The SSS Ranked Villain's Return-Chapter 75: A Peaceful Walk

[Aella’s POV]

"I really like creating stuff—like even my staff. Have you seen how good it is?" Aella questioned with a giggle.

Yet, Neraxis’s face did not seem amused as he replied, "The same staff you used to smack me over the head? I remember, yeah."

Oh right... She suddenly froze and exclaimed, "I-I only did that because I can heal faster if I have direct contact with the person!"

"If you say so," he said in his usual unamused tone and continued walking while holding her hand.

At a glance, his shoulders looked much wider than before. She remembered him being quite skinny back in the rift.

But over the course of a couple of days, that seemed to change.

I wonder if he realized I’m not really blind? Aella snickered but didn’t let go of his hand. While she lied about one thing, her fear of the dark was definitely not a lie.

Adding to the fact that the surroundings seemed pretty eerie, it made her a tad bit spooked to say the least.

Even then, since Neraxis was right in front of her, she could relax—if only for a couple more minutes.

"Anyway, have you ever tried the healing nanobots I’ve made? They’re pretty cool in my opinion," she spoke, trying to garner his attention.

And surprisingly, that seemed to do it as his ears perked up.

"Healing nanobots?" he questioned, turning towards her. "Could you tell me a bit more about them?"

"Well, of course." Aella huffed with a smug look and expanded, "They’re very small robots that I made from materials that naturally harness mana. While these nanobots don’t exactly have the largest lifespan, the effects they produce are more than enough to compensate for it."

"So... let’s say the opposite of healing nanobots. Do you also make combat nanobots?" Neraxis asked, making her brows slightly twitch.

"No... I don’t and never will." Aella stated in a low tone.

Ever since she had been a child, her genius was unparalleled. However, with that also came the trouble of having a bunch of expectations placed on her—some of which resulted in her making a few bad choices.

One of those was the first-ever Mana Weapon, a weapon that sucked up the user’s mana and sent out an enhanced beam of mana. It was a great item.

And yet, it was used to take over a country, leaving a scar in her heart—a scar of regret.

Aella explained the short of it to Neraxis, earning an understanding gaze as he tried his best to hide the rage slightly present in his eyes.

"Pfft..." She let out a chuckle at the sight.

Neraxis immediately grew puzzled. "What?"

"It’s nothing. You can keep leading the way, my hero," Aella said playfully. However, as her words fell, he suddenly froze in place before turning towards her.

As her eyes met his, a shiver went down her spine. The sheer coldness of his gaze made her stomach churn.

And soon, he spoke in the same detached, unamused voice as earlier, seemingly wiping away all the progress she’d made in the past couple of minutes.

"Do not call me a hero."

It seemed like he was expecting a response. Aella quickly nodded. "Got it... sorry if I brought up bad memories... or something..."

"It’s alright. Let’s keep going," he brushed it off before taking his eyes away from her and continuing to walk while holding her hand—just a tad looser than before.

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Damn it... she grumbled. What was that about? I tried getting closer to him, and yet he’s giving me the cold shoulder now.

At first, she expected him to fall for her charms, but that didn’t seem to be the case at all.

This gloomy atmosphere really didn’t feel comfortable.

That was when Aella spotted something squirming on the ground. Focusing on it, she saw the outline of a massive spider.

As if her instincts were reawakened, she held her scream and proceeded to run forward, now dragging Neraxis by the hand forcibly—navigating through the maze like a professional.

"You..." he let out an exhausted voice before suddenly pulling her back, making her trip.

Yet just before Aella could fall to the ground, Neraxis caught her by the waist and stared into her eyes.

"You’re pretty cheeky for someone who’s afraid of a mere spider," he remarked with a chuckle, his voice a bit more lively than before.

That immediately put a smile on her face as she turned to the side, saying, "Huh? Did you even see that thing? It was massive!"

"Yeah, yeah, it was the size of a fly," he remarked and stood her upright, taking hold of her hand again. "We should really find the exit, or we’re not going to pass this tutorial training thingy."

"Okay," Aella replied in a soft tone, a smile beginning to form on her face.

He knows I can see, and yet he is holding my hand... she thought while happily walking alongside Neraxis instead of right behind him.

They entered a more closed-off section of the maze, as the stone walls became riddled with more patterns.

However, she soon spotted a certain detail that would have normally escaped everyone’s eye but her own.

A small blue particle hovered by them—one that Neraxis seemingly walked past.

But Aella wouldn’t. Stretching out her hand, she clasped the blue particle, and after a few moments, she was done.

[1x (Minor Bug) Fixed! Reward: Minor Blueprint → Mechanical Chalice That Hates Water]

Eh... it’s pretty bad, but at least it looks interesting. Aella twirled around with the blueprint, absorbing all the information as Neraxis led her around like she was some kind of princess.

It made her feel special—much different than the guys who tried getting together with her simply because of her family. Find more chapters on novelbuddy

Taking her eyes off the blueprint, she gazed at the side of his head, his seemingly perfect features making her heart slightly flutter.

But it was really his personality that made her interested in the first place.

After all...

You’re not like the rest.

"I think we’re here," Neraxis suddenly stated, catching her off guard for a moment as she took a small look around.

A massive gate stood before them, a swirly blue portal seemingly waiting to be entered.

"Yeah... looks like it," Aella said in a soft tone before taking the lead and walking forward, with him behind her as the two finally arrived at the portal.

But before going through, she spoke up anxiously, "Hey Neraxis?"

"Yes?" he replied in a puzzled manner, stopping himself from going through.

Taking this chance, she asked with a slight fidget, "Are you busy this Saturday?"

"Hm? I don’t think so," Neraxis answered, and immediately Aella heaved a relieved sigh and said,

"Wanna come over to my house? I have some cool inventions I want to show you. I might even let you take a few of them home."

Stupid... Aella berated herself for asking that. She probably seemed like a weirdo to him now.

However, his next words pleasantly shocked her. "I would love to—just tell me when and where."

"Huh...? Really?" she asked again, not believing what she’d just heard.

But Neraxis merely shrugged in response. "I’m quite curious how you make these gadgets you brag so much about. I might even be able to learn something for myself," he finished with a chuckle.

Aella tried to pull out her phone, but she couldn’t do that in the virtual world.

A bit embarrassed, she spoke, "O...Okay, I’ll talk to you after classes are over?"

And he immediately replied, "Works for me."

Oh my gosh... Aella stopped herself from screaming as Neraxis smiled at her before going through the portal.

However, there was one issue—one grave issue—that she would need to fix by Saturday.

I need to tell my mom to not say anything embarrassing...

She was a mechanical genius as well as a prodigy healer, so it was only natural to assume she could handle such a mundane task.

Aella shivered slightly at those thoughts before going through the portal as well.

I hope so, at least...