Once they arrived and got comfortable on the sofa, Ashen wasted no time. He mentally called up his status window and made it visible for Seraphine to see.

"Oh! So this is what you wanted to show me?" Seraphine exclaimed, her tone light, but her eyes told a different story.

They darted between the words on display, scanning them with an intensity that contradicted her nonchalance.

A few minutes later, she lifted her head. The worry in her gaze bore into him.

Ashen, a little uncomfortable under her scrutiny, forced a light smile and quipped, "Surprising, isn't it? The man you like isn't as great as he seems. In fact, it's quite the opposite."

Leaning back, he added dryly, "It's not too late to change your mind and find someone actually worthy of you, you know?"

Her expression immediately darkened.

"What do youmeanby that?!" she snapped. "I'm not that shallow, you know!"

Taking a deep breath, she continued, her voice quieter but firm.

"Even if your traits were a hundred times worse than this, I'd still stay by your side and do my best to help you. You're the manIchose, after all…"

The last part was nearly mumbled, too soft for Ashen to catch, but before he could ask her to repeat it, she spoke up again, this time with renewed conviction.

"Anyway! Even if your traits look bad on paper, I'veseenhow hard you work, Ashen. So believe in yourself… because I'll keep believing in you."

She smiled softly, finishing with quiet certainty.

"A couple of words won't ever change my opinion of you, you understand?"

Ashen sat there, momentarily dazed, absorbing her words.

He had expected her to brush it off, sure. With Seraphine's personality, making a big deal out of something like this wasn't her style. Butexpectingit andhearingit directly were two entirely different things.

A smile bloomed on his face.

Not his usual sarcastic or mocking grin, but something different… somethinggenuine.Innocent, even.

And in that moment, he felt it.

A warmth spread in his chest, like a small flame igniting within him. A symbol of his will totrulychange, not because circumstances forced him to, but becausehewanted to.

If she believed in himthatmuch… shouldn't he at least meet her sincerity halfway?

More importantly… how could he ever face Alice again without first fixing what had driven them apart?

"What's with that smile…?"

A bewildered mutter echoed through the room.

While Ashen was busy making silent resolutions, Seraphine found herself completelycaptivatedby his sudden, pure smile.

It was almost childlike, but what truly stole her breath was howfreeand happy he looked in that moment.

"…Not fair," she whispered bitterly.

"Hmm? What's not fair?"

This time, Ashen caught it. Leaning forward, he flashed her a teasing grin.

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"Tell me, my little angel. I'll blow away any unfairness that comes your way."

Seeing him slip back into his usual joking self, Seraphine quickly reined in her wild emotions. But then, something else from his status window resurfaced in her mind, something farmoreconcerning.

"Ash…You!How could you hide something like this from me?!"

Without hesitation, she invaded his personal space, patting him here and there as if trying to make sure he was still in one piece.

"Oh God, your magic circuits are damaged… andpermanentlyat that!" Her face morphed back into one of pure distress, her earlier panic coming back in full force.

"What do we do? What do wedo?!I have no idea, oh my god—"

Watching her spiral into a mental breakdown over mere circuit damage, Ashen secretly let out a sigh of relief.

'Good call on omitting the stuff about the Weaver's Eyes, Loved by Time, and the Recall skill…'

It wasn't that hedidn'ttrust her with the knowledge, but she was already freaking out over something as minor asthis.If he dropped the heavier details on her now? She'd probably combust on the spot.

So yeah… for theforeseeable future,the busty angel remained on a need-to-know basis.

"Sera, calm down," he tried, his voice soothing. "Fussing over it won't heal me."

But it did little to help.

"How can Istaycalm?! It must have hurt alot, right?! And now that I think about it… Weren't you circulating mana constantly every single day?! How could you be so reckless—wait,heck!You're doing itright now,aren't you?!"

Ashen gave her a sheepish look.

She was right. His circulation method was still in full swingeven as they spoke.

"Uhh, it's fine, really… I've gotten used to it. And the pain doesn't bother me much anymore."

Seraphine exhaled sharply, rubbing her temples.

"…You'reunbelievable."

She took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down. It was a skill she hadwaytoo much practice in these past two days.

"But still," she added, her voice a little softer. "Youcan'tkeep things like this to yourself, Ashen. I thought we were closer than that…"

Leaning back against the sofa, she crossed her arms under her chest, her tone carrying a trace of hurt.

Ashen sighed.

"I'm sorry… I wasn't trying to shut you out." His voice was low but earnest. "I just didn't want to burden you with something you couldn't fix. We already had enough to deal with, and I didn't want to add more to your plate."

Seraphine stared at him for a moment before puffing her cheeks in a huff.

"Apology accepted.But!No more secrets when it comes to your health, got it?"

Relieved that he dodged a bullet, Ashen hurriedly nodded.

"Yes, yes. As long as it concerns my health, I'll tell you.Promise."

"Good." She nodded, satisfied.

"Well? I guess this is what you wanted to show me. What's your request?" Seraphine asked, her tone exaggerated. "Ihopeit's not as outrageous as everything else."

"No… nothing like that," Ashen shook his head. But then, he recalled last night's lucid dream and hesitated.

"Uhh… actually… now that I think about it, itmightbe a little unpleasant." He pinched his fingers together. "Just atinybit."

Seraphine raised an eyebrow.

Then, tipping her chin up, she smirked, trying to act high and mighty.

"Justspill italready. After all the surprises you've thrown at me, there's nothing that can fazethislady. So don't worry your little head over it—hmph."

Ashen had to physically restrain his hands from reaching out to pat thisadorablecreature.

Shaking off his amusement, he decided to stop stalling.

"As you saw, I'm aDreamernow," he explained. "Which means I have to dream, and makeothersdream, for my embodiment to work."

Pausing, he let her absorb his words before continuing.

"I already make myself dream every night through lucid dreaming. But for others… that's where you come in." He met her gaze. "I want to use the skill on you. Maybe before you go to bed or something…"

Seraphine blinked.

"…That's it?"

"Yeah."

"So… I just have to let you put me to sleep?" She tilted her head. "Is it really that hard? I don't understand why you were hesitating earlier."

Ashen sighed.

"Well, the thing is… I don't have much control over the dreams I conjure. So if you'reunlucky,your dream could turn into anightmarereally quickly."

Seraphine squinted. "How bad are we talking?"

Ashen deadpanned.

"Last night, I dreamt of my arm getting chewed on by beasts before I ended up getting devoured by a swarm of tarantulas."

"…That bad, huh."

Silence stretched between them.

Ashen didn't interrupt her thoughts, giving her time to process it.

But less than a minute later, Seraphine justshrugged.

"Welp, I'm in. You can count on me."

"…What? Really?"

Ashen was genuinely surprised. He hadexpectedher to refuse—wantedher to, even. That's why he laid out all the cons, completely transparent about how horrifying the experiencecouldbe.

So… why?

'I guess I underestimated her resilience after all…'

"Yeah, really," Seraphine confirmed, grinning. "I bet those kinds of nightmaresrarelyhappen."

Then, giving him a confident thumbs-up, she added, "Most importantly—I have faith thatyouwon't let me have bad dreams, Ash."

Ashen blinked.

Then he sighed.

'Or maybe… I underestimated herblind faithin me.'

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com