Sophia sat at her study table in her room, with Seraphix curled up and peacefully sleeping in front of her.

  Earlier, she had told Seraphix they would start working on Cat Backpack 0.2 after breakfast, but he had promptly fallen asleep, likely a side effect of overeating.

  She didn’t mind—well, maybe a little—but her attention was elsewhere.

  On the table y two small boxes: one, a birthday present from her mother, and the other, far more surprising, from her father.

  'Does Father already know I’ve officially become a Nine-Stroke Beast Tamer? Has he finally acknowledged me?'

  The thought unsettled Sophia.

  She wanted to feel happy, but uncertainty lingered. This was the first gift her father had given her since their retionship had fractured.

  After some hesitation, she decided to set the box aside, tucking it into her luggage for her trip abroad.

  "I'll check it ter," she decided.

  Sophia turned her gaze to Seraphix, still snoozing peacefully.

  After some time contempting, she made her decision. "I guess I’ll handle it myself."

  She retrieved a box from under her bed, filled with tools and leftover materials from the Cat Backpack 0.1.

  After inspecting her supplies, she pulled out a sheet of paper and began sketching designs on the table.

  A while ter, a knock at the door interrupted her concentration.

  “Sophia, it’s me, Cal,” a familiar voice called.

  "Come in," Sophia said, her attention still fixed on her work.

  In the noble household, it was considered improper for anyone but a maid to enter a noble's private room. But Sophia didn’t care. No maid had stepped foot in her room for a long time, and it was she who had reassured Cal that it was perfectly fine for him to enter.

  In fact, whenever Cal was inside, she often felt an urge to lock the door.

  Cal entered, carrying a bag. He walked over to Sophia, set the bag down, and leaned closer to see what she was working on.

  “A luggage?” he asked, puzzled.

  “Yes, it’s going to be Cat Backpack 0.2.”

  “Cat Backpack?”

  Sophia lifted the original Cat Backpack from beside her.

  “This one,” she said.

  Cal studied it for a moment before asking, “Need help?”

  “Only if you promise not to fall asleep halfway through!” she replied, her tone slightly annoyed as she clenched her fist.

  Cal blinked in confusion, “Why would I do that?”

  Sophia's cheeks flushed as she realized what she had said. She waved her hand dismissively, her voice hurried.

  “No, no, just forget it.”

  Sophia then directed Cal on tasks he could handle, allowing her to concentrate fully on the design.

  An hour ter, they had finished crafting the individual components. All that remained was to assemble them and make a few adjustments.

  'Wow,' Sophia thought, before gncing at Seraphix, still sleeping soundly.

  'So this is what it’s like to have real help.'

  Suddenly, Cal spoke up, “Do you feel... different today?”

  Sophia paused, considering the question. “I’m not sure. I guess I’ve been feeling a bit off.”

  “Can you expin?” Cal pressed.

  Sophia hesitated, then admitted she’d been feeling sad but couldn’t pinpoint why.

  Additionally, as she focused on Cal, something strange occurred.

  “Your name, it’s written here,” she said, gesturing toward a screen in front of her.

  “Name? I don’t see anything,” Cal said in confusion.

  “When I concentrate on someone, their 'Name' appears right in front of me,” she expined, her voice tinged with uncertainty.

  Curious, Cal activated his illusion amulet, changing his appearance.

  “What about now? Can you still see it?”

  Sophia squinted at him.

  “Yes, it’s still visible. It says ‘Caly'x'ianov Ka'sh'nikov’—” she stumbled over the pronunciation.

  Cal’s expression shifted to shock. Gripping her shoulders, he excimed, “That’s incredible! It must be Seraphix’s abilities.”

  “No way! This is Seraphix’s ability?” Sophia asked, wide-eyed.

  “Yes, it seems you’ve successfully accommodated his ability,” Cal confirmed.

  Sophia lit up with excitement.

  “Wow! I won’t have to secretly jot down notes to memorize everyone’s names anymore!”

  For a moment, disappointment crossed Cal’s face at Sophia’s response.

  ***

  Cal continued working on the Cat Backpack, making the final adjustments before finishing it. Yet, every so often, his gaze drifted toward Sophia.

  He had been closely monitoring the changes in her. In his experience with beast-tamers, many struggled with some form of physical and mental disabilities.

  Given that context, Cal was relieved that Sophia's issue seemed to be limited to mild sadness.

  Another aspect that caught Cal's interest was Seraphix's ability.

  For Cal, Seraphix’s ability was extraordinarily potent, especially for surveilnce. It allowed Sophia to identify a person simply by observing them, even seeming to bypass illusion spells—one of the few defenses against surveilnce abilities.

  To Cal, Seraphix's ability felt like an enhanced version of his own ‘Eyes of Discernment,’ which only worked when someone consciously 'conceals' something.

  Additionally, something else had changed within Sophia. She appeared subtly different. With his enhanced vision, Cal noticed the shifts: her eyes appeared sharper and deeper in color, her shes seemed longer, her lips fuller, and her facial features more refined than before.

  Sophia had always been beautiful to Cal, but now, she seemed even more captivating.

  ***

  I slowly open my eyes at the study table in Sophia's room. In my line of sight, I see three people engrossed in their own tasks.

  Stretching, I get up from the table and walk over to them.

  “What’s this?” I ask Sophia.

  “It’s a Cat Backpack 0.2,” she replies. “Since we're going abroad, I’m adding a roller function so it can double as luggage. I’m also including a litter box and a food container for your ‘emergency’ needs...” Sophia began expining relentlessly, her excitement evident.

  I ignored her and continued inspecting the Cat Backpack 0.2 on my own.

  The design is minimal but functional—nothing fancy, but certainly not unattractive. It’s clear that Sophia prioritized functionality over aesthetics.

  ‘She’s definitely an engineer,’ I think to myself.

  The inside of the backpack is spacious, offering plenty of room to move around. But, something is missing.

  “Sophia,” I interrupt her enthusiastic expnation.

  “Yes...?” she looks at me, her eyes filled with concern.

  I study her for a moment.

  I recognize that look, 'It's the looks of a worker whose work is being critiqued by the boss.’

  “I think you missed something,” I say.

  “What... is it...?” Sophia asks, her voice tinged with weariness.

  “Where’s my fur container?”

  “What?”

  "My fur sheds frequently, so I need a container to collect it. Also, please make sure to gather all of it and don't throw any away from now on."

  "...," Sophia falls silent, merely watching me.

  Since she doesn’t say anything else, I walk toward Cal who is working.

  Something about him had changed. To be precise, his level had increased. I don’t remember the exact number, but it seems he gained around 20 to 30 levels.

  'He’s definitely an anomaly.' The rate at which his level rose in just a day is far from normal.

  'I wondered how someone truly levels up in this world,' I thought to myself.

  "Cal, how are you doing?" I asked, keeping my tone light to ease into the conversation.

  He gnced at me briefly before replying, "I’m mostly fine now, thank you."

  "Gd to hear that."

  Cal then hesitated, his gaze shifting slightly before he finally asked, "Seraphix, can I ask you something?"

  "Sure."

  "Before… why didn’t you help Sophia?"

  'Didn’t help?' I wondered, piecing his question together. 'Is he talking about me not helping with Cat Backpack 0.2? Sure, it’s my fault for falling asleep, but it’s not like Sophia woke me up. Besides, she could handle it on her own. I prefer to step in only when it’s something beyond her capabilities.'

  I took a moment to collect my thoughts before answering, "Because it was unnecessary."

  Cal seemed deep in thought before he asked, "So my actions before… were they also unnecessary?"

  I observed him for a moment. It was clear he was contributing significantly to Sophia’s work on the Cat Backpack. Besides, it wasn’t as if he had nothing to gain from it.

  "Perhaps, but in my opinion, that’s not entirely true," I said finally. "What’s considered necessary or unnecessary is subjective. For me, it was unnecessary because I gained nothing, and Sophia didn’t lose anything. But for you, didn’t you gain something from it?"

  'Probably Sophia’s favor,' I specuted.

  Cal reflected silently, staring at his palm. After some time, a faint smile appeared on his face, "You’re right. I did gain something. Thank you for thinking about me too."

  'Look at these two lovebirds,' I mused. 'Is this what love truly looks like?'

  "Don’t mention it," I said with a small smile. "I'll be watching over you all."

  'Since that was the job of an adult,' I added inwardly.

  ***

  Cal sat quietly on the floor, his head lowered in thought. Seraphix, poised and composed, sat beside him.

  He had just completed his work on Cat Backpack 0.2, but Sophia had mentioned further adjustments were needed. Now, he waited for her next instructions.

  Sophia, perched on his study table, was deeply absorbed in redesigning the Cat Backpack, her face covered with irritation.

  As he sat, Cal reflected on his actions during his time at Shira’s house. Seraphix had been right—Sophia didn’t need help, as she was never in danger. It was unthinkable that Shira would harm the child of another grand titleholder, let alone a Nine-Stroke beast tamer.

  Cal realized his impulsive actions were driven by his hatred for Shira.

  But still, Seraphix had confirmed that his actions weren’t entirely in vain. In the previous battle, he had managed to gain something.

  Without real danger to push him to his limits, Cal had been stuck in his own improvement. Seraphix must have recognized this and allowed him to fight the bear unimpeded.

  Knowing Shira wouldn’t kill him, it had been a rare opportunity to fight at his full potential.

  Cal realized that, despite Seraphix's habit of lounging around and dozing off, he might actually be quietly observing everything.

  'Right, he did say he'd be watching,' Cal thought.

  Curious, Cal gnced at Seraphix, who was sitting to his left.

  Seraphix was staring at something just beside him.

  Suddenly, Cal felt an odd stirring deep within.

  "Cal, do you know her?" Seraphix asked.

  Cal blinked in confusion. 'Who?' he wondered internally.

  Aside from Sophia, no one else was in the room.

  Before he could voice his thoughts, a sharp scream rang out from his right.

  "Ahh! Please don’t hurt me! Please!"

  The unexpected cry startled both Cal and Sophia. Without hesitation, Cal drew his mana gun, pointing it toward the source of the voice. His eyes locked onto the trembling figure, and his grip on the weapon loosened.

  "Ivanna?" Sophia’s voice cut through the tension.

  "Sister Sophia, please help me!" Ivanna whimpered, clinging to Sophia’s arm.

  Cal was momentarily taken aback but quickly regained his composure. Stepping forward, his expression hardened as he faced Ivanna.

  "Did you follow me here?" he asked, his voice firm.

  Ivanna hesitated before nodding.

  "Since when?" Cal pressed, furrowing his brows.

  "Since we left the castle," Ivanna whispered.

  Cal’s eyes widened in surprise. He hadn’t felt any hint of being followed.

  Then, as realization hit him, a cold sweat began to form. Ivanna had been sitting beside him the entire time.