"Heehee…"
Cipher giggled, took the water, gulped down several mouthfuls, wiped her mouth, and began complaining while gesturing animatedly.
"You don't get it! I was just tryna tease her a bit! Who knew she'd gotten this strong now!"
"Y'know what, she's way faster than before—she almost grabbed my tail just now!"
"I got tired from running, and she still wasn't tired at all, like she's got crazy stamina."
"Lucian's blessings are seriously useful—those red and green glows... honestly, I kinda want them too~!"
Right after saying that, Cipher suddenly recalled Hysilens saying that she would yank her tail right off the next time she caught her. A lingering fear immediately surfaced within her, and she instinctively reached back to touch the base of her tail before a trace of envy flashed through her blue eyes.
"I heard the Abundance blessing basically makes you immortal, while the Elation blessing boosts your strength?"
"Tch, giving it to Hysilens is such a waste."
"What if... What if I could get his blessings too...?"
Cipher's eyes began to sparkle with bright anticipation before she rubbed her hands together and started giggling to herself.
"Heehee... wouldn't that mean I could just walk around like I own the place? I could go anywhere and steal—Ahem, I mean take whatever I want!"
"Even if someone stabbed me right through, I wouldn't die!"
"Hmm, that'd be amazing~!"
Aglaea silently watched Cipher indulge in such reverie-like fantasies and gently shook her head, while a faint, indescribable smile lingered in her eyes.
"If you want to obtain his blessings… maybe you can…"
Aglaea spoke slowly and deliberately paused, looking at Cipher's curious cat ears perked upright.
"You'd have to ask whether he likes cats first, though..."
Her tone became somewhat subtle as she said that.
Based on what Tribios, Mortis, Castorice, Polyxia, and Hysilens had privately revealed to her, Lucian always granted his blessings in the same manner.
"I mean, Mr. Lucian's blessings, after all… require 'papa'."
"Pa… Papa? What?"
At Aglaea's words, Cipher failed to react immediately and could only tilt her head in confusion as she questioned Aglaea, clearly having no idea what kind of riddle she was speaking in.
"What do you mean by 'papa'? Like clapping hands or something?"
Cipher asked in wonder before subconsciously glancing at her hands.
"Or maybe… like spanking?"
"..."
As Aglaea looked at Cipher's innocent expression and reaction, she found herself feeling a little awkward about how to explain it.
Did this kitty really not understand, or was she simply pretending not to?
One had to remember that Cipher had lived for well over a thousand years.
Yet despite all that time, how could she still be this innocent?
Had she spent all those years doing nothing but stealing without ever learning anything else?
If it had been the former Aglaea, the one who lacked humanity, she might have simply given up on explaining altogether. But now, with her humanity restored, a faint smile appeared on her face as an idea quietly surfaced in her mind.
In the end, after a brief moment of hesitation, she decided it would be better to be more direct.
"Ahem... 'papa' means… between a man and a woman, that kind of thing… you get it, right?"
Aglaea tried to explain it in a subtle way that Cipher could still understand.
As she spoke, she formed a circle with the thumb and index finger of her left hand, then repeatedly moved the index finger of her right hand in and out of the circle, making her meaning unmistakably clear.
"Huh...?"
Cipher blinked her eyes repeatedly in an adorably flustered manner for a moment before her small face flushed instantly.
A deep crimson spread across her cheeks at a visible speed, rapidly traveling from the tips of her ears all the way down to the base of her neck, leaving her looking thoroughly embarrassed.
"Waaah!" Cipher let out a strange cry, then covered her burning face. "Seamstress! W-What are you doing! Y-You're so shameless!"
Now that Aglaea had finally learned how Lucian's blessings were received, she had never expected that the red-haired mother and daughter pair, along with the shy Castorice and the ever-stern Hysilens, had all done that kind of thing with him.
No wonder every time she asked Tribbie and the other little Tri about the process of receiving Lucian's blessings, they would immediately blush from ear to ear, their faces turning bright red.
Castorice and Hysilens had been no different, always avoiding the subject and refusing to go into any real detail, no matter how much she pressed them.
Now, at long last, she finally understood why they had reacted that way every single time she asked.
'Darn it, so you had t-to have s-sex with him just to get his blessings...? Hmph, that guy's way more lustful than I expected.'
Cipher thought with embarrassment, and all of a sudden, she felt far less eager for Lucian's blessings.
It was only natural, since to her, her purity mattered far more—her self-respect mattered far more!
Now, the excitement that had filled her moments ago vanished without a trace, replaced by embarrassment and unease.
Seeing Cipher's flustered expression, Aglaea smiled faintly.
Honestly, she hadn't expected that, beneath all of Cipher's usual mischief and playful antics, she was still just a naive and innocent little kitty. Wandering alone for so many years couldn't have been easy for her.
"Weren't you just saying you wanted Mr. Lucian's blessings?" Aglaea asked with a teasing smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "If he likes cats, then you might have a chance, you know."
Hearing that, Cipher immediately covered her face and shook her head vigorously, as though trying to banish the embarrassing thought from her mind.
"Nay, nay, nay! Let's just drop it! I'm still a kid! I'm not supposed to be hearing this stuff!"
A thousand-year-old child like her indeed should not have been hearing such things. No matter how much time had passed, she was still a child at heart, making the topic far too inappropriate for her ears.
Aglaea: "But I heard he is very, very handsome."
Cipher: "Being handsome doesn't put food on the table. Nay!"
Aglaea: "He can create gold and silver."
Cipher: "I can just steal that myself, so nay!"
Aglaea: "He can grant you great power."
Cipher: "I don't wanna trade my body for power. I'm good as I am!"
Aglaea: "He also has—"
Cipher: "Seamstress, why do I feel like you're playing matchmaker right now?! If he's that great, why don't you just marry him yourself?!"
At that, Aglaea let out a helpless smile.
"It's not like I have the chance. If I did, would it even be your turn?"
Of course, that was only a joke.
Even with her humanity restored, Aglaea would never casually fall in love with a man she had never even met. From the very beginning, all she had ever wanted was merely the power necessary to protect her world and safeguard the people she cared about—nothing more.
Besides, a being like Lucian was far beyond someone like her.
From what Khaslana had told her, she was merely a data construct, while Lucian stood at a height she could scarcely comprehend—the gap between them was so vast that it seemed utterly impossible to bridge.
Otherwise, why had her teacher, Castorice, and Hysilens all been drawn into a special dream to experience a second life with him, while she had never once been given such an opportunity?
As that thought crossed her mind, Aglaea lowered her gaze slightly, her long lashes casting faint shadows across her eyes.
In her eyes, the answer seemed obvious—she had simply failed to catch Lucian's eyes.
"It looks like Hysilens is kinda crazy in love with him, too. You two aren't gonna fight over him, are you?" Cipher asked, still blushing as she quietly peeked through the gap between her fingers. "Relax, seamstress, we're besties. I'll help you steal him from her when the time comes."
"Fufu..." Aglaea chuckled softly, a trace of amusement flickering across her beautiful face. "Just don't end up stealing Mr. Lucian and keeping him all to yourself later."
"I wouldn't!" Cipher said seriously, her gaze immediately turning firm. "Do I look like that kinda person? If I steal him, I'll definitely give him to you."
Just as those words left her mouth, she rested her chin on her hand, and her eyes gradually drifted as a sly grin slowly curled across her lips.
"Heehee..."
A bold idea suddenly emerged in that restless, thief-like mind of hers, causing the mischievous glint in her eyes to grow even brighter.
"If I steal him... and hide him in your room, then..." Cipher paused, the tip of her tail lifting proudly. "Hysilens, Princess Homebody, and the others... they'd definitely panic and run around in circles, right?"
As she spoke, Cipher immersed herself in the thrilling fantasy of 'stealing a god,' completely unaware that a faint yet irresistible drowsiness, like the finest threads, had quietly wrapped around her consciousness.
"But… Mhmm..."
Cipher let out a small yawn and rubbed her eyes.
"Stealing him… that might be kinda hard… I can't mess this... up…"
Before she could finish, another, bigger yawn slipped out uncontrollably, and her eyelids suddenly felt as heavy as lead.
"Mm… weird…"
Cipher shook her head, trying to stay awake, but the drowsiness came too quickly, too forcefully.
"Why… am I... suddenly... so sleepy…"
Her voice grew softer and softer before her body slumped gently against a pile of fabric beside her. In that instant, her eyes could no longer open, and her consciousness sank as if into a warm ocean, rapidly fading.
"Huft… Huft…"
Just like that, without any warning whatsoever, Cipher fell asleep inside Aglaea's workshop.
Aglaea instinctively reached out, intending to check on her condition. Yet the moment her fingers touched Cipher's figure, her hand passed straight through her body as though she were nothing more than an illusion.
Even though the strange phenomenon lasted only an instant, it was more than enough for Aglaea to understand what had happened.
Lucian had cast his gaze upon this place—or, to be more precise, upon Cipher herself.
After all, she knew very well that only those chosen by him would enter such an unusual state.
Aglaea remained silent as she quietly watched the sleeping Cipher, and after a long moment of silence, she finally let out a soft, helpless sigh.
"Ah, it really is... whatever is spoken comes true... too bad it wasn't me..."
Aglaea slowly lifted her head and looked toward the ceiling. Her gaze seemed to pass through the roof of the workshop itself, reaching toward the boundless sky beyond as she murmured softly to herself.
"It seems... he really does like cats..."
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[A bonus chapter for every 300 Power Stones.]
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