The sky was still dark. Scattered stars dotted the night sky, and a crescent moon cast down its cold, clear light.
The night scenery was beautiful. It would have been even better if not for that large halo, far more conspicuous than the stars and moon.
Takumi leaned against the railing of the balcony, silently gazing at the sky.
He couldn't sleep.
Although he was already exhausted, the moment Takumi closed his eyes, he could feel his heart pounding as if it wanted to jump out of his chest.
Thump, thump. It kept beating, making even breathing slightly difficult.
This was actually an old problem, probably anxiety?
It had been like this ever since he inexplicably descended into Chaldea.
Of course, Takumi knew this wasn't good for his body. He had tried to talk himself out of it, but it didn't work at all. It remained as it was.
"Phew..."
Takumi took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled the air from his lungs.
Deep breathing could barely suppress this inexplicable feeling.
"My Guard, why are you still here so late? Are you not going to rest?"
Nero's voice came from behind Takumi.
According to Nero, Takumi was her personal bodyguard, so he had to be very close to her location. Thus, Takumi's resting place was arranged in the room right next to Nero's.
"Nothing, just can't sleep a little..." Takumi shook his head and turned to look at Nero.
Takumi froze.
Nero seemed to have just returned from a bath. Her golden hair was draped casually behind her head, with a few strands mischievously sticking to her forehead. Her body still carried a hint of misty vapor.
Her petite body was draped in a thin red dress. Her ample bosom filled the dress to the brim. Her snowy shoulders were exposed to the air, slightly flushed from the hot water. Looking closely, two crystal-clear water droplets still clung to the girl's exquisite collarbone.
Below the red dress, slender yet fleshy calves supported the girl's movements. Her dainty, exquisitely shaped feet with perfectly trimmed nails stepped carelessly on the red carpet, looking like works of art placed on a tray, making one unable to stop themselves from wanting to pick them up and play with them.
Nero keenly sensed Takumi's gaze, and her eyes became teasing.
"Oh? So you actually prefer my feet? Umu, although the hobby is a bit strange, it is not something I cannot understand."
"After all, I am the incarnation of the Goddess of Beauty (Venus). Every part of this body possesses incomparable beauty!"
Saying this, Nero assumed a preparatory dance pose and twirled on the spot.
The red dress fluttered. Takumi could even catch a glimpse of the girl's snow-white thighs between the undulating folds of the skirt. Her exquisite feet traced graceful arcs on the carpet following their owner's movements, like flower petals dancing lightly in spring.
Hearing Nero's words and seeing her movements, Takumi's face instantly turned red.
Although Nero usually wore clothes far more revealing than this, Takumi was susceptible to this specific style. Conversely, he wasn't that affected by the outfit that exposed more flesh.
"...Your Majesty looks very good in this dress."
Holding it in for a long time, Takumi finally spat out such a nutritionally devoid sentence.
"Hehe! You have good taste."
This innocent expression was exactly what Nero wanted to see. It wasn't in vain that she sacrificed a bit of her appeal for this.
Walking forward with light steps, she leaned on the balcony just like Takumi.
With the girl's movement, her large bosom was squeezed into various shapes by the railing. Slightly damp golden hair draped casually over the whiteness of her chest.
Propping her head up with a fair arm, Nero turned her head to look at Takumi, who was carefully stealing glances at her from the side. The smile on her face became even brighter.
"Do you want to hold my foot? If you say it seriously, I won't be stingy with my reward!"
Nero smiled and lifted her foot, her white toes gently touching Takumi's trouser leg.
Takumi struggled to avert his gaze, avoiding eye contact with Nero, whose eyes were full of teasing.
"Let's forget about it..."
Takumi unconsciously touched the burn scar on his face, his gaze dimming significantly.
Nero's radiance was too dazzling. With Takumi's current appearance, it was hard not to care about whether he was qualified to walk alongside her.
The scar on Takumi was very conspicuous; it was hard for Nero not to see it. Seeing Takumi like this now, she could roughly guess his psychological activity.
Not to mention anything else, even Nero herself wouldn't feel much better if her face were ruined like this.
"Hmm, you haven't answered my question properly yet. After fighting continuously for so long, if you don't rest properly, how will you conquer the four corners of the world with me tomorrow?"
Nero pondered for a moment and decisively skipped this uncomfortable topic.
"...Actually, I'm just a little anxious."
"Anxious? I am standing right in front of your eyes! What is there for you to be anxious about!"
Nero got spirited, standing up and putting her hands on her hips.
"I just keep thinking about random things. Even though many things are still far away, I can't help but think about them, thinking about what I should do... Maybe I'm just born to toil. I didn't think this much when defending the city earlier."
Takumi laughed self-deprecatingly.
This situation was probably related to his personality.
If Takumi were an optimist or thick-skinned, he might not think so much, just taking things as they came.
Unfortunately, Takumi wasn't. He had a heavy sense of responsibility and was sensitive. When doing things, he would always think ahead about the consequences, whether he could actually achieve them, and so on.
It wasn't that Takumi wouldn't do something because it was difficult, but he just couldn't stop thinking about it.
Especially in this state of fighting alone, Takumi was prone to falling into mental exhaustion.
"I see. You are lost regarding the various possibilities of the future..."
Nero nodded repeatedly.
"I wouldn't say it like that..."
Takumi didn't think he was like that, but before he could finish, Nero suddenly raised her volume and interrupted him.
"Isn't that the same thing!"
"Uh, what's the same?"
Takumi looked at Nero in confusion.
"Of course, the solution! Isn't such a thing obvious?"
"You just need to remember: I—am standing right here!"
With a smile on her lips and hands on her hips, Nero stood majestically in front of Takumi.
Although she was a head shorter than Takumi, her aura at this moment was more than a little taller than his.
"You may experience more things in the future that even I cannot imagine, but at this very moment, what you are stepping on is my land!"
"You are also my subject!"
"The unclear future, the hesitation and anxiety in your heart, the possibility of failing at the end—I will shoulder everything!"
"I will lead you to cleave through the fog of the unknown, thoroughly clear this key node toward final victory, and unfold the path of freedom leading to the future for you—"
"And during this time, you just follow closely in my footsteps and quietly admire my heroic figure!"
Silence for two seconds.
A wisp of breeze blew in from outside the balcony. Takumi came back to his senses.
'Really, no matter where I go, I'm the one being helped...'
Takumi looked at the petite Emperor before him and smiled helplessly.
"Then... I'll rely entirely on Your Majesty the Emperor?"
"Umu! Just trust in me!"
Nero nodded in satisfaction, then suddenly seemed to remember something.
"Oh, right! I was so focused on bathing just now that I forgot to retrieve something..."
Before Nero finished speaking, she ran off barefoot in a flash, her voice trailing from deep within the room.
"Stay right here and don't move. I'll be right back!"
Watching the retreating red figure, Takumi silently speculated.
'Asking me to stay here... does it mean she's giving me something?'
About a few minutes later.
Nero's figure reappeared in front of Takumi.
The girl held her hands behind her back, hiding the item she had retrieved.
"Ta-da! How is it? Are you surprised?"
Without the bad taste of making Takumi guess, Nero simply walked to the side and brought out the gift she had prepared for her Guard from behind her back.
Takumi looked at the item in the girl's hand.
"This is... a mask?"
On the girl's fair palm, a half-face mask with a base of gold and white, embellished with red roses, lay quietly.
"That's right! I noticed the scars on your face early on, so as soon as I returned, I summoned some court craftsmen to meticulously craft this mask for you—The designer was me! After all, only I could design such a beautiful treasure!"
Nero said proudly.
"You refused every reward before, but you have no room to refuse this one!"
Nero forcefully shoved the mask into Takumi's hand.
Your Majesty, maybe you should think about what kind of rewards those were before...
Takumi didn't refuse. After looking at it for a moment, he put the mask on his face.
One could only say Nero's talent was indeed formidable. Even without professional measurements, this mask fit Takumi's face perfectly.
There wasn't the slightest discomfort.
"Umu! I knew I wasn't wrong. If your face didn't have those obstructive scars, you would likely be a rare handsome man!"
Looking at Takumi's current appearance, Nero couldn't help nodding repeatedly.
With the burned half of his face covered, aided by the mask Nero designed, Takumi's appearance level rose more than just a star and a half.
Even Nero, who had high standards for appearance, gave her praise.
"It's not that exaggerated..."
Takumi was a bit unconfident.
Anyway, he didn't feel he was that handsome.
"Even if you lack confidence in your appearance, you must trust my aesthetic judgment. I am not someone who lies about such things!"
Nero stated with utmost certainty.
The girl's thinking was very jumpy. One moment she was saying this, the next moment, catching a glimpse of the clear night sky, her eyes suddenly lit up.
"Oh—The weather today is truly nice. Since that is the case..."
Saying this, Nero extended her hand to Takumi.
"Oh, Guard of mine! Would you like to dance with me?"
"Huh? Me?"
Takumi pointed at himself in disbelief.
"Of course! There's no one else here. Besides, wearing that mask gives you a very ballroom feel!"
"But I know absolutely nothing about dancing..."
"That doesn't matter. I haven't enjoyed myself properly recently. Since I finally found some time, are you going to spoil my fun?"
Nero feigned anger, then grabbed Takumi's hand and dragged him into the room.
Takumi couldn't resist properly, so he helplessly followed the willful Emperor's force into the room.
Standing on the soft carpet, Nero was still barefoot, yet her fair skin had not a speck of dirt.
"Your hand should be like this... like this... As for your feet, just follow my steps. It's mere dancing; you can surely master it easily!"
Nero gently held Takumi's right hand with her left, while her other hand rested on Takumi's shoulder.
"Ah, haha, i-is that so..."
Under Nero's guidance, Takumi stiffly wrapped his left arm around Nero's slender and soft waist.
At such a close distance, Takumi could easily smell the rich scent of roses on Nero.
Compared to Nero's relaxed ease, Takumi's body was like a jammed robot.
"Very good. Then—let's begin!"
Seeing the preparatory pose was done, Nero gave no time to buffer. Suddenly, she led Takumi to dance on the carpet.
"Wait, wait, wait, at least give me a tutorial first!"
Takumi frantically tried to keep up with Nero's steps.
Nero acted as if she didn't hear, continuing to dance without stopping, and even suddenly sped up a bit.
Through the window of the palace, under the dim light, one could see the two performing a somewhat clumsy dance.
One was relaxed and dancing freely, while the other was sweating profusely, unable to even keep up with the steps.
While dancing, Nero observed Takumi's reaction.
Her bright eyes had long since curved into crescents.
Takumi never looked up, constantly staring nervously and carefully at his feet, terrified of stepping on Nero's tender little feet and damaging this work of art. Looking at Takumi like this, Nero finally couldn't hold it back. Using gravity, she leaned back, stepped on Takumi's shoes, and dragged Takumi's hands to spin in circles on the carpet.
"Pfft, hahaha..."
Her scattered golden hair flew in the air with the rotation, and the smile on the girl's face was brilliant.
Crisp laughter echoed in the room, synchronized with the boy's flustered exclamations.