Gracen echoed her, "Good night," before closing his eyes to sleep.
Renan, who was just going along with whatever Namari was doing, thought inwardly, 'Well, I guess I'll sleep for now. Honestly, this life isn't that bad,' he thought as he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
--Next Morning--
"Renan, your Grandmother is here, and look who I brought with me," Nymeria said as she opened the door to Renan's room without knocking.
As she entered, her eyes first scanned the bed, but not finding him there, she glanced around the room. Soon, she spotted him standing on a stool by the window, gazing outside. "There you are," Nymeria said, walking toward him with a smile.
Renan, hearing the door open behind him, turned to see who it was. "Oh, Grandmother, you're finally here. I was waiting for you," he said, watching her approach with long strides and a small smile on her face, which started to grow into a big smile.
Nymeria's smile grew wider at his words. "Oh, did you miss your Grandmother? Worry not. Today, I've finished all my work so I can spend the entire day with you without any interruptions," she said, scooping him up effortlessly when she reached him.
Renan nodded silently, letting Nymeria hold him without any protest.
"Hmm, where are your mother and father?" Nymeria asked, noticing neither Namari nor Gracen was in the room.
"Mother left early this morning, saying she was close to breaking through to the 8th circle. She dragged Father with her, even though he looked reluctant. But, in the end, he wasn't strong enough to resist her," Renan explained, the last part tinged with mild disappointment.
"I see," Nymeria replied thoughtfully, her mind wandering. 'So that battle maniac skipped training yesterday. It seems that the girl has become a bit more responsible. Still, she didn't even wait for me before vanishing. I suppose next time, I'll give her some... training lessons myself.'
"So, what were you looking at out of the window?" she asked after shaking off her thoughts.
"Hmm, I was just looking at the outside world. Mother hasn't let me go out because of the war. She said there were some enemies who might target me if they discovered that I was her child. So, I've been stuck inside until now," Renan explained, adding a sad tone for effect.
"Well, that's part of the reason, but not the whole story," Nymeria said.
"Huh?" Renan uttered, confused.
"How long do you think they can hide your existence? Eventually, everyone will know about you. That's why your Grandma Belinda came up with an idea: instead of hiding you completely, we would only conceal key details, like your elements and other critical information. This makes our enemies hesitate, unsure if they should act. Until now, your existence wasn't officially announced, because doing so before your awakening would have been dangerous. Spies could have infiltrated, putting you at risk, and your information about elements could potentially get leaked. But because of your unexpectedly rapid growth, the awakening ceremony happened early, and your birth was officially announced to the world yesterday," Nymeria explained.
'What does the awakening of my element have to do with enemies attacking?' Renan thought. Then, realizing that, 'Wait, why am I even stressing my brain, I can just ask her,' and that's what he did, he asked her.
"Well," Nymeria began, "if the enemy knew what elements you possess and how much control you have over them, they wouldn't wait. They'd attack immediately, not giving you time to grow. But if they don't know, they might assume your strength is slightly above or equal to Namari's. While Namari's power is remarkable, it's not enough to change the course of the war entirely. That uncertainty forces them to wait and prepare, rather than risk an immediate assault," she explained further.
"Now that your elements have awakened, you're allowed to go outside," she added.
"But," she continued, "you'll need to take someone strong with you every time you leave."
Renan's spirits lifted at the news. He could finally be allowed to go outside! He considered asking Nymeria to go out with him. As a Grand Duchess, she was undoubtedly powerful. But when he glanced at her, she seemed to be staring straight into his soul. 'Is she waiting for me to ask her?' he wondered.
"Hmm, Grandmother, can you go out with me?" he finally asked.
Nymeria replied instantly, "Of course, I can! But first, let me introduce you to someone I brought with me," she said, turning around with Renan still in her arms.
Just as Nymeria turned around, Renan could finally see who it was. There stood two people. One of them was Sylveria Glacivyre, the daughter of Kael, Grand Duke of the Glacivyre family. With her long blue hair and blue eyes, she looked as beautiful as always, a small smile gracing her face.
A little beside her stood a fox girl with the same features as Nymeria but much younger—around fifteen years old. She had black hair like Nymeria but possessed striking purple eyes, unlike Nymeria's black ones, and wore a blank expression.
The first thing Renan thought when he saw her was, 'Hmm, five tails.'