"Please tell me about Lady Nisha."
"Hmm?" Virion’s eyes slowly turned into slits.
"I-I mean, I want to know more about her." I hurriedly corrected myself. "I want to know if she really has a daughter or-"
Damn! Why is he reacting even more strongly!
"I-I mean, you said it was better to stay away from her?" I changed my words again. "I want to make sure if I am safe around her."
Urgh, what is it now?
"Hah," Virion chuckled, the sound rumbling through the quiet space around us. "I said the less said about her, the better. But if you can be someone she considers close, be on her good side, then it’s your luck."
"O-oh," I nodded, relief washing over me. "Then I am safe-"
"No," Virion cut me off, his emerald eyes gleaming with mock amusement and nostalgia. "Well, not entirely."
Was she evil or something?
"Although she might have appeared as gentle and calm, she can be even more cruel than I am sometimes. Not to mention her mischievous personality."
"Uh-huh," I nodded, mentally noting to be even more careful around Lady Nisha.
The image of someone potentially dangerous than my primordial dragon master was genuinely terrifying. And...
I think I know why she ended up like that...
Maybe noticing my suspicious gaze, Virion cleared his throat. "Anyway, as I was saying, one can expect the unexpected from her. Especially... you. Since... well, you’re her son-in-law now."
"Wait!" I raised my index finger as if objecting. "I haven’t even agreed to it yet. And so she really has a daughter?"
My mind wandered to what I’d read about Nisha in the Monster Encyclopedia. She was a primordial creature just like Master, which raised a few disturbing questions. If she were ancient like him, then what about her daughter? Was she old as well?
The thought of being engaged to someone who might be centuries or millennia older than me was... complicated.
"How should I know?" Virion shrugged at my words. "However, she was single the last time I saw her, at least."
"I see," I muttered, processing this information. "...Then what do you think about what she said? That her daughter and I are destined for each other?"
"Well, if that girl is that close to her, then she wouldn’t dare to joke about such things," Virion replied thoughtfully. "So it’s likely true."
"Hm..." I fell into a dilemma, my mind spinning with conflicting thoughts.
On one hand, the idea of having my romantic future decided by ancient beings was unsettling.
On the other hand, if this mysterious daughter truly was my destined partner, then maybe there was something to it.
But what did "destined" even mean in this context? And what kind of person would she be, raised by someone like Lady Nisha?
"What about the consequences of that decision then?" I asked, voicing the concern that had been gnawing at me. "Me being targeted by a powerful evil organization. Having probably countless enemies I have no knowledge of, and unable to contend against them right now, and probably in the near future. What do you think about it? How should I process this?"
The weight of the situation was becoming clearer the more I thought about it.
Being connected to her family had already drawn attention from her enemies.
And given what I’d learned about the Abyss, the Void Lords, the Void Cascade, and the various hostile forces lurking in the shadows of our world, there was a chance that she or her ’daughter’ was from another world.
Maybe she is a princess or someone of importance who is on the run. Wouldn’t that make me an enemy of her world, too?
There was also a tiny but persistent nagging suspicion that... she might be from the Abyss itself.
Wouldn’t that make me an enemy of multiple realms then?
The very thought alone sent a chill down my spine.
Well, let’s say... that I really fell in love with her and got married.
Would I be able to protect her? Her family? My family?
Would I even be able to protect myself?
Would I be able to fight against numerous realms?
...Honestly, I didn’t know. Nor did I dare to imagine just yet.
Because I was still relatively weak, despite my recent high growth.
The encounter with the abyssal architect had shown me just how outclassed I could be against truly ancient powers.
What would happen when word spread that I was linked to Lady Nisha’s daughter? Would I become a target for multirealm assassination then? A pawn in cosmic games I couldn’t even comprehend?
The romantic implications aside, this felt like stepping into the middle of a battlefield while wearing a bright target on my back.
Virion listened to my torrent of concerns, his expression unreadable. When I finally fell silent, he didn’t speak immediately, the weight of my fears hanging in the air.
"You’re overthinking this," he said finally, though his tone wasn’t dismissive but contemplative. "But I suppose that’s better than blindly accepting your fate."
"However, your fears are not unfounded, my boy. Enemies you cannot yet imagine will indeed take notice. Your path will become far more dangerous."
He floated closer, his emerald eyes holding mine.
"Listen well, my boy. Power attracts enemies regardless of what you do. You think being my disciple doesn’t already paint a target on your back? You think having the abilities you possess, the feats you achieved, or surviving an Abyssal Overseer won’t draw attention from those who would exploit or eliminate you?"
His words carried the weight of eons of experience.
"The question isn’t whether you’ll face danger. Nor is it if you can protect her, protect them. The question is how quickly can you become strong enough to make any who threatens them regret their very existence. The question is whether you’ll face the danger alone, or with allies who can help you survive it."
He paused, letting his words sink in.
"And let me answer one of the questions for you."
"First of all, you are not alone."
"You have me. You have Zephyr. You have the turtle brothers. You have this cute little guy. You have companions you don’t even realize you have..."
"You are walking a path few can even glimpse."
"Do not measure yourself by the yardstick of common men."