“” Laura’s mother narrowed her eyes sharply as she sat opposite her.

Ah, shit...

“” Laura avoided her mother’s gaze and drank a sip of her coffee.

Oh no, this isn't going to end well... She won't let up until--

“”

Laura choked on her coffee suddenly.

Laura covered her mouth with her hand and coughed a few times.

“” she replied in a croaky voice.

She cleared her throat and took a sip of the coffee once again.

She picked up a cornetto and started eating it with her coffee.

Laura thought her mother would forget, but she did not. Her mother was staring at her, waiting for an answer.

“”

“”

Although she did say his name, it was barely audible, so her mother did not hear it.

“”

Laura heaved a heavy sigh.

There is no other way around it.

“”

Before they could react in fear or worry, Laura frantically added, “”

“” her mother let out a sigh of relief. “”

Laura nodded stiffly, ""

At that moment, Laura did not notice the look on her brother's face.

He was looking down with a dreaded and fearful look on his face.

Images of an old world flashed in his mind and all he could see was a man made of golden energies - the Nameless One - throwing this child through a portal.

In that world, in front of him, stood a man named Nazar and he did not come to his rescue.

And then, everything went blank for him.

He was just a child and thrown to his death, so couldn't that man come and save him?

“”

“” Laura nodded, with a wry smile.

Marco raised his eyes just a little and looked at her, causing his eyes to shoot wide open.

He knew the truth, even if no one had told her.

After all, it was only logical.

The way he saw it, it couldn’t be a coincidence that her boyfriend and that monster shared the same name.

"" her mother began whispering. ""

"" Laura did not know how to react to it. She did not think it was this bad. ""

“” Marco stood up and cleared his throat. “”

“” Laura asked.

“”

Marco walked out of the kitchen and went upstairs to his room to start preparing for school.

“” Laura’s mother said in an exasperated tone.

“”

The next few minutes passed by rather quickly in silence.

“”

“”

“”

After Laura finished, she went upstairs to her room while humming happily. As she opened the door to her room, her humming came to an abrupt stop and she gasped.

“!!”

Someone was in her room and looking around.

She froze for a moment before realising who it was, so she sighed and closed the door behind her.

“Sheesh. Don’t just teleport in...”

Nazar, who was looking around the room with a complicated look, turned around and smiled at her regretfully.

“Sorry, I kind of forgot.”

“Sigh, it’s fine...”

Her words slowly trailed off as she got a good look at him.

For some reasons, both his voice and his face seemed more lifeless than a dead body.

Before she could question, Nazar held out something to her.

“Anyway, you forgot this,” Nazar held out a wallet to her. “I found it under the sofa in my apartment today. Probably fell down when you were leaving in a hurry.”

A relieved smile overtook her mouth.

“Ohh, thanks,” she took the wallet. “I thought I had left it on the plane.”

“What if it had something important in it?” he shook his head slightly.

Laura chuckled nervously, “Well… It did.”

“...Seriously?”

She glanced away as she scratched her cheek nervously.

“What if I hadn’t found it?”

“...Okay, now you don’t have to rub it in.”

Nazar scoffed.

“What was in it?”

“... My driving license and bank card.”

Nazar just stared at her blankly.

In return, Laura frowned with a soft groan.

“You never forget anything?”

“Not really…? Even if I do, I just know where it is.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, it can be somewhat convenient.”

“Oh.”

Laura opened her wallet and checked if anything was missing.

“I don’t think you have enough money for me to steal,” he joked.

She rolled her eyes slightly, "Sometimes you can be a real jerk."

He laughed.

"But…"

She nodded with a thin teasing smile.

“Maybe you used those convenient powers of yours to do this and that...”

She walked closer to him.

“Did you miss me this much?”

Nazar chuckled and sat on her bag.

“...Maybe.”

She placed her hands on his face and kissed him on the lips.

“So, what happened?” she asked him.

"Hm?"

"When we were speaking on the phone, you said you wanted to tell Eddie. Did you?"

"..."

Nazar lowered his gaze as he tried to keep the creeping confusion and gloomy emotions down.

"And then I tried calling you again, but you never picked up," she tapped her cheek lightly as she glanced upwards. "Got a bit worried, is everything alright?"

"..."

He did not reply, but he could answer her question in many different ways. He had a lot on his mind.

"You did say he wasn't feeling good, I hope nothing bad happened to him out there."

"..."

He did not say anything but just slowly rested his head on her chest.

There was a lot on his mind and in his heart, he did not know how to sort through it himself, so he just let her sweet smell wash away every worry within him.

"Hm?"

Laura looked down at him with a somewhat confused look on her face.

"No, everything's fine."

"Oh, alright then."

"He couldn't be better."

"Then what about you? You seem… a little pale."

"It's nothing, really," after a little hesitation, he added, "Probably some malfunction in my power again."

What came out of his lips was a lie, but it was a satisfactory answer to her.

"You really need to fix that."

"Yes, ma'am, it will be fixed soon," he tried to speak in his sarcastic tone, but he wasn't sure if it was satisfactory. He felt as if his voice had lost all its strength.

I will find you Solace, he thought. And I will save you.

Last night, he saw images of her broken body, so he lost control and nearly ended everything until his subconscious returned everything to normal and made himself pass out powerlessly on an alien planet.

But until then...

"See?"

He raised his head and his face had returned to normal.

The paleness on his skin had been long removed and he looked no different than his usual self.

"Much better," she smiled widely as she put her hands on his cheeks once again and squeezed them between the palms of her hand. "Even better now," she added with a short burst of faint laughter.

Her warm skin caused his worries to go away, it caused his mind to calm down and not think about anything.

"Thanks," he gave her a smile of gratitude.

No matter what he does in his life, he can never repay her for what she has done for him.

If not for her, maybe his emotional state would have not gotten better over the course of the last few weeks.

"Sigh," she let out the faintest of sighs. "What is it again? I thought we agreed not to keep secrets."

"What do you mean?"

"Do I need to spell it out?"

"...Maybe?" he laughed. "But really, there is nothing for you to worry about."

"Then what was that just a moment ago?"

"I am just thankful for your existence. I should probably go down and thank your parents for creating this masterpiece."

At first, she cringed, but then an idea popped into her head.

"Aha!"

"Uh-huh," the comedic look on his face vanished because he knew what she would say, and he feared that the most.

"It's the perfect chance for me to have my revenge."

"But--"

"I had to spend weeks there, and you know how awkward it got at times? Especially after I told everyone you were a masochist? Yeah, that was awkward."

"..." he averted his gaze ever so slightly. "I am not a masochist."

"Sure, sure, whatever you say, sweetie."

“But it’s true though, you ought to know that by now,” he sighed softly.

“Eh, that’s not what you told me that other night when--”

He leaned forward and kissed her on the lips, causing her words to vanish.

Whatever it was, he didn’t want to hear about it again.

“”

While the two of them were indulging in each other, someone had opened the door and had a fearful look in their eyes.

“”

Laura and Nazar moved their lips away from one another and abruptly looked at the person standing at the door.

“Uh-huh.”

“Uh-huh.”

As the person looked into Nazar’s crimson eyes, they started to fall and lost consciousness. From their hand, a towel fell slowly to the ground.

“”

Laura rushed to her side as fast as she could.

Nazar stood up and Laura’s mother did not descend fully to the ground. It was as if a pillar was supporting her fall.

“This is troublesome...” Nazar muttered under his breath.

To him, a God, this world and these humans are nothing but atoms, he can change them in any form or shape. So, for a split second, he questioned if he should just erase himself from the mind of Laura’s mother.

“Is she fine?” Laura asked frantically. She stood before her mother in a confused manner, not sure what to do.

“Yes, just loss of consciousness because of fear, sorry,” he lowered his gaze.

She let out a soft sigh of relief.

“Before I help her regain her consciousness, there is something I wanted to know...”

“No,” she knew full well what he wanted to say. “You might not find a better time.”

“Is that so...” Nazar smiled softly. “It was bound to happen one day, I guess.”

The woman regained her consciousness.

She slowly opened her eyes and groaned.

“”

With her eyes fully opened, she glanced around the room to see if that monster was still here.

She was hoping it was all just a dream and nothing more, a terrible nightmare that will pass when she opens her eyes.

But to her disappointment...

“” Nazar looked her in the eyes and smiled softly while he waved his hand. “”

And so, the woman lost consciousness once again. But before she could fall, an invisible pillar prevented her fall.

Nazar’s smile turned stiff as he glanced at Laura.

Laura grunted softly.

“I will teleport her down there, and you explain what she saw. Thank you.”

“No!”

“...Fine.”

A faint blue aura appeared behind the two of them.

“I will teleport the two of you down there and she will regain her consciousness.”

“Come with me.”

“...” he let out a soft groan. “There is no other way, huh?”

She shook her head.

လလလ

In the kitchen, Laura’s father was sitting alone and drinking his coffee while reading a brochure.

Usually, in five minutes, he gets up and leaves for work. His work is just a mile away, so he walks there leisurely and enjoys the morning weather.

Today, however, was different.

As if space was split open by a God, two people popped up behind him and one appeared unconscious on a chair near him.

His body jerked as he looked up and saw his unconscious wife.

His back was to the door and the hallway, so he turned around to see what this odd sensation he had just felt.

As he looked back, his gaze fell upon a monster with white hair and red eyes.

“”

He stood up frantically, causing the chair he was sitting on to plummet into the floor.

“”

Laura began speaking slowly, hoping he would listen, “”

Her father did not understand what she meant. How could she say that?

So, he began suspecting if she was being mind controlled.

He does not know what kind of abilities this monster has, but he believes mind control should not be beyond his capabilities.

“”

“”

“” Nazar spoke in a very kind tone and smiled softly. He thought this would help ease the tension between them, but it had the opposite effect.

The chair which had plummeted into the ground slowly rose to its original position.

“”

Almost as if he was forced, Laura’s father sat down on the chair.

“”

“(I told you this won’t end well,)” he whispered to Laura.

Laura clicked his tongue in return, “(I know, what was I thinking?)”

“(You know…)”

“(If you want to prolong it, I don’t think I can object after seeing their reactions now.)”

“(Hm,)” Nazar sucked in a breath as he thought for a fleeting moment.

Or at least in the real world.

Inside his mind, he analysed the situation through various means. He calculated hundreds of possibilities.

“(If I can’t convince them, I don’t think I can convince the rest of the world that the images they saw were wrong.)”

“(I am not sure if you watch TV, but the other day I saw something really weird.)”

“(As if someone was trying to clear up my name?)” a faint knowing smile spread on his face.

“(Yes.)”

“(I will tell you about it later.)”

Hearing the two whisper between them, the man couldn’t help but worry about the little girl he raised.

Too many negative thoughts floated in his mind.

But in the end, he could do nothing but swallow his saliva in fear.

လလလ

On the second floor, Marco left his room and started to walk downstairs leisurely as he heard a bit of noise from downstairs.

He didn’t think much of it at the beginning as he couldn’t make out the sounds too well.

As he walked down the stairs, he started to feel an odd presence.

He isn’t a superhuman by any means, but he could feel a presence down there. Everyone could feel his presence. He left a mark on the world.

“”

Curious, he increased his speed. He quickly moved through the dozen flights of stairs.

Once he started to descend from the first floor, he could start to see a clearer image of the entity.

“”

Upon seeing the back of the man, his heart skipped a beat and he gasped loudly.

The monster with white hair and red eyes slowly turned his head around towards the voice.

With every passing moment, Marco felt like his heart would jump out of his chest in fear.

Facing the monster head on, Marco felt his vision blurring. His knees become weak and his palms sweaty.

He did not fall unconscious, but he felt like he would at any moment. Or worse, he could die at any moment.

When the monster turned around, he had a faint smile on his face.

But once he looked Marco in the eyes, that smile slowly vanished and was replaced by a regretful look.

“Oh...” the monster said.

He opened his mouth. His lips moved and said something, but no words came out.

Or perhaps he was about to open his mouth until Laura interrupted him.

“(Just don’t say anything silly,)” Laura whispered to him, and Marco could not hear her. “(And don’t be nervous.)”

“(Nervous, me? Pfft,)” Nazar blew a raspberry. “(I have had an audience with angels, Gods and demons. This is nothing.)”

“(Uhh...)”

Even if they spoke loudly, he couldn’t have heard them. After all, he was busy thinking about what just happened.

He questioned if Nazar moved his mouth or was he about to.

And what he said…

What did he mean by “Sorry”?

လလလ

After a few chaotic moments, all four of them sat around the small table - with Marco standing at the door, leaning on its frame.

Everyone glanced at one another quietly and Nazar sat awkwardly while looking down. Sitting quietly for a few moments caused him great amount of nervousness, it could even be seen by the people around him.

Laura smiled stiffly and started to speak, "" she introduced him to her family.

Someone please, just kill me already, both Laura and Nazar thought at once.

""

Nazar raised his head lightly, holding back his laughter.

"(Great, that was convincing,)" he said slowly. "(Now I am as cute as a bunny.)"

"(Shut up,)" Laura laughed.

She looked at her mother again, who was glancing at Nazar from the corner of her eyes.

""

The fear from the eyes did not vanish, as she expected.

""

"" her mother asked her angrily.

"" Laura glanced at Nazar with questioning eyes. ""

""

For some reason, her parents let out a soft sigh.

"" her mother added as she looked at Laura, avoiding looking at Nazar.

"" Laura was taken back by her question. No matter what answer she gives, it's the wrong answer. ""

"" her father asked her slowly.

"" Nazar replied quickly without hesitation. His serious tone should have answered their questions, but they didn't want to accept it.

""

"" Laura placed her elbow on the table and rested her face in her palm. She smiled a thin teasing smile, seemingly forgetting about her mother's earlier question. ""

"You too?!"

Nazar heaved a heavy sigh as he plummeted his head downwards.

“But really, how can you prove I am not under your control?” Laura tried to stop her smile from growing further, but she found it hard to do so.

“...You are enjoying this more than I thought you would.”

“Mm-hmm,” she nodded energetically.

Sigh… Now, how the hell does someone prove something like this… AH!

An idea popped into his head.

“”

“(Didn’t you say you mind controlled an entire planet once?)” Laura whispered in her faintest voice possible.

“(I have done far worse, but they don’t need to know that,)” Nazar replied in the same manner, so as to not raise any suspicions.

“” Laura’s father nodded.

To the surprise of Nazar, they bought his excuse.

“” Nazar added another excuse, which obviously doesn’t apply to him. “”

With a knowing smile, she shook her head. She knew the excuse he came up with was dubious, but she didn’t care much in the end.

“”

With every word that left his mouth, Nazar’s tone and body stiffened, creating an even more awkward atmosphere.

Laura found that hilarious and rather cute, but the other three seemed quite terrified by his real personality. They did not expect whatever they were seeing.

“” her mother narrowed her eyes seriously.

“” Laura looked at her, still smiling faintly.

However, as she saw the look in her mother’s eyes, she understood what she was going to ask her.

The smile from her face vanished as she leaned back in her chair.

She thought about what her mother would say, and she reached just one answer.

“”

Laura chuckled.

Deep down, she knew this would not end well. He is a monster who scares everyone, and it will be better for everyone around her if she were no longer involved with him.

Perhaps life will be simpler if she was only ever involved with humans and not a God.

However, that was not her wish.

I like this life, she thought. I like what I have with him. And I can see a good future for us. I can see so much, a happy life, adventures unlike anything I have ever experience before and more.

“”

So, she extended her left hand towards the centre of the table, facing downwards.

On her second finger, there was something odd on it.

“”

“”

“”

“”

The trio widened their eyes in a surprised manner and Laura smiled widely as she leaned her upper body to the right a little, so it was closer to Nazar.

“”

“”

“”

“”