"Hm? How did you get here?"
"I just walked in."
? ? ?, on the Edge of Existence, the figures of Lumina and Herta appeared.
Staring at the colossal black hole before her, Herta turned to Lumina, her face etched with astonishment.
An Emanator of Nihility's Domain... Lumina somehow managed to bring someone here, silently and instantaneously. This kind of power... it couldn't possibly belong to the level of an Emanator, could it?
Could Lumina really be just one step away from becoming a aeon?
Herta gazed at her with a complex expression. If Lumina truly ascends to godhood in the end, then...
There was another possible explanation for Lumina's immense power: the Path power granted to her by the Aeon of Abundance far surpassed what other Aeons bestowed upon their Emanators.
However, this explanation was exceedingly improbable, so negligible as to be practically dismissible.
After all, the Aeon of Abundance wasn't the Aeon of Elation. Bestowing all or even most of one's Path power upon a single individual seemed utterly inconceivable.
"What's this? Has Little Herta been captivated by my charm?" Lumina felt slightly uneasy as Herta's gaze remained fixed on her face.
I haven't put on any makeup or anything... Why is she staring at me like this?
"Lumina, you have a pimple," Herta said coolly, snapping out of her reverie and suppressing her curiosity as she shifted her gaze away.
"Huh? That can't be!" Lumina replied skeptically. How could I possibly get a pimple?
Blessed with the Path power of Abundance, Lumina had been immune to such blemishes since birth. It was simply impossible for her to develop one.
Though Lumina was absolutely certain she wouldn't have a pimple, she took out a pocket mirror just to be sure. She meticulously examined her Immaculate face, searching for any sign of the offending blemish.
"As expected of me... How can anyone be this beautiful?"
Moments later, having found no trace of a pimple, Lumina became utterly captivated by her own reflection. She became instantly captivated, entering a state of pure vanity.
"Stop being so vain," Herta muttered, her lips twitching as she watched Lumina preening in the mirror. "There's someone up ahead."
Who would have thought that without spending some time with her personally, the renowned Saintess, famous throughout the cosmos, was actually a total brat who loved watching drama unfold, toyed with others for her own amusement, went weak in the knees for pretty girls, and was incredibly vain and narcissistic?
Watching Lumina reluctantly put the mirror away after her reminder, Herta's lips curled into a faint smile, and she let out a soft chuckle.
"What are you laughing at?"
"Oh, nothing. Just thought of something funny." The faint smile vanished as Herta shook her head and adjusted the pointed witch hat on her head.
"Fine, then. Laugh all you want by yourself." Lumina huffed, flicked her hair, and strode toward the mission marker that had appeared before them.
What's there to laugh at if you're gone? Herta thought helplessly, watching Lumina's back—a sight that could make anyone want to open their arms and embrace her. She then quickened her pace to catch up.
Speeding up, she fell into step beside Lumina, walking shoulder to shoulder.
Catching Lumina's profile in her peripheral vision—a face that could captivate anyone at a single glance—Herta had to admit that Lumina truly had the right to be vain.
At least, among all the beings Herta had ever known or seen, none could even begin to compare to Lumina's beauty.
Hmm, naturally, none of these creatures include the great Madam Herta.
If you were to compare Madam Herta to Lumina, it would be about fifty-fifty.
In Herta's eyes, Lumina, aside from her somewhat nasty personality and questionable behavior... (here, we'll skip Madam Herta's long list of complaints about Lumina)... is still a perfectly flawless individual.
Moreover, in Herta's mind, these complaints aren't reasons to dislike Lumina; on the contrary, they're plus points...
These same flaws that would make others despise someone, somehow, just couldn't evoke any real hatred when it came to Lumina.
Indeed, in this day and age, the most important thing is still looks...
But...
At this thought, Herta once again glanced out of the corner of her eye at Lumina's breathtaking profile.
"She's truly beautiful," Herta acknowledged Lumina's beauty, withdrawing her gaze.
For some reason, when they first met, Herta had thought Lumina was quite attractive, but not to the point where she would steal glances like this.
Yet as their time together lengthened, even Madam Herta couldn't help but become captivated by Lumina's beauty...