Sword of Salvation-Chapter 81: - Deceit and Sweet Lie (4)

When Celinee opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was the ceiling of a room. Sunlight pierced through the window slats and the gaps in the curtains. For a moment, she remained still with a confused expression, but suddenly, she sat up with wide eyes.

"I thought you would sleep longer."

Celinee instinctively turned toward the voice’s owner. Mariel was sitting calmly beside a small table near the door, a book in his hand. The table was filled with food and drinks—perhaps prepared for her.

"Mariel, what happened?" Celinee asked directly. "I thought I was dead."

"Er... You should pull the blanket back up."

Celinee’s eyes reflexively looked down at her body. She blinked twice in surprise. Her gaze shifted to Mariel, then back to herself, and then back to Mariel again.

"Mariel..."

"Don’t get mad right away! I have an explanation!" Mariel quickly exclaimed. "But seriously, pull the blanket up again. Of course, I’m happy to see you, but I’m also worried about what might happen if you keep showing yourself like that."

Celinee complied, wrapping the blanket around herself again. "Explain," she demanded. "If I’m not satisfied with your explanation, prepare for the worst."

"Of course, Celinee, of course. I wouldn’t do anything strange without your permission. There’s nothing for you to worry about."

"Then hurry up and explain."

Mariel closed his book and stood up, walking slowly before sitting on the edge of the bed where Celinee was sitting—his body angled slightly toward her.

"When I caught up to you," Mariel began, "Doctor Lergen had just self-destructed. You were thrown violently. Your clothes were destroyed, and you were gravely injured. Your body was severely burned. If I had been just a fraction of a second late, you wouldn’t have survived."

"So, I’m naked because my clothes were obliterated in the explosion. I have a lot of questions about this, but there’s a more important one. What about that bastard Lergen? Is he dead?"

Mariel stored his book inside a portal and shifted his position so they were now facing each other. "I don’t know," he said with a serious expression. "I prioritized your safety. I didn’t leave your side until you had fully regenerated."

"You... you didn’t leave my side until I had completely regenerated?" Celinee asked, her face tinged with red.

Mariel nodded. "I won’t deny that I saw your entire body," he admitted, "but I didn’t touch you or have any other intentions. I just wanted to make sure you were truly okay. I needed to confirm that your regeneration ability was still working—"

"H-How about Doctor Lergen?" Celinee interrupted—she desperately didn’t want Mariel to continue that part of his explanation.

"So," Mariel continued, "after you regenerated, I covered you with a blanket. Then I immediately went back there to check if Doctor Lergen was still alive or not. Unfortunately, I didn’t see anything but destruction. What do you think, Celinee? Could he have survived?"

"That bastard Lergen wouldn’t have blown himself up if he couldn’t survive it."

"In that case, you just have to make sure he dies the next time you meet him, right?"

Celinee’s eyes widened at that question. "Mariel!" she exclaimed, grabbing the young man’s arm with her right hand. "You said you’d tell me your goal if I could use the unification mode, didn’t you?"

"No need to worry, Celinee. I saw you in unification mode. But... are you sure you want to know?"

"Don’t even try to make me not want to know, Mariel. Tell me now."

Mariel didn’t respond immediately. He crawled over and leaned against the headboard. Celinee turned around as well, so they were once again facing each other.

"I’ll tell you after you lean against me."

Celinee growled, but her cheeks flushed again. Her eyes darted left and right, trying to shake off her nervousness. Mariel enjoyed watching that expression—Celinee’s cuteness multiplied several times over.

"Fine!" the ninja snapped. "Do whatever you want!"

She turned her back to him and slammed against him without restraint, as if venting her frustration. But Mariel knew very well that she was just trying to shake off her embarrassment.

"Are you angry?" Mariel asked, wrapping his arms around her from behind—his chin resting on her left shoulder, their heads touching.

"Who wouldn’t be angry when someone of the opposite sex sees their body while they’re unconscious? You know what this means, don’t you, Mariel?" Celinee didn’t wait for an answer. "It means I can’t marry another man. So, you have to take responsibility."

"Isn’t that obvious? We’ve seen each other since we were in Camelot. It’s already clear enough. So, when do you want us to get married?"

"Idiot! You’re too young for that!"

"Oh, so you’re too old?"

"Do you want to die, Mariel?"

"No, no, I’m sorry. But I’m serious, Celinee. There’s nothing you need to worry about. Even if you refuse to marry me, I’ll still force you. No one else is allowed to touch you but me, Celinee. I’m binding you to my life."

"Does that mean no one else is allowed to touch you but me? You won’t flirt with Lasyana behind my back, will you? And that woman named Selena... you won’t mess around, right?"

"Of course, Celinee. As long as you’re by my side, I won’t even look at another woman. Do you think my heart is big enough for many women?"

Mariel truly wasn’t lying. He wouldn’t look at anyone else as long as Celinee was with him.

"For now, I’ll believe you. But if you ever try to flirt with another woman, you’ll wake up with a kunai stabbed in your chest. Hmph. So, what’s your goal?"

"What if I told you I want to rule the world without officially becoming its ruler?"

"Huh?" Celinee immediately glanced at him. "You want to rule the world? Are you serious?"

Celinee had grown strong. Mariel acknowledged that. However, he decided to keep the issue of the Sword of Salvation from her. Levia most likely knew about it, so it was better to ensure no one else did.

Mariel liked Celinee—that was a fact. So, if a powerful individual took her hostage to force him into surrendering the sword, Mariel would have to make a difficult decision. However, he could ignore his ambition of ruling the world if Celinee were taken hostage because of it. That was why it was better if she didn’t know.

"You don’t believe I can do it?" Mariel asked, taking in the scent of the woman beside him, locking it into his memory.

"It’s hard to believe. But if it’s you... for some reason, I feel like you can actually do it."

"That’s called love, Celinee. You love me so much that you believe in something that sounds impossible."

"Love you too much? Tch, don’t be ridiculous. Don’t get a big head, Mariel. I just admitted my feelings, but what if I’m wrong? What if I take it back?"

"You think you can say that when your heartbeat is racing like this?"

"S-So, how are you going to achieve your goal?" Celinee quickly changed the subject.

"Changing the topic, huh? That’s fine, that’s fine. I understand." Mariel bit Celinee’s ear lightly, making her squirm instinctively. "So," he continued, "first, I’ll build an information network covering all four continents. That’s why Weimei didn’t come with us. Then..."

Mariel explained his steps briefly but in detail, all while taking every opportunity to make Celinee squirm or let out her sweet voice.

Had he become addicted to this woman? Mariel didn’t know. What he did know was that he wouldn’t let Celinee slip away from his life.