Upstairs in Lys and Selene's room, Lys sat on the edge of the bed while Selene stood behind him. She worked a dry towel through his damp hair with steady hands, her fingers brushing against his scalp every few strokes. The faint scent of soap still clung to his skin from the bath.
"Your hair has gotten long, Lys," Selene said softly, almost to herself. "It's past your ears now. You should cut it soon, before it starts getting in the way of your eyesight."
Lys nodded absently, but he wasn't really listening. His eyes stayed fixed on the corner of the room where his sword leaned against the wall. The cursed bow rested right beside it, propped up where he had left both weapons earlier. Both of them were in the same room with him now.
To check his earlier theory, he focused on the sword first and opened the system screen in his mind.
[Cursed Sword of the Fallen Witch]
Level 1: 128/200
Skill Points: 10
Skills: Sword-Shield (Level 1 - Upgrade requirement: 5 Skill Points)
Cursed Object Attributes: Corrupt Mana Absorption, Experience Absorption
The screen appeared clearly, without any lag. Lys made a mental note of that, 'So the sword's system screen works just as I thought, Huh? If just being around it I can see its status screen, then maybe the bow works the same way. Let's check once to be sure.'
He closed the sword's screen with a thought and turned his attention to the bow and tried to open its interface.
[Cursed Object Detected]
[Note: If the Host reaches the threshold of understanding and forms a bond with this object, the active curse affecting others through this bow can be broken.]
[Host has not yet reached the threshold of understanding for this object.]
The same locked message as before showed up in front of him. Lys stared at it for a few seconds, frowning slightly. The bow stayed silent, no new information appearing, however much he tried.
Suddenly, surprising him, a light slap landed on the back of his head.
"Hey," Selene said, stepping around to stand in front of him with her hands on her hips. "Are you even listening to me?"
"Yeah, of course," Lys answered quickly, looking up at her.
Selene tilted her head and waited, one eyebrow raised.
Lys gave her a small smile that didn't hide anything. The smile said he had missed most of what she was saying just now.
Selene let out a long breath through her nose. Before she could say anything else, Lys spoke up. "Do you know anything about enchanted bows? Especially cursed ones?"
Selene blinked at the sudden change in topic. She lowered her hands from her hips. "Not really. That kind of thing isn't my area. The church library has records on cursed objects and weapon enchantments, though. If you want real answers, we'd need to go there."
She paused for a second before saying, "It would need Father's permission first, of course."
Lys hummed to himself, already thinking about when he could make time to visit the church. With everything happening at the guild and the dungeon break looming, it wouldn't be easy to find time for researching the bow, obviously. Not to mention he can't read yet. If he wanted to research anything, Selene would need to go with him.
Once again, seeing him drift off into his thoughts, Selene turned away from him. She crossed her arms tightly, a clear pout forming on her face. This is the second time he had done this to her in one short conversation.
The sight of Selene pouting pulled Lys out of his head immediately. He stood up, crossed the short distance, and wrapped his arms around her from behind before she could step away from him. He leaned down, his voice quiet near her ear. "I'll go and cut my hair tomorrow. Okay? Now don't be angry at me, please!"
Selene stiffened for a moment, then turned her head slightly toward him. "So You Were listening."
Before she could finish the sentence, Lys kissed her. It was quick and warm, catching her right in the middle of her words, while turning to him. She pulled back a little, her cheeks flushed.
"Fool," she said, though her voice lacked any real heat. "That trick is not going to work on me every time you do that. I'm not some little girl."
Lys smiled and pressed his face gently against the side of her neck, brushing his nose and lips there. "Then will you tell me which trick will work for you?"
Selene tried to slip out of his arms, but he tightened his hold just enough to keep her close.
She shifted, clearly thinking of what to say next, when Elara's voice carried up the stairwell from below.
"Lys? Are you coming down?"
The moment that was clearly building between them just now broke instantly with this call from downstairs. Lys let go of Selene and headed for the door, running a hand through his now mostly dry hair.
Selene called after him, a small smile on her face that she didn't try to hide, "If you take too long, I'll be asleep by the time you get back. So, better hurry, bad boy."
Lys glanced over his shoulder with a naughty grin. "Yeah, I won't be long."
He stepped out and headed downstairs, the wooden steps creaking softly under his feet as the low voices from the dining table grew clearer.