Chapter 76: A Week Later

After the party, Nero settled into the limousine beside Lilly while Albert drove them away from the Windsor Estate. There was enough room in the back for all three of them.

Before leaving, he had entrusted Mira to Drake, who promised to take her safely home without asking any questions.

Victoria, on the other hand, had kept giving him strange looks. Nero still couldn’t figure out what he’d done to deserve those.

Lilia was scrolling through market figures on her wristband when Nero took a bottle of apple juice from the small refrigerator.

Seeing this, she decided to speak up while continuing to look at her wristband. "How did you get to know Mr. Windsor?"

"I met him in a park while he was exercising. We started talking and got along pretty well," he replied.

Lilia looked away from her screen with a raised eyebrow. Could such coincidences really exist?

"You seem to have made quite a few acquaintances lately. Speaking of which, what happened with General William?"

Nero had expected that question eventually.

"I saw his expression when he took you aside. What did you do to upset him?"

"Nothing much. He threatened me because he thinks I’m getting too close to his daughter. He said I shouldn’t be friends with her."

"He threatened you over that?" Lilly was stunned.

"He also said my Talent wasn’t good enough for me to stand beside her. He wants someone with better potential."

"What the hell is wrong with him? You’re a student, and he’s a general!"

Her anger surprised Nero more than William’s warning had.

Then Lilly noticed the juice in his hand and the phone he was casually checking.

"How are you saying this so calmly?"

"Would getting upset make him take it back?"

Lilia studied him for a moment before smiling.

"Well done, Nero. You don’t need to let that brute frighten you into thinking less of yourself."

That caught his attention.

"He treats other boys who approach his daughter the same way. William has never been reasonable when it comes to Serina."

Nero doubted that made his threats any less serious. The general had meant every word and hadn’t shown the slightest concern about threatening someone so much younger.

Still, Nero had already made up his mind.

"I’ll have a talk with Serina," Lilly suddenly spoke up.

Nero nearly choked on his juice.

"Her father said it. She didn’t do anything."

"I know that, Nero. I just want her to know what he’s been saying to you."

That was reassuring, although he hoped their conversation would remain friendly.

He and Lilly had already become much closer than he had ever imagined possible. Yet they hadn’t properly discussed what their relationship meant, and he had started developing feelings for Serina too.

’What am I supposed to do if those two start fighting?’

Having more than one partner wasn’t unusual in this world. Even Lilly’s father had a second wife who had vanished alongside Nero’s parents.

Lilia rarely spoke about her missing husband, although Nero had wondered whether their arranged marriage explained that distance. Morgan was her own family name, and she had built her business empire herself.

Still, none of that told him how Lilly would feel about sharing someone she liked.

’I should probably figure that out before things get complicated.’

One angry general was already more trouble than he needed.

Whatever happened, Nero wasn’t going to stop seeing Serina simply because her father ordered him to.

The rest of the drive passed without trouble, and a message from Drake confirmed that Mira had reached home safely.

Nero thanked him before putting his phone away.

Nero had barely settled into bed that night when Lilly entered his room and climbed in beside him.

"I won’t let people insult you like that."

She wrapped an arm around him and held him tightly, a small blush appearing on her face.

"I’m fine, Lilly. It hasn’t changed what I think of myself."

"Are you sure you’re not pretending because you don’t want me to worry?"

Nero smiled awkwardly as she looked up at him.

"I’m sure, but you can stay here anyway."

"I wasn’t asking for permission to stay."

Lilly settled against his chest while he held her close. For someone who claimed to be checking on him, she fell asleep remarkably quickly.

Over the following week, Nero spent most of his time working through Enis’s exercises.

Unfortunately, his control hadn’t improved much. Enis’s methods weren’t working as well as he had expected.

And gaining control was one of the fundamental requirements for reaching D-Rank.

More specifically, he needed to become capable of releasing energy from almost any part of his body.

During his training, Nero had also noticed a glaring problem with his Cellular Reservoir.

His Cell Energy didn’t immediately appear in his palm when he activated his Talent. Instead, the energy first gathered near his heart before circulating through his body and eventually reaching his palm.

This meant his activation speed could potentially improve if he could eliminate that unnecessary circulation.

However, according to Enis, that was simply how Cellular Reservoir worked.

Strangely enough, his Enlightenment Talent had activated out of nowhere and given him the knowledge that bypassing this process was indeed possible.

Unfortunately, it hadn’t explained how to accomplish it.

’What’s the point of telling me something is possible if you’re not going to tell me how to do it?!’

It was truly annoying.

Speaking of which, Serina never stopped visiting him throughout the week. Their relationship remained the same as before, and she even apologized on her father’s behalf.

Nero, however, believed that the apology was completely unnecessary.

He also spent plenty of time training Mira.

His Telekinesis duration had improved to fifteen minutes, while Mira had managed to reach seventeen minutes.

On the final day of the week, he made sure to inform her that he would be away for some time.

He had already received a map from the System showing the location of the secret training facility.

However, he had decided to postpone his departure until the day Lilly and the others left for the military camp.

That night, Lilly naturally came to visit him.

She stepped inside and kissed him before he could say anything.

Her tongue pushed into his mouth and tangled with his. Nero grabbed her waist, pulled her against him, and kissed her back just as passionately.

She breathed heavily against his lips as they continued kissing.

When they finally pulled apart, they were both breathing hard.

"What’s gotten into you?" Nero asked, his lips twitching.

However, Lilly seemed a little sad.

"We might not see each other for two months," she said hesitantly.

Nero nodded. He knew that very well.

She would be training at the military camp while he would be staying at the secret training facility.

In the end, they spent some time talking before falling asleep together.

Before they did, Lilly said something that left him speechless.

She looked him dead in the eyes and said, "You cannot sleep with other women while I’m away, Nero."

"W-What are you saying, Lilly? I obviously won’t. Do you take me for a prostitute?" Nero replied helplessly.

Lilly glared at him before kissing him on the cheek. Eventually, in a tiny, mosquito-like voice, she spoke again.

"O-Once I come back after two months, I-I’ll satisfy all your needs."

"..." Nero was stunned.

Why was this cute yet hot woman so freaky? The way she said it made it sound like she was in heat.

The next morning, Lilly got ready to leave for the military camp. A vehicle had already been arranged to pick her up.

After saying goodbye to everyone, she approached Nero.

"Train hard while I’m gone, and don’t you dare talk to another woman."

Before anyone could notice, she gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

She then headed toward the vehicle, repeatedly glancing back at him before finally leaving.

After seeing her off, Nero collected his belongings and opened the map again.

He said goodbye to Lilia and Albert before stepping through the estate gates.

He had told them that he would be joining a training institute for two months and had even managed to arrange a convincing cover story with Old Man Drake’s help.

Drake hadn’t asked why Nero needed it. He had simply helped him register at an institute for free, without requiring him to attend.

With everything taken care of, Nero was finally ready to begin his own training.

’Now, it’s time to lock in.’