Kai stepped into the room and stood at the center awkwardly.

From the moment he entered, the fresh girly scent seeped into his nose. The room wasn’t that big, especially in comparison to his basement. There is space for a meditation mat, a full bed, a wardrobe, and a sofa.

It also has an indoor bathroom.

And despite all those things, the center area was still spacious enough to sit.

Not to mention, the air feels fresher than the air in his room.

On the corner of the room, right beside the wardrobe, there was the reservoir for the Oxspires.

Unlike Kai’s, it was equipped with a filtering tube that contained mana.

It must be the reason why the air here feels really refreshing.

Perhaps High Angels were not exempt from the world’s cruelty either—in the end, they were just like any normal Angel. But here, during the cooldown, they lived exactly as they would have on the surface.

Kali glanced at Matilda as she moved to turn on the light.

His eyes were fixated on her pajamas.

Her nightwear... It’s silk, isn’t it?

Just being inside the room of a High Angel made Kai really realize the disparity.

It was infuriating, but he held it in.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Matilda looked down at her pajamas and saw nothing wrong with them. She thought she had forgotten something. Maybe her buttons are unbuttoned, but there’s nothing like that.

"Nothing," Kai shook his head. "Now, let’s talk about the weapon."

Matilda gestured for Kai to sit on the sofa while she sat on the edge of the bed.

"What kind of weapon do you have in mind?" She crossed her arms—feeling chilly even with the heater on. "I do have to tell you that, though the Divine Armaments Imprint allows me to create any weapon, it won’t be of good quality if it’s an obscure one. I recommend that you only ask for a normal traditional weapon."

Of course, Matilda already has some guesses in mind on what weapon Kai would want.

But just in case, she decided to inform him about the limitations.

Kai has no problem with this.

He wasn’t going to ask for a gun anyway, as that’d go against his fighting style.

"I was thinking a normal sword," He said. It was no coincidence that in the past, swords were ubiquitous. They were easier to master, make, and unmatched in versatility. "It doesn’t really matter what kind of sword. Long sword, short sword, anything."

"A normal sword?" Matilda raised a brow and thought for a good moment. "A sword is, like you said, versatile, but you can’t ignore the type. Judging from how you move, a short sword could work, but you have a special talent."

"Special talent?" Kai tilted his head, confused.

"Yes, it’s your terrifying slashes," Matilda pointed at her cheek. "You grazed me with a stick."

Only then did he realize what she was talking about.

Of course, his slashing motion was flawless.

It was all because of Noxian.

"What do you recommend?"

"You already used your perfect weapon before. Let’s go with a scimitar. Black scimitar so that you won’t be spotted while you’re hiding."

"Okay, I’ll go with that."

Unlike a regular sword that benefited from movements and sword styles that are tied directly to the mastery over the sword, the scimitar benefited from sheer momentum. It doesn’t need to be angled precisely to slash.

Faster motion meant stronger penetration.

If Kai wanted to end things quickly in the dark, then a scimitar would indeed be perfect.

"Can it be done tomorrow?" Kai stood up, intending to head out and start his mining session. He would need to stop by the levy post to see his weekly quota, too, which should be swollen by now. "Should I go to you or you’ll come to me?"

"It can be done right now," Matilda replied, catching him off guard.

He expected a little bit longer than that.

In fact, he was ready to wait for about a week for Matilda to finish, so this was surprising.

Kai settled back into the sofa and watched as Matilda crossed her legs. A golden light flickered in her already golden eyes, and the sword she had wielded all this time materialized—before her, hovering in the air.

And before long, cracks began to form across its length.

Fine lines that spread across the blade.

Is she going to get rid of the sword? Not the shield?

Once the entire sword shattered into fragments, Matilda used her will to draw them back in— until they formed a sphere of gold liquid like honey. She used that liquid to form the weapon Kai requested.

First, the blade was formed.

It has a predatory curving arc, one that could easily ignore air resistance.

Its edge swept forward in a sleek, deliberate crescent that promised both speed and precision. And before the remaining parts could fully form, the gold bled away, replaced by void-black that drank the light from above like a hungry beast.

Along its sharp edge, subtle ridges and a single hooked notch lent it a distinct appearance.

Designed not merely to cut, but also to control the battle.

Finally, the hilt formed, a cast in dark grey. The grip extended in a very gentle curve to match the blade’s form, ending in a rounded pommel that anchored the deadly weapon with balance and intent.

Once the product was finished, Matilda grabbed its hilt forcefully.

A sudden suction of mana happened.

Her mana was drained from her Divine Locks and surged into the blade, causing it to shed its translucence—becoming solid, real steel. Kai watched as it caught the light with a cold gleam and firmed beneath Matilda’s grip until it was no longer a phantom, but a real sword.

Kai was lost in the process that he didn’t realize Matilda was already finished.

"Ekhm," She cleared her throat. "It’s done."

Kai blinked his eyes and shook his head, snapping out of his trance.

He took the scimitar from Matilda’s hand and inspected it.

On a closer look, Kai was expecting some imperfections, but there were none. It was entirely flawless. Smooth as dark glass. It looked like the work of a master smith with a thousand years of experience behind his hammer.

It also radiated with sharpness, an edge so keen it almost hurt to stare at for too long.

Even the faintest movement produced a thin, steely whisper.

It sliced the air effortlessly.

And it was light, too. Not weightless, he could feel the weight in his hand, but really balanced.

"I thought the weapon you made was going to be translucent since it’s entirely made of mana."

"As I said, I’m going to make it permanent for you. That’s permanent. I can still make some modifications right now, but after about a week, it will be permanent. But it can only grow alongside me, not you. So, whenever I make a breakthrough, you should bring the scimitar to me so I can upgrade it. Right now, it should be equivalent to a Grade-1 enchanted weapon."

"Bring it to you?" Kai frowned. "This is not you making stuff up for the process, right?"

"I’m not making things up," Matilda shook her head. "It really had to be that way. Coincidentally, you would need to meet with me once in a while."

She did say that she was going to make Kai get used to seeing her face, so that he would find it in him to forgive what she did. So, it was natural for Kai to suspect her making things up to have that.

"But that’s not important right now. What’s important is whether you like it or not."

"It’s good enough. Can you make a sheath for it? I’m afraid of cutting my fingers."

"I can’t. Besides, I only promised to make you a weapon. It doesn’t come with its sheath."

Kai clicked his tongue in displeasure and stood up, intending to leave.

Other than needing to mine, he also wanted to use the Blood of King Orestes on this scimitar.

"Are you going to mine?" Matilda asked. "I’ll come with you."

His hand stopped when it grabbed the handle and looked over his shoulder, "Why?"

"I was planning to continue mining at night, too. Good thing you woke me up. I’ve got a big burden now sharing my spoils with you." Matilda took out a uniform from her wardrobe. She didn’t even wait for Kai’s answer. "So, I need more mana ores than I usually need."

"I don’t want you with me."

"You don’t have a choice." Matilda’s voice was steady, relentless. "Do you even know where to mine? Where the equipment is stored? What the rules are? How to get there?" She let each question land. "Even if you did, do you think getting things done would be easy? As a Lesser Angel?"

Kai clenched his fists hard.

It was really back to square one.

Back then, Bree also said the same things to him.

Being a Lesser Angel is really hard, especially since nobody was there to tell him about these things. He was expected to figure out how the academy works on his own. If he managed to do it, then that’s good enough.

And if he can’t, it’s even better for the academy.

Getting rid of a Lesser Angel is top priority, after all.

"Bree is probably asleep right now, so don’t be stubborn," Matilda layered the uniform on top of her pajamas and then turned to face Kai. "I’ll show you the ropes so next time, you will be able to do it yourself."

As she was about to walk past, Kai held her arm.

His face was grim.

"Just tell me how to mine," Kai said—not turning around to meet her gaze. "Did you already forget what’s happening at the academy right now? We’re Blooded Angels. Every punishment is doubled for us. If those grey-masked Angels catch you helping a Lesser Angel, you will be punished. Severely."

He’s not saying this out of compassion.

Not saying this because he cared about Matilda’s well-being.

Instead, he was saying this because he had to grit his teeth so hard to show her mercy.

He doesn’t want Matilda to die and waste the chance he bothered giving.

"What are you even saying right now?" She chuckled lightly, finding this funny. "They won’t be able to notice me helping a Lesser Angel."

"Huh...? You find this funny?" Kai turned to look at her and saw the teasing play behind her eyes. One that didn’t seem to be worried at all about the fact that she could be punished badly for doing this. "What do you even mean they won’t notice you? What can you even do?"

"Me? I’m not going to do anything," Matilda patted his shoulder. "Come on, Phantom of Ixos. It’s time to use your specialty. You can terrorize Ixos, so you can certainly do this. Follow me—and stay hidden if you don’t want us to be punished. "