They stayed quiet.
Caelen didn't rush her. He understood better than anyone what Lucy had been through. This—sitting upright, breathing calmly, not consumed by rage or pain—was likely the first moment she'd had to truly catch her breath. So he let her have it. No talking, no jokes, no clever remarks. Just silence.
Lucy's gaze eventually shifted from the room's dull stone ceiling to him. Her demonic eyes were sharp, probing, and searching for an answer he wasn't sure how to phrase.
"What happened to me?" she asked. "Why did I collapse?"
Her voice was steady, but her expression betrayed her unease. There was a bit of anger under the surface. Confusion. Shame. But mostly, it was frustration.
Caelen didn't avoid her eyes. "In simple terms, it's because that's what you'd prefer right now. Your body was resisting entering an extreme lust state."
He said it casually, like it wasn't anything to be ashamed of. She blinked, clearly processing it, probably sorting through every memory she had leading up to the moment she blacked out. He could see her trying to calculate what she was supposed to feel. Embarrassed? Angry? Hurt?
She chose cold.
"Okay," she said flatly. "Now what do you want?"
Caelen had expected that question eventually. He didn't flinch from it. He simply reached out and took her hand. It was naturally cold—but there was a strange warmth under the surface. Not temperature. Something else. A softness he imagined would make hugging her oddly pleasant, if she ever allowed it.
"I want freedom," he said without hesitation. "I want to have fun. I want to connect with people. And I want to live. Which that one is probably at the top of the list, if I had to rank them."
Lucy scoffed, but it wasn't just annoyance—it was bitterness.
"I hate you," she said. "I hate that you dragged me into this nonsense of yours. I hate that you ruined the one good thing I had going in my life. And you talk like you could actually connect with me after doing all that? If I had my strength right now, I'd kill you without blinking."
The anger in her voice was real. And earned.
Caelen sighed. "Yeah."
He started opening his system menu with a flick of thought, scanning it silently. "Come on, there's got to be a clause or skill or something about servants not being able to kill their master—"
Lucy's head tilted, annoyed. "Are you seriously ignoring me to talk to yourself?"
He kept flipping. "I mean, this thing has weird filters for useful life-saving stuff but not something as basic as survival failsafes?"
"I swear," she muttered, "even my brother didn't make me talk this much. Can you shut the hell up now?"
Caelen gave up on the menu and closed it with a sigh. "Okay, okay. My bad."
He turned back to her, tone softer now.
"Look. I know I messed up your life. That part's true. I dragged you in when you didn't ask for it. You already had cracks—and yeah, I finished the job by breaking the whole thing. But I didn't want to destroy you as if I had to. I want to repair it. All of it, even the ones that were not caused by me."
He paused, eyes lingering on her face.
"Because I actually do care about you."
The weight of his words hung in the air between them. Lucy didn't respond. She looked away first.
Caelen stepped back, giving her space. He glanced toward Emma, still sound asleep, then reminded himself that the system would alert him to danger. If Lucy starts having ill intent on her, he could summon her in an instant.
He gave Lucy one last look. "Rest. Take the time you need. I'll give it to you."
That moment passed in a blur after that. Caelen found himself alone, walking through a corridor of doors—none labeled, all unfamiliar. The dungeon's atmosphere had shifted, but he didn't know where each path led.
That's when Silver appeared beside him.
He blinked. "Where's Evelyn?"
"Busy," Silver replied in her usual deadpan voice.
Before he could ask more, she waved the orb in her hand, and the world shifted. A moment later, he stood in front of his assigned room. As he stepped inside, the familiar system chime echoed.
[Mission Complete: Calm Lucille's Inner Chaos]
Reward: Ability to refine Lust Essence into Ability Points.
A grin spread across Caelen's face.
"Well, now that's useful."
He let himself fall back onto the bed, finally relaxed. The system had seen it—it acknowledged what he'd done. And even if things with Lucy were still rough, he had proof it mattered.
Sleep came quickly.
When morning arrived, Caelen stretched and yawned, still feeling the remnants of yesterday's chaos in his shoulders. As he reached for the door, he paused. A girl stood just beside it—someone unfamiliar.
She had short black hair that fell just over her brows. Her expression was blank, but polite.
"Good morning, guest," she said. "Lady Evelyn is having lunch. Would you like to join her?"
Caelen scratched the back of his head and yawned again. "Lunch already? Damn, how long did I sleep?"
He nodded. "Yeah, sure."
They walked together through unfamiliar halls. Eventually, they entered a different part of the manor-like dungeon floor that is not in the dungeon but in the building that sends you there, and there was a room that felt more like a lounge than anything else. Plush chairs. Dim lights. A low table is set behind a large sofa. And there, seated with an elegant fork in hand, was Evelyn.
She didn't look up immediately, just took a bite of some delicate, grilled fish.
"You're finally awake," she said, voice casual. "I thought you'd died or something."
Caelen raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"
She didn't stop eating. "Slept through breakfast, now showing up for lunch. You really go all in on being dramatic."
He smirked and dropped into the seat across from her. "Sorry. Your place, your rules."
Evelyn took another bite, pausing just long enough to glance at him.
"Good. Then listen closely. Because while you were busy drooling in your sleep, things around here didn't stop moving."
Caelen tilted his head.
"It's not that big of a deal," Evelyn said, chewing slowly on a piece of grilled fish. "Emma and Lucille already left. They went to the dungeon together... not sure why. But something definitely changed between them."
Caelen leaned back slightly, eyes idly drifting to Evelyn's lips as she spoke. He wasn't staring, not really, but he was still trying to process the idea that Emma and Lucy were together, alone. Again. In the dungeon. After everything.
"So... no cameras in the rooms to check?" he asked, half-teasing, half-curious.
Evelyn immediately shook her head, just enough to make it clear without being dramatic. A faint, barely-there red colored her cheeks.
"Nope."
Which, to Caelen, translated to: Yes, but I'm not supposed to show you!. He didn't press further. Instead, he asked, "So… what's your honest opinion about everything? About Lucy, about what happened?"
Evelyn set her fork down, her expression shifting. It was rare to see her drop the usual playfulness in her voice, but she did now. Her gaze met his.
"Not gonna lie... I don't know if you got lucky or if you planned it all. But your timing? Kinda unreal," she said. "Lucille wasn't in the right headspace. She wasn't as strong as she usually is. So you didn't overpower her. She fell—emotionally, mentally—and landed in your hands."
"You can even say, she might be trying to see where this goes." She said in a serious tone.
Caelen blinked at her, surprised by how plainly she said it. "That's a lot to assume. What makes you think she's trying to see where this all goes?"
"Because I've been her. I've been that girl. Trusted someone when I shouldn't have. And I still looked for reasons to stay near them, even when I had every excuse to run."
Her tone was heavier now. He could tell that wasn't just sympathy for Lucille—it was experience. Before Caelen could ask more, the maid from earlier returned, placing a tray before him.
"This was made by Emma this morning," she said, placing the meal gently. "She insisted it be prepared exactly as she left it."
Caelen blinked at the plate. It was surprisingly well done. A bit too well done.
"…She cooked for me?"
"Yes," the maid said with a light smile before turning and walking away.
Evelyn let out a low whistle. "Wow. Seems you don't even need your demon form anymore."
"Stop," Caelen muttered with a faint groan as he picked up a fork.
Evelyn watched him eat for a moment before casually saying, "Now that your part's done, it's time for you to give me mine."
Caelen didn't look up. "You remember what I said, right?"
"I do. I'll deal with it in my own way. Just like Lucille."
"And how do you know that'll even work?" Caelen started, but before he could get into it, the door opened.
Emma and Lucille entered the room.
The shift in atmosphere was instant. Emma, who entered, wore a white priest's robe with golden embroidery that trailed the hem and sleeves. She looked almost too radiant for the dungeon. Lucille, on the other hand, was clad in light armor—chest plate, shin guards, and some padding around the legs. Her hair was slightly damp, as if they hadn't been back long.
Evelyn greeted them with a casual wave. "Welcome back. How was the dungeon without demon powers?" Her glance was mostly aimed at Emma, since Lucille clearly hadn't reverted.
Emma brightened. "Not bad. Actually… it was fun and different this time. I liked how Lucy fought. She's… really sharp. Fast too."
Lucille said nothing. But she didn't interrupt either.
Caelen noticed the smallest flicker in her expression—an acknowledgment of Emma's words. No scoff. No insult. Just… quiet.
Maybe they were bonding. Or at least tolerating each other. That was progress.
Still, he felt the need to say something. "Don't push yourself too much. We still don't know what exactly caused your body to crash last time. If it happens again—"
"You can just do the same thing you did before to fix me, cause you are not getting my virginity." Lucille said coolly, cutting him off.
Caelen froze.
Emma, who had just sat down, blushed immediately.
He glanced between the two of them, trying to gauge what was going on in Lucille's head. She wasn't being sarcastic. In fact, her tone was too steady. Too… calm. Like she didn't fully understand what she was even implying.
Did she not know?
Caelen blinked, thinking quickly. Emma clearly hadn't told her what she had to consume to recover. Either that or Lucy didn't connect the dots and think I bypassed some lustful acts.
Caelen looked away, shoving a bite of food into his mouth to avoid saying something dumb.
Maybe she'll find out later, he thought. After I've found a way to win her over completely.
Evelyn leaned in slightly, eyes gleaming. "You've got your hands full now."
"Don't I always?" he said, exhaling through his nose.
[Support me by sending me coins, helps me know you like the story and want me to keep going. And drop a comment if you have opinion and would like to write it, i would check.]