"Mmm,"
Ember let out a soft moan as she slowly opened her eyes, and her vision was greeted with the sight of the blue screen shining brightly.
Ding!
[Good morning, host.
The system wishes you a very good first day of your married life!]
The blue window, which was hovering above her face, had a smiley face drawn on it, and the words were written in a cursive font.
'It's the System,'
Other than the window, there was nothing in her vision, everything was black and dark.
'And it's saying something,'
It was strange, but, the fact that she could see the window was something she had accepted, and had already gotten used to.
'Good morning, host?'
Ember repeated the system's words in her mind.
'Huh?'
"Wait?!"
Her eyes widened as she realized that she could read the message.
'W-what's happening?'
Her mouth was slightly opened in shock and her face was full of confusion.
"I-I can read?"
She raised her hands and softly rubbed her eyes, and tried to look at the screen again, however, this time the screen had changed, and it showed her something else.
[Host, please don't be surprised. It is true that you can read, but, it is all thanks to a certain someone.]
Ember blinked a couple of times, as her mind tried to think who this 'certain someone' would be.
"Is it Nell?"
It was the only possibility that came to her mind, and it was the most logical thing, because, her husband, Nell, was the one who had given her a part of his system, and he was the one who was responsible for everything that was happening to her.
[Yeah, it's your husband, host.]
As soon as Ember read the system's last message, her hands began to move instinctively, and her palms started to caress the bed sheets.
She didn't know how or why, but, she could sense that Nell wasn't beside her, and her fingers were now moving around the bed, searching for him.
"N-Nell," Her voice was shaking, and a slight tremble was evident in her tone.
'Where is he?'
'I vaguely remember that he slept beside me.'
Ember didn't know where her husband was, and her body was starting to get anxious, as a sense of uneasiness filled her heart.
"N-Nell, where are you?"
Her voice was a bit louder than before, and it had a hint of fear, but, her question was soon answered by the system.
[Host Nellas is in the kitchen. He is trying to make food for you.]
"H-he is?"
Her voice was calm, and the uneasiness she was feeling earlier was gone.
She was relieved, and the corners of her mouth tugged upwards, forming a small smile.
'Nell is in the kitchen,'
"Hehehe,"
She chuckled softly, and a small blush appeared on her cheeks.
....
A moment ago, before Nell went to the kitchen, he was sitting on the edge of the bed.
He was staring at the girl who was sleeping peacefully beside him.
His eyes were focused on her face, and his gaze was fixed on her lips.
They were slightly parted, and her breaths were coming out in gentle puffs.
Her chest was rising and falling, and her hair was a mess.
She looked so innocent and cute.
It had been an hour since Nellas pulled the curtain closed, and the room was still dark and quiet.
Even with the sun's rays getting intense, the room was still shrouded in darkness, however, it wasn't as much as before.
A small ray of light was passing through the gap between the curtains, and it was landing on Ember's face.
She had been asleep for almost ten hours now, but, there was still no sign of her waking up.
And, her hands were still wrapped around him.
'So, is there no other way?'
Nell wondered as he moved his gaze away from Ember's face, and looked at the screen in front of him.
[There is. However, the cost will be high.
If you decide to choose this option, your dark mana points will be reduced by 200 and you will only have 40 points left.
So, do you want to continue?]
"Yes," Nell said, without a shred of hesitation, and his gaze fell back onto Ember.
Ding!
[Are you sure? Dark Mana Points are really important. If you lose them, you will not be able to use some skills for a while.
And, if you lose all of them, you will be rendered powerless and vulnerable.]
"I'm sure," Nell said, his voice was firm and resolute, "I don't care. I'm willing to give up 200 dark mana points if it means she can read and write English," He continued, and a small smile formed on his lips.
"It will help her understand the system's interface and the system will be able to communicate with her."
Nell didn't want Ember to be left out of the system, and he wanted her to have the ability to communicate with the system.
Yesterday, Ember had informed him that she had no light in her eyes since her birth, and because of this, she was completely blind and had no way of seeing things.
'If she can't read the words, then what is the point of having a system?'
'It's useless to her,'
'I want her to be able to use the system, and I want her to be able to utilize the system's functions. Then, everything will be up to her. If she wants to get strong, then, I won't stop her.'
The thoughts continued to circle around his mind, and his eyes were focused on the system's screen, which was still glowing brightly.
'However, if she decides not to, then, I will protect her. That is all I can do.'
As the last sentence formed in his mind, he opened his mouth and spoke the words.
"Do it," He said, as his eyes were filled with determination, "Make her able to read and write."
Ding!
And, the system complied with his command, the screen in front of him changed and displayed a new real-time progress of what he wanted to happen.
[Initiating the language injection protocol...]
[Slowing down the protocol so that the target won't feel the pain...
Estimated time remaining: 39 minutes.]
The words on the screen began to change and a timer appeared at the bottom corner, showing the remaining time.
'More than half an hour, huh?'
Nellas was surprised, he didn't expect the process to take so long, but, he wasn't worried.
'Ember won't wake up,'
'She'll be alright,'
He knew that the process was not going to hurt her, and she was still going to sleep throughout the entire thing.
'It will be alright,'
The time was ticking, and the minutes were passing.
'I guess, I should go and make breakfast,'
'Ember might be hungry when she wakes up,'
His eyes left the screen, and they landed on the girl who was sleeping peacefully.
'I'll make her some food,'
'Then, we will go to the market and buy some clothes for her,'
A smile was visible on his face, and his gaze lingered on her for a few more seconds before, reluctantly, he removed her arms from his waist, and walked out of the room, heading towards the kitchen.