"Does that mean that you're planning to pursue me now? I'm letting you know that I'm not that easy." Anna tried to tease him back.
"Woah. I wonder how you can be so confident? I just talked about philosophy, and somehow you linked it to how much I wanted to marry you?" Noel looked at her as if he was disgusted.
Anna flipped her body so that she could look at Noel's face from above. "Is that so? Are you sure about that?"
She knew that Noel would express it that way, so she looked like it didn't bother her a bit.
Noel couldn't help but flick her forehead.
"Ouch! What are you doing?" Anna asked while rubbing her forehead. "Did you just lose an argument with me and choose to retaliate with that flick?"
"It is not that simple. What I wish to do is something that comes with a huge price… I'm not going to let someone shoulder that burden for no reason." Noel shook his head. "I have my own responsibilities, you know."
Anna smiled. "As expected of Noel Ardagan, I guess?"
"Of course." Noel rose from the bed and said, "In any case, I want you to know that I recorded your promise. Once we're done with this trip, you're going to tell me a lot of things."
"I am not someone who will take back my words." Anna harrumphed. "But it will take a long time to tell you about everything."
"I have a lot of time. Besides, I might have a question and we can even create a road map about everything that has happened so far, connecting the dots."
"Haha. Do you know it will take at least a week to do that?"
"Are you not up for it?"
"Of course, I'm ready! Besides, I'm also curious about what you can find from my information." Anna suddenly grinned, teasing Noel, "When that happens, how are you going to pay me? Don't tell me you're going to pay with your body?"
"Maybe I should flick your forehead with my sword…" Noel let out a long sigh.
"Hehe." Anna made a cheeky grin as if she had just won an argument.
"I've told you about my two spirits, right? Those two have a 100% conversation rate, meaning that I have twice the limit of normal people with that 100% conversation rate. In other words, I can reach a higher stage with at least half the requirement, let alone with the fact that you only have a 95% conversion rate or other people are lower than that… Do you know what I mean?"
"So, you're going to the top?" Anna asked with a serious expression.
"Yeah. Just think of it as me owing you a favor for now."
"I am also a noble, you know. I'm going to make sure to charge you with a high interest."
"As long as it's reasonable, I don't really mind. Don't forget that the favor will be determined by how useful your information is. If you force me to pay an exorbitant price, I won't pay."
Anna extended her hand. "Then, we have a deal?"
Noel shook her hand without hesitation. "We have a deal."
After reaching an agreement, Anna rose from the bed and looked at Noel with a relaxed expression. "You know… After talking about this with you, I feel refreshed. The weight on my shoulders seems to have disappeared."
"That's good for you." Noel sighed. "Still, since you saw yourself in that alternate world, you should have learned about runes as well, right?"
"Yeah."
"Do you know about Rune Body?"
"I know." Anna nodded with a serious expression. "It was the rune that was painted on the body, allowing you to activate the rune just by pouring your Spiritual Energy into that rune. You could say that it used your body as the base."
"Indeed."
"Are you planning to ask me to paint the rune on your body?" Anna asked, understanding what he wanted.
"That's what I want, but it seems that there are things that have to be done first." Noel paused. "I also want to know about the True Spirit Body."
"True Spirit Body, huh? You shouldn't think about this for the time being. After all, if you are trying to invoke that ability as a Spirit Master, the price will be your life force."
"Then, does that mean it's alright for you to use it, but I can't?" Noel frowned.
"No. I don't mean that way. But if you're still adamant about it, then my answer remains the same. I won't teach you about the True Spirit Body." Anna was simply worried that Noel would abuse it.
But Noel added, "Even if it means I am going to die because I lack power?"
"It's precisely because you're being targeted that I can't teach you about it. I'm sure that you're going to abuse that power! Instead of the True Spirit Body, you should learn everything from the hermit. That's why we even hold this trip."
"…" Noel sighed in disappointment. He only wanted to get stronger.
"How about this? As soon as you reach the Spirit Grandmaster, I will immediately teach you about the True Spirit Body."
Noel thought for a moment and nodded. "Alright. We shall do that."
"In that case, we shouldn't waste too much time here. We should regroup with the rest, have dinner, and discuss our next move."
What they did was the same as what she said. They had dinner together and discussed their current condition as well as their path.
The discussion didn't last for too long before the conclusion was made. In fact, they all reached the same conclusion.
The road ahead was filled with demons. Even Nicole couldn't find a gap in their rank. Dimitri and Damian could fight, but it would be troublesome if Superior Demons joined the fight. And this time, there were two Spirit Masters, Noel and Anna.
Hence, there was only one thing to do.
"Retreat!"
