Chapter 293
Theo shook his head slowly, a gesture that was not a rejection, but an attempt to clear his confusion while processing everything that had just been placed before him.
Once again, he acknowledged that ordinary human logic and norms would never be sufficient to fully understand the being beside him.
Aldraya's words, which to anyone else would have sounded excessive and overly vulgar, instead shone with a purity of their own.
It was a language that fit Aldraya perfectly.
Direct, without social layers, without any understanding of the human concepts of "love" or "seduction."
Yet within that flat, emotionless straightforwardness, Theo saw something deeply fragile, a blind trust that was slowly beginning to bloom like a sprout in barren soil.
Aldraya, in her own way, was opening a door that had long been tightly locked.
With that understanding crystallizing in his chest, a gentle nod finally came from Theo.
It was a fully conscious acceptance.
He agreed, not to immediately make use of that extraordinary permission, but as a silent promise to be attentive.
To pay closer attention to Aldraya's condition, to read every subtle signal in her lifeless gaze, and to understand the needs hidden behind every plain word she spoke.
It was a responsibility he accepted seriously.
And if the time truly came, if Aldraya genuinely needed a simple form of physical comfort, Theo promised himself that he would give it.
Not as an act filled with passion, but as a gentle caress, a soothing touch.
Perhaps it would be nothing more than a soft stroke across Aldraya's cool, supple cheeks, like touching fragile, precious porcelain, a pure gesture meant to say, "I am here, and I understand."
That would be the language he would use to repay the trust that had been given to him.
Before another word could be spoken, the world around them suddenly moved.
A sharp hiss was followed by the thunderous roar of machinery that seemed to drive straight into the bones.
The flying saucer ride came to life, beginning to rotate slowly before swinging upward with ever-increasing speed.
'Ignore the surrounding gazes. Focus only on Aldraya and the RWIA data.'
"OH MY GOD, IT'S SO HIGH! I'M SCARED, ERIETTA!"
"I'M SORRY, ILUX! TRULY, THIS IS MY FAULT—I SHOULDN'T HAVE MOCKED YOU EARLIER!"
Amid the sudden vortex of sensations, between the pull of opposing gravity and the rush of battering wind, Theo deliberately isolated himself from the collective reactions around him.
The screams, nervous laughter, and groans of other passengers floated in the air like distant background noise.
His focus was not divided by them in the slightest.
All of his concentration centered on two main points.
The calm, silent presence of Aldraya beside him, and the continuous feedback streaming from his inner radar, RWIA, faithfully monitoring everything happening between Ilux and Erietta.
Through the refined observational channel he had activated, Theo received direct reports from the emotional field ahead of them.
As the ride's speed was gradually increased, lifting them farther from the ground and daring the sky, two distinct yet directly connected reactions were recorded.
Ilux, with his usual toughness, finally broke.
A raw scream filled with fear burst from his chest, a candid confession of his anxiety toward the immense height separating him from the ground.
On the other hand, Erietta, usually confident and full of teasing remarks, produced an unexpected response.
Amid the whipping wind and the flutter of her green hair, her normally lively voice was heard apologizing, an admission of regret for all the jokes and taunts she had thrown at Ilux before, as if this thrilling experience had awakened her awareness of his presence and feelings.
"AHAHAHA! NOT FAST ENOUGH! THIS IS—"
"—FUN! BUT IT STILL DOESN'T PUSH MY ADRENALINE ENOUGH, ILUX!"
"RIGHT! THIS IS CRAZY… THIS… IS… AWESOME… BUT…"
"…THEY COULD… GO… EVEN… HARDER—HAHAHA!"
Time moved in cycles of rotations and swings, each one carrying them higher and faster than before.
The beginning, colored by screams of fear, gradually underwent a metamorphosis.
As the ride's velocity was periodically increased, crashing through the boundaries of their initial fear, something else emerged from within Ilux and Erietta.
The fear that had once been pure and breath-constricting began to blend, then be replaced, by a new sensation.
Liberating joy.
Their laughter erupted almost simultaneously, spontaneous and clear, piercing through the increasingly violent roar of the wind.
It was no longer nervous or breathless laughter, but free laughter, filled with an acknowledgment of unexpected pleasure.
Surrounded by fierce winds that struck their faces and nearly tore their words away, both mouths still struggled to form sound.
With effort, yet burning enthusiasm, Ilux and Erietta merged their voices into a shared shout of understanding.
They declared loudly and confidently—though their words were fragmented by the rushing air—that this ride, which had initially seemed terrifying, was in fact "far too lacking in tension."
'Both of them are crazy. Perfectly matched.'
Amid the carnival of swirling sounds, a striking pattern emerged like a consistent melody within chaotic noise.
While the screams of fear and sighs of relief from other passengers rose and fell with the rhythm of the ride's swings, Ilux's and Erietta's laughter persisted with an anomalous frequency.
Their laughter was not occasional, but continuous, lighthearted giggles brimming with energy, as if they were not being tossed about at great heights, but enjoying a delightful game on level ground.
Their cheerful voices twisted through the crashing wind, creating a contrast that was almost incomprehensible against the tense atmosphere surrounding them.
Theo, receiving direct feedback from his RWIA, could only shake his head gently from his distant seat.
Within that small shake lay layers of deep understanding.
He was no longer merely seeing two teenagers having fun; he was seeing two characters he knew extremely well, both through a game screen and through real interactions.
He understood with certainty that their extraordinary reactions were not coincidence or simple bravery.
A conclusion that was faintly comforting, yet also slightly troubling, crystallized in his mind.
Both Ilux, the protagonist of the game Flo Viva Mythology, known for his often reckless determination, and Erietta, the cold and calculating main boss of the first arc who was in fact a student he had personally trained, shared a common thread beneath their seemingly different personalities.
The two of them, in their own ways, were fundamentally what could be called "crazy."
Not crazy in the sense of disorder, but a deviation from normal reactions, a tendency to find joy or focus precisely in situations that, for others, were pure pressure and fear.
'No fear, no excessive excitement. Still the same as always.'
He drew a deep breath, diving once more to the surface from the depths of his own ocean of consciousness.
Within that subconscious space, his four guardians, RWIA, continued their duty flawlessly, projecting stable and unwavering waves of observation toward Ilux and Erietta, recording every laugh and interaction amid the vortex of wind.
After ensuring that his internal surveillance system was running automatically, Theo physically shifted his presence.
To be continued…