The atmosphere in the living room was heavy and suffocating. Four beautiful women sat upon the sofas, yet their radiance was clouded by a veil of anxiety and a pervasive, somber mood.
"Aishia-san, is there really nothing more we can do?" Kei asked, her voice trembling as she looked across at Aishia. "It's been three days since Charlie-san lost consciousness!"
Astraea, seated beside Kei, gently patted the girl's shoulder to soothe her. "Kei, please, try to stay calm. You must remember that Aishia and Est are Spirits bound by contract to Charlie. In this room, they are the ones worrying for him more than anyone."
Hearing the soft rebuke from her Main God, Kei lowered her head, wilting. "I'm sorry, Aishia-san. I didn't mean to overlook your feelings. I was wrong."
Aishia nodded slowly, signaling that she held no grudge. "I know how much you care for him, Kei. We are all in the same boat. For now, all we can do is wait and keep his condition stable."
She then pulled Est—who sat rigid at her side—into an embrace, trying to offer a spark of warmth.
"Charlie is a strong man, Est. He'll be fine, I guarantee it. He isn't the type to succumb to a wound like this."
"Mm." Est replied shortly.
Though her face remained as flat and expressionless as ever, deep within her heart, Est was the most terrified of them all. As a Sacred Sword often regarded as a curse to her wielders, she had only just found a contractor capable of enduring her existence without harm. Losing Charlie meant losing the light she had only recently rediscovered for the second time.
"But... what actually happened that night?" Kei murmured. "With Charlie-san's strength, who could possibly have hurt him that badly?"
She had witnessed his true power firsthand. In her mind, not even Ottar—the man dubbed Orario's Ultimate Weapon—could have dealt Charlie a fatal blow.
"It is likely linked to the terrorist attack that leveled the El Dorado Resort in the Entertainment District three days ago." Astraea said, her tone grave. "The scale of this destruction is far more devastating and audacious than even the height of Evilus's reign. No matter how mad Evilus once was, they never dared to harm the Gods. Yet, in this incident, five Gods were forced back to Heaven in a single night."
She had just returned from an emergency Denatus held to discuss the tragedy. Unfortunately, they hadn't found a single clue leading to the true culprit. This wasn't a simple criminal matter; it was an open challenge to every deity in the lower world.
Time marched on. Before they knew it, a week had passed since the cataclysmic explosion at El Dorado.
Though the Guild, the Ganesha Familia, and various other powerful factions had been mobilized to hunt the perpetrator brave enough to send five gods home, the investigation hit a dead end. No meaningful evidence remained atop the flattened earth.
As days turned into weeks, the inquiry slowly ground to a halt. The world could not remain tethered to the past; the gears of Orario had to keep turning.
Granted, the death toll was staggering—five Gods, several Guild high-officials, and wealthy nobles from various nations. But to those at the grassroots level, it all felt distant. It didn't change their daily struggle. The deaths of the upper echelon were merely seasoning for dinner table conversations or fodder for tavern gossip before the citizens returned to their exhausting routines. To the common folk, the life and death of rulers didn't change the price of grain at the market.
However, that peace was short-lived. A massive event rocked the Entertainment District once more—a sense of deja vu of what Charlie had experienced. This time, Bell Cranel stood at the center of the storm, hunted by the Ishtar Familia.
Rumor had it that to save a courtesan from the clutches of the brothels, Bell had recklessly challenged the full might of Ishtar. Even more shocking, he managed to topple the Androctonus—Phryne Jamil—a Level 5 adventurer feared for her sheer savagery.
The surprises didn't end there. The Freya Familia suddenly declared open war. They launched a brutal assault on the Entertainment District, an invasion led by Freya herself to personally eliminate Ishtar.
That night, the phenomenon of Divine Ascension was triggered once again under the stunned gazes of gods and mortals alike. The golden light soaring into the heavens was a sight both terrifying and majestic.
In the span of just one week, Divine Ascension had occurred twice, leaving a massive question mark hanging over the increasingly uncertain future of Orario.
The Empyrean Citadel stood firm amidst the turmoil of Orario, but inside, time seemed to have stopped for its inhabitants.
Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the curtains, illuminating Charlie as he lay motionless upon his expansive bed. The room was deathly quiet, interrupted only by the soft splash of water being wrung into a basin.
Aishia sat at the edge of the bed, holding a small white towel dampened with lavender-scented warm water. With movements that were incredibly gentle yet practiced, she began to wipe Charlie's body—a substitute for a bath that she had performed routinely for the past week.
She started at his forehead, moved down to his neck, and then diligently wiped his broad, firm chest. Aishia worked with professional precision, ensuring not a single patch of skin was overlooked. Her slender fingers moved without hesitation, as if she knew every contour of the man before her by heart. Though she was a Spirit of immense power, in this moment, she was simply a woman giving loving care to the person who meant the most to her.
After finishing with his arms, Aishia paused. She rested the towel on the rim of the basin and stared at Charlie's face, which looked as though he were in a deep, peaceful sleep.
"It's been a week, Charlie..." Aishia murmured, her voice barely a whisper against the night wind.
She reached out, stroking his cheek, which felt slightly cooler than usual.
"When will you open your eyes? This room feels too large without you, and this house... this house feels like a stranger's home without your presence."
Aishia bowed her head, letting her hair fall to hide a face overcome with sorrow.
"You are the pillar of this place. Without you, we are all just scattered fragments. Lady Astraea spends her time daydreaming in the living room, Kei is training like a madwoman out of regret for her weakness, and Est... she is the most fragile of us all."
She took a long, heavy breath, then clasped Charlie's hand with both of hers, as if trying to pour the very warmth of her own life into him.
"Wake up soon... We are all waiting for you."
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