Neply woke up from a building on a hospital bed. "What the hell?" He grabbed the blanket and saw he had no clothes with bandages all around him, especially his chest.
"Where am I?" He was forgetting what had occurred for him to appear here.
Just as he was about to remember what had happened, the door to the isolated room opened and the Valerian princess, Aria walked in coldy.
Her hair color was somewhere in between blonde and black with the blue tint of lightning fading in and out as her magic permeated her body while fueling her cold demeanor. She remained expressionless when she saw his naked figure but Neply wasn't the same.
He feared embarrassment as he quickly wrapped the blanket around him while listening.
"Neply Tucrose, you are in Valerian territory but you are considered an ally among us. I'll ask you this once before anything else."
A small tint of lightning blue aura filled the room and Neply felt the pressure increase upon him.
"Are you willing to keep fighting in the war but as a Valerian soldier instead?"
Neply considered his options. He had no problem living in Valeria but that wasn't what he was considering.
"Joining the war…" he mumbled in consideration. Did he want to live peacefully or become strong through triumphs? He recalled the moments where he almost died. The feeling of dread was accompanied by the high of power.
At the moment he killed the water mage, he felt truly alive. Because he was once and orphan with nothing but despair, he craved that power and that moment again.
"I'll be fighting for you, Princess," he knelt gracefully as the blanket fluttered like a robe.
Aria, seemingly expecting this answer, nodded. "Originally, you would've started at the lowest position possible. Having to climb your way through the Valerian ranks to be respected. However, my personal bodyguard has decided to take you in as a disciple."
Neply's eyes lit up eagerly. Who had decided to help him even though he was nobody? He wanted to find out.
*Knock knock! Somebody was at the door.
Aria moved towards the door but spoke before opening it. "I suggest you don't anger her. She could torture people she doesn't like and treat it as a game. Morales don't mean much to somebody like her."
Before Neply could respond to the question, the lock on the door turned by itself and a dazzling figure walked in.
She was expressive, energetic, had long cascading violet hair, and walked with brimming confidence in her strength. Her beauty was unmatched and literally came from the future but her exciting display was cut short.
Aria glared at Celine with a deadpan expression. Celine could feel Aria's anger in the air.
"What? You walked in on him naked by yourself," Celine shrugged but secretly laughed at the successfulness her prank. Seeing Aria trying so hard to remain expressionless like usual in front of an embarrassing scenario was a once in a lifetime experience!
"You probably woke him up somehow," Aria mumbled and left angrily. She would get back at Celine one day.
Neply immediately forced himself into a graceful bow. "I, Neply Tucrose, humbly greet- *Clank!"
Suddenly, his jaw snapped shut.
"Yeah, enough of that bullshit. Just call me Celine and that's good."
Neply had to use his hands to fix his jaw and let out a cough. "Ahem. Nice to meet you, may I know why you've decided to help me?"
"You wish to become stronger, right?"
Neply firm held his head high and nodded. "Yes, I wish for nothing but to feel powerful as it is the greatest feeling in the world."
"That's the reason why I chose to help you," Celine smiled. "Because you remind me of myself and the craving I had for power."
If Celine looked into her past, pursuing power was what she wanted to change the most about her life. However, she was forced into that position because of her enemies and the tower. So when she saw Neply, somebody that reminded her of her past, she decided to help him see if it was truly power he wanted.
She wanted to ensure that Neply wouldn't regret his decision of power. She wanted to give Neply options that she never had. Celine had never cared for morales, but seeing Neply in the same position as her a few years back made her help him.
"Before we do anything, put some clothes on first." A small golden divine aura released in the room and Celine threw clothes at Neply. They were quite plain and cheap in cost.
Celine sat there impatiently and stared at him. "Hurry now, and don't ask for better clothes because that's the best I can make right now."
Neply immediately became embarrassed while shining red like a tomatoe. "I- in f- front of you?" He couldn't comprehend why a beauty like her wouldn't mind if she saw him naked.
He almost misinterpreted her intentions but Celine's lazy eyes rolled over. "It's wartime you perverted fuck. Clothes and dignity shouldn't be a problem if you want to survive."
Her words grounded him to reality. "She's experienced in battles and surviving with nothing," is what Neply thought when he realized that Celine had no morales or a shred of dignity. Only survival instincts and her goals kept her alive.
"She probably only let me change to preserve some of my dignity," he let out a low laugh. "Celine could've trained me while I was naked and she wouldn't have cared."
"Alright let's get started. I'll be training you physically because your sigil is close to being shattered."
An intense booming force rapidly hit Neply as he immediately crashed onto the floor. Not even an inch of him could move as the force of telekinesis held him tight.
"If you can manage to stand, then we can train magic." Celine hadn't even remained for a second after those words. Her glistening figure 'changed' the distance between her and the door while teleporting away.
"I'm getting better at this," Celine mumbled but had to wipe a bead of sweat from her forehead. Teleporting that small distance wasn't easy at all.
Meanwhile, Neply was stuck in that position on the floor. He was struggling to find the strength needed to get up from the force pushing him down.