Chapter 213: Candy
For Sigurd, this dinner was the liveliest he'd had in over half a month.
The previous days had been spent with Bronya. While her company was warm and comforting, it was also a bit too quiet. Being reunited with these lively and endearing girls brought back a sense of normalcy he hadn't felt in a while.
After dinner, Rozaliya and Liliya still wanted to cling to Sigurd. However, the fatigue of the past few days seemed to catch up with them. After chatting about all sorts of nonsense for a while, they fell asleep curled up on either side of Sigurd, each using one of his thighs as a pillow on the large sofa.
"You're unusually quiet today. That's not like you," Sigurd said, turning to Kiana, who was seated on a nearby chair.
The other girls were nowhere to be seen; perhaps they had other things to attend to. It wouldn't be surprising if this was Bronya's arrangement, either out of thoughtfulness or—more likely—her urgency to have Sigurd and Kiana clear the air, so she could openly declare her new relationship with him.
Sigurd sighed silently. At this point, he wasn't particularly nervous anymore. It was something he had to do—find a moment alone to tell Kiana and comfort her through what might turn into a tearful ordeal. Though… it was still quite a headache.
Kiana rolled her eyes at him and pressed a finger to her lips.
"Shhh! Keep your voice down. Those two have been exhausted recently; let them rest."
"And what about you? Learned anything new?"
"Hehe! Nope!"
Kiana sat backward on the chair, leaning over the backrest as she shook her head mischievously.
Sigurd frowned at her.
"Nothing to show for it?"
"What can I do? Wendy, Seele, and Mei—they're all proper Herrschers who've made peace with their other selves and can begin honing their Herrscher abilities. But me… you know my situation. It's different."
Kiana folded her arms over the backrest and rested her chin on her pale arms, speaking in an indifferent tone.
But Sigurd could see the disappointment in her eyes.
"She won't compromise, huh?"
"Of course not. All I can feel from her is hatred and rage. She has no goodwill toward this world—not even a shred… I think."
Kiana spoke, her expression distant, before letting out a long, helpless sigh.
What she didn't say was that even if the part of her deep within her soul could reconcile with the world, Kiana herself could never accept that part of her. The conflict between them seemed utterly unsolvable.
"Then don't force it. Take whatever power you can wrest from the Herrscher of the Void, and leave the rest for now. I'll figure out a way to remove her from your soul—or at least seal her."
"Mm, I'll leave it to you, Sig… Ah, now that I think about it, I've been saying that my whole life! Every time, it's the same line. Don't get tired of me being such a bother, okay?"
"No shaking you off, I guess. I'm helpless here too."
"Hey! At least give me some dignity, dummy."
Kiana whispered with a blush of annoyance and embarrassment, her face tinged pink.
Sigurd merely looked at her quietly. In this moment, his silence spoke volumes.
They sat in comfortable proximity, not touching but simply keeping each other company.
They stayed like that until late at night, ensuring the two girls asleep on Sigurd's lap were deeply slumbering.
Then, the two of them carried the sisters back to their room and tucked them in.
As soon as they stepped out, Kiana leapt onto Sigurd's back, burying her face near his neck and inhaling deeply.
"Sig's scent… I missed it so much."
"That makes you sound like a pervert."
"It's my way of showing I missed you! Did you miss me, Sig?"
"…"
Sigurd instinctively adjusted his grip to support her, worried she might fall off. He didn't respond aloud, but a thought flickered through his mind—it did feel nice.
As for missing her… Well, he did, but having spent so much time with Bronya, he wasn't sure if his longing reached the same intensity as Kiana's.
His silence earned him a dissatisfied poke on the head from Kiana.
"Hey! This is when you're supposed to say you missed me—every moment of every day. Got it?"
"I'll say it next time."
"Fine, Sigurd's still a bit clueless, but I'll teach you slowly."
"…Alright."
Sigurd agreed, conceding the point.
Romance was an area where he lacked experience. He would have to find time to learn. After all, he owed it to Kiana to be considerate of her feelings— Oh, and now Bronya's too.
Carrying Kiana on his back, Sigurd slowly made his way outside and asked,
"Wanna take a walk on the rooftop?"
"Sure! Anywhere is fine as long as it's with you, Sig. Ehehe!"
Kiana responded with boundless enthusiasm.
Sigurd carried her to the rooftop.
Under the crescent moon's silver light and amidst the gentle sea breeze, the stars above created a serene, comforting atmosphere.
"Get down."
Sigurd patted her thigh, loosening his grip.
But Kiana tightened her legs around him and refused, her soft voice playful.
"Nooo~~"
She wasn't about to let go.
After finally resolving her inner turmoil and confessing her feelings to Sigurd, she was thrown into the chaos of the massive Far East Honkai eruption. Once that was dealt with, she had to part from Sigurd again to continue mastering her Herrscher powers.
After all this back-and-forth, it felt like nothing had changed since before her confession.
Now that she finally had the chance to be alone with Sigurd, Kiana wished she had a bottle of super glue to stick herself to him permanently. How could she easily let go?
Yet, as she clung to Sigurd with sweet satisfaction, Kiana couldn't help but glance around suspiciously.
"Strange… why is Sin Mal so quiet today? That's not like her at all!"
"...Probably with Bronya."
"Hmm, could be. That girl is always so distracted, unlike me—I'm wholeheartedly devoted to you, Sig. That line's a good one, right? Remember to give me bonus affection points for it!"
Kiana spoke with an air of seriousness. Because she was perched on Sigurd's back, she didn't catch the subtle expression that flickered across his face for a brief moment.
Resigned, Sigurd once again supported her small frame and sighed.
"Do you think this is some kind of dating sim?"
"Hehe, if it were a dating sim, it'd be great! At least I'd get to see a progress bar. Unlike now—you've been such a blockhead for so long and haven't even said you like me… I mean, I can wait, but… it still makes me uneasy."
Kiana's tone gradually grew a little despondent. Then, as if to alleviate her feelings of insecurity, she hugged Sigurd even tighter.
Sigurd fell silent.
What now? Was there anyone who could teach him a ready-made cheesy line to ease this situation?
After hesitating for a moment, Sigurd sighed and released her.
"Get down. I'll give you some candy."
"Nope! You can give it to me now. Ahhh~"
Kiana leaned forward, peeking over Sigurd's shoulder with her mouth wide open.
In response, Sigurd flicked her lightly on the forehead.
Kiana stuck out her tongue playfully, finally letting go. She hopped down and stood in front of Sigurd, holding out her hands expectantly, her big eyes blinking with anticipation.
Sigurd placed a small, transparent capsule in her palms.
Kiana tossed it into her mouth without hesitation.
"Hmm? It's bitter!"
Suddenly, Sigurd reached out and covered her mouth firmly.
"Swallow it."
"Mm!?"
A few seconds later, the rapidly dissolving pill went down her throat.
As Sigurd let go, Kiana covered her throat, grimacing in bitterness as she spun in place and stomped her feet in frustration in front of him.
"You tricked me! That wasn't candy!"
"It's a supplement to counteract the physical toll of Herrscher powers. You're supposed to take it once a week, and also after every use of the Void Herrscher's abilities. Remember to take it on schedule."
Sigurd held up another transparent capsule, waved it in front of her, then tucked it into the pocket of her shirt.
Kiana puffed out her cheeks in indignation.
"Fine, but why does it have to taste so awful? Can't they add some sugar to it?"
"If it were sweet, I'd worry you'd use your powers more often just to eat it."
"Do I look like the kind of person who would do that?!"
"…"
After a moment of silence, Sigurd replied,
"It's late. Let's go back to sleep."
"Wait a minute! Why were you silent just now?!"
"I was… trying to be considerate of your feelings and dignity?" Sigurd replied hesitantly.
"Argh!"
Kiana lunged forward, baring her teeth and pretending to bite Sigurd's neck. In the end, she couldn't bring herself to actually bite him. Instead, she left behind a tiny trace of glistening saliva but no bite marks.
"Meanie!"
"Yes, I'm a meanie."
"Bully!"
"Well then, how about I give you real candy?"
"Yay!"
Kiana finally got a real piece of candy—milk-flavored, rich and creamy. Under the moonlight, her delighted smile bloomed like a flower, sweet and radiant.
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