"? Under the weather?!"
Furina immediately put down her little spoon, her beautiful heterochromic eyes filled with worry.
As a good deity who cared deeply for her Familia, how could she just sit by and do nothing when a child in her home was sick?
"That won't do at all. I have to go up and check on her!"
Saying this, Furina hopped out of her chair, preparing to charge upstairs in a flurry of motion.
Aiden's back was instantly soaked in cold sweat.
You've got to be kidding me!
Given how intense the "battle" was last night, that symphony set against a sea of stars had practically turned the entire bedroom into a "disaster zone."
When he woke up this morning, he was too busy reminiscing and hadn't had the time to clean up at all.
If this wildly curious girl charged in there and saw the messy bed and the clothes belonging to two people scattered all over the floor...
He could almost foresee this Goddess of Water transforming into a steaming kettle of righteous judgment on the spot, unleashing shrieks loud enough to blow the roof off and tears enough to drown all of Palais Mermonia as she subjected him to centuries of condemnation.
"No, no, no, Furina."
"Don't go."
Before Aiden could even open his mouth, Hyacine and Tifa, who were closest to Furina, pounced like two bolts of lightning. One on the left, one on the right, they held onto their patron deity for dear life.
"Robin is just too tired. Let her get some good rest. We shouldn't go bother her," Hyacine said, her face flushed with anxiety, speaking faster than ever before.
"Right, right, exactly," Tifa nodded repeatedly, a stiff and awkward smile plastered on her face. "Quiet recuperation is the best thing for her."
Sitting across from them, Daphne and Cassandra exchanged a silent glance.
Daphne accurately stuffed her mouth with a piece of bread to block her urge to make a sarcastic comment. Cassandra lowered her head and pretended to intently study the pattern on her milk glass. As if by prior agreement, both of them switched on "invisible person" mode.
Meanwhile, Astrea, sitting next to Aiden, elegantly picked up her black teacup, using it to hide most of her face. However, her slightly raised mouth corners and constantly trembling shoulders completely gave away the fact that she was trying desperately to hold back her laughter.
As a goddess who had witnessed countless tales of love and hate, this kind of adolescent drama between a young man and woman was simply too cute in her eyes.
The atmosphere at the dining table turned incredibly bizarre for a moment.
Cecil and the other young girls from Zolingan were completely out of the loop.
They looked at Hyacine and Tifa, who were anxiously holding Furina back; they looked at Aiden, who was sitting on pins and needles, sweating profusely; and they looked at Goddess Astrea, who was struggling not to laugh. One by one, they all fell silent out of sheer intimidation.
Although they had absolutely no idea what had happened, their keen adventurer instincts told them that the best choice right now was to shut up and eat.
However, those gazes sweeping back and forth among everyone, burning with the raging fire of curiosity, simply couldn't be hidden.
"I-I'm full."
Aiden felt like he was going to suffocate if he stayed there any longer.
Moving like a whirlwind, he demolished the food on his plate in three bites, then quickly grabbed another piece of bread, a fried egg, and a glass of milk from the table, placing them onto a tray.
"I'll take breakfast up to Robin. You guys take your time eating."
After saying that, he fled as if his life depended on it, carrying the tray and sprinting up to the second floor without looking back once.
Watching Aiden essentially run for the hills, Furina, who had finally been coaxed into stopping by Tifa and Hyacine, suddenly had a flash of realization strike her clever little brain.
She froze for a second, then abruptly turned her head. Pointing a slender finger straight at the top of the stairs where Aiden had disappeared, she issued a righteous interrogation:
"Wait a minute! If he can go up there and check on Robin, why can't I—the patron deity of this household?!"
"Well..."
The expressions on Hyacine and Tifa's faces froze instantly. They were so mortified they wished the floor would swallow them whole.
How were they supposed to explain this?
Were they supposed to tell this Goddess, who was as pure as a blank sheet of paper, that some "sick visits" could only be conducted by specific people who shared a very, very close relationship?
The intricate nuances of such a situation would probably be harder for Furina to comprehend than the most profound theological texts.
The dining room fell into a deathly silence.
However, just as Hyacine and Tifa were wracking their brains trying to invent a less ridiculous excuse, Furina, who was glaring at them angrily with puffed-up cheeks, suddenly stiffened.
Her eyes widened slightly, a look of bewilderment flashing through her heterochromic pupils, as if she were listening to some distant voice.
It was Focalors.
No one knew exactly what that true God of Water, seated deep within her soul, had said in her mind.
Perhaps it was just a single word. Perhaps it was a single image. Or perhaps... it was a highly condensed, educational summary regarding "celebrations" and "symphonies."
Regardless, everyone present only saw Furina freeze first, like a delicate doll whose pause button had just been pressed.
Immediately after, an astonishing, visible flush of crimson rose violently from her neck like a rising tide. It instantly flooded her delicate chin and fair cheeks, spreading all the way to the tips of her ears. Even the little white cowlick standing tall on her head seemed to be dyed a faint shade of pink.
It was as if a miniature steam engine had exploded right on top of her head.
Furina abruptly yanked her finger back and dropped into her chair as if she'd been shocked. Grabbing the piece of bread in front of her that only had one bite taken out of it, she lowered her head and, with an almost grief-stricken ferocity, launched a furious assault on her innocent breakfast.
The way she looked, she wasn't eating breakfast; it was more like she was doing battle with something.
Aiden fled upstairs with the breakfast tray in hand.
His footsteps stopped in front of his own bedroom door. He took a deep breath, and then, acting like a thief, pushed the door open gently with the least amount of force possible.
The hinges let out a faint, almost inaudible squeak, like a shy, startled musical note.
The scene behind the door was a stage that had yet to be cleared after the conclusion of a magnificent symphony.
A complex and wondrous scent lingered in the air.
It was no longer just his scent, or just hers. Rather, after an entire night of the intermingling, clashing, and steaming of two life forces, they had mixed into a brand-new, unique fragrance that carried a trace of decadence and sweetness.
Interwoven within it was the faint, lingering afterglow left behind by Robin's ultimate blooming, akin to the scent of burnt stardust.
The room was a mess.
The beautiful evening gown decorated with starbursts and pearls from last night was currently draped wrinkled over the low stool at the foot of the bed, like an abandoned sheet of music. Hanging right over it was his shirt, its buttons completely torn open.
----
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