Acheron had fallen asleep, and she was sleeping deeply.
'Georios' reached out and gave Acheron's cheek a little pinch.
The other woman didn't react at all; her lips simply quirked up into a faint, silly-looking smile where her cheek was being squeezed.
This was the first time she'd ever seen Acheron sleeping so peacefully.
Actually... strictly speaking, it was the first time she'd seen Acheron sleep properly at all.
Come to think of it, had Acheron slept even once in all these years?
Considering the effects of IX the Nihility, 'Georios' began to wonder if Acheron was even capable of sleep, or if she was forced to maintain a constant, grueling wakefulness.
If so, that was a terrifying thought.
'Georios' stared at Acheron's face, sighing inwardly with emotion.
On the quiet rooftop, there was only the whistling of the wind and the steady sound of Acheron's breathing.
In this tranquil atmosphere, 'Georios' found herself gradually growing calm as well.
Her attention soon drifted toward the world outside.
The horizon of Nihility was as desolate as ever. Sin Thirsters were a rare sight; most of the time, it was a landscape of absolute nothingness.
But today was different.
The pocket world 'Georios' had manifested used the power of Elation as its primary ingredient.
As everyone knew, the opening of the Path of Elation occurred when Aha glimpsed the end of all things—which was why it was said there must be laughter.
Whether they were complete opposites was hard to say, but they certainly clashed.
Thus, at the fringes of her pocket world, 'Georios' could clearly perceive the two Path powers grinding against one another.
In her eyes, this conflict served as a remarkably clear illustration of the Path of Elation.
After all, the Path itself was born from Nihility; therefore, its purpose and essence became glaringly obvious whenever it collided with its source.
At least, it was obvious to 'Georios'.
Of course, her analysis of the Elation Equation was already about seventy or eighty percent complete, and she hadn't intended to chase a full resolution just yet.
However, the Path of Permanence was a different story.
Compared to Elation, Permanence placed a much heavier emphasis on existence itself.
It was clearly in much sharper opposition to Nihility.
If even Elation could produce such a distinct effect, wouldn't the results be even more pronounced if she used Permanence to make contact?
The thought sent a little spark of excitement through 'Georios'.
If this method worked, she might not need years to solve the Permanence Equation after all.
To test the theory, 'Georios' focused her mind.
The power belonging to the Earth Titan seeped into the pocket world, rapidly expanding toward the outer surface.
She attempted to touch Nihility using the combined forces of Permanence and the Earth Titan.
The moment her power spread out and touched that pure essence of Nihility, a violent reaction of mutual annihilation erupted between them.
It was far more intense and conspicuous than the reaction with Elation.
"Whoa, it actually works!"
'Georios' snapped her eyes open in surprise. By observing the clash between her own released power and Nihility, her hypothesis was confirmed.
Struggling against Nihility really did highlight the essence of the Path of Permanence.
This revelation was a massive boost to her progress in deciphering the Permanence Equation.
Since Acheron was still deep in slumber, 'Georios' simply closed her eyes again and threw herself into her research.
Days passed in this manner.
Acheron slept through several system days in one go.
Only then, within that steady, peaceful rest, did her consciousness slowly begin to resurface. Because she hadn't slept this soundly in forever, Acheron felt a bit dazed when she first woke up.
It felt as though she'd had a very, very long dream.
In the dream, she lived in a peaceful world. She was born there, went to school, grew up, and eventually met a white-haired girl.
Whenever she hit a rough patch or felt exhausted, that girl would always take her hand and tell her that she was there—that she would stay by her side.
Then, the girl would lead her by the hand, helping her solve her problems and move forward.
They lived like that for a long, long time... right up until she woke up.
Acheron looked at the azure sky, the wind around her, the sea in the distance, and the bustle of the city.
For a fleeting second, she thought she was still dreaming, but quickly, the soft sensation behind her head and the familiar fragrance lingering at the tip of her nose caused a white-haired figure to instinctively surface in her mind.
Unlike the dream, where the name was always on the tip of her tongue and the face was blurred...
The current Acheron remembered her name almost instantly.
"...Bai Ming?"
In her groggy state, Acheron had forgotten why she was here or why she had fallen asleep.
The only thing she held onto was that the individual who had stayed by her side was named Bai Ming.
The warmth she'd felt in the dream came from her, and, along with that figure's appearance, a profound sense of security flooded her heart.
Acheron slowly opened her eyes.
Facing the sunlight, the first thing that came into view was a beautiful, full curve.
Only then did she see the pretty face above it, eyes closed as if in deep thought—or perhaps asleep.
"Bai Ming..."
She whispered the name instinctively.
Her voice was as soft as a kitten's sigh; Acheron barely heard herself.
But just as she was about to speak again, those beautiful eyes opened. They looked down, meeting hers with a gentle gaze.
"You're awake? Did you sleep well?"
"...I slept too long. I'm a bit out of it."
Hearing Acheron's words, 'Georios' let out a chuckle.
"It was quite a while. You slept for ten whole system days."
"...That long?"
Acheron's mouth hung open slightly, her surprise evident.
She thought she'd slept for a day or two at most, but ten days in one go?
"It's a long time. You should sleep more whenever you have the chance. Don't always try to carry everything alone."
'Georios' supported Acheron's head, helping her sit up from her lap.
Acheron glanced sideways at the legs she had been using as a pillow.
I was resting on her for ten days?
The realization made Acheron feel a bit flustered and embarrassed.
"...Why didn't you just put me down? You sat here for ten days straight because of me."
"Because you're pretty."
'Georios' had gained quite a lot over these ten days.
With the help of the Personality Completion System and the raw annihilation phenomenon between Permanence and Nihility, her progress in analyzing the Permanence Equation had reached nearly 5%.
As a result, she was in a great mood, and her tone had become a bit more playful.
Don't look down on that percentage.
It might seem small, but it represented 5% of an entire Path. Strictly speaking, every Scion of Long combined wouldn't be enough to handle her with one hand tied behind her back now.
Acheron's face flushed slightly.
Because of the lingering impressions from her long dream, her heart raced a bit as she looked at 'Georios' smiling at her from such a short distance.
However, Acheron soon realized that the other woman seemed particularly happy.
Was sitting here for ten days really something to be happy about?
"Did something good happen?"
"Yeah. I discovered that doing research here near you really suits me."
"...Doing what? Research? Here??"
Hearing a statement so absurd it sounded like sleep-talking, Acheron struggled to keep a straight face.
Are you sure you can do 'research' in a hellhole like this?
High-precision equipment would probably break the moment you took it out. What kind of research could you possibly do?
"That's right. Anyway, expect me to visit you often lately."
"..."
Acheron pursed her lips. She assumed 'Georios' was just making up excuses to keep her company.
She couldn't say she wasn't happy about it, but she couldn't find a reason to refuse either.
The other woman was immune to the erosion of Nihility and could come and go as she pleased. What else was there to say?
After hesitating for a long moment, Acheron could only manage a dry response:
"Alright, take back the power you put on me. Ten days is long enough; I can't stay here forever."
"Got it."
'Georios' had anticipated this, so she didn't argue.
She took Acheron's hand, slowly withdrawing the power she'd used to suppress the Nihility.
As the void reclaimed Acheron's body, her aura became dangerous and profound once more.
"Ugh..."
Acheron rubbed her temples.
Compared to the ease of the past few days, facing the void again created such a jarring contrast that she instinctively wanted to give up.
Fortunately, the willpower she had forged over countless years kept her upright.
"Are you okay? Did I make it harder for you because of what I did...?"
'Georios' reached out worriedly to support Acheron, her fingers brushing against the other woman's furrowed brow, her eyes full of concern.
Acheron closed her eyes, letting the tension leave her forehead under the touch.
She shook her head.
Then, she leaned forward, tucking her head into the crook of 'Georios's' neck.
"It's not your fault. I'm just too easily shaken. I was subconsciously craving your warmth and your power. It has nothing to do with you."
Acheron's voice was slightly husky as it drifted past her ear.
'Georios' reached up and stroked Acheron's hair.
This time, she said nothing.
The two shared a few more quiet hours of intimacy within the pocket world.
Finally, they stepped out, and she tucked the miniature world away.
"I haven't checked in with the outside world for over ten days. I'm going to go handle some business, then I'll be back."
That was what 'Georios' told Acheron before leaving the boundary of Nihility.
"If you're busy, there's no need to rush back."
"No, the work here is actually more important."
Since the efficiency of analyzing the Permanence Path was so high here, 'Georios' planned to finish it in one fell swoop.
The only reason she was heading out now was to see if the Xianzhou Alliance had replied yet.
She also wanted to see if there were any other matters needing her attention.
After all, signals couldn't penetrate the boundary of Nihility.
She could technically leave some Masks of Elation outside to act as a communication relay, but there was a catch: she was afraid that sending out a bunch of masks would provoke Aha.
Aha might not care normally, but if she started handing out masks to Herta, Cyrene, or Reveria just for errands...
Aha would probably barge in just to make a mess of things out of spite.
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL