After calming Dan Heng and Stelle's worries about Little Swarm and March 7th, Lumina sent them out of the room, urging them to hurry back to their own quarters and get some proper rest.
Ever since arriving in Amphoreus, they had been constantly on the move. Upon reaching Okhema, they had to endure Aglaea's trial.
Soon after, they would have to travel to Castrum Kremnos, and then seek out the Titan of [Time].
Once all that was done, they still had to face the fully manifested Titan of [Strife]. If they claimed they weren't tired, it would surely be a lie.
Lumina didn't use her power to instantly erase their physical fatigue. Instead, she sent them back to their rooms to rest properly.
Fatigue born from relentless activity should naturally be mended with rest. Not only was this better for their bodies, but it would also help replenish their strength.
Of course, more importantly...
...it would lead to a sweet, deep sleep.
"Little Herta, shall we go back to sleep?" After sending Stelle and Dan Heng away, Lumina turned her gaze to Herta and asked.
To be honest, while Little Herta wasn't as buxom as Ruan Mei or March 7th...
...she was still incredibly comfortable to hug.
Lumina was very satisfied.
Whether as a lap pillow or a hug pillow, Little Herta was perfect in Lumina's eyes.
With a Herta like this, what more could a girl ask for?
Lumina mentally bestowed the highest praise upon Herta.
Of course, this was just a fleeting thought. She wouldn't actually take it seriously.
Even with Herta as her lap pillow and hug pillow, Lumina would still seek out other beautiful girls.
After all...
...who would ever complain about having too many beautiful girls?
It was the same logic as who would complain about having too much money~
"Sleep? What sleep? If you're a pig, go ahead and keep sleeping."
"This genius won't be joining you."
Although Herta couldn't read minds and didn't know what Lumina was thinking...
...her intuition told her that Lumina was definitely plotting something mischievous.
Either she was thinking about how to tease Herta, or she was fantasizing about expanding her "harem."
Herta snorted coldly, making her displeasure clear.
Although this expression of displeasure had no effect on Lumina...
...it didn't even faze her in the slightest.
Herta knew this well, but a silent protest was still necessary.
Otherwise, if Lumina eventually left, Herta wouldn't even have time to cry...
"Alright, alright," Lumina chuckled, completely unfazed by Herta's snort, just as Herta had predicted. "Let's rest for a bit, then find Tribbie and see if she's free."
"We can properly experience the man-made wonders of Okhema with her and savor the delicacies of Amphoreus."
When Lumina and Herta first arrived in Okhema, Aglaea had been preoccupied with dealing with the final counterattack of the Strife Titan, leaving them to their own devices.
This had led them to explore Okhema on their own.
However, due to cultural differences, they only had a partial understanding of many things, which meant they missed out on a lot of experiences.
Therefore, having Tribbie act as their guide for another tour of Okhema was a very necessary step.
However, Lumina would have much preferred Aglaea to be their guide for the tour of Okhema, rather than Tribbie.
But due to the Strife Coreflame Return Ceremony, Aglaea, as the leader of the Chrysos Heirs, had to organize the event meticulously and likely wouldn't have any free time.
Hmm... Lumina had a feeling that if she just said the word, Aglaea would immediately drop everything and appear before her, willingly serving as her guide without complaint.
She could probably even make some slightly unreasonable requests...
Ahem. Lumina quickly cleared her mind, forcing herself to stop dwelling on such inappropriate thoughts.
She would never do something like that.
Using her power and strength to force a beautiful girl into submission was the one thing Lumina despised most.
People who did that deserved to be beaten to death with clubs.
Since Aglaea had important matters to attend to, Lumina naturally wouldn't disturb her.
According to their previous agreement, they should find Tribbie to be their guide.
Hmm... since Stelle and Dan Heng are back...
Then that purple-haired beauty from Castrum Kremnos must have returned to Okhema by now, right?
I wonder if she's tired. Did she go back to her room to rest like Stelle and Dan Heng?
If she's not tired and hasn't gone to rest, I wonder if I'll be able to run into her in Okhema?
Hmm... if she is resting, should I postpone the tour with Tribbie to another time?
Lumina's thoughts spiraled into a dilemma, her small face scrunching up in indecision.
"..." Herta, who had been watching Lumina's expressions from the side, couldn't help but roll her eyes.
Herta didn't even need to think to know what could throw Lumina into such a state of turmoil. It certainly wasn't a trivial matter like "which enemy to face" or "what to eat."
No, it was a monumental question on par with the Cosmic Heat Death in Lumina's mind: "Which beautiful girl should I seek out today?" or "Which beautiful girl should I get to know today?"
Herta remained calmly seated on the sofa, arms crossed, her exquisite and beautiful face showing no hint of dissatisfaction or displeasure.
Lumina was just looking for a beautiful girl. What did that have to do with Herta?
Since it had nothing to do with her, why should Herta be dissatisfied or displeased?
Did Lumina not even have the right to make friends?
As Lumina's best friend and older sister figure, Herta would never strip her of the "right to befriend beautiful girls."
Of course, if things went beyond mere friendship, Herta would naturally have to intervene... just a little.
While Herta trusted her own charm, she also trusted Lumina's.
Anyone who spent enough time with Lumina would eventually understand one thing...
Lumina was highly sought-after in the "beautiful girl" circle.
Not that kind of sought-after, but that kind of sought-after.
You could just say she was extremely popular, and that would be accurate enough.
"I've decided!" Having sorted through all the questions in her mind, Lumina abruptly sat up from the sofa.
"Herta, let's go find Tribbie!"
"I want to explore Okhema and really take in the sights."
After saying this to Herta, Lumina prepared to leave the room to find Tribbie and ask her to be their guide.
Seeing this, Herta stopped her train of thought, rose from the sofa, and followed Lumina.
Chime~
You have a new friend request~
But just as she stood up, before Lumina could reach the black-and-gold patterned door, her phone suddenly chimed.
"Huh? Who's adding me as a friend?"
Hearing the notification, Lumina froze, pulled out her phone, lit up the screen, and opened her messaging app to take a quick look.
"Hmm? Aglaea? Can Amphoreus's communication devices add friends directly?"
Seeing "Aglaea" written in the friend request note, Lumina raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.
Amphoreus's communication devices could connect to the cosmic network and add friends without being face-to-face...
Even for the well-traveled Lumina, this was rather baffling.
"A friend request from Aglaea? How did she manage that?"
"Is this for real?"
Behind her, Herta's eyes widened at the words, a rare flicker of genius-level confusion crossing her face.
It seemed Lumina wasn't the only one who found this baffling; Herta was utterly perplexed as well.
"Forget it. It's probably Lygus's doing. Don't worry about it." Without giving it much thought, Lumina casually remarked, then focused her gaze entirely on her phone screen.
With a light tap of her finger, she accepted Aglaea's friend request.
Following her "Beautiful Girl's Code of Conduct," Lumina didn't immediately reply. Instead, she waited for Aglaea to speak first.
"Hmph, Lygus..." Hearing Lumina's words, Herta snorted coldly. "An Intellitron. I should have dismantled it before we entered Amphoreus."
It seemed Madam Herta's resentment from Lygus's threat of "mutually assured destruction" hadn't fully dissipated.
"It's fine. We can always dismantle it after we leave Amphoreus. It's not too late," Lumina said with a smile, not paying it much mind.
"True. Dismantling it sooner or later makes no difference." Hearing this, Herta nodded slightly, feeling a bit better.
She mentally filed away the idea, ensuring she wouldn't forget it when they eventually left Amphoreus.
After all, Phantylia Kitten had been the one to deal with it earlier, leaving Herta feeling somewhat unsatisfied.
Failing to dismantle the Intellitron herself was one of Herta's few lingering regrets.
Though this particular regret seemed trivial compared to her others, resolving it would still be quite satisfying.
Putting the thought aside, Herta glanced at Lumina, who was staring intently at her phone screen, waiting for Aglaea's message.
Herta knew that when Lumina was waiting for a message from a beautiful girl, she became unprecedentedly focused.
So, Herta didn't disturb her further.
Instead, she moved closer, took Lumina's small hand, and pulled her back to the sofa.
Wrapping an arm around Lumina's waist, Herta gently guided her to sit down before settling beside her.
Crossing her legs, Herta took out her own phone and began scrolling through messages.
Having experienced this firsthand, Herta knew Lumina would be chatting with the beautiful girl for a long time.
This meant their plans to go shopping in Okhema were most likely off the table for now.
Chime~ Chime~ Chime~
A moment after Lumina had dragged Aglaea's account into her [Special Group], the notification sound that rang out was unmistakably the one reserved for that very group.
"..."
Herta rolled her eyes in exasperation but said nothing.
Herta's gaze remained on her own phone screen.
But even so, her brilliant, amethyst-like eyes couldn't help but drift toward Lumina's phone.
Honestly, Herta wasn't particularly interested in Lumina's chat history with beautiful girls.
Well... okay, she was very interested.
If Lumina offered to show her, Herta would read it with great relish.
But more than the chat itself, Herta was curious about just how many beautiful girls were in Lumina's [Special Group]...
Herta did a quick mental count and estimated at least a dozen.
And that didn't even include the ones she didn't know about...
Sigh...
Herta sighed inwardly, feeling a bit helpless.
My best friend is such a flirt. What am I, as her older sister, supposed to do?
What could she do? Besides spoiling her, tolerating her, and understanding her...
Okay, Herta couldn't understand her at all, nor could she even begin to try.
But spoiling and tolerating her—those two simple things, Herta could manage.
So, knowing Lumina would never show her the [Special Group], Herta withdrew her gaze and focused her attention back on her own phone.
Herta opened her chat app, briefly scrolled through her contact list, and glanced at Lumina's pinned and favorited profile before switching to the group management feature.
She planned to create a new group and, following Lumina's example, add a bunch of her "close" friends.
But after creating the group and scanning her contact list, she ended up adding only Lumina.
"Huh?"
After creating this group exclusively for Lumina, Herta noticed something else.
There was another group that also contained only Lumina.
"Hmm..."
Herta pondered this for a moment, then swiped the chat app closed.
Two groups, then. So be it.
Since both groups contained only Lumina, it didn't really matter.
Shaking her head, Herta decided not to dwell on it. She opened a short video app, hoping to relax by scrolling through some clips.
[Lumina, the greatest figure in the entire cosmos, let us...]
The very first video was about Lumina.
Herta quickly lowered the volume and glanced at Lumina, who hadn't reacted. Relieved, she swiped to the next video.
It was also about Lumina.
She swiped again. And again.
Everything was about Lumina.
Only after several more swipes did she finally see different content.
Roughly eight out of ten videos were about Lumina...
Hmm, it's easy to imagine just how much Herta usually enjoys watching Lumina-related content...
Meanwhile, Lumina, sitting beside her, remained oblivious. She was currently chatting with Aglaea.
[Aglaea]: Lumina, I got your contact info from Stelle. I'm surprised I could add you directly...
It seemed Aglaea was also puzzled by the direct connection.
[Lumina]: It's fine, don't worry about it. Did you need something, Agy?
Lumina knew Lygus was behind this, so she didn't give it much thought.
That Intellitron even gave me admin privileges.
That guy... no, that Intellitron is actually pretty decent.
[Aglaea]: Um... Lumina, I wanted to give you a heads-up. You might not be able to reach me tomorrow.
[Aglaea]: My Teacher might also be unreachable.
Before Lumina could even ask a question, Aglaea immediately sent another message.
[Aglaea]: So, I'd like to send you the contact info of another Chrysos Heir.
[Aglaea]: If anything comes up tomorrow, you can contact her.
[Lumina]: Oh?
Reading this, Lumina felt she already knew who it was.
[Aglaea]: Her name is Castorice. She's also a Chrysos Heir. Her personality... well, she might seem difficult to get along with at first, but she's actually very gentle.
[Aglaea]: [Castorice's Contact Info]
The moment she saw the contact info, Lumina shot up from the sofa.
She quickly tapped the link and sent a friend request.
Her speed left Herta, who was sitting beside her, utterly bewildered.