"It looks like you two are getting along quite well." Kiana's mom watched as the two girls came downstairs one after the other. Just a glance at the atmosphere told her everything, and she couldn't help but smile warmly.
"Mhm, Mama~"
Elysia chirped happily, "Kiana looks so adorable when she's asleep. But what I love most, of course, is how she looks right after waking up—all drowsy and dazed, like an innocent little fawn."
"Plus, the way she gets all tsundere, or when she's just a little bit annoyed… it's all so fun, and so incredibly cute~"
"Yep yep! I really like it! Thank you, Mama…"
She chattered on without pause.
Kiana's mom nodded with a gentle smile and gave her a playful wink.
Elysia responded with a grin of her own—shy in a way, yet bright and blooming like a flower.
Meanwhile—
Kiana, who was grabbing a drink from the fridge, suddenly overheard their conversation. Her head whipped around instantly, and she stared in disbelief—first at her own mother, then at Elysia over there.
First of all—
If her mom hadn't agreed, Elysia probably wouldn't have come into her room.
Even if it wasn't her mom's idea directly, it had to have been Elysia who suggested it.
In fact, she was pretty sure it was more likely the latter.
But who would've thought!
It was her mom who brought it up first.
"Mom! You sold me out!" she couldn't help protesting.
Second—
Elysia… you just got here today!
And you're already calling her 'Mama'?
"And another thing!"
"That's my mom, not yours!"
"..."
Did she actually dislike it?
No—it was just plain embarrassing!
It felt like she'd woken up to find the sky had fallen.
And the only one on her side was herself…
Oh.
Maybe not even herself anymore.
How could Kiana not panic?
"What's the big deal~?" Kiana's mom covered her mouth, suppressing a giggle.
Elysia nodded seriously, putting on a straight face. "Well, you are my fiancée, after all. Your mother is my mother. Since I'll be calling her that sooner or later, what's wrong with me getting a little practice in early?"
She sounded utterly convinced.
"You're supposed to be my wife…" Kiana muttered under her breath, too drained to argue properly.
It wasn't that she disliked Elysia.
If she did, she wouldn't have set Elysia up to be her future wife in the first place.
Elysia's love was universal—she loved everyone, all of humanity equally.
Without some special setting, or a little behind-the-scenes manipulation like this, trying to win Elysia over would be pretty much impossible.
But still!
How many times was this now?
Anyway.
Kiana was genuinely starting to regret it.
Regret setting Elysia up like this.
The same one who brings success can also bring defeat.
In both her past life and this one, she'd never been in a relationship—she was completely inexperienced, utterly clueless.
And Elysia was on a whole other level.
There was no way Kiana could handle her.
Wasn't she just making things harder for herself?
A level-zero scrub facing the Dragon right out the gate?
Might as well just deliver herself on a silver platter.
Sorry, but I'm basically takeout.jpg~
Kiana wisely decided not to press the issue any further. Better to just let it go.
She poured herself a glass of coconut milk and gulped it down in one go.
Interestingly, even though Elysia was the type to trade sincerity for sincerity, she also knew how to read people and adjust accordingly.
If she weren't clever—
There was no way she could've traveled the world as a child and come back completely unscathed.
Though it was probably the power of Origin protecting her unconsciously.
Still, she'd met all kinds of people, interacted with them, communicated, connected—if she hadn't learned anything from all that, she wouldn't be who she was now.
As the social butterfly of Fire Moth—
Everyone adored her.
That might sound simple, but it was actually pretty incredible.
Don't assume human nature is always kind. There's no shortage of people who'd badmouth you or envy you out of spite.
She must have had her share of tough times, moments of frustration too.
But she always faced them with a smile, cheerfully spreading that brightness to everyone around her.
Maybe a girl like this could only exist in fiction.
Where would you ever find someone like that in real life?
Kiana quietly ate the breakfast her mom had prepared while stealing glances at Elysia.
Deep down, she understood.
If she hadn't set things up so that Elysia was her fiancée in name, or nudged the future in that direction, then even if she and Elysia became close later, at best, they'd only be as close as, say, Eden was with her.
And she didn't want that.
If she had to choose someone to love—
She felt Elysia was perfect.
She'd already loved her so much in her past life.
In this life, she loved her even more.
Thinking of it that way…
She didn't regret sneaking in those little personal touches during the celestial projection video.
I mean—
If she hadn't done that, would Elysia be showing up at her door like this now?
Of course, it wasn't like Elysia was the only one she liked.
She wasn't the type to change 'waifus' every other day, but her collection of 2D loves was pretty much always growing.
Just talking about the Previous Era, it wasn't hard to guess who'd be on that list.
Heck, when she revealed her future through the celestial projection, she'd intentionally exposed the women who'd nominally be by her side—all part of her little scheme.
She wanted to stake her claim first.
But still!
Kiana ate her breakfast quietly.
And reflected a little.
She felt like her first meeting with Elysia hadn't gone that well.
She'd been too passive.
Hadn't stood her ground at all.
This wouldn't do!
Getting outmaneuvered by a glass cannon? How pathetic~
She decided then and there to take the initiative later.
"Elysia."
"Can't hear you~" Elysia sang playfully, though she'd clearly heard. She looked at Kiana as though hinting at something.
Kiana paused for a second, then suddenly realized what she meant. She took a deep breath, her cheeks flushing slightly.
"El… Ell…"
"Too quiet~" Elysia cooed, deliberately acting spoiled.
She even lifted a hand, cupping it behind her ear as if straining to hear, teasing Kiana all the while.
That got Kiana's blood boiling again.
"Ellie!"
"Yes! Mhm… Ellie is here!" Elysia cheered, skipping closer.
Kiana pretended to be completely unbothered and spoke calmly, "Later, I'm going out to buy some things. Do you… wanna come along for a walk?"
"Aww~ Is my dear Kiana inviting me? How lovely!" Elysia clasped her hands together near her chest, looking thrilled, as if she'd just been given a reward.
That only made Kiana feel even more embarrassed.
Was all this really necessary?
"So, are you coming or not?" she asked.
"Of course! Absolutely!"
Elysia beamed. "No matter when or where, Elysia will always be by your side~"
"By the way, where are we going?" she asked.
"The shopping district," Kiana replied.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.