After deliberating for a long time, Ayesha finally made up her mind: she would not tell her mother about this for now.
She planned to see if she could steal the bracelet herself. If she succeeded, there would be no need to report that it had ever been in Eros’s hands. As for her other concern—the memory wipe—Ayesha decided to frame it differently when she eventually asked her mother. She would simply say that the Church tried to alter her memories of the Sin Realm but failed for some unknown reason.
Given how many anomalies occurred during this assessment, her mother likely wouldn't find it suspicious even if she reported it up the chain. Having made her choice, Ayesha muttered quietly to herself:
"It’s not like I’m trying to protect that pervert. It’s just... back in the Sin Realm, even if he didn't do it specifically for me, his actions in luring away the specters did save my life. I’m just repaying a debt of gratitude. Yes! Just a repayment!"
With that settled, Ayesha stretched her supple waist and lay down to sleep. But the moment she closed her eyes, they snapped open again. She realized a major problem: the Academy was likely going on break tomorrow.
Once the break started, Eros would go home. How could she steal the bracelet from him if he was tucked away in the Duke's Manor? Wait until next semester? No, that was too late. What if he sold it during the month off? For some reason, that bracelet couldn't be tracked via divination; if it changed hands a few times, her mission would be a total failure.
Headache! Argh! So annoying! You damn jerk, why did you have to take THAT specific bracelet?!
While Ayesha tossed and turned in a fit of insomnia, Eros was on the other side of the campus, sleeping soundly.
The next morning, a refreshed Eros looked at the exhausted Ayesha, who sported two dark circles under her eyes. He leaned in and whispered curiously:
"Didn't get any rest last night?"
Eros guessed this had everything to do with him flaunting the bracelet the previous evening. Ayesha gave an annoyed huff and turned her face away. Since her identity was already exposed to him anyway, she didn't bother maintaining her "innocent student" persona.
Confirmed, Eros thought with a smirk. He ignored her cold shoulder and chuckled low. "Yesterday, I noticed your gaze lingering on my bracelet for quite a while."
Ayesha’s heart skipped a beat. Damn it, did he figure something out? Suppressing her nerves, she said in a forced, calm tone, "I just thought the style was pretty, so I looked at it a bit longer."
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Eros put on an "as I thought" expression. "I figured. The design of this Sealed Artifact is indeed quite beautiful. Originally, I planned to give it to my mother, but since you seem to like it so much..."
He paused intentionally. Ayesha’s pupils dilated, and her breathing grew rapid. Is he... is he going to give it to me? Can it really be attained this easily?
In that tense silence, Eros spoke again, his voice dripping with temptation. "Then how about..."
Ayesha’s eyes widened, her breath hitching as she waited for the words: How about I give it to you?
"...How about you help me see what else would pair well with this bracelet? I feel like giving my mother just a bracelet is a bit plain. I want to match it with some other accessories."
Ayesha’s anger instantly hit the maximum. Her teeth ground together as she squeezed out: "I. Don't. Know."
Eros reached out and poked her puffed-up, angry cheek, his voice full of mirth. "Just teasing! On the second night of the full moon from today, at nine o'clock—how about we go on a date at the highest clock tower in Intiles?"
"If you show up, I'll give this Sealed Artifact to you!"
Ayesha stood frozen. She wondered if she had misheard. The emotional rollercoaster left her feeling dizzy. Her entire focus was captured by the promise of getting the artifact; she almost completely ignored the "date" condition. After a moment, she asked in a trembling voice:
"Truly? You'll give it to me?"
"Of course! As long as you show up on time!" Eros confirmed without hesitation.
Only then did the weight of the condition hit her. Her face flushed a deep crimson. He wants to... d-d-date me? Huh? What?
Forcing down her embarrassment, Ayesha nodded and agreed. She justified it to herself: It's just a date. Nothing else. If he tries anything out of line that night, I'll definitely refuse him. She seemed to have completely forgotten the massive gap in their actual strength.
Eros watched her agree, a satisfied smile appearing on his face. By the next full moon, he would likely have unraveled the secrets within the bracelet. Once its secrets were known, the object would be useless to him.
I was going to give it to Natalia to unlock some 'new positions,' but giving it to Ayesha to unlock 'new positions' is basically the same thing. We’re all family anyway—who cares which one gets it, right?
"What are you two whispering about over here?"
Suddenly, Undine poked her face between them, her beautiful eyes filled with suspicion as she scanned the two of them huddled behind the crowd.
They had been called to assemble early this morning. The Academy was going to publicly settle the results of the Sin Realm assessment. The method was simple: directly asking how many specters each person had killed and converting those kills into gold pounds.
Since the crisis had forced everyone together and most hadn't had time to collect materials from their kills before fleeing, the old method of tallying was impossible. Thus, they resorted to this blunt approach. If the battle was too chaotic for a student to remember their kill count, the Academy had specific Sealed Artifacts that could help them vividly recall every detail.
Thinking of lying about your kill count? Hah. Do you think Sealed Artifacts are just for show?
To compensate the students for the trauma, the Academy had doubled the gold pound conversion rate for each specter killed. One kill now equaled the value of two in a normal year. Furthermore, the Academy waived the fees for the supplies students were originally supposed to pay back. It was, by all accounts, a very generous settlement.