The safehouse was entirely silent by 2:00 AM.
Liam lay flat on his back in the massive guest bedroom.
The mattress was softer than a cloud, the sheets felt like spun silk, and the ambient temperature was perfectly regulated. It was the absolute ideal sleeping environment.
He was wide awake.
Ten years of sleeping with one eye open in monster-infested wastelands had entirely ruined his ability to relax in comfortable spaces.
His brain kept scanning the silence, waiting for the sound of a Cataclysm horror breaking through the walls.
After an hour of staring at the ceiling, he gave up.
He threw off the covers, grabbed a plain black t-shirt from the closet Silas had stocked, and walked out into the dim living area. The penthouse was lit only by the glowing city lights spilling through the massive windows.
He headed for the kitchen to grab another bottle of water, only to freeze.
Liora was sitting on the massive L-shaped leather couch.
She had her knees pulled tightly to her chest, wrapped in a fluffy white blanket. She was staring blankly out at the city, a half-empty mug of tea resting on the glass coffee table in front of her.
Liam approached quietly, his footsteps making zero sound on the thick carpet. "Did you detect a threat?"
Liora jumped violently, spilling a few drops of tea on the glass table.
She spun around, a silver glow flickering in her eyes before she realized it was him. She let out a massive breath and slumped back into the cushions.
"Goddess above, Liam, you walk like a literal ghost," she breathed out, pressing a hand to her chest. "Don’t sneak up on people like that."
"I wasn’t sneaking. I just walk efficiently," Liam said. He walked around the couch and sat down on the opposite end, leaving a respectful amount of space between them. "Why are you awake?"
Liora looked down at her hands. The faint silver veins of her starlight magic were pulsing softly beneath her skin. "I’m scared to sleep."
Liam frowned. "The necrotic corruption is gone. I purged it."
"I know," she said quickly. "And thank you again. I mean it. But... I can feel the magic inside me now. It’s so big, Liam. It feels like I swallowed a star. Whenever I close my eyes, I’m terrified I’m going to accidentally overload again and blow up the building."
She looked incredibly small sitting there.
A girl who had just been handed the power of a nuclear weapon and thrust into the middle of a corporate war.
Liam didn’t know what to say. His old instinct would have been to tell her to suck it up and train harder.
That was how he had survived. But the System had explicitly warned him that treating her like a soldier would ruin their bond.
Before he could process a response, the familiar golden text floated into his vision.
[Consort is experiencing major anxiety. This is a prime opportunity for emotional bonding!]
[Task: Provide physical reassurance.]
[Hint: The ’Yin Siphon’ passive skill works both ways. You can act as a grounding wire for her excess mana. Just hold her hand, you socially awkward brick.]
Liam stared at the prompt.
For once, the System wasn’t actually demanding he do something outrageous. It was just asking him to be decent.
He slid over on the couch, closing the gap between them. Liora looked up, surprised, as he gently reached out and took her hand. Her fingers were cold.
"I got you," Liam said softly. He didn’t use his deadpan, tactical voice. He just spoke normally. "I’m keeping a constant pull on your core. If it spikes while you sleep, my shadows will naturally absorb the overflow. You aren’t going to blow up."
Liora looked down at their joined hands. A tiny thread of black mist wrapped comfortably around the glowing silver light on her skin. It was stabilizing. Comforting.
"Does it hurt?" she asked quietly. "Taking my magic like that?"
"No," Liam answered honestly. "It feels... grounding."
Liora’s thumb subtly brushed against the back of his hand. A small smile finally crept onto her face. "You’re a lot softer than you pretend to be, you know."
"I am entirely calloused and highly dangerous," Liam deadpanned.
Liora giggled. It was a soft, genuine sound in the dark room. She shifted on the couch, pulling the blanket tighter, and then did something that completely short-circuited Liam’s brain.
She leaned sideways, resting her head gently on his shoulder.
Liam froze. His entire body went rigid. He had faced down Calamity Dragons with less panic than he was feeling right now.
He didn’t know where to put his other arm. He didn’t know how to breathe without disturbing her.
"Just for a minute," Liora murmured, her eyes slipping shut.
[Ding!]
[Vulnerability Threshold Surpassed. Affection +5 (now 114).]
[You are currently acting as an emotional anchor. Heart rate is slightly elevated, but acceptable. Good job, virgin.]
Liam actively ignored the System. He forced his muscles to relax, letting out a slow breath.
He adjusted his posture slightly to make his shoulder a better pillow for her. The scent of her shampoo, something like vanilla and starlight, drifted up to him.
They sat like that in silence for a long time. The crazy events of the day finally caught up with them. The adrenaline was gone, leaving only the quiet reality that they were stuck together in this mess.
"Liam?" Liora whispered into the dark. Her voice was thick with approaching sleep.
"Yeah?"
"In the Gauntlet on Friday... don’t get hurt. Promise me."
Liam looked out the window at the sprawling city.
He picturd Julian Vance and the arrogant Guild Director who had looked at Liora like she was a shiny new toy. His shadows pulsed in his chest, eager and hungry for Friday to come.
"I promise," Liam said quietly, his thumb tracing a slow circle on the back of her hand. "The only people getting hurt are the ones in my way."
Liora hummed contentedly and finally drifted off to sleep.
Liam sat perfectly still on the couch for the next four hours, entirely afraid to wake her, while the System repeatedly congratulated him for acting like a functioning human being.