Chapter 48: The Most Obedient Sentinel

Lumi stared at the finger Evan had pointed downward, her expression remaining completely blank as her mind struggled to process his words.

For several seconds, she simply stood there.

Then her eyes slowly widened.

"Oh."

Another second passed.

Her face turned bright red.

"E-EVAN!"

The shout exploded directly into his face as Lumi immediately shoved both hands against his chest, trying to push him away. Unfortunately, Evan barely moved, his arm still securely wrapped around her waist as he looked down at her flustered expression with an amused smirk.

"You... you... who are you?!"

Evan raised an eyebrow. "Evan Caesar."

"No, you’re not!"

"I am."

"You can’t be!" Lumi protested, her face still burning as she pushed against his chest again. "The Evan Caesar I know doesn’t say things like that!"

A quiet chuckle escaped him, "So you know me quite well?"

Lumi froze. Her mouth opened, but no words came out.

’That’s not what I meant! Why does everything I say somehow make things worse?!’

Evan’s smile widened as he listened to her thoughts, clearly enjoying her confusion far more than he should have.

"Then how about you?" His gaze remained fixed on her flushed face. "Why are your inner thoughts always so different from what comes out of your mouth and actions?"

Lumi was caught off guard.

Her eyes widened, and for a moment, she completely forgot that Evan could hear every thought running through her head.

"I..." Her mind went blank.

What could she say? The things that went through her mind could never come out of her mouth. That was how she had lived her life for the past nineteen years. She had learned to keep her thoughts to herself, swallowing every word she wanted to say until only the quiet, obedient version of herself remained.

But now, standing in front of Evan, she suddenly realized that all those thoughts she had spent her entire life hiding were no longer hers alone.

And judging from the amused expression on his face, he had heard far too many of them already.

"I’m just asking. Don’t make that kind of face. You’re making me feel guilty," Evan said, watching her expression.

Lumi blinked, still caught off guard by his question.

"So... this is your... like..." She hesitated, searching for the right words. "Hm... true self?"

Evan’s eyebrow lifted. "True self?"

Lumi nodded slowly, her eyes wandering over his face as though she were trying to compare this version of him with the Evan she knew outside.

"You’re different here," she admitted quietly. "Outside, you’re always so cold and serious, but here..."

She hesitated again, her cheeks warming slightly.

"I am cold with you? No, I am not..." Evan blinked, as though he genuinely didn’t understand the accusation. "You actually received quite a few smiles from me..."

Lumi stared at him. "Ah... right."

"Right..." He smiled, clearly pleased with her answer. "So... when will I get my reward?"

"Reward?" The innocent Lumi found it difficult to understand this version of Evan in front of her at the moment.

"Mm..." Evan nodded, his smile widening. "Since you are one of the people who have received the most genuine smiles from me... shouldn’t you reward me with something?"

Lumi blinked at him, completely baffled.

’What kind of logic is that?’

She stared at him for several seconds, trying to figure out whether he was being serious or simply teasing her.

"You smiled because you wanted to..."

"I did."

"Then why do I have to reward you?"

Evan rolled his eyes upward, thinking for a full two seconds before finally looking back at her.

"Well... because I chose you to smile at too. And it is such an honor to receive a smile from one of the top Sentinels of the Empire... isn’t it?"

His answer was met with silence.

Lumi simply stared at his face, completely speechless as she tried to process the ridiculous logic he had just come up with. She kept gazing at him for several seconds, her expression gradually becoming stranger as she replayed his words in her mind.

Then, without warning, a small laugh escaped her lips. It quickly grew into a genuine burst of laughter that she couldn’t hold back anymore.

Evan blinked.

Lumi covered her mouth, but it was already too late. Her shoulders trembled as she laughed, and even her eyes began to water slightly.

"You..." She struggled to speak between her laughter. "You’re really strange..."

Evan stared at her for a moment before his lips slowly curved upward again.

"It’s good here, right? No one to disturb us, and no one to tell us what to do..."

His words made Lumi’s remaining laughter stop abruptly.

She stared at him, the smile slowly fading from her face as his words sank in. For a moment, she didn’t know how to respond because, somehow, that simple sentence felt much heavier than his teasing from earlier.

No one to disturb them. No one to tell them what to do.

Lumi lowered her gaze, her fingers slowly curling against the fabric of her clothes.

’No one telling me what to do...’

She remained quiet for a while before slowly lifting her head again. Her gaze settled on Evan’s face, lingering there as she thought about what he had said.

Perhaps it really would be nice to stay here a little longer.

There was no Pei family telling her what she should do, no one expecting her to sacrifice something simply because Celestine deserved it more, and no one deciding what was best for her without ever asking what she wanted.

But this place wasn’t reality. And no matter how peaceful it felt here, they couldn’t hide from what was happening outside.

"But we can’t stay away from reality forever..." Lumi said softly.

Evan’s smile gradually faded.

"You’re out of control outside, and you’re putting everyone in danger, Evan."

He didn’t answer, but Lumi could see the hesitation appearing in those yellow-hazel eyes. The playful Evan from moments ago seemed to disappear slightly as his gaze shifted away from her.

Lumi watched him for a moment before a warm smile appeared on her face.

"Let’s go out first..." she said gently. "We can think about this later... hmm?"

Evan remained silent.

The electricity surrounding them continued to crackle through the darkness, but unlike before, it no longer felt as violent. Lumi didn’t rush him for an answer either. She simply waited, giving him the choice instead of trying to force him into making one.

After a long moment, Evan finally looked at her again.

Then he nodded.

"Okay."

Lumi’s smile immediately brightened.

"Good." She stepped closer, and Evan’s eyebrows rose slightly when she reached up and cupped his face between her hands again. "Here..."

Lumi stood on her tiptoes, bringing her face closer to his as a hint of shyness returned to her expression. "Your reward for being the most obedient Sentinel..."

Evan blinked, clearly not expecting her to actually remember his ridiculous request.

Lumi smiled. Then she closed the remaining distance between them and pressed her lips against his.

For a brief moment, everything became strangely quiet.

The electricity surrounding them disappeared.

The darkness stopped trembling.

And Evan’s hand had barely reached her waist when Lumi’s entire body suddenly stiffened.

His eyes snapped open.

Warm liquid spilled between their lips.

Lumi pulled away with a violent cough, and a mouthful of blood suddenly spurted from her lips, splattering across Evan’s face and chest.

"Lumi?"

Her hands slipped from his cheeks. And the darkness beneath her feet shattered.