Chapter 102: Just a thanks?

Lucien could barely manage a coherent response. His face was burning as he hurriedly turned around and started walking, practically dragging Zephyr along with him.

"Let’s... Let’s go to the right!"

His heart was a complete mess.

What was wrong with Zephyr?!

How had he never noticed that this side character was this shameless before? Or had he simply decided to torment him now that he had confessed and knew exactly how easily Lucien could be flustered?

Lucien tightened his grip on Zephyr’s hand and stubbornly refused to look back at him.

The complaining dragon: "..."

Onicus sat on Zephyr’s shoulder, staring blankly into the distance as it questioned every decision that had led it to this point.

Was it really going to spend the rest of its remaining time in this world watching this couple flirt in front of it? A vein seemed to throb on its head as it sneered at Zephyr.

"Heh, you seem to have forgotten that I am also here!"

Zephyr didn’t respond.

But the slow roll of his eyes made it painfully clear that, yes, he had.

Onicus was so frustrated that it simply gave up and shut its mouth, deciding to go to sleep instead. Out of sight, out of mind.

It was not as though it had not tried to advise Zephyr. It had already warned the lovestruck fool not to hand over whatever Lucien wanted from him the moment he asked for it. But Zephyr simply would not listen.

Onicus was almost certain that if Lucien ever sold Zephyr off one day and then casually asked him to count the money, he would obediently do that too.

This guy...

Aside from being ridiculously powerful and capable of killing demons, did he have any good qualities at all?!

Unfortunately, Zephyr had no idea what was going through Onicus’s mind. In fact, he felt relieved when the constant chatter beside his ear finally disappeared. With one less distraction, he simply followed Lucien.

The two continued through the forest, Zephyr casually eliminating every monster they encountered along the way. Eventually, they emerged into a vast clearing covered in pale, scorching sand, where a group of S-rank monsters quickly caught their attention.

Zephyr stepped forward without hesitation. Before engaging them, however, he raised a Rebound Dome around Lucien. Then he moved through the clearing like the wind.

Within moments, the S-rank monsters were dead.

Lucien watched silently from inside the dome. He lowered his gaze to his hand and opened his palm. A sphere of water slowly formed above it, swirling gently in the air.

This was the skill he had obtained from the blue core he absorbed in the underground chamber. The information about it flashed through his mind.

Aqua Dominion (A-rank) — An offensive ability left behind by a fallen dragon. It allows the user to conjure and manipulate water freely within their range. The user can shape the water into various forms, such as blades, spears, shields, and waves, while controlling its movement and pressure with precision. The skill also allows the user to control any nearby bodies of water.

When Lucien had woken up later in the underground chamber, the dark core had already disappeared. It seemed Zephyr had somehow survived the attack that had nearly killed Erick in the original novel and absorbed the dark core while he was unconscious.

As they continued across the clearing, the number of monsters they encountered gradually decreased. Most of them were A-rank, with a few S-rank monsters occasionally appearing among them. Eventually, they came across a small group of B-rank monsters.

Zephyr was about to step forward when Lucien suddenly reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Hey. This time, leave one monster alive. I want to kill it."

Zephyr blinked.

Then, he simply nodded, a faint look of anticipation appearing in his eyes, as though he were genuinely eager to watch Lucien fight.

After all, he could now sense mana within Lucien’s body. Moreover, Lucien had absorbed one of the two cores, so he probably had obtained a powerful skill as well. And if anything unexpected happened, Zephyr would be right there to intervene.

Zephyr moved forward and slaughtered the snake-like monsters one after another, deliberately leaving only one alive. Once he was finished, he stepped aside.

Lucien swallowed nervously.

This was his first time fighting a real monster.

Still, his strength was already at B-rank, and he possessed a powerful A-rank skill. He should be able to handle one B-rank monster.

Unlike Espers, he did not even need a Guide. As a Guide himself, his wavelength could automatically purify his energy whenever it became corrupted.

The remaining monster was already terrified. It had watched Zephyr slaughter its entire group with ease, leaving it as the sole survivor. The moment Lucien attacked with a water whip, it immediately turned and tried to flee.

But Lucien had no intention of letting it escape. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ

He swung his hand, and walls of water surged from the ground, forming a cage around the monster. The creature thrashed wildly, but Lucien tightened his control, using the immense pressure of the water to crush it.

Sweat quickly formed on his forehead.

Controlling mana was far more exhausting than he had expected. Not to mention, the amount of mana he possessed was not very large, so he could not use his skill for long.

Lucien gritted his teeth and stepped closer, preparing to deliver the final blow.

That was when the monster suddenly broke free from the water prison.

Its massive jaws opened as it lunged straight for Lucien’s head.

Lucien’s eyes contracted.

Before the snake could reach him, however, Zephyr appeared between them. With nothing more than a casual movement of his hand, he used his Psychokinesis skill to seize the monster in midair and completely restrain its movements.

The snake writhed desperately, unable to move even an inch.

Zephyr glanced toward Lucien.

"Kill it."

Lucien nodded.

He gathered his mana and finished the monster.

The moment it collapsed, Lucien’s legs gave out, and he dropped onto the sand with a tired exhale. He was not physically exhausted so much as mentally drained. He glanced toward Zephyr, a small smile appearing as he felt the warmth of the sand beneath him.

"Thanks."

Zephyr reached down and helped him back to his feet. The sand was scorching hot, and it was not a good place to sit for long.

"Just a thanks?"

He asked with a quiet chuckle.

Lucien tilted his head, clearly confused.

"What?"

His gaze fell on Zephyr’s hands as Zephyr casually wiped away the sand clinging to his palms. He then used his healing ability to soothe the slight redness and abrasions left by the scorching ground.

Zephyr raised his gaze again.

A teasing smirk curved his lips.

"I want a kiss as thanks."

Lucien froze.

This guy...

He really had changed.

To think, Lucien had once considered him so innocent.

Still, if he backed down now, how could he call himself a man? The look in Zephyr’s eyes, as if daring him, was provoking him!

At that moment, with courage that came from who knew where, Lucien reached up, wrapped an arm around Zephyr’s neck, and pulled him down.

Beneath the scorching sun, surrounded by nothing but fallen monsters and endless sand, Lucien pressed his lips against Zephyr’s.

Zephyr’s eyes widened slightly.

Then they curved.

Zephyr was about to deepen the kiss, but Lucien abruptly pulled away. His voice was deliberately composed, though the redness spreading across his face betrayed him.

"Good now? Let’s continue walking."

Only after pulling away did Lucien fully realize what he had just done. His face burned, but he stubbornly ignored it.

Anyway, Zephyr had already confessed, and he had more or less agreed to their relationship. He could not keep refusing him forever.

It was just a kiss.

No big deal.

As for what came after a kiss...

He had already done so much with Zephyr.

It was not as though he could not do it a second time. But when he remembered how far things had gone in the underground chamber, his expression immediately fell.

No, no. He absolutely could not let things go any further than they already had!

The last stage was completely off-limits. Even reaching the second stage and jerking off together was already more than enough. That was the absolute limit of what he was willing to do!

And why the hell had it automatically been assumed that he would be the one on the bottom?!

Damn it!

Behind him, Zephyr let out a quiet chuckle before following him.

"Okay. Let’s continue walking."

Onicus, who had just woken up: "..."

It really wanted to seal itself away.

Unfortunately, it no longer had enough power to do so. All it could do was press its tiny paws over its ears and try to block out the conversation.

Now, it finally understood how Zephyr must have felt when it was chattering nonstop.

Still, Onicus was certain its own chatter had never been this infuriating.