"
Eralio swallowed hard, then without hesitation nodded rapidly.
"I-I understand completely, Your Highness! I will keep this secret tightly hidden!" answered Eralio, who truly grasped the situation. "And now... I finally understand. The reason why my [Valuation] blessing could not read the blessing you possess is because it turns out you possess the blessing of a God."