"Hmm, that should be everything."
Before leaving the Grove of Epiphany, Lumina first teleported everyone she had healed within the Grove to a spot near the gates of Okhema City.
Of course, she also removed the power that made them look like monsters.
Otherwise, they wouldn't be met with the Okhema soldiers' rescue, but with their attacks... Lumina wouldn't forget such details.
After finishing this, Lumina joined Castorice and the others on the journey to Okhema.
"That Black-Robed Swordsman... who exactly is it?"
On the road, after leaving the Grove of Epiphany for a short while and putting some distance between them, Castorice asked with a hint of palpitation, confirming the Flame Reaver couldn't catch up for the moment.
She turned her gaze to Calypso, waiting for her answer.
"I do not know."
Unfortunately, Castorice didn't get the result she wanted.
Calypso shook her head, indicating that even as the Titan of [Reason], she didn't know the Flame Reaver's true form.
"She came for the Coreflame. Perhaps we can call her... the [Flame Reaver]."
Facing the same enemy, Calypso did not hide anything and shared everything she knew.
"The Coreflame... why?" Castorice murmured, utterly confused by the Flame Reaver's actions.
Collecting all the Coreflames to trigger [Re-Genesis] and save Amphoreus was obviously a good outcome. Why did the Flame Reaver have to do this...
"No need to overthink. Just keep moving forward."
"If he blocks our way, we will simply overcome him."
Calypso smiled, calming Castorice's unsettled emotions.
"It's just like that, little sister Castorice. You really don't need to think too much about it," Lumina also said with a smile.
"Sister Lumina..." Hearing Lumina's words, Castorice recalled Lumina's actions back at the Luminary Throne.
"Sister Lumina, thank you for saving us then."
If Lumina hadn't intervened, Calypso and Teacher Anaxa would have been...
And another thing was the issue with Teacher Trianne.
At that time, Castorice could clearly perceive that Teacher Trianne had already begun to use the power of the [passage]... If Sister Lumina hadn't stopped the Flame Reaver's attack, Teacher Trianne would have opened the Century Gate again to protect everyone.
Teacher Tribbie and Lady Aglaea had repeatedly ordered that Teacher Trianne must not open the Century Gate again.
After all, as a Demigod of the [passage], each time she opened the Gate, she would draw one step closer to withering.
If Teacher Trianne had opened the Gate then, Castorice dared not even imagine... dared not even imagine what would have happened to her.
And Castorice... was also somewhat afraid to go back to Okhema, afraid to face Teacher Tribbie and Lady Aglaea.
"Little Cas, don't worry."
"See, I'm fine now, aren't I?"
Sensing the emotions radiating from Castorice, Trianne stopped in her tracks, placed her hands on her hips, and looked up at Castorice with an expression full of smiles.
She gave a smiling gesture, suppressing all the unsettled emotions in Castorice's heart.
"Yes, as long as you are fine, Teacher Trianne." Hearing this, Castorice didn't overthink it anymore.
No matter how, no matter how dangerous the situation was back then, at least from the current perspective, Teacher Trianne was fine and everyone was fine.
Since that was the case, there was no need to overthink, adding unnecessary self-reproach and sadness.
"Ahem."
Lumina watched the interaction between Castorice and Trianne, and after it ended, she coughed.
It seemed she was signaling something to Castorice, hinting at something.
"Sister Lumina..." Castorice could hear the emotion in Lumina's cough.
But she couldn't guess what Lumina wanted to do.
"Sister Castorice, a thank-you gift, at least there should be a thank-you gift, right?"
Lumina took a step and appeared beside Castorice, winking at her with words that carried no hint of displeasure.
"A... a thank-you gift..."
Lumina's current distance was neither close nor far, but it certainly wasn't far.
It was roughly the kind of distance friends would have while shopping, very normal, and not making anyone feel uncomfortable.
But Castorice just became nervous, just became shy...
If Castorice didn't know her own body was absolutely fine, and if Lumina hadn't just saved everyone, she would have almost thought that Lumina had done something to her body without her noticing...
Wuu wuu wuu...
What am I doing, why am I using this kind of mindset to speculate about Sister Lumina?
I'm so sorry, Sister Lumina...
After silently apologizing to Lumina in her heart, Castorice took a deep breath, suppressed her shyness, and spoke softly to Lumina like a young lady from a noble family: "I... I don't know what I can give you as a thank-you gift."
"Sister Lumina, do you have any... needs, anything you need?"
"Of course I do~"
Having received the answer she wanted, the corners of Lumina's mouth immediately curved upward.
"Uh..." Not expecting Lumina's reply to be so quick, Castorice's fair and delicate face, which looked like it would ooze water if gently pinched, froze.
Why does it feel like... I said something wrong?
Should I not have said it like that?
Castorice muttered to herself, feeling very confused about this.
Without a doubt, Castorice had just walked into "Hell" with a single sentence.
But she definitely didn't realize this.
She simply thought she was overthinking things.
I'm thanking Sister Lumina, and she needs a thank-you gift, but I don't know what gift to give, so I let Sister Lumina tell me herself.
Is there a problem with this?
There's absolutely no problem at all.
"Sister Lumina, you can just say whatever you need."
"As long as it's not particularly difficult, if it's something I can do, I'll agree to it."
Although Castorice felt there was nothing wrong with what she said, she still added a safeguard to her sentence.
This wasn't to be wary of Lumina, but to prevent Lumina from making some requests that she simply had no way of fulfilling with her own abilities.
After all... if she asked for something like a hug or holding hands, Castorice simply couldn't satisfy her.
"Don't worry, Sister Castorice, what I need isn't difficult, and it's also something you're capable of doing."
Understanding what was on Castorice's mind, Lumina smiled and gestured for her to relax.
"Mm." Castorice nodded slightly, waiting for Lumina's next words to tell her what she needed.
But after waiting for a long while, Castorice still hadn't heard Lumina's voice.
"Sister Lumina, what is your request?"
So she had no choice but to ask Lumina proactively.
"Hmm... let's talk about it after we return to Okhema." Lumina smiled slightly and didn't immediately state the request she wanted from Castorice.
"Hmm... alright." Castorice responded, saying nothing more.
"Sister Lumina, thank you!"
"After returning to Okhema, I will also give you a thank-you gift!"
After the conversation between Lumina and Castorice ended, Trianne had one hand on her hip while the other was raised high, just like a model student who eagerly volunteers to answer a simple question asked by a teacher.
"Then I'll start by saying thank you to Trianne here." Lumina smiled at Trianne and didn't refuse.
"I... will also give you a gift of gratitude."
After Lumina smiled at Trianne, Calypso, who was possessing Anaxa's body, also spoke up.
Castorice and Trianne were indirectly saved, and they both promised to give Lumina a thank-you gift.
As the one who was truly saved, how could she possibly not give one?
Hearing this, Lumina didn't say anything to her, only offering a small smile in acknowledgment.
Finally, after completing this gesture, Lumina turned her gaze to Herta, who had remained silent from beginning to end.
Feeling Lumina's gaze, Herta looked at her in confusion.
"..."
"..."
After a long moment of silence, staring at each other eye to eye.
Herta broke the silence: "What?"
"Do it."
"?"
"Ahem." Herta's astonished look made Lumina quickly cough into her hand.
It was just a slip of the tongue, she couldn't help it.
Lumina herself didn't know why, but the moment she heard Herta say "What," she instinctively blurted out "Do it" in response...
But it wasn't a big deal, just two words.
Without thinking further, Lumina got straight to the point, stating the purpose of her gaze: "Little Herta, what about your thank-you gift?"
"Thank-you gift? What thank-you gift?" Lumina's bizarre words left Herta utterly bewildered.
"The thank-you gift for me saving you, of course."
"When did you ever save me?"
With the words laid out so plainly, Herta wasn't an idiot. How could she not know what Lumina was referring to?
Precisely because she knew, Herta feigned ignorance.
Save me, my foot. If you just came to bed and played with me, I could consider you saving the "desires" in my heart.
"At The Grove, obviously."
Lumina knew Herta's true strength all too well.
But if everyone else had given one and you didn't, wouldn't that make you look... especially out of place?
Lumina winked at Herta, as if hinting, Just agree to it first. Whether you actually follow through is entirely up to you. I won't mind.
"Heh."
Taking in Lumina's hint, which was even more obvious than an explicit statement, Herta sneered inwardly.
Do you really think Herta is an idiot?
What kind of signal was this Lumina person trying to send? Did Herta not see right through it?
If Herta agreed, the things that happened afterward would no longer be up to her.
Sensing Lumina's hint, Herta said nothing and simply watched her quietly.
Until Lumina couldn't help but avert her gaze.
Even Lumina, when caught doing something bad or plotting a little scheme, couldn't help but feel ashamed under a prolonged stare.
"Ahem." After understanding Herta's thoughts, Lumina didn't say anything more.
Madam Herta was not someone who could be easily dealt with, so Lumina definitely wouldn't use such a simple method to fool her.
But one had to try, right? What if Herta had a sudden whim and she actually succeeded?
"Calypso... Then what about Teacher Anaxa?"
While Lumina and Herta were interacting, Castorice turned her gaze to Calypso.
Seeing her walking in the mortal world in Teacher Anaxa's body, she couldn't help but ask.
Castorice wanted to ask about Teacher Anaxa's current condition.
But due to Calypso's current state, she couldn't say it directly.
"He... is fine."
Even though Castorice didn't say it outright, seeing her adorable expression, Calypso still guessed what she was thinking. At the same time, she gave an answer that made her feel relieved and relaxed.
However, in the next second, Calypso's next sentence made Castorice's relief and ease vanish instantly.
"At least for now, he's fine."
"As for the future, it's hard to say."
What Calypso meant was already very obvious.
Having heard this result, Castorice's heart, which had just settled down, instantly sank to the bottom of a lake.
Even the [Reason] Titan said so, then... then wouldn't Teacher Anaxa be...
"S... Sister Lumina."
Biting her lips, Castorice recalled Sister Lumina's power that healed everyone back at the Luminary Throne.
Castorice didn't know if Lumina could heal Teacher Anaxa, but... she had to ask to find out if she could.
Castorice raised her eyes to look at Lumina, who had finished her conversation with Herta. After hesitating for a moment, she softly called out.
"Sister Castorice, what's wrong?"
Lumina naturally knew about the conversation between Calypso and Castorice.
Lumina also knew what Castorice was trying to do.
After all, the young girl had all her thoughts written all over her face. To Lumina, someone who had witnessed countless joys and sorrows in the world, it would be hard not to notice.
"Sister Lumina, can... can you help Teacher Anaxa?"
Although Castorice already knew that Lumina harbored no ill will and was as gentle and kind as she appeared, she felt incredibly nervous as she asked.
It was as if... the Lumina before her was her own destiny.
"Hmm..." Lumina didn't give an answer right away.
First, she examined Anaxa's body from top to bottom, then her expression showed a hint of difficulty.
"This... is a bit difficult."
"After all, if Calypso hadn't been sustaining Anaxa's life, he would have died days ago."
It seemed that Anaxa's current state was a very "thorny" problem for Lumina as well.
"So... is that so."
Castorice's eyes dimmed, and she didn't press the matter further.
This incident was naturally unrelated to Sister Lumina, so Castorice wouldn't hold any resentment toward her for it.
"But..."
Watching the cute, ever-changing expressions on Castorice's face, Lumina couldn't resist the urge to pull her into her arms.
Fortunately, she managed to restrain herself in the end.
After pretending to be conflicted for a moment, she said with determination, "But just because it's a little difficult doesn't mean I can't do it, okay?"
It wasn't actually that difficult.
But in this situation, to make Castorice feel grateful and slightly indebted, Lumina had to make it sound a bit more challenging after all~