"You're right. These things are not worth mentioning. Ram, you and Rem are the last two survivors of the Oni Tribe, and a special set of twins at that. With such great talent, yet you fell victim to the Witch Cult's scheme, ending up needing constant mana replenishment to survive. It's really sad."
Looking at Ram, Takeru spoke of her past.
Hearing Takeru, Ram remained calm, just puzzled why Takeru brought this up. Though it was painful initially, after Rem was safe, she had grown indifferent.
"By the way, about the Witch Cult's invasion back then, Ram, you must know some truth, right?" Looking at Ram, Takeru asked curiously.
"Ram doesn't understand what Master means." Hearing Takeru, Ram replied hesitantly.
"Mm-hmm, Ram is playing dumb with me? Alright then. The mastermind behind guiding the Witch Cult to attack the Oni Tribe, Ram, you know who it is, right?" Hearing her, Takeru helplessly shook his head.
Hearing Takeru, Ram fell silent, the atmosphere turning heavy...
"It was Roswaal-sama." After a long hesitation, Ram spoke softly.
She wasn't foolish. Why did Roswaal coincidentally appear and save the sisters? Ram also understood Roswaal's character and goals somewhat, and over the years, she had gleaned some answers.
Though Roswaal never admitted it, when Ram asked, he never denied it either...
But for her sister's sake and their years together, Ram chose to bury the hatred deep, not wanting to affect Rem.
Takeru had already gotten confirmation from Roswaal. He admitted that, guided by the Gospel, he led the Witch Cult to hunt the Oni Tribe, then saved Ram and Rem at the critical moment, taking them in...
Hearing her confirm it was Roswaal, Takeru nodded lightly without further comment.
"Ram, if I restore your horn, would you leave me, or seek revenge?" After a while, looking at the big, round moon in the sky, Takeru spoke softly.
"No. Ram would not betray her master." Hearing Takeru, Ram spoke firmly.
"Is that so? What about Roswaal?" Hearing this, Takeru smiled gently.
"He has nothing to do with me anymore. Though he took my horn, he also took Rem and me in and protected us for so many years." After a silence, Ram spoke again.
Holding Ram, Takeru could sense she wasn't lying. Perhaps she had seen through it, or more importantly, it was because of Rem.
After all, in Rem's view, Roswaal was undoubtedly their savior, a good man who continuously sustained her sister's life, despite his usual eccentric behavior.
"I understand." Hearing her, Takeru fully grasped Ram's thoughts and nodded lightly. Mana surged within him, flowing into Ram.
Feeling the immense mana entering her body, Ram was stunned but quietly accepted Takeru's mana.
As the transfer continued, Takeru could feel that as mana flowed into Ram's body, it still leaked out from her forehead, though the leakage was slower and less compared to the influx.
Takeru understood the leaked mana was due to her broken horn… like a barrel with a hole, the water inside would continuously leak out...
To stop the leakage, there were two methods: fully repair it or seal the gap.
Having learned the Five Elements Seal, Takeru could easily seal her horn. Then, Ram would no longer leak mana. But the horn was the Oni Tribe's mana source. Without it, an Oni's strength dwindled to less than one-tenth. So, if Takeru used a sealing technique, Ram would only escape mortal danger.
Perhaps with her talent, she could become stronger than Rem with her horn, but only marginally. Takeru wanted the Ram at her peak, the one standing at this world's pinnacle.
Thinking this, Takeru's gaze turned serious. He stopped the mana transfer and, under Ram's curious gaze, placed his hand, which is glowing green, on her head.
As the green light enveloped Ram, she felt a special healing inside her. Around her broken horn, an itching sensation appeared, making her softly moan.
Though uncomfortable, her eyes brightened. It was working… Takeru's healing was effective.
As time passed, Takeru used nearly 2000 mana points on Ram with Advanced Healing alone. During this treatment, Ram's horn showed significant progress, regrowing about 1 centimeter.
Looking at Ram, panting and slumped in his arms, Takeru slowly stopped the healing.
"Master?" Sensing Takeru's action, Ram looked at him, puzzled.
"Let's stop here for today." Gently ruffling her hair, Takeru spoke softly.
"Yes, Ram understands." Hearing Takeru, Ram showed a sweet smile.
Though not fully recovered, Ram sensed the changes...
Even now, Ram could naturally recover her own mana, though slowly, perhaps not matching the leakage. But with consistent maintenance, the time between mana replenishments could extend from a few days to about a month.
Her mana capacity had increased, control became smoother, and the amount of mana she could release at once had grown considerably...
"Alright, rest well here tonight. Same time tomorrow." Seeing her exhausted state, Takeru placed her on his bed and spoke softly.
"Master, you're leaving?" Seeing Takeru about to leave, Ram spoke somewhat reluctantly.
"Rest well. I'll stay with you next time. Good night." Sensing her dependence, Takeru lightly kissed her forehead.
Saying this, Takeru left the room.
After Takeru left, lying in bed, Ram stared blankly at his departing back, her heart a complex mix. One treatment couldn't make her completely devoted, but it left an indelible mark...
Leaving Ram, Takeru returned to the Forbidden Library. Seeing Beatrice gazing at the door, Takeru smiled lightly.
The reason he didn't stay with Ram was because he had promised Beatrice. Breaking the promise might hurt Beatrice deeply, perhaps even make her distance herself.
Though Beatrice said she didn't miss him, Takeru could sense her joy upon seeing him.
As for why not use Shadow Clone to handle both… somehow, using Shadow Clone gave Takeru a strange feeling of cuckolding himself.
Naturally, unless for ordinary conversation or company, Takeru wouldn't use Shadow Clone.
"Betty, I'm here. Did you miss me?" Looking at Beatrice, Takeru spoke again.
"Not at all!" Hearing Takeru, Beatrice lied.
"Is that so?" Hearing her, Takeru didn't mind. He picked her up again, read a book, and Beatrice seemed accustomed to this, relaxing comfortably in Takeru's arms.
After studying magic for three more hours, Takeru stretched, and noticing the time, prepared to rest.
"Betty, let's rest together." Looking at Beatrice, Takeru said with a light laugh.
But hearing Takeru, Beatrice didn't respond, instead looking at him seriously.
"What's wrong? Are you unwell?" Seeing Beatrice's gaze, Takeru was puzzled.
"Will you abandon Betty in the future?" Hearing Takeru's question, Beatrice asked seriously.
"Of course not. Betty is so cute. Why would I abandon Betty?" Hearing her, Takeru gently reassured.