Elias looked at the pitiful maid before him in silence. How could he not see the effort Rita put in every day?
In truth, if one were to compare sheer dedication.
Rita did not lose to Durandal at all. She was just as demanding and strict with herself—so much so that it was difficult to describe.
Because she knew that compared to the others, she was merely an "ordinary person." So she could only rely on more training to narrow the gap, while doing everything she could to prepare for Elias—almost as if to make up for her lack of combat strength in this way.
And that was precisely why, no matter how busy he was, Elias would still try his best to return to the dormitory for all three meals. He knew that his maid would quietly prepare the finest dishes every day and wait for him.
If a maid's duty was to serve her master and hope that he would grow toward his ideal self, then a master's duty was to respond to that expectation and never betray her devotion and effort.
Rita was undoubtedly a perfect maid. It was just that she faced too many unreasonable and harsh challenges. Around her were either Herrschers, MANTISes, or those who had awakened Stigmata.
If one day everyone became ordinary people without any powers at all, fighting only with their own strength and technique, then Rita's combat ability would undoubtedly be T0-tier.
After all, how many people could clamp a scythe between their legs, flip two and a half rotations midair, and then bring it down in a descending slash? Who else could pull off such a high-difficulty maneuver?
"Rita, don't overthink it. You're already very strong."
"But not strong enough."
Rita shook her head. Her strength was only within the bounds of humanity. Yet now, there were too many girls around Elias who had surpassed the human domain. And she, with her average aptitude, did not even have the chance to become a monster.
"Why worry so much about power? Being able to cook delicious food, keep the house spotless, and give me a lap pillow every day—isn't that already enough?"
Elias wrapped his arms around her fragrant shoulders from behind and lowered his head to inhale the faint rose scent of her body.
They were both the type with extraordinary looks. Whether face or figure, both were flawless. But Elias relied on the hypervariable factor of Maheśvara to cheat—like Elysia, no matter how much he ate, he never gained excess fat; he could skip exercise and still maintain beautiful lines; he could stay up late without harming his skin.
Rita, however, relied on strict self-discipline. Whether it was skincare, weight control—or weight, and weight again—everything was maintained at optimal levels.
That was something a certain Miss Pink Elf could never accomplish.
"Rita, you're stretching yourself too tight. Why not just be a pure maid? Even if a girl is a little weaker, it doesn't matter. Because I like you, and I'll protect you."
Elias said it naturally. The lethal force of those words made the little paramecium, the cook, the saint candidate, and the cat blush and clutch their chests, thinking how he was always the same.
Elias could say such heart-stirring lines so easily, without the slightest embarrassment. Paired with that heaven-defying face, who wouldn't be moved?
The four girls covered their hearts. If it were them, they would definitely hesitate right now. Perhaps giving up all power and sinking into Elias' protection and indulgence would be an extremely happy life.
Pardofelis felt she had the most authority to speak on this. That kind of lazy life was her ideal.
However...
"That won't do. That would turn things upside down."
Rita actually shook her head and refused.
The four girls could not help but marvel at such firm will.
"Lord Elias, a maid's mission is to protect her master—not to be protected. And furthermore... if I were merely an ordinary maid, then I would not be qualified to remain by your side."
Rita spoke with absolute seriousness. Even if this person was generous and benevolent and did not care, the reality now was that "an average person has no right to stand shoulder to shoulder with Elias."
Rita Rossweisse, who could now do nothing but care for others, was already being phased out by the current meta.
"There are already many, many Valkyries at the Academy stronger than I am. I believe you can certainly find someone who serves you better than Rita. So please allow me to resign."
Her voice trembled. Only heaven knew how shattered her heart was when she said those words.
"No!"
Elias frowned deeply and domineeringly pulled his maid tightly into his embrace. Rita's eyes widened. She could not help but marvel at how overwhelming his strength was. She could not even struggle.
It seemed that if Elias failed to control his strength even slightly, he could easily break her entire body. So... someone so fragile like her truly had no qualification to remain by his side, did she?
"Lord Elias, I..."
"I'm not listening! Idiot Rita, have you ever considered that at this point I can't live without you anymore? It's all the fault of a certain overly perfect maid who's spoiled me into a useless man in daily life."
Elias "accused" her while looking at her. Back in the Previous Era, he had at least been able to live independently. But now that he had returned, that was completely impossible. He had forgotten most of his life skills.
Even though Mei and Sakura were also in the dormitory—two girls equally skilled at caring for others—honestly speaking, there was still a slight gap compared to Rita. After all, she was a professionally trained perfect maid.
She existed specifically to take care of people.
So if Rita resigned, Elias' quality of life would plummet by seventy percent.
"Don't leave me, Rita. How am I supposed to live without you now?" Elias said pitifully.
"Guh!!" x5
All five girls present suffered a critical hit at the same time. Acting spoiled like that was simply unfair. Rita felt the resolve she had just gathered crack apart from that single sentence.
"Besides, isn't it just power? If you want to become stronger, you only have to tell me. It's just a matter of 'one sword.' Rita, you can become very strong."
"Really? I can become stronger? But..."
Rita revealed a complicated expression. She subconsciously clenched her small hands, realizing the situation had taken an unpleasant turn... Wasn't this like she was threatening resignation just to make Elias share his power with her?
Seeing through the girl's thoughts at a glance, Elias rolled his eyes helplessly.
"Stop worrying about such trivial nonsense. Rita, it's precisely because you pursue perfection too much that you end up overthinking everything. Aren't there already plenty of people in the Academy who've grown stronger through my power?"
"Uh... well, that's true..."
Rita gave a helpless laugh.
After all, the best examples were standing right in front of her.
Mei, Kiana, and Ana—the strength those three possessed now could almost be said to have been created by Elias.
Although in their original fates they would have obtained similar power anyway, the source of their current strength could truly be called Elias' blessing.
The Cores of the Herrscher of the Void, Herrscher of Thunder, Herrscher of Wind, and Herrscher of Fire had originally all been part of Elias' starting configuration. As for Ana, the reason she had become the Herrscher of Ice so quickly and safely advanced into Herrscher of Rimestar was also because of Elias' help.
Besides that, there were the many pseudo-Herrschers within the Academy, as well as the pseudo-Divine Keys—all of them born from Elias' power.
"Rather, if I still didn't give you a power-up now, Rita, it would make me seem heartless, like I'd forgotten you."
"Lord Elias..."
"So accept it. After all, this was originally something you were destined to obtain... the power of the Holy Blade Durandal."
Elias drew a golden holy sword from within his body.
The Previous Era had forged two Holy Blade Durandals in total. One was inside Elias, the other inside Durandal. But the one before them now was neither of those.
It was the third holy sword.
One constructed by Elias through the authority of the Herrscher of Reason.
"Ah..."
Rita stared blankly at the sacred blade and subconsciously raised her hand to grasp the hilt. In the next second, the power of a bubble world transformed into a suit of armor imbued with stellar might, enveloping her entire body.
Over a black inner dress lay a white battle skirt. A short purple cape draped behind her, accented with touches of gold. At the same time, a war scythe named [Astral Divide] appeared in Rita's hand.
As a weapon forged from the power of stars, that war scythe had inherited the strength of Holy Blade Durandal as well.
And the name of that armor was—Spina Astera.
Looking at Rita now, as though she were a dancer among the stars, even Kiana and the others who possessed dual Cores instinctively felt threatened.
There was no doubt Rita's strength had skyrocketed.
"I didn't make you bind a new bubble world. I merely adjusted this holy sword somewhat. You can think of it as a paired blade to the Holy Blade Durandal inside me."
"Therefore, through this holy sword, you can connect to the bubble world within my body. In that way, although the bubble world remains inside me, you can still borrow its power."
Because Elias carried two bubble worlds within him, and both were nearly as large as the main world itself.
Thus, the strength of Spina Astera, forged from that power, even surpassed Durandal's Dea Anchora.
"..."
Rita silently felt this new power.
It far exceeded the amplification granted by the fourth-generation Godsbane Suit, Argent Knight: Artemis. It was enough for her to contend with Herrschers and MANTISes alike.
Yet the most astonishing thing was that after granting Rita such power, Elias himself had not weakened in the slightest. The maid could not help but marvel that the master she served was simply too far beyond common standards.
"..."
"Say something, Rita. Do you like the new outfit?" Elias poked her cheek.
"My apologies, Lord Elias. I was only thinking just now... how I should serve you even better from this day forward. Such grace is far too great for me. I fear even a lifetime would not be enough for Rita to repay..."
"There you go again~ In that case, just serve me for a lifetime. If one life isn't enough, continue in the next one. And if you still think that isn't enough, then I just won't pay your monthly salary anymore."
Though in reality, he had never paid one before.
At that thought, Elias' expression became a little subtle.
He was actually the same as Mobius and MEI? A black-hearted capitalist who exploited subordinates without paying wages!
(Uh... I think Rita even spent quite a lot of money on me before. Wait, wait, wait! Am I really this kind of person?)
Because his maid was simply too selfless and undemanding, serving him as though it were the most natural thing in the world, Elias only now realized in shock that he had seemingly never really done anything for Rita before.
He had not even properly taken her on a date.
All this time, he had only passively enjoyed this girl's devotion.
"Guh... suddenly I feel incredibly guilty."
"Lord Elias?"
"Rita, the real reason you wanted to resign... it wouldn't happen to be because I haven't treated you well, would it?"
"How could that be? Lord Elias, you have already bestowed countless blessings upon me. To offer you everything I have is Rita's honor. Moreover, this Spina Astera alone is already a treasure beyond measure."
Rita boldly embraced Elias' head.
As expected of the Herrscher of Desire, she casually accomplished what others could not. This sudden face-washing service nearly overwhelmed even Elias himself.
Nearby, Mei and the others inhaled sharply, wanting to shout for Rita to let go and let them take her place... but the atmosphere was wrong, so the three girls could only watch enviously as Rita dominated the field.
"As for the Spina Astera, it's only a piece of clothing. It can't compare to all the delicious meals you've made for me until now." Elias shamelessly rubbed against the softness, thoroughly enjoying it.
"Mmnh... you flatter me... and I am deeply sorry as well... Lord Elias, today's lunch... Rita... has not yet had time to prepare it... please grant me a little more time."
Rita's cheeks flushed crimson. Yet not only did she refuse to let go, she held him even tighter. Even Kiana and the other girls found their hearts racing at the sight of that seductive expression.
At this moment, Pardofelis honestly raised her hand to confess.
"Wuwu, it was my fault. If I hadn't stolen food and then fought with Boss Rita..."
"Alright, Pardo. Don't blame yourself over something so small. Besides, didn't you already compensate Rita?"
Elias pulled one hand free and patted Pardofelis on the head.
"Though honestly, I'm surprised to see you being this generous."
"Eh?"
"That gemstone wasn't cheap. The Cullinan Diamond. Even among Eden's collection, its rarity would rank in the top ten. The one you just gave Rita is worth well over a billion."
Elias spoke with emotion, while inwardly thinking that people really did change. After fifty thousand years, even his stingy little cat had become this extravagant.
For a bit of food from the refrigerator, she had directly paid with a diamond worth over a billion. Even Eden had never done something like that.
At that moment, Pardofelis turned to stone.
"O-over a billion?! How can something that tiny be worth over a billion?! Boss Elias, you're lying to me, right?! N-no, wait—I'm begging you, please tell me you're lying!!"
"Why would I lie to you? It's small, yes, but that's not because it's cheap. It's because it's rare. If yours had been just a little bigger, it would probably be worth another zero."
"A-another zero?!"
Pardofelis grabbed her head with both hands. The whole cat was stunned silly.
Then she stiffly turned to look at Rita.
"Boss Rita, can we discuss something?"
"No refunds~"
Rita replied with a darkly sweet smile. Just those two words shattered the cat's defenses completely, dropping her to her knees.
Pardofelis: "No—my moneyyyy~~!"