---
"I can handle many things," he said.
Elena stared at him.
"You cannot handle women," Elena said.
Sekhmet's mouth opened. Then closed.
Elena's tone remained simple.
"You survived purgatory," Elena said. "That does not mean you understand girls."
Sekhmet felt insulted. He also felt she was right, which was worse.
An hour passed.
Sekhmet returned to the library briefly, but his focus was not as sharp. His mind kept drifting toward the hallway where Lily had taken Bat Bat.
He tried to read supplier lists again. He tried to write auction plans. But he kept imagining Bat Bat asking Lily about jam and Lily teaching Bat Bat how to braid hair.
He did not know why that image felt more dangerous than fighting an orc.
Then, inside his mind, a system notification chimed quietly.
[Ding! System notification- Bat Bat Mental Knowledge: increased.
Current Mental Knowledge: 20%]
Sekhmet froze. His fingers stopped on the page. "What," he thought sharply.
