Cyan slowly regained consciousness, opening his eyes to the familiar sight of a bed in his room.
Turning his gaze to the right, he saw a small, familiar figure.
A girl was looking at him with a bright, cheerful expression.
—You're awake, Cyan!
It was Serafina De Borgia, asking with a smile.
—Yeah! How many days did I sleep?
—You overslept for three whole days! The rumors about you being a sleep addict aren't wrong after all!
Serafina said playfully.
—Is that so? Then you've been sitting here, watching over me the whole time? I thought your family only treated this as a formal engagement on paper.
—I don't think that way. If I care about my fiancé, what's wrong with that?
Cyan was surprised. He had originally thought that Serafina had only arrived here recently, not that she had been here for quite some time.
"This image of her is a bit too different…"
At that moment, the image of a small, gentle Serafina lovingly caring for someone clashed with the version of her filled with anger and overflowing mana, giving Cyan a headache.
—You've really been here these past few days? Then where's Sitri? This should've been her responsibility.
—Are you seriously mentioning another girl in front of your fiancée? Don't tell me those rumors about you being a playboy are true too.
Seeing the faint jealousy on her face made Cyan chuckle.
"Maybe I really do have a rather strange fiancée."
—Ahem! Let's drop that topic. How's your training going?
—I haven't even gone out to train these past few days because I was worried about you!
—I see.
—But… it's just a feeling… I think I can already cast high-tier magic in both of my attributes now, though I probably only have just enough mana.
—Re… really?
Cyan was visibly shocked.
"In just three short days, she's already adapted to a dual core and can even cast two high-tier spells?"
"She's already stronger than me. Before, using two king-tier spells as a surprise attack would've drained her completely, but now… I feel like she can go far beyond that."
"Maybe the current Serafina is far stronger than before. Even Sister Elysia might not compare—she could be as strong as the protagonist at fourteen."
"Looks like I need to train harder. I can't afford to fall behind."
Cyan carefully advised her.
—Even though things have improved, don't neglect your training. You should also supplement your mana core with potions or rare monster cores… it will help with the fusion of your mana cores…
Listening attentively to Cyan's advice, Serafina's joy was obvious.
—But there's something I want to ask.
—What is it? —Cyan asked curiously.
—How did you know I have two affinities? I don't think I've told anyone about that.
Cyan was startled. He realized he had accidentally let it slip.
"I must've mentioned it three days ago… careless of me."
After a brief moment of thought, he gave a vague answer.
—If I care about my fiancée, is that so wrong?
Serafina blushed and turned her face toward the wall.
—You… you're really holding a grudge… you didn't even answer my question properly.
Seeing her somewhat adorable expression, Cyan smiled.
Serafina patted her cheeks lightly to regain composure, then turned back to him.
—But… I've received so much from you… Is there anything I can do for you?
—If you insist, could you give me a water spirit?
—A spirit? I've contracted with a few, but only one is a high-tier earth spirit. The rest are mid-tier or below.
—Mid-tier is fine. I think that's enough for me right now.
Seeing Cyan's slightly disappointed expression, Serafina quickly reassured him.
—But there are many spirits in my territory. If you come there, I can introduce you to them.
—Introduce me?
—Yes. Even though it may not seem like it, the spirits in Borgia territory are quite fond of me. I'm not strong enough to contract them yet, but we're on friendly terms.
This new information made Cyan think.
"I never considered this before. Back when I played the game, I didn't care about the emotions of non-human entities…"
"But this is the real world. The beings here have feelings."
With that thought, Cyan responded enthusiastically.
—That's amazing. You did well.
Serafina blushed slightly at the praise.
—Alright… but you'll have to visit my territory first if you want introductions.
—That shouldn't be a problem. I'll ask Lord Konan later.
—Ah… I'll probably have to ask Brother Lucian too, though I don't think he's very friendly toward you.
Thinking about their recent battle, Cyan sighed.
—Haizz… probably true… But still, thank you.
—It's nothing… You should rest!
A few days later, Cyan returned to light sword training, while Serafina diligently practiced magic at the training grounds.
Nearby, Lucian sat at a vantage point, having observed them closely for several days.
His mind was filled with countless thoughts.
About a week earlier, when Lucian had been worried sick after not seeing his sister.
The Velton household servants searched the entire annex, yet found no trace of her.
Lucian had been overwhelmed with worry, imagining all sorts of terrible possibilities.
He even began to feel resentment toward Konan, who had been nearby yet knew nothing.
But driven by the instinct of a brother who loved his sister, Lucian ran straight toward the forest, desperate to find her as quickly as possible.
And as if the heavens had heard him, Serafina emerged from the woods.
—Serafina!!!!!
Lucian shouted with joy, but as he looked closer, he realized she wasn't alone.
Serafina was carrying someone on her back, her face filled with panic.
—Brother! Please help me…!
As they got closer, he recognized the white hair… that figure…
The person she had been carrying was none other than Cyan Von Velton—the one who had defeated him not long ago.
Though somewhat displeased, Lucian still asked:
—What happened?
—He… he suddenly collapsed… I don't know what happened.
Placing a hand on Cyan's forehead and observing his condition, Lucian exclaimed in shock.
—He's almost completely out of mana. He needs rest.
—R… really… thank goodness… sob… I thought he had died…
Seeing his sister cry, Lucian instinctively patted her head, though his heart was filled with complicated emotions.
He felt a hint of jealousy seeing how much she cared for Cyan, and disappointment over his own defeat.
But recalling what had just happened—Cyan rushing off somewhere and now appearing here beside Serafina—made Lucian suspicious.
"He even depleted all his mana… but didn't he effortlessly block all my attacks and defeat me?"
After bringing Cyan back and listening to Serafina recount everything—from how Cyan comforted her to how she felt newfound strength within herself…
Even now, watching Cyan train diligently after collapsing like that, and seeing how much stronger his sister had become—
Most importantly, Serafina was smiling genuinely. That radiant happiness was something Lucian had never seen before.
Not even when helping villagers, nor during their childhood moments together.
At that moment, Lucian finally understood the reason behind this change.
All of it, in such a short time… was because of Cyan Von Velton.
"The rumors are nonsense. He's not lazy—he's done so much for my sister."
"He doesn't act arrogant like someone from a great noble family. He does things without asking for anything in return."
"She even said he used the potion I gave him just to have enough mana to find her… and still collapsed afterward."
"I want to have a serious talk with Cyan tonight."