Leaving

After Edward left, the two women fell into a brief silence, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward. Monica suddenly smiled and said:

"Princess, it seems I'll have to call you 'Master.' Before we begin training, please allow me to change into something more suitable."

As she spoke, she walked over to the two large iron chests containing water and food. She began openly stripping off her home clothes and changing into a well-fitting training outfit.

Princess Andrea watched Monica change. She compared their chests with her hands and inexplicably felt a little inferior before saying:

"Aren't you afraid that guy might use some kind of surveillance array to spy on you?"

Monica smiled.

"That idiot? Even when I gave him the chance before, he didn't dare..."

Just then, the door suddenly opened, and Edward poked his head inside. Monica let out a startled cry and hid behind the chest. Edward hurriedly pulled his head back behind the door and said through it:

"Sorry, I didn't see anything... I forgot to tell you just now. There's a door on the wall to your right. That's the bathroom. When you go out this afternoon, there's a switch on the wall beside the entrance. If anything happens, call me by pressing the red button on the wall, and I'll come right over. I'm leaving now."

Only after That Door was firmly closed and Edward's footsteps had faded away did Monica cover her chest and emerge from behind the cabinet. Princess Andrea, standing nearby, couldn't help laughing.

After changing into her training clothes, Monica picked up her Twin Swords. She held the left-hand sword upright, struck it once with the horizontal sword in her right hand, performed an ancient swordsman's salute, and said:

"Princess, let's begin!"

Andrea slowly drew her longsword and performed the same salute with her Sword Sheath and longsword. Then she said meaningfully:

"I really don't dare let you call me 'Princess.' After all, in your Family's eyes, someone like me is only worthy of being called a 'nouveau riche.'"

Monica's gaze sharpened, and she asked coldly, "How did you figure that out?"

Andrea's eyes fell on the ring on Monica's left hand, answering in her place.

"You're that certain? What if you didn't know I was a treasure hunter? I might have picked this ring up in some ruins."

"I wasn't certain before, but a Spatial Ring that can be used by a non-Caster is generally a family heirloom of some great family. Bloodline recognition is the most basic requirement. I became certain when I saw you take your training clothes out of your Spatial Ring just now," Andrea said expressionlessly.

"You really are as sharp as Edward said. You saw through me after meeting me only once. I've spent so much time with that idiot, yet he didn't notice a thing. He only thought I was a female thief who went around causing trouble..." Monica sounded somewhat emotional.

"That guy's tastes are remarkably consistent! He managed to attract two 'princesses.' So what should I call you? Is it..."

"Don't say that surname! Until I find my enemies and avenge them, I'm not worthy of having that surname again!" Monica stopped Andrea. "Don't say anything more. Let me see what you can do. Let's see what that idiot taught you."

At that moment, the blonde and brown-haired Knight Princesses assumed their stances, preparing for a spar before training began. Andrea's thoughts stirred. Under Monica's astonished gaze, she closed her eyes and began moving with her steps. Her figure suddenly vanished from Monica's sight.

Monica's pupils contracted. In her perception, Andrea's Aura had vanished into thin air. When she saw her again, those emerald-like eyes were open and gazing at her from inches away, while the longsword in her hand was already pressed against Monica's neck. Their eyes met, and a bead of cold sweat trickled down Monica's temple.

Andrea curled her lips into a triumphant smile.

"Want to learn?"

"I do."

Time flew by. It was already the afternoon of the second day. Andrea and Monica knelt on one knee in the Training Ground, using their weapons to support themselves. Both were breathing heavily, and sweat dripped constantly from their bodies. Andrea gritted her teeth and rose, returning her sword to its sheath. Monica also stood and put away her Twin Swords.

Monica had actually learned the kind of fluctuation Edward had mentioned on the first day. After all, she was also one of the Baptizers. Without personally experiencing that fluctuation, one might never learn it in an entire lifetime. For someone who had experienced it, learning it could take only an instant.

On the first afternoon, Andrea returned to the Duke's Mansion once, sent out Edward's letter, and handed Edward's talismans to Alice and Elwin. During training, Monica had already cautiously told the princess some of what had happened. Andrea's expression grew solemn as she listened. After returning, she repeatedly warned Alice that she absolutely could not be willful and leave it off.

The next morning, Andrea returned excitedly, and the two fought for the entire day. Starved of opponents, they explored ways to use the "fluctuation" while battling to their hearts' content. They fought so vigorously for the whole day that they didn't stop until their Battle Qi was exhausted. Monica wasn't the only one who benefited greatly; Andrea felt she had gained a great deal as well. Many of the awkward points in her techniques had vanished, and she had also learned some of Monica's "family-inherited" Battle Qi techniques.

"I should head back. I'll go to the harbor to see you off tomorrow," Andrea said with a smile.

"See you tomorrow." Monica returned the same smile. The two of them looked like old friends of many years.

Just as Andrea was about to leave the Training Ground, she suddenly turned around and asked without rhyme or reason:

"Why didn't you agree to stay with him? I feel like you care about him very much."

Monica shook her head with a bitter smile and said nothing.

"Then don't blame me when the time comes..." Andrea continued speaking cryptically.

"Take good care of him. If... if I can come back, I'll take him back..."

"Then..." The blonde Knight Princess seemed conflicted. In the end, she gave her a brilliant smile. "Then you absolutely have to come back!"

When the two women emerged from the Training Ground, they happened to run into Edward, who was waiting by the entrance with a lollipop dangling from his mouth at an entirely inappropriate time. They hadn't seen him for a day and a half, and when they met him again, they felt something about him was different. His tired expression was unchanged, but his bearing had shifted. Standing there, he seemed to possess some inexplicable attraction that was drawing in everything around him.

If the Magic Girl had been there, she would have clearly sensed that Edward was now like a Magic Power black hole, frantically absorbing the magical elements in the surrounding space. This was the state a Great Mage entered during Deep Meditation, and it generally didn't last long. Sure enough, just as the two women began to feel puzzled, that black-hole sensation vanished.

Edward took the orange-red lollipop from his mouth and said:

"How did the two of you do?"

"Very well!" both women replied at once.

"Then shall we go eat?" Edward asked.

"I'll pass. If I don't appear at the dinner table at home, Father may start asking questions," Andrea declined.

"I'm terribly sorry about that. Thank you for taking care of me these past two days!" Edward sincerely bowed.

The princess sidestepped half a step and avoided accepting his bow before saying:

"I benefited a great deal as well. Monica and I were merely learning from each other. It's just that... I felt you were somewhat..."

"Oh, that. I was experimenting with my newly improved Spiritual Root. The expenditure over these two days was too great, so I upgraded myself a little. The results are pretty good." Edward spoke in the "secret jargon" that Princess Andrea only half understood.

"Oh, right. The two of you must have expended a lot during training, huh? Want to try one each?" Edward pulled a handful of lollipops wrapped in colorful wax paper from his pocket. He looked exactly like a creepy old man trying to lure young girls away.

"What are these?"

"My energy-restoring potion. When I went out to buy ingredients this morning, I ran into Mr. Gonzalez. Somehow, he had gotten his hands on some Goji Berries. I boiled a pot of syrup and made these lollipops from the two ingredients. Keeping one in your mouth can slowly restore your energy," Edward explained.

After sending off Andrea, who left happily with a lollipop in her mouth, Edward and Monica returned to the living room in the Backyard. The shop out front had already closed, and Harry had gone home long ago. Edward habitually tied on an apron, went to the Open Kitchen on one side of the living room, and began cooking.

The two tacitly said nothing and silently ate dishes Monica usually enjoyed. They continued until dinner was over.

After watching the beauty finish eating, Edward removed the Spatial Ring from his hand, placed it on the dining table, and pushed it in front of Monica.

"Take it. Everything I prepared for you is inside. I made a few small changes so that you can use it with your Mental Power."

Monica froze slightly and looked up at Edward.

"This is your only ring, isn't it? What will you do after I take it?"

"It'll be a little inconvenient in everyday life, but you'll be even more inconvenienced without it while you're outside." Edward gave a dry laugh. In truth, his heart was bleeding. Including this ring, everything inside it consisted of all his valuable possessions. Still, if he was going to be a good person, he might as well see it through. In this world, Monica was the first girl he had ever fallen for. The reason they couldn't be together wasn't that she didn't like him. So, if he could do everything possible for her, he would. That way, he wouldn't regret it in the future.

As the saying went, a twenty-year-old man pursued love with his heart, while a forty-year-old man pursued it with his body. Edward, a "middle-aged man" who had been in his forties in his Previous Life, hadn't expected to fall in love even after transmigrating.

In the end, Monica didn't take Edward's Spatial Ring. She merely confessed to Edward that she had a Spatial Ring of her own. When she told him its dimensions, she nearly made Edward's jaw drop. After recovering, an excited Edward brought Monica to his underground warehouse. Not only did he let her take everything inside her Spatial Ring, he also loaded a large pile of "odds and ends" for her. Some of the things even shocked Monica. For example, Edward loaded several cubic meters of something called "TNT" for her. Supposedly, it could blow the entire Duke's Mansion into the sky.

On the morning of the third day, Monica left. The three mercenaries had indeed become weak-kneed wrecks. They yawned as they boarded the fast ship bound for the Rainforest Country. Monica was radiant as she boarded, smiling and waving goodbye to Edward and Andrea, who had come to see her off. In the end, she even blew Edward an enthusiastic kiss.

The sky over the harbor was brilliant blue, and Sand Gulls gathered in flight. Clouds appeared here and there between the water and sky. Edward and Andrea stood side by side, silently watching the sailboat vanish into the horizon.

"Why didn't you forcibly keep her here? You have the strength to do it, and she might not have resisted much," Andrea asked, voicing the question in her heart. In this world where the strong were respected, that was what a "strong person" would normally choose.

Edward didn't know how to explain it. Suddenly, he remembered a line from his favorite movie in his Previous Life:

"Loving someone doesn't necessarily mean making her stay by your side for the rest of her life.

A flower I love doesn't necessarily have to be picked."

After saying that, he ignored the confused Knight Princess and turned away as coolly as he could.

Can you guess which movie this line came from?