The car sped through the city toward the business district where Astral Corporation's HQ was located. About 15 minutes later, with the traffic optimized by Nexus Prime, they arrived at Astral Corp HQ.
After Will handed the car over to the valet who came to greet them, he led little Sylvana toward her father's office. As they arrived, and the moment little Sylvana opened the office door, she was greeted by a lively scene.
Pop! Pop! Pop!
"Surprise!"
Party poppers went off, sending ribbons and confetti flying through the air as the smiling faces of her parents and others shouted "surprise!" However, Sylvana could only see the celebration through the gap under Will's armpit, as he immediately used his body to shield her.
There stood Daniel, her father, along with Koyuki, Greed, Michaela, Penthesilea, and a woman Sylvana had never met before.
"Will... Can't you tell the difference between gunfire and party poppers?" Daniel asked in annoyance.
"There is a 2.14% chance that someone could invent a weapon disguised as a party popper for assassination purposes. The risk is too high to ignore, Master," Will replied calmly, stating the facts. .net
"Is that so?" Daniel asked, this time directing his question to Nexus Prime.
"That is correct, Master," Nexus Prime confirmed.
Knowing it was pointless to argue with Nexus Prime, Daniel decided to proceed with little Sylvana's birthday party.
"Sylvy! Today marks the 1-year anniversary since we met you—happy birthday!" Koyuki exclaimed as she picked up little Sylvana and walked toward the woman Sylvana hadn't met before.
"Mom... This is little Sylvana, your granddaughter," Koyuki said.
The woman was Mayumi Mori, Koyuki's mother and Sylvana's grandmother.
"Oh, sweetie, come here," Mayumi said with a smile as she took little Sylvana from Koyuki. Though Sylvana wasn't yet familiar with Mayumi, she was surprisingly quiet and didn't squirm much.
"Greetings, Grandma," little Sylvana said shyly.
"Ohhh, sweetie, you're so cute! What do you want for your birthday? Or where would you like to go? Tell Grandma, and I'll have your papa and mama arrange it for you," Mayumi cooed, immediately doting on her granddaughter.
"Really?" little Sylvana asked.
"Really! What do you want?"
In Greed's room, Daniel sat on the balcony connected to her room, sipping wine and admiring the neon-lit cityscape below, which seemed always alive and full of energy. Tonight, Koyuki was staying with Mayumi at the hotel so she could be trained by her, as Mayumi had another purpose for being here besides attending little Sylvana's birthday party.
"Why are you here, Danny? Are you hoping to get something from me?" Greed asked seductively as she emerged from her bath.
"It would be a lie if I said I wasn't hoping for something," Daniel shamelessly admitted, watching as Greed moved toward him and took a seat next to him, separated only by a small table holding the wine bottle.
The two admired the night view for about ten minutes before Daniel broke the silence. "You know... I've been thinking a lot... about us."
Intrigued, Greed turned toward Daniel, wondering what he was about to say.
"It's true that I'm still not fully adjusted to this whole Curtained World and mages' business," Daniel continued, still gazing at the view. "But... I'll do my best to take care of you all and protect you to the best of my ability."
"Oh? Is this a love confession? How cute," Greed teased, hoping to see Daniel embarrassed.
"Yes, it is," Daniel replied, looking into Greed's eyes as he took her hand and produced a small box. He opened it, revealing a ring with a chromatic gemstone.
The gemstone was crafted from a mysterious jewel called the Heart of Atlantis, one of the unique artifacts in the Fall of Atlantis set. It could generate enormous amounts of sacred mana, and Daniel had designed the ring to create a powerful shield to protect Greed in emergencies and to notify him if she was in danger.
It even had an instant portal function, allowing either of them to teleport to the other.
"This..." Greed was stunned, staring at the gemstone as Daniel slipped it onto her left ring finger.
"Will you marry me?" Daniel asked, looking deeply into Greed's still-stunned eyes.
She didn't know what to say. She was accustomed to the Curtained World's customs, where mages usually married only one partner, even though many had more than one. Typically, only the most powerful or those with strong lineage would be chosen as a marriage partner.
She had never imagined Daniel would ask this of her.
"Wha... What... what about Koyuki? Didn't you plan to marry her? Lady Mori won't stay quiet if you try to marry me," Greed asked, though her voice betrayed a deep happiness.
"Of course, I plan to marry her too. Why would Lady Mori make a fuss over this?" Daniel asked, still not understanding what Greed was implying.
Hearing this, Greed let out a wry smile before explaining the mage customs of the Curtained World to Daniel.
"Oh... I see," Daniel said after listening to Greed's explanation. "But I don't think that has anything to do with me. I'll marry all of you. All of my women will have the weddings they desire. I believe this is what they deserve. I won't belittle any of my women by making them concubines.
They will all be my wives. And I don't think I'll marry more than seven or nine, anyway. My heart isn't wide enough for... like... a battalion of women to sit in it." Daniel concluded.