Ninomiya Aika was the strongest in the world. Both Awakeners and non-Awakeners recognized this fact.

While other S-class Awakeners would carry an S-class gate raid, she would split the gate in half on her own. Her strength was nothing short of legendary, an undisputed truth with no room for debate.

[Can I beat Xiang Yu in a fight?]

Her strength was always a popular topic of discussion.

People wondered just how powerful Aika was. Could the combined might of all the other S-classes take her down? Could she take on mythical figures if they were around today? How about someone like Xiang Yu?

Some even dared to ask her such “vs” questions directly.

[I’ll tell you this, just for Mama…]

Aika herself found these questions laughable.

“Who would win in a fight?” There was no point in them speculating a hundred times over.

Because, in the end…

—she had never actually revealed her true power.

[If I used my full strength, I’d win, no matter who it was. I’ve never needed to go all out, though.]

[Why keep it hidden? Well, it’s like this. Back when I was in Korea…]

She first hid her strength during her cadet days when she accidentally ended up in an S-class gate.

An S-class gate—the kind infamous for being beyond death itself. Even in her arrogance back then, she’d been a bit nervous at first…

But, surprisingly, it was nothing. In fact, she was yawning before it was over.

She even wondered if she’d somehow stumbled into a C-class gate instead.

So, she half-heartedly swung her sword around and walked out. And then? Seo Ha-yeon was horrified, Korea was in an uproar, and Japan practically begged her to return. They crowned her the strongest Awakener, awarding her the title of S-rank #1.

…And she hadn’t even used half her power.

[It was then I realized—I’m too strong.]

That’s when Aika decided to start holding back.

People were already treating her like a living strategic nuke. Nothing good would come from showing her true strength. Besides, she hadn’t needed to go all out anyway.

And above all,

[But Mama… who would want to marry a woman that strong?]

A woman who could single-handedly fold an S-class gate in half… didn’t exactly fit the image of a gentle wife and homemaker, did it?

So, ever since then, she had hidden her strength.

She would claim, *“I’m actually quite frail. It’s a struggle for me to just fold the gate in half. Anything beyond that is just too much. I may seem strong, but I’m actually a delicate woman.”*

‘Wait, so that gorilla was holding back her strength all this time!?’

Of course, no one ever saw her as delicate. Even the bit of strength she allowed herself to show was on a whole different level.

Gong and Seo Ha-yeon often joked that she was just a strong gorilla, and most others saw her as a walking bomb.

In the end, no one ever thought of Aika as a “woman who needed to be protected.”

“Are you hurt anywhere!? Oh, my frail master…!!”

“…?”

That is, until this moment, when her student came running to her.

Aika’s eyes went round with surprise.

‘What did he just call me? Delicate…?’

Delicate. It was a word she’d never heard in reference to herself. From a young age, she was a kendo prodigy. She had dominated kendo tournaments during her school years, and as an Awakener, she commanded the world.

Not even her parents had ever called her delicate, and even Aika herself could never quite think of herself that way.

But Yu-jin… her student?

He was worried if she’d gotten hurt from taking down a few monsters. His face was on the verge of tears, like he’d been the one to get hurt.

I’m being treated like a delicate woman.

For the first time, a delighted smile crept up her face.

‘Hoo-hoo. This… isn’t so bad….’

—Clench.

‘This must be that “miracle” they talked about, right?’

Meanwhile, Yu-jin looked gravely serious.

“You’ll experience a miracle,” the high priest had said before we entered the gate.

And, sure enough, here was that miracle.

An unprecedented S+++ grade gate. We’d barely entered before being swarmed by monsters.

And right at that moment, his master had broken through her limits? She’d wiped out over fifty monsters in one second?

There was no other way to describe it but a miracle. If it wasn’t, the only other explanation would be that she had been hiding her strength all along… but even in his past life, she had never done such a thing.

‘There’s no way Master would deliberately hold back her power. If that were the case, during the EX-grade gate, she definitely would have…’

—Ding.
[Skill “Complete Hypnosis” reluctantly proceeds to secure the door.]

‘…It’s a memory I’d rather forget, but she wasn’t this strong back then, was she?’

For some reason, the last moment of that memory felt hazy. Regardless…

Yu-jin deemed this a “miracle.” His master’s temporary transcendence of her limits was a miracle bestowed by the “divine” being that priest had spoken of.

‘That old man suffered three days and nights just from a prophecy. Even for Master, there has to be some backlash…!!’

He remembered the conversation from before.

The high priest had said he’d suffered three days and nights after receiving the “Holy Lady’s” prophecy.

If this “miracle” was the same as the “miracle” his master had just performed?

…Wouldn’t his master also suffer some form of overload?!

Wielding power this overwhelming was bound to come with a price. There had to be some awful recoil.

No way. I can’t bear to see my delicate master suffer. I need to protect her.

“Let me carry you! I’ll take you somewhere safe!”

[Hey, Yu-jin? What are you doing to Ninomiya?]

[Oh, Gong! Please help heal her! My master’s hurt!]

[You’re saying the person who just sliced through fifty monsters in one second is… hurt?]

[I’m not entirely sure, but this miracle had to have come with a price, right? She must have overload symptoms like the high priest!]

[It looked more like she was just using her own power. Maybe she just stopped pretending to be weak.]

[That’s impossible! My delicate master would never handle something like this!!]

“……”

‘He’s so blinded by love it’s unreal.’

To Gong, the scene was ridiculous, but to Aika, it was pure joy.

For the first time, someone was treating her as fragile.

She was happy that her student was so worried about her.

“U-um… I think I might have a slight fever? Could you feel my forehead and check, Yu-jin?”

“Huh? Oh, sure!!”

—Pat.

“Hmm… you don’t seem to have a fever, but you do feel slightly warm….”

“……”

‘His face is so close!’

Taking advantage of this, she pretended to have a fever just to get a bit of closeness.

“I feel a bit of muscle ache in my leg too….”

—Massage, massage.

‘…He’s so cute, giving me a massage like that!’

Or she had him massage her legs.

“Yu-jin, I think Ninomiya is satisfied now…”

“No. She needs at least ten more minutes to rest.”

“…You could at least stop with the lap pillow?”

“She said it was comfortable here.”

“……”

Taking this opportunity, she subtly requested a lap pillow, getting to indulge in all the things she’d secretly wanted to try.

[Ninomiya. You…]

[Shut up. I’ll kill you. Don’t say a word.]

[I understand, but we’re still inside a gate. Could you please refrain from acting so ridiculous?]

[Just ten more minutes. Ah, my student is so cute~ He’s like a little puppy~.]

[……]

‘So that’s what happens if you don’t marry by thirty-two. I can’t end up like that.’

Of course, her reputation took a bit of a hit for it.

—Whisper, whisper.

“Sia, come on, let’s take out that bitch together…!!!”

“This is cute, honestly. Just leave her be.”

“Sia!!!?”

Alice, watching from the back, seethed with irritation, but Aika herself was immensely happy.

In any case, things were going well.

---

As soon as we entered the gate, my master performed a miracle. I was initially worried she’d collapse, but thankfully, she soon regained her composure.

Rather than being drained, she was practically glowing, as if she’d just been refreshed.

“Phew~ Thanks, Yu-jin. I feel like I’ve recovered a bit of my strength.”

“I’m glad. So, Master, how do you want to approach this gate raid?”

“I’d like to take the lead, but I’m afraid that would be too much in my current state. My energy is quite depleted.”

Yet her exhaustion seemed only skin-deep.

She still looked flushed, her breathing warm and heavy, her eyes glistening slightly. She was even leaning into my support, practically nestling in my arms.

She was in no condition to fight at full power.

“What should we do then? Should we let the American Awakeners and the Vietnam Liberation Army handle the fighting?”

“No

. The monsters are much stronger than usual. If they step in, there will be casualties.”

“……”

The situation was dire.

The gate we’d expected to be just S+ turned out to be S+++, with even a transcendent involved.

And our greatest asset, my master, was too exhausted to fight.

If we raided the gate without her, there would surely be casualties. This wasn’t just an S-class gate but an S+++ one. No matter how much Gong and I gave it our all, it wouldn’t be enough.

—Glance.

‘Bringing Sia and Alice here was a mistake. I was too complacent…!!’

Regret surged through me.

If it had been a regular S+ gate, I thought I’d be able to handle it no matter what. I’d even brought my wives, believing that they’d be safe with my master there…

I was too complacent.

I assumed that just because the A-class gate only rose to A+, this one would follow a similar pattern.

That assumption led us to an S+++ gate.

…A situation where my wives could actually die.

I ground my teeth.

‘What should I do? How can I make sure, at the very least, that my wives survive…?’

—Tap, tap.

“Ahem. About that, I have an idea.”

“Yes, please tell me.”

My regret was momentary; I quickly focused on my master’s words, hoping she had some plan in mind.

“Instead of me, you will lead the raid. You’ll take the vanguard and defeat the monsters on your own.”

“…What?”

“I trust you, my disciple.”

…Isn’t that a little too much faith?

I shook my head.

“I’m sorry, but it’s impossible.”

“I’ll provide backup, and Gong will help too…”

“Even so, it’s impossible. My mana pool has its limits.”

I’d already thought of it more than once: that since this was my mistake, I should be the one to correct it.

But it’s just not feasible.

With my current mana pool, I could maybe take down ten monsters before running dry. The rest of the time, I’d just be a bystander.

The best I could do now would be to stay close to Gong and offer some guidance…

—Tap, tap.

[Come along. I have something to show you in private.]

“Ahem. I’ll be right back after speaking with my student.”

“……?”

Sensing my helplessness, my master led me to a secluded corner.

She said there was something she wanted to show me.

And then, Master…

[What is it? What could you possibly…]

—Tap, tap, tap. Shooow!

“What do you think? Isn’t it amazing?”

“Wow!!”

…She showed me something truly incredible.