Scarlett and Aoto took a quiet stroll around the banquet hall with Vesilisa and Arthur, talking softly as they walked. The warm glow of chandeliers reflected on the marble floor, and the faint sound of music filled the background. Guests were still laughing and drinking, their voices blending into a gentle hum.
Although Scarlett smiled and acted natural, inside she was careful. Being a non-human herself, she expected Vesilisa to hold some prejudice against her. That's why, as they moved to a quieter corner away from the crowd, Scarlett stayed alert and cautious with every word.
Vesilisa turned toward her with a soft smile. Her silver hair shimmered under the lights, and her gentle eyes carried both kindness and confidence. "To be honest," she began, "people used to call me the most beautiful woman in the world. But now, it seems that title has been stolen by you—and honestly, you deserve it."
Scarlett raised her eyebrows in surprise. For a moment, she didn't know how to respond. She simply smiled, her mind running through all kinds of replies. "What do people say in old kingdom movies during moments like this? 'You humble me'? Or maybe 'I'm ashamed to receive such praise'?",she thought quickly, trying to remember. But in the end, she decided not to say anything and just kept smiling politely.
Vesilisa chuckled softly, as if she could sense Scarlett's awkwardness. Then her tone shifted slightly. "I also heard about your golden apples. They say they hold great power and healing properties. It would be wonderful if you could share the recipe with us someday. Imagine how much stronger humanity could become with something like that."
Arthur, who was standing beside her like a statue, didn't say a word.
Scarlett tilted her head slightly and replied calmly, "I'll think about it." She neither agreed nor refused.
Vesilisa nodded lightly, but her smile slowly faded as her gaze turned toward Aoto. Her eyes became serious and her voice firmer. "I'm truly impressed that you all managed to defeat a Demon King," she said. "But the way you did it was… very wrong."
Aoto frowned in confusion. "What?" he blurted, his voice almost rising before he caught himself and turned calm.
Arthur adjusted his glasses and stepped forward slightly. His tone was calm but carried a hint of superiority. "What Captain Vesilisa means is that you acted outside the rules. You should have waited for the Holy Knights to arrive and analyze the situation before taking any action. Instead, you entered the demon realm without permission."
He continued, his voice growing colder with each word. "That was reckless. It could have led to disaster. What if all the Demon Kings were working together? They could have ambushed you, enslaved you, or even created a clone to use as a spy. The risks are endless. For breaking such an important rule, you should have faced punishment."
Aoto's jaw tightened. He knew Arthur wasn't entirely wrong, but the way he spoke—like a strict teacher scolding a child—made him clench his fists. He forced a smile but couldn't hide the twitch at the corner of his lips.
"What's this guy's problem?" Scarlett thought, glancing between the two. She had expected Vesilisa to target her, not Aoto.
Of course, many adventurers entered the demon realm every day, but going deeper was strictly forbidden. Only the outer regions—mainly the First Demon King's territory—were considered somewhat safe, since the First King never appeared or seemed to care about his land at all. Going beyond that was against every rule the Holy Knights had set.
Vesilisa watched the tension grow and finally sighed, placing a hand on her hip. "Tch, no need to be so serious, Arthur," she said with a playful smile. "It's the summoned hero we're talking about. I'm sure we can settle this matter in a more... entertaining way."
Before anyone could ask what she meant, Vesilisa turned to Scarlett, her silver eyes glinting with amusement. "I've heard that Miss Scarlett is quite good at rock-paper-scissors," she said with a teasing smile. "So why don't we have a match? If you win, I'll let this matter go. But if you lose... Aoto will receive a punishment."
Scarlett blinked, caught off guard. The words made her freeze for a moment before her mind flashed back to her last day in the Darwitz Kingdom — the day she had completely humiliated a noble in the same game. "Is this her way of saying she did a background check on me?"
It suddenly felt like the whole situation had been planned from the start.
Aoto, on the other hand, perked up the moment he heard the word "rock-paper-scissors." His mood lifted instantly. He had seen Scarlett win games this many times — in gambling, guessing, or pure luck — she was almost unbeatable.
"I agree," Aoto said confidently. "But what will the punishment be?"
Vesilisa's smile didn't fade. "Your sword," she said simply. "The one you obtained. You'll have to give it to Orihime."
Aoto's confidence shattered immediately. His expression turned from cheerful to pale. "What? My sword?" he muttered. His mind raced with confusion. "Why would she even want it?" he thought. "It's completely useless to pure and righteous Holy Knights!"
His sword, Lust, was nothing like the divine blade Athena. It was a sword that drew strength from desire — the more wives and lovers the wielder had, the stronger it became. It had powers of charm, temptation, and seduction — things completely opposite to the holy sword's purity.
For a moment, Aoto imagined Orihime, being an idol, modifying it so the sword gained power from followers instead of lovers — but that risked breaking it completely.
"Isn't that a bit too harsh of a punishment?" Aoto said nervously with a dry laugh.
Vesilisa smirked. "Only if you lose," she said cheerfully before turning to Scarlett. "Well then, Miss Scarlett, are you ready?"
Scarlett grinned, full of confidence. "Don't worry," she said to Aoto, giving him a thumbs-up. "I got this."
Arthur adjusted his glasses and raised his hand. "I'll count," he said seriously.
"Alright then. One... two... and... three!"
Both Vesilisa and Scarlett moved their hands at the same time.
Scarlett, trusting her instincts, had decided to go with scissors. Her inhuman reflexes easily picked up how Vesilisa's fingers started to move — forming paper. It was clear she had won.
But the instant both hands were fully shown — Vesilisa's hand was stone.
Scarlett's eyes widened behind the blindfold. "What... how?" She was sure she had seen paper — her vision never failed her. The movement had been too fast, too perfect, almost as if Vesilisa's finger was always drawing stone from the start.
"There goes my sword," Aoto groaned, slapping his forehead in defeat.
"No, wait! One more! One more time!" Scarlett demanded immediately, not willing to accept it.
Arthur opened his mouth to speak, but Vesilisa lifted her hand to stop him. Her smile returned, calm and confident. "Sometimes it's hard to believe in reality," she said smoothly. "Alright then, let's do it one more time."
This time, Scarlett wasn't planning to rely on luck. She took of her blindfold ,The air around her seemed to grow heavier the moment she removed it. Without the blindfold, her eyes glowed faintly — clear, radiant, even though she wasn't using any magic at all.
She could see everything now — time, space, movement — all of it in slow motion, Although she couldn't control her eyes, but removing it for few minutes wasn't much of a problem. To her, Vesilisa looked like she was moving through water.
"Splendid eyes," Vesilisa said softly, but to Scarlett, her words came out in slow, stretched tones.
Arthur began counting again. "One... two... three!"
The moment he said three, Scarlett drew her hand instantly. She saw Vesilisa's hand forming stone, so she chose paper. Perfect timing. This time, there was no mistake — Scarlett had clearly won.
"Yes, I won," Scarlett thought with a smile.
But then, in that very instant, Vesilisa's hand changed. It shifted smoothly into scissors shamelessly ,right before Scarlett's eyes.
Scarlett's smile faded. "That's cheating!" she thought angrily and tried to speak out loud, but her lips didn't move. Her voice refused to come out. She tried to move her hand — but it wouldn't budge.
"What's happening? Why can't I move?" she thought in panic.
Her vision shifted strangely, and suddenly she could see herself — and everyone else — from above, as if she were watching through someone else's eyes.
Aoto stood completely still, frozen mid-expression. The music had stopped. The guests, the waiters, even the lights — everything was still. Time itself had stopped.
Scarlett's eyes twitched in shock. Her pupils contracted sharply.
Vesilisa, who had been smiling confidently, froze in fear the moment she saw that tiny movement in Scarlett's eyes. Her confident face went pale, and a drop of sweat rolled down her cheek. "Her pupils... did they just move?" she whispered, stepping back slowly.
Arthur pushed up his glasses calmly. "You must be imagining it," he said coldly. "No one can move without your permission."
But Vesilisa didn't look convinced. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and stared at Scarlett again for few seconds yet no movement happened.
She quietly opened her status window and her eyes widened. "She's very strong indeed, my mana is dropping drastically... I'm resuming time."
She steadied her breathing, keeping her hand frozen in the scissors pose to declare her win just as the world began to move again.
The laughter, the music, the lights — everything returned to normal, as if nothing had happened.
"Looks like I won again!" Vesilisa smiled proudly, brushing her silver hair behind her ear.
Scarlett let out a deep sigh. "Yes, I admit defeat," she said, trying to keep her calm, though her tone carried a hint of frustration.
"Don't worry, I won't take it right now. If I make you lose your sword this early, your reputation will take a hit," Vesilisa said with a smug grin, lightly covering her mouth as she let out a small laugh.
Aoto's lips twitched. He clenched his fists, muttering in his mind, "This bitch…" but there was nothing he could do in front of her.
"If there's nothing else, then I'll be going," Scarlett said coldly. Without looking back, she turned around and walked away, her long hair swaying behind her.
"Looks like her pride took a bit of a hit," Vesilisa chuckled, sounding amused. But Aoto didn't even glance at her. He just sighed and quickly followed Scarlett.
Outside the hall, Aoto caught up with her. "Can't believe you lost," he said with a helpless smile. "She must have heavenly luck."
Scarlett didn't respond at first. Aoto's words reminded him of old times—how even he had only managed to beat her in rock-paper-scissors once, and that too by cheating.
"No, she was cheating," Scarlett said casually, her voice steady but her expression filled with quiet annoyance.
"Cheating? How? I didn't sense any magic," Aoto whispered. "Or... is it the blessing of a True Dragon?"
Being representative of the king of darwitz, He had come across many secrets and got to know that captain and vice captain of the holy knights were believer of some true dragon.
Scarlett stayed silent and sat down at a nearby table. Aoto sat beside her, waiting for an answer, but she seemed lost in thought.
Her mind drifted back to the moment she was summoned her home world—and angered supreme being Sylvania yogsothoth. Then, she remembered Dr. Magi's words… that Sylvania was the True Dragon of Time and Space.
She froze for a moment. The realization hit her like a wave. Vesilisa's ability to stop time, to move freely in it—it all matched perfectly.
"So the True Dragon they believe in... is Sylvania Yogsothoth?" she muttered to herself, her hands curling into fists. "That bitch is messing with me again…"
A sharp anger rose inside her chest.
Along with her anger came something else—a heavy feeling of anxiety. She finally understood just how far the gap between her and Sylvania truly was. It was an overwhelming difference, one that made her dead heart tighten.
She lowered her gaze and whispered to herself, "But the main point is… when I couldn't move my body, how was I still able to see and think while time was stopped?"