Ansu drifted in and out of a heavy, groggy sleep, losing all track of time.
In his dreams, he felt as if someone was lurking in the shadows, watching him with a cold, sinister gaze that he couldn't shake...
He snapped awake.
"You're awake?"
His blurred vision slowly cleared, revealing Celia sitting by the bed, her eyes fixed unblinkingly on him as if she had been standing guard for a long time.
So it wasn't a dream...
"Celia... you gave me a fright." Ansu struggled to lift his head, his voice raspy from sleep. "How long have I been out? What time is it?"
"What's there to be afraid of?" Celia smiled and leaned in, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "They say a person's first reaction upon waking doesn't lie; you haven't been secretly doing something bad and feeling guilty, have you?"
"It was just a nightmare." Ansu forced a weak smile. "Besides, what would I have to feel guilty about with you..."
"Oh?" Celia replied noncommittally.
She gently adjusted Ansu's pillow and helped him sit up.
"It's one in the afternoon; you've been asleep for ten whole hours."
"I slept that long..." Ansu felt as though he had spent most of these past few days in bed.
"How are you feeling now? Does your head still hurt?" Celia stroked Ansu's forehead, a flash of worry in her eyes.
"It doesn't hurt much anymore." Aside from feeling a bit weak, as if he were recovering from a major illness, the faint, throbbing pain in his head had vanished.
The system reboot had quite an impact.
Fortunately, there were no lingering side effects; now that the divine residue had been cleared, he shouldn't be receiving any more 'greetings' from the Goddess of Holy Light for a while.
"That's good." Celia's brow smoothed over, as if a great weight had been lifted from her heart. "This ordeal is finally over..."
Ansu noticed the fatigue she couldn't quite hide and asked softly, "You haven't been sitting here with me this whole time without resting, have you?"
"I've already rested; I'm not tired." Celia shook her head with a smile. "But Ansu, you haven't eaten in so long, aren't you hungry?"
At her mention of it, Ansu did feel a surge of intense hunger, and his stomach growled in agreement.
Celia couldn't help but smile as she turned to bring over a tray she had been keeping warm with magic. "I've had this ready for you for a while. Eat up!"
Ansu blinked in surprise when he saw the exquisite and hearty meal on the tray.
"Celia, did you... make all of this?"
Without waiting for an answer, he eagerly forked a large, tempting piece of beef brisket and stuffed it into his mouth.
"Don't rush, eat slowly..." Celia said helplessly.
"Wow... this is delicious!" Ansu looked up, suddenly seeing her in a new light; the last time the witch had cooked, she couldn't even get the salt right and nearly pickled him alive...
"If it's good, then eat more." Celia smiled as she watched Ansu eat with gusto. "However, I didn't actually make this; Freya did."
"Huh?" Ansu's movements froze, realizing his flattery had backfired, and his smile became a bit awkward.
"Is that so... I didn't expect Freya's cooking to be this good."
"I'm not the type to steal credit from others." Celia still had her pride; she chuckled as she picked up a spoon, blew on the steam, and held the oatmeal porridge to Ansu's lips.
"Here, let me feed you~"
Ansu enjoyed the witch's attentive care while quietly observing her expression, suppressing his urge to ask about Freya's current state.
He remembered that before he fell unconscious, Freya had been fighting that Seance to buy him time; the gap in their strength was immense, and he didn't know if she had been injured.
But since she had been brought here by Celia's teleportation and could even cook for him, she must be doing alright...
"She was covered in wounds when she came to meet us," Celia said as she fed him, as if sensing what he wanted to ask.
"Forcing a God-Descent takes a heavy toll on the body, but don't worry, I have plenty of magic potions here."
Celia watched Ansu with a playful smile. "No need to worry about your little Holy Maiden; your trusted subordinate is perfectly fine. We were just chatting and laughing together before I came in here."
"Oh, is that so? That's good..." Ansu nodded.
He wisely chose not to pursue the topic, as he could already sense a faint hint of jealousy in the air.
Even if Celia didn't show it on her face, the more indifferent she acted, the more serious the situation usually was; she might snap at any moment...
Seeing that Ansu didn't press further, Celia gave a soft huff and continued feeding him spoonful by spoonful.
A subtle silence fell between them, with only the faint clinking of the spoon against the bowl echoing in the room.
After a long while, Celia looked up and suddenly asked:
"It really was the Goddess of Holy Light back then, wasn't it?"
Though she had already guessed as much, she hadn't heard Ansu's firsthand account of what happened, and her eyes were filled with curiosity.
"Yes, the Goddess of Holy Light personally delivered a divine decree." Ansu recalled the events. "That ancient demon tried to peer into my soul, but it unexpectedly triggered the protection of the source of holy light. I'm not sure if the demon survived... after that, my consciousness entered a sacred, white spiritual realm."
Celia unconsciously leaned forward, her eyes shimmering with a mix of curiosity and unease. "Then... what did the deity say to you? Did she..."
"Hmm?" Ansu looked confused as she hesitated.
"Did she... tell you to eliminate the dark and evil people around you? Like me?" Celia bit her lip after speaking, waiting nervously for Ansu's answer.
Ansu chuckled, realizing this was what she had been worried about. He reached out and gently took her cool fingers in his. "Of course not."
He thought to himself that if the person standing beside him were the World Ending Witch from the original plot, the Goddess of Holy Light might indeed have ordered the removal of such a massive threat.
But the current Celia, due to the changes he had made, had not become so extreme; she was still the magic-obsessed, tsundere Ash Witch.
"Really..." Celia stared at him blankly.
Seeing Ansu's gentle smile and that he wasn't joking at all, her tense expression finally relaxed.
"That's good. I thought... that a black magic user like me who uses filthy magic and worships an opposing deity... a person of the dark faction, would be rejected by a righteous god."
She whispered softly, "I thought I wouldn't be allowed to be with you..."
"You're just overthinking things!" Ansu comforted her with a smile. "To put it bluntly, you don't have that much of a reputation yet; you're not even on the deity's radar!"
Of course, if it were the World Ending Witch, it would be a different story; the moment the divine will descended, it would probably get quite a shock.
The 'Black Flame that Burns the World' was no joke.
"Alright then." Celia chuckled softly and teased, "This is the first time I've felt that being a bit weak... isn't such a bad thing."
Ansu looked at her, his expression gradually becoming serious as he began to recount the divine decree.
The several divine decrees delivered by the deity, and the will conveyed behind them, would likely change their original plans; he needed to re-evaluate the future path they would take.
Rate on N.U.
