Benjamin had just left not long ago.
Before Annan and Salvatore could find a place to rest, Kafney hurried over following closely behind Jiu’er and the others.
Annan appropriately voiced his doubt.
In fact, he had learned from the forum a short while ago that Kafney was on her way to him.
If she didn’t have trouble finding the way, she even considered coming over by herself.
Scared, Jiu’er and the others quickly stopped Kafney—
This was a CG-level battle between Truth Rank and False God; are you coming to feed or to cause chaos?
What if you get killed by an unidentified AOE?
The players can revive, and the protagonist definitely can’t die, but what about you NPCs?
...Fortunately, the freedom of this "game" was very high, and Kafney was actually willing to listen to their explanation.
After Jiu’er patiently and tactfully explained to her that "Annan had used the Philosopher’s Stone," "He is in a duel with the husband, and cannot accept help," "Silver Baron is nearby watching over Annan," "The level of the battle is beyond your involvement," and other information, Kafney obediently and meekly nodded her head.
She did not ask how Jiu’er knew all this, but simply said softly, "I understand," and followed Jiu’er and the others over, watching from a distance of two streets away without entering the battle zone on her own.
Of course, even if Annan knew about these things, he would still have to politely ask...
After all, according to the setup, he wasn’t supposed to know about these things.
Jiu’er once again took on the role of diplomat and explained to Annan: "We also encountered many monsters on our side, but we didn’t see Soul Reapers until the end.
"Princess Kafney was worried that Lord you might be in trouble here, so she asked us to lead the way and hurried over immediately."
"There’s no need for that."
Kafney’s voice was somewhat ethereal, soft and slightly hoarse as she fixated her gaze on Annan with those clear, ruby-like, anomalous pupils: "Prince Annan... surely knows we’ve come."
Annan was taken aback for a moment.
He certainly knew—since he could see the forum and read the exchanges between the players.
But how did Kafney know?
Was this also a manifestation of the Martial Monk’s perceptive abilities?
"—It’s the heart, Your Highness."
Kafney seemed to know what Annan was thinking.
She continued to stare at Annan, stepped forward, placed her hand over her heart, and spoke softly, "I can see your heart."
He was somewhat puzzled... was his expression that obvious?
Seeing Kafney slowly approaching him, Annan subconsciously took a half step back.
But Kafney immediately took two steps forward and grabbed Annan’s hand.
Relief and a soothing look appeared in her eyes immediately.
—It wasn’t until then.
When Annan noticed the relieved expression in Kafney’s eyes, he finally realized something.
He had felt that something was off from the beginning.
Why Kafney was so close to him, why he always felt something was not quite right...
Her attitude towards him was not like "fondness," nor "admiration"... it was more like "attachment," even "dependency."
It was as if... Kafney was wrapped in some kind of pain, but when she was near Annan, or even just looked at Annan, the pain would lessen or even disappear.
...But do I have such an ability?
Annan was somewhat puzzled.
—No, that’s not right.
He came to a realization.
He seemed... indeed, to have it.
His soul’s true nature, reflected in the mirror, just by looking could lessen, or even directly clear the degree of Erosion.
And Kafney had not yet established a silver Curse Binding, her own degree of Erosion should have long been overloaded... although for some unknown reason, it hadn’t turned her into a monster, but the overloaded Erosion degree would certainly bring her some kind of pain.
"Are you able to... see my essence?"
Annan leaned in close to Kafney’s ear and asked softly.
Kafney lifted her head, hesitated a bit, but still nodded gently.
Annan’s eyes lit up immediately.
He asked in pursuit, "Do you recognize it?"
Kafney nodded, but then hesitated and shook her head, not answering.
"I... am not quite sure."
Perhaps the goodwill wasn’t sufficient yet.
After all, there would be plenty of opportunities to ask later, as this was just the first meeting. It wouldn’t do to push her too hard.
Even though this beautiful girl seemed quite forgiving towards Annan, he understood that this forgiveness and trust were not reasons for Annan to do as he pleased.
Just as Salvatore’s trust and indulgence couldn’t serve as an excuse for Annan to use him at will.
Kindness should be met with kindness, not taken for granted or even seen as a sign of weakness.
This was a fundamental moral issue.
"If you don’t want to answer, then don’t, Kafney,"
Annan said gently, "No need to force yourself—I mean it.
"Besides... you are safe now."
Upon hearing this, Kafney suddenly tightened her grip on Annan’s hand.
Annan felt her hand was extremely cold, so he took it in his own, attempting to warm her palm, only to find it felt as lifeless as a corpse’s.
Annan explained earnestly, "The Curse Binder made a bet with me, and he lost. Now, all followers of the Curse Binder within the Noah Kingdom will be rooted out by the Silver Baron—that includes the Wizard who controlled the mind of the Fourth Prince and your mother.
"That means, you are safe now. Even if you return to the Royal Capital, you won’t encounter any danger."
"—Annan: At this point, there’s really nothing to be afraid of."
"—Wow, this is like one flag after another being raised without end."
"—Honestly, it’s the first time I’ve seen a protagonist boost the morale of a beautiful girl so much upon their first meeting..."
Idly opening Frostwater Harbor Forum, Annan saw posts mocking him flooding the screen and his expression stiffened slightly.
...Wow, when you think about it, these do seem like flags.
Kafney simply looked at Annan, not minding the impoliteness of him holding her hand, but rather, she gripped his wrist even tighter, almost painfully... Annan couldn’t help but bend his wrist, forced to move closer to her.
It felt as if she was trying to capture him right then and there...
"I won’t go back," Kafney repeated earnestly, "There is danger in the Royal Capital... And it’s not just from the Curse Binders."
After hearing Kafney had no intention of returning to the Royal Capital, Annan, in fact, breathed a sigh of relief.
This girl is quite clever; Annan was burying her with death flags, and she kept pulling them out one after another...
But then Kafney added, "You shouldn’t go either."
Taken aback, Annan asked, "Why? What’s the danger in the Royal Capital?"
"Demons," Kafney hesitated before answering, "There are demons in the Royal Capital."
"...What kind of demons?"
Kafney gripped Annan’s hand even tighter.
She warned, "They will take you away."
Annan’s expression grew even more subtle.
Was there something to be afraid of?
"I think what Kafney is referring to... must be those scholars."
Just then, the slightly breathless voice of Prince Albert came from the side.
Annan turned his head around.
There was the Noah Kingdom’s Fourth Prince, accompanied by Bishop Daryl, dismounting from a carriage and hurrying over from a street nearby.
Upon noticing the clothes on Annan, Bishop Daryl paused for a moment.
He subtly took a step back, lining up behind the Prince. After seeing Annan, he no longer advanced to join in the conversation, but instead politely waited at a distance.
—Behind Prince Albert, he respectfully offered Annan a deep bow.