Supreme Warlock System : From Zero to Ultimate With My Wives-Chapter 368: I’m Learning Things

Selena shifted, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. "It's not normal, is it?"

"No."

"Does it hurt?"

He paused.

Then he gave her that small smile again. "Only sometimes."

She lowered her gaze.

"You don't have to push yourself like this," she said quietly.

"I know." He looked down at the towel now stained with ash and sweat in his hand. "That's the thing," he murmured. "Now that I'm not alone… I'm scared of losing it."

Selena didn't say anything at first. She wasn't sure she needed to. She just stood there beside him, the scent of scorched stone and burned monsters still clinging faintly to the air.

Then, as if catching himself being too serious for too long, Damian straightened and rubbed the back of his neck with a small, sheepish laugh.

"Anyway," he said, voice lighter now, like he was trying to reset the mood, "I'm probably gonna have to fix this place before Cassius sees it and kicks me out."

Selena blinked and looked over her shoulder at the mess of the training hall. The floor was cracked in multiple places, some of the summoning circles had deep scorch marks carved into them, and one of the walls had collapsed halfway inward from some earlier explosion. Smoke still curled lazily from one of the stone support beams.

"…Yeah," she muttered. "It kind of looks like a dungeon boss used this place as a chew toy."

Damian grinned, throwing the towel over his shoulder like a casual bard after a gig. "Well, it was a productive grind session."

She laughed, a quiet thing that surprised even her. It felt good to hear him speak like that—to see this side of him again, the one that teased, that smiled, that didn't look like he was always preparing for the end of the world.

"I can help, you know," she offered after a beat. "With the repairs."

Damian raised an eyebrow, amused. "Appreciate the offer, Princess, but I got it covered. I've got some cool spells for this stuff. Plus, my shadow servants are pretty handy."

Selena folded her arms. "You can even fix all this? Like, restore walls and stone and all that?"

He shrugged, trying not to look too proud. "Yeah. I mean, it took some trial and error. Mostly error. But I figured it out."

Her brow rose. "Cassius taught you?"

Damian's grin turned sheepish. He glanced to the side, not quite meeting her gaze.

"…No. I, uh… taught myself."

She stared. "You taught yourself magic repair?"

He rubbed the back of his neck again. "Let's just say when you blow up one or two… okay, five rooms over the span of a month, you start to realize hiring people every time gets expensive. And Cassius gave me that look one too many times."

Selena blinked. "What look?"

"The 'if-you-break-my-library-again-I'm-feeding-you-to-the-walls' look."

She laughed again, genuinely now, and Damian looked relieved to hear it.

"Honestly," he said, stepping away from the wall and glancing around the ruined chamber, "I probably only need half an hour. Some [Fix], a few shadow servants for lifting the big chunks, and we'll be good. Easy."

Selena took a small step forward, her smile dimming just slightly. "So… after that… what happens next?"

Damian turned his head, eyes flicking back toward her.

She hesitated, then spoke again. "What can I do? If I want to stay? With you?"

The question hung there.

Raw. Exposed.

Damian blinked.

Selena's heart thudded painfully in her chest. She hadn't meant to be that direct. Or maybe she had. It was hard to tell anymore. But she meant it. She wasn't asking out of curiosity. She wasn't here to be polite.

She was here because she didn't want to go.

And he knew it.

He looked down for a long moment, then said, quietly, "Your dad's permission."

Selena's breath caught.

"You'll need that," Damian added. "If you want to stay."

She looked down at her hands, fingers tightening slightly. "So that's it?"

He looked at her. "Selena…"

"I'm not a kid," she said, voice soft but firm. "I know what's out there. I know what you're fighting. I chose to be here."

"I know you did," Damian said, sighing. "But your father is the High Fae Lord of one of the most politically explosive territories in the entire alliance. You disappearing into a warlock's manor after the council just tried to kill you? That's a diplomatic bomb waiting to go off."

"I don't care about politics."

"I do."

That stopped her.

"I care about you too much not to," he said.

Her throat tightened.

They stood there, quiet again.

After a moment, Damian stepped closer. His voice was lower now, steadier.

"I'm not saying no. I'm saying I don't want your choice to blow back on your people. Or on you. Or on us. If your father gives you permission… it'll make it easier for both of us to breathe."

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Selena met his gaze. "And if he doesn't?"

Damian was quiet.

"…Then we'll figure it out," he said finally.

Her heart squeezed at that.

She wanted to kiss him.

Gods, she wanted to.

But she didn't. Not yet.

Instead, she nodded and stepped back slightly, glancing once more toward the ruined chamber.

"Guess I'll leave you to your fixing, then."

"Guess you will."

But before she could turn, he added, softer this time—

"I meant it. I want you here."