## Chapter 122: Solun’s Great Victory
In the lounge.
Amidst the flow of people, Aerora sat quietly on a bench, her hands clasped over the knight’s spear resting on her knees. Her light golden long hair cascaded down her shoulders, wisps of it dancing in the breeze. The soft radiance of the magic lamp illuminated her exquisite, flawless cute face, making her appear like a figurine from an anime. Many mechanists walked past her, their gazes filled with admiration. Some even dared to approach and strike up a conversation, only to be put off by her aloof demeanor, as if she were an iceberg. She waited patiently for someone, seemingly oblivious to the passage of time.
After an unknown duration, the faint sound of a door opening echoed from afar, followed by steady footsteps. Despite the surrounding noise of countless people, Aerora could effortlessly distinguish the sound.
“All done?”
As the youth approached, a flicker of life finally appeared in Aerora’s beautiful blue eyes, which had been as placid as a thousand-year-old glacier.
“Yeah, it’s done,” Shaya nodded casually.
“Solun went in just now, did she do anything to you?” Aerora asked, leaning closer to Shaya and sniffing at his collar. No perfume. She then meticulously examined Shaya from head to toe. There were no pitch-black hair strands around his collar, only a few strands of her own light golden hair.
“Let’s go. It’s rare for the original trio to reunite here. Let’s go for some familiar grilled meat.”
“Okay,” Aerora nodded with satisfaction, obediently following behind Shaya. She even looked at Solun, who was beside her, with a softer gaze. Solun appeared quiet and demure, wrapped up tightly. Aerora was surprised that Solun hadn’t done anything even with such a good opportunity. She realized she had misunderstood her good friend. As long as she didn’t “steal,” they were still good閨蜜.
…
“I’m sorry, Little Ai.”
Meanwhile, a faint sense of guilt arose in Solun’s heart. Of course, it was only a faint guilt. What filled her more was joy and exhilaration. This round, it was Solun-chan’s great victory.
Now, Solun couldn’t recall when she had fallen for Shaya. Was it the moment he brought her out of the slums, handing her a bowl of cream soup and a bread roll on a clean, simple wooden table? Or was it during those countless nights, by the faint candlelight, when he used assorted discarded mechanical parts to guide her in her mechanist awakening? Regardless, Solun believed her love for Shaya was no less than anyone else’s.
However, when she was accepted by Shaya and Aerora, and began to truly integrate into their humble little family… Solun suddenly realized how disadvantaged she was. She had been born in Lokiia and knew nothing about the Ceylon disaster. But Shaya and Aerora, who had experienced that calamity together, their bond was truly unshakable. Their shared childhood, the vows and agreements made during the Ceylon Great Fire, and their unspoken understanding… were memories exclusive to Shaya and Aerora, with no room for a third party. This made Solun intensely envious, even jealous, yet out of reach.
Of course, Shaya didn’t mind sharing his warmth with more people… and his dream of writing the “Guide to Evaluating Exotic Racial Customs” was a secret known to both Aerora and Solun. But Solun was unwilling. She was unwilling to always be second-best, trailing behind the blonde maiden, no matter what she did. She wanted to be the first in Shaya’s heart. The undisputed first, who was not inferior to anyone.
Therefore, on that day… Solun chose to retreat to advance. Enduring the reluctance and affection, she left Shaya’s side. Solun knew that if she continued to stay by Shaya’s side as usual, she would never have a chance to surpass Aerora. Arriving alone in a strange land, heading to the Holy Court, even bearing the misunderstanding of her best friend. This was undoubtedly the most arduous and challenging path… Even though she loved Shaya just as much, she might have to pay ten, even a hundred times the price. But this was Solun’s only choice; Aerora’s lead was too significant… Without doing this, she could never truly overtake and become the first in Shaya’s heart.
Of course, such a choice was also a huge gamble. Leaving Shaya’s side and letting Shaya and Aerora be alone for six years… If, in these six years, the two had already taken that step, consummating their relationship… then Solun would have made a fool of herself. Solun’s gamble was on Little Ai’s tsundere and coy personality. Even with such a significant advantage, she wouldn’t turn it into a sure win. It was like having four dragon tokens, winning the Dragon Soul and the Great Dragon, and even destroying the high ground, but still refusing to end the game and instead giving the enemy Ancient Dragon a chance to stage a comeback.
During these six years, every time Solun communicated with Shaya, she was on pins and needles, afraid of seeing a wedding ring on Shaya’s left ring finger, or the blonde maiden’s slightly bulging belly appearing on the communication screen in maternity wear. If that had happened, Solun would have tearfully accepted her status as a runner-up.
Fortunately—she won her bet. These six years, Solun successfully transformed from the little girl Shaya had taken in to the radiant and captivating Saintess of Dawn. She had turned from a duckling into a swan. And now, after a reunion spanning six years, Solun, relying on the impact of this vast contrast in status and the novelty of reuniting after a long separation, successfully achieved intimacy with Shaya right under Little Ai’s nose. The progress that had stagnated for six years, under the accumulated momentum of retreating to advance, had suddenly jumped by seventy percent.
When the affairs of the Holy Court were concluded and they met again… she could sound the charge for a final assault, capture territory, and win the war. “A hundred horsemen raid Aiying’s camp, their might shakes the world’s heroes!”
A great victory. A complete and utter great victory.
Thinking this, the black-haired saintess’s steps quickened unconsciously, and she walked ahead of Aerora. Aerora then saw Solun’s snow-white neck, faintly visible beneath her black hair. And on the back of her neck, a series of red kiss marks.
“Solun, what are those red marks on your neck?” Aerora asked, confused.
At her words, Solun’s steps faltered. “Oh no, it’s a slip-up.”
It wasn’t that Solun couldn’t think of ways to remove the kiss marks with alchemical potions… it was that she still wanted to savor the intense sensations from Shaya just moments ago, and was reluctant to remove them. They weren’t very noticeable when hidden by her long hair, but in her moment of triumph, she had accidentally walked in front of Aerora, exposing them clearly.
However, judging by Little Ai’s question, she didn’t know what they were? That made sense. With Little Ai’s awkward personality, even if she wanted to initiate affection, it would likely be conventional things like a lap pillow or a kiss, not something this intense. Thinking this, Solun’s mind raced, and she calmly replied.
“Mosquito bites.”
“With spring halfway over, mosquitoes are indeed becoming more numerous… and with the heat from the mechanist workshop’s smelting furnaces, insects are gathering in warm places.”
“There’s nothing I can do. Mechanist familiars only offer spiritual feedback through soul pacts; they don’t enhance physical attributes. My skin is still that of an ordinary person, so I can still be bitten by mosquitoes.”
“Is that so?” Aerora shook her head, looking somewhat confused. She wasn’t a mechanist and didn’t really understand the physical attributes of mechanists, which were no different from ordinary people.
Only Shaya’s shoulder, where a lazy white cat appeared to be dozing, quietly extended its spiritual sense to perceive everything behind it, feeling like crying. Although Sylvia herself was also a novice, as an observer, she could see some things. “Mosquito bites,” what a load of nonsense. She had only slacked off for a moment, and how had this Saintess of Dawn already gotten so many hickeys from Brother Shaya? It wasn’t even as intense as when they were intimate in the Spirit World. But what could she do? She was just a little cat now.
The white cat’s tail drooped. It flicked its fluffy tail against Shaya’s neck. She was angry and needed to be petted and cuddled by Brother Shaya for half an hour to feel better.
