Chapter 159: Marielle Vale

[Meeren Capital City, Salem Kingdom]

"Cho-cho!"

The loud whistle of the train echoed throughout the busy station as it slowly came to a stop.

Steam escaped from beneath the massive mana engine, mixing with the noise of passengers, porters, and station workers moving around the platforms.

Amon and Seraphina stepped out of the train with their bags.

The moment Seraphina’s feet touched the platform, her eyes immediately widened.

She looked around with a huge smile on her face, taking in the towering buildings visible beyond the station and the countless people moving through the massive terminal.

She looked like a child who had just been allowed to leave the house for the first time.

Amon couldn’t help but chuckle. "Have you never been outside your hometown before?"

Seraphina immediately shook her head.

"I’ve gone outside plenty of times." She looked toward the enormous station again. "But I’ve never traveled somewhere this far by myself."

Amon smiled. "I can tell."

He reached down and picked up both her bag and his own.

Before Seraphina could say anything, Amon stored both of them inside the storage space of his bracelet.

Seraphina blinked in surprise before she frowned. "You could have done that from the start."

Amon gave her an innocent smile. "I wanted us some time to carry our bags to give a sense of traveling."

"That’s such a stupid reason."

Amon ignored her complaint and gestured toward the station exit. "After you, my lady."

Seraphina rolled her eyes but began walking.

She continued looking around as they moved through the station, occasionally slowing down whenever something caught her attention.

Amon followed beside her with an amused expression. "Do we need to take a cab?"

Seraphina shook her head. "No. I called my aunt earlier. She said she’d come here to pick us up."

Amon nodded. "Is there anything I should be careful about when I’m around your aunt?"

Seraphina suddenly became thoughtful. "Don’t talk about her dressing sense."

Amon blinked. "...That’s oddly specific."

Seraphina nodded seriously.

"Anything else?"

"She really hates bees."

"Bees?" Amon looked at her. "That’s an odd thing to hate."

Seraphina chuckled. "I’ll tell you the story about it one day."

The two eventually walked out of the main station hall and toward the parking area.

Amon suddenly stopped. ’....Hmm?’

His Mana Furnace suddenly began operating. Amon could feel the furnace inside him greedily drawing in the mana surrounding his body.

He frowned slightly.

Seraphina noticed his expression and looked at him. "What happened?"

Amon quickly smiled. "Nothing."

Seraphina stared at him suspiciously for a moment before accepting his answer.

She pulled out her phone and began calling her aunt. Amon looked around the parking area.

The capital city was already filled with activity despite the evening approaching.

Cars moved slowly through the streets outside the station while people crowded the sidewalks, carrying bags and talking among themselves.

Though the atmosphere felt strange. A thin haze hung over the city, making the distant buildings appear slightly blurred.

The sun had not completely disappeared yet, but the sky already looked considerably darker than Amon expected.

It was only five-thirty in the evening. ℯℯ𝑙.

’Why is the atmosphere like this?’ Amon’s expression became serious. His attention returned to the Mana Furnace. ’Why did it activate here?’

Every previous time the Mana Furnace had activated automatically, there had been an obvious reason.

The surrounding mana had been extremely dense, usually inside a dungeon.

Even the mana-rich lands he had discovered hadn’t been enough to trigger this kind of reaction.

But now... Amon could feel mana everywhere. It wasn’t merely present in the atmosphere.

It was dense enough for his Mana Furnace to recognize it as something worth absorbing.

’Could this be related to the dungeon catastrophe Nadya was talking about?’

Amon’s expression became grim.

If something had happened to the mana environment around the capital, then it could explain why his Mana Furnace had reacted the moment he arrived.

’I can’t be certain yet. I need more information.’

Amon remained lost in his thoughts until Seraphina suddenly spoke. "I am right outside."

He looked toward her as she was looking across the parking area and around.

Her expression suddenly brightened.

"There!" She raised her hand. "Aunt Marielle!"

Amon followed her gaze and immediately felt his heart skip a beat.

A woman was walking quickly toward them.

She was tall and had long purple hair that swayed behind her as she moved.

Her eyes were the same striking shade of purple, and despite her mature presence, her appearance was remarkably youthful.

She wore a simple white T-shirt underneath a black shirt, paired with dark skirt that gave her a casual yet stylish appearance.

Amon’s eyes widened slightly. ’...Holy fuck.’

She looked almost as young as Seraphina!!

Marielle finally reached them. "My baby!"

She immediately opened her arms and pulled Seraphina into a tight hug.

Seraphina laughed as she hugged her aunt back. "I missed you too, Aunt Marielle."

Marielle held her for several seconds before finally letting go. She then turned her head toward Amon.

Amon was still staring at her as Marielle raised an eyebrow.

He quickly realized that he had been caught as he straightened his posture.

Seraphina smiled awkwardly.

"Aunt Marielle, this is Amon." She gestured toward him. "Amon, this is my aunt, Marielle."

Marielle extended her hand. "So you’re the genius student who keeps topping all the rankings."

Amon chuckled and shook her hand. "I just had easy competition."

Marielle smiled. "That’s certainly one way to describe it."

She released his hand before gesturing toward the parking area. "My car is parked nearby."

The three began walking together.

After a short while, Marielle glanced toward Amon. "Have you already found somewhere to stay?"

Amon shook his head. "Not yet. I was planning to stay at a hotel until I found a suitable place."

Seraphina immediately turned toward her aunt. "He can stay with us until he finds a house, right?"

She gave Marielle an innocent look.

Marielle hesitated. She glanced at Amon before looking back at Seraphina.

"You want him to stay with us?"

Seraphina nodded. "Just until he finds a place."

She gave her aunt a small puppy-eyed look.

Marielle stared at her for several seconds before finally sighing. "Fine."

Seraphina immediately smiled. "Thank you!"

Amon couldn’t help but smile.

’Nice.’ He mentally gave Seraphina a thumbs-up. ’I owe you one.’

The three eventually reached Marielle’s car.

Seraphina opened the front passenger door and climbed inside. Marielle walked around to the driver’s side and entered as well.

Amon was about to sit in the back when a system notification suddenly appeared before his eyes.

He stopped in his track. ’What?’

He opened the notification and his expression immediately turned blank.

---

[Special Quest Detected!]

[Quest: Friendly Greeting]

Objective: Give Marielle a friendly greeting by smacking her butt once.

Reward: Random (depends on luck.)

Penalty: None

Time Limit: Two hours

Accept Quest?

[Yes] [No]

---

Amon stared at the notification and for several seconds, he didn’t move.

’...Uh, do I really need to do that as soon as we met?’

He slowly looked toward Marielle, who was already sitting in the driver’s seat. ’Why does the system keep giving me quests like this?’

Amon’s face twitched slightly.

Seraphina noticed him standing beside the car. "Amon?"

He immediately looked toward her.

"Yeah?"

"Are you coming?"

Amon glanced at the system window again.

The [Yes] and [No] options continued floating before his eyes.

He slowly rubbed his forehead. ’Fuck it.’

Amon accepted the quest.