The celebration afterward sohow beca even more chaotic.
Nobles flooded the castle halls discussing Lilith’s awakening while rumors spread faster than wildfire throughout the estate.
So called her a genius blessed by mana itself.
Others whispered that the rumors about the Nightbane heir being cursed had to be true.
anwhile, Lilith had sohow escaped the endless crowd of nobles and dragged onto one of the castle balconies overlooking the capital below.
The cool night air felt refreshing after the suffocating atmosphere inside the ceremonial hall.
For several monts, neither of us spoke.
Then suddenly—
"You noticed, didn’t you?"
I froze slightly.
Lilith leaned against the balcony railing while staring out toward the city lights below.
"Noticed what?" I asked carefully.
She turned toward slowly.
"That sothing was wrong with the awakening ceremony."
My expression stiffened.
For a second, I considered pretending not to understand.
But knowing Lilith, she would probably see through it instantly.
"...Maybe," I admitted cautiously.
Lilith smiled faintly.
"I knew it."
"How?"
She tilted her head slightly before answering in a strangely casual tone.
"Because I’ve been studying your face for years."
"...What?"
Lilith looked completely serious.
"You make a very specific expression whenever you’re confused or nervous," she explained. "Your left eyebrow twitches slightly, and your eyes narrow a little."
I stared at her blankly.
Why did she know that?
More importantly—
Why had she apparently spent enough ti watching to morize my facial expressions?
"You’re overanalyzing my face," I muttered.
Lilith giggled softly.
"Maybe."
The wind gently swept through her long black hair as she looked back toward the distant city.
For a brief mont, the atmosphere between us felt calm again.
Then Lilith suddenly spoke.
"Your awakening ceremony is only a few months away now."
Right.
I had almost forgotten amidst all the chaos.
I would turn thirteen soon as well.
My own mana capacity would finally awaken.
Honestly, even I had no idea what rank I would end up with.
Probably C-rank if I was lucky.
Maybe B-rank if genetics decided to bless .
"I’m excited," Lilith admitted quietly.
"You sound more excited than I am."
"Of course I am," she replied imdiately. "I want to see what rank you’ll get."
I chuckled lightly.
"Well, don’t expect anything too crazy."
Lilith remained silent for a mont.
Then, unexpectedly—
Her expression dimd slightly.
"...Once you awaken," she said softly, "you’ll probably leave the Aldric Territory soday, won’t you?"
The question caught off guard.
I hesitated briefly before answering honestly.
"...Probably."
I still wanted to travel the world.
That dream had never changed.
For a brief mont, Lilith lowered her gaze.
The faint sadness in her eyes almost made my chest tighten.
But before I could say anything—
She suddenly stepped closer.
"Lilith?"
She looked up at silently.
Then—
Before my brain could properly process what was happening—
She lightly kissed .
Directly on the lips.
My entire body froze.
The world itself seed to stop functioning.
It only lasted a second.
Maybe two.
But by the ti Lilith pulled away, my brain had completely shut down.
Lilith stared at my stunned expression before a faint blush appeared on her cheeks.
"...There," she mumbled quietly.
I continued staring at her in absolute disbelief.
anwhile, Lilith quickly looked away while pretending to focus on the city below.
"...You looked too calm," she muttered defensively.
My mind struggled desperately to recover.
Did I just—
Did she actually—
The cool night wind swept across the balcony once more.
For the briefest mont, faint strands of dark purple mana shimred near Lilith’s fingertips before disappearing entirely into the night.
Little did I know, this simple kiss had changed the course of my entire life.
—————-
The next morning, I woke up far earlier than I wanted to.
Mostly because soone was aggressively shaking awake.
"Leo."
I buried my face deeper into the pillow.
"Go away."
"Leo."
"Please let die peacefully."
A few seconds of silence passed.
Then suddenly—
My blanket vanished.
I imdiately sat upright in panic only to find Lilith standing beside my bed with my blanket folded neatly in her arms.
"You’re slow," she said calmly.
I stared at her in disbelief.
"It’s not even sunrise."
"Exactly."
"That is not a normal ti for humans to be awake."
Lilith ignored my complaints entirely.
"Get dressed," she ordered. "I’m showing you the city today."
Before I could protest further, she turned around and walked toward the door.
"...You’re terrifying in the mornings," I muttered.
"I heard that."
Of course she did.
About half an hour later, I finally finished getting ready before eting Lilith outside one of the castle entrances.
Unlike yesterday’s extravagant ceremonial outfit, she now wore a much simpler dark purple dress with a black cloak draped over her shoulders.
Even dressed casually, however, she still attracted attention from nearly everyone nearby.
Several knights imdiately bowed the mont they saw her.
"Good morning, Lady Lilith."
Lilith gave a small nod before grabbing my wrist again.
"Co on."
"You really like dragging people around."
"You complain too much."
The two of us eventually exited the castle grounds and entered the capital city below.
Almost imdiately, the atmosphere changed.
The city was alive.
rchants shouted from crowded market stalls while carriages rolled through the streets. Knights patrolled the roads in organized formations, and countless civilians moved throughout the capital beneath the towering black walls surrounding the city.
It was incredible.
Compared to the quieter Aldric Territory, the Nightbane capital felt enormous and energetic.
Lilith proudly watched my reaction.
"See? I told you it was amazing."
"...Okay, I admit it," I said reluctantly. "This place is pretty impressive."
Lilith smiled triumphantly.
For the next several hours, she enthusiastically dragged across almost the entire city.
She showed massive training arenas where Nightbane knights sparred using magic powerful enough to crack stone.
She showed enormous libraries filled with ancient spellbooks.
At one point, she even forced into an expensive bakery because she apparently wanted to "experience proper desserts."
"You’re spending an alarming amount of money," I pointed out while staring at the pile of sweets she had bought.
Lilith blinked.
"...Is this a lot?"
"You bought enough food to feed a family."
"Oh."
Despite her response, she still continued buying more.
Apparently, the concept of financial restraint simply did not exist for Nightbane nobles.
Eventually, we ended up wandering through one of the larger market districts near the center of the capital.
The streets here were even more crowded than before.
rchants sold everything imaginable.
Weapons.
Magical artifacts.
Jewelry.
Rare monster materials.
At one stall, I even spotted mana crystals glowing faintly beneath a glass display.
Lilith suddenly stopped walking.
I nearly crashed into her.
"What now?"
Instead of answering, she pointed toward a small stand nearby.
A jeweler.
More specifically—
A jewelry stand displaying silver rings and necklaces.
I imdiately felt danger.
Lilith stared at the display silently for several seconds before turning toward .
"Leo."
"No."
"I didn’t even ask anything yet."
"I can already tell this conversation is dangerous."
Lilith puffed her cheeks slightly before grabbing my sleeve again.
"Co look with ."
Against my better judgnt, I allowed myself to be dragged over.
The elderly shopkeeper imdiately brightened the mont he recognized Lilith.
"Lady Lilith! It’s an honor!"
Lilith nodded politely before continuing to examine the jewelry.
anwhile, I awkwardly stood beside her while several nearby civilians secretly stared at us.
More specifically—
At the fact that the duke’s daughter was casually holding onto so random boy’s sleeve.
Yeah.
That definitely looked suspicious politically.
Lilith eventually picked up a small silver pendant shaped like a crescent moon.
"What do you think?" she asked.
"It looks nice."
"You said that without even looking."
I glanced at it properly.
"...Okay, it actually does look nice."
Lilith smiled faintly before purchasing it without hesitation.
Then unexpectedly—
She turned toward and held it out.
"For you."
I blinked.
"...Why?"
"Because I wanted to."
That was apparently the only explanation I was getting.
After several seconds of hesitation, I eventually accepted it.
"Thanks."
Lilith looked strangely happy at those words.
The rest of the afternoon passed surprisingly peacefully after that.
At so point, we ended up sitting together near one of the fountains close to the center plaza while watching people move throughout the city.
For once, Lilith sat quietly beside without dragging sowhere.
The setting sun bathed the capital in warm orange light while the distant castle overlooked the city from above.
"It’s loud here," I comnted.
Lilith tilted her head slightly.
"In a bad way?"
"No," I admitted. "It’s... nice."
The corner of Lilith’s lips lifted slightly.
Then, after a brief mont of silence, she quietly rested her head against my shoulder.
I stiffened slightly from the sudden contact.
Lilith, anwhile, looked completely relaxed.
"...You’re warm," she mumbled softly.
"You say weird things sotis."
"And you ruin nice monts."
I let out a small sigh but ultimately said nothing else.
As I sat there beside her watching the bustling capital below the evening sky, it beca harder and harder to connect this girl with the terrifying Void Witch from the original story.
Right now—
Lilith simply felt like Lilith.
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