Ryu left.
With Demeter's arrangements, she packed lightly and set off on the road to the City of Swords.
Her golden hair caught a soft halo in the sunset, and in her blue eyes there was no longer only cold hatred. There was something else now.
Hope.
Genichi stood by the window and watched her figure fade around the corner. Then he withdrew his gaze.
He turned toward the living room doorway behind him.
Demeter stood there with her hands clasped behind her back, wearing an expression that tried very hard to look casual.
But the moment Genichi's eyes landed on her, her body visibly stiffened.
Genichi didn't speak.
He just looked at her in silence.
There was no anger in those dark eyes. No accusation. Only a calm, almost appraising scrutiny.
Demeter found herself getting unnerved under that stare.
Her amber eyes started wandering. Ceiling. Floor. Window. Anywhere but his face.
After a few seconds, she finally spoke.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
Her voice sounded a little weak, the kind of weak that came from guilt.
Genichi still didn't answer.
He watched her for a few more seconds, then—
"Nothing."
He withdrew his gaze, walked to the desk, and pulled out the coin pouch holding the remaining valis.
The money Demeter had given him to buy equipment.
He didn't even count it. He set the whole pouch down on the desk and slid it across to her.
"What's left. I'm returning it."
Demeter blinked, picked up the pouch, and opened it to look inside.
Then her expression changed.
"You only spent not even a million valis?"
She looked up at Genichi, and anger immediately rose in her amber eyes.
"Didn't I tell you to buy better equipment? How could you—"
"The weapon situation was… special."
Genichi cut her off and, in a calm voice, briefly explained what had happened at the Hephaistos Familia: Tsubaki Collbrande showing up, the blade's background, and the price of five hundred thousand valis.
"For a weapon, this one is enough for now."
He paused.
"As for armor, I bought a cuirass and kneeguards. It'll do for a while. I'll consider upgrading later."
His gaze met Demeter's directly.
"Using gear that's too high-end is too conspicuous."
Demeter opened her mouth, ready to argue, then found she couldn't.
Of course he was right.
A Level 1 adventurer wandering the Dungeon with a weapon worth tens of millions, plus expensive armor, might as well put up a sign saying: Please, surround me and rob me.
But still…
It made her chest ache.
He could have had better things. And yet, because of reasons like those, he could only use this.
Demeter puffed out her cheeks, her amber eyes plainly unhappy.
Genichi didn't react to her sulking at all.
He turned away and started organizing the equipment he'd bought, as if he couldn't even see her pouting.
Demeter pressed her lips together, watching him stay utterly unmoved, and a complicated emotion rose in her.
She remembered the moment she'd barged in earlier. The sight of Ryu with her collar open. The wave of rage and panic that had surged through her.
She remembered the terrifying thoughts that had flashed in her mind.
She remembered how her voice had trembled when she demanded, "What are you doing?"
She'd thought—
Forget it.
Demeter took a deep breath, walked up beside Genichi, and spoke softly.
"I'm sorry."
Genichi's hands paused for a fraction of a second.
"About earlier," Demeter continued, guilt and apology in her voice. "I misunderstood you. I shouldn't have stormed in like that, I shouldn't have questioned you like that, I shouldn't have—"
"I'm not angry."
Genichi cut her off, tone calm.
He truly wasn't.
In that situation, anyone who cared about him would've reacted the same way.
And Demeter… was his sunlight and moonlight, in her own way. He wasn't going to get mad at her over something like that.
Demeter froze for a moment, then a flash of delight passed through her eyes.
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Then…"
Demeter suddenly smiled, a sly glint appearing in her amber eyes.
"As thanks, take this!"
As she spoke, she pulled something out from behind her back and thrust it toward him.
A book.
The cover was made of some kind of dark leather, with no words or markings at all. Only a dull, dark gemstone set into the center.
That gem held a faint, flowing shimmer under the light, almost like it was alive.
Genichi's pupils shrank sharply.
A grimoire.
A priceless item that could awaken magic in an adventurer, a rare object formed from magic itself, with only a handful left in history.
He jerked his head up to stare at Demeter. The calm in his eyes shattered, replaced by a sharp, almost piercing intensity.
"This grimoire…"
His voice dropped, tight with restrained tension.
"Where did you get it?"
Demeter flinched at his sudden intensity.
But she recovered quickly, and a smug smile surfaced on her face.
"Relax. I didn't go looking for it."
She paused.
"It was a gift."
Genichi's brows knit tightly.
"A gift? From who?"
"An old friend."
Demeter's smile turned mysterious.
"She heard I'd taken in a newcomer with a lot of potential, so she had someone deliver this grimoire. She said it was a congratulations gift for recruiting a good familia member."
Genichi fell silent.
An old friend?
What kind of old friend casually gave away something this priceless?
And more importantly—
"You told her about me?"
A dangerous edge slipped into his voice.
"No, no!"
Demeter waved her hands in a hurry.
"I only said you had potential. I didn't say anything else. She didn't ask, either."
Genichi stared at her, the dark in his eyes sharpening into scrutiny.
After a moment, he spoke again.
"Who is this 'old friend'?"
Demeter met his gaze for a moment, then let out a quiet sigh.
"Fine.."
She paused.
"It was Dionysus."
Genichi's expression shifted.
Dionysus.
"Why would he give me a grimoire?"
Genichi pressed.
Demeter shrugged.
"I told you, didn't I? He heard I'd gotten a good new member."
She looked at Genichi, her amber eyes gentle.
"I don't really know, either. I ran into him today, and when he heard I'd taken in a new familia member, he wanted to give a congratulatory gift."
"As for why a grimoire…"
She smiled.
"Probably because I'm on fairly good terms with him."
Genichi didn't speak.
He stared at the grimoire in front of him, thoughts churning.
A gift from Dionysus.
That mad god he'd been wary of. The god who wanted the earth to sink back into chaos.
Had he noticed Genichi?
A faint gloom passed through Genichi's eyes, but he had no choice now. He could only seize every chance to grow stronger, and hope this grimoire—
After a long time, he reached out and took it.
"…Thank you," he said quietly.
He knew this wasn't Demeter's fault. He wasn't going to blame her.
Demeter looked at him, and the smile on her face froze.
"You're welcome."
(End of Chapter)
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