Chapter 306: A Quite Realization

A few hours later...

Atlas had explained everything that had happened inside the "Ruins of Eclipse", although he had deliberately omitted crucial details about his own abilities and even some of Melina’s abilities. He explained his encounter with her, their battle, and how he eventually created a Law-based contract that prevented her from harming anyone around him.

He also explained how Melina was actually from another World and how the place they had believed to be a Ruin was, in reality, an entire World of its own.

The revelation had shaken Dravenson and Maristella to their very cores. They had already known that the Galaxy was far larger than Eliomor, but discovering that an entire World could be mistaken for a Ruin was still something neither of them had expected.

After explaining that strange truth, Atlas introduced Melina’s race as the Mermaids, explaining that they originated from the World she had come from. There was still much more he could have explained, but Atlas intentionally kept certain details to himself.

After finishing his explanation, Atlas simply left the three of them behind and took Seraphiel with him. Dravenson and Maristella didn’t object to their daughter leaving with him, because they had already accepted the fact that their little daughter had fallen in love for the first time and, more importantly, had chosen someone entirely on her own.

Neither of them had any intention of interfering with her decision or forcing her toward a different path simply because they were her parents.

Maristella, in particular, had been the first to accept their relationship. She had spent quite some time encouraging Seraphiel to find someone suitable to marry, and now that her daughter had finally chosen someone she genuinely loved, there was no reason for her to oppose it.

Dravenson naturally couldn’t disagree with his wife’s decision either, especially after seeing how much Seraphiel’s feelings toward Atlas had changed her. With that, Atlas and Seraphiel disappeared from the Villa after the explanation.

Before leaving, Atlas had also instructed Melina to remain inside the Villa and avoid causing any commotion. "Once I am back, we can proceed with dividing the Core. In the meantime, you can explain what you shared with me about World Will and World Cores to these three."

Melina agreed without question. She understood that Atlas still had other matters to deal with before they could proceed, and she had no reason to disobey the arrangement they had already established.

...

Atlas and Seraphiel could be seen floating high above the ground, both sitting comfortably in the air while quietly watching the setting sun in the distance. The sky had already begun taking on the warm colors of evening, and the light reflected across the surroundings as the two remained together without speaking.

Seraphiel’s eyes were still slightly darkened from everything that had happened earlier, but after several hours of hearing Atlas’s explanation and remaining beside him, much of the pain had already faded.

She eventually leaned her head against his right shoulder while continuing to look toward the setting sun. For a while, she remained quiet before her thoughts slowly returned to what had happened earlier.

’I-I am always crying as if I am some child... Why is it like this?’ Her fingers slowly curled against her clothes as the thought continued to linger inside her mind.

She had finally managed to enter Atlas’s life in a way no one else had before, and she had even managed to make him experience emotions that he had never understood. Yet despite everything they had shared over the past few days, a strange feeling remained inside her.

’It... doesn’t feel like a relationship at all. It’s like he is caring for a child and nothing more.’ Seraphiel’s expression gradually became more complicated as she remembered what had happened earlier.

Even when Atlas hadn’t been present, something had been protecting her, something he had apparently arranged beforehand without telling her. The realization should have made her feel safer, yet instead, it caused another kind of pain to spread through her heart.

’I-I can feel it... Even when he wasn’t present, something was protecting me. Something he had set up beforehand.’ Her hand slowly clenched at her side as she lowered her gaze.

This pain was completely different from the fear she had felt when she was unable to convince Atlas, and it was also different from the pain that had overwhelmed her when she thought she might lose him. The pain was quieter now, but it continued eating away at her because she couldn’t stop comparing what Atlas was doing for her with what she believed she was doing for him.

’It’s been just a few days since we began our relationship, and yet... he is already protecting me like this? While I am always crying whenever I become worried? And then he has to come and comfort me? Why...?’ The questions continued circling through her mind as she struggled to understand why they were hurting her so much.

She had never expected Atlas to suddenly become expressive or affectionate, and she knew better than anyone that he was still learning how emotions worked. Yet even with that understanding, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she was receiving far more from him than she was capable of giving in return.

’What am I actually doing for him?’ She lowered her eyes slightly as the fading sunlight passed across her face. Atlas had already done so much for her without even properly understanding his own emotions, and he continued protecting her without expecting anything in return.

’But what about me?’

Seraphiel remained silent for several moments as she thought about it. She had finally become someone important to Atlas, and she knew that she had managed to reach a part of his heart that had remained untouched for most of his life. That realization still meant more to her than anything else, but another feeling had begun appearing beneath it.

She felt as though she was still standing slightly behind him rather than beside him.

’I... I don’t want to be someone he only has to protect.’ She closed her eyes tightly as the thought became clearer, ’I want to become someone who can stand beside him... someone he can rely on too.’

Her fingers tightened again as an immense pain spread through her heart. She wasn’t thinking about surpassing Atlas or proving that she was stronger than him. She simply wanted to become someone who could contribute to his life in the same way he had begun contributing to hers.

Just then, Atlas finally spoke in his usual calm voice.

"Seraphiel, you know I never comforted anyone before, so I don’t know if this is the right way, but I will still do it because I feel like it’s the right thing to do." Seraphiel lifted her eyes toward him, a tear still escaping from the corner of her right eye. She stared at his face with wide eyes as Atlas gave her a small smile before continuing.

"I am sorry, Seraphiel. I seem to make you worry a lot." The moment those words left his mouth, Seraphiel felt her heart clench even more, the world around her seemed to break apart.

Tears immediately rushed into her eyes, and without making a single sound, she began crying again. One tear followed another as she looked at Atlas for that brief moment, unable to find the words she wanted to say.

Atlas immediately raised his hand and was just about to wipe away her tears when Seraphiel suddenly stopped his hand by the wrist.

"N-No... D-Don’t... Atlas, d-don’t..." she muttered as her voice trembled.

She lowered her head, unable to look at him anymore. Her eyes darkened completely as her pupils seemed to turn abyssal black, while the tears continued falling from her eyes. A thought slowly formed inside her mind, but she couldn’t bring herself to finish it.

’Haha... h-haha... E-Even if I saved his life once...’ The thought stopped there as she realized the truth of the matter.

She had yet to become his partner.

That realization broke something deep within her. She couldn’t even bring herself to look into Atlas’s eyes anymore as she lowered her gaze, ’It’s a simple reason... I-I am weak. So weak that he is always the one worrying about me, protecting me, comforting me...’ Her fingers tightened slightly as she continued thinking, ’I... I’m someone he always has to worry about. Someone he always has to protect. But what am I to him beyond that?’