I Want to Lock You Up

This kiss, which carried a hint of punishment, suddenly blocked all the explanations Ansu had yet to voice.

After a moment of surprise, Ansu felt both helpless and tender, and he could only reach out and gently wrap his arms around her waist.

When this long kiss finally ended...

The two separated with slightly flushed cheeks, breathing softly, both momentarily short of breath.

"Still want to talk?" Celia’s cheeks were crimson as she glared at Ansu with feigned anger. "If I didn't do something, were you going to keep quibbling endlessly?"

"It really wasn't quibbling..." Ansu instinctively tried to correct her again.

Celia immediately shot him a warning look. "If you say another word, I really will lock you in here and never let you out!"

Ansu raised his hands in surrender. "Please don't, my dear Witch!"

Seeing his unhesitating display of backing down, Celia burst into laughter.

She let go of Ansu, intimately straightened his collar and smoothed the wrinkles in his clothes, then helped him up.

"Our treasure vault is truly massive. Are you sure you don't want to look around some more?" Seeing Ansu peering about, she knew he was still thinking about escaping.

"Well... it is quite large." Ansu looked around the grand hall. "But my head still feels a bit uncomfortable today. How about letting me go back to rest first? We can come back next time."

"Does your head hurt again?" Celia’s tone turned tense for a split second.

But recovering quickly and thinking he was likely just trying to gain her sympathy, she gave him a helpless glance.

"Are you really in that much of a hurry to go back? Honestly... isn't my place nice?"

She looked around the palace she had built with her own hands and suggested again, "Why don't you just live here, Ansu?"

Ansu said speechlessly, "What's so good about it? This demon style is quite oppressive... I feel like I'll suffocate if I stay here for long..."

"That’s easy!" Celia rubbed her smooth chin and looked up at the vaulted ceiling.

"I’ll just remodel it into a new style for you. Do you want the steam style of Benalu City, or the pure white sanctuary style of the Eternal City, Saint Milton? Hmm... if you want some exotic frontier flair, that's not impossible either..."

"Stop, stop..." This time Ansu really did have a headache; he rubbed his temples, his expression becoming increasingly helpless. "Celia, why are you so obsessed with keeping me here?"

"Because..."

Celia suddenly paused, her eyes staring straight at Ansu, a dangerous dark red light flickering in her gaze for a fleeting moment.

"Because I want to... lock you up so no one can ever find you! I want you to be mine forever..."

Ansu looked at the suddenly obsessed-looking Celia in shock.

But in the next second, her expression changed as if she were wearing a mask, returning to that faint smile from the beginning.

"I’m just teasing you~"

She blinked and intimately took Ansu’s arm. "Don't be so nervous, look how scared you are!"

Ansu silently thought, How could I not be nervous?

The young witch was a hidden yandere after all; there were some things she was truly capable of doing...

"I'm not nervous." Ansu forced a smile and played along. "I also know you're joking... how could you possibly really lock me up?"

"By the way," Celia suddenly asked out of the blue, "when do you plan to move to Norvigel in the North?"

"That... let me think." Seeing they were discussing serious business, Ansu pondered for a moment. "Because of the successive chaos in the Royal Capital and Benalu City, major cities are either under martial law or have tightened inspections... It's best to wait for the heat to die down and aim to arrive in Norvigel by the end of the month."

Now, it wasn't just Ansu moving to Norvigel; the entire headquarters of the Echoes of Truth and its future focus were migrating to this largest city in the North, so the two of them did need to consider things carefully.

"Very well." Celia nodded with satisfaction. "Since there is still plenty of time, you stay here with me for these two weeks. Use this time to properly recover, and we'll regroup with them before the end of the month."

"Staying here with you, does that mean..." Ansu looked around. "In here? Or outside?"

"Don't worry, I'm not locking you in here!" Celia’s tone was helpless. "Not just this treasure vault, but the entire modified mine—isn't it all our secret base? We have everything here, and there's even my magic lab outside!"

She supported Ansu, slowly walking toward the direction they had come from.

"During this time, don't worry about other matters."

"Just rest, stay with me, help me with my magic experiments, and research some interesting topics..." She tilted her head, a soft smile appearing in her eyes. "Wouldn't a life like that be wonderful?"

Such a life did indeed sound wonderful; it was almost the kind of retirement life Ansu imagined after everything was over.

He smiled as well. "Alright, I promise you."

Celia seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. "I thought you wouldn't agree, considering how much you care about time..."

"Why would I give you that impression?" Ansu thought to himself. Although he, with his simulation abilities, had always been a master of time management, surely she couldn't tell?

"I can't quite put my finger on it." Celia tilted her head slightly and said with a smile, "Sometimes, you always give me the feeling that time is very urgent... to the point where you're racing against the clock."

"Is that so?" Ansu quietly looked at Celia. The young witch was indeed a very perceptive person.

The two reached the entrance where they had entered.

With a surge of mana, the magic gate leading to the outside world slowly opened.

"Since you're awake, go out and see Freya." Celia said softly, "It's not good to leave her outside all this time. Besides, you should give her a few instructions before she departs, otherwise it'll look like I'm kicking her out."

"Depart?" Ansu stopped and looked at her in confusion.

"Yes, depart." Celia met his gaze. "These two weeks are our private time; wouldn't having her stay here be a nuisance? It would annoy me just looking at her. It’s perfect for her to set off for Norvigel early; the timing works out just right."

Ansu smiled helplessly; Celia was clearly annoyed that the little Holy Maiden was a third wheel.

But just as he was about to say something, Celia suddenly leaned in, her warm breath lightly brushing his ear:

"I'll give you a week~ to properly recover your body, build up your strength, and then..."

She paused deliberately, intending to tease Ansu ambiguously, but the slight blush rising on her cheeks betrayed her nervousness.

"And then... what?" Ansu’s eyes flickered slightly. Seeing the young witch rarely acting this way, he wanted to tease her instead.

"And then... what else could it be?" Celia suddenly turned her face away, avoiding his mischievous gaze, and said with feigned composure, "Of course, it's to accompany me in magic research!"

She gave a light huff, trying to regain the initiative.

"The ancient magic in the treasure vault is incredibly profound and obscure. So when I say magic research, it means you'll have to spar with me! In your current weak state, I'm afraid you won't even be able to take two moves from me, right?"

"Then you're looking down on me too much!" Ansu shrugged. "I'm a magic genius myself; maybe I'll learn these spells faster than you!"

Celia snorted, clearly not believing him. "Keep bragging! When I knock you down then, don't you dare beg for mercy!"