Chapter 187: Two Of Me

"Yes," Elias answered, and the orange screen before him changed at once.

[Ding!]

[Perfect Role is in effect!]

[Current Role: A loving father who wants to pamper his daughter.]

A gentle smile spread across Elias’s face as the skill’s influence settled over him.

He walked down the corridor until he reached Stella’s door, where he knocked twice before calling her name.

"Stella."

"What do you want?" she asked from inside, her voice dispirited enough to make his smile falter.

’No! I made her sad...’

Elias pressed his lips together, regretting that he had dismissed her words so quickly. He had only just awakened from that dreadful simulation, so his thoughts were already muddled by the aftershock of everything he had seen, even though none of it had been real.

"Open the door, sweetheart. I want to talk to you," he answered in a gentle voice.

"I do not want to! Everyone thinks I am a liar," Stella retorted, and the somber note in her voice made his expression darken.

He shook his head, then leaned a little closer to the door as though she might hear the sincerity in his voice more clearly if he did.

"No, I do not think you are a liar. I was confused because I had only just woken up, and I did not understand what you were talking about. That is all." He paused before adding, "Please open the door so I can talk to you and your friend."

For a while, there was no response, and Elias waited patiently. Eventually, he heard the quiet click of the lock, followed by the door opening just wide enough for Stella to peek out at him.

Her crimson eyebrows were drawn together in a frown, and her expression made it obvious that she hadn’t entirely forgiven him. Nevertheless, Elias smiled at her.

"Thank you."

Stella stepped aside, allowing him to enter, and Elias gently closed the door behind him.

He summoned the Third Sage’s Amulet around his neck and channeled his mana into it, hoping the artifact might help him understand what Stella was experiencing.

Countless colorless threads emerged around him, stretching in all directions. The room wavered and shimmered as he searched through those threads, carefully examining the room.

Yet, despite his efforts, he couldn’t find another presence.

He continued searching for several moments before finally withdrawing his mana, causing the strange distortion in his vision to fade away.

The result was exactly what he had feared: only Stella could see her different personalities.

If he told her that he couldn’t see anyone, she might believe he was still refusing to trust her, and he didn’t want to make her feel isolated again when she had already been struggling with her condition.

’What should I do?’

"Why are you just standing there?" Stella questioned, tilting her head while pressing a finger between her lips.

Elias looked at her, and his worries immediately softened at the sight of her curious expression. He stepped forward and gently patted her head, allowing his fingers to pass through her long crimson hair.

’So cute!’

Stella’s frown gradually disappeared as she leaned into his touch, a calm smile replacing the displeasure that had been written across her face moments earlier.

Elias continued patting her head for a little longer before taking her hand and guiding her toward the bed.

After sitting down at the edge of the bed, he helped her settle beside him and enclosed her hand between his palms.

"Do you want something? Anything?" he asked, looking into her crimson eyes with a warm smile.

Stella blinked and fell into thought, her lips moving slightly as she considered his question. "Something I want... hmm..."

Her eyes suddenly brightened, and she turned toward him with a look full of enthusiasm.

"I want to go out!"

Elias’s smile stiffened.

’Why does she only ask for difficult things?’

His smile faded as he considered how to explain the situation without making her feel disappointed.

"Do you remember the spatial rift I told you about?" he asked.

Stella blinked a few times before nodding. "Yes, I do."

"Well, it is still there, and the city is in chaos right now. Even though I would love to go out with you, we cannot do that safely yet." He squeezed her hand gently and added, "I am sorry, sweetheart. We will have to wait until things settle down."

Stella’s shoulders slouched, and the excitement in her eyes dimmed as she looked down at their joined hands.

"I see... Why does everything have to happen in the city we live in?" she mumbled, sounding genuinely troubled by the unfairness of it all.

"I would love to know that too," Elias answered with a chuckle, hoping to lighten her mood without dismissing her disappointment.

His attempt seemed to work, at least a little, because Stella raised her head again and studied his face. After a brief pause, she suddenly leaned forward, her eyes shining with renewed expectation.

"So? Can you see her?"

Elias fell silent.

He could tell her that he believed her, but that wasn’t the same as showing her that he could actually see the person. If he claimed to see someone who wasn’t there, she might realize he was merely trying to make her feel better, and that would only damage the trust he was trying to rebuild.

’Is this the only way I have?’ he wondered, glancing at Stella before looking down at their joined hands.

His thoughts turned toward the Boundless Tether of Hearts and Souls.

’Would it even allow me to see them?’

He had no certainty that the skill would work as he hoped, but doing nothing would not help either, and above all, he couldn’t bring himself to turn away from her when there might be something he could do.

Elias raised his free hand and began patting her head again.

Stella’s eyebrows furrowed as she tried to resist the soothing sensation, her expression growing increasingly serious.

"You cann—"

[Ding!]

Orange screens suddenly flooded Elias’s vision, interrupting her words before she could finish.

[A connection beyond time-space is being formed between Elias Crimson and Stella Crimson.]

Elias braced himself for the familiar wave of fatigue that had accompanied his previous connection, tightening his hold on Stella’s hand as he waited for the sensation to strike.

However, nothing of the sort happened. Instead, he felt his existence stretching beyond the boundaries of his body as an invisible thread extended toward Stella.

The sensation was familiar; however, the connection behaved differently from the one he had established before. Rather than stopping at Stella’s physical existence or reaching only one hidden presence, the thread seemed to divide as it approached her, branching into three separate strands that continued onward toward three distinct destinations.

Elias’s eyes widened as he felt each strand settle into place.

[The connection has been formed.]

Stella abruptly jumped off the bed, staring at him with wide eyes as she tried to understand the strange sensation that had washed over her.

"What just happened?" she muttered.

Elias didn’t answer immediately because he, too, was staring into the distance with an expression of astonishment.

He could now perceive a figure standing beside the bed.

She was unmistakably Stella, yet her appearance differed from that of the woman standing before him.

Her crimson hair was shorter, styled in a wolf cut that framed her face, and her features belonged to a woman who appeared to be in her late twenties or early thirties. She leaned against one of the wooden bedposts with her arms folded across her chest, her eyes closed.

Elias recognized her immediately as the personality that had appeared after he fed Stella an Extraordinary Sugar Fruit.

Meanwhile, Young Stella had raised a hand to her mouth, staring at the same place with an expression of pure amazement.

"Woah!" she mumbled.

Elias turned toward her, unable to hide the amusement that crept into his voice. "What is wrong?"

"Nothing!" Stella quickly shook her head before pressing her lips together, but her expression soon turned confused as she tried to explain the sensation she was experiencing.

"I feel like I can feel husband, like you are right beside me!"

"I am not?" Elias asked, tilting his head.

Stella frowned and pointed at him. "You are..."

"Huh?" Her expression became even more bewildered as she tried to find the right words, but after several seconds of struggling, she threw up her hands and muttered, "Ugh! I don’t know how to explain it!"

"Haha!" Elias laughed softly, finding her frustration endearing before pointing toward the older Stella. "Why don’t you try asking her?"

Stella’s eyes widened, and she stared at him as though he had just performed a miracle.

"You can see her!"

Elias smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I can."

A delighted giggle escaped Stella’s lips as she hopped on her feet several times, her long crimson hair bouncing around her shoulders.

"See! I told you I was not lying!"

"Yes, you did," Elias admitted, his smile softening as he met her gaze. "I am sorry for not believing you earlier."

Stella seemed satisfied with his apology, and she returned to the bed with a cheerful expression.

Elias, however, turned his attention toward the Other Stella, who remained motionless beside the bedpost with her eyes closed.

"Why is she just standing there?" he asked.

Stella shrugged, swinging her legs as she settled onto the mattress. "I do not know. She said something about having to keep ’Her’ in check, and then she became like this."

Elias’s brows drew together as he considered her words, wondering whether the older personality was trying to suppress the third personality.

He had believed that Envy was Mad Stella, but considering how the connection had split into three at the end, he realized that she wasn’t.

Young Stella leaned toward him with a mischievous smile, her crimson eyes sparkling like rubies.

"Hehe! It is good that husband can see her now, too! That means you have to give Stella twice the time and gifts because there are two of me!"

’Of course she would say that.’

Elias couldn’t help finding her adorable, and rather than pointing out the absurdity of her demand, he brushed a hand through her long crimson hair while smiling at her.

"Of course," he agreed. "What do you want me to do, dear?"

"Everything!" Stella exclaimed, bringing her face closer to his.

"Everything?" Elias mumbled, looking at her with exaggerated confusion.

"Yes!" She nodded several times before raising both fists in excitement. "I want you to bathe me, feed me, cook with me, sleep with me, tell stories to me, play games with me, and so much more!"

"Is that all?" he asked, allowing a sweet smile to spread across his face as he gently brushed her hair away from her cheek.

"No!" Stella shook her head, her expression briefly turning thoughtful as she considered the many other things she wanted to do. "There is more, but for that, we need to go out."

Her smile gradually faded as she remembered why she couldn’t leave the manor, and she lowered her head with a small frown.

"But we cannot go out because it is scary."

"Right..." Elias mumbled, giving her a moment to settle before asking, "Is there something you want right now?"

Stella considered his question for a few seconds, then nodded so enthusiastically that her hair swayed around her shoulders.

"Yes! Snuggles!"

A soft chuckle escaped Elias as he rose from the edge of the bed, and his boots disappeared from his feet before he climbed onto the mattress.

"As you wish, My Lady."

"Call me wife!" Stella declared, quickly removing her own boots before scrambling onto the bed beside him.

Elias lay down on his side and patted the empty spot beside himself.

Stella immediately shifted into the offered position with a wide smile, settling on her side with both hands resting over her abdomen as she waited for him to move closer.

He gently patted her abdomen, and she snuggled against him, wrapping her arms around him.

"I like this..." she mumbled, her voice growing soft as she rested against him.

Elias smiled and returned the embrace, gently patting her back while holding her close.