A couple hours passed before their session was interrupted by a question.
“Did you just come here to exchange knowledge with us, Royal Husband?” Pearl suddenly appeared by Dyon’s side, her short hair bobbing as she smiled mischievously.
Dyon wrapped his arm around Pearl and rested his hand on her thigh, causing her to blush. He had already figured out how to tame this little rebel. She may seem eager, but she was actually quite ignorant in the matters of man and woman.
Grinning, Dyon answered, “I actually came to take Amphorae with me to complete some tasks. But, I wanted to spend some time with you all first.”
The eyes of the girls sparkled when they heard these words. Although they could see the politics hidden behind such a move, they could also see the anticipation and love in Dyon’s eyes. Something like that couldn’t be faked. A woman’s intuition was truly something else.
Kissing Pearl on the forehead and bearing the teasing of her pink tongue, Dyon stood and walked toward the cabins of the Imperial Harem.
Since the area was very well connected to the nature outside, the women that helped design it insisted on having elegant and well sculpted cabins instead of rooms. The result was a very woodsy and outdoorsy feeling that filled one’s senses with endless calm.
Dyon had long since taken off his shoes, and his steps slowed as he savoured the lush green grass beneath his feet that still held the faint moistness of the morning dew. He paused in front of a cabin he knew housed Amphorae, ignoring the fact the flowing stream and giggling of his nosey concubines drowned out the sound of his deep breath.
The door of the cabin creaked open as Dyon walked in. From his vantage point, he still couldn’t see much of the little home, but he immediately heard what sounds like something crashing to the ground before he heard the scurrying of footsteps.
Dyon’s brows furrowed, but when he entered and closed the door behind him, he couldn’t see what had made the noise.
The room itself seemed like a well-furnished cottage. Blanket and carpets of read bathed the surrounding, comfortable couches were arrange with aesthetic in mind, and there was even a fire place burning away a maple smell into the surroundings.
Dyon caught a glimpse of Amphorae’s delicate feet trying to silently but quickly charge up the stairs, but this only made him even more confused. What was going on? What was she doing?
Dirty thoughts surfaced in Dyon’s mind, but he immediately shook his head. He knew Amphorae, or rather, he felt like he knew her. After all, the more time he spent in this realm, and the more things he did, the more memories he triggered and consolidated with. It was almost like a reward of the trial, gifting him points for exploring and doing his due diligence.
With this knowledge, Dyon had begun to remember a lot of things. Those experiences told him a lot of things, and one of them was that Amphorae got embarrassed about the silliest of things. It was more likely that Dyon had walked in on her clipping her toe nails than anything else. This childhood lover of his was truly adorable.
Smiling to himself, Dyon walked toward the stairs slowly, giving Amphorae a chance to hide whatever it is she wanted to. By the time he made it to her room, he realized it took up the entire second floor. He found Amphorae trying to pretend as though she wasn’t trying to catch her breath, and sitting on a bed facing a window away from him.
Her long red hair was strewn out behind her, looking very much like the beautiful pedals of a flower.
From his angle, Dyon could see that she was wearing a new silk robe, but what he raised his eyebrow at was the odd-looking object that peaked out from under her bed. He could just make it out from a bulge in the hanging red sheets.
‘Is that what she was trying to hide?’
From what Dyon could see, it was a plank of wood, but the moment he saw the crude and transparent strings attached to it, he was taken back by his surprise. Even more interestingly, the strings, although transparent, reflected a faint red light that looked very much like Amphorae’s hair.
As his eyes continued along the odd plank of wood, it seemed the strings of hair got thicker and the bundle of hair strings also increased in number. Dyon’s perception also caught a faint energy permeating the strings, as though they were purposefully reinforced.
‘What a genius…’ Dyon couldn’t help but breathe out.
Dyon eventually made his way to Amphorae’s side, sitting quietly and watching the river outside her window.
“You like music?” Dyon suddenly asked this question. He couldn’t tell whether this era had instruments or not, but what he did know was that Amphorae had been trying her best to create what seemed like a simple lyre. To do such a thing with your own perception and without a reference, how could he not think Amphorae was a genius?
Hearing Dyon’s words, Amphorae’s queenly demeanor shattered as a light blush appeared on her face. But, even in such a state, she still managed to keep a relatively neutral appearance.
Dyon smiled. A crude spatial ring on his ring flashed as a purple-gold aurora flame stone appeared in Dyon’s hand.
The flames burst to life under Amphorae’s shocked gaze. A brilliant purple-gold formation appeared in the air, whirring slowly to life as Dyon concentrated. He couldn’t help but laugh to himself, he didn’t think he’d ever struggle with a mere stage 5 array again, but here he was.
Soon, Dyon’s creation manifested itself, appearing as a beautiful silver lyre comparable to a lower tier master level treasure.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Dyon took the small hands of Amphorae and placed the lyre in her hands. “Here’s my first gift to you.”