[Nightmare]

There were tears of joy running down her cheeks.

Charlotte squealed and threw herself at Helix, who accepted her hug at lightning speed.

Marie felt an insane desire to join but held back because she had the letter.

Riley waited patiently with glittering eyes.

She was slowly choking up.

The young woman always felt grateful to share time with the three but never believed Helix would love her enough to marry her.

No matter what he did, it just felt too surreal.

Now she was overflowing with emotion, and tears started rolling down her eyes.

"Come here, dummy!" Charlotte snapped.

Charlotte disappeared with ghostly speed.

"Ooof." Helix laughed breathlessly.

Riley hit him in the chest after Charlotte threw her at him.

It was a charming, albeit aggressive, form of love.

Helix hugged her.

Marie waited patiently with sparkling eyes filled with tears of joy.

She was holding the letter and knew their love was [forever].

Helix nodded at her, and she continued after a few breaths.

"The Kingdom… offers you our blessing." Marie continued.

"And we'd love to share in your loving ceremony.

A-As proof of our s-support for y-you and Helix… Hellsgate Margrave… I've personally enclosed… s-symbols of yo-your love.

In the envelope, t-there are th-three pockets.

D-Dame M-Marie Sky-Skybolt, in the middle, you will find yours…."

Charlotte's eyes glittered with anticipation as Marie fumbled with the envelope.

She reached into the pocket and burst out with tears again.

"What is it!?" Charlotte cried.

Marie took an object out of the envelope, and everyone's eyes sparkled at the sight.

"H-Helix He-Hellsgate Mar-Margrave has provided you w-with this ring and the A-Alzerian Roy-Royal Family has had it-it engraved."

Charlotte and Riley ran over to the ring.

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Helix watched their reaction with tears in his eyes.

It felt like the happiest day of his life.

Seeing his partners elated about sharing their lives with him forever was a dream come true.

Marie cried when she saw the engraving.

It read—

[Protector].

Charlotte developed a beaming smile when she saw the ring.

"P-Please hand the ring to Sir Helix Hellsgate Margrave."

Marie obeyed and walked over to Helix.

Charlotte was grinning with delight over the scene.

She understood what Helix's message was.

Marie, Charlotte, and Riley were more important to him than anything else.

If Liliana asked him to marry her daughter, she needed to accept their love for one another and give them the respect they deserved.

It was not only a huge power play; it was a show his price for such a request was high.

Helix took the ring and dropped to one knee.

"Marie Mira Skybolt, I offer you a very un-Royal Proposal for you to be my wife."

Marie burst into laughter and tears at the strange declaration.

Her vibrant green eyes glittered from the luminescent butterflies passing over her tears.

"Your ring reads [Protector] because I'm only here because you protected me." Helix explained with tears in his eyes.

"You protected our people from Lina, protected them from themselves, and you traveled 1000 miles to protect me emotionally when I needed you most."

Marie burst into tears, and she flashed him a dazzling smile after dazzling smile between breaths.

Her red hair kept falling over her eyes, so she tucked lock after lock around her ear.

The cute display was so charming and endearing that Helix got lost in wonder.

"When I asked you to be my girlfriend, you burst into laughter because the harem was eight levels deeper." Helix chuckled with a happy expression.

"Well, asking you to spend your life with me forever is far deeper, harem or not.

Will you marry me?"

Marie burst into tears and started shaking in happiness.

Charlotte casually yanked the letter in her hand so she didn't destroy it accidentally.

"Y-Yes!" Marie screamed in happiness.

Helix flashed her a grateful expression before putting the ring on her finger.

The second it was on, it glowed bright green and surrounded the entire area with a barrier.

Everyone was extremely confused by what they saw.

"Marie." Helix chuckled with a charming smile.

"There's a Level 5 barrier spell called the [Song of Survival] engraved into the inside of your ring."

Marie's eyes widened in bewilderment.

"Tilo spent countless hours helping engrave this ring while you were traveling." Helix explained with tears in his eyes.

Marie, Charlotte, and Riley's eyes trembled.

"I should say that he beat me for messing it up 70 times and giving me quality assurance." Helix laughed with tears of joy.

His partners burst into bewildered giggles.

"I kept reminding him it was so small, but he kept saying [Hmmm? Do you plan to say that to your wife as an excuse for why she's not satisfied]?"

The room exploded with laughter.

Tears of joy were running down everyone's cheeks.

Charlotte had the lightest tears and passionately used every ounce of willpower she had to play off her emotions.

"Marie. The Song of Survival is an invincible barrier for five minutes." Helix explained.

"Nothing physical, magical, or gravity-related can touch it."

Marie's eyes widened in shock.

She looked at Charlotte and Riley to see their expression, only to find they were just as confused.

"However…." Helix chuckled with a charming expression.

"It uses a minimum of one thousand spirit particles to activate."

The three burst into giggles.

Normal mages achieve a thousand [spirit particle reserve] around Level 120.

To the four in the room, it was a comical joke.

Helix laughed and gave them a gentle smile.

"A minimum states that if you have more than 1333 spirit particles, it will take 75% of what you have to activate."

The room quieted down when they heard his bombshell.

Song of Survival could soon cost Marie tens of thousands of particles to use.

It was similar to the strange phenomena where [Nightmare] only cost a minimum of 1 spirit particle to use, further validating Helix's theories about Myriad.

Yet he still didn't talk about them and hoped he never would.

Still, it didn't change the nature of the magical technique or how to use it.

Moreover, he was unperturbed by the news.

"Marie. It's not about cost." Helix chuckled breathlessly with tears in his eyes.

"Because any cost pales in comparison to a loved one's life.

You're receiving this ring because you saved mine, and I know you'll do the same for others when you're needed most."

Helix's eyes welled with tears as he thought back to Emelia's concern for his purchase of her.

There was no cost too great for her life.

Nor was there a cost for the life Marie saved countless times.

He was convinced he would have died long before he was attacked had she not rallied Charlotte and Riley to protect him daily.

Helix was only there because she and everyone else saved his life countless times. It was a reminder that his partners were loving before their relationship began.

It was a sentimental feeling for someone who had lost so much and suffered so greatly for things he didn't want.

Marie burst into tears of joy as he stood up to kiss her.

"Moreover, you're not alone now." He said with a choked voice.

"I promised you that I'd help protect Charlotte and Riley with you."

Her eyes trembled at his words.

"You've depleted 12,750 spirit particles using it." He whispered.

Helix touched her ring, the Song of Survival stopped glowing, and the barrier disappeared.

Then he touched her face and pressed his mouth to her lips.

A vibrant, colorful explosion of emotions burst into her body.

Marie was reborn in terms of energy, and the depleted feeling she endured from losing so many particles so fast instantly disappeared.

Helix disconnected his lips.

"Now, you can use it again." He whispered, "That's the power of fighting together instead of living life alone."

Marie burst into tears again and kissed him before hugging him tightly. His small demonstration was so powerful it moved everyone to slight tears.

Elise, the mad god of Myriad, was the number one fear in their lives. Helix lived in fear that he wouldn't be able to protect the people he loved.

However, now they had a trump card to keep them safe, if only for five minutes, while the world connected again.

It was an emotional moment—one that everyone appreciated.

He lightly released his grasp and looked Marie in the eyes again.

"When we made our blood pact to speak about Nightmare I requested information that identifies you as a person." Helix explained.

"So only you can use that ring.

So please continue protecting your damsel."

Marie gave him a vibrant, dazzling smile and turned to the others sharing gentle smiles with her.

"Charlotte." Helix requested in a warm voice.

The room warped again, and the sky turned a light hue of purple.

Cartoony scenery popped up in the area, and colorful explosions rang in the distance.

"W-Wait! Nooooooo~way!" Charlotte cried.

—

Power stones and grammatical errors = more content. :)