Their romance storyline only begins on the second playthrough?

Chapter 13 The Calamity Spirit and Lilith, Who Wants Praise

Lilith would never allow such a despicable monster to attack her lover while he was undergoing a breakthrough.

At least, she kept an eye on Rhodes the whole time, because maybe she could take the opportunity to help Rhodes and make their relationship a little more harmonious.

Moreover, this was a habit she and Rhodes had developed after countless battles.

Finishing blows, eliminating threats, and remaining vigilant—her mission was to rid Rhodes of trouble caused by carelessness.

Therefore, she raised her hand the instant the abyss troll made its move—

The God of Starlight possesses three divine artifacts.

One of them is named "Starlink".

Composed of twelve Celestial Meteorites, they can form an array that surrounds the master as a barrier, or be controlled to become individual blades to attack enemies.

When this weapon is used by the [God of Starlight], these twelve [Meteorites] will tear through the sky like real meteorites. Each one that falls is enough to destroy a giant city and easily level hundreds of kilometers of land.

However, the controller must simultaneously divide their consciousness into twelve parts to use this weapon, making it impossible for ordinary people to use.

Clearly, the Star God is not an ordinary person.

At this moment, Lilith's hair was emitting a faint light, and the light blue of her pupils was also shimmering like flowing light;

Several star-like rings suddenly appeared behind her, their pale blue ripples spreading like water, and a faint glow appeared between her brows—

All power was mobilized, as noble and arrogant as a god, with eyes filled with judgment and divine disdain.

She blinked slightly, her eyes cold:

"Ignorance."

As soon as she finished speaking, the Star Chains beside Lilith suddenly burst forth, unleashing terrifying energy like twelve lasers, hurtling straight towards the monster!

Boom boom boom—!

In an instant, the Abyss Troll was completely enveloped by energy—

Like paper.

Under Lilith's absolute power and absolute attack, this so-called "terrifying" existence was nothing more than a piece of paper.

One strike pierced through the monster and also through Rhodes' house!

boom! ! !

When the energy burst forth, dust and sand rose up, and the door of the house collapsed instantly!

Everything turned to ashes, except for the endless energy beams that continued to fire their afterglow, erasing everything in their path.

Then, the shine gradually faded, and everything returned to normal.

but--

When the dust settled, the Abyss Troll was nowhere to be found, as if it had never been there.

Rhodes paused slightly, his Dragon Sword still poised to meet the attack, as he watched the Abyss Troll be annihilated by Lilith in a single blow…

He regained his composure and returned to his original posture, but he was also somewhat conflicted inside.

So, as I said... if Lilith, who has been promoted four times, really wanted to cling to him, he would have no chance to break free.

It's strange, really. Even though Lilith saved him, he felt more helpless than grateful.

After all, he absolutely did not want to owe Lilith a favor...

Rhodes felt helpless, but he still managed to come to his senses.

At this moment, Lilith withdrew all her power, and the artifact returned to her sleeve.

An inexplicable silence descended upon these ruins.

Lilith hesitated for a moment, then clenched her small, fair hands and pressed them against her breasts, seemingly conflicted and hesitant.

But in the end, he still spoke:

"...Hmm." She paused for a moment. "So, Mr. Rhodes, we've saved each other once...right?"

Rod was slightly taken aback.

He didn't expect Lilith to say something like that.

It's as if the little girl is trying to take credit...

His eyes froze, and he remained silent for a long while, but finally spoke:

"Of course, thank you, Miss Lilith."

but.

In a corner unnoticed by Rhodes and his companions, a tiny sea spider suddenly escaped from the dust and vanished from the spot…

……

...

The situation has stabilized.

In Rhodes's room, the dim light shone on Lilith's petite body, while Rhodes sat opposite her.

Neither side discussed or questioned Lilith's [power].

Because Lilith knew that Rhodes was aware of her strength.

After all, it was because Rhodes in the first playthrough could see through her true strength at a glance that Lilith got to know him.

Lilith, of course, would never forget how their acquaintance began.

She wasn't suspicious that Rhodes knew her strength; rather, she was the one who was shocked.

At this moment, the two of them sat facing each other.

Lilith sat demurely, watching Rhodes' breakthrough, yet she felt something was very strange.

Rhodes' aura was too strange. Despite being a divine being of the [God of Souls] type, he possessed an unusually aggressive nature, and what was worse, this nature inexplicably made her feel threatened.

just like……

It is the same as the [Dragon God Seed].

Lilith's eyes trembled slightly as she pondered her thoughts.

"Is this really just a breakthrough to the second level of ascension? No, in fact, it's not right for Rhodes to have broken through to the second level of ascension right now..."

Lilith murmured something, but in the end, she was still happy for Rhodes' breakthrough.

Because no matter what, she should be happy that he can progress faster and be stronger than before.

It's only natural to be happy when your loved one becomes stronger, right? Silently supporting, watching, and helping him is what she needs to do.

She was somewhat happy, or rather... she now felt that at least after saving Rhodes once, she had somewhat resolved those awkward and contradictory situations, and she could also appear slightly less "strange".

Want to be praised...? That's not necessary, not really... right?

Can I be praised...?

Although Lilith sat and looked at Rhodes with a serious expression, her inner thoughts had long since wandered off to who-knows-where.

but--

Suddenly, a figure hung in the sky, with the bright moon as its silhouette, instantly catching Lilith's attention;

When Lilith raised her head and looked at the figure, she was slightly taken aback.

That was an existence of utter contrast.

Her body appeared quite short, which contrasted sharply with her mature and aloof elven face.

Meanwhile, long, dark gold hair that reached past her thighs fluttered in the breeze, and dark brown eyes, revealing an air of arrogance, gazed at Rhodes and Lilith.

She hovered in the sky, her expression one of indifference, as if she disdained everything.

Although they looked like “enemies,” Lilith knew they weren’t.

This was nothing more than someone coming to the dormitory of the student she was in charge of in the middle of the night, filled with resentment and dissatisfaction, to find the student's tutor.

Merrick Sheffield

Phillips' strongest combat force, and the strongest professor at [Starson Holy Academy].

Of course, such a title alone is far from enough to describe her true strength.

Her former honorary title was—[Calamity Elf].

Hundreds of years ago, she was a killing god who slaughtered tens of thousands of demons and created thousands of pagodas, and she was also a monster who sat on the throne of the Rakshasa.

Similarly, she reached an even more terrifying level—she ascended seven times, becoming a powerful being known as the [Eternal Sage].

As a warlike elf, she cared nothing for so-called comfort and friendship; all she understood was [fight and destruction].

but,

Unfortunately, her power declined due to special circumstances decades ago, and now she only has the power of five upgrades left.

However, regardless of the circumstances, even after being promoted five times, she is still considered a noble being of the [Hero] rank, at least not as powerful as Lilith or Rhodes in any way.

At this moment, she stared at Rhodes with absolute indifference, as if she wanted to crush her unpunctual disciple.

Ok.

That's not what she really felt inside.

She was quite surprised, not only because Rhodes had killed the witch with his own hands, but also because he was about to break through to the second level of ascension.

So, their report after they came back was actually true...?

Rhodes, with the strength of a first-level ascension, defeated a second-level ascension... It feels absurd just thinking about it.