Anna and Noel continued with their exploration. As expected, there were a lot of demon remains inside the tunnel, but all their Demon Crystals had been extracted.
It proved the fact that the demons once used this place as a nest, but the Demon Banner Army had exterminated them.
Since they couldn't utilize these remains anymore, Noel decided to burn them into nothing with his Undying Fire.
After that, they continued the explorations, finding a lot of gemstones sticking out of the walls. But they didn't extract it immediately and just inspected the safety of the tunnel.
It didn't take too long for them to find the main chamber that was connected directly to the surface.
Now that they had confirmed that there were no more demons hidden inside the mountain, Noel carried Anna with his wings and flew through the main vent to come out.
Of course, Noel continued toward the post as well as the river to check the entire region. He found a lot of demons in the plain, which would be dangerous, so he marked all the spots for Anna to subjugate.
As he expected, the post where he built an outpost for a subjugation team ended up as nothing special. Sadly, Noel couldn't see through the thought of himself from the previous life.
Although it was a shame, he still continued to the next destination, which was the river.
From a single glance, it was a perfect place to create a dam and direct the water toward the city. However, the safety of the dam was extremely important, so unless his territory matured a bit more, he wouldn't even think of creating a dam.
In the end, Noel and Anna returned to the city with disappointment.
They were lucky to confirm the mine, but the other two were not so great.
As expected from a butler, Dimitri had actually been waiting for them in front of the city.
"It's great that both of you have returned…" Dimitri's expression looked troubled, causing Noel and Anna to think something was wrong.
"Did something happen?"
"Yes." Dimitri nodded with a grim expression. "Actually… we have secured the land for the mansion. But are you sure you want to build the mansion toward the north?"
"Is there something wrong with it?"
"According to Douglas, if the mansion is there, it will become the primary target of the enemy. After all, the lord of the city will require a vast amount of land to uphold their honor. Such a thing is easy to spot, so the enemies will attack the mansion first." Dimitri explained.
"That's what I have in mind. It's fine to proceed like that. In fact, if we know that the mansion will be attacked first, we can bait them and exterminate them, no?"
"You're correct, but for the lord to risk his life is…" Dimitri scratched the back of his head. He didn't mind getting attacked, but if the lord of the Ardagan Family became the bait, people would think that his subordinates were a waste. It was their job to protect their lord after all.
"I know what you're thinking, Dimitri. However, I'm making this decision with the future in my mind. Since we've received this territory, it won't be weird if we expand it toward the border. In the future, there will be another fort that will withstand the enemy's attack."
"I…" Dimitri had a hard time accepting it, but when he looked at how adamant Noel was, it seemed that he couldn't change his mind. "I understand. I'll tell Douglas to proceed."
"Alright." Noel nodded while waving his hand, signaling Dimitri to continue with the work.
Meanwhile, Noel and Anna returned to their house. The sun was about to set, so it was time for Noel to reveal his secret.
…
Two hours later.
After finishing their bath and tidying up themselves, Noel invited Anna to the dining table where they could talk about the important matter.
Anna's expression was solemn because this was the first time she ever heard about Noel's secret. Even in the past life, she had no clue about it.
She was curious, but she was also afraid of knowing the truth.
As if knowing what was in her mind, Noel chuckled and made a gentle smile to soothe the tension.
"Why are you more tense than me?"
"I'm curious, but sometimes, I'm afraid because knowing this might cause friction between our relationship." Anna clutched her head.
"Then, I just want to confirm one thing." Noel raised one finger. "You are not the previous Anna. Instead, you are someone from the 'future' or more like the 'past,' and regress to this point in time. Using that memory, you've learned that you're wrong and I've been involved in that process, correct?"
"Yes. You could say I'm a regressor." Anna confirmed it without hesitation.
"I see."
[Mission: Anna's Secret]
[Description: Make Anna tell you her secret by any means necessary.]
[Reward: Anna's Secret and a wife]
[Penalty: None.]
Noel's heart sank. He tried to confirm Anna's secret for this mission because he was curious about the reward. But he surely didn't expect that the reward was actually Anna herself.
'Ardagan. You tricked me…' Noel wanted to berate Ardagan for this kind of reward, but Ardagan had a perfect reply for him.
[Why do you think she is not worthy to be your wife?]
Noel truly couldn't refute it. After all, it was also his decision to accept Anna. However, he was a bit frustrated because this mission was actually Ardagan's way of matchmaking.
He received this mission when Anna proposed the little bet to reveal each other's secret. But when he thought about it, the direction of their relationship had been set ever since that bet. Ardagan simply put a mission to tease him.
Still, Noel said inwardly, 'Why do you use my wife as a reward? She is not an object, you know. Even you… I never treat you as an object.'
It was Ardagan's turn to be silent before correcting the reward.
[Mission: Anna's Secret]
[Description: Make Anna tell you her secret by any means necessary.]
[Reward: Anna's Secret and Couple Medal]
[Penalty: None.]
Medal: Couple Medal
Effect: While fighting together with your couple, the user's Spiritual Energy increases by 10% and the pain the user's receives is reduced by 10%
"…" Noel was completely surprised by the new reward. The medal was overpowered as long as Anna was with him. Ardagan sealed Noel's fate by giving him another mission.
[Mission: Wife]
[Description: Marry your fiancee.]
[Reward: Husband Medal]
[Penalty: None.]
Noel wanted to laugh because he didn't think Ardagan would play this way. But he didn't specify the name so that he didn't look like he was forcing Noel to marry Anna.
"Is there something wrong?" Anna asked. Even if Noel had trained his poker face, Ardagan had completely obliterated him with these two missions, so he ended up with a change of expression.
"Well…" Noel rubbed his cheek embarrassedly. He took out Ardagan and put it on the table. "This is Ardagan, the heirloom of the Ardagan Family as well as my second spirit."
"Huh?!" Anna's eyes were wide open. She knew that Noel had two spirits from the start. But she had never thought that the spirit could actually come forth of his body. In fact, she knew that this was the heirloom of the Ardagan Family. She just didn't expect that the heirloom turned out to be a spirit.
"I won't talk much about Ardagan right now. After all, it's a secret that only the Ardagan Family can know." Noel reminded her that she was still his fiancee, not his wife. So, even if he wanted to tell her, he couldn't.
Anna could understand the situation. Since she was eventually going to be his wife, it didn't matter to wait for that long.
Noel smiled, thankful for her consideration. He continued, "What I want to talk about is the power I receive from Ardagan. You surely notice how I can master a lot of things in an instant, right?"
Obviously, Anna noticed that instantaneous progress. But because she had promised the Sword Saint that she wouldn't pry Noel's secret, she never questioned it.
But now, it is different. Noel was the one openly revealing the secret, so she could boldly admit it. "Yes. I've noticed it. I assume the spirit has given you that flame power and the rune."
"A part of it, yes. But the main power that Ardagan gave me is a system."
"A system?"
"Yes. By doing a mission, I can receive a reward. By spending some reward points, I can receive knowledge about a certain ability… The abilities are directly transferred into my head. While it's true that I can learn that ability in an instant, mastering it is a different case."
"I see… So that's how it is… That's the reason for your rapid progress. It's because Ardagan is a living spirit that he is actually developing things to match your desire. And your desire is directly linked to my progress. That's why your progress is actually far faster than your previous life."
"You can say it that way. I feel a bit relieved that I can actually tell you about this… There is one thing that I always want to say, but I have never trusted you enough to say it."
"What is that?" Anna was a bit surprised. Noel seemed to have held himself back this whole time.
"In your previous life, you wouldn't be able to achieve your goal."
"Eh?" Anna's expression turned grim. "What do you mean?"
"Because I would be there. Just like now, I don't plan on stopping racking achievements. That's why I'm sure that people will talk about me. It sounds arrogant, but what I want to say is that… if this truly happens, people will only remember you as my wife. There is no more Anna… There is only Noel's wife."
Anna fell silent, realizing the severity of this matter. If Noel continued outshining her in the future, her name would gradually disappear from people's minds. Only Noel's name would be resounded across the world.
However, this was the exact reason why Noel acknowledged Anna's contribution earlier. "Wait. Don't tell me, you…"
"Yes. There is one way for your name to reach your goal. You have to outshine me continuously. Even if you change your name to Anna Ardagan, people will know your name if you contribute so much that my achievement is nothing compared to yours. In other words, you can easily become the figurehead of this family, replacing me."
"Still, there is no way you're going to let me do it, right?"
"Of course. I'm saying that in the previous life, you wouldn't be able to do it. I have a system that allows me to gain things easily while you don't have anything."
Anna agreed with Noel's words. She had never defeated him in the past. Noel was just toying with her the whole time.
But Noel continued, "But right now, it's different. You have regressed and gotten all the knowledge, experience, and information about the future. I think you know what I want to say…"
Anna turned solemn. "This is just like us, I guess…"
"Indeed." Noel made a small smile while pointing at Anna. "Try to overcome me with everything you bring in your regression. However, I don't plan to lose. If you walk two steps, my system will push me for one more step. If you take four steps, Ardagan will carry me for the remaining steps."
Noel's smile became bigger as he confidently said, "My system or your rebirth… Shall we see who comes at the top?"
