Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 82: The Stolen Divine Blood

The basket jolted, and Myss rolled right onto Salaar. Both of their bodies were light and soft, and Myss bounced instinctively, almost launching himself out of the basket.

Salaar instinctively reached out to grab him, but unfortunately, the doll’s hands had no fingers. In his desperation, the Great Hero had a sudden idea. He opened his mouth and bit down, using his cloth mouth to clamp onto Myss’s long cotton-thread hair.

Just then, the bread cloth was lifted.

Cousin Mag had a stern expression on her round face as she silently looked at the two dolls stacked together. Exposed suddenly to the light, the two dolls froze instinctively, while Myss’s cotton-thread hair was still caught in Salaar’s mouth.

Mag’s hand loosened, and the bread cloth fell back into place.

Father Kalen: “…”

Father Kalen cleared his throat. “That is what happened, Madam. I’m willing to swear to the Lord that they absolutely didn’t touch anything recklessly. They didn’t even leave the room.”

“But you told Redding that you didn’t know where they had gone.” Mag frowned.

She had been called back temporarily by Redding, so her hair was a bit disheveled, and there were still damp traces of sweat at her temples.

Father Kalen subconsciously paused. In truth, he wasn’t very good at dealing with nobles. Before this, his older brother Hermit had always been responsible for such things.

Fortunately, when they hurried over, Salaar had sent out Knife and taught him a set of talking points in advance.

Father Kalen slowly spoke. “Yes, I concealed the truth from Mr. Redding. Likewise, we hope you can keep this secret.”

“You know Sa… Kendrick’s current situation. Right now, he has no ability to protect himself. Your brothers and sisters have many connections here. If this matter gets out, their situation will become even more difficult.”

“I can also crush him to death with one hand.”

Mag sat back in her seat, interlaced her fingers, and elegantly supported her chin.

“We all believe you’re not that kind of person,” Father Kalen said earnestly.

Strictly speaking, only Salaar and Tass had firmly insisted that Mag wasn’t the sort of person who would carry out meaningless slaughter. As for Myss… Myss was still Myss. Compared to Mag’s moral character, he was more interested in poking Salaar’s cotton belly.

Mag stared fixedly at Father Kalen for a while. There was no warmth in those lapis-lazuli eyes, neither agreement nor denial.

“You chose correctly.”

Only after a long while did Mag finally speak.

“If you had still insisted on that ‘missing whereabouts’ story, I would have immediately reported the matter to the royal family and the Karns family and dug three feet into the ground to find those two little beasts.”

“As for now… I’ll tell Redding and the others that I found Kendrick and Myss making out in a broom closet. I decided to lock them in my confinement room until the chaos is resolved.”

Father Kalen let out a sigh of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

“However.”

Mag continued mercilessly, “From now on, all of you must cooperate unconditionally with my investigation.”

“Tsk!” A little bump under the bread cloth moved. From the sound of it, it seemed to be Myss.

Mag tilted her head, signaling for the priest to place the bread basket on her desk. A stir came from under the bread cloth, and the two entangled dolls rolled out together.

The Salaar doll was tangled in the Myss doll’s cotton-thread hair and had no idea how to untangle himself, so he could only move around while dragging the hair. Myss grew irritated from being tugged around by him and punched back with his soft little fist, only for the two of them to become even more tightly tangled.

Tass leaned alone in a corner of the basket. Somehow, his button eyes actually showed a hint of disdain.

Mag sighed and deftly untangled the mess of hair. She lifted the Salaar doll, but when she raised her hand, she discovered that the Myss doll had come up with him. He had bitten onto Salaar’s pant leg, his garnet eyes watching Mag warily.

Mag: “…”

She casually tugged, only to find that Myss’s bite force was astonishing. Not only did she fail to pull Myss off, she almost pulled Salaar’s pants off with him.

“Enough. I’m not planning to do anything to Kendrick.” She shook her head wearily. “It’s just… the abnormality on your bodies is not the first time it has appeared.”

“Is it the ‘that’ Mr. Raymond mentioned earlier?” Tass asked curiously.

“Yes and no. All I can tell you is that someone in the United Library has also turned into a doll. They were all highly respected seniors who had worked here for a very long time.”

When she spoke to Tass, Mag’s tone became much lighter and softer.

“At present, they have lost their magic power are being carefully watched over and treated. So—”

“So we’re more suitable for research,” the Salaar doll said. He tried hard to hold onto his pants with his hand to prevent Myss from pulling them down.

“No, ‘you’ are more suitable for research.”

When her gaze turned to Salaar, Mag’s tone became icy again. “I told you not to expect me to help you. This is only a transaction.”

“Ah, all right,” Salaar whined pitifully. “But I’m very curious. Have you tried taking those affected seniors out of the United Library? Maybe this place is cursed.”

He was probing for the boundary of the Divine Realm. Myss immediately pricked up his nonexistent ears.

“Of course we tried. It was useless. Even taking them out of Serpentia was useless.”

Mag used a tone of “did you really need to tell me such a basic thing to try?” as she spoke. “We found no trace of a curse, nor could we find any common factor among those affected. Thanks to you, now that common factor is even harder to find.”

So leaving this place is useless, Myss thought.

To be honest, Myss disliked this state.

Stripped of all his magic, with no idea how to recover it, it felt as if his feet were treading on thin air. He suddenly realized that if Salaar died in front of him, he wouldn’t even be able to do anything.

As for his own death… To be honest, Myss had never imagined it. Consequently, now that such a situation had arrived, he was overcome by a disorienting sense of unreality.

Countless thoughts surged chaotically, nearly seizing up Myss’s brain.

He didn’t know what he should think or what he should do, like a fish thrown onto the beach for the first time.

No. It wasn’t that solid.

A fish could still feel the existence of the sand beneath it, while he had stepped into empty air and was still falling.

Myss discovered in surprise that this heart of his, which could function normally, had to be built on some sort of solid foundation. For example, his vast and boundless power, or…

Myss bit Salaar’s pants tighter, even taking the soft ankle into his cotton mouth.

Salaar wasn’t afraid, so he wouldn’t be the first to retreat.

Myss flailed his short limbs and swung upward with all his strength, finally climbing onto Salaar’s body. Amid Salaar’s cries of “Hey, hey,” Myss successfully climbed onto Salaar’s soft cloth head and wrapped all four limbs around him.

“Tell us what happened.” Lord Archdemon finally managed to say now that his mouth was free.

Mag raised a brow.

“I’m more useful than this guy. That elephant professor wouldn’t write letters of introduction for two useless people.”

“If we can help that elephant solve his troubles, we can help you too. You’re much weaker than him, aren’t you?”

Myss hissed, squeezing Salaar’s head slightly out of shape.

“That makes some sense,” Mag conceded, her fingertips lightly tapping the desk.

That priest wasn’t weak, and he also didn’t look like someone with ulterior motives. That Dragon Fae had some fame and liked acting alone. It was impossible that they would follow two completely incompetent.

As for this Myss, if he could get tangled up with her deranged cousin, he must have some ability. Not to mention that attitude of superiority ingrained in his bones was incredibly difficult to fake.

“I don’t have the authority to tell you all the details. But I can still tell you the general situation. So far, our guess is a ‘malicious experiment by the Stargazers Society.’”

Mag released her hand and placed the two dolls on a handkerchief. Tass staggered over, and the three dolls sat in a row in front of Mag.

Hearing the key phrase “Stargazers Society,” the priest’s brows immediately furrowed. He stepped forward two steps and stood directly in front of the desk, his shadow almost covering Mag.

Mag paid it no mind. “Three weeks ago, high-purity ‘Divine Blood’ was stolen from the storage room.”

“At first, we thought it was another rotten incident like the Nebula family’s, that someone was fantasizing about creating a ‘Child of Divine Blood’… However, after that, my superior turned into a doll.”

According to Mag, the United Library had thoroughly investigated everything the transformed people ate, wore, and used, but failed to find anything abnormal. After that, several more senior scholars turned into crude cloth dolls, and people had no solution.

When the people of the United Library said they had “no solution,” it wasn’t on the same level as ordinary people saying they had “no solution.”

The moment Professor Gentry heard that they wanted to research Divine Blood, he had recommended the United Library to them, and naturally, he had his reasons.

The United Library was an institution directly under the Aufon royal family, a paradise for researchers.

Almost all the books and materials in the world had copies in the United Library. As for rare things mentioned in the books, the United Library would store samples of them, and it was equipped with Aufon’s top laboratories.

Every employee of the library was an elite at the national level. They wandered through rivers of information and lingered in forests of materials, trying to find lost truths within them.

When people like this couldn’t find the reason for the abnormality, the atmosphere in the library became increasingly tense.

“…All we know is that everything began with the ‘theft of Divine Blood.’ And the Stargazers’ secret letters intercepted by the royal family also mentioned ‘Divine Blood research.’”

Mag concluded, “At present, we suspect that there is a Stargazer hiding inside the United Library. He, or she, is using local materials to conduct dangerous research.”

“Well? Has this inspired anything?”

Myss resentfully rubbed his face.

They had come excitedly to investigate Divine Blood, only to step right into the very midst of a Divine Blood crisis. Truly this was the classic case of “someone getting a pillow just when one’s about to get sleepy”. 

Salaar hesitated. “Those people who turned into dolls, were they ‘Children of Divine Blood’?”

Mag burst out laughing. “How could that be? Children of Divine Blood have a hard enough time becoming normal people, let alone entering the United Library.”

“Leaving aside everything else, this Dragon Fae has no father or mother. It’s even more impossible for him to be a ‘Child of Divine Blood.’”

Tass nodded solemnly. “I’ve never seen Divine Blood in my life.”

“Just in case.” The Salaar doll squeezed closer to Myss. “We don’t understand this. First bring out all the materials related to Divine Blood.”

Myss, meanwhile, was thinking furiously.

Previously, the ones who transformed had all been senior scholars? Judging by V.O.R’s pattern, maybe the transformation standard was “magic genius.”

Before he had time to tell Salaar this guess, he heard—

“If possible, please help me search for the notes of the Order of Shadows,” the priest said. “There are many records of strange incidents inside. Perhaps they can provide some reference.”

Mag’s smile faded as she pursed her lips. “Actually, after reading Professor Gentry’s letter, I’ve had a question this entire time.”

“…What exactly is the ‘Order of Shadow?”

---

The author has something to say:

Priest: ???

Priest: The veil of the Lord of Shadows really is impenetrable… [please]

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 81: Three Little Buns

Tass beat his wings in terror, but he couldn’t fly even after trying for ages. His exquisite wings had transformed into rough cloth pieces stuffed with a thin layer of cotton, the stitches sparse and clumsy.

Then he immediately confirmed it by raising his little burlap hands, which had no fingers. Judging by his movements, he seemed to be casting a spell. In the end, he plopped down on the ground. “I can’t use magic anymore!”

Myss bent down and picked up the dejected Dragon Fae.

The Tass doll felt soft and fluffy. His limbs and body were all round and plump. Cotton and scraps of cloth had puffed out his “body” by a whole circle, and the slender elegance unique to Dragon Fae had vanished completely.

Myss gave him a couple of amazed squeezes; the doll’s body was indeed filled with cotton. The only hard things left on Tass were his eyes, which were made of emerald buttons.

“Wow… Wow, it actually doesn’t hurt.”

Tass’s mouth, sewn from red cloth, opened and closed, making him look exactly like a hand puppet. “So this is the United Library’s ‘that’? A curse that turns people into dolls?”

Despite everything, the Dragon Fae was an assassin by trade after all, so he didn’t panic for long. He twisted his soft, floppy body, cooperatively analyzing their current predicament.

Myss blinked, confidently dilated his pupils, and searched for the core of this “transformation magic.” Immediately, another chill crawled up his back. There were no traces of magic on this doll.

If it weren’t hopping, jumping, and speaking in Tass’s voice, Myss would only have taken it for an ordinary doll.

A vague, unsettling premonition began to take shape in Myss’s mind. It was entirely possible they were already inside a Divine Realm.

If that was true, then this Divine Realm was eerily silent. Myss could neither see its core nor sense that special atmosphere. If such an absurd thing hadn’t happened, he probably still wouldn’t have noticed its existence.

A crack opened in that reassuring feeling, like being wrapped in a warm blanket, and a cold wind leaked in. Myss shrank slightly and tossed the Dragon Fae doll to Salaar.

Salaar understood and caught Tass, gently turning him over to examine him. “Father, we need to adjust the plan. Take Sir Tass and leave the United Library first to see what happens.”

Kalen: “You mean…”

“It feels a little like a Divine Realm phenomenon. We need to confirm whether there’s a boundary first,” Salaar said. “We…”

Pop.

Salaar’s figure vanished. The Tass doll let out a string of high-pitch squeals, “Ahh! Ahh! Ahh!”, as it tumbled and rolled across the ground. Another doll, a black-haired, blue-eyed doll, appeared out of thin air and landed as steadily as possible on one knee.

That pose would have looked rather handsome on a normal person, but when a doll did it, it was only comical. Unfortunately, before he could steady himself, Knife fell with a smack onto the Salaar doll and flattened him.

“Mr. Salaar?!” Father Kalen’s voice cracked a little.

Myss sucked in a cold breath. With lightning speed, he picked up the Salaar doll and pinched it between his fingers.

…It actually felt pretty nice.

The black hair was made from yarn dyed dark, ash-grey, and the eyes were gemstone buttons of the same type as Tass’s.

Tass’s emerald eyes were round and shiny, but Salaar’s lapis-lazuli buttons were flat ovals, somehow making him look a little gloomy. The doll’s clothes were also simplified versions of what they were wearing. Myss cheerfully stretched out his claws and went to strip off the Salaar doll’s clothes.

Salaar: “Wait a moment.”

“Tass has wings, so he’s hard to undress. This is rigorous research.” Myss vigorously kneaded the Salaar doll’s cheeks. He had a hard time saying whether he should be wary of the current situation or enjoy it. The Salaar doll was only about the size of a fist, and Myss could knead and rub him however he liked, which was truly a satisfying experience.

Salaar: “…”

Salaar: “Fine, I’ll undress myself.”

The Great Hero raised his fingerless soft cloth hands and slid them over the tiny buttons again and again. Under Myss’s mocking gaze, he failed to undo even half a button.

The Salaar doll sighed and resigned himself to lying flat in Myss’s palm, going still.

Myss curiously pulled open the doll’s crude coat, the shirt with only three buttons, and the pants with frayed cuffs.

The clothes weren’t sewn onto Salaar’s body. However, the body Salaar revealed was also nothing more than a pure human-shaped cloth piece. Myss poked his enemy’s roughly made cotton belly and suddenly realized that tonight, there would probably be no hero cushion to sleep on.

“Have you looked enough?” Salaar’s emotions were quite steady. “Help me put it back on, please. It’s a little cold like this.”

After saying that, he paused and looked at Myss with his large lapis-lazuli eyes. “Also, I can’t use healing magic… Be careful.”

“You two didn’t do anything special. This isn’t normal.”

Father Kalen picked up the Dragon Fae who had rolled far away and patted the dust off his cloth wings.

He looked deeply worried. “Sir Tass is a Dragon Fae, naturally prone to being affected. Mr. Salaar is human, so how did he become like this too?”

“I’m completely stumped,” Tass said dizzily.

“I’ve only been traveling with you guys for a short while, yet it’s been nothing by bizarre occurrences I’ve never heard of… It’s all a bit too thrilling…”

Myss had no interest in joining the conversation. But just now, he likewise hadn’t detected anything abnormal.

Now that “Kendrick Karns” was gone, their plan had to be adjusted again. They needed to think of a way to handle Cousin Mag…

Myss stuffed Salaar’s soft cloth arm back into the sleeve. He unhappily discovered that dressing a doll was much more troublesome than undressing one.

“Be gentler. You’re about to twist my arm all the way around,” the Salaar doll protested.

“It doesn’t hurt anyway,” Myss replied, casually tossing Knife onto him.

Knife curiously looked at the shrunken Salaar, using its tongue to curl over the doll’s face again and again.

“But it feels very strange, and it makes movement inconvenient.”

Salaar poked him with a soft hand and raised his round head. “How about this? Let’s go outside together first. Maybe the abnormality will wear off.”

“I agree!” Tass immediately cried.

For a Dragon Fae, being unable to fly was truly troublesome. Heaven knew how long it had been since he had properly walked.

“I have no objections,” Father Kalen said cautiously. “If leaving this place can free you from the abnormality, I can ask the magpies here, and we can all find another hiding place together.”

Myss shrugged, tacitly agreeing.

He took a small cloth pouch from his waist and fixed it to the belt across his chest. Then he stuffed Salaar and Knife inside. The Salaar doll twisted in the pouch for a moment, then poked his head out. “Let’s go.”

Myss puffed out his chest, held his head high, and took a confident stride forward—

Pop!

Myss: “?”

He discovered in terror that his body was falling. His body had become incredibly light. More accurately, it was as light as a cloth lump stuffed with cotton.

…What the hell? This damn place was completely unreasonable!

Myss landed on the floor in shock; the floor tiles looked dozens of times larger than he remembered. The Salaar doll, still wrapped inside the cloth pouch, failed to make a proper landing and smacked right onto his body.

Fortunately, Mr. Hero wriggled in time, and the two cotton lumps rolled aside, avoiding being hit by Fork and Knife immediately afterward.

“Wow.” Fork shook the tip of its tail, its snake eyes looking at Myss. “Want me to fetch you a tea towel?”

Myss subconsciously lowered his head. Then he tragically discovered that he was stark naked. With his magic ineffective, all that remained on his body was a bright pinkish-white.

He turned his head and saw smooth cotton thread dyed gray-white. Looking down again, there were two round, bulging rough-cloth paws, almost identical to Salaar’s.

Myss had just been about to get angry when something warm suddenly appeared over his back. He rubbed his head toward it, and the thing in front of his eyes was clearly Salaar’s coat.

Salaar’s navy coat was somewhat long, while a doll’s cotton limbs were too short. Once covered by this thing, Lord Archdemon looked much more respectable.

“Just in case, you should still wear it. Otherwise, if we suddenly recover, you’ll be running naked in front of everyone.”

Salaar waved his soft cloth hands, working hard to help Myss put the coat on.

Myss sniffed the coat. He was surprised to discover that although he had no nose, his sense of smell was still there. And that rough navy coat was indeed soaked with Salaar’s scent.

He grumbled twice and struggled to stuff his body into it.

Tass: “Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk.”

Seeing the huge human turn into a little thing about the same size as him, the Dragon Fae’s mood lifted quite considerably.

Kalen looked at the three palm-sized little dolls and fell into bewildered silence.

Apart from tragically losing his clothes, the Myss doll looked as if he had been made by the exact same pair of hands as the other two.

Only, the Myss doll’s hair used finer cotton thread with more luster, and his eyes were half-round garnet buttons, making him look somewhat furious.

…Is it my turn next? Father Kalen couldn’t help thinking.

His right hand unconsciously moved to his chest, and he prayed a couple of sentences to the Lord of Shadows.

The other three dolls clearly had similar thoughts. Three pairs of gemstone buttons stared straight at the priest. The clock pendulum swayed back and forth like a noose, but the moment of the priest’s transformation never arrived.

“There must be another reason.” The Salaar doll symbolically scratched his head. “Assuming it’s an indiscriminate change, there wouldn’t be so many people outside.”

“Also, Mag knows there’s a Dragon Fae in our team. If the environment were this terrible, she definitely would have told us in advance.”

“But do the three of us have anything in common?” the Myss doll asked suspiciously. “And it has to be something the priest doesn’t possess.”

A Chaos Archdemon, Saint Salaar, and a pure magical lifeform that only appeared after the Night Scourge. The commonalities among them could be counted on one hand.

“Let me think… Have you killed people?” the Salaar doll ventured a guess, taking the strictly factual approach.

Father Kalen was silent for a moment. “I have killed people before.”

“Could it be because the three of us all know magic?” Tass rubbed his chin. “No, that’s not right. That’s too broad. The humans outside must all be proficient in magic.”

“We all don’t have parents?” Myss pondered aloud.

Salaar, Tass, and Father Kalen: “…”

Salaar: “…Probably not. Father Kalen doesn’t either.”

Myss: “Oh.”

Father Kalen: “…………”

The three of them chattered and guessed for several minutes but truly couldn’t unearth any clues. Salaar habitually pressed his temple and almost pressed his head into a funnel shape.

To be honest, if Tass hadn’t been affected, he could have steered his guesses toward the body-swap ritual, or even that so-called “Child of Divine Blood.” Now, however, the change had come without any trace. They couldn’t even pull out a loose end for a clue.

Father Kalen uneasily waited for a long time. After discovering that he truly hadn’t changed, only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

He looked around the room, grabbed the small bread basket, placed the three dolls that looked like little buns inside, and gently covered them with a bread cloth.

“May His Veil shroud you,” the priest prayed, his words fitting the occasion perfectly. “Let’s go. First, we’ll leave this place.”

He looped the basket over his arm. Just as his body turned toward the door, he heard a knock.

Knock, knock, knock.

“It’s me, Redding,” the young man who had led them here called. “There are some problems with the procedure. You need to come with me… Hello? Is anyone there?”

The priest opened the door a crack. “Now is not very convenient. Could you come back in ten minutes?”

Redding’s gaze immediately became wary. He raised his right hand, revealing the bracelet-style wand on his wrist. Along with several quick breaths, a large number of bubbles gurgled out from the crack in the door. They expanded larger and larger, pushing open the door without allowing any refusal.

The priest had wanted to stop him, but considering the “little round buns” on his arm, he could only retreat two steps.

“I knew it.”

Redding walked into the room with a stern face. “Where are Kendrick Karns and Myss?”

Father Kalen was silent.

The premise of “the two of them went out on a date” was that Salaar and Myss could appear at the appropriate moment. Now the two were tucked under a bread cloth, and no one knew when they would recover.

He had to think of a more natural excuse.

“Listen. This place is not an inn or a tavern, and we’re not attendants. Even if you are guests introduced by Professor Gentry, you still have to follow the United Library’s rules.”

Redding raised his voice, enunciating each word with deliberate precision. “I clearly told you not to run around.”

“I’m sorry.” Father Kalen said with complete sincerity, “I turned around, and they were gone… I don’t know where they went either.” In a certain sense, this was the truth.

“…Since there’s a problem with the procedure, Tass and I are willing to leave this place first. Once you find those two, you can discuss it with them.”

Redding let out a short laugh, his expression a little bitter.

“I’m afraid that won’t work. You can’t leave,” he said. “The procedural problem is that we need to change your visit into a long-term visit.”

“A… minor incident has occurred. The latest notice is that before the matter is handled, no one can leave.”

Father Kalen looked at the bread basket, then at Redding, then again at the bread basket.

Whether the Lord of Shadows would use His veil to wrap and hide the three of them, he didn’t know.

But in this moment, Father Kalen understood. Next, he would have to use the bread cloth to wrap and hide his companions, who were as fragile as little buns.

“All right. We will cooperate.”

Father Kalen’s hand, still clutching the basket, drooped a little lower. “I have only one request. Please let us meet Lady Magnolia once more.”

---

The author has something to say:

Salaar: ???

Myss: ??? [baffled]

Tass: What’s so great about being tall? Once everyone turns into dolls, aren’t we all the same size? [dog head]

Kalen: (Lord of Shadows roleplaying game begins!)

————————————

Good news: This time, the Divine Realm’s aura is quite weak (?

Bad news: The aura on our side is even weaker (???

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 80: Burlap Doll

Not cause trouble? That was impossible.

Myss wiped his lips, his eyes gleaming even brighter than the freshly polished glasses just set out at a restaurant.

Salaar, meanwhile, remained perfectly composed and retreated to Father Kalen’s side. “Left hand?”

The priest’s left hand foretold ill fortune, while his right hand hid in shadows.

Even though this destination was one they had chosen, Salaar believed Father Kalen would definitely have performed a divination in advance.

The priest hadn’t warned them beforehand, which meant the result of this divination couldn’t be too terrible. Now, he needed to know exactly how “not too terrible” it was.

After all, the trip to the Rabbit Hole had also been “not too terrible,” yet they had still gone through quite an ordeal.

Father Kalen gently shook his head. “We’re lucky.”

Of course we are, Myss thought.

The Fallen Child was a mere human infant still wet behind the ears, and her divine form hadn’t even been able to take shape. The Perfected Creation had no brain and could only pursue simple obsessions.

Not long ago, they encountered the Prisoner of Dreams, who had both strength and a decent brain. However, Roman had been trapped underground, had exhausted most of his power saving people, and hadn’t been especially hostile toward them.

Strength, intelligence, hostility. So far, they hadn’t encountered an enemy who possessed all three.

Judging by the priest’s reaction, even if there was an Abnormal Fruit in this place, nothing too serious would happen. Myss confidently puffed out his chest. He and Salaar’s powers were both increasing, and he felt a reassuring sense of being wrapped in a warm blanket.

……

Mag jogged in small steps, leading the group straight toward the city library.

Myss had originally wanted to look more at the scenery of the big city, but he practically ended up being tucked under Salaar’s arm and carried forward. His attention was spent entirely on lowering his head and watching the road.

The members of the Karns family had astonishing physical stamina. When they reached their destination, Myss was already panting a little, while Mag’s breathing was only slightly disturbed.

Myss grumbled twice and raised his head to look at their destination.

Before them stood a square shaped building that resembled a monastery.

Its outer walls were built from clean white stone. Three-story buildings gathered on four sides, while round corner towers stood at all four corners, making it nearly the size of a small castle.

A large stretch of lawn had been left around the building, and beneath the walls were cypress trees with flame-like crowns. From afar, the entire building appeared to be burning amidst a sea of green fire.

Myss turned his gaze and saw a magnificent cathedral not far from the lawn. The passersby nearby were all dressed respectably, either wealthy or noble. Apparently, after running for most of the day, they had actually run all the way to the center of Serpentia.

“Serpentia Library.”

Salaar leaned slightly and explained to Myss in a low voice, “It had stood right here since the days of the Night Scourge.”

Back then, this place had been one of the tacitly acknowledged “sparks of civilization.” Pessimists had sent precious books and records here one after another, praying that after a thousand years had passed, those who came later would be able to retrieve firewood from the ruins and rekindle the flame of civilization.

Myss gave a non-committal grunt, showing little interest.

He truly didn’t like reading. Compared to picking apart those difficult words and phrases, Lord Archdemon would rather have Salaar explain things to him.

“Serpentia Saint Library.” Mag explained quickly. “Hurry up. Keep up with me.”

Salaar paused, his expression somewhat subtle. The moment the group entered the library’s front hall, Myss immediately understood the source of that subtlety.

Hanging prominently in the library’s foyer was a portrait of “Saint Salaar”.

Apart from golden hair and blue eyes, the person in the portrait bore no resemblance to the Salaar Myss knew. Salaar’s true appearance was indeed handsome, but it was a sharp, chiseled, almost statuesque beauty, like a blade glistening in the rain.

The person in the painting had soft, serene features and lowered eyes. With his eyes half-lidded and a faint, enigmatic smile playing on his lips, he wore an expression of such cloying benevolence that it gave Myss’s goosebumps. Looking at it made Myss’s fist itch with the urge to punch something.

“The Karns family donated many books and a great deal of funding. This place was renamed only a hundred years ago? Was it a hundred years? I forgot.”

Tass cut in with gossip at just the right time. “Anyway, they stuffed a lot of Saint Salaar elements into this place. You can even buy little wooden figurines of Saint Salaar.”

The Dragon Fae’s tone was exceptionally enthusiastic. Myss almost suspected that this kid had not become an assassin purely out of a sense of justice. His love of gossip was absolutely one of the reasons.

Salaar: “…Haa.”

The moment Myss heard Salaar sigh, he instantly perked up.

He deliberately flashed in front of Salaar and put on a soft, serene expression, trying hard to narrow his eyes and raise the corners of his lips, imitating that compassionate and punchable expression.

Salaar silently pinched his own philtrum, then sighed again.

However, when they passed through the front hall and officially entered the chapel-like main hall, Myss could no longer laugh. The four walls here were packed full of books. Dark wooden cabinets pressed close to stone pillars and walls carved with elegant reliefs, but that wasn’t the important part.

High above, across the vaulted ceiling, was emblazoned a vivid depiction of Saint Salaar battling the Chaos Archdemon.

The painter the library had commissioned was, thankfully, a cut above than the children’s book illustrator. At the very least, he hadn’t rendered the Chaos Archdemon as a bedsheet ghost meant to amuse toddlers. He had painted the Chaos Archdemon as a monster with long black fur and deformed goat horns.

The monster’s visage bore a resemblance of both a cat and a tiger, its head brisling with black horns that looked like cancerous growths, while its feet sprouted a multitude of sharp claws and tails, swarming like insects.

The painter had made it enormous, twisted, and elegant, filling most of the image like the night sky. At the center of the painting stood the radiant Saint Salaar: clad in platinum-white armor, draped in a platinum-white cloak, wielding a platinum-white blade, and crowned with hair of an almost platinum-white hue. His entire being resembled a pale, slender, crescent moon.

Saint Salaar was depicted in profile, his feet held fast by the Archdemon’s tail. Yet, even in this dire predicament, his gaze remained resolute as he thrust his blade towards the grotesque beast, which was roaring with its mouth agape.

A beautiful and tragic masterpiece.

…It would have been even more perfect if the people visiting it weren’t the parties involved.

Myss stared at that painting in disbelief, especially that “Saint Salaar” with the resolute expression. Heaven knew how badly he wanted to replace it with an image of Salaar throwing rainbow arrows all over the sky or making a miniature garden out of his tentacles.

“This is slander.” Myss glanced again at the beast with many feet and said in a hiss.

“Indeed.” Salaar stopped walking, rarely agreeing with him. “They never once painted the people who walked with me. Not even once.”

“Haven’t you seen enough at home? Keep up!” Not far away, Mag shouted loudly.

In Myss’s imagination, she would lead them toward the upper floors, just like the Red Amber had. The scenery of this place was nice, and the interior was spacious. As long as he didn’t look at those annoying paintings, Myss rather liked it.

However, Magnolia led them all the way to a certain tower and began heading underground.

This kind of tower structure spiraling downward was exactly the same as the previous underground ruins. It was most likely a classic building style from the Night Scourge period.

But unlike that time, magic devices that simulated the sun, moon, and stars floated in the hollow center, lighting the entire space as bright as day. From time to time, magic fluctuations silently surged over, then quietly withdrew after touching Mag. Myss guessed this was some kind of security magic.

Thank heavens, the Karns family’s reach didn’t extend to this area. The portraits hanging on the walls were all of unfamiliar people, not a grand collection of Saint Salaar art portraits.

“We’re here. This is the United Library.”

After more than ten minutes, Mag spoke dryly. “I can’t bring myself to say ‘welcome,’ so this will have to do.”

Passing through the door at the bottom of the tower, Myss couldn’t help sucking in a breath. After coming to the human world, he was shocked for the first time.

The United Library was like Serpentia Saint Library’s reflection.

Stone pillars were still stone pillars, and the shelves were still stuffed full of books. But the entire spatial structure was flipped upside down. The part that should have been the ground floated with star-like spherical lamps, and above the irregular “vaulted floor” was an added layer of transparent glass flooring.

Between the glass floor and the inverted vault, mysterious blue-purple liquid flowed silently. Mixed within it were many glittering particles of light, like a melted starry sky.

The windows were also still there. Outside them, some sort of projection magic device must have been used to cast sunlight realistic enough to deceive the eye, as well as beautiful mountain scenery that didn’t exist in this place.

Not long ago, Myss had thought Roman and his group were living rather well. But compared to this “underground world,” even Roman’s Divine Realm seemed shabby.

“By the God of Cadance, you’re back!”

A young man passed through the rapidly moving staff and rushed straight toward them.

Myss discovered in shock that this guy and the young man who had come looking for Mag earlier had been made from the same mold.

The two had identical long noses, freckled faces, messy walnut-brown hair, and even exactly the same coats.

“Redding.” Mag nodded wearily. “I heard about it from Raymond. I’ll go over right away.”

“These people are guests introduced by Professor Gentry. Take them to a guest room, then submit the letters of introduction… You know the process.”

Redding hastily looked over the group. His gaze paused on Myss’s face for half a second, then moved past Salaar, only to come to an abrupt stop and circle back.

“Kendrick Karns?” Redding hissed, sucking air through clenched teeth.

“Read the letters of introduction yourself. I don’t have time to explain this to you.” Mag rubbed her temples, a headache brewing. “Raymond, let’s going.”

“You’re twins?” After Mag left, Salaar took the initiative.

“Yes,” Redding answered flatly. It was obvious he didn’t particularly want to communicate with “Kendrick Karns.”

“How fascinating. My eldest brother and sister are twins too. Unfortunately, they don’t look alike at all.” Salaar continued indifferently. “I bet it must be very hard to tell you two apart.”

Redding gave a restrained grunt of acknowledgement, then curiously looked toward Myss—who was currently amusing himself by stepping on the glass floor, even giving a couple of little hops. He found the sensation underfoot quite intriguing.

“Oh, that is my lover, Myss.”

Salaar gave full play to his ability to annoy the Archdemon and used it to torment this poor young man. “I know you’ve probably heard many things about me. I’ve decided to turn over a new leaf, and this is all the power of love… It all started with the very first time we met…”

Redding finally couldn’t endure it any longer and strode ahead as if his rear were on fire.

He led them through countless identical bookshelves and around an archway. On the other side of the archway was a long corridor, steeped in silence.

He opened a door at lightning speed. The room inside was neither large nor small. It didn’t have luxurious decorations like the Red Amber, but the bedding and furniture were all made from high-quality, comfortable materials.

“Please wait here for now. I’ll go submit the letters of introduction.” Redding said, “Be sure, and I mean be sure, not to run around.”

Salaar: “You don’t want to hear the history of Myss and my love?”

Redding ran away like lightning.

Myss: “…”

This guy’s ability to spout nonsense was stronger than all the bards in his memory tied together.

Father Kalen couldn’t help giving a reminder. “Mr. Salaar, he should be a follower of Candance. The Church of Candance doesn’t advocate same-sex relationships. This may be regarded as provocation…”

“I know. In any case, he doesn’t have a good impression of me, so I might as well go all the way.” Salaar said, “This works perfectly. Myss, do you want to go out on a ‘date’?”

Myss let out a low groan deep in his throat.

He hated how well he understood Salaar. Almost instantly, Myss understood his mortal enemy’s intention, and didn’t even have time to feel disgusted. If Salaar played the part of “a lunatic madly in love,” then no matter where the two of them appeared, it wouldn’t seem strange.

However, this kind of “recklessness” was most effective the first time. If repeated too much, it would also make people suspicious.

“This time, the two of you should come too.” Salaar said, “Sir Tass will hide in the pocket watch and follow us. Father, pretend to search for us and go out to investigate normally.”

“Right now, the news hasn’t spread yet, which is when they’ll watch us the least closely. We need to take the opportunity to figure out the current situation.”

Tass immediately accepted, waggling his eyebrows. “Oh my, are you sure I won’t disturb you two?”

“I’ll say this upfront. If you two dare kiss and squeeze my pocket watch between you, you’re dead.”

Myss looked annoyed. “That’s my pocket watch.”

Salaar had clearly said he bought it for him!

Tass: “…Tsk.”

Father Kalen was still deeply worried. “But this is really…”

The ominous aura in Serpentia wasn’t strong, and it was quite possible this entire affair had nothing to do with an Abnormal Fruit.

The United Library was, after all, royal territory, a serious and formal institution. Not long ago, Mag had specifically warned them “not to cause trouble.” Was it really appropriate to go gallivanting about like this?

“It sounds like something major happened at the United Library.” Salaar spread his hands. “Mag won’t let us get involved. Based on what I know of her, she won’t tell me a single word.”

“Perhaps we can help. If we could have done something but didn’t, that would be too regrettable.”

The priest fell silent, but in the end, he nodded.

He was willing to lend a helping hand, and he had seen Myss and Salaar’s strength with his own eyes… At the very least, Salaar was absolutely not the “Kendrick Karns” Mag remembered.

Moreover, if matters went smoothly, the library might help him find the notes of the Order of Shadows.

After all, his older brother had only said that the Order of Shadows had deposited “exploration records” at the United Library. As for what that notebook was called, or how to find it, Hermit had never mentioned.

Father Kalen rubbed the bone ring on his right hand and stood up.

“I’ll be responsible for asking people for information. The two of you can—”

Before the priest finished speaking, Myss abruptly raised his head, and a chill suddenly rolled over his back.

It wasn’t that he had clearly detected anything. It was a certain instinctive vigilance.

In that instant, he touched something “ominous” with his physical body.

Myss subconsciously turned his face, intending to tell Salaar about his new discovery. As his shoulders and neck turned, something soft fell from his shoulder.

It was Tass.

No. More precisely, it was a crudely made burlap doll that looked a little like Tass.

“What’s going on?!” The doll opened its stitched mouth and let out a tiny shriek.

---

The author has something to say:

You two have already come into contact with all kinds of fan creations.

Children’s books, dirty books (…), religious paintings, everything is available…

However, the cruel reality is like:

[fireworks] Demon [fireworks] God [fireworks] look [fireworks] over [fireworks] here [fireworks]

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 79: Winter’s Kiss

The person who came was none other than Magnolia Karns, Salaar’s nominal cousin.

There was no need for introductions. Just by looking at that face, Myss could be certain of their blood relation.

Cousin Mag had a full figure and neat shoulder-length hair, glossy and black. On that pretty round face were two large lapis-lazuli eyes with lashes as thick as Salaar’s.

She wore a common gray scholar’s shirt, paired with a simple black pearl brooch that was clearly expensive at a glance.

Cousin Mag’s gaze first caught on Myss, sweeping him over from head to toe. Then her gaze suddenly shifted to Salaar, and the coldness and anger in her expression were almost equal.

“Must you make a spectacle of yourself for the entire city to gawk at?” Her voice was low and gravelly, each word grounded out from between her teeth.

The irritating words text the sky vanished. Salaar gave Myss a look and nodded cheerfully.

“I need to get to the United Library as soon as possible.”

He spoke in an obnoxiously flamboyant tone, deliberately letting everyone hear him clearly. “That’s why I sought you out, cousin. I don’t know how to get to the United Library. Look, this is a letter of introduction. I have a guarantor.”

As he spoke, Salaar openly took out Professor Gentry’s letter of introduction and waved it in front of Magnolia.

Magnolia sneered. She didn’t believe a single word, her face clearly screaming, “This brat is acting up again.”

She indifferently snatched the letter, roughly opened it, and swept her gaze down line by line. As she read, her eyes moved more and more slowly, and her brows furrowed tighter and tighter.

After reading it, she glanced at Salaar as if she wanted to speak, then looked at the enthusiastic crowd of spectators. In the end, she didn’t question them on the spot.

“Please follow me.” She carefully put away the letter, her tone harder than a stale crust of bread.

The moment they left the crowd’s line of sight, Magnolia immediately stopped.

She turned to Salaar, her face expressionless. “Say it plainly, Kendrick. What trick are you playing this time? …What are you going to the United Library for?”

“To hide from assassination, obviously.”

Salaar innocently spread his hands. “If I wander around outside, I’ll die under an assassin’s blade in the blink of an eye. The old man put out a kill order on me. It’s not like I don’t know.”

“I came this time only because I want to resolve this nuisance. I don’t want to be killed by some assassin who appears out of nowhere while I’m traveling the world.”

“Don’t tell me you think saying a few soft words now will make Grandfather let you off.” Magnolia’s tone was soaked in mockery. “Of course, of course. For Professor Gentry’s sake, I’ll take you to the United Library. But don’t expect me to help you. You’ve already caused quite enough ridiculous trouble as it is.”

“Ah, as you like.” Salaar smiled in an exasperating manner. “As I said, I only need you to lead the way.”

Mag snorted. “You’d better mean that. Right now, I’m too lazy to do anything to you. You’d better not force me to change my mind.”

After saying this, she strode forward and led the way without looking back.

Myss’s curiosity toward Cousin Mag didn’t last long. After walking a few steps, his attention gradually shifted to the Dragon Fae.

Ever since they had approached Serpentia, Tass hadn’t returned to the pocket watch. At the moment, he was alertly hiding in Myss’s hair, watching out for any assassin who might approach.

However, that didn’t stop him from incessantly muttering into Myss’s ear.

“Lady Mag really has no interest in killing her cousin. But that doesn’t mean she has any fondness for her youngest cousin. She simply doesn’t lack that share of the inheritance.”

Tass’s tone was quite solemn.

“In other words, even if Salaar dies, she won’t care. You’d better not lower your guard. I mean it.”

Myss couldn’t tolerate the Abnormal Fruit in the pot being stolen, and he could tolerate someone else killing Salaar in his bowl even less. For once, he listened seriously. “Tell me about those four people who want to kill Salaar.”

“The oldest twins, eldest son Roskart and eldest daughter Rosbeth.”

“The former is a royal diplomat, and the latter manages the Karns family’s industries. These siblings firmly believe Kendrick Karns is a stain on the family and should preferably be erased as soon as possible.”

Oh, the Radish Twins*. Myss made a mental note.

*Clarity: Myss refers to them as the “radish twins” because both Roskart’s and Rosbeth’s name starts with [luo] (罗), which is a homophone for radish (萝). To make it flow more English-wise, it can be translated as the “Ross twins”, though the joke would lose quite of a bit of its humor, unless you know what Ross refers to (though it’d be too OOC given the setting of this world).

“Nicholas, an elite knight of the Knights of Candance.”

“He’s exceptionally talented and a man of integrity. At only twenty-four, he already has hopes of being promoted to Branch Commander. If he wants to kill Kendrick Karns, it’s probably to rid society of a menace.”

And Sir Mud*. Myss continued earnestly recording.

*Clarity: While not exactly homophones, Myss is associating the first part of Nicholas’ name [Nicola] (尼古拉) to mud [niba] (泥巴) which sounds similar (the first characters, [ni], are homophones).

“Last is Owen, the one I mentioned before, the guy who hired me.”

“That kid’s aptitude is utterly mediocre, and he has nothing to his name except two wineries. If Kendrick is toxic trash, he’s harmless waste. He’s desperate to be the first to kill Kendrick Karns and get more inheritance.”

Tass spoke without any politeness, apparently not having a high opinion of his former employer.

Of course, there was also Mr. Useless, who had hired Tass. Myss completed his watch list and reviewed it several times in his heart to make sure nothing was missing.

When he encountered these people, he had to keep Salaar firmly tucked at his side, just to prevent Salaar from accidentally getting himself killed.

Tass: “Also…”

“Also?” Myss held his breath and focused.

“That.”

The Dragon Fae pointed to a certain shop they passed, his tone becoming even more serious. “The ice cream in that shop is pretty good. The vanilla flavor is a little lacking, but its jam is excellent.”

In other words, ice cream with raspberry jam had to be good.

This, was indeed a truly serious matter. Myss immediately changed direction and rushed toward the shop with a black signboard stamped in gold.

He walked so openly that Cousin Mag immediately noticed something was wrong. “Hey! Wait—”

“What’s wrong, Myss?” Salaar interrupted her.

The astonishment on Mag’s face almost immediately turned into concern, concern for Myss.

In her impression, Kendrick was quite capricious.

In his teenage years, Kendrick’s appearance hadn’t yet become so gloomy. He had been kept clean and neat, groomed by a host of servants. Because his parents had died early, Kendrick had clung obsessively to his wet nurse.

The problem was that his “affection” had always been deeply unsettling.

As long as Kendrick’s wishes were obeyed, Kendrick could be considered well-behaved and adorable, and he would occasionally even act coquettish. But if his desires weren’t satisfied, such as when his wet nurse failed to provide the toy he wanted, he could stab through the back of her hand with a table fork without hesitation.

After discovering he would never obtain the most interesting toy under heaven, a “Magibase,” Kendrick’s distortion worsened by the day, and his behavior grew increasingly extreme.

Mag loathed this cousin. Fortunately, she spent most of her time living at the United Library and didn’t need to deal with that little monster.

Seeing Myss actually not greet Kendrick and simply act as he pleased, Mag’s heart abruptly jumped. Her mind flashed back to the image of the wet nurse’s bloody, gaping wound.

“—Where are you going?” Salaar’s question was still continuing.

“I want ice cream,” Myss said. “Tass said this shop is good.”

“Got it. We’ll go together.” Salaar said calmly, “Don’t buy too much. Be careful you don’t upset your stomach.”

Myss immediately hummed in dissatisfaction. “Even if I ate you raw, I wouldn’t upset my stomach.”

“Yes, yes.” Salaar replied without much temper. “Mag, wait for us here.”

Magnolia: “?”

Magnolia: “…Fine.”

What the hell? What was with this subtle atmosphere?

Myss paid no mind to the turbulent thoughts swirling in Cousin Mag’s head. He strode into the shop named “Winter’s Kiss” and headed straight for the ice cream counter.

This shop was decorated with a great deal of bright white stone, along with many fresh flowers, melons, and fruits. The moment they entered, a gentle, cool fragrance wrapped around them, making the body and mind feel refreshed.

The weather had turned cold, so there weren’t many customers inside, and they were mostly young women. The first second Myss entered, the ice cream shop fell into a sweet silence. After the customers saw Salaar following him, the silence gained a few uneasy ripples.

The young women covered their mouths with fingers or fans and whispered in extremely soft voices.

“I want this, the extra-large berry milk waffle bowl boat.”

Myss pointed at a line on the menu. “Replace all the strawberries and blueberries inside with raspberries. Add extra honey.”

The young clerk opposite him blushed slightly and nodded briskly.

“Come, pay.” Myss moved Salaar from behind him to the front.

The moment the clerk saw those lapis-lazuli eyes clearly, the color on her face quickly faded, turning pale.

She pressed her lips together and prepared Myss’s order at an extremely fast speed, never raising her head again.

A few minutes later, Myss had to use both hands to accept the colossal ice cream creation.

This shop had made the crispy waffle into a bowl shape, and it was filled with dense milk ice cream. They had certainly been generous with the raspberries and honey, making it look interwoven with gold and red that looked utterly tantalizing.

The shop even provided a small polished wooden spoon—a thoughtful touch, to be sure.

However, Myss’s interest had already shifted. He looked straight at the pale-faced clerk. “You know him?”

The real Kendrick Karns had still been a minor when he left. Was his influence really this great?

“Everyone recognizes people from the Karns family.” The clerk stammered, “Their family doesn’t allow illegitimate children into the capital, and, and just now—”

Her gaze passed through the display window and looked toward Mag, who was waiting outside.

So that was it. It was because of “Your Dearest Cousin☆.” Myss understood.

“Hehe. Looks like around here, ‘Kendrick’s’ reputation is even worse than the ‘Chaos Archdemon’s’.” Myss gloated.

Salaar was expressionless. He lowered his head toward Myss and bit off the perfectly formed creamy peak, along with a couple of raspberries for good measure.

Myss’s heart clenched hard. “—!!!”

Damn it, this guy really is wicked. Such a rotten reputation suited him perfectly!

Myss stopped making sarcastic comments, grabbed the wooden spoon, and rapidly stuffed ice cream into his mouth. Salaar hooked a finger through the leather strap of Myss’s ranger outfit and promptly dragged him away.

The clerk and customers turned their heads together, watching the two disappear outside the door.

……

By the time they were nearly at the United Library, Myss had finally eaten the last bite of the ice cream boat.

The Dragon Fae’s intelligence was correct. The ice cream from that shop was indeed quite delicious. It was just that he had eaten too quickly, and his tongue had gone numb and tingly from the cold. His entire mouth felt a little wooden.

Myss didn’t like this feeling. He wanted to use his hand to warm his tongue, but he disliked how unclean his hand was.

“Shawaar, come here,” Myss mumbled incoherently.

Salaar held back a laugh and leaned closer, using his fingers to wipe the cream marks on Myss’s face. “What is it now?”

Myss grabbed his collar and yanked Salaar down, then kissed him.

It was broad daylight, and there were plenty of pedestrians on the street. This brazen display drew many sidelong looks. Myss, however, couldn’t care less. He shoved his frozen-numb tongue into his enemy’s warm mouth, plundering Salaar’s body heat.

Salaar froze for two seconds, then supported the back of Myss’s head and openly deepened the kiss. He angled his body slightly, and the two avoided the brilliant morning light, hiding in the shadow of the building.

Mag: “???”

When Kendrick had left, he had undoubtedly been a gloomy little devil. As a result, after four years, he had returned as a debauched dandy sunk in lust? What exactly had happened during these four years?

Even more absurdly, Professor Gentry had actually written a letter of introduction for someone like this. It was impossible for that Kingdom’s Archmage to be completely ignorant of the outrageous things Kendrick had done.

Magnolia couldn’t help doing a double take of Myss. Myss’s lips were still somewhat red and swollen, but his expression was very calm, as if what they had done just now was the most ordinary thing in the world.

Could it be that he had tamed that lunatic? With true love?

…Unfortunately, even if Mag were ten years younger, she wouldn’t believe such a childish possibility.

She had to keep a close eye on Kendrick, she sighed irritably.

Damn it, she already had enough worries recently. Hopefully this disturbance would settle soon, allowing her to focus on dealing with another problem—another even more urgent and terrifying problem.

However, things always had a tendency to develop in the worst possible direction.

Before the group even reached the United Library, a young man rushed out and directly blocked Mag’s path.

“Lady Magnolia, why, why did you suddenly run out?”

The young man was gasping for breath, his voice trembling. “‘It’ has appeared again. You have to hurry back…”

His body trembled fiercely, and he twisted his fingers in extreme terror, looking as if he wanted nothing more than to grab Mag’s sleeve.

Mag clenched her teeth with a crack, and the color quickly vanished from her face.

In the end, she closed her eyes, let out a long breath, and turned toward the curious gaze of Salaar and the others. “You want refuge, don’t you? As you wish, I will arrange everything for you.”

“Listen, I only have one requirement. Stay obediently where you are, and don’t cause me any trouble.”

---

The author has something to say:

Salaar: Then we simply must see what all the fuss is about. [okay]

Myss: Then we simply must cause some trouble. [cat paw]

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 78: Rapid Person Search

That night.

Two flatbed carts stopped at the edge of the woods. A black pinecone magic device that maintained combustion had been tossed into the campfire. Tongues of flame lightly licked over the firewood, producing crisp crackling sounds.

Inside the tent, Father Kalen tossed and turned.

The two squirrels sleeping in the crook of his arm were startled awake. They raised their fluffy tails and looked at the priest with concern.

Ever since he had “lost consciousness” in the underground ruins, Kalen had always felt a strange lightheadedness, like he had just recovered from a serious illness. For example, at this moment, his body was clearly exhausted, but his mind wouldn’t settle no matter what.

…Or perhaps his subconscious was restless because of the topic of the “Stargazers Society.”

He gently brushed the tips of the squirrels’ ears with his fingertips and took a few breaths of the crisp night air. His mind became increasingly clear. The two squirrels jumped to the edge of the flatbed cart. Under the moonlight, four round, shiny black eyes blinked.

Father Kalen grabbed his coat and finally jumped down from the cart.

It was a windless night, and the campfire flames pointed straight toward the heavens. The night sky was clear, and the stars spread across it were as distinct as diamond fragments. The moon was just a little shy of full.

Father Kalen liked weather like this. It made the boundaries of shadows tangible and clear. The shadow of a tree’s crown fell beneath his feet like a carpet before an altar.

The priest quietly walked to the center of that shadow, his back to the moon and stars, and knelt on one knee. Moonlight caused his own silhouette to merge with the tree’s shadows, deepening the darkness beneath Kalen’s kneeling form.

“May the Lord of Shadows bless us. May the journey to the capital be without wind or waves.”

“May His Veil shroud us, unseen and unharmed.”

Kalen prayed devoutly. His ears were filled with the rustling of leaves, like some response from the night.

“Shadow is the cradle of all things, and night is the supreme barrier. He equally protects all misfortune and suffering… He will surely watch over my brother…”

…But where exactly was Hermit?

The night was as deep as water, and in the wind, there was still only the rustling sound, as well as the faint, threadlike chirping of insects.

In truth, he knew that none of this felt quite right.

Those discordant details were hidden beneath everyday life, like tiny wooden splinters stabbing into flesh.

From the current situation, V.O.R would send three letters to his prey, and only the final one was the farewell letter. In the letters, he, or she, would hide the seed of the Abnormal Fruit inside a “god name.”

When the envelope was opened, the name of the god would disappear. The entire process was instantaneous. The victim would be planted with the Abnormal Fruit by the third letter, forming their own Divine Realm.

The Fallen Child, the Perfected Creation, the Prisoner of Dreams… none were exceptions.

However, Hermit hadn’t received the first two letters.

At the scene where he received the farewell letter, Hermit had left behind a pool of blood that looked like he had struggled. Kalen hadn’t discovered anything abnormal nearby, let alone some Divine Realm.

In Kalen’s memory, Hermit hadn’t even been a genius.

Hermit was two years older than Kalen. Their parents had died early. For as long as Kalen could remember, he had always toddled unsteadily after Hermit, following his older brother to cut grass, herd sheep, and do odd jobs.

Whenever night fell, Hermit would carry sleepy Kalen home on his back, then cook him a bowl of hot goat milk porridge. Occasionally, there would even be minced meat in it… Kalen had always followed his only relative around, and he had never seen Hermit use magic or possess any unusual power.

However, unlike other children who yearned for magic, Hermit was unusually resistant to Magibase and never went to participate in the summoning ceremony at all.

Everyone said that even a weak Magibase was fine. Even if one could only use basic magic such as lighting fires or condensing water, their quality of life would be much better.

But Hermit still refused to attend the summoning ceremony. Not only did he refuse himself, he also didn’t allow Kalen to summon a Magibase, even though Kalen had been born with a miraculous talent that drew animals to him.

“This is the test given to you and me by the Lord of Shadows.”

Hermit explained mysteriously to Kalen, “You possessed an exceptional talent, Kalen. Once you grow up, the Lord of Shadows will grant us extraordinary power.”

“Before that, we cannot receive those powers of unknown origin.”

Kalen believed this implicitly.

Because Hermit knew many wondrous stories—stories that not even the priests in the city knew. The legends of gods that Hermit told him were far more vivid, far more fascinating… and far more terrifying than those dry scriptures.

Amid the glow of other people’s magic, the brothers huffed and puffed as they carried old wooden buckets to the creek in the woods for water. When heavy snow flew, Hermit stretched out his purple, frozen fingers and tremblingly used a fire striker and flint to start a fire.

And in the deepest part of the night, Hermit would lead him under the starry sky to pray, requesting protection from that god hidden in the shadows.

During those years, Kalen’s time flowed slower than a stream, and his life was clearer than its waters.

All of Hermit’s peculiarities were childhood truths Kalen took for granted. He had never questioned them and had only assumed the world should naturally be that way.

Yet, that wasn’t the reality.

Amidst the cool breeze the felt like a flowing stream, Kalen rubbed the bone rings on both his fingers.

As his investigation progressed, the fog before his eyes hadn’t dispersed. Instead, it had grown thicker. He didn’t understand his closest kin, who had hidden secrets from him, and he didn’t understand his abnormally behaving teammates either.

Regarding that face identical to Kendrick Karn’s, that “Salaar” had come up with many absurd excuses.

During the trip underground, Professor Gentry’s reaction had been obvious enough. No matter how slow Father Kalen was, he could tell that “Salaar,” or at least his physical body, was Kendrick Karns.

Myss was even lazier about hiding himself. Father Kalen had never seen such abnormal power before. The priest often had a subtle illusion that he was walking toward a bottomless abyss.

…However, none of that mattered.

All along this journey, he was still carrying out the will of the Lord of Shadows. He was bound to keep walking forward.

Even if he had to travel with demons, he would bring his kin back. Somewhere in the shadows, Hermit was surely waiting for him.

Father Kalen stood up and patted the bits of grass from the hem of his coat. Only then did he raise his head and look toward the vast river of stars.

In a daze, the priest suddenly remembered some distant night.

It had been the same early winter season, the same cold night by the edge of a forest… and the same sky full of stars.

Hermit poked at the little campfire with a branch, and the fragrance of roasted potatoes drifted into Kalen’s nose. Kalen didn’t want to look too greedy, so he raised his head and looked toward the brilliant starry sky.

“The stars are so beautiful,” Kalen praised.

“Many beautiful things are dangerous.” Hermit poked the potato with a sharpened branch. “Just glance at them casually. Don’t look too closely.”

“Why?”

Kalen asked in confusion. “Last time, I heard Jack say that someone in the city specially makes… makes some kind of lens, so you can see them more clearly.”

Hermit’s movement of turning the potato paused.

He raised his face. The campfire lit up his flaxen hair, exactly the same as Kalen’s, and his water-blue eyes. Hermit was strikingly handsome, but unfortunately, two ugly scars marred the perfection of his face.

“Kalen, listen to me. Remember this.”

Hermit spoke slowly, enunciating each word. “The most foolish and hopeless act in this world is ‘stargazing.’”

A sharp pain throbbed at Kalen’s temple, and a piercing ringing came to his ears.

His vision blurred and cleared by turns. In front of him, within the dark tree shadows, a deeper, darker outline appeared, exactly like the older brother in his memories.

Kalen opened his arms and staggered two steps forward, but that shadow disappeared again.

Wind rose in the night, and the flames that had been calm just now swayed wildly, scattering countless sparks.

…It had to be a lingering aftereffect from the trip underground, Kalen thought.

They would enter the capital during the day. Once he found the notes of the Order of Shadows, all abnormalities would surely be answered.

He walked toward his own flatbed cart.

When he passed by the cart of the other two “mysterious people,” Kalen couldn’t help taking a look.

He saw Myss lying in Salaar’s arms, his limbs wrapped around Salaar like an octopus, sleeping especially sweetly.

Salaar, meanwhile, had both arms tightly around Myss, unconsciously assuming a protective posture. At the slightest movement, Salaar could instantly shield Myss beneath him.

Their breathing intertwined, and their faces carried a wondrous serenity, as if the ones they embraced in their arms were an entire world.

Kalen’s gaze softened.

He lightened his steps and lay back down on the soft straw. A few more squirrels came over and squeezed beside him for warmth.

“Good night,” he said to them.

The squirrels still raised their fluffy tails, their eyes blinking.

……

Serpentia City was magnificent and imposing.

Even from far across the horizon, everyone could see the castle spires of Aufon’s capital. Sunlight pierced through the thick clouds and turned into sword-like beams, making one unable to help holding their breath.

“What a huge lump of city,” Myss remarked.

Salaar looked at the erect spires of castles, finding himself plagued by certain, rather inappropriate, associations. He decided to forget that description.

“It’s much more spectacular than it was in my time,” he murmured softly.

Back then, people wouldn’t build castles too high. Everyone preferred to expand downward. In Salaar’s memories of Aufon’s capital, only the royal palace castle looked halfway decent.

As it turned out, today’s Serpentia hadn’t only built many new castles, but also absurdly exaggerated city walls. When Salaar brought Myss into the city, they attracted countless curious gazes.

“I already said, I can help you change your eye color.”

Tass emerged from Myss’s pocket watch and vigilantly looked around, afraid that some colleague might shoot Salaar dead.

“But Myss doesn’t have an extra hair ribbon, so it wouldn’t match well.” Salaar said this lightly and pointed at the lapis-lazuli scarf tied to the ends of Myss’s hair.

“What, color coordination is more important than your life?”

Tass immediately revealed an indescribable expression.

His expression wavered between “how did humans evolve into this for reproduction?” and “you two are utterly enslaved by your own desires.”

Myss, meanwhile, glanced at his mortal enemy in amazement.

As expected of Saint Salaar. In order to one-up him, he didn’t even let this kind of detail slip past!

“…The Karns family isn’t some third-rate small fry. This kind of trick won’t delay them for too long,” Salaar added with an air of grave seriousness, noting the varied looks on his companions’ faces.

Seeing that the group had devolved into chaotic chatter, the priest hurriedly interjected. “How are we going to find Miss Magnolia?”

“We just need to send her a message,” Salaar said.

He took a bag of sand from his pocket. While Tass and Kalen were still stunned, Myss already knew what this kid planned to do. He had seen this particular brand of reckless absurdity—if not a thousand times, no fewer than eight hundred—back when they were sealed together.

For the first time in his life, Myss felt a little sympathetic toward that lady named Magny… Magno… or whatever her name was.

Salaar gave Myss a toothy smile and raised his hand high.

Whoosh!

Brilliant golden magic wrapped around the sand and stones, flying into the sky and exploding into incomparably huge text.

[Magnolia Karns, hurry to the city gate to pick me up. Your Dearest Cousin☆]

It was early morning, and the sun hadn’t fully risen. This line of glowing words was more glaring than dawn itself. If it merely glowed, that would have been one thing, but the text also shimmered with vivid, kaleidoscopic iridescence—a sight so garish it was painful to look directly at.

Even in the early morning, the streets were far from empty.

Seeing such a huge spectacle from the Karns family, nosy passersby rushed forward one after another to see who had done such a deed.

Tass and Father Kalen rapidly averted their gazes, one looking left and the other looking right.

Myss: “…”

Damn it. He knew it would be something like this! He knew it!

When Salaar had commanded armies inside the seal, he had often used such a trick!

At first, Salaar had only used vivid warning colors like “blood red.” The orders he conveyed had also been unusually brief, mostly prearranged symbols.

But after Salaar lost all his teammates, he began using this thing to draw pictures in the dark. That blinding rainbow effect was something this guy had researched later, and the memory of it was etched into Myss’s mind with agonizing clarity.

Heaven knew how speechless the Archdemon had been the first time he saw that pile of huge arrows flashing with rainbow light.

After discovering that all those arrows were pointing toward Salaar himself, Myss realized in shock that he could become even more speechless. Countless giant-colored arrows had floated up and down, while the black dot at the end hopped around happily. Myss didn’t want to witness such an absurd scene a second time.

If one was tormented by this guy, even the Chaos Archdemon would find it hard not to develop emotions. Let alone humans.

In less than five minutes, an enraged figure broke through the crowd and rushed in front of the group.

---

The author has something to say:

Myss: This is the biggest “prankster” in the human world. Can you maintain eye contact with him for ten seconds?

Myss: Therefore, it is very reasonable that I developed emotions!

Myss: [fireworks] [fireworks] [fireworks] [chin-propping emoji] [fireworks] [fireworks] [fireworks]

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 77: A “Nightmare”

When he heard the phrase “Stargazers Society,” Father Kalen looked as if he had swallowed a live fly whole.

“No matter the country, the ‘Stargazers’ of the Stargazers Society are top-priority wanted criminals.”

The priest’s tone was heavy, and his emotions were unusually intense.

“Those people are like a plague. They appeared out of nowhere twenty years ago, and they haven’t vanished since.”

“No one knows who their leader is. On every country’s wanted notices, there is only a masked person. They can’t even confirm whether that person is male or female, old or young. They hide like that behind the curtain of the Lord of Shadows… those fanatics who defile the shadows…”

“What exactly did they do?”

Salaar raised his eyebrows. “Forget other countries. In the Aufon Kingdom, isn’t the Church of Candance known for its ‘tolerance’?”

“Tolerance isn’t indulgence, sir. They aren’t spreading another faith, nor are they living in ‘mutual noninterference.’ They publicly attack all gods.”

Father Kalen said solemnly.

“The Stargazers fundamentally deny the existence of gods. They firmly believe that the magical enlightenment three hundred years ago was an outright conspiracy, and that the various churches, for the sake of their own interests, are encouraging this conspiracy.”

“The Stargazers Society goes around claiming that magic is bait, and that the Magibase is a cage. If humanity continues to indulge in this power of unknown origin, humans will only step into the abyss of the apocalypse.”

Salaar couldn’t help glancing at Myss. Myss puffed out his chest, as if the word “apocalypse” was a shining golden medal.

Lord Archdemon prepared himself to receive Salaar’s displeased gaze. In the end, this guy only looked at him calmly once, then swiftly withdrew his gaze, with a force weaker than being licked by a small animal.

What’s going on? Had Salaar not eaten?

Myss unhappily deflated his chest and continued listening out of boredom.

To be honest, he had no favorable impression of the Stargazers Society, but he didn’t particularly dislike them either. In a certain sense, that group was right. The human world was indeed about to welcome the apocalypse.

“Could the Abnormal Fruit be related to them?” Myss went straight to the point.

The Stargazers Society was constantly shouting about subjects like magic and gods, and the Abnormal Fruit happened to be connected to both.

“I don’t know.” Father Kalen lowered his eyes.

The priest’s loathing for the Stargazers Society was written all over him, but his words were quite objective. “We have never had deep contact with the Stargazers. But as far as I know, records related to Abnormal Fruit existed before the Stargazers Society appeared.”

Then never mind.

Myss instantly lost all interest in the Stargazers Society.

Kalen, however, cautiously continued, “My brother and I both once suspected that V.O.R might be related to the Stargazers Society.”

“However, during a certain cleanup of an Abnormal Fruit, we fought Stargazers. Judging from their attitude, V.O.R shouldn’t be a Stargazer. The Stargazers Society wholeheartedly wanted to seize the Abnormal Fruit and use it as magical reagents… or evidence that magic is harmful? I’m not certain.”

Now it mattered again.

So the Stargazers Society was his competitor for Abnormal Fruit. Myss decided to start hating them.

“…Oh, that group of paranoid lunatics who research ‘magic foundations’. I remember them.”

Tass rubbed his chin. “There was a Stargazer in a certain minor noble’s household. The family head found me and wanted me to quietly get rid of this ‘heretical madman.’”

“Funny thing is, the reason they gave was pretty similar to the Karns family’s. They said that Stargazer studied human sacrifices and used virgin blood as consumable material.”

Hearing the key phrase “human sacrifices,” Myss pricked up his ears. “And then?”

“After investigating, I found that the guy was living alone in the mountains, drawing his own blood for research. He was a forty-something-year-old virgin.”

Tass exaggeratedly spread his hands. “Someone like that isn’t on my target list, so I refused in the end.”

Myss felt a sudden wave of anticlimax; he had thought, for a moment, he found a kindred spirit of Kendrick Karns.

“Believe it or not, that guy made a magic device as big as a house. It was stuffed full of all sorts of gears, alchemical flesh, and gemstone lenses. He believed that all magic was fundamentally the same, and he was trying to disprove the various churches’ theory of ‘divinely bestowed magic.’”

“Actually, the contraption he made was rather convincing. But not long after I refused, he was still killed. Clearly, not every assassin has firm principles like I do… Ah.”

Tass seemed to think of something. He suddenly shook his wings and flew right in front of Salaar’s nose.

“Speaking of which, since the Karns family wants your life, I’m definitely not the only assassin they hired.”

Myss grabbed Tass’s trembling wings in one hand. “Tell us something we don’t know.”

“The one who hired me is called Owen Karns. The eldest son of Thurston, second son of Ratliff. Among the eight heirs, he’s a good-for-nothing second only to Kendrick.”

Myss: “…”

Why were there so many difficult-to-remember new names? They flowed through his mind like lukewarm water, leaving no trace.

Tass sighed.

“Let me put it this way. The head of the Karns family is Salaar’s—or rather, let’s just pretend he’s Kendrick Karns—grandfather.”

“Kendrick’s parents died early, leaving him with only one full-blooded older brother. The other six heirs of his generation are all children of Kendrick’s two paternal uncles.”

The Dragon Fae recited the details as if counting family treasures.

“The Karns family head ordered that whoever kills Kendrick Karns can inherit the share of property that originally belonged to Kendrick. As far as I know, including Owen, four heirs are very interested in this proposal.”

That was a lot of people.

After listening for ages, Lord Archdemon only grasped one key point. Salaar, no, Kendrick, had no father or mother, and only had four cousins who wanted to slaughter him.

…Damn the Karns family. Could they not give people simpler names?

The more Myss listened, the faster his drowsiness rose. Salaar had already taken precautions and stood behind him, in case Lord Archdemon collapsed on the spot.

“That information is enough, thank you. I’ll keep as low a profile as possible.”

Salaar gave a dry cough, interrupting Tass’s extremely detailed—so detailed it was somewhat unnecessary—intelligence sharing.

“As for the United Library, its security is still solid.” Father Kalen comforted him. “No assassin, no matter how bold, would cause trouble on royal territory.”

Tass nodded along. “Indeed. After all, Miss Magnolia has no interest in murdering her cousin.”

“Mag… Mag what?” Myss was bewildered.

“A Karns family heir, one of Kendrick’s cousins. She is a great scholar at the United Library and has quite a good reputation.”

Tass looked at Salaar in surprise. “Your boyfriend didn’t tell you?”

Myss: “…”

Myss ignored the word “boyfriend” and forcefully swallowed the urge to retort. “No. They probably aren’t close.”

Salaar nodded with extreme sincerity.

If Tass hadn’t specifically mentioned that name, he wouldn’t even have remembered this matter. In Kendrick Karns’s chaotic memories, his cousin Magnolia was no different from air.

……

The next morning.

“What is this?”

Myss held his breath and focused, staring at the… crude thing in front of him.

Salaar: “A flatbed cart filled with straw.”

“Of course I know it’s a cart.” Myss paced back and forth in dissatisfaction. “What I’m asking is, why is a ‘flatbed cart filled with straw’ appearing here? What happened to the promised luxury carriage?”

Two flatbed carts covered in thick straw were stopped in front of them, and the drivers’ eyes were gleaming.

“The people gathered nearby are all commoners. There are no luxury carriages to rent. Ordinary carriages have at least six seats and won’t depart until they’re full. And the floorboards are covered in mud and spit marks. You wouldn’t like that.”

Salaar said calmly, “I thought about it. Rather than spending a heavy sum to reserve an ordinary carriage, we might as well reserve this. The next week will be sunny, so there won’t be any problem.”

Myss made a soft hum and approached the cart to sniff it.

The straw was dry, soft, and sparkled with a pale golden glow under the sunlight. The flatbed cart had just finished delivering flowers to the new market here, and there was a faint floral scent among the straw.

To avoid damaging the flowers, the wheels were wrapped with specially made cork. The cart bed was about the size of a double bed, with more than enough space. In other words, he could lie on his hero cushion the whole way!

Myss’s spirits instantly lifted.

“As long as you let me lie on you, I’ll agree,” he offered on the spot.

“All right,” Salaar agreed immediately.

Myss: “…”

He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was slightly off about Salaar, though he couldn’t put his finger on what it was.

Fortunately, after the cart began moving, Salaar changed back into the usual Salaar.

The priest was tall, so he took Tass and the pocket watch and occupied one flatbed cart on his own. Myss, meanwhile, comfortably lay down on his hero cushion, enjoying the faint floral scent from the straw.

Salaar lay on his back, facing the blue sky, one hand raised toward it.

As he moved, Myss heard a faint rustling sound of friction. He turned his head and saw the bottle of “Resolve to Elope.”

Beneath the clear azure sky, the tiny scarlet hearts squeezed into a pile. The color could be called pleasing to the eye. This thing seemed to be sweet-and-sour raspberry flavored. Myss smacked his lips and suddenly wanted fresh raspberries again.

“Why take that thing out?”

Myss tugged at Salaar’s nose. “Are you eating it now, or after we get to the capital?”

Seeing that Salaar’s expression didn’t change much, Myss suddenly had a flash of insight. “…Or is it because that magic artifact merchant claims to be an atheist, and you suspect he’s a Stargazer?”

Salaar nodded lightly.

Myss immediately turned his face and harshly interrogated the bottle of medicine with his gaze. But after staring at it for ages with his dilated pupils, he didn’t see anything suspicious. The magic inside was designed very delicately, but that was all.

So he buried his nose back against Salaar’s chest and fell silent.

Salaar silently looked at the medicine bottle for a while, then put it back into the bag and casually stroked Myss’s long silver-white hair.

Myss couldn’t help narrowing his eyes.

Previously, when he had used Salaar as a cushion, there had been at least some helplessness in Salaar’s eyes. By now, that helplessness had strangely disappeared.

And Salaar had started touching him all the time. His movements were careful, and his strength was just right, stuck precisely at the boundary where Myss felt comfortable and wanted to resist, yet was too lazy to resist.

Myss’s eyelids grew heavier and heavier. Sunlight filtered through them, producing a warm golden glow across his vision. Fork lay limply around his wrist, sleeping soundly as it basked in the sun.

Behind him was a relaxing stroking sensation. In front of him was Salaar’s scent, the smell of sun-dried straw, and the fragrance of flowers. The road leading to the capital was smooth, and the wheels were soft. Myss had the illusion that he was lying on a floating bed.

Not good. This must be a… new… method… of… attack…

Myss’s head sank, and he fell asleep.

Salaar lowered his head, a smile on his lips. He lightly pressed his lips against the top of Myss’s hair and his arms quietly tightened.

The azure light of the sky reflected in his eyes, making those lapis-lazuli eyes seem less dim. However, that brightness failed to dilute the sharpness in his gaze.

[Magic is bait, and the Magibase is a cage. If humanity continues to indulge in this power of unknown origin, humans will only step into the abyss of the apocalypse.]

…The Stargazers Society’s viewpoint was truly fascinating.

“Simulating magic fluctuations is extremely difficult, Salaar.”

In his memory, that familiar voice said, “Magic circuits are like fingerprints. Everyone’s is different.”

“I know, Madam.”

“We can’t borrow other people’s experiences, and human lifespans are far too short… Everyone is groping around in the dark, trying to find the path that belongs to them.”

The woman said gently, “Right now, everyone is using ‘half-baked magic.’ Once someone succeeds, magical theory will surely undergo a qualitative leap.”

“I know, Madam.”

The young Salaar lifted his head, his voice still quite childish.

“However, the differences between people are quite large. Even if there is a successful precedent, the same circuit may not necessarily work on someone else.”

“Hehe, child, a ‘leap’ doesn’t mean giving everyone the same copy.”

That voice was full of laughter. “Once we know the theory, we will have endless research topics, newer and more diverse magic systems.”

“If only the distributor truly knows the reasoning within, while everyone else can only blindly follow… placing everyone’s safety in the hands of one person, that is the true apocalypse.”

“…”

“Then what about me, Madam?”

“Why do all of you place your hopes in me?”

How had that lady answered him back then? Salaar tried hard to look, tried hard to listen, but everything was blurring.

His nose hurt a little.

“…Sa…”

“…Bastard…”

“…Hateful guy…”

Myss’s voice grew closer and closer, clearer and clearer. Salaar opened his eyes and found that Myss was tugging his nose.

Salaar: “…?”

Only then did he realize in a daze that at some point, he had fallen asleep beneath the warm sunlight.

“Where did you put the raspberry candy?”

Myss was groping around on his body. “You still have some on you, right? Hand it over. I want to eat it.”

“Say ‘please.’” Salaar rubbed his eyes.

“Please what? It’s all your fault for waving that bottle of medicine around.” Myss bared his teeth. “Less nonsense. Hand it over.”

Salaar sighed and took out a piece of candy from his inner pocket. He carefully peeled away the wrapper and held it in front of Myss with both hands.

Myss leaned in to bite it. Unfortunately, Salaar’s fingertips were pinching it very tightly, so this bite failed to take it away. Instead, he firmly held Salaar’s fingers in his mouth.

Myss glanced at him unhappily, lazily propped himself up, and went to pry open Salaar’s fingers. Only after eating the candy ball did he lie back down in satisfaction, exhaling a long breath with the scent of candy.

From beginning to end, he was careful not to meet Salaar’s eyes.

Actually, Myss hadn’t wanted candy until just now.

Salaar had fallen into deep sleep. His body had twitched slightly in the dream, and his heartbeat was a little faster than usual. Myss had been jostled awake by him, and when he raised his eyes, he saw Salaar’s tightly furrowed brow and slightly pursed lips.

Without a doubt, Salaar was dreaming, and it wasn’t a good dream.

Myss thought back for a while and discovered that inside the seal, Salaar had rarely shown such a state. Even when companions had died one after another in front of him, Salaar’s emotions had remained as steady as rock.

Now, the indestructible Saint Salaar was actually having a nightmare. This uncomfortable appearance was even more wretched than when he had been pierced through by Myss’s tentacles.

Served him right!

Myss buried his head again with complete peace of mind, determined to continue sleeping. However, the afternoon sunlight was too bright, and Salaar’s heartbeat was far too noisy.

Myss raised his head again to look at that familiar yet unfamiliar face.

He suddenly felt a surge of anger. Salaar had never, not even once, shown such a pained expression because of him. What made that nightmare worthy? It actually dared to usurp his own exclusive privilege to torment Salaar!

Salaar’s love had to belong to him, and Salaar’s pain also had to be possessed by him.

“Salaar!” Myss reached out and pinched Salaar’s nose. “Bastard, wake up!”

A thin layer of sweat emerged on Salaar’s forehead, but his eyes were still closed.

“Hateful guy, if you don’t wake up, I’m going to punch you there,” Myss threatened.

That was terrifying pain he had personally experienced. It would definitely be extremely effective. If not for the fact that he wanted Salaar to fall in love with him, Myss would have already punched.

Salaar finally woke up, and a dazed look flashed through his eyes.

Oh, he was awake. How should he explain? Myss belatedly thought.

The reason “I was worried about you” was too mushy, and he couldn’t accept it at this stage. “You annoyed me” was too crude and wouldn’t help his great seduction scheme.

Thinking of the bottle of “Resolve to Elope” from just now, Myss had a flash of inspiration and asked for raspberry-flavored candy.

Now the candy ball had entered his mouth, and the sweet-sour taste seeped into the tip of his tongue. Myss burrowed back into his warm cushion. He heard Salaar’s heartbeat return to normal again.

Very good. Now Salaar belonged only to him again.

……

For the next few days, life was so leisurely it could make a person sprout moss.

During the day, Myss lay on the cart, enjoying his soft cushion. At night, the driver would cover the flatbed cart with a tent-like rainproof cover, then light a campfire beside the cart and cook bacon onion soup.

“We’ll reach that…capital city…tomorrow morning. Will there be any problem entering the city directly?”

Myss held a bowl of onion soup and blew on it hard with his mouth. The wood burned red, wrapped in gray-white ash. The tongues of fire spat out countless sparks, yet none were as bright as Myss’s eyes.

Myss could sense a gaze like fine rain falling on his face.

“The Karns family will find out sooner or later. It’s better to go to the United Library as quickly as possible.”

Salaar sat beside Myss. His eyes looked at Myss, while one hand tore bread into pieces and threw them into the soup bowl.

An owl rested on Father Kalen’s knee, and the priest was gently stroking the bird’s feathers. “Approximately where is the United Library located? I can ask my little animal friends to check first.”

Silence.

Father Kalen looked toward Myss, who sat opposite him. Myss looked toward Salaar. Salaar looked toward Tass, who simply wore a look of utter disdain.

“Why are you looking at me? I don’t know either! …Kalen said before that no assassin, no matter how bold, would cause trouble on royal territory!”

“Besides, the United Library isn’t open to outsiders at all. Why don’t you ask me how to get to the king’s bedroom while you’re at it?”

Myss: “Oh. How do you get to the king’s bedroom?”

Tass: “…”

Tass plunged headfirst into the pocket watch’s gemstone and refused to come out.

Seeing Myss eagerly preparing to dig at the gemstone, Salaar patted his shoulder. “Don’t torment Tass. There’s actually a simpler method.”

He looked around at the companions sitting by the campfire, and a mischievous smile appeared on his face.

“I think, out of politeness, I should greet ‘my’ dear cousin Mag.”

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 76: Among the Grass

Myss succeeded.

For the first time in three hundred years, Salaar felt such utter despair.

He was only a gear obstructing the operation of Night Scourge. The many pains he felt must surely be useful to the human world.

Wounds deep enough to reveal bone would heal. The world would continue after his death… Nothing had been settled yet and hope for the future still remained.

But this was different.

Salaar finally realized that he truly couldn’t control that love. He could heal every injury, but only this festering wound on his heart couldn’t be erased.

Everything was for the sake of ending the Night Scourge. Then what was he supposed to do with his corroded heart?

Salaar wouldn’t submit to this pain. Giving up had never been his choice.

As for the other choices… Myss knew next to nothing about human love. As long as Salaar deliberately guided him, he could at least satisfy his own desires. Salaar could hear it. In some dark corner of his heart, a voice wailed amid the searing agony of his love: Seduce him. Indulge. Myss must pay the price.

“No,” Salaar answered soundlessly.

Knife climbed onto his wrist and silently watched Salaar. Under the moonlight, those blue eyes were like two stars.

“‘Love’ should be something beautiful,” he said to it. “Even if I’m in such a sorry state, this is still my first love. I don’t want to sully it.”

“You two won’t have a good ending.” Knife flicked out its tongue.

“What a coincidence. Most people’s first loves don’t have good endings.”

Salaar looked toward the vast starry sky. “I have pursued a certain result my entire life. If I insist on judging even this kind of matter solely by the result, that would be too pitiful.”

“So, what do you plan to do? …Keep pretending you aren’t moved, and smother your feelings into the grave?”

Knife moved closer, its thin voice like an interrogation. “Since you’ve decided to move forward, there should at least be a direction.”

The night wind roamed freely through the wilderness, and the tentacle lilies rustled and swayed.

Salaar stretched out his foot, the tip of his boot touching the tender tentacle closest to him. The tentacle reflexively opened, then tapped him twice more.

The motion didn’t have much force. Salaar only felt a little ticklish at the tip of his foot. On his back, Myss’s breathing sped up slightly, and he mumbled twice in his dream.

A nearly sorrowful happiness climbed up Salaar’s spine, and he let out a long breath.

“When dealing with an enemy, one should use the cruelest method.” Salaar withdrew his gaze from the tentacle.

“I intend to ‘truly love’ him.”

He wanted Myss to be like him, to have a wound in his heart that couldn’t heal, and to feel this torment of despair.

Even if, in the very end, humanity couldn’t contend with Myss. As long as that wound could make Myss hesitate for one second when he destroyed the world, hesitate for one minute…

That would be the last bit of time the so-called “Saint Salaar” won for the mortal world.

…And it would also be the epitaph for his tragic love.

Salaar slowly put Myss down. His movements were very gentle, and Myss remained asleep.

Moonlight wound through that long hair. The night was dim, but Salaar could still clearly see the lapis-lazuli hair ribbon at the ends of Myss’s hair, as well as his rosy cheeks and lips.

Salaar gently brushed away the strands that had drifted onto Myss’s cheek, lowered his head, and kissed him.

The tip of his tongue decisively pried open the gap between Myss’s teeth. This time, Salaar kissed with great composure, as though drawing a sword and thrusting it at his own fate.

Myss’s hands groped around and skillfully hooked around Salaar’s neck. Only then did he open his eyes slightly. As the dream ended and his power scattered, all those pitch-black tentacle lilies vanished.

Myss didn’t resist the kiss.

He lazily stretched his body among the wild grass. The tip of his tongue curled lightly, and it was hard to tell who was tasting whom. Their breaths mingled together and kept heating up.

Myss’s magical garments rustled against the grass. Perhaps his emotions were somewhat unstable, but the fabric at his shoulders and neck scattered like the tentacle lilies, revealing his bare shoulders.

Salaar’s fingertips brushed over the skin exposed to the cold wind. His enemy had become his instrument strings, trembling lightly beneath his touch.

It was an incomparably long kiss. Even a warrior like Salaar, who excelled at controlling his body, kissed until his breathing fell into disorder.

During the brief gap to breathe, Myss gave a few quiet hums, sounding quite satisfied. Who knew whether he was satisfied with the kiss or satisfied with Salaar’s infatuation.

Just as Myss turned over and prepared to climb onto his hero cushion, Salaar decisively stood up.

Myss: “?”

The night wind immediately scattered Salaar’s remaining warmth, chilling Myss into a shiver.

“We should head back.”

Salaar extended a hand toward him, his gaze gently and persistently wrapping around Myss.

Myss licked the wet corner of his mouth and didn’t move.

He discovered, not particularly surprised, that a certain part of him and Salaar had changed again. Myss subconsciously raised his fist. Thinking of the unforgettable pain from last time, he resentfully lowered his claws again.

How did humans handle this again…? At least in the slave’s memories, humans didn’t like handling it in front of other people. His memories about this matter lacked detail, so for the moment, he didn’t know where to begin.

Was he supposed to just go back like this?

Myss didn’t care about human notions of shame, but if he punched himself, his body would feel terrible. Leaving it alone also felt terrible…

“Hey, Salaar, tell me how to handle this.” Myss demanded as he sat unceremoniously sprawled out on the grass.

His body temperature was still on the high side, and his breaths turned into clouds of white mist.

“Say ‘please,’” Salaar said, crossing his arms.

“How polite.” Myss feigning ignorance. “Very good. I permit you to assist me.”

Salaar chuckled softly and crossed his arms even tighter.

Myss’s eyes turned. “How about this? You deal with yours here and let me see how you do it.”

“That won’t be necessary.” Salaar tugged at his pants. “It’ll take quite a while to walk back. It can go down on its own.”

Myss let out a disgruntled huff and stuck firmly to the ground, staring at Salaar unhappily.

Lord Archdemon didn’t mind hardship, but he truly didn’t want to suffer for no reason. There would be plenty of days ahead. Was he supposed to pay this kind of price every time he tempted Salaar in the future?

As he thought about it, Myss flopped back onto the ground with a thump, clearly taking the stance of, if you don’t teach me, I won’t get up.

Salaar sighed with exasperation. “You said that for those centuries in the seal, you were always watching humans. I thought you knew the details. My companions never deliberately restrained themselves.”

Myss retorted indignantly, “I didn’t watch them. I only watched you. You never did this kind of thing, so I thought you didn’t have that function.”

“If I’d known this earlier, I should’ve looked at more of that taxidermist’s memories. When we reach the next city, I’ll go observe other humans—”

Salaar drew in a soft breath.

After a long while, he slowly sat down in the grass and patted his thigh. “…Forget it. Come here. I’ll teach you.”

Myss moved over in victory and sat on Salaar’s lap.

Salaar’s body heat wrapped around him from behind, blocking the cold night wind. Salaar’s legs were harder than his chest, but they felt much better than the dry grass.

Salaar’s left arm circled his waist, and his right hand reached over lightly. Myss cooperatively released part of his magic. The tips of the grass brushed lightly in the wind, grazing the skin of his thighs.

Salaar’s chin rested against Myss’s shoulder, his body abnormally tense. His palm was far rougher than it looked. Myss’s breathing abruptly grew rapid, and he instinctively gave a few convulsive jerks, a layer of hot sweat seeping from his back.

Salaar shifted his arm. His left hand cupped Myss’s restless head and held him fully embedded in his embrace.

Myss couldn’t move, so he could only stare fixedly at that hand motion that was rising and falling.

His body temperature rose again, and his urgent panting turned into flickering white vapor. Myss felt that trembling was a little embarrassing, but he couldn’t stop his body from spasming. As a show of force, he opened his mouth and bit Salaar’s left hand, which was holding his chin.

The web between Salaar’s thumb and index finger was bitten, and a tiny bead of blood seeped out.

Salaar’s body remained as unyielding as iron. The only change was the strength of his grip of his hands by a few degrees. Finally, unable to endure any longer, Myss instinctively reach out and licked Salaar’s bleeding wound.

The tongue against the wound was searing, and for a fleeting instant, Salaar’s movement froze.

What followed bore little resemblance to “teaching”; it felt more like a swift decisive combat operation. By the time the “anomaly” was resolved, Myss was nearly choking on his ragged breath.

Salaar, meanwhile, sprang to his feet with such suddenness that he nearly sent Myss flying.

“All right. Let’s go.” The Great Hero swiftly turned around, and the light of a cleansing spell brushed over his right hand.

Myss’s mind was somewhat blank, his thoughts as if soaked in fog. He had wanted to run in front of Salaar and see this guy’s condition, but his legs were weak, and he simply couldn’t catch up with Salaar’s steps.

When they found the priest and the Dragon Fae again, Salaar looked completely normal, whether in expression or body, as if nothing had happened just now.

On the contrary, Myss’s face still had a lingering flush, and his steps were unsteady, earning him a meaningful look from the Dragon Fae.

As night had fallen, the priest rented two decent tents, and the group decided to camp out right where they were. As the only “couple” in the team, Myss and Salaar shared one tent.

As for why Myss had woken up in the wilderness, Salaar’s explanation was that “your magic was a little out of control, and I was afraid of attracting Professor Gentry’s attention.” Myss accepted it for the time being.

But no matter how it was explained, Myss still felt annoyed, as if he had been left at a disadvantage.

In just that short time when he had failed to keep an eye on Salaar, Salaar had secretly changed. Compared with his loss of composure in Hope Dungeon, Salaar’s emotions had stabilized quite a bit, and he had turned back into that tenacious and annoying bastard.

What they had done just now was undoubtedly something human lovers would do. Yet Salaar had quickly calmed his emotions, leaving only Myss alone in utter disarray.

How exactly was he supposed to defeat this guy?

While Salaar turned around to arrange the sleeping bag, Myss resentfully stretched out a finger and gave a hard poke at Salaar’s waist.

Salaar: “—!”

With just that one poke, Salaar jolted from head to toe as if electrocuted, and his ears were quickly stained red.

He turned his head to glance at Myss and heaved a fierce sigh at his mortal enemy’s face.

Myss: “?”

Myss felt a sense of balance being restored.

The next second, Salaar stuffed him from head to toe into the sleeping bag and ruthlessly tied two knots in it with a belt, turning him into a freshly made Myss cocoon.

“Sleep.” Salaar tossed the Myss cocoon toward the inside of the tent.

“What about you?” Myss struggled to poke his head out.

Salaar: “I’ll curse you in my heart for a while. I’ll sleep once I’ve cursed enough.”

“…Oh.”

……

The next day was clear and sunny, and Professor Gentry prepared to leave one step ahead.

The Archmage stated that this exploration had “yielded no results, and only Roman’s lost landmark nails were found.” He and his students planned to return and hold a funeral for the “missing” Roman.

He left behind letters of introduction addressed to the United Library. For the group of four, everyone had one.

The only flaw in an otherwise perfect situation was that this exploration had been too short, not even lasting a full week. According to the contract, Myss and Salaar could only receive a total of one thousand gold rings.

Upon hearing that they didn’t have storage accounts, Professor Gentry gave them a pure-gold signet ring.

“This is a savings ring from the Dawn Guild. There are one thousand gold rings inside,” he explained. “Once you reach Serpentia City, go to the Dawn Guild and verify it. Then you can use it freely.”

A little troublesome, but Myss could understand for the time being.

One thousand gold rings in cash would be quite heavy. Professor Gentry couldn’t possibly carry such a massive sum with him, and Myss didn’t want to shoulder large bags of it either.

According to the agreement before the exploration, Salaar’s share of the payment nominally belonged entirely to Myss. The moment Salaar received the gold ring, he handed it to Myss.

“Thank you for taking care of us these past few days. We learned quite a bit.”

After watching Myss happily fiddle with the ring for a while, Salaar nodded to Professor Gentry.

“I should be the one thanking you.” Professor Gentry sighed softly. “If not for you, we would have been destined to gain nothing. We might even have died down there.”

He lowered his head and looked at the soil overgrown with weeds. Only they knew that beneath the thick earth and stone, there was a Divine Realm hidden away like a fairy tale.

The Magibase elephant let out a long cry. Myss raised his head just in time to see Professor Gentry crouch down, his palm gently stroking the grass, much as one might affectionately ruffle the hair of their favorite student.

After a long while, the Kingdom Archmage withdrew his hand, and a few bits of grass slipped from between his fingers.

“Thank you,” he repeated solemnly.

Beverly and Asp were in low spirits. They had forgotten the dreamlike underground Divine Realm and only remembered that “the depths completely collapsed.” With red-rimmed eyes, the two bid farewell to the group through the carriage window, only treating the entire expedition as a disappointing failure.

The team watched Professor Gentry board the carriage, and the wheels raised clouds of dust.

From beginning to end, Salaar didn’t mention that magic artifact merchant.

So far, the magic artifact merchant named Kai hadn’t harm them. Professor Gentry meeting someone else wasn’t something he was obligated to report to strangers like them.

But if someone said all of this was coincidence, Salaar absolutely wouldn’t believe it.

Kai was definitely not a simple magic artifact merchant. Wherever he went, traces of Abnormal Fruit always appeared.

Although Kai called Gentry “Uncle Gentry,” neither his appearance nor his aura bore any resemblance to Professor Gentry. If one had to find a common point, Salaar could only think of one.

They both didn’t believe in gods.

Around them, the lively gathering continued. People spread tales of good luck that no longer existed and regarded it as a miracle.

“At this rate, a village will develop nearby.” Tass related with great interest. “In another decade or so, maybe it’ll become a town.”

The priest nodded pleasantly.

Assuming you’re still alive in a decade or so, Myss wrinkled his nose. Salaar shot him a sidelong glance, then stepped forward to block Myss’s hostile gaze.

He raised his head again and looked toward Professor Gentry’s carriage. The carriage had already turned into a faint black dot on the horizon, like a grain of sand sinking into the center of a lake.

Yet the ripples it raised didn’t disappear.

“Speaking of which, I have a question I’m extremely curious about.”

Salaar turned toward Kalen and Tass.

“How much do you two know about that ‘godless’ Stargazers Society?”

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 75: A Dark Interlude

Tass dipped a piece of soft cloth in clean water and began happily wiping his wings.

Father Kalen felt guilty because he had “performed poorly” in the Divine Realm. Tass, on the other hand, had no such concerns at all. As a Dragon Fae assassin who took money to do a job, he wouldn’t give his clients excessive goodwill. At least, that was what Tass himself believed.

He had thoroughly enjoyed this underground adventure. No one in the team had died or been injured, not even losing an arm or leg, and they had also obtained new information about V.O.R.

At the moment, the priest was taking a nap in a nearby bush, while Tass was using the dozing priest as a seat.

A few wild rabbits curiously ran over and looked the priest up and down, completely ignoring Tass.

Perhaps magical lifeforms were more special. Small animals were generally uninterested in Dragon Fae. Antis had once explained to him that, in the eyes of flesh-and-blood animals, a “Dragon Fae” was closer to a magical phenomenon.

But life itself was also a natural phenomenon; Tass remained unconvinced.

He hummed a little tune as he wiped his dark red, pearlescent scales and the delicate tips of his wings. The sunlight was just right, and his fine scales shimmered with a perfect color, like a noblewoman’s finest silk.

As he wiped, Tass’s brows began to furrow.

His wings seemed to have turned black. The color of those scales had darkened slightly, though their beautiful luster remained the same.

Tass used more force with his hand, but the soft cloth was still perfectly clean… What was going on? Was he sick?

Although such dark scales were undeniably beautiful, Tass felt somewhat uneasy.

Dragon Fae scales came in as many colors as flowers, and even pink and pale green individuals were fairly common. Tass’s wings were a deep crimson—an intense shade of blood lilies—a red of absolute purity.

But now they were somewhat blackened… Since records began, there had never been a black Dragon Fae.

It just so happened they were going to Serpentia, so he could contact his kin at the capital’s jewelry shops. Tass dispiritedly put down the soft cloth and looked toward the gradually darkening evening sky.

He didn’t care about Divine Realms or gods. His own health was the most important thing!

…Speaking of which, human courtship activities really were troublesome. The circus should have ended long ago, but Myss and Salaar still had not appeared.

Bored out of his mind, Tass took out a fried bean and crunched on it, glancing at Father Kalen from the corner of his eye.

After being put through that ordeal by the Prisoner of Dreams, Father Kalen was somewhat weak, with symptoms a little like excessive blood loss. At the moment, he wasn’t sleeping peacefully. His brows were tightly furrowed, and he was murmuring something.

“Hermit,” the priest murmured. “Hermit…”

Father Kalen’s tone was uncharacteristically strange. It was suppressed and bitter. “Brother… The Order of Shadows… you madman…”

Father Hermit, Father Kalen’s brother, had disappeared because of V.O.R. Tass knew about this. But in his impression, this hulking priest had always been deeply dependent on his older brother.

What, then, was with that strange tone?

Tass reflexively thought about it for a few seconds, then decided to politely stay away from other people’s family matters.

When he finished eating the fried bean, Salaar and Myss finally returned from their courtship activity. The sunset on the wasteland had painted a bloodstain-like band of light, and the two of them were walking over from within that smear of blood.

Salaar was easily carrying the sleeping Myss on his back. Myss’s gray-white braid slipped down from his shoulder and drifted lightly in the wind.

Seeing Tass’s hesitant expression, Salaar said, “He’s too tired. If I wake him up, I’ll have to listen to him mutter the whole way.”

Tass: “…”

Too tired? Isn’t your healing magic incredibly potent, kid? Why pretend to be innocent?

Human courtship activities really were too troublesome, and the Dragon Fae was too lazy to expose him. He stared into Salaar’s eyes and deliberately slowed his movements, then ruthlessly pinched Father Kalen’s nose.

Father Kalen woke up at once.

The wild rabbits beside him woke up too and fled in a panic until they disappeared.

“How was the circus?” The priest wiped his face and stood up.

“Not bad. We saw some novel things.”

Salaar spoke softly, still not putting down the sleeping Myss.

In his sleep, Myss’s arms were tightly wrapped around Salaar’s neck, as if he wanted to imitate a collar with his arms.

The priest smiled gently. “As long as it went smooth—”

Before he could say the word “ly,” Tass cried out loudly.

In the deepening dusk, more than a hundred pitch-black points of light rose.

With Myss as the center, they hovered around the two of them within a radius of about ten meters. The black points flew around casually like living things. Sometimes they twisted into fine threads, sometimes they formed black webs, and some condensed into lumps, becoming four-legged monsters resembling headless rabbits.

“What’s going on?”

In the suddenly dense magical turbulence, Tass choked and coughed twice. “Damn it, can’t we get something normal for once—”

The instant his words fell, those things that seemed to be headless rabbits rapidly melted, turning into eyeless crows of normal size. They flapped their wings and hopped around the four of them. “Salaar, hateful! Salaar, soft!”

The crows occasionally forgot they were crows, and their wings and heads would be misplaced for an instant. Fortunately, their memories were decent enough that they didn’t end up sprouting body parts belonging to other animals.

“Salaar, noisy! Salaar, warm!”

The crows called out in voices that strongly resembled the rabbit Jinx.

Salaar: “…”

Salaar looked at the crows hopping at his feet. “This is our little secret, so be quiet.”

The crows: “Oh—!”

They stopped speaking. They only hopped in circles around Salaar, who was carrying Myss. The sky grew darker and darker, and this bizarre scene began to challenge the nerves of everyone present.

A thin layer of sweat broke out on Father Kalen’s forehead. “The divine power of dreams? But this is clearly Mr. Myss’s power signature!”

“He may have been contaminated by the power of the Divine Realm. We have to wake him up quickly!”

Salaar made a sound of thought and blinked. “I’ll handle it. Just in case, you two should keep your distance first.”

“No. Perhaps my experience can help.”

The priest seized this chance to make up for his mistake. Tass had just flown a few steps away, and at the sight, he awkwardly stopped in midair.

Salaar shook his head firmly. “I understand Myss. I’ll handle—”

Halfway through, the corners of his mouth rose. “I want to be alone with him.”

The moment he finished the final word, the crows all turned their heads in unison, their sharp beaks pointing toward Father Kalen. The priest looked at those eyeless birds, becoming even more convinced of his own view. This was simply like a recreation of the rabbits in the Divine Realm, only more grotesque and crude.

Could there also be an Abnormal Fruit on Myss? But he hadn’t discovered any sign of it…

The priest thought for a few seconds, and when he returned to himself, the two people were already gone.

“Salaar runs faster than a rabbit,” Tass mercifully added. “That guy doesn’t count as reckless. Occasionally, you should trust the young ones a little. Elders who interfere too much will be disliked.”

“If you absolutely have to do something, help me check this. My wings changed color, and I suspect it’s related to the Divine Realm…”

……

Salaar carried Myss on his back and walked beneath the night sky. His back was to the sunset as he lifted his head and stepped forward into the mouth of night.

The crows lined up behind him in a row, staggering along with quick little steps.

“Salaar… Salaar!” they called quietly.

Myss was still sleeping soundly on his back, more deeply than usual. The night wind was cold, but Myss’s body was warm, even warmer than usual. Salaar’s back was slightly damp with sweat.

His spine was pressed tightly against Myss’s chest. Myss’s body twitched from time to time, and his mouth made soft murmuring sounds. He was dreaming.

Myss’s power was changing along with his dream, evolving like an instinct.

Perhaps interrupting this process would be a good idea. As long as Salaar released his hands, Myss would wake in the fall.

But Salaar didn’t. He merely slowed his steps and waited for those hopping crows to catch up to him and surround him.

He still wanted to see more, to know more.

“How astonishing… After only experiencing it once, you can actually do this much.”

Salaar was skilled at analyzing all sorts of magic, whether human or “divine.” As long as he could personally come into contact with those powers, he could reproduce them.

For example, the previous “Song of Motherly Love” and “Song of Perfection,” as well as the “Song of Luck” he had just obtained from Roman.

…But Myss’s “imitation” was different.

It wasn’t a one-to-one replication, but rather an approach that utilized his own unique methods to achieve the same effect. Just as horses and wooden carts could both carry luggage home, yet they were absolutely not the same thing.

Myss had no interest in understanding the myriad emotions of humanity, but he was learning knowledge from the outside world and doing it at a remarkable speed.

Perhaps Myss’s judgment hadn’t been wrong. This “body-swap ritual” of unknown origin would only bring the human world an even more terrifying enemy.

Salaar still believed that the survival or destruction of the world was everyone’s business, not something that rested only on his shoulders. The problem was, he couldn’t use that as an excuse to shirk responsibility and simply wait for Myss to become stronger.

“I also have to find a way to take another step forward.”

Salaar bounced the sleeping archnemesis on his back slightly. “Otherwise, I’ll have to look up to you all my life again…”

“Salaar, smaller than a sesame seed!” The nearest crow agreed.

Salaar raised his eyebrows at it. “Well said. Then can all of you turn into, uh, Myss’s true body?”

“Not showing, not showing!” the crows cried contemptuously.

What a pity. It seemed this power wouldn’t unconditionally realize everything. Even asleep, Lord Archdemon’s mind wasn’t so easy to fool.

“At least don’t look like crows.” Salaar said sadly, “We’re in our own little world here. Crows always make me think of Kalen.”

The crows froze.

“Didn’t look carefully at rabbits, don’t remember.”

“Bards say birds are good, snakes are bad.”

They chirped and muttered explanations, sounding extremely aggrieved.

“Forget those bards, for heaven’s sake.” Salaar laughed despite himself. “If you want me to be deeply attracted to you, you only need to be yourself.”

The crows fell silent.

Their forms melted again, becoming crawling tentacles.

Soft, glossy tentacles gathered in groups of three and five, extending their tips from the grass and swaying gently together. Under the moonlight, they seemed to be standing in a field of black lilies.

The rabbits on the wasteland were badly startled by these strange things and hurriedly fled.

Salaar stopped walking.

In the distorted sea of flowers, his eyes stung slightly and his throat felt dry.

At this moment, that pitch-black and hopeless world completely overlapped with the quiet wasteland.

Compared to the nap at the circus, this illusion personally created by Myss felt more like that nonexistent peaceful ending… A languid god basking beneath the moonlight; the apocalypse that had never descended, a scene Salaar didn’t dare to imagine and couldn’t.

“Hehe…” Myss laughed smugly in his dream. “Flowers… good…”

The smile on Salaar’s face vanished without a trace.

He did want to see more, but he shouldn’t have seen this. A dream mixed with deadly poison, a wish that made him unable to help sinking into it.

“Look…”

On his back, Myss was still murmuring, his damp, hot breath brushing past Salaar’s ear.

“Look… at… me…”

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 74: The Ending You Desire

The underground banquet would continue forever, and the revelry aboveground hadn’t dispersed either.

When they parted, Roman told them that he had originally wanted the rabbits to hold a lively banquet after his teammates were saved, to serve as his funeral.

Now, this endless banquet would become his means of deceiving V.O.R. Roman had decided to seal off his Divine Realm as much as possible and study the new subject of “Godhood” together with his companions.

In other words, the surface would no longer receive the Prisoner of Dreams’ divine power. There would no longer be any “luck of this place and time.”

But the people aboveground didn’t leave. They were still enthusiastically spreading tales of the good luck found here. Myss saw little Labi again, the boy who had sold them the rabbit’s foot. Labi’s business was still as good as before, and his grimy little face was full of smiles.

Myss couldn’t understand it. Could it be that his perception was wrong, and Roman’s divine power had still remained?

He dug out the rabbit’s foot and pocket watch again, placing them under his nose and sniffing them in turn. The smell of the Abnormal Fruit in those things had already been faint to begin with, and now there wasn’t even a trace left.

“Stop sniffing. Your judgment is fine.”

Seeing Myss sneeze three times in a row from the rabbit fur tickling him, Salaar couldn’t help speaking. “In my view, true luck can only be created by people themselves.”

Myss was blunt. “Speak plainly.”

“Labi is quick-witted and bold. His business is bound to thrive regardless. The so-called ‘luck of this place and time’ only made him more confident.”

Salaar looked toward Labi, who was darting around like a rabbit, as well as the courtship squad persistently chatting up pretty men and women.

“Even if they encounter setbacks, they’ll believe ‘this is part of the luck.’ People will accept reality and firmly pursue their dreams… In my view, the power brought by that kind of belief is far greater than that wisp of divine power.”

Seeing that Myss still looked as if he half understood, Salaar laughed. “From the current situation, do you think Roman’s team was lucky or unlucky?”

To be honest, Myss wasn’t sure.

They had transformed Roman, trimming Roman’s magic circuit with broad, sweeping strokes. Now Roman could be counted as a “disabled” god. As for how far he could go next, only Roman himself would know.

But Myss knew with absolutely certainty that if Roman had chosen to submit to V.O.R, he would only have died underground in madness together with his teammates.

“I understand.” Myss suddenly realized.

Salaar looked relieved. “Yes, the funny thing about luck is…”

“Meeting the body-swap ritual was actually especially lucky for me!”

Myss interrupted him happily. “I learned many magic techniques and thoroughly understood your weaknesses. All of this is the prelude to my victory—”

Salaar: “…”

Salaar sighed. “As long as you’re happy.”

He bought a roasted corn from a nearby stall, broke it in half, and fed one half to the excited Myss.

Myss took one bite and burned his tongue on the corn. However, after eating a huge pile of Salaar-flavored mushrooms, corn sprinkled with herbs and coarse salt seemed exceptionally delicious. He endured the heat and stubbornly gnawed at it.

As a result, Lord Archdemon did indeed quiet down.

“I bought sandwiches with sausage and smoked chicken.”

Father Kalen appeared with a smiling face, that large band-tailed wood pigeon standing on his shoulder again. “The disturbance in Semper City is calming down, and everything is fine at Antis’s residence.”

The pigeon puffed out its high chest and cooed several times. The sandwich in the priest’s hand had been pan-fried, and the bread gave off an enticing toasted fragrance. One glance was enough to tell it was the most premium variety.

With half-eaten corn between his teeth, Myss looked toward the “Abnormal Fruit sniffer” he had adopted.

As for “being controlled,” the priest claimed to have no memory of it.

According to Father Kalen, he had directly lost consciousness in the prison cell. Then, when he closed and opened his eyes, he had seamlessly arrived at the rabbits’ lively banquet. For this, he had solemnly apologized to them.

Strictly speaking, having his mind controlled by a god couldn’t be considered Father Kalen’s personal failing. Never mind Salaar, even Myss was quite tolerant about this.

However, as the “elder” in the team, after returning to the surface, the priest still felt somewhat guilty.

He knew there was no point in apologizing over and over, so he simply bought them plenty of delicious food, attempting to calm the two “youngsters” nerves.

“…And this. The best viewing seats at the circus. A couple’s ticket.”

The priest said, “Tass and I will go do some divination and see where there’s ill omen. Oh, right, Professor Gentry will stay in the carriage for two days. He said you can look for him anytime if anything comes up.”

Salaar graciously accepted the two colorful parchment tickets. “Thank you. We’ll go watch. But regarding the next destination, I, no… we have something to discuss with you.”

Hearing this, Tass poked his head out and, while he was at it, broke a kernel off Myss’s roasted corn and held it in both hands to gnaw on.

The priest looked nervously at Salaar and Myss. “If you two don’t want to continue cooperating…”

“No. We want to designate the next destination,” Salaar said solemnly.

Oh, that matter.

Myss glanced at Tass, who was stealing corn kernels, then quickly gnawed all the remaining corn into his mouth.

This concerned the body-swap ritual. Even though the details had originally come from Professor Gentry, Myss had listened to every word without missing a single one. That information wasn’t as… secretive as they had imagined, but it was indeed quite valuable.

“Divine Blood. A special alchemical material passed down from the Night Scourge period.”

Professor Gentry had said this. “It was excavated from several massive dungeons. Its production method has been lost. Most Divine Blood is preserved by the royal family and research institutions, while a few poorly preserved scraps have flowed into the hands of nobles.”

“This thing has a strange infectious power. It’s said that if it is diluted with a special potion and given to a pregnant woman, she can give birth to a child akin to a god—with a strong body, powerful magic, and extraordinarily beautiful appearance.”

…But that was ultimately only “it’s said.”

According to Professor Gentry, some great nobles with many offspring would have their lovers take this “Divine Blood potion” in order to obtain extraordinary descendants. There were also noblewomen who, in order to “give their children the best,” would secretly take this medicine.

Twenty years ago, this practice had once been extremely fashionable among several great noble families in the capital.

However, the vast majority of people didn’t obtain the result they wanted.

Some gave birth to physically strong offspring, but the child’s magic was almost exhausted. Others gave birth to powerful magical geniuses, but they quickly died young after receiving their Magibase.

Of course, there were also children whose appearances were absurdly beautiful, but they were born with low intelligence, and a few had terrifying disabilities.

“The Karns family secretly possessed Divine Blood. Kendrick Karns was undoubtedly a ‘Child of Divine Blood.’ Back then, they once privately came to me for help.”

Professor Gentry’s expression was somewhat complicated. “As for Mr. Myss… the situation is more complicated.”

“The Divine Blood of the Nebula family was once stolen. The thief was a pregnant maid. In order to give birth to a ‘Child of Divine Blood,’ she drank a potion that a certain family member had prepared for his lover, then fled overnight.”

“When the Nebula family found her, she had already given birth. A beautiful boy with gray hair, red eyes, and a deformed right leg.”

At this point, Professor Gentry paused slightly.

Salaar mercilessly continued, “Let me guess. They privately executed the maid who stole the Divine Blood, then handed the boy over to their vassals at the border to see whether he had any magic talent.”

“A few years later, they discovered the child wasn’t only physically disabled, but mentally as well, so they simply sold him off.”

Professor Gentry nodded heavily.

“That slave merchant once came to the capital and tried to sell that child. The upper nobles more or less all knew about the Nebula family’s ‘little accident’ and gossiped about it for quite a while… That was when I learned of it.”

“Both of your physical bodies are Children of Divine Blood. They are not normal humans. I thought this information might be of some use to you.”

Rather it was an immense use. Myss was absolutely delighted.

Professor Gentry only thought they had chosen human bodies—which he viewed as inherently “flawed” —and wanted to use this information to sell them a small favor. This Archmage had no idea at all that they had been unwillingly body-swapped. This matter was far more serious than a mere “flaw” or “hidden danger”.

Kendrick Karns and the slave were both so-called “Children of Divine Blood.” This was absolutely not a coincidence.

“If the two of you are interested in Divine Blood, you might as well go to Serpantia’s ‘United Library’ and take a look. I am willing to provide a letter of introduction for the two of you.”

Professor Gentry glanced at Myss, who was beaming. “However, the Karns family may cause trouble for Mr. Salaar. I cannot protect you openly. Please understand.”

……

“…I must return to Serpantia to resolve the issue with the Karns family.”

By the time the words passed from Salaar’s mouth, they had magically changed shape. “Otherwise, they’ll keep causing trouble for us. The next assassin may not be as reasonable as Sir Tass.”

Father Kalen had no reason to doubt him. He slowly furrowed his brow. “The Karns family has considerable influence in the capital. If you don’t have a reliable place to stay—”

“We’ll go to the United Library. Professor Gentry is willing to provide everyone with letters of introduction.”

Salaar had already prepared for this.

“Then there’s no issues.” The priest nodded calmly.

The United Library was a royal research institution directly under the Aufon Kingdom, and great nobles could not interfere with it. Even the Karns family couldn’t openly hunt guests of the United Library.

“Hermit once said that the United Library preserves the exploration notes of the Order of Shadows. I can apply to borrow them as well. Perhaps I’ll find new clues.”

Tass had no objections either. According to Sir Dragon Fae, as long as they could find that bastard V.O.R, he was fine going anywhere.

After the pleasant little team meeting, Salaar bought two more roasted corns and brought Myss toward the circus tent.

“The tickets were already bought. Don’t waste them.” The Great Hero declared righteously.

“Isn’t it just a bunch of humans performing?” Myss glanced at the hand-painted poster beside the tent, completely unable to understand.

Compared to stepping on big balls and tightrope walking, throwing flying knives and taming lions, Salaar’s antics inside the seal were far more entertaining to watch.

If he smashed down a slightly larger tentacle, Salaar would do eighteen flips on the spot and still land gracefully on both feet. When this person had nothing better to do, he had also tried balancing ten empty wooden bowls on his head at the same time to train the stability of his steps… And when his madness truly seized him, Salaar would even use ventriloquism to dub the tentacle potted plant on the windowsill.

In truth, Lord Archdemon had absolutely no interest in human performances. But if humans insisted on performing, Myss couldn’t stop them.

“It’s just to watch the atmosphere.” Salaar cleared his throat. “Although in my imagination, I should watch it together with someone I like—”

“I suddenly really want to watch human performances,” Myss interjected with a pleasant smile.

Salaar looked at Myss as if he wanted to speak but stopped himself. In the end, he shook his head and bought another jar of raspberry jam with honey added.

The circus in this place certainly knew how to run a business. The venue was cleaned very thoroughly, and they even burned specially blended herbs so people couldn’t smell the odor of the animals or the audience.

The couple seats had been arranged in the place with the best view. A rough carpet, two wooden chairs with backs, and a small peach-pink tent with soundproofing magic around it, and they dared charge them sixty silver shields. Tickets for normal seats only cost two silver shields!

Good thing we aren’t the ones paying for this, Myss thought.

Looking up, a woman dressed in exaggerated clothes was entering the ring with a lion, and a wave of muffled cheers broke out around them.

But in Myss’s view, apart from size, there was no essential difference between a lion and a cat. They were both fragile lumps of meat wrapped in a layer of fur.

Surrounded by the small tent, Myss began to feel sleepy again. He tossed the half-eaten roasted corn to Salaar and snatched the jar of jam from Salaar’s arms.

Salaar was used to it. “After we finish watching this, we should still have some time. Is there anything you want to do?”

This guy had recently become very fond of using the word “we.” Who knew what had gotten into him.

Myss scooped up a spoonful of cool raspberry jam. “Anything I want?”

Salaar: “Anything.”

“Then find a place to lie down and let me sleep for a while,” Myss said. “These past few days, we haven’t had a proper rest…”

He missed his hero cushion.

After the words left his mouth, Myss realized that he had been thinking about Salaar’s new verbal habit so much that he had also been led astray.

Forget it. In any case, Salaar couldn’t possibly—

“All right,” Salaar said.

Myss stopped eating jam and looked at Salaar suspiciously. Salaar had agreed so readily that he suspected there was a scheme.

“If you don’t want to watch the circus, you can sleep now. Just close it.” Salaar pointed at the peach-pink tent.

In the tent next to theirs, there was a man and a woman. The tent had already been drawn shut. Under the crude soundproofing magic, fragmented moans could be heard.

Myss clicked his tongue. “Didn’t you want to watch the circus…”

“I said the circus is just about the atmosphere. With a layer of cloth between us and it, the atmosphere won’t disappear,” Salaar said.

Then what else was there to say?

Myss took a deep breath, swallowed the jam in two or three bites, and pounced straight at Salaar.

Salaar cooperatively lay down on the carpet, and Myss skillfully sprawled over him. Amid that warm and familiar scent, Myss fell asleep in the blink of an eye.

At this distance, Salaar could see the faint bluish color beneath Myss’s eyes.

This trip had indeed been quite exhausting. Salaar subconsciously wanted to erase Myss’s fatigue, but a few seconds later, he slowly withdrew his hand.

Salaar stared at the sleeping Myss for a while, then moved his gaze to the top of the small tent.

The tent curtain hung down, and the performance onstage disappeared from view. The audience’s cheers became even more indistinct, as if they had sunk to the bottom of a sea of people.

The lighting was dim in just the right way, and all around them were lively human voices. Myss slept deeply and quietly, as if everything had already ended and the human world was destined to endure forever.

Unfortunately, Salaar knew they couldn’t possibly have such a peaceful ending.

“Have you ever thought about the ending after you win?” Salaar murmured softly.

Myss gave a tiny “mm” and moved against him. “You… would die…”

“Yes. I die, and the world no longer exists either.” Salaar smiled.

Myss’s breathing quickened for two seconds. His brows furrowed, and he rubbed his face hard against Salaar’s chest.

“I’ll leave you half a life… to be my cushion… That works too…”

“No. I’ll live and die with the human world,” Salaar said, his voice soft, yet cruelly unyielding.

Myss opened his eyes slightly, full of reproach. “Damn it, when you bring someone to watch the circus, do you have to say such buzzkill nonsense?”

“Question after question, endlessly. All useless nonsense. If you win, won’t I still die?”

“It’s different.” Salaar stroked Myss’s long hair. “After executing you, I…”

At this point, he abruptly stopped, then smiled again. “Never mind. Go to sleep.”

Myss licked the jam from the corner of his mouth and closed his eyes while cursing inwardly.

He had a strange dream.

He dreamed that the entire human world had vanished, and he tied Salaar with a rope as the two of them floated in boundless darkness. Myss smugly tugged on the rope, but Salaar ignored him and didn’t even look at him.

A thin layer of sweat broke out on Myss’s body. Although he was lying on a familiar cushion of flesh, his chest felt scorched and restless, and his sleep wasn’t comfortable at all.

A living Salaar was a nuisance, so much so he couldn’t help but fantasize about his demise; yet a dead Salaar offered no warmth, his breath tainted by the stench of decay.

Truly a dilemma.

……

Backstage at the circus, inside a tent.

Professor Gentry silently entered the tent and stood behind a certain employee whose face was covered in greasepaint. That short employee stopped moving and slowly turned his head.

“Long time no see, Uncle Gentry. I knew you’d be alright!”

Kai stood up and gave Professor Gentry a big hug.

Professor Gentry affectionately patted his back.

“But this place isn’t very suitable for a talk. Let’s save it for another day. A lot has happened recently, so I must properly invite you for a drink!”

Kai’s gaze swept toward the outside of the tent, then—subtly, imperceptibly—withdrew it.

Outside the tent, in the grass, the little snake Knife tilted its head.

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The author has something to say:

A new arc begins! To the capital— [OK]

An unsolved mystery: does the Order of Shadows actually exist? [dog head]

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<<< || Table of Contents || >>>

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 73: A Secret Conversation

As he rose from his seat, Myss struggled for a full three seconds.

All the mushrooms at the banquet were condensed from the Prisoner of Dreams’ divine power, equivalent to high-purity energy in mushroom form. He hadn’t gotten the Abnormal Fruit, so eating more mushrooms still counted as a consolation prize.

But he couldn’t accept Salaar and Professor Gentry whispering to each other in private. A scheming human like Salaar would hatch all sorts of convoluted schemes with no one watching him.

Lord Archdemon bit down on a few more pieces of mushroom and decided to go observe. The job of watching the priest fell onto Tass’s tiny shoulders.

Tass was chewing slowly on a green mushroom the size of an enoki and didn’t object.

“I have two proposals.”

The three of them were led by the rabbits to a separate storage room, and Professor Gentry spoke crisply.

“The first proposal is that I die here.”

He said it calmly, as if the matter had nothing to do with him.

“I have discovered too much valuable information, and I won’t obediently hand over my memories.”

“My power can’t compete with the two of you, but I still have time to kill myself. If I die here, the other Archmages will definitely wonder what happened.”

Salaar gave a noncommittal hum and crossed his arms.

Professor Gentry’s power belonged within the scope of humanity, but his Magibase was deep, and neither his combat experience nor his store of knowledge could be underestimated.

If a man of this caliber had resolved himself to die, they would indeed find themselves in a difficult predicament.

“In that case, we’ll kill your students too. Don’t you care?” Myss asked directly.

Salaar couldn’t help glancing at Myss. Lord Archdemon was chewing mushrooms with smacking sounds, his eyes holding a clear sort of curiosity.

Myss was genuinely curious, just like a child curious about what would happen after tearing apart a butterfly’s wings.

He couldn’t care less about whatever emotional issues the butterfly might have.

“I care, just as a general cares about his soldiers. But every war has its casualties.”

Professor Gentry’s demeanor remained remarkably composed. “Explorers are not tourists out sightseeing. The moment they took their first step into this place, they knew what they might encounter.”

Myss gave a light “oh” and began focusing on chewing mushrooms again.

…As if he had discovered that when a butterfly lost its wings, it became a writhing strip of flesh, and he had no interest in that scene.

“The second proposal?” Salaar focused his mind and did his best not to look at the mushroom dangling back and forth by Myss’s mouth.

“Let me keep my memories and my life and leave this place. I am willing to provide the two of you with information. For example, Kendrick Karns, as well as the special traits of this slave, the physical body the two of you are using.”

…Not bad.

Myss stopped chewing and instantly came back to himself.

Salaar, meanwhile, raised his head slightly. He looked expressionlessly at Professor Gentry, carrying that aura Myss was extremely familiar with, the aura that belonged only to someone in a superior position.

“I have heard something about the accident in Ring Town. I once met Kendrick Karns. On the right side of his neck, there were two small red moles. As for the white-haired slave he bought, I also happen to know a little about him.”

Professor Gentry couldn’t help sighing.

“There are no traces of magical control on the two of you, but a person’s temperament wouldn’t change so completely. I can only guess that something went wrong with what he was researching… a truly catastrophic mistake.”

“Speak plainly,” Salaar said without denying it.

Professor Gentry: “It’s merely a guess, of course. The two of you are the divine kin—dependents if you will—from an unknown realm. You’re similar in nature to the existence that created the Abnormal Fruit, but you have different allegiances.”

Salaar still didn’t deny it. He only glanced at Myss from the corner of his eye.

“So?” Myss could not help blinking.

Looking at the matter as it stood, both he and Salaar had been stuffed into ordinary human bodies, and their powers hadn’t fully recovered. The positioning of “divine dependents” was actually relatively accurate, and he didn’t feel offended.

“First there was the Red Amber, then there was Roman’s experience. The two of you seem committed to destroying Divine Realms, and I also don’t wish for the Divine Realms to exist. I confirmed V.O.R’s matter from Roman. The human world shouldn’t become an experiment field for unknown existences.”

Professor Gentry lowered his voice. “Indeed, I don’t know what your true objective is. But so far, our interests are aligned.”

The old professor’s voice was extremely sincere, so sincere that it couldn’t contain the slightest lie.

However, Salaar wasn’t moved by that sincerity. He continued to question him calmly. “Compared to us, whose origins are unknown, you could very well join hands with the other Archmages.”

Professor Gentry let out a short laugh. The emotions within it were far too complex for Myss to distinguish.

“I am the weakest of the seven Archmages, whether in magic power or authority. I’m afraid my words don’t carry that much weight… You should know, the Archmages are not on peaceful tea-drinking terms with one another.”

Professor Gentry returned to his aged appearance, and his voice sounded even more weathered than before. His magic foundation, the giant elephant, lowered its head, its trunk gently curling over his white hair.

“Not every genius wishes for the Divine Realm to disappear. Some people believe this is an opportunity, that they can glimpse knowledge that doesn’t belong to mortals.”

Myss listened to this much with great reluctance.

Fine. According to this explanation, the Archmages more or less all knew Divine Realms existed. It was just that some idiots who didn’t know the height of heaven or the depth of earth thought this was a good thing. Not only would they not obstruct V.O.R, they might even help that guy.

…Of course, it was also possible that V.O.R had put on a human skin and was hiding among the seven Kingdom Archmages.

Gulp. Myss swallowed the last mouthful of Salaar-flavored mushroom and tugged at Salaar’s sleeve.

Salaar casually cast a soundproofing spell. “I’m guessing you and I are thinking the same thing. It would be best for us to keep this guy around.”

Myss: “Mm.”

Salaar let out a long breath. “If we clash head-on, we can’t bear the risk of being noticed. And he knows information about these two bodies. There might be clues about the body-swap ritual…”

After Salaar had only analyzed for a few sentences, Myss’s attention scattered, and he openly zoned out. When it came to matters he wasn’t interested in, Lord Archdemon had always been physically incapable of seeing them.

Fork simply lay on Myss’s shoulder, one eye looking at the sky and one eye looking at the ground, sleeping soundly.

Salaar: “…What kind of expression is that? Isn’t this what you were thinking?”

“Oh? Oh.”

Myss looked at him innocently. “I was just thinking, this guy hates the Divine Realms, and he also runs around everywhere all year long. He can be used as a half-Abnormal Fruit sniffer. Just let him run wild on a loose leash—free range.”

Salaar: “Haa… In any case, I can’t completely trust him. We need an extra constraint.”

Myss immediately tensed, and his relaxed eyes became bright and sharp. “What do you mean? Don’t tell me you’re going to make another contract?”

What, did Salaar have to sign a contract with everyone? Myss pinched the dozing Fork awake and felt it wasn’t as cute as before.

Fork yawned widely at Salaar, revealing its tiny sharp teeth.

“How could that be?” Salaar laughed despite himself. “Hmm… You could think of it as a unilateral secrecy curse.”

“He can keep the knowledge. But without our permission, he can’t reveal us to anyone, nor can he record us through any method. If he violates this, he will lose all memories regarding us.”

“I won’t be bound by anything. Don’t worry.”

Although that wasn’t what he was upset about, this was fine too. According to what the Professor had said just now, he had no reason to refuse.

Myss rubbed the Fork’s head, tacitly agreeing.

When they walked out of that small storage room, Professor Gentry’s steps were light, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

On the inside of his left arm, there was an oath mark like a burn scar.

……

For the rest of the time, the rabbits held an incomparably grand banquet.

They used mushrooms as drums and even dug flutes and harps out from all sorts of corners. Salaar personally took the field and played a beautiful melody with that damaged harp.

Myss, meanwhile, focused all his attention on devouring mushrooms. He harbored deep grievances on not getting to eat the Abnormal Fruit and was determined to eat enough to make up for the loss.

There was only one small regret. He piled the mushrooms into cake, pressed them into steaks, and rolled them into balls, wishing in his heart for the taste that would please him most. Then he tasted Salaar-flavor, Salaar-flavor, and more Salaar-flavor.

…Absolutely hateful.

The survivors weren’t idle either. They joined the ranks of the rabbits and began repairing these ruins filled with malice.

“The dismantled traps can be transformed into other things.”

Sean’s complexion was still pale, but his spirits had improved a lot. “As long as the Professor sends down the necessary materials, we might be able to build a radio magic device.”

“There are also a great many ancient books in the study, enough for us to research for years…”

“We can just treat this as closing the door and settling down. I happen to have a research topic I want to work on…”

“Even if I can’t survive, I can build myself an incredibly cool tomb…”

The others also chimed in noisily. No one was despairing, and no one was collapsing. They spoke confidently about everything, as if every dream would eventually come true.

In the corner, Roman gazed at the lively banquet from afar, a satisfied smile on his face and his eyes a little moist.

Professor Gentry stood beside him. The Professor, on the contrary, was the calmest person among the group. He looked at the three people who were still unconscious and said nothing.

“Right, Professor.” Roman withdrew his gaze. “There’s something I must tell you.”

He hesitated for a moment, then continued, “That priest calls himself a believer of the Order of Shadows. In my opinion, he seems more like the legendary divine favored.”

“My rabbit bit through his hand and tasted his blood. His blood isn’t right, and his power is also extremely strange.”

Professor Gentry listened quietly.

“He was very willing to provide power to me, even willing to be controlled by me. If not for him, my condition might have been even worse. I might not even have held out through that…”

This newly born underground god thought for a while for a suitable word. “…That operation.”

“He was willing to provide you with power?” Professor Gentry raised his eyebrows.

“Yes. He communicated with me through that rabbit…”

Roman still remembered the shock of that moment.

Not long ago, he had come into contact with power that could allow him to continue burning, and he had smoothly controlled that priest.

Actually, even at that time, he had already been somewhat astonished. This person clearly possessed such a special power, yet mentally, he didn’t resist at all. This truly didn’t make sense.

However, after that priest was guided into the incubator by him, something entered his spirit.

It was like an auditory hallucination, or a dream.

Roman clearly had his eyes closed, yet he “saw” a blurry figure.

It was right there, deep inside his mind. He couldn’t see that thing’s facial features clearly, nor even its gender.

“How admirable, how pitiful.”

The other party’s voice seemed to press close to his ear. “I know you have no ill intent. I will do my best to help you.”

Why? Roman thought.

Logically, that priest shouldn’t even know of his existence. Even if he knew, he had absolutely no motive to help him.

“Don’t mind it. Just a small gesture of solidarity—from one prisoner to another.”

That voice spoke, carrying an ancient and heavy exhaustion. “I hope you can survive, just as I hope I can survive… Treat it as me taking a bit of hope from you. Don’t refuse, all right?”

Warm power flowed into Roman’s body, and the effect was immediate. Roman’s previously somewhat hazy consciousness cleared by several degrees.

Who are you? He asked carefully in his mind.

That black shadow didn’t respond. Amid the chaos, he only heard a sigh.

“Remember, don’t tell anyone else about this.”

I can hide it from my friends, but I won’t hide it from my teacher, Roman replied openly and honestly.

Yes, this black shadow was likewise “friendly.” But Roman wouldn’t obey Him in everything just because He had gained the priest as an intermediary.

“Gentry the ‘Colossal Elephant’? Fine. You may tell this one person the truth, if that will allow you to lower your guard.”

That voice responded peacefully. “I hope everything goes smoothly, child.”

Then He disappeared, as suddenly as He had appeared… just like V.O.R.

…After listening to all of this, Professor Gentry remained silent for a long time.

He only raised his head and looked toward Salaar and Myss, who were making a mess together. In the end, his gaze fell on the unconscious priest and didn’t move away for a long while.

“I’ll handle it.”

Professor Gentry rubbed his slightly cool fountain-pen staff. “You must also keep your promise to that existence. Don’t tell anyone.”

“All right, Professor. But…”

“I know what you want to ask.”

Professor Gentry’s tone was somewhat grave.

“Unfortunately, I have also never heard of any ‘Order of Shadows.’”

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The author has something to say:

This arc is over!!! [let me see]

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