My lovely angel stood in the center of the room. While her face was full of curiosity, Amelica patiently waited for me to talk.

"Yesterday, I was given two missions, one each from the Church and the dojo. I can't go into any details regarding the divine mission, but I CAN tell you that the grandmaster has chosen me to represent the dojo at the upcoming Melee Tournament," I explained.

My girlfriend clapped her hands together in delight. "I'm so happy for you!" she exclaimed. She crossed the room until she stood in front of me and then gave me a big hug. After a long moment, she put her hands on my chest and gently pushed me back. "When are you leaving?" she asked while looking deep into my eyes.

"At first light tomorrow morning," I revealed in a sad voice.

"Oh!" her eyes widened as she began to appreciate my predicament more fully. She looked around the room. There were none of my personal items in the guest room aside from whatever I had stored inside the chest. And because the inn’s guest policy required the storage chest to be left alone by the staff, she didn’t know what I had inside the chest. However, she could easily guess that it contained my spare clothing, a small dagger that I no longer wore once I received my sword from the dojo, and perhaps some coins, too.

Amelica had known that I wasn't staying in this guest room long-term, but she was secretly hoping that I will renew the guest room for another week at least. After that, who knows? If the elf across the hall could rent the room continuously for three years, then why couldn't anyone else stay just as long at The Noble Lady? Now, her secret wish was completely shattered. When her eyes returned to face me, it was full of sadness. "Are you coming back?" she asked in a small voice. Despite Amelica's best efforts, she couldn't leave her overwhelming sadness out of her voice.

My heart felt crushed at this moment. I truly wished that I could promise my angel that I will return to her. Yet, making that promise would make me a liar because so far nothing was certain during my stay inside this gaming world. I was essentially putting out fires, figuratively speaking, simply for the entertainment of the overlord of this game. And sooner or later, my luck will fail at the most inopportune moment, with my life on the line. Thus, I could not lie to Amelica and give her any false assurance. I owed her much more than that. I recognized that I was able to survive in this town for so long only due to the support of strong women like Amelica, Maisen, and Kalistra.

I sighed and gave her an honest answer. "As much as I want to stay here, with you, I am not sure that I would be able to do so. My responsibilities to the Church and my own pursuit of the crown will likely take me far, far away to other parts of this continent. But I assure you that my heart is here in Tregome and it belongs to you," I confessed for the first time.

Tears started flowing down her face but somehow she managed a smile for me. "I appreciate your honesty, milord. I agree that your duty and honor comes first. If there is no room after that for me in your life, then so be it." Amelica quickly wiped away her tears, took a moment to regain her composure, and then she returned to her business self. "If you relinquish your room key right now, I will not charge you for today; and obviously, you won't stay tomorrow either." Her voice was firm and her facial expression was business-like. This was the old Amelica that I had met for the very first time—cautious on the surface but warm, friendly, and considerate underneath.

I nodded in agreement. I fished out the key from my waist pocket and gave it to her.

The barmaid accepted it with both hands and our fingers briefly touched. She gave my hand a reassuring squeeze and reluctantly released me. Amelica put the room key in her own waist pouch and started fishing out coins to refund the rent for the remaining two days.

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"Keep the silver as a credit. I do intend to return to The Noble Lady in the near future. When I do, I plan to stay much longer than five days," I promised and smiled.

"I will hold you to it," Amelica smiled back. "If you would grant me a small favor, milord, I want the two of us to visit the Lucky Shrine this morning. With your permission, I will arrange for the items in the storage chest to be sent over to the dojo, where you're staying tonight?"

"Yes, that would be fine," I heartily agreed; it would be more convenient for a courier to bring my stuff over than for me to come back here to pick up my meager belongings. I suspected that Kalistra had already planned a full day of intensive lessons and training. And it was unlikely that I would be able to return to this inn for lunch. I opened the door behind me and held out my hand. "Shall we?"

My girlfriend took my hand and stepped through the doorway.

I joined her and closed the door softly behind me.

We continued to hold hands as we walked along the hallway and again when we reached the bottom of the steps.

Kalistra's ears perked up as she stared at us from the other side of the common room.

Some other patrons seated at the tables also took note of our entry and glanced at our joined hands. However, no one commented or challenged me to another duel.

"I'm going to visit the Lucky Shrine," I called out. "I'll be back very soon."

"You better be. Or else Amelica will be late for her morning shift," the cat girl warned us.

I nodded to my teacher. I opened the door for my girlfriend and exited the inn with her.

Since we were pressed for time, Amelica set a very fast pace and dragged me along for several blocks until we finally reached the Lucky Shrine.

I stared at the exterior for a moment and then opened the door. It was just like before. The place was dark, dingy, and full of gamblers. Was this place open twenty-four hours a day? If the town of Tregome had a curfew, then that meant these patrons simply stayed overnight. Thankfully, I saw some people sleeping on the ground with their backs against the walls; this confirmed that the gamblers were indeed allowed to spend the night here for curfew, just as I did at the dojo.

"Let's go," Amelica said as she pulled on my hand again.

When we reached the back of the gambling parlor, I was really excited to discover that the avatar of Lady Luck herself was sitting behind the manager's desk! We both knelt on the ground before the desk and then lowered until our heads until we touched the ground.

The attendant arose from her seat, walked around her desk, and stood in front of us. Lady Luck said in a kind voice, "Please rise, my children."

When I got back to my feet, I wasted no time in taking out a platinum coin from my waist pouch to give to the goddess as an offering.

The goddess saw the coin in my hand and made no attempt to take it. "You have an important journey and you will need to save your coins. However, I will accept two gold pieces for a divine consultation," she proposed.

I was puzzled by the request but nonetheless, I obeyed and passed her the requested coins.

The Asian woman smiled and asked, "Are you around, Pheus?"

Suddenly, a young Asian man in black, silk robes appeared from thin air. He got down to one knee before her. "How may I be of assistance, Mistress?" the newcomer asked with his eyes downcast.

Out of habit, I looked at the caption above his head and read that his name was “Morpheus.” Was this guy the god of dreams?

"Oh, stop it!" A look of annoyance crossed Lady Luck's face. "In my eyes, you are my equal. Now please behave appropriately before my children."

"My deepest apologies for offending you, Mistress," the man persisted and reluctantly got back on his feet.

When Morpheus turned around to examine us, I could see the same gold sparkles dancing in his black-as-night eyes. Turning on my spirit sense, I saw that the Asian man was shrouded by a strong, but dark brown colored aura. While the strength of his aura paled in comparison to that of Lady Luck, it was clear to me that this man was at least a demi-god. Ignoring a pop-up message, I quickly offered the man a deep bow befitting his divine status.

Amelica noticed my action and immediately offered her own bow to the man.

When I lifted my head back up, I saw the man offer a very slight smile and an equally slight nod in acceptance of my recognition. But the serious expression never left his face.

"Pheus, please take us to the dream world. I need a secure location to discuss important matters with my children. Here is payment for their passage," Lady Luck requested politely and gave him my coins.

"Very well, milady. Your payment has been accepted and passage for these two mortals to the Dream Land will be granted," the young god responded formally. He turned toward us and held out his left hand. Suddenly, I was hit by a wave of dizziness and then I lost consciousness.