"Mem... how much longer do we have to wait?"
"Making so many beautiful girls wait here for so long is an extremely rude thing to do!"
Because they needed to wait for someone, and Aglaea had already sent a notification, everyone stood in place waiting for the great god who could lead them to Styxia.
But after a very long time, besides the breeze that blew across their cheeks from time to time, there was no sign of any "great god" arriving.
Faced with this scene, Mem put her hands on her hips and stomped her feet in the air, showing her extreme dissatisfaction.
"I... I'll ask Lady Aglaea."
Not just Mem, Castorice was also puzzled.
On the entire scene, except for Lumina and Herta, everyone else was more or less confused and had some objections.
For Lumina, being able to stay with beautiful girls was a great satisfaction, let alone the fact that there were 3.5 beautiful girls on the scene.
Castorice, Stelle, Herta, and Mem.
Because Mem had not yet taken a human form, she could only count as half.
But even so, 3.5 beautiful girls was still a great pleasure for Lumina.
Lumina was in no hurry regarding the beautiful girl who was about to arrive.
As for Herta, she didn't care about this matter at all.
What Herta cared about was the essence of Amphoreus. This was the only thing that could capture her attention; everything else was completely meaningless.
And as for the matters of the Chrysos Heirs and the Titans, Herta didn't care, nor did she need to.
Because judging by Lumina's current state, she would still be staying in Amphoreus for some time.
At the same time, when she left, she might even elevate all the "data" within Amphoreus into a true "life."
In such an outcome, the matter of the Chrysos Heirs would definitely be resolved, and there would certainly be an opportunity to touch upon the essence of Amphoreus along the way, so Herta was in no rush.
By letting things take their natural course, both the matter of the Chrysos Heirs and the Titans, as well as the essence of Amphoreus, would naturally be resolved.
If one had to say, aside from the matter of Amphoreus's essence, the only thing Herta cared about in all of Amphoreus was Lumina herself.
"Uh..." The message Castorice had sent to ask Lady Aglaea quickly received a reply.
But Castorice, reading the reply Aglaea had sent, was momentarily speechless, not knowing how to explain this matter to everyone.
"Little Sister Castorice, what's wrong?"
"Did Little Sister Aglaea say something difficult?"
Seeing Castorice's speechless little expression, Lumina immediately felt a wave of healing in her heart.
How can Little Sister Butterfly be so cute!
Cute, I want to eat!
The literal meaning of "eat."
At this thought, a small, nameless fire suddenly rose in Lumina's abdomen, and her gaze toward Castorice grew several degrees more fervent.
This nameless fire was very small, about the size of a little finger's fingernail, and only a small basin of water would be enough to completely extinguish it... The heat in her gaze was also very subtle; even if someone noticed it, they would probably think it was just an illusion.
But besides Stelle and Mem, both Castorice and Herta clearly perceived it.
"?" Feeling Lumina's emotion, an alarm bell rang loudly in Herta's mind.
No, is this the kind of emotion Lumina can produce?
Isn't she just a big talker? Why is there a... fervent emotion of wanting to eat her in her gaze toward Castorice?
No, no, no, absolutely not.
Lumina must absolutely not become like this.
If you really want to eat, come find me! What do I have that's worse than this butterfly?
I'm better than Castorice in every way, you can totally come find me if you really want.
After realizing this emotion in Lumina had been sparked by Castorice, Herta's heart suddenly filled with anxiety.
But just as she was about to take some real action, the emotions Lumina had born because of Castorice instantly vanished as if they had never existed.
Sensing the disappearance of these emotions, the actions Herta had intended to take and the words she was about to say all stopped.
What was she trying to do...
Since Lumina's emotions were all gone, Herta naturally had no desire to correct or stop her.
But regarding Lumina's current state, Herta felt an immense headache.
She was never like this before, how has she suddenly become... started to drool over beautiful girls' bodies recently?
Um... Alright, she drooled over them before too.
It's just that this drooling at most only reached the stage of skin-to-skin contact, without any plans to go any further.
Right now, why does Herta feel like Lumina... has such a plan?
Was this a good thing or a bad thing?
Herta lowered her head slightly, pursing her lips in thought.
This was a good thing, because it meant Lumina was moving in a direction that would benefit her.
If Herta wanted to completely subdue Lumina, the only way she could think of was to make her sink into her own warm sanctuary, then achieve a counterstrike within the appropriate and suitable scope.
Lumina's previous behavior of just cuddling and not crossing the line had given Herta a massive headache. A Lumina like that would make this step completely impossible to achieve.
And the present Lumina, however, could accomplish this goal...
The only thing was... this desire of hers was not directed at her alone.
If she was one step too slow and Lumina started acting on this idea with other beautiful girls, without concealing the desire in her heart at all...
Herta was certain that with Lumina's charm, she'd probably take down several of them in a single day...
Therefore, she absolutely could not let Lumina do this with other beautiful girls. She could only do this with her!
There was only one chance. If she missed it, the difficulty would start to skyrocket!
There was a saying that was quite fitting: high risk often comes with high reward.
And this situation was no exception.
Lumina was no longer as steady and careful not to cross the line as she used to be. Her defenses had lowered significantly, but in return, her attack power had increased much more...
So, was this ultimately a good thing or a bad thing?
Even with her small head thinking as an Emanator of Erudition, Herta couldn't figure it out for a while.
"No... no."
Just as Herta was lost in thought, the face of Castorice before her gradually turned a bit red, and she answered Lumina's words with a stutter.
Although Lumina's emotions were quickly withdrawn, Castorice had still felt them within her body.
Sister Lumina's... fiery gaze.
Was... was it an illusion?
Even if Castorice felt it was just an illusion, just imagining it in her mind, just associating it, her small face still gradually turned red.
Whether it was an illusion or a fantasy, it was all something done with Sister Lumina.
As long as she was in contact with Sister Lumina, a... shy emotion would involuntarily arise in Castorice's heart.
This emotion was hidden in Castorice's soul at all times, and every time she spent time with Sister Lumina, it would start to affect Castorice's soul over and over again.
Was this a bad thing?
No, this was a good thing.
At least, that was what Castorice thought.
She very much liked and enjoyed this feeling.
She cherished every single moment spent with Sister Lumina, every single interaction...
Earlier, in Sister Lumina's room, Castorice had listened to the stories Sister Lumina told and gained a bit of understanding of the Cosmos Beyond the Sky.
It was clear that Sister Lumina's future was destined to belong to the brilliant Cosmos.
She had only come to Amphoreus for travel.
Since it was travel, then... then one day she would leave.
So, so Castorice wanted to savor every moment spent with Sister Lumina, every single heartbeat, during this precious period of time.
Then, in the future, in the future after Sister Lumina's travel ended and she left Amphoreus, she could continuously recall and feel this emotion...
To put it simply, it was like stocking up on supplies before winter.
"Castorice? Castorice!" Looking at Castorice's current state of bowing her head, not knowing what wild thoughts she was having, Lumina called out to her gently a few times in confusion.
This brought her back to reality.
"Ah, it's... it's nothing." Hearing Sister Lumina's call, Castorice hurriedly snapped back to her senses.
"Phew..." Castorice took a deep breath, decided not to dwell on the matter any longer, and explained the message Aglaea had just sent.
"Lady Aglaea said that guy's personality is a bit... well, a little eccentric."
"She wants us to go and get some good rest first. No matter what, she will make sure we reach Styxia before Miss Stelle's time runs out."
"Uh... this, with time being so tight, and running into such an eccentric person, I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing." Hearing Castorice's explanation, Mem and Stelle exchanged a glance.
Mem floated in the air with her hands on her hips, muttering a slightly speechless complaint.
It couldn't be helped. If they weren't in a rush, she could appear whenever she pleased.
But now, Stelle only had fifteen Dawns left, and they couldn't afford to wait...
"Alright, alright, Little Sister Aglaea is a very reliable person. Since she said so, let's go back and get some rest." Lumina smiled, not paying much attention to the matter.
However, after saying this, Lumina glanced imperceptibly at a certain spot in the garden, a hint of amusement flashing in her eyes.
It was unclear whether it was mockery or endearment.
But soon, her next sentence provided the answer.
"And besides, with Little Sister Aglaea's taste, how bad could they really be?"
"She wouldn't send some random nobodies to escort us to Styxia, would she?"
Combined with Lumina's previous behavior, it was obvious that these words were addressed to that "mighty being" Aglaea mentioned, the one who would lead them to Styxia.
Lumina had sensed that "mighty being" was here long ago, but she had been hiding somewhere, observing them.
And specifically, observing Lumina.
Why? Lumina wasn't sure.
But Lumina didn't expose her.
Having a beautiful girl hide somewhere and constantly observe her was a reward for Lumina.
So Lumina quietly waited, waiting for her to come out on her own.
However, she hadn't expected her to be so patient; she hadn't come out at all this entire time.
And during this period, after initially sizing up Castorice, Stelle, Mem, and Herta, she had kept her gaze fixed on Lumina, observing her continuously, just as she was doing now.
Is my charm really this great?
To actually stand out among three beautiful girls like Herta, Castorice, and Stelle... Well, that's actually quite normal.
Even among beautiful girls, there are still differences.
Without a doubt, Lumina herself is the beautiful girl at the very top.
It makes sense for that "mighty being" to keep her gaze fixed on her.
It's just common sense, perfectly normal, perfectly normal.
Sigh, as expected, being too beautiful is also a kind of sin.
And my sin, I'm afraid, could never be fully repaid even if everyone in the entire cosmos helped me pay it back.
Lumina sighed silently, falling into an extremely narcissistic state.
"Hey! Who are you calling a random nobody?"
Just as Lumina was lost in her narcissism, a voice tinged with slight annoyance rang out from behind her, interrupting her thoughts.
"Heh."
Lumina wasn't startled by the person who suddenly appeared behind her, nor did she react in any unexpected way.
What a joke. The entire Amphoreus was within her range of perception.
How could a mere little kitten escape her eyes?
"Miss Cipher, you are the... Demigod that Lady Aglaea mentioned, who can guide us to Styxia, right?"
Castorice obviously recognized the person who had suddenly appeared, and after greeting her, she asked softly.
Hearing this, everyone also turned around, their gazes falling on Cipher, drawing all their attention to her.
The newcomer was a beautiful girl, a good-looking beautiful girl, a fresh beautiful girl, a beautiful girl who could attract Lumina's attention.
This was Cipher as seen through Lumina's eyes.
And Cipher as seen through everyone else's eyes was a silver-white short-haired girl, with blue eyes, wearing a modified hood, and a tail behind her, overall looking like a large kitten.
"That's right, I am the 'mighty being' the Seamstress spoke of." Cipher seemed to quite enjoy being called a "mighty being."
But in the next second, her tone changed: "But I never said I would take you to Styxia."
Cipher stood with her hands on her hips, a faint smile on her exquisite face.
"Huh?" Hearing this reply, Castorice froze for a moment, not knowing what to say.
"Let's put that topic aside for now." Lumina looked at Cipher with a gentle expression and asked softly, "Miss Cipher, I'd like to ask, why were you observing me all this time?"
"You've been here for a while, haven't you?"
"Huh?" Hearing this, Cipher was clearly surprised that Lumina had noticed her.
But she quickly dismissed the thought, waved her hand, and smiled faintly. "Of course I was observing you to see if you had anything worth stealing."
After saying that, Cipher looked Lumina up and down, then spread her hands helplessly. "As it turns out, you don't have a single piece of jewelry on your whole body, you're plain as can be. There was really nothing worth stealing, so I came out."
"However..." Cipher paused for a moment, then lowered her head to look at Lumina's bare feet exposed beneath her skirt. "You're not even wearing shoes?"
"Heh." Lumina smiled faintly, not answering immediately.
Instead, she leaned in close to Cipher's ear and whispered:
"Miss... Cipher."
"You wouldn't want people to find out that you're maintaining the Dawn Device with a single lie, would you?"