Greg did not understand that Vivian was not only far from being a silly girl, but on the contrary, she possessed an extremely efficient thought process that far surpassed her peers.
She indeed had many questions.
Questions about Greg's sudden change, his familiarity with the dungeon, the true purpose behind his late-night invitation... these questions were piled up in her heart, not a single one missing.
But she was also well aware that in this current environment and at this moment, pursuing those questions relentlessly was not the optimal solution and might even bring unnecessary risk or estrangement.
So, she chose a question that seemed irrelevant but actually went straight to the core—"Do you hate me?"
The answer to this question, for her, was worth more than a thousand explanations or promises.
Since Greg had given a negative answer, all other questions were automatically downgraded in Vivian's logic, and the necessity to pursue them temporarily vanished.
He doesn't hate me.
Therefore, no matter how many unspoken parts were mixed into his previous words, or even if there were some minor lies, his fundamental intention would never be to harm her.
This conclusion stood clearly in her heart.
And more importantly, through this question and Greg's unhesitating answer, she confirmed the hypothesis that had been gradually taking shape in her mind.
"He has never hated me."
"Then the previous distance, the coldness, and even that final rejection that led to our falling out... there must be reasons or hidden circumstances that I don't yet know."
This realization was like a key, instantly unlocking the heavy shackles around Vivian's heart.
For a long time, that knot of grievance, self-doubt, and even a hint of frustration seemed to be quietly dispersed by warm sunlight at this moment, leaving her feeling lighter than ever before.
The massive boulder weighing down the depths of her soul had been gently moved aside.
However, just as Vivian's mind was slightly stirred by this sudden enlightenment and her attention wavered for a fleeting moment—
"Hiss—!!!"
From the shadow of a half-collapsed ruin to the side, a lightning-fast gray shadow erupted without warning!
Carrying a fishy wind and a sharp whistling sound, it lunged straight at Vivian, who was still immersed in her thoughts!
It was a Piercing Beetle, its carapace shimmering with a cold metallic luster!
It seemed to have been lying in wait for a long time, waiting for the very moment the prey let down its guard!
The tips of its spear-like forelimbs flashed with a lethal glint, aimed directly at Vivian's defenseless neck!
The attack was too fast, too sudden!
Although Vivian was powerful, her physical reaction was half a beat slow since her attention was elsewhere.
By the time she sensed the danger, her ice-blue pupils constricted, and her ice-attribute mana instinctively tried to construct a defense, but the lethal spike was already inches away!
It was too late!
Just as this thought flashed through Vivian's mind—
"Watch out!"
A low shout exploded in her ear!
Immediately following that, an irresistible force came from behind her side, accurately grabbing her shoulder and arm and jerking her backward with a violent pull!
Vivian's body lost its balance and she stumbled backward, narrowly avoiding the lethal thrust!
The sharp tip of the forelimb even sliced through a stray lock of her flying hair.
It was Greg!
In that split second, he had used Shadow-Step to flash behind her, pulling her back from the brink of death just in time!
But it wasn't over!
The moment he pulled Vivian back, Greg quickly took an alchemy potion bottle—only the size of a thumb and containing a violently churning orange-red liquid—from his waist pouch!
He hurled it at the lunging Piercing Beetle.
"Swoosh!"
The small potion bottle traced a precise arc, flying directly into the open mouthparts of the Piercing Beetle as it tried to adjust its posture after missing its strike!
The Piercing Beetle seemed to daze for a moment, apparently not understanding what little snack had just entered its mouth.
The next second—
"Boom—!!!"
A blinding orange-red light, accompanied by a muffled explosion, erupted from the beetle's head!
A scorching shockwave, mixed with carapace fragments and burning bodily fluids, sprayed in all directions!
The once-fierce monster's entire head and a small portion of its thorax were blasted into a mess by the internal explosion. It let out a shrill screech as its massive body stiffened and crashed backward, slamming heavily onto the ground with its six legs twitching, clearly heavily wounded.
Greg did not stop. The moment the fire from the explosion flickered, his free right hand was already raised, his fingertips tracing a simple water-attribute rune as he barked:
"Water Gun!"
A jet of deep blue water, condensed as if solid, shot out like a bullet, accurately entering the smoking wound in the beetle's head!
"Puchi!"
The water column pierced through the brain, bringing out a spray of filth mixed with hot fluids and brain matter.
The beetle gave one last twitch and went completely still.
【Killed Piercing Beetle, gained experience points...】
【Proficiency in the Basic water magic Water Gun has increased. Current Level: LV4 (Max Level for Basic magic reached).】
System prompts flashed through Greg's mind, but he had absolutely no interest in focusing on this significant improvement right now.
After confirming the monster was dead, he immediately turned around, not even bothering to brush off the dust from the shockwave.
He stepped over to Vivian, who was still a bit unsteady from the pull and the sudden explosion.
Then, under Vivian's slightly dazed gaze, Greg reached out and grabbed her slender, slightly trembling shoulders with both hands.
His grip was not light; it even carried a hint of lingering anger from the scare.
"You idiot!!"
Greg's voice was much louder than usual. His amber eyes burned with obvious fury and... a deeper anxiety. He glared into Vivian's ice-blue eyes, which were still filled with shock, and practically roared:
"This is the dungeon!! It's not your Student Council office! Give me a hundred and twenty percent of your focus! Be careful!! If you got hurt, then I..."
I'd be hunted to the ends of the earth by your sister Lilith, one of the primary heroines!!
A hair-raising image flashed through Greg's mind, and he swallowed the second half of his roar, leaving only a complex expression of lingering fear.
However, Greg's sudden outburst of anger that cut off so abruptly, his action of tightly gripping her shoulders as if afraid of losing something precious, and the unmistakable worry and tension in his eyes...
All of this, like the warmest sunlight, pierced through the ice and shone directly into Vivian's heart, which was still chaotic after her brush with death.
She looked at Greg's face, which was exceptionally vivid due to his anxiety and anger; she felt the warmth coming from his hands on her shoulders; she heard the overflowing care in his unfinished words...
Vivian's ice-blue eyes stared at him blankly.
The fear from her recent encounter melted away like early snow meeting a blazing fire.
In its place was a sense of guilt and a quietly sprouting... warmth.
He was worried about me just now.
Very worried.
So worried... that he even got angry.
This realization made Vivian's heart feel as if it had been distinctly brushed by the softest feather.
An unprecedented, strange warmth quietly flooded her heart.
So...
I'm that important to you...
Rate on N.U.
