Sumeru — the Avidya Forest.
Morning sunlight filtered through the branches, scattering onto the ground. Tender green leaves shimmered, fresh grass swayed lightly—everything radiated vibrant life.
Since he had already maxed out the affection of the girls in Liyue who were close to him, Nolan's next stop was the neighboring nation—Sumeru.
Here, Nahida's affection toward him had already reached above Level 9, nearly maxed.
He figured that if he found a good excuse—giving her an Affection Skill, checking in on her well-being, reminding her not to overwork herself—she'd very likely develop the last bit of affection needed to reach full level, granting him her Affection Skill.
Then there was Collei. Because Amber often invited her to the Wonderland to play, they saw each other pretty frequently. Her affection had also risen to Level 8:
[Collei — Current Affection Level: Lv.8 (560/800)]
With progress like this, a couple more Affection Skills, a few chances to "coincidentally" accompany her on patrol, and with a bit of luck he could max her affection as well—earning a new Affection Skill.
As for Dehya and Faruzan, their affection levels toward him weren't as high—Level 6 for Dehya, and Level 5 approaching 6 for Faruzan.
But that wasn't really an issue. With his current charm and appeal, raising their affection to maximum would be quite easy.
Thinking about this, Nolan walked through the soft rain forest floor.
Since the "Withering Zones" had become a thing of the past, the area was much safer. Even if monsters appeared, they were only weak ones.
After all, this region was close to a main travel route. Strong or dangerous creatures would be driven away or eliminated by rangers or soldiers to protect passing caravans and travelers.
He had asked Amber earlier and learned that Collei had officially become a full Forest Ranger, capable of undertaking patrol missions on her own.
So he came here hoping to "accidentally" run into her.
With his spiritual perception easily covering the entire Avidya Forest, locating Collei was no challenge at all.
His consciousness spread across the forest, omnipresent in every direction.
It didn't take long for Nolan to find her—now able to handle matters independently—patrolling near a small stream close to Sumeru City.
She seemed to be observing Hydro Slimes in the water, preparing to drive them away.
If left unchecked, their numbers would double in just a few days, and within a week they could form a sizable slime cluster.
That would definitely inconvenience travelers entering or leaving the Avidya Forest.
As a Forest Ranger, she needed to eliminate such hazards early—nipping danger in the bud.
Seeing Collei take out her bow and prepare to act, Nolan thought for a moment… and simply teleported right beside her.
"Ah—! Why did you suddenly appear like that?!"
Startled by the sudden presence, Collei jumped in fright. Only after recognizing Nolan did she exhale slightly in relief—then immediately frowned in mild irritation.
"Ahem… this was a test of your reaction ability. After all, as a full ranger, you need to be able to handle unexpected crises."
Nolan tried to justify his rather rude entrance.
"There aren't that many sudden crises. Mister Adventurer, you're clearly just making up excuses."
Collei gave him a mildly disdainful look.
Having known him for this long, she understood his tricks all too well.
"…Fine, my bad." Nolan admitted defeat, then added,
"But it's because I'm worried about you. I might've acted a little impatiently, but you understand why, right?"
"Worried about me… about what…?"
Hearing him say that, a faint blush crept over Collei's pale cheeks. She lowered her gaze slightly, staring at her chest instead.
Whenever she visited Amber or Eula, she always saw Nolan hugging them so casually…
Even though he already had Amber and Eula, he was still saying such strange things to her—how shameless!
[Collei Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 560 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.9 (320/900).]
Seeing the notification appear, Nolan looked at Collei with mild surprise.
He hadn't even said anything ambiguous yet—was she already letting her imagination run wild?
But it made sense.
Her affection toward him was this high already—of course she liked him. For a girl with budding feelings, reading too much into slightly ambiguous words was perfectly normal.
It seemed he was even more attractive to girls than he thought…
Nolan felt quietly pleased as he began explaining:
"Of course I'm worried about your safety.
"Even though the Avidya Forest isn't dangerous anymore, there are still many monsters that could threaten adventurers. So I came to give you something to help protect yourself."
"Is it something like the Spiritual Core Attribute or a Waymark Ability?"
Collei's eyes lit up as she asked.
Previously, Nolan had given her the trait Forest's Blessing, allowing her greater control over Dendro and letting her heal using trees—immensely helpful for her.
The latter ability let her travel freely to the Wonderland to visit Amber and the others!
These abilities were extremely valuable to Collei.
Hearing that Nolan was concerned about her and wanted to give her a new one made her both happy and nervous.
Mr. Adventurer cares about me this much…
Is he trying to make me his lover like Amber and Eula?
It wasn't her overthinking it.
Normally, no one would give away such precious abilities unless the relationship was very close—friendship alone wouldn't justify it.
Collei knew Nolan was extremely powerful, but he was still a normal person emotionally.
Unless he wanted her as a lover, he wouldn't treat her this well for no reason.
And if it was Nolan… she didn't dislike the idea. She could stay with Amber and the others forever…
Her face reddened slightly as these thoughts spiraled.
"Yes. One ability lets you ignore harmful status effects. The other lets you transfer incoming attacks elsewhere. With those, you won't need to worry about danger anymore."
Nolan nodded, briefly explaining Shenhe's and Keqing's Affection Skills, then bestowed them upon Collei.
"Thank you!"
Feeling the new power awaken within her, Collei beamed with joy.
She could finally perform her ranger duties with far more confidence!
Her fondness for Nolan deepened:
[Collei Has Developed Good Feelings Towards You, Obtained 600 Affection Points. Current Affection Level: Lv.10 (MAX).]
Seeing the notification appear again, Nolan was delighted.
Gaining Collei's max affection had gone extremely smoothly—easier than expected.
Not that it was surprising. Collei visited the Wonderland often.
Even though she mainly came to see her friend Amber, she also met Nolan frequently.
Over time, her affection for him had even surpassed what she felt for Amber—her best friend—and she often saw him hugging various girls.
Naturally, her thoughts drifted, and developing feelings for him became much easier.
(End of Chapter)
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