The fireplace in the room had gone out.
The last trace of flame flickered over Daiyi’s discarded dress, over the shirt Felyn had hung up, over the bare shoulder of the girl lying in bed—and then disappeared entirely.
With the fire extinguished, the room sank into a rose-tinted darkness.
“This must be our first time sleeping together, right?”
“Yeah. First time.”
Last time, because of Viloti and Adelina unexpectedly showing up at his house, he hadn’t actually slept in the same room with Daiyi.
“Can’t believe my first time went to you just like that.”
“Lady Daiyi, please don’t say weird things like that.”
Felyn had laid out a mattress on the floor and wasn’t sharing the bed with her.
Under the excuse of “we need to sleep in the same room to better play the role of lovers,” Daiyi had agreed to the arrangement.
She now stared at the bedroom ceiling, quietly sinking into the softness of the bed.
The sheets and covers had been freshly changed, so they didn’t carry any of Felyn’s scent.
Daiyi thought back to that time in the Mist District, when she and Viloti had hidden in Felyn’s closet and watched Adelina clinging to his bed like some lovesick maniac, sniffing his sheets like they were addictive.
The memory made her chuckle. She couldn’t suppress the smile tugging at her lips.
These days spent with Felyn—even though they hadn’t seen each other that often—were genuinely fun. It felt nice.
“Do you snore when you sleep?” Daiyi suddenly asked.
“I don’t think so. No one’s ever told me I do.”
After replying, Felyn went quiet for a beat, as if imagining the triumphant smile that was probably spreading across Daiyi’s face.
“Wait… Are you trying to test if I’ve slept with other girls before? I’m telling you now—I sell skills, not my body.”
“That’s such a crude way to put it,” Daiyi protested. “And what’s wrong with asking my boyfriend how many people he’s slept with? That’s perfectly normal.”
“You’re clearly not asking out of genuine concern—you just want gossip!”
“Hmph.”
Daiyi rolled over in bed so that she was facing him.
“To commemorate our first night sleeping together, aren’t you going to share some juicy secret?”
“I actually have one,” Felyn said, pausing for dramatic effect. He also rolled over, and in the darkness, he could almost see her emerald eyes light up.
“What is it, what is it?”
“Tomorrow at the convenience store, potato chips are half-off.”
Those emerald lights vanished back into the shadows. “And?”
“That’s it. Isn’t that juicy enough?”
Daiyi didn’t know how to respond. She puffed her cheeks, rolled over, and turned her back to him again.
“Boring. You totally ruined the mood.”
What she had expected was something more risqué—like which girl he had bathed with, or which ones played thrilling little games with him at home, or which girls had done outrageous things just to pursue him.
Not half-priced chips!
Daiyi felt a little hot. She stuck her arm outside the covers and fanned herself gently.
But the night wasn’t about to end just because of Felyn’s dumb joke.
The night was still young.
“Felyn, there’s actually something I want to ask you.”
“Go ahead.”
“What do you usually do with past clients once a contract ends?”
Felyn lay on the mattress, staring at the ceiling, Daiyi’s soft voice drifting down to him from above.
“Usually, I distance myself from them. I try not to appear in their lives anymore.”
Lately, he had felt like he’d been interacting with too many of his former clients. But before meeting Viloti and Zervanie, he had never seen any of them again after a contract ended.
“What about me?” Daiyi suddenly turned the conversation toward herself.
Felyn couldn’t see her expression. Her silhouette had already blended into the darkness.
“Once our contract ends… will you treat me coldly too?”
It was the first time Felyn had ever faced such a question. He didn’t know how to answer right away.
If he were following the spirit of the contract—to play the perfect boyfriend—he should say:
“You’re different. Even after the contract ends, I’ll stay close to you.”
But this was Daiyi.
A sharp, proud soul like hers would see through such a lie instantly.
“Yes,” Felyn said quietly. “When our contract ends, I’ll disappear from your life.”
“Even if I fall in love with you after the contract ends, you’ll still act cold toward me?”
Daiyi didn’t let the subject drop. She pressed further.
“Yes.”
“Then what if I just refuse to leave your house?”
“Then I’ll move out.”
Daiyi tugged the blanket closer and rubbed her eyes. “So heartless…”
But she was satisfied with his answer. At least Felyn hadn’t lied to her.
She placed her hands on her stomach and listened to his breathing.
Falling asleep with someone nearby—it was a new experience for her.
Even if all of this was fake, built from money and contracts… Daiyi still felt fulfilled.
Ever since coming to Saiwa, it had always been Felyn who looked after her.
For the first time, she had what could genuinely be called a friend—or perhaps even something deeper.
Her life was no longer just research, but filled with groceries, cooking, Felyn… and his parade of other girls.
Earlier that evening, during the call with her father, he had brought up the Church of Truth’s urgent need for a Divine Child.
All the elders now hoped Daiyi would return and resume that role—to lead the church and its countless followers through the current crisis.
If she agreed to return, all past offenses would be forgiven.
The old Daiyi wouldn’t have cared at all. The world, the church—it had all meant nothing to her.
But the Daiyi who met Felyn… had become a little more human.
If she became the Divine Child, her consciousness would be merged with that of the god. Her thoughts, her identity—would all be overwritten.
Would she still be herself?
“Felyn,” her voice cut through the night.
“There’s something I want to ask of you.”
She heard him shift on the mattress, turning toward her. She thought for a moment, then parted her lips.
“I want you to remember me like this. Remember me as I am now—living.”
To Daiyi, Felyn was probably the one person in this world who truly understood her.
Once she became the Divine Child, the world would only remember that version of her.
She gripped the blanket tightly.
At the very least… at the very least, she wanted to know that someone, far away in Saiwa, would still remember the whole version of her.
“You don’t have to remember me forever. Just… ten years is enough. I’ll pay you extra.”
Forever was too abstract. Ten years was just right.
Long enough to matter, but not too much to become a burden.
“I will, Daiyi,” Felyn said.
His voice rose from the mattress—short, firm, and clear.
Hearing his words, Daiyi’s tense body finally relaxed.
Even if she became the Divine Child… even if her self was swallowed up by the god… there would still be someone, for the next ten years, who remembered her.
That was enough.
“Thank you.”
Her voice grew softer, touched with a bit of sleepiness and quiet contentment.
She closed her eyes, at peace at last.
“Goodnight, Felyn.”
“Goodnight, Miss Daiyi.
(End of Chapter)