Chapter 110: Chapter 110

At the mention of that name—Platform—the impersonator reacted, just a little. But I noticed it.

Alicia continued, "Ruby has been in isolation and loneliness—a kind you can’t possibly understand—for a very long time. Now he’s found companions. Friends. People he sees as family—who are not emotionless, accuracy-driven entities inside his head."

She said it so casually, one might not even catch that she didn’t mean it as an insult.

"Platform, right now, you’re the obstacle!" Alicia declared.

The impersonator—Platform—lowered their head in an expression I couldn’t quite read. Their eyes stayed fixed on a patch of the field.

"Who said I don’t understand isolation and loneliness?" they whispered—so low I almost missed it.

And then, suddenly—fury.

"All of you—the entire world—is unnecessary!!" Platform snapped, rising to their feet as ether—divine-class mana—spilled from their form like steam from a boiling pot. Their face was twisted with rage.

"Only I can be of use to Master! Only I am necessary!!"

Their voice thundered through the field. Gone was the cool, stoic executioner from earlier. This was raw, burning emotion.

"Perhaps that’s true... But..." Alicia met their glare, unwavering. "Have you ever considered what Ruby thinks?"

Platform opened their mouth, but no words came out.

Alicia didn’t let up.

"Does Ruby see you as his only companion? Does he want the life you’re trying to build for him—even if it’s perfect? Could it be... that you’re becoming a source of bad energy that’s stopping Ruby from being truly happy?"

Platform could only glare at her. Their lips trembled with words—but apparently, none of them felt right.

Alicia smiled warmly.

"One thing I do know is... Ruby loves you. He can’t do anything without you. He trusts you—a position I would strike a million men to attain."

...And honestly, she didn’t sound like she was joking about the striking.

Once again, casually mentioning mass murder.

But Platform seemed to calm a little when they heard that Master Raven loved them.

"But Platform, give us a chance too. Let us prove to you that our way is far better than your perfect ideals. Life is fun... because it’s messy."

She glanced at me briefly. I couldn’t quite place the emotion in her eyes—

but guilt... was probably one of them.

"Anyway, for now," she pointed at Platform, "back off! The education I give the sea worm is more than enough."

Platform stared at us for a few moments. Every passing second felt like a brewing thunderstorm.

Their ether began to recede—or rather, it entered the earth and started to rebuild the unimaginably deep, wide trench behind us.

"You, who care for nothing but Master’s affection, now defend tools and other rivals in love?" Platform asked, calm once again.

"No," Alicia responded. "Because I love him so much, I love everything that belongs to him too. Including his tools... and even you."

Platform’s golden irises widened slightly. Very slightly.

"And don’t even think you’ve deceived me," Alicia added with a smirk. "Just like me, you also crave Ruby’s affection, don’t you?"

"Th-that is incorrect!" Platform suddenly went defensive.

They closed their eyes for a second, then opened them.

"Very well, Son of Chaos," they said, turning away. "I shall withhold my judgment for your sake. But..."

Their golden eyes gleamed with a warning.

"If I ever decide to reveal myself again... because of a mere pawn, I shall show no mercy. Not even if you—or Master—stand in my way."

With that final caution, they disappeared in a burst of haze, speeding toward the igloo house in an instant.

Now that Platform was gone, Alicia let out a deep sigh and collapsed onto the grass.

I rushed over to heal her.

"Shouldn’t you be worried about your own injuries, you dumb crybaby?"

I ignored her words—and the overflow of tears spilling down my face.

I summoned the last of my strength and began to heal her scorched arms.

"...I’m sorry..." I said between sobs.

"Why are you apologizing?"

"Because... because I’m weak! You even got wounded for my sake!"

Alicia reached out and tugged hard on my ear.

"Don’t get full of yourself, lowly tool! If you got hurt, Ruby would be upset—that’s all."

She let go of my ear and relaxed back on the grass.

"Still!" I bellowed. "You allowed me to form the pact to serve him, even though you knew it threatened your own romance."

"You don’t understand," Alicia said. "I love Ruby, and I want him to be happy. If he finds that happiness with me, then my joy would pierce the skies... But I will never stoop to restricting his will, like Platform, just for my own selfish whims. Understand?"

I see... Alicia is better suited to be Master Raven’s wife.

I’m just... I’m just...

"I’m incompetent!!" I shouted. "As Platform said, I’m a fool—an incompetent being who got excited and lost sight of a clear goal. I... Alicia, I almost got destroyed a while ago."

Alicia didn’t respond. She only watched me.

I turned to Alicia. "As compensation for not living up to your expectations—and disgracing Master Raven—I shall no longer call myself your love riva—OW-OW-OW!!"

A sharp pain shot through my head as Alicia yanked my hair, like she was about to rip it off my scalp.

"What the hell? You brat!" I barked.

"Heh. Now that’s the deviant maggot I remember."

"Can you not always slip in an insult whenever you’re referring to me?" I deadpanned.

Alicia rolled her eyes. "I need you to be my rival so I can make a point out of it when I emerge victorious. The day you stop being my rival is the day I destroy you—because it means you’ve lost all focus in life."

Can this girl be any nicer to me?

She continued, "As for that entity—Ruby calls it Platform."

"Ehhh?" I exclaimed in surprise. "How did you find out?"

"Uh, Ruby talks to himself all the time. I thought he was a bit insane—which is cute in its own way—but after some closer observation, I realized that Platform was probably a real entity I couldn’t see. Ruby’s actually amazing, so it’s not impossible. But today was the first time I spoke with them."

"Ah, yes. Master Raven does speak aloud to no one in particular. Mostly when we’re asleep. I only thought he was cutely eccentric... But you spoke so confidently with Platform... No, the entire conversation felt like you both knew each other—calling you ’Son of Chaos’ as if you were comrades before."

"That caught me off guard, really. Maybe they’re the type to give nicknames to individuals who stand out?"

"It’s possible. But why ’son?’ You’re female."

"And their magical energy was too immense to calculate... No, that wasn’t just mana. That was ether."

Alicia perked up. "Ether?"

"Yes. It’s a higher class of mana—magic energy. Even I possess ether, but only when I’m in my true form... or something close to it."

Alicia sighed. "I don’t know what Platform truly is, but I’ll tell you this—they’re dangerous. We need to be cautious, and more careful, in case they ever appear again..."

After saying that, Alicia sat up—then suddenly brought my head down onto her lap, since I had already finished healing her scorched arms.

Tsk! Her strength is always solid!

"Silence!" she snapped. "I... I’m fixing my husband’s broken tool."

Then she began to heal me—just like the time we first met.

Remembering that moment, I raised my hand and gently touched her cheek.

And we just stayed there, lying quietly on the grass, sharing a soft, comforting silence.