"Mem, Sister Lumina, Big Sister Herta... let me handle this matter alone."
Meanwhile, as Lumina quietly restored Stelle's physical condition to normal, Castorice signaled to everyone with a face full of determination and seriousness.
The aura Lumina used to heal Stelle's body was extremely subtle; not only did Castorice fail to notice it, but even Stelle herself remained unaware.
"I promised: I will definitely reclaim the right to walk upon the earth from Thanatos on your behalf, Miss."
"So, please, do not worry."
Unaware that Stelle had already completely recovered at this moment, Castorice's healthy, pale face showed not a single smile in such a tense and urgent situation.
On the face of someone who truly wants to win, there is no smile.
At this moment, Castorice perfectly embodied this state.
"Good luck, Little Sister Castorice." Without informing Castorice that Stelle had already recovered, Lumina wore a gentle smile, cheering on her daughter about to embark on an expedition like an old mother.
"Mm-hmm, Sister Lumina, I..." At this point, Castorice paused, then the determination on her face turned into even greater determination, "I will definitely come back!"
For her own sake, and also for Sister Lumina's.
Castorice wanted to come back, she wanted it so much!
But... this didn't seem to be something Castorice herself could decide.
If something happened in the Nether Realm, Castorice would have to remain inside to guard it, just like Lord Mydei.
And this also meant being disconnected from reality. It meant... being disconnected from Sister Lumina.
No matter what, Castorice did not want to accept this outcome.
But if it was truly, truly an important matter, Castorice would... have to accept this outcome.
And along the way, the possibility of this outcome was still very high.
And it was the kind of possibility that was almost a certainty.
The Nether Realm was now extremely chaotic, requiring Castorice, after becoming the Demigod of [Death], to maintain it...
"By the way..."
"Can you use the tablet to make a phone call from inside the Nether Realm?"
Castorice couldn't help but mutter to herself.
If she could use the tablet to make a phone call, she could still contact Sister Lumina through the phone and feel Sister Lumina's gentle voice.
Perhaps... she could even make a video call and see Sister Lumina.
This way, even if Castorice stayed behind in the Nether Realm, she wouldn't be too lonely...
"Go on, Little Cas. You must also remember, do not leave any regrets for yourself."
Mem did not notice what Castorice was thinking. Just like Castorice, she nodded with an extremely serious expression, then instructed Castorice.
"I'm also setting off, let's see... who, who will arrive at the Nether Realm first." Facing such an appropriate scene, Stelle also said something appropriate.
If Stelle were a "dying" person in a textbook, then this mindset of hers would be worthy of praise.
But Stelle was now a dying person in reality, and also appearing in front of her, making it difficult for Castorice and Mem to even force a smile to agree with her.
While Lumina and Herta still had the same expressions as before, they were not affected at all by the atmosphere here or Stelle's words.
Lumina's various operations just now, although they could deceive the perception of Castorice, Mem, and their owner Stelle, they did not deceive Herta.
Of course, it would be very simple for Lumina to deceive Herta.
And Herta naturally knew this truth as well.
It was not that she was too powerful to be able to detect Lumina's little tricks, but rather that Lumina never thought of hiding them from her in the first place.
Regarding this point, Herta was still a little puzzled, not knowing what kind of little ideas Lumina was actually keeping in mind.
But after Herta was puzzled about this for a while, she stopped wondering about it.
Because no matter what, it certainly wasn't going to be anything good.
This matter had nothing to do with Herta, so there was no need to pay attention to it.
As long as she ignored it, no matter what Lumina wanted to do or tried to do, she would not be able to achieve it.
"Oh come on, don't make jokes like that at a time like this!" Mem, seeing Stelle's complete lack of awareness regarding the severity of the situation, placed her hands on her hips and couldn't help but scold her.
"Hehe..." Hearing this, Stelle scratched her head, a hint of embarrassment showing on her face.
The agonizing look from moments ago had completely vanished, leaving not a trace on her face, as if it had never existed.
As for this, Mem and Castorice didn't overthink it, simply taking it as a dying person's final burst of energy. If they didn't hurry up and save her, she would probably depart for the heavens in the next second...
"Alright, Miss, I will take my leave first." Seeing Stelle's "spirited" appearance, Castorice was all the more determined in her decision.
She absolutely had to make Miss Stelle return to normal!
As this resolve strengthened, Castorice nodded with a smile to Stelle, then turned to look at the Death Dragon and slowly walked to its side.
Then, she turned her head, gave Lumina a long, reluctant glance, and opened her palm toward the Death Dragon.
The next second, Castorice vanished from everyone's sight.
"Aren't you going after her?" Herta asked Lumina, her arms crossed as she watched Castorice disappear before the Death Dragon.
Given Lumina's personality, she should have followed immediately in a situation like this. Why was she acting as if she were doing nothing at all?
This clearly didn't fit Herta's impression of Lumina.
"This is Castorice's personal matter. Why should I follow? In what capacity should I follow?" Facing Herta's question, Lumina suddenly became much more serious.
She asked Herta back with a completely earnest expression.
Herta: "..."
You're asking me this?
Don't you know the answer to every single one of these questions?
Shouldn't you know the answer to every single one of these questions better than anyone else?
Why should you follow? Because you're going to "eat" her.
In what capacity should you follow? In your favorite role as "Mother," of course.
"Little Herta, please don't look at me like that." Sensing Herta's utterly speechless gaze, Lumina said very seriously.
"In that distant Nether Realm, little sister Castorice will take the most important step, the one that will decide her life's path."
"In all of this, she will learn so much, and she will also lose so much..."
At this moment, Lumina was like an old monster, her face full of sorrow and experience as she described what Castorice was about to encounter.
Herta: "..."
What is this guy trying to act like?
Herta was a bit speechless, but seeing Lumina so enthusiastic, constantly spouting one sentence after another, she couldn't bear to interrupt her.
Well... truth be told, Lumina's posture was really beautiful.
Her little mouth kept babbling, her Sakura-colored little lips opening and closing, appearing very crystal clear in the light.
And if one looked closely, they could even catch a glimpse of that little pink tongue in Lumina's mouth at just the right moment...
And Herta happened to catch this exact moment. The little lips and the little tongue, this was obviously beyond what an ordinary person could endure.
Although Madam Herta was no ordinary person, under Lumina's beauty, she was no different from an ordinary person.
In just a moment's time, she was completely immersed in Lumina's beauty.
"Ah ha... ah ha..."
In this instant, a wave of heat suddenly surged in Herta's heart. This heat continuously spread throughout Herta's body, making her feel a bit... feverish?
Her breathing also became a little rushed in this instant.
The warm air she exhaled also became... scorching hot at this moment.
Herta stared intently at Lumina's Sakura lips, which kept opening and closing as she spoke, her purple eyes gradually becoming a bit hazy and blurred.
Unable to bear it, no need to bear it any longer, just lean in and kiss her fragrant lips. Be a little firmer in attitude, a little more dominant in action, so that I can feel extremely comfortable while also not letting the other person feel disgusted.
Faced with this situation, this would surely be an ordinary person's thought.
And Herta was the same, she wanted to feel the taste of Lumina's Sakura lips.
But, unfortunately, Herta was an ordinary person, but Lumina was no ordinary person.
First of all, Herta could very clearly be sure that even if she rushed up while Lumina wasn't paying attention, she would definitely not succeed in the end.
The gap in strength between the two was right there. If she succeeded, it would mean that Lumina had taken the initiative. Then Herta's future life would be very "happy."
And the probability of succeeding was almost no different from dreaming in [Ena's Dream]. But judging from the previous series of actions, success was not impossible.
Didn't Castorice almost succeed before?
If Herta hadn't "accidentally" fallen down back then, maybe she really would have let Castorice succeed and steal Lumina's first kiss...
Why would Castorice be the one to steal Lumina's first kiss?
The reason is simple: if Lumina cuddles with a beautiful girl and takes things a step further, then Lumina is the hunter and the beautiful girl is the prey.
The same applies if Lumina cuddles with several, dozens, or even hundreds of beautiful girls and takes things a step further.
But if Lumina cuddles with several beautiful girls but refuses to take things any further, only engaging in hugs, hand-holding, and head-patting...
Then in this situation, the roles of the two are reversed.
Lumina becomes the prey, and all the beautiful girls are the hunters.
Herta didn't believe that the beautiful girls who had cuddled with Lumina could resist Lumina's "charm."
If they couldn't resist, they would eventually start thinking these deeper thoughts.
Just like Herta, who wanted to kiss her, wanted to... her.
And other thoughts.
So, in the case where Lumina's "everything" was still intact the first time, if she wasn't the prey, then who was?
It was just that Lumina hadn't noticed this point yet.
Um... Of course, most of the other beautiful girls probably hadn't realized it either.
But they would all realize it one day.
And Herta intended to be the first to seize all of Lumina's "firsts" before those beautiful girls realized!
Though this was almost impossible...
"Hah... hah... hah..."
Herta continuously took deep breath after deep breath, adjusting her currently slightly ragged breathing. At the same time, she also forced herself to calm down a bit, her hands clenched tightly into fists, desperately suppressing the emotions in her heart.
Even if she couldn't completely suppress the emotions in her heart, she definitely couldn't let these emotions grow strong enough to affect her outward appearance.
It was normal for these emotions to appear, because Lumina's charm was just that great.
But Lumina's personality was also extremely nasty; if you displayed this kind of emotion on the surface, you'd be subjected to a round of her mockery.
According to normal logic, let her mock if she wants, because Lumina's voice was so pleasant that even being mocked by her was a kind of "enjoyment."
Although this statement wasn't wrong, Herta simply couldn't swallow her pride after being mocked by Lumina.
After all, as she followed Lumina along the way, it seemed Lumina had never mocked any beautiful girl other than herself?
She seemed to have only mocked her alone?
Whether Lumina had specifically mocked other beautiful girls, Herta didn't know. But as far as Herta knew, among the beautiful girls who had cuddled with Lumina, not a single one had ever been mocked by her...
Um... regarding this, Herta really didn't know what to say.
Among so many beautiful girls, Herta was still very happy to be "differently" treated by Lumina.
After all, to Lumina, she was "special."
But Herta wanted to change this kind of "different" treatment, this kind of "specialty."
For example, changing it to: only cuddling with other beautiful girls without taking any further actions, while for Herta, besides cuddling, some further actions would also be taken...
Lumina likes other beautiful girls, but at the same time, Lumina also especially likes Herta.
For this kind of "difference" and "specialty," Herta guaranteed she wouldn't say a single "no."
But this probability, I'm afraid, could only be dreamed of in [Ena's Dream]; in reality, it was almost impossible to happen.
But...
"Almost" means that even in that desperate situation, one might still be able to seize the saving straw at hand!
After all, a "near-zero" probability is not zero.
It is merely close to zero.
There is still a chance, so there is no need to give up.
Herta couldn't help but once again subject herself to a series of motivational "hypnosis" in her mind.
Under the "hypnosis" of these motivational words, the emotions Herta had generated from the sight of Lumina's small lips opening and closing also dissipated considerably.
She didn't reveal any flaws in front of Lumina, nor did she make any "rude" gestures due to this loss of emotional control.
Which would eventually give Lumina a handle to grab onto, leaving her unable to escape Lumina's grasp for the rest of her life...
"Hmm... How did that Castorice manage to make Lumina willingly offer up her 'first kiss'?"
After snapping back to her senses, Herta looked at Lumina, who was still chatting nonstop in front of her, and couldn't help but sink into a period of deep thought.
As long as she understood exactly what Castorice had done, then Herta might... be able to replicate the behavior Lumina and Castorice had just performed on herself.
Of course, she definitely couldn't copy it exactly.
She would have to add some of her own personal touch...