System's POV

Chapter 1289: Is He More Handsome Than Me?

As the world of Artem braced for an imminent, full-scale battle, a young lady light-years away from that world finally stirred, her eyes opening after a long time of unconsciousness.

Stella instantly recognized that she was in her room. Two cute, curled-up figures slept beside her, undoubtedly her baby sisters, Maple and Cinnamon.

The two adorable gluttons hugged her from both sides, restricting Stella from getting out of bed right away.

Because of this, she could only glance at the window of her room. It was still dark outside.

Not wanting to wake her sisters, she carefully slipped from their grasp and left the room through the window.

A few minutes later, she stood at the top of the highest tower of the palace and looked up at the stars in the sky.

The night was cold, and the breeze blowing against her body reminded her of what had happened in the battle against the Artemian King.

Back then, she didn’t hesitate to risk her all, even her life, to help Zion protect Cranky so the latter could finish his evolution.

Thinking back, she’d been really reckless. But she felt no regret.

Had Zion died, she would have lost all chance of reclaiming what she had lost. What was the point of living a life forever devoid of all colors?

After gazing at the stars for nearly half an hour, she felt a faint presence arrive behind her.

“Dad.” Stella turned around and gave her father a warm smile. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too, Stella,” a red-headed Half-Elf hugged his daughter and lightly patted her head. “Please be more careful in the future. Your mom and I almost had a heart attack after seeing you in that state.”

“I’m sorry,” Stella replied, knowing full well that her family would be sad if something truly happened to her.

Maple’s and Cinnamon’s adventures were enough for everyone to worry about them, and she didn’t want to add to that burden.

A few minutes later, her father spoke once more.

“Did you find it?” the red-headed Half-Elf asked. “The one that will solve your problem?”

“I think so,” Stella answered. “No. I believe that I have found the one who will be able to help me recover what I lost.”

“Does… he go by the name Zion Leventis?” the red-headed Half-Elf asked.

“Yes,” Stella replied. “That’s his name.”

Stella didn’t want to lie to her father and told him more about Zion. How the teenage boy, who was younger than her by two years, had done things that no one his age would have done if they were in his place.

Her father, who goes by the name William Von Ainsworth, listened to her story without interrupting.

When Stella was finally finished sharing her story about the times she spent with Zion, the Half-Elf lightly patted her head.

“Rest here for a few days and don’t leave without saying goodbye,” William lightly patted his daughter’s head. “Make sure to see your mothers, your brothers, and sisters as well.”

“Okay.” Stella nodded obediently. “Dad, don’t hurt Zion, okay?”

“And why would I do that?” William asked with a smile.

“It’s because I can feel it.” Stella narrowed her eyes. “Dad. This is my business, okay?”

“Mmm.” William hummed vaguely.

He didn’t promise anything to his daughter, knowing he wasn’t confident about keeping it.

Right now, he was tracking Zion’s whereabouts. However, for some reason, the Gods were being uncooperative and refused to tell him where Zion Leventis was.

This was a surprise for him since even his Patron God Gavin would try to change the subject whenever he asked about the location of Zion Leventis.

His friends, Issei, Lily, David, Cupid, and even Dim Dim, would also make excuses whenever this topic was brought up.

But the biggest surprise to him was when he asked Sun Wukong if he knew why the Gods weren’t helping him find the teenage boy, whom Stella was protecting from him.

“Zion is a very close friend of mine, William,” Sun Wukong had told him back then. “Why? Do you have a problem with him?”

Since Sun Wukong was also one of the Half-Elf’s close friends and one of his benefactors in the past, he simply said that Stella seemed to have become friends with the teenage boy, and he wanted to know more about him.

After hearing his reply, Sun Wukong chuckled and lightly tapped William’s chest with his finger.

“Why don’t you ask Optimus?” Sun Wukong stated. “Maybe, just maybe, he has some information about Zion Leventis.”

After that conversation, William had left the Celestial Realm and returned to his home world.

He was very curious why Sun Wukong had said that Optimus might know about Zion Leventis, which prompted him to ask his Strongest System.

But Optimus’ reply was this…

“Your daughter might have been infected by the Zion Virus. It’s already too late. The only cure is to remain by Zion’s side.”

The corner of the Half-Elf’s lips twitched after hearing this reply from his long-time partner, who had allowed him to reach his current rank.

Since all the people he had asked seemed to talk in circles, he decided to talk to the one person who was on the same page as him.

“Gramps, do you know who Zion Leventis is?” William asked.

“Of course, I do,” James asked. “He often cooks food for Maple and Cinnamon, and your daughters love him.”

“Hahaha! Is that so?” William chuckled as he added another reason why he wanted to snap Zion’s neck if he were to meet him. “What kind of person is he?”

“A very jaded person,” James answered before taking out his pipe and lighting it. “He doesn’t feel human. But when he is around his girls, he gives off a smile that looks more human than anything I’ve seen in this lifetime.”

William blinked because his grandfather wasn’t someone who praised people so highly unless he was planning to scam them.

“Is he rich?” William asked.

“Very rich.” James smiled.

“Is he more handsome than me?” William inquired.

“No,” James answered. “He’s not handsome. But he is very unique. So unique that if you were to get to know him, you would feel something similar to meeting a very old friend that you haven’t met for a very long time.”

The old man started to blow white circles of smoke from his lips, while William fell into deep thought.

No one spoke for nearly five minutes before the Half-Elf broke the silence.

“Gramps, I want to meet this person,” William said in a serious tone.

“Okay,” James replied. “When Stella leaves, we will secretly follow her. However, you and I will only observe her from afar and not bother her, okay?”

“Deal.” William nodded.

He knew there existed certain laws that prevented him from directly interacting with other worlds.

Still, he wouldn’t mind breaking a few of them if he got a chance to really know the person whom his daughter was trying to get close to.

The next day, Stella visited her mother, Belle, who was very happy to see that she was finally awake.

Maple and Cinnamon stood pouting beside their sister, who had sneaked out of bed without telling them.

Stella already apologized, but the two adorable gluttons continued to pout.

Only when she decided to make them some pudding did the two forgive her and accompany her in greeting their mothers, as well as their siblings, who numbered over fifty.