His Majesty the Celestial Emperor remained at the Palace Guard Barracks, keeping up his usual routine every day.
Lucy Luan waited for a break in his schedule and snuck over to him: "Your Majesty!"
The Celestial Emperor asked, "Saint Maiden Lucy, is something the matter?"
"Your Majesty..." Lucy bit her lip and asked, "I just wanted to ask if Fifth Highness reported our last completed mission to you?"
"He did! You two did an excellent job," the Emperor replied.
"Why are you personally tracking Baxa's whereabouts? He's a big demon beast, sure, but isn't that a bit much for you to handle yourself?" Lucy asked curiously.
That Baxa really was a major demon beast.
But even he might not be a match for those powerful High Gods.
So why would His Majesty the Celestial Emperor need to personally track him down?
"I'm just bored! The whole realm is way too peaceful right now—no wars anywhere. So when someone finally shows up causing trouble and slaughtering cities, I have to chase after him myself!" the Emperor said.
Lucy: "..."
"So, are you here to report on your mission?" the Celestial Emperor asked.
Lucy: "Huh? Uh... I heard Fifth Highness hasn't come by these past two days. Is he okay?"
"He's perfectly fine!"
"Perfectly fine?" Lucy's eyes widened.
"Yes! Perfectly fine," the Celestial Emperor said with certainty.
"Then why hasn't he come by these days?" Lucy asked.
The Celestial Emperor glanced at her. "Why are you so concerned about my Little Five?"
"Ah? We're all comrades! It's only natural to care about each other," Lucy replied.
"I thought maybe you had some special feelings for my Little Five!" the Emperor said with a mischievous smile.
Lucy quickly waved her hands, "No, no! That's not it! I just... I just heard he ran into some trouble, so I wanted to ask how he's doing."
"He's really doing just fine," the Emperor said. "No need to worry about him."
"Oh... um..." Lucy fumbled and took out her Divine Crimson Pill. "Your Majesty! This is a Divine Crimson Pill."
The Celestial Emperor's eyes lit up and he reached out to take it. "A Divine Crimson Pill! That's a rare treat! Is this for me?"
"Well... I was hoping it could help Fifth Highness," Lucy said.
"So, Yin Shu and the others helped you take time off so you could refine a Divine Crimson Pill? Planning to use it for Little Five?" The Emperor beamed.
Lucy nodded.
"Oh my! Thank you so much!" The Emperor grinned and tucked the pill into his Storage Pouch. "You really are my star pupil! I'll accept your heartfelt gift on Little Five's behalf!"
Lucy said nothing.
The Emperor asked, "So... anything else?"
Lucy asked, "Your Majesty, what about the mission reward you promised?"
"Oh, right, right!" The Emperor slapped his forehead. "I did promise you a reward! Go ahead, what do you want?"
Lucy said, "The mission was completed by me and Fifth Highness together. Let's wait for him to come back and decide together! Do you know when he'll return?"
The Emperor chuckled, "Honestly, you just want to know when he'll be back, right? Just ask directly, no need to beat around the bush."
Lucy bit her lip and twisted her fingers, saying nothing.
"He'll probably need some time before he comes back," the Emperor said. "Once he returns, I'll reward both of you!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Lucy felt a little more at ease.
But hearing he'd need some time to come back, her heart grew a little heavy again.
...
That "some time" ended up being a whole month.
And nobody heard a word about him.
Even Messenger Charms didn't work.
At first, Lucy just spaced out a lot every day.
Later, she got anxious and started going to his quarters after class every day, knocking on the door, hoping he'd open it like he always did.
But no one ever answered.
For the first time in her life, she felt so insecure and obsessed over someone.
A month later, he finally came back.
When Lucy walked into the Instruction Hall, she saw him sitting in his usual spot, watching everyone do their morning reading.
Maybe sensing her gaze, Sean turned and looked at her too.
Lucy's heart skipped a beat. She quickly looked away and returned to her seat.