Ryunosuke hesitated, still studying her closely. "You seem... powerful. I've seen you do things I can't explain. Why can't you just take it from Victor yourself?"
Lilith's expression softened slightly, revealing a quiet vulnerability she hadn't shown before. She glanced down at her hands, fingertips brushing lightly against the fabric of her coat.
"My strength has limits," she admitted quietly. "Victor possesses something—a relic, an artifact—powerful enough to prevent me from approaching him directly. Think of it as a shield, a barrier specifically designed to repel someone like me."
Ryunosuke frowned, leaning forward slightly. "Someone like you?"
"Someone from another place," she clarified softly. "My presence here breaks certain rules. Victor knows those rules better than most."
"Then why doesn't he use it against me?"
"Because you're human," she replied simply. "To him, you're no threat. He underestimates you. He doesn't see you clearly, not yet."
Ryunosuke sat back again, processing the weight of her words. "What exactly does he have?"
Lilith hesitated, then shook her head gently. "It's not the right time to tell you. It would place you in danger—more than you're already in."
"Then what can you tell me?" Ryunosuke pressed softly, frustration edging his voice.
Lilith held his gaze firmly, her eyes searching his with quiet urgency. "Only this: Victor Navarro isn't just powerful—he's dangerous. His calm is a mask. Underneath, he's more ruthless than you imagine."
Ryunosuke felt a shiver ripple down his spine. He nodded slowly, understanding now just how deeply he was caught between two powerful forces.
Lilith reached out, her fingers brushing lightly against his arm—soft, almost hesitant.
Ryunosuke froze.
Her touch wasn't cold. It wasn't warm either. It was... weightless, like a thought given form. His breath caught in his chest.
She looked at him then—not with the distant, unreadable gaze she wore in crowds or shadows—but with something gentler. Something closer.
"I know this is frightening," she said quietly. "I've seen the way your hands shake when no one's looking. The way your eyes scan the room like you're waiting for the next piece to fall apart."
Ryunosuke's lips parted slightly. His cheeks grew warm—too warm.
He tried to look away but couldn't. The violet in her eyes held him still, like gravity, like glass.
"I don't want to be afraid of you," he whispered, surprising himself.
Her expression softened—just barely. "Then don't be."
He swallowed, unsure what was happening inside him. A storm and a stillness, all at once.
"You said I could trust you," he murmured. "But... what about you?"
She blinked slowly, and—for the briefest moment—her eyes shimmered like wet amethyst.
"I don't trust easily," she said. "But I trust you more than most. And I don't know why yet."
He gave a small, breathless laugh, the tension breaking just enough to reveal his blush full-force. "That doesn't make sense."
"Neither do I," she said, almost smiling.
A silence fell between them, thick with unspoken thoughts.
And then, gently, her hand withdrew.
"I should go," she whispered. "Before they arrive."
"They?"
She tilted her head faintly toward the hallway.
"Your friends."
Ryunosuke blinked—and in that moment, Lilith was already standing.
Already fading.
Already—
Gone.
The living room was silent again.
Except now, the card in his pocket felt warm.
And his heart was still beating too fast.
The knock came seconds later.
Three quick raps. A pause. Then two more.
Ryunosuke blinked, the moment still hanging in the air like smoke.
He rose slowly, heart still pounding, and opened the door.
Lucas stood on the other side, grinning way too wide. William looked calm but serious, and Emily had that sharp look in her eyes—the one she wore when she knew more than she was ready to say.
Lucas stepped in first, eyes scanning Ryunosuke from head to toe.
And then he stopped.
"You're blushing," he said, pointing accusingly.
Ryunosuke blinked, instinctively raising a hand to his cheek. "What? No, I'm not."
"Ohhh, he totally is," Lucas said, laughing. "That's not a little blush. That's a 'someone whispered sweet nothings into my soul' blush."
Ryunosuke turned away too fast. "It's warm in here."
"It's always warm in here," Lucas shot back, flopping dramatically onto the couch. "What happened? Did a ghost tell you you're handsome or something?"
Ryunosuke stiffened.
William raised an eyebrow. "Lucas, come on."
"No seriously," Lucas continued, not noticing the sudden stillness. "You've got that post-crush haze. What'd you do, Ryuu? Write a love letter to the sketchbook?"
Ryunosuke didn't answer.
And that silence was louder than anything.
Emily stepped in gently, her voice calm. "Ryuu... was she here?"
He didn't look at them.
He just sat back down on the couch, slowly. His voice came out low, a little hoarse.
"Yes."
Lucas froze, his smile fading.
Emily sat beside him, her expression softening. "What did she say?"
Ryunosuke hesitated, then looked at her—at all of them.
And for the first time, he didn't feel like lying.
Ryunosuke rested his forearms on his knees, eyes low, voice steady—but quiet.
"She didn't threaten me," he said. "She didn't try to hurt me. I asked her what she wanted, and... she told me it's not someone she wants. It's the opposite. She has her own reasons."
Emily's brows furrowed. "Did she say what those reasons are?"
He shook his head. "No. She won't say yet. Only that someone has something she needs. Something important."
William crossed his arms, standing behind the couch. "And you believed her?"
"I don't know if I should," Ryunosuke admitted. "But..."
He paused, searching for the right words. Then, quietly, "Now that I've been around her more... I understand the feeling."
Lucas tilted his head. "What feeling?"
Ryunosuke looked up, meeting Emily's eyes for a moment—then shifted to Lucas, and finally William.
"Calm. Like... when she's around, everything slows down. My thoughts, my heart. I feel like I can finally breathe. And it's not just some weird magic thing. It's like... I'm safe."
Lucas opened his mouth, then closed it.
Emily leaned forward slightly. "Safe? With her?"
Ryunosuke nodded. "I know how it sounds. But when I'm with her, the fear fades. The noise quiets. I can think."
William exhaled through his nose, voice cautious. "Or maybe that's exactly what she wants you to feel."
Ryunosuke didn't argue. He couldn't. The possibility lingered in his mind too.
But still… he remembered the way her hand brushed his arm. The way she looked at him like he mattered.
"I don't trust easily," she'd said. "But I trust you more than most."
He looked down at his hands. "Even if it's wrong... I don't want to push her away. Not yet."
The room went quiet again.
Not out of fear.
But because none of them knew what to say.
Not yet.
The silence stretched for a few seconds longer.
Then Lucas leaned back dramatically on the couch, hands behind his head.
"Well damn," he said with a grin. "My guy out here getting ghosted by a literal goddess and still catching feelings."
Ryunosuke blinked. "I'm not—"
"Oh come on," Lucas cut in, eyes twinkling. "'She makes me feel safe. I can breathe around her.' Bro, that's the exact dialogue from a Studio Ghibli confession scene. You are down bad."
Ryunosuke groaned, burying his face in his hands as his ears and cheeks turned a brighter shade of red. "Shut up, Lucas..."
Lucas burst out laughing. "He's so gone."
Emily cracked a smile, unable to stop herself. "Lucas—stop, he's seriously blushing again."
William chuckled under his breath. "I haven't seen him this flustered since that time the waitress asked if the hot sauce was too hot for him and he panicked and said yes in Spanish."
Ryunosuke groaned louder. "I hate all of you."
But he was laughing now too, even through the redness in his face.
And for a moment, the weight of mystery, of danger, of questions too big to answer—it faded. Replaced by warmth, and teasing, and the safety of people who genuinely cared.
The tension broke like sunlight through clouded glass.
Just for a moment.