A sweet breath tickled his ear. Bathed in the sunlight streaming through the window, Kwon Oh-Jin opened his eyes and looked at Song Ha-Eun, fast asleep with her arms wrapped tightly around him. Her long lashes, sharp nose, and flawless skin looked like they would all slip through his fingers with a touch. He faintly smiled and reached out to gently caress her cheek. She moved her head, as if it tickled her, and slowly opened her eyes. “Did you sleep well?” he asked. “Not really, thanks to a certain someone.” With a playful grin, she pinched his side. The sweetness between them was almost tooth-rotting. Without needing to say who moved first, their lips inched closer. With a bizarre sound effect, Vega spun in mid-air and spread her arms wide as she appeared out of thin air. “Kyaaa!” Song Ha-Eun screamed and instinctively kicked Kwon Oh-Jin. He flew up and slammed into the ceiling. After doing a flashy flip, he landed flat on the floor. “What exactly were you two doing?” Vega asked. “Nothing.” Kwon Oh-Jin rubbed his sore stomach as he got up. It really felt happened every time Vega showed up. Vega landed on top of Kwon Oh-Jin’s head, frowning in clear disapproval. “Hmmm. Did everything with the Guardian Stars go well?” Two members had died, and one was in critical condition. At least they had taken down the Living Armor, who was the main culprit. It could be said that things had technically gone well. “Can you explain what happened?” “Of course. Oh, but before that, did you absorb Deneb’s divinity?” “Hehe. Who do you think I am? Absorbing the divinity of some immature child and making it mine is nothing.” Vega flashed a V-sign with her tiny fingers and shrugged confidently. Kwon Oh-Jin chuckled and began explaining what had happened while she was gone. Vega’s expression gradually changed as he spoke about the Guardian Stars, the Living Armor, the Serpent, and the Bufo faction. “To think of purging the Black Star Society... that child of Serpens is truly terrible.” “Well, there’s a reason factions exist in the first place.” “So this demonic beast called the Living Armor, was it completely dealt with?” “Of course! I swooped in right at the perfect moment and finished it off!” Song Ha-Eun answered Vega’s concerned question with a proud smile. “Hmph. I’m well aware of what humans like you are called,” Vega said. “Huh? What do they call me?” “Let’s see... Ah, yes! Kill stealer! They call people like you a kill stealer!” Furious at the insult, Song Ha-Eun reached up toward Vega, perched on Kwon Oh-Jin’s head. Vega quickly floated out of her reach. “You are truly still so rude. Have you ever thought about how sad Eltanin would be if he knew?” “Like I care. I’ve never even met him.” For the record, Eltanin was the Celestial of Draco. Kwon Oh-Jin, who silently watched the two bicker, looked genuinely surprised. “Wait, you’ve never met your own Celestial?” He had never heard Song Ha-Eun mention the Celestial of Draco before, but he didn’t know she had never even met him. “Well... I did try to meet him once, but...” Song Ha-Eun scratched her head and sighed. “He was asleep.” “Asleep?” Kwon Oh-Jin asked. “Yeah. Snoring away, completely asleep.” “Then, you could’ve visited the next time—” “He was always sleeping. He was asleep for years.” Song Ha-Eun clicked her tongue and shook her head. “Well, Eltanin follows dragon instincts fitting of his constellation. Once he enters a sleeping phase, it’s nearly impossible to wake him up,” Vega explained. “Then, how did he give me my Stigma?” Song Ha-Eun asked. “He probably found his chosen person, bestowed his Stigma, and then fell asleep right after.” Was that why so few Awakeners with the Stigma of Draco existed? “In exchange, they likely granted an incredibly strong Stigma. Just look at Ha-Eun. Her power easily rivals those of the twelve Zodiacs,” Vega continued. It did seem strange how strong she was despite the Stigma of Draco’s reputation. After all, even a nine-star Awakener like Choi Yoo-Mi was helpless against the Living Armor that Song Ha-Eun had taken down. “Anyway, pushing yourself again with such severe internal injuries... How much more must you worry me before you’re satisfied?” Vega scolded and smacked Kwon Oh-Jin’s forehead. “I’m planning to rest until I fully recover now.” “As you should,” Vega said. Internal injuries affecting the mana circuits, where the Stigma’s mana flowed, were no minor matter. They couldn’t be treated lightly. Forcefully moving with broken bones could cause permanent damage even after the bones healed. Likewise, recklessly using mana while suffering internal injuries could irreparably damage the mana circuits. It’d be nice if this could be healed quickly with something like a potion, but... Unless it was an elixir, internal injuries couldn’t be treated no matter how expensive the potion. Even the Water Affinity, which made Kwon Oh-Jin nearly immortal, was no exception. Nothing was better than time when it came to recovering from internal injuries. “Anyway, why don’t we all go on a little trip since Oh-Jin will be resting for a while? Vega, you’re also going to rest. We can even bring that little dog with us,” Song Ha-Eun suggested. “You know, that guy Riarc.” Vega pressed her forehead like she had a headache. “To call my Star Spirit a little dog...” Riarc, who was known among the Celestials as a Divine Wolf and whose power was widely acknowledged, was being called a little dog. Vega looked at Song Ha-eun with a faint smile. “It is... typical of you.” Though Vega always felt slightly uneasy seeing Song Ha-Eun clinging so closely to Kwon Oh-Jin, she just couldn’t bring herself to dislike her for some reason. “So, are we going or not?” Song Ha-Eun said. “Where were you thinking of going?” Vega asked. “Not sure? Haven’t decided yet.” The source of thɪs content is 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭·𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢·𝗇𝗲𝘵 Song Ha-Eun cocked her head and tapped her lips. Then, she snapped her fingers as she thought of an idea. “How about going overseas? You got super upset last time when it was just me and Oh-Jin going to Japan.” “I-I was never upset!” Song Ha-Eun covered her mouth with one hand and giggled. A vein popped on Vega’s forehead. “Y-You insolent thing!” Song Ha-Eun screamed as a small bolt of lightning from Vega’s hand struck her. Just as the two started round two of their bickering, the doorbell suddenly rang. “Were we expecting someone?” Kwon Oh-Jin cocked his head and opened the door. Isabella brightly smiled and stood at the entrance with a long box. “I was really shocked last time when you suddenly disappeared without a word.” She sounded so sweet that one could melt, but a chill ran down his spine for some reason. “I-I told you I had no choice because of how bad my internal injuries were.” “Oh my. That’s right, isn’t it? Silly me, I must have forgotten. Are you feeling better now?” “I’m feeling a lot better.” The internal injuries had healed quite a bit after pawning off the cleanup to Isabella and Lee Woo-Hyuk and resting with Song Ha-Eun for a few days. “You have no idea how worried I was. Even though you had such severe internal injuries, you still personally drove the motorcycle back, didn’t you?” “What would you have done if you’d gotten into an accident?” Isabella smiled sweetly as she gently caressed Kwon Oh-Jin’s shoulder. She looked like a chef checking the freshness of a fish, which made his shoulders tremble. Kwon Oh-Jin quickly changed the subject and asked, “What did Mr. Cheon Sang-Gil say?” “He was away, so we couldn’t report to him directly.” “Yes. I believe he’s still pursuing the Serpent.” Maybe he found some kind of lead on the Serpent? “Still, we did inform the Heaven’s Grace Guild to keep a watchful eye on their surroundings,” Isabella said. “Did anything else happen?” “Hmm... A few days ago, a few of the members on patrol dozed off and got disciplinary action, but nothing was reported stolen.” “A few of them fell asleep?” Kwon Oh-Jin frowned. Falling asleep while on patrol wasn’t entirely unheard of. Not just one, but several of them all fell asleep? How was that possible if they were members of Korea’s top guild? “Yes. I found it suspicious too, so I investigated it. However, I didn’t find anything. Nothing showed up on the surveillance cameras or even the surveillance Astral Relics.” It was definitely strange, but they couldn’t afford to keep investigating indefinitely with no casualties and nothing missing. “What about Lee Woo-Hyuk?” “He’s caring for Hyun-Bin. Hyun-Bin is physically all healed, but he seems to have suffered major psychological shock.” The kid had been so excited about becoming the next Seven Stars, but they got destroyed the moment things started. Anyway, what are we gonna do about the Guardian Stars? Oh Hyun-Bin was out due to trauma, and two members had died. Nearly half of the seven were now gone. I guess I’ll have to talk to Cheon Sang-Gil later. Kwon Oh-Jin clicked his tongue and looked at the long box Isabella was holding. “Ah, I brought it for you, Mr. Oh-Jin.” Could it be another absurdly expensive gift? “Your spear got damaged during the battle, right?” Isabella opened the box. Inside was the jet-black spear that the Living Armor had used. “I thought it would suit you the best, Mr. Oh-Jin.” He slowly examined the spear that Isabella handed him. It was about two meters long with an elongated blade. As he gripped it, his eyes widened at how perfectly it fit in his hand. “This spear isn’t just any regular spear,” Isabella said. “It’s an Ego Weapon that has a will of its own.” An Ego Weapon possessed its own consciousness. It was an extremely valuable Astral Relic and considered a top-tier item. “Can I really just take something ?” Isabella smiled brightly and nodded. “Haha, you were the MVP during this mission. Also...” She gently stroked the black spear. “I tried channeling my mana into it, but I don’t think it recognized me as its master.” “It didn’t accept you?” “Yes. I think it’s because my Stigma isn’t suitable for wielding a spear.” Hmm. The Stigma of Aries, maybe, but it even rejected the Stigma of Leech? No, even if it did accept her, she’s probably just saying it didn’t. After all, she was still pretending to be an Awakener of Aries. “Then, let me test if I can use it,” Kwon Oh-Jin said. “Please be careful. It seems to have a pretty aggressive personality.” Kwon Oh-Jin nodded and slowly channeled mana into the jet-black spear. Blue lightning sparked at the tip. Kwon Oh-Jin stared at the spear in surprise. He hadn’t poured much mana into it, but the lightning at the tip was far more intense than he expected. He shortly gasped in awe. As expected of an Ego Weapon, it possessed incredible abilities. On the other hand, Isabella looked surprised at how easily he had created lightning. “Ah, no. It’s just, I didn’t expect it to be so well-behaved.” She hadn’t anticipated that it would accept him without any resistance. She looked at him in a daze. “There’s no voice or anything like that for an Ego Weapon?” he asked and shook the spear. “It probably hasn’t developed that strong of a consciousness yet.” He closed his eyes and focused on the spear, but no sense of any will or presence responded from it. “Thanks. I’ll put it to good use.” “It’s not even mine, so no need to thank me.” Kwon Oh-Jin smiled in satisfaction and gave the jet-black spear a spin. Still, it’s a shame it doesn’t shrink in size. Its bulk made it a pain to carry. Just as he had that thought, the spear transformed into a small folding knife. “I guess it really does have a will of its own.” Kwon Oh-Jin gasped as he looked at the weapon that shrank to about fifteen centimeters in length. At this size, he could easily carry it anywhere. “By the way, Mr. Oh-Jin, you mentioned that you’d be taking a short break to recover from your internal injuries.” “Yeah, that’s the plan.” Isabella’s eyes sparkled as she grabbed his hand. “Then, I’d like to invite you to my family’s villa! There’s a place there that’s really effective for healing internal injuries!” “It’s a place called San Fruttuoso. It’s by the beach and has a beautiful view, so you’ll be able to really relax.” Isabella glanced at Song Ha-Eun’s chest from behind Kwon Oh-Jin and slyly grinned. “I’ll be inviting Miss Ha-Eun too.”