Chapter 165: A Gift That Wouldn’t Come Off

Iris awkwardly smiled as she ran her hand over the necklace hanging from her neck.

She had been prepared to steal it, but to think she would get it so easily.

‘Does he really not know that this necklace contains power? Maybe… it’s possible. I can’t bring myself to fully believe it’s a memento from his Mother, but one thing’s for sure. If Abellus had known there was power in this necklace, he never would have handed it over so willingly.’

Iris still had no idea that Abellus knew her true identity. That’s why she thought he had given her the necklace as a simple gift, without realizing the power it held.

Iris fiddled with the necklace for a moment and glanced around. She wanted to check herself in the Mirror, but unfortunately, there didn’t seem to be one in the Director’s Office.

She was pretty sure there had been a Mirror in Abellus’s room earlier, but if she went back, Abellus would follow, and then things would almost certainly heat up again.

‘Doing something naughty with Abellus one more time wouldn’t be so bad. I do feel a little regret… But the problem is, it won’t end with just one time. If we get swept up in it, time will fly by before I know it. People will be coming in for work soon—should I advertise to the world that I spent the whole night here? I’d better hurry.’

Some people arrived at work early, so she really had to go. There could also be staff on night duty here, just like Abellus. Iris nervously fidgeted with her hands and spoke up.

“I thought this necklace was so pretty the moment I first saw it. I never dreamed I’d get it as a present from you, Abellus.”

“Hehe, I wanted to give this necklace to you even before you visited the Laboratory again, Iris.”

“R-Really?”

Was he really that smitten with her? Was he being sincere?

As Iris, not as the Angel Girl, she had only met him maybe three times—and even then, their first encounter had been a brief one in the Enraka Temple.

To think he had planned to give her this necklace all along… it made her feel strangely uneasy, not quite happy.

When Iris asked while fiddling with the necklace, Abellus smiled broadly, his gaze fixed on her hand.

“Yes. Just looking at you makes me happy.”

“Ah, well, thank you anyway. It’s a gift I’ll never forget.”

“Don’t you want to see yourself in the Mirror?”

Abellus gently draped his arm around Iris’s shoulders, then glanced at the room in the corner.

Iris quickly caught on that he was inviting her to go in and, while looking in the Mirror, maybe do it again.

She rolled her eyes, placing her hand atop Abellus’s on her shoulder.

“But… it’s almost time for people to start coming in. I mean, not me, but here….”

She pointed awkwardly at the ceiling with her finger. Abellus smiled in understanding.

“Oh! You have to head home now, right? That’s true. The staff will be coming in about two hours.”

Looking disappointed, Abellus toyed with the hand Iris had placed on top of his.

Then, with his other hand, he subtly wrapped his arm around her waist. He couldn’t hide his lingering attachment.

When Iris shook her head and stepped back, he reluctantly let go.

After escorting her out of the Director’s Office and to the Laboratory entrance, he held her small hand, gave her a gentle kiss, and met her eyes.

“It was a pleasure. I hope we meet again.”

“Yes. I’d like that too.”

“I hope we meet somewhere outside the Laboratory next time. No, we will meet.”

Would there really be another meeting? And not at the Laboratory?

She’d already acquired the necklace without a fight. As enjoyable as the night with Abellus had been, she didn’t want to see him again.

After all, once he lost his abilities, he might figure out that Iris was the culprit.

Things had ended smoothly this time, but next time he might try to use her body for a live experiment.

But ‘we will meet’ rather than ‘I hope we meet again’? Iris tilted her head, mulling over the meaning.

‘Is he saying we’re fated to meet again or something? Huh, surprisingly romantic for a psycho. Not that it changes anything.’

Iris looked back as she stepped out into the dawn. Abellus, arms crossed, tilted his head and waved when their eyes met. Was it her imagination, or did he seem oddly delighted?

‘Why do I feel so uneasy? Is it just that the psychopath let things go without a fuss? Anyway, I got the necklace, so all’s well. Must be my imagination.’

* * *

Returning home, Iris fought off sleepiness and headed for the bathroom.

She undressed for a shower and reached for the necklace—then froze. No matter how hard she pressed the clasp, it wouldn’t budge.

‘Is this one like the Chastity Belt—impossible to take off? It’s metal, so it doesn’t really matter if I keep it on…’

With no other choice, she decided to shower with the necklace on. She always wore her bracelet, so why not this too?

It was thick and a little uncomfortable, though.

After finishing her shower, Iris almost went to stand in front of the Mirror, but shook her head and made her way to bed instead.

Maybe it was the wild night with Abellus, but even after drinking two bottles of Potion, her eyes kept closing.

She collapsed into bed, managed to pull the blanket over herself, and shut her eyes.

‘After a nap, I need to choose which five abilities to steal from Abellus. I have to check out what power the necklace gave me, too… so tired…’

She didn’t wake until lunchtime. Oddly, her body still felt sluggish, not as light as usual.

She stretched, twisting her body back and forth, then stood before the Mirror.

First, she wanted to check the ability she’d gained from the necklace.

Opening the Message window, she reviewed the past Messages with a puzzled look.

‘What’s this? Why isn’t there any Message about the necklace?’

Had the Message just not come yet? In that case, the only way to check was the Mirror.

Iris stared at her reflection.

Unlike when she obtained the Ancient Ring, nothing changed in the Mirror.

All she saw was herself in her pajamas. She fiddled with the necklace and clicked her tongue in frustration.

‘What the heck? Don’t tell me… it’s not a Relic? That can’t be. I’m sure <Perception> showed up. If I stare a bit longer, will something appear?’

She stared into the Mirror for a long time, but still, nothing happened. Iris tapped her slippered foot, then sighed.

‘Weird. What’s going on? Does it need more time? I’m pretty sure this is a Relic… guess I’ll wait a bit longer.’

She’d awakened the Chastity Belt Hanger a week after wearing the Chastity Belt during Split-Body Summoning, so maybe the necklace needed some time, too.

The necklace wasn’t going anywhere, so she decided to put it aside for now and focus on stealing the remaining five abilities from Abellus.

So far, she’d only taken <Wondrous Perception>.

She opened Abellus’s State Window and carefully examined it, then selected the next ability to steal.

You have obtained Abellus’s <Cryofication>. Abellus’s skill has been erased and transferred to the Chastity Belt Hanger.

‘At least this time it doesn’t say it’s giving the skill to the Chastity Belt. About time.’

The simple Message put her mind at ease. Now, what to take next? After some thought, she decided to steal two levels.

That left two more abilities she could steal from Abellus. She scanned the State Window, then shrugged.

‘There isn’t much I want to take… Ah! There’s the <Tamer> skill. With that, I could tame Monsters I find in the future instead of killing them, right?’

It was an extremely important skill for Abellus. Without it, his Monster research would be much harder. Imagining Abellus panicking over an out-of-control Monster made her smile.

Yes, that would be perfect. As soon as she made her decision, a Message appeared. Just as Iris was about to cheer, disappointment swept over her face.

You failed to obtain Abellus’s <Tamer>. Not compatible.

‘Come on, just let me have it!’

She tried again and again to steal <Tamer>, but the Message kept saying it was incompatible.

She let out a heavy sigh of disappointment. It had been her chance to deal a critical blow to Abellus’s power, but she couldn’t take it.

Giving up on stealing more skills, she took two more levels instead.

In the end, Iris managed to steal <Cryofication>, <Wondrous Perception>, and four levels from Abellus.

She had to cast the stolen skills to make them hers. To make sure she didn’t forget, she decided to use them right away.