Eternia stood in the center of the yard, completely mesmerized by the scene.

Her heart swelled with warmth.

This was her Master... He was a terrifying force of nature who could bring strong people to their knees yet, here he was, spending his morning patiently teaching a little commoner girl how to read beneath a tree. He was so incredibly kind, so gentle, and so entirely perfect.

This was the man she was fighting for... This was the life she was sworn to protect...

A renewed surge of energy flooded Eternia’s veins. The distraction vanished, entirely burned away by a fierce devotion.

She turned away from the tree, her boots crunching softly against the grass as she walked over and picked her wooden sword out of the dirt.

She gripped the hilt.

Instantly, the atmosphere in the yard changed.

The casual lazy posture evaporated as Eternia’s golden slit-pupils narrowed into lethal lines.

She lowered her center of gravity, her muscles coiling tight with explosive tension and the overwhelming aura of a killer bled into the air, making the hair on the back of Lyra’s neck stand straight up.

"You’re right," Eternia told Lyra. "I was distracted. Let’s be serious this time."

Lyra swallowed hard, taking a slow step backward as she gripped her wooden sword until her knuckles turned white.

She suddenly, deeply regretted pointing out the distraction.

"Wait, Eternia, I didn’t mean—"

Before Lyra could attempt to call off the impending brutal beatdown, the air in the backyard violently changed.

The morning sunlight seemed to dim slightly.

The atmospheric pressure plummeted, creating a heavy suffocating weight that pressed down on the entire property as a massive overwhelming wave of mana washed over the enclosed space.

The wind picked up instantly, transforming from a gentle morning breeze into a roaring gale.

The thick branches of the oak tree groaned in protest, violently shaking their green leaves loose into the swirling air.

Ren stopped reading. He looked up from the book, his crimson eyes narrowing as he sensed the familiar immense magical signature rapidly approaching from above.

"What the...?" Lyra gasped, shielding her face from the sudden, whipping wind.

From the sky, a figure was descending.

Astrid, the Vice Guild Leader of the Twilight Guild, bypassed the inn’s front gate entirely.

She was utilizing a highly advanced, incredibly mana-intensive levitation spell, dropping directly out of the sky like a descending valkyrie.

Astrid was wearing her pristine, dark enchanted combat robes, her golden hair whipping wildly around her face.

Her boots hit the grass in the center of the backyard with a soft thud with the residual magic flaring out in a purple shockwave that flattened the grass in a wide circle.

Astrid was slightly breathless, her chest heaving as she dispelled the levitation magic.

Her cheeks were flushed a deep vibrant crimson and her blue eyes were wide.

She completely ignored the stunned glares of Eternia and Lyra.

She also completely ignored Mandy, who had just walked out onto the wooden porch holding a silver tray loaded with hot morning tea, and who had immediately frozen completely stiff.

Astrid only had eyes for one person.

She marched straight past the sparring girls, closing the distance to the oak tree in a matter of seconds then she stopped right in front of Ren, staring down at him as he sat on the grass with the literacy book still resting in his lap.

Ren blinked, genuinely surprised by the dramatic skyward entrance. "Astrid? What are you—"

"Ren," Astrid blurted out.

She took a deep breath, her hands clenching into fists at her sides as she dropped the absolute bombshell of the morning.

"Do you want to move in with me?"

The backyard fell into a deathly stunned silence.

Kala blinked her large eyes, looking between the intense blonde woman and her teacher.

Mandy, still frozen on the porch, felt a single bead of sweat roll down his temple.

Lyra slowly lowered her wooden sword, her brain struggling to process the audacity of the high-ranking woman’s demand.

Ren sat under the tree, his crimson eyes slightly wide and his mind momentarily blanking at the aggressive escalation of their relationship status.

And ten feet away, gripping her wooden practice sword so tightly the dense wood began to audibly splinter and crack under her beastkin strength, Eternia’s golden eyes flared with overwhelming murderous intent.

Her date was being threatened.

For a few long, stretching seconds, the only sound in the enclosed backyard was the rustling of the oak leaves above them, still settling from the violent winds of Astrid’s descent.

Ren sat perfectly still on the soft grass.

His external expression remained a mask of mild surprise but internally, his head was spinning a bit.

’Move in?’ Ren thought.

He looked around the rented inn.

The wooden fences were weathered... The training yard was not too big, it was large enough for two people to spar without risking a shattered window.

The kitchen was average, the beds were average and they were paying a weekly rate for a place that didn’t even have advanced magical wards.

That was the thing with staying in a Town that had almost all of the inns full.

Now, he was being offered a spot in a heavily fortified sprawling luxury mansion located in the most affluent ring of the Adventurer Town.

A manor owned by an A-rank Vice Guild Leader... which spelled free rent, premium food, and maximum comfort.

And, of course, there was the pettiness of the situation.

He would literally be moving into the protagonist’s aunt’s house, sleeping under her roof, and establishing dominance over her household while Jace was off suffering and wallowing in his Erectile dysfunction.

It was the ultimate top-tier villainous power move and he didn’t even have to lift a finger to orchestrate it.

She had dropped out of the sky to hand it to him.

It was an undeniable yes.

However he didn’t want to act too excited about this... He would take it slowly instead.

Ren slowly closed the basic Kingdom literacy book resting in his lap, setting it gently on the grass next to Kala.

He leaned his head back against the rough bark of the oak tree, looking up at the beautiful slightly breathless blonde mage standing before him.

"That’s quite the leap, Astrid," Ren said calmly. "We had one date... A great date, sure. But moving in? Why so sudden?"

Astrid shifted her weight with the heavy fabric of her enchanted combat robes rustling.

Her cheeks were still deeply flushed from her impulsive flight, but her bright blue eyes were entirely serious.

She wasn’t acting out of blind infatuation; she had actually thought this through from a logistical standpoint.

"Because this place is entirely beneath you, Ren..." Astrid stated firmly, gesturing toward the walls of the inn. "I saw the way you fought on the 60th floor... I saw your refined manners at The Silver Lotus... You are a man of high caliber, and you are currently living in a rented unwarded box in the middle of a loud crowded commercial district."

She took a step closer with her tone softening slightly.

"Think about the practical benefits. My manor is heavily warded with top-tier defensive arrays... No one gets in without my permission. I have a massive, private training ground in the back where your subordinates can practice without holding back."

Astrid glanced briefly at Eternia’s wooden sword, completely misinterpreting the Snakekin’s murderous aura as mere combat frustration.

"And you mentioned your kitchen was a disaster zone yesterday... My estate has a fully stocked, magically regulated kitchen. You wouldn’t have to worry about your people burning the building down while trying to make stew."

On the porch, Mandy let out a quiet, pathetic whimper of profound agreement.

The butler was practically vibrating with hope.

The mere mention of a magically regulated kitchen and proper noble security brought tears of pure joy to Mandy’s eyes.

He desperately wanted to scream ’Say yes, my Lord!’ but he valued his life too much to interrupt.

"I have a massive library," Astrid continued with her pitch gaining momentum. "Heated, sunken marble baths and there is plenty of room... Entire guest wings that have been empty for years... You wouldn’t be stepping on my toes, and I wouldn’t be stepping on yours. It just makes sense, Ren especially for a man I like."

Ren listened to the pitch, keeping his face perfectly neutral while his inner self was nodding enthusiastically.

A heated marble bath sounded like a divine gift.

"What about the cat?" Ren asked lazily, resting his hands behind his head.

Astrid blinked, thrown off by the sudden question. "Chesnu?"

"Yeah. Your cat..." Ren clarified. "Is he going to be an issue?"

"Oh! No, not at all," Astrid smiled brightly, relieved he was actually considering her offer. "Chesnu mostly just sleeps on the silk pillows in the lounge. He is very low-maintenance so he won’t bother you."

’A lazy cat that does nothing but sleep and eat premium food,’ Ren thought with a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. ’Again, I respect that cat’s entire vibe.’

"I see," Ren murmured, looking like he was deeply contemplating the offer.

But before Ren could give his official answer, the fragile peace of the backyard shattered.

CRACK!

The dense wooden practice sword in Eternia’s hands completely snapped in half and the sound was like a gunshot.

Eternia had reached her breaking point. Her mind completely rejected the scene unfolding in front of her.

This blonde woman had interrupted her morning, threatened her territory, and was now trying to steal her Master away to some sealed-off mansion where Eternia couldn’t protect him.

Worse, this woman was threatening her promised date... The date she had begged for... The date she had cried for...

That was an unforgivable offense.

Eternia let the broken pieces of wood fall into the grass. Her hands moved in a terrifying seamless blur.

She reached down to the hidden sheaths strapped to her thighs, drawing two wicked, curved steel daggers as the metal hissed sharply against the leather.

She had bought them of course...

Lyra gasped while stumbling backward.

"Eternia, no!"

But Eternia was already gone.

She simply utilized the raw terrifying explosive muscles she had as her boots dug into the dirt, kicking up a massive spray of grass and mud as she launched herself forward like a coiled spring.

Eternia crossed the ten feet separating her from Astrid in a fraction of a heartbeat.

She raised the twin daggers, angling the dark steel perfectly to bypass the thick collar of Astrid’s combat robes.

Eternia aimed directly for the carotid artery on the left side of the Vice Guild Leader’s neck which would kill her.

Sitting under the tree, barely three feet away from the impending bloodshed, Ren didn’t even flinch.

’Sigh... Why is she trying to stir more trouble?’

Ren just stayed seated with his hands resting behind his head, watching the scene unfold with mild entertainment.

He trusted Eternia’s combat abilities implicitly, but he also wasn’t stupid.

He knew exactly who Astrid was... The Protagonist’s Aunt.

You didn’t become the Vice Guild Leader of the Twilight Guild and earn the moniker ’Twilight Witch’ by being easy to assassinate in broad daylight.

He wanted to see how the A-rank mage handled a real lethal threat at point-blank range... Astrid didn’t panic.

Even as the deadly steel daggers closed in on her throat, her striking blue eyes didn’t widen in fear.

Instead, the seasoned veteran instincts flared to life as she didn’t reach for the heavy wooden staff strapped to her back nor did she have the time to chant a spell.

She simply raised her right hand with her palm facing the incoming assassin, and flared her mana core.

VWOOM!

A hum vibrated through the very air as thick oppressive purple twilight mana erupted from Astrid’s palm, instantly forming a highly concentrated sphere of gravity magic directly in Eternia’s path.

Eternia slammed into the invisible barrier.

It wasn’t a solid wall of force; it was a devastating manipulation of mass.

The moment Eternia entered the purple sphere, the gravity acting upon her body multiplied by fifty.

"Ghk—!" Eternia grunted with her momentum immediately halted.

She was pinned mid-air, suspended roughly two feet off the ground, trapped within the purple hue.

Her twin daggers were frozen mere inches from Astrid’s neck, trembling violently as Eternia poured every ounce of her beastkin strength into her arms, desperately trying to push the blades forward.

But the A-rank suppression was too dense.

The weight of the gravity spell was crushing her, forcing her muscles to lock up.

She snarled, baring her sharp fangs with her golden eyes burning with unfiltered hatred as she glared at the blonde mage.

Astrid stood perfectly still with her hand raised maintaining the spell effortlessly.

The Vice Guild Leader looked closely at the struggling assassin.

She didn’t look angry and she didn’t look offended that she had just been subjected to a highly coordinated murder attempt.

Instead, Astrid looked genuinely impressed.

Astrid’s eyes scanned the angle of Eternia’s daggers, the flawless silent footwork she had used to close the distance and the complete lack of hesitation in her killing intent.

"Beautiful form... Jace could learn from you..." Astrid murmured with her voice carrying a hint of professional respect.

She lowered her hand slightly, adjusting the gravity barrier to keep Eternia pinned without snapping the girl’s bones.

Astrid turned her head to look down at Ren, who was still sitting comfortably against the tree.

"Her killer instinct is flawless," Astrid complimented, offering Ren a bright approving smile. "And she is incredibly fast. Most people wouldn’t have even seen her move. You train your people remarkably well, Ren."

Ren let out a soft chuckle. "She’s very dedicated to her job."

"I can tell," Astrid nodded, looking back at the snarling Snakekin. "Though she seems a bit overprotective of her territory."

Ren dropped his arms, deciding he had seen enough.

The demonstration was perfect. Astrid had incredible reaction time and supreme mana control, disabling a lethal threat without resorting to lethal force. It confirmed everything he needed to know about the safety of her manor.

"Alright," Ren said, placing his hands on his knees and smoothly standing up.

He brushed a few stray blades of grass off his dark trousers. "You make a compelling argument, Astrid. The inn is getting a bit cramped, and the security here is lacking."

Astrid’s face lit up like a beacon.

The dense twilight mana swirling around her hand flickered slightly in her excitement. "So... you agree? You’ll move in?"

"I will," Ren confirmed, offering her a charming relaxed smile.

Astrid let out a sharp, joyful gasp with her heart soaring into her throat. She had done it.

She had secured the most promising, handsome, and powerful man she had ever met and she was bringing him directly into her home.

"However," Ren continued, raising a single finger to pause her celebration. "It’s a package deal... I don’t go anywhere without my people."

Ren turned his head, looking over at Lyra.

The Sub-Heroine was still standing near the center of the yard with her wooden sword lowered, holding her little sister Kala protectively against her leg, Kala had ran away at some point in their conversation.

Lyra looked completely overwhelmed by the display of power and the casual conversation happening over an active assassination attempt.

"Lyra," Ren called out.

Lyra jumped slightly with her auburn hair bouncing. "Y-Yes, Master?"

"You and Kala commute from the lower districts every day for training, right?" Ren asked.

"Yes," Lyra nodded, confused by the sudden question. "We rent a small room above the bakery... It takes about an hour to walk here."

"Not anymore," Ren stated firmly.

He gestured toward Astrid. "We are moving into a highly warded estate. It has a private training yard, a fully stocked kitchen, and protection. It is vastly safer for Kala, and you won’t have to waste two hours a day walking across the city so pack your things. You’re coming with us."

Lyra’s eyes went incredibly wide as her breath caught in her throat.

Moving into an estate?

Living in the affluent upper ring of the Adventurer Town?

It was a level of wealth and security she had never even dared to dream of for her and her sister.

The generosity of the offer and the fact that Ren was actively prioritizing their safety and comfort hit her like a tidal wave.

Tears immediately pricked the corners of Lyra’s eyes as she bowed her head deeply with her voice trembling in gratitude.

"Thank you. Thank you so much, Master. We will pack immediately."

Kala, not fully understanding the politics but recognizing that her sister was happy, offered a bright gap-toothed smile.

On the porch, the distinct sound of a silver tray clattering against a wooden table echoed through the quiet yard.

Ren glanced over.

Mandy had set the tea tray down and was currently on his knees. The butler had his hands clasped together, looking up at the sky with tears streaming freely down his soot-stained face.

"Soft sheets..." Mandy whispered to the heavens. "A really big kitchen... Proper feather pillows... Praise the Gods... The dark days are over."

Ren shook his head, highly amused by his butler’s reactions.

He turned his attention back to Astrid, who was watching the scene unfold with a warm deeply satisfied smile.

"See?" Astrid beamed, her chest swelling with pride. "Everyone loves the idea. Having a bustling household will be wonderful... The manor has been far too quiet lately."

"Glad we’re all on the same page," Ren said. He gestured casually toward the floating snarling ball of homicidal rage suspended in the air. "Now, do you mind letting her down before she pops a blood vessel?"

"Oh! Right, of course," Astrid apologized quickly.

She snapped her fingers as the dense sphere of purple twilight gravity vanished instantly.

Eternia dropped the remaining two feet to the ground. She landed flawlessly on her boots with her knees bending to absorb the impact without a sound.

She didn’t immediately attack again, recognizing that the element of surprise was gone and the blonde woman’s magic was far too fast to bypass frontally.

Instead, Eternia quickly sheathed her daggers, crossed her arms over her chest, and leveled a glare directly at Astrid.

If looks could manifest physical damage, the Vice Guild Leader would have been reduced to ash.

Astrid merely smiled back, completely unbothered. She was an A-rank veteran; she had dealt with far scarier monsters than a jealous Snakekin.

"I will go ahead and make the arrangements immediately..." Astrid announced, her voice practically singing with joy.

She smoothed out her robes with her bright blue eyes locking onto Ren. "I’ll have the master guest wing prepared for you, and the eastern corridor opened up for your subordinates... Chesnu will be thrilled to have company."

"Take your time," Ren offered smoothly. "We have a lot of packing to do."

"I will see you later then, Ren..." Astrid promised, stepping back into the center of the crushed grass.

Her eyes flared with twilight mana once more.

The wind violently kicked up around her boots, swirling the fallen oak leaves into a miniature cyclone.

With a powerful surge of magic, Astrid launched herself straight up into the air, soaring over the high wooden fences and disappearing into the bright morning sky, heading directly toward the upper ring.