Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

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Chapter 76: Black Iron and White Tin

This time the liquid wasn’t as lethal as the previous bottle. Although it smelled pungent, after the smell dissipated, it unexpectedly didn’t leave too strong of an aftertaste. Nemo didn’t know if he should faint. He waited with bated breath for a moment, but his mind was still as sober as if he had been soaked in ice water.

Nemo had indeed heard of the Eastern Witches.

At first, he had read all the novels in the library. It just so happened that that race made a very high appearance in all kinds of adventurous love stories. Compared with humanoids, they were closer to poisonous flowers that extend from the same parent plant. To be precise, they were plants that were similar in appearance to humans.

Unfortunately, this species would never have romantic stories about true love; only endless tragedies. The awakening of the Eastern Witches comes from a twisted mind. They extract the strength and lifespan of their offspring and personally raise them to become new witches.

They had never failed. After all, young hearts were easy to control, destroy, and distort.

Therefore, the Eastern Witches never showed any feelings close to “maternal love”. They just instinctively create more offspring, resist the extraction of the previous generation, and do their best to live longer and become stronger. When the power of their children began to appear, it had to be accompanied by a breathtaking beauty. Then, in order to survive, they must begin to repeat this cruel cycle.

Rooted in their own blood, they were a beautiful and dangerous parasitic plant.

Nemo had never seen a real Eastern Witch. In addition to matching the rumored “good at potions”, the old woman in front of him was far from the characteristics of an Eastern Witch. He couldn’t help but open the heavy book again and glanced at the photo.

Generally speaking, in order to obtain more offspring, the Eastern Witches had a longer youth than humans. The witch Nadine claimed that she was only thirty-three years old, but she was close to withering.

“You don’t feel tired?” The witch sat on the chair closest to the thick blanket and gasped hard for a few seconds. The orange cat had mysteriously gone off somewhere, leaving behind a room that looked a bit deserted.

The potion he drank this time was closer to a refreshing drug than one with a sleeping side effect. Nemo could even feel a trace of numbness in his brain, but he didn’t feel sleepy, so he shook his head honestly.

“You’re stronger than I thought.” Nadine smiled, causing the knife-like wrinkles on her face to gather. “Very good. If you can maintain this state, you might be able to return to your team earlier.”

Nemo looked at the old face. He was very curious, but he didn’t want to ask rashly. After all, the witch didn’t seem to want to continue chatting. She moved to the rocking chair on the other side of the living room and began to take a nap in the sun. The rattan rocking chair shook gently, lifting her thin body up, making it more difficult to see the ups and downs of her breathing on her shriveled chest.

Nemo wanted to turn his attention back to the book, but suddenly there was a huge change.

In the bright and warm sunshine, a huge phantom slowly twisted. Nemo narrowed his eyes hard, and the outline of the thing became more obvious. It wasn’t something that really existed there, like a tangled soft root or a deformed and enlarged blood vessel. The end of the phantom root plunged into the old woman’s thin body and wriggled like something being sucked in. The witch Nadine’s body became more and more shriveled, as if that thing had directly sucked away part of her internal organs. The vitality that had just been added soon disappeared again, and she was even a little older than before.

The shadows dissipated, and the air in the room seemed to be a bit colder. The old woman opened her mouth slightly and let out a sigh that was so light that it was almost inaudible.

It was a pity that the house full of flowers was located on the edge of the village, and the excitement on the other side of the village couldn’t spread here…

People gathered in one direction of the village, like ants that found sugar cubes. There was no one left in the tavern. The party could only stuff the money and tips under their plate, revealing a corner of it, and pray that no one would flip it over and steal them.

One side of the village became empty within an instant. The four people present maintained a tacit silence, and no one proposed to join in the excitement. Fortunately, not everyone rushed to watch the Horizon Mercenary Group. The snack shop next to the tavern was still open normally. There was a fat middle-aged shopkeeper who was taking a nap inside.

“I’m going to buy some food.” Oliver shook his pitifully deflated purse, causing Ann to tilt her eyes at him.

“Didn’t you have enough food five minutes ago?” The female warrior raised her brows. “If you want supplies, it’s still early.”

“…I’m going to buy some food for Nemo.” Oliver moved his gaze away and finished making up for what he had just said. “We only asked for treatment, so we can’t reasonably think she should also provide meals too.”

“Geez,” Jesse sighed, “have you ever heard of a superior demon who starved to death?”

“No.” Oliver walked to the snack shop without looking back. “But I have heard of people who want to join the team.”

The blond young man instantly shut his mouth.

“Then let’s go to the inn to book a room first—” Ann waved her hand and pulled on the knight commander, who had a complicated expression. “Anyway, this small place only has two inns, so you can come find us by yourself.”

Their leader waved his hand, indicating that he heard it.

The snack shop was full of the unique aromas of butter and baked goods, which made people feel relaxed. Oliver wasn’t sure what Nemo liked to eat, so he had to pick a variety of things and stuffed them into his large paper bag. When he thought about the toothless mouth of the witch Nadine, he asked for two more puddings. After settling accounts with the yawning owner, he carefully carried them in his other hand.

Things have settled down since then.

Most of the villagers just wanted to see some lively fun. After seeing the freshness, they began to walk back, and the number of pedestrians on the street was slowly increasing. Oliver cautiously avoided the excited passersby, holding the snack bag close to his chest with his right hand and the pudding tied to a hemp rope firmly with his left hand, trying hard to keep them from hitting his scabbard.

He followed his memory and walked to the witch’s residence, but unlike before, when they first arrived, people seemed to be staring at him intentionally or unintentionally, and even a few began to point their fingers.

He quickly confirmed what he was holding in his hand. The snack bag wasn’t damaged, and the pudding bottle remained intact. The paper bag wrapped around his chest even covered up the black badge, and he was dressed very ordinarily. The Rest in Peace remained in his scabbard, and it didn’t emit any light that would randomly appear.

So, he looked back suspiciously, and the murmurs of the villagers became even louder.

Oliver stopped and repeatedly checked whether there was anything wrong with his attire and behavior. He even turned his head to confirm if there was any suspicious note attached to his back, or if a piece of fabric was stretched awkwardly, but he found nothing.

He had to lower his head, speed up his steps, and trotted almost all the way back to the witch’s residence.

Hearing someone knocking on the door, Nemo put down the book in his hand and subconsciously looked at Nadine in the rocking chair. The witch wasn’t asleep but looked weaker than before. Seeing her struggling to fumble for her cane, Nemo quickly stood up.

“Don’t worry, I’ll get it.” He strode to the door.

Fortunately, there were no strange patients outside the door. The moment they saw each other, they both showed a little relieved expression, almost at the same time.

“Are you… feeling better?” Oliver asked a little nervously.

“Not bad.” Nemo turned sideways to make way and then closed the door. “Ms. Nadine said that I recovered very quickly, so I can probably return to the team earlier.”

“That’s good.” Oliver carefully placed the snack bag and pudding on the tea table.

“It seems a bit noisy outside.” Nemo looked out the window. “What happened?”

“The Horizon Mercenary Group just arrived here. It should be the spectators who have come back from watching the excitement.”

“The number one mercenary group Ann mentioned?” Nemo quickly picked up the conversation smoothly. “Aren’t they on a mission to explore the tomb of the elves?”

“Maybe that task has been completed.” Oliver untied the rope from the pudding bottleneck. “I bought some doughnuts… or do you want a pudding first? You haven’t eaten much in the past few days—”

The other person’s attitude was too natural. For a few seconds, Nemo almost forgot his freshly acquired true identity. He didn’t realize what happened until he took the bottle. At that time, Oliver had already walked in front of the witch, bent down and put a pudding in her hand. The witch smiled softly at him.

“Thank you… Uh, what are you doing here?” Nemo, who was half a beat slower, struggled to find a topic.

“It’s said—” Oliver was about to open the paper bag when a knock on the door came again.

“Is it Ann and them?”

“It shouldn’t be,” Oliver put down the snack bag. “They went to the inn first. It might be a guest of Ms. Nadine—don’t move, I’ll open it.”

Nemo nodded in silence, sat still on the thick velvet blanket as he poked the soft dessert in the bottle with a spoon. However, less than five seconds after the sound of the door opening, a heavier sound of closing the door reached his ears. Nemo raised his head with a spoon in his hand and saw Oliver walk back blankly with no so-called new guests next to him.

“Who is it?” He took the spoon out of his mouth and asked curiously.

“…It’s an illusion.” Oliver replied very confidently.

Nemo slowly dug into the pudding. “But your illusion is knocking on the door again.” And the frequency of knocking on the door this time wasn’t as polite as just now.

“Oh,” Oliver said, taking out a doughnut from the bag and shoving it stiffly into his mouth. “Maybe I accidentally ate something wrong. Sorry, you go this time.”

Nemo raised his brows. He put the half-eaten pudding on the table, rushed to the door quickly, and opened the door again.

Another blond “Oliver Ramon” was standing at the door, also expressionless, exuding a cold breath. Nemo rubbed his eyes and almost closed the door. Fortunately, the observation power of a superior demon stopped him, and he reacted before pulling the door handle.

That wasn’t Oliver.

At second glance, he didn’t look similar. Oliver Ramon always had a gentle feeling, but the aura of the visitor in front of him was much sharper. His blond hair was slightly shorter than Oliver’s and he looked a bit thinner. The self-confidence and sharpness between the eyebrows were also much more obvious.

The attire was even more contrasting. The visitor was dressed as a standard veteran swordsman. He wore exquisite, but not fancy, armor without any traces of superfluity in its decoration. Every seemingly decorative pattern was made of charms that seemingly were like magma surging under the earth’s surface. His sword exuded extreme power but also had a weird sense of familiarity. Nemo couldn’t help but do a double take.

Even if they sold all their team’s belongings, it was estimated that they wouldn’t be able to even afford a shoe that this person was wearing, Nemo thought bitterly after he looked up and down thoroughly. In the end, he managed to find a white tin badge on the other party’s chest that was insignificant against the background of the visitor’s clothes.

He subconsciously wanted to cover the black badge on his chest but saw the words “it’s too late” on the other party’s expression.

“You… Hello.” This time, Nemo wasn’t sure if he wanted to get out of the way. “Who are you?”

“Godwin Lopez.” The visitor replied in a deep voice. “I need to meet Ms. Nadine… Can you let me pass?”

---

The author has something to say:

Oliver: (Opens the door)

Godwin: ?????

Oliver: ?????

Oliver: (Closes the door)

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

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

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Chapter 75: Witch Hunt

There was an amazingly thick giant fir in the backyard of the Ramon’s inn. It was so high that it pierced the sky, and its branches stood straight.

If one were to climb to the top of the tree, they could see the greenery of the Frontier Forest extending into the horizon and the Ash Mountains that were embedded in the dark blue sky. At sunrise, it seemed that the eyes could encapsulate the entire sky, showing a magnificent and beautiful new world.

Oliver Ramon quickly discovered this little secret.

With his strong body, he had been more lively and rowdier than the other children ever since he was a child. Piper Ramon almost pasted “a hundred things that children can’t do” on his face, but it was a shame Oliver didn’t learn the skill of pretending to be obedient earlier in his childhood.

That was probably when he was about five years old. Once, while Old Ramon was having a banquet in the backyard of the inn, he quietly climbed up the tree. At first, he was full of interest, but halfway through the climb, he began to feel frightened as the idea that he would die if he fell entered his thoughts. When Oliver climbed to the top of the tree, he was in a cold sweat. His limbs were like soft noodles, and his entire body was glued to the thickest branch.

He looked up and saw the huge skull lying in the center of the treetop.

It was too big, bigger than any of the heads of all the creatures he had ever seen. The length of the skull was close to that of an adult’s, and the height was about the same as Oliver’s size at that time. Its shape was weird and distorted. Its sharp teeth showed no traces of decay, and small pieces of moss and thin vines were crawling in several hollow eyes.

Oliver was startled, but he didn’t have the strength to stand up and escape. Truthfully, he didn’t have any special fears at that time. The skull was scary, but it lay in a very gentle landscape. Sunlight leaked from among the leaves, casting their light on the white bones. There was a bunch of artificially tied flowers in front of it. Although the edges of the petals had darkened and there were signs of withering, there were still clear traces that had been placed there recently.

A few chubby tits swept down from the air. They seemed afraid to stop near the skull. The tits tilted their heads and pecked at the beetles on the trunk near it, letting out a few chirps from time to time.

It was a vibrant scene of death.

‘Are these the bones of a dragon?’ he thought. The size was similar to a dragon’s, but a dragon only has two eyes. Besides a dragon, the second choice in Oliver’s young head was a cow; which was obviously the incorrect answer.

He patted the dust and bark debris off his pants, frowned and rubbed his bruised knees, and then wandered around the skull. This was a secret, Oliver thought excitedly. His own secret.

Oliver knew what he could do. There weren’t many adults in the entire town who could climb to the top of this tree. As long as it wasn’t discovered by the owner of the bunch of flowers, it could become an excellent secret base.

“I decided to call you ‘Mr. White’. Mr. White, my name is Oliver Ramon—you can call me Ollie.”

He announced with such a loud voice that it scared away all the tits that were foraging.

Now, it seemed that it was no longer just his secret alone.

“How do you know—” he came to a halt, patting Nemo on the back.

“I don’t know.” Nemo didn’t want to let him go. His arms were still tightly wrapped around Oliver, as if he would run away if he were to let him go. It was like a drowning person holding onto the last piece of driftwood tightly. “But I just know. Don’t move, Ollie. Let me hug you for a while.”

“…It doesn’t matter if you don’t know. We can sneak back to Roadside Town when we have the opportunity.” Oliver obediently remained motionless. “Believe me, it must still be there.”

“Okay,” Nemo responded. His feet softened, allowing his weight to press forward.

“Oh,” the witch said with a voice full of banter as she walked into the room. “Although I don’t mind providing a room, it’s not suited for this gentleman to have intense exercise right now.”

Oliver was still trying to hold onto Nemo, who seemed to have fallen asleep. After hearing what she said, he instantly reacted, and his ears began to redden suspiciously.

“I’m just joking.” The old lady put the watering can on the wooden frame against the door and carefully wiped the drops of water on it. “Don’t worry. This is the sequelae of memory combing. After recuperating for a bit, there’ll be nothing to worry about come tomorrow… I think you have finished talking. I will take care of this young man. You can do what you have to do.”

“He…” Oliver carefully helped Nemo to one side of the chair. At that moment, he was pretty sure that Nemo was indeed heavily asleep.

“He will repeat this process for a while; waking up for a bit, then sleeping for a bit.” The witch moved herself to the workbench, picked up a mortar, and began to mix powders together. “Everyone’s like this. Even the dragon wasn’t an exception. It’s normal.”

Her orange cat jumped on the table, wagging its tail at a group of people, seemingly in a bad mood.

“Let’s go have a meal. You can’t eat and drink here, and I’m hungry,” the female warrior suggested, smacking her lips. “And I think we need to talk.”

Adrian was still looking at Nemo. He nodded in silence. Jesse picked up the gray parrot with interest and said, “What are we going to eat?”

The fact was, they didn’t have much of a choice. The entire Caleb Village only had a single tavern.

Four people sat around the square table, but no one spoke. Adrian chewed his bread silently, Oliver drank his soup intently, while Ann put her fingers on the mouth of her wine glass, turning it absent-mindedly. Only Jesse slapped the potato wedges in his soup around, making an impolite noise. The gray parrot lay languidly by the bowl of soup, acting as if it was one of the dishes on the table.

“A complete superior demon. How exciting,” Ann said, breaking the awkward silence. “Oliver, have you kissed him yet?”

Oliver choked on the soup and let out an earth-shattering cough. Adrian put down the bread in his hand and squeezed his brows unbearably.

“If you have kissed,” Ann continued solemnly, “then you may be the first human on the surface to kiss a superior demon. You need to know that the average superior demon has a tooth bigger than ours. The Holy Church should award you a medal—”

“There is no such medal.” The knight commander finally spoke. “I want to know what you really think, Mr. Ramon.”

“I already told you.” Oliver wiped off the soup he coughed out from the corners of his mouth. “This has nothing to do with my… Uh, personal feelings for Nemo. I don’t think it’s wise to instigate something, especially if he hasn’t done anything wrong.” He put down the napkin in his hand.

“Let’s not talk about whether power itself is the original sin. Even if Nemo doesn’t mean to now, he’s a normal person, and normal people always get angry when they are attacked for no reason,” he said solemnly. “This is not a complicated truth, right? Because the opponent is stronger, you can confidently take the lead… I don’t like that approach.”

“You speak lightly.” Jesse chewed on the meat as he spoke. “But if he goes berserk one day and blows up the whole world in half—”

“He can do it now, but he hasn’t.”

“Maybe he hasn’t had time to do it yet.”

“I won’t let him do that—I promised Mr. Cross.”

“But you may not be able to stop it.” Jesse bit his fork and shrugged indifferently.

“At least I will give it my best. There’s still a glimmer of hope than reporting it to the Holy Church immediately and losing sight of the sacrifices that will be made due to the oncoming battle.”

Besides, Nemo is the kindest person he has ever known, Oliver thought. He didn’t believe that a person who burdened himself with younger brothers and sisters and let them be spoiled would want to destroy everything. Even if he had made such an assertion, it seems that his strength was far behind Nemo’s. Still, Nemo Light was his companion, a member of his team, and his responsibility.

He didn’t want to stand in the position of an insignificant person and say some self-righteous naïve talk.

For the first time, Oliver desperately wanted to become stronger. If he was stronger, strong enough to restrain the panic caused by a ‘complete superior demon’, then he could straighten his back and say that sentence. To say what he wasn’t qualified to say now…

Because I believe in him.

“What are you laughing at?” Jesse raised his eyebrows and poked at another piece of meat with his fork. “This isn’t a funny topic.”

“For the first time, I feel fortunate to have strength.” Oliver tugged at the corner of his mouth. “Mr. Cross… I hope you will start tomorrow and adjust the intensity of your training to the highest level.”

“Okay,” the knight commander said solemnly. “I won’t do anything for the time being. But if I find that you do not have that qualification, I will find a way to report the situation to the Holy Church… I hope you can understand my position.”

“Thank you.” Oliver pulled away from his chair, stood up, and saluted slightly. “Thank you, Mr. Cross.”

“Compared to this, Oliver, you might as well take him down quickly—”

“…Please shut up, Ms. Savage.” Adrian almost crushed the handle of the spoon in his hand.

Oliver scratched his nose and was about to respond when suddenly the tavern became chaotic. People started whispering like a beehive, then they put down the tableware in their hands and pushed away their food regardless of how much of it was eaten and squeezed out through the narrow tavern door one after another.

“What’s going on?” Ann took a sip of wine. “Our voices weren’t that loud, were they?”

“Oh, of course not.” The blond young man finally swallowed all the food in his mouth; finally, his enunciation became clear. “Perhaps everyone was so focused just now that you didn’t hear the voice of the person nearby. They said that ‘Horizon is coming’.”

“Horizon Mercenary Group?” The female warrior put away her smiling expression and frowned slightly. “What are they doing in a small place like this?”

“Who knows?” Jesse gulped down the wine in his glass. “Does anyone else want to have another drink together—hey, even the clerk ran away?”

The last person to run out of the counter was a small young man with a crooked turban on his head, covered with the smell of firewood unique to the kitchen. He dashed out like a cannonball while wiping the oil on his hands on his apron.

“Wait, wait, wait.” Jesse grabbed his apron belt when the small young man almost flew past him. “What’s going on?”

“Ow, let go!” the little man yelled. “Who knows, I just heard it! They said that Horizon is coming.”

He cleared his throat, lowered his voice, and there was a glint of excitement in his small eyes. “…And they’re here to hunt a witch.”

At the same time, in the residence of the witch.

Nemo thought he had been asleep for a long time. He only remembered hugging Oliver near the end. Now he was lying on thick blankets in the witch’s living room, covered by a thin sheet. As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw a huge cat face that caused him to sneeze hard.

The orange cat let out an angry hiss.

“Caramel, don’t disturb the guests,” a cold yet pleasant female voice said. The rickety figure didn’t match the voice that was busy at the workbench. “Mr. Light, right? How are you feeling?”

“Not uncomfortable.” Nemo propped up his body and felt unexpectedly refreshed. The sense of resistance and nothingness was gone. Although there were more mysteries, he felt more at ease than ever before. “Ollie and the others—”

“Your companions have gone out to dinner.” The witch filled a glass with bright green liquid while the crucible on the other side was cooking something. There was a smell of chamomile and cabbage wafting in the air. “Don’t worry, they didn’t leave you behind. In addition, if I were you, I wouldn’t get up… The floor of my house is quite hard. If you fall asleep suddenly again, you may fall very painfully.”

Nemo quickly lay down straight. The witch’s living room was very warm, and he was still a bit flustered. He glanced at the books piled up in the corner and slowly got up again.

“You know what you are, don’t you?” The witch saw him move like a sloth and opened her mouth with a smile. “I guess you can be considered a ‘’bigshot’.”

Nemo was silent. He didn’t know whether to directly say it, so he chose a vague answer. “Maybe.”

“You don’t need to be nervous,” the witch said casually, mixing the two liquids together. The mixture in the test tube made a hissing sound. “I’m not human either. It’s fine.”

Nemo turned his head so abruptly that he could hear the soft crack of his neck.

“My race is the ‘Eastern Witches’.” She shrugged her skinny shoulders. “You may have heard of it. Don’t be so formal. You can read the books over there.”

Nemo wiped his hands on his robe, carefully picked up a book, and looked at the witch’s back. The witch didn’t look at him. Although her voice was calm, her body was trembling slightly.

“Ms. Nadine, are you scared?” He asked a little dryly.

“Afraid of you? Yes.” She didn’t deny it. “But you are in my residence and you’re my patient… You trusted me, didn’t you?”

“If I make you uncomfortable, I can go outside first—”

“No need. Only a terrible doctor would do that, leaving a patient outside.”

“You’re not a healer?”

“I can’t use human healing magic.” The old lady coughed lightly and put the mixed liquid on a delicate silver stand to cool. The smell in the air began to smell good again. “I’m just an ordinary doctor.”

Nemo’s expression became solemn. He sat upright and opened a thick book titled “The Disappearance of the Earthsea Orchid”. He glanced at the preface briefly. This book seemed to record the research on a certain long-extinct flower. He had never read about it in the library of Roadside Town, so it made him feel instantly better.

As a result, before turning a few pages, a photo fell out of the book. The appearance of the two girls was carefully fixed on the thick parchment by photo magic. The parchment itself was yellowed, but it was clear that it was well preserved.

One of the girls was breathtaking. The beauty was incomparable to any human on the surface. Her long blond hair was curly, and her eyes were brilliant sand-gold. The other was much more ordinary. She was chubby, with a collapsed nose and small eyes. She had short brown hair, dazzling freckles on her cheeks, and her nose wrinkled with laughter. They squeezed their heads together, showing an unrestrained smile on the outside of the picture.

Nemo subconsciously turned over the photo, and the date was neatly written in handwriting on the back of the photo. It was a certain day sixteen years ago.

Below were two names. “Nadine and Lisa”.

“Sorry, this… Uh, I didn’t mean to…” Nemo carefully put back the photo. “Is it okay to clip it in this book again?”

The old lady slowly turned her head and glanced at the photo.

“Yeah, just put it in that book.” There was no fluctuation of emotions in her voice.

“Is that you in this photo?” Nemo hesitated for a while, but still couldn’t help asking. “Of course, if you don’t want to answer—”

“It doesn’t matter. It’s me.” The witch’s tone was very flat. She poured the cooled mixture into a small bottle, stood up tremblingly, and walked slightly to Nemo. “After drinking it, you have to sleep for a while.”

Nemo grabbed the bottle. This time, the potion in the bottle was a viscous gray-green color. His hands trembled a little, recalling the taste of the last bottle of potion. He hugged the book with his other hand and dawdled back to the thick velvet blanket as his expression was mixed with doubt and gratitude.

The witch Nadine looked at the silver eyes of the black-haired young man who had returned to normal. “I know what you are wondering. I don’t mind my age so much. How old are you… Twenty-two, twenty-three?”

“Maybe twenty-three.” Nemo unscrewed the mouth of the bottle. The strong smell of wet bark and camphor hit his nose. “I’m not sure, but it’s around there.” Having said that, he drank the entire contents of the potion. The heavy pungency stuck directly in his throat, preventing him from swallowing it, and it almost caused him to choke.

“I am only ten years older than you.” the witch, who looked like a prehistoric monster, said calmly. “Don’t worry. I won’t force you to call me ‘Miss Nadine’.”

The witch’s words were very effective. Nemo suddenly gulped down the entire potion.

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

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

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Chapter 74: In the Dark

Nemo re-examined his memory; the memory he thought was lost or destroyed…

It was pitch black and extremely silent. He crawled forward on the rough sand like a lizard or snake. His movements were completely instinctive, and he wasn’t even as coordinated as a newborn human baby. He couldn’t see his limbs; to be precise, he couldn’t see almost anything.

At that time, his head was empty, like a plant that would only move with the wind.

As soon as he moved, Nemo found that he had touched something smooth. He liked the delicate touch or its rare temperature, so he thought for a moment and swallowed it. The smell of metal spread on his tongue.

That should be his gold pendant.

[I remembered hearing someone talking.]

Vague music and laughter came from a certain direction. People were talking, but the distance was too far, and the laughter seemed to be separated by a layer of water. That was probably the only thing in the thick darkness that aroused his interest, so he quickly decided on the direction to move forward.

But those sounds were looming and intermittent. Although the environment was silent, occasionally there would be unknown sounds rustling through the darkness. When everything fell silent again, he didn’t know which way to go.

[There were stars in the sky.]

That could be the only light in the darkness, and there were stars, like white spots of light in the distant sky, but they appeared strangely, moved occasionally, and blink one by one.

…That wasn’t a star.

[I rushed over and saw you.]

When he heard sounds, he would move towards the sound of music and laughter. When there was no sound, he would wander aimlessly. He soon discovered the trick of moving. He no longer crawled on the ground but stood up and walked forward stumblingly. As a result, his speed became much faster. Unfortunately, the darkness was too vast, and he could only move forward indiscriminately with a consciousness that was so thin that it basically didn’t exist.

Except for the pale eyeballs flashing from a distant height, there was no light in that memory. There wasn’t even hunger and thirst, no cold or heat. The only thing he did was breathe and move forward, as if floating in the dark of nothingness. Most of the time, his skin touched rough grains of sand, and occasionally it became wet and slippery to the touch. He didn’t mind this, as he simply just climbed over and crossed it.

It may have been a long time, or it may have only been a moment, when he heard a clear voice for the first time.

The voice was very soft, but to him at the time, it was like thunder in his ears. He didn’t know the meaning of those syllables at the time, but now Nemo Light understood.

“I decided to call you ‘Mr. White’.” That extremely clear voice said solemnly. “Mr. White, my name is Oliver Ramon—you can call me Ollie.”

There was a pause for a few seconds.

“Well, I know you can’t talk. I just want to talk to you.”

Then the voice never left again. It was just that sometimes it seemed to be in front, and sometimes it was as vague as other sounds. He listened carefully to every strange syllable. Even if he didn’t understand the content at the time, it was enough to become a wonderful light; a little bit of light as fragile as spider silk in the darkness of nothingness.

“I was scolded by my dad again,” the voice said angrily. “It was Hansen that made fun of me first for being abandoned by my mother! I just… Well, I just hit him a little harder. Who told dad not to tell me about my mother? He always said that he would tell me when he has the opportunity in the future… How long will it be ‘in the future’, Mr. White?”

He moved step by step in the direction of the voice.

“A bard came to the hotel today! He told the story of the brave Alastair. God, I want to be such a powerful person too, but Dad didn’t look very happy. He has never liked bards.”

His steps were getting faster and faster.

“Hansen moved away, and so did Jeremy. Everyone always leaves here quickly. It feels bad that I don’t have anyone to play with. Haa, I want a friend who won’t leave… You won’t leave, will you?”

“I switched the salt and sugar in the kitchen today. Guess how long it will take for Dad to find out?”

“I was almost seen climbing today. My dad never allows me to climb trees. It’s all because the snow is too thick, it’s so cold here… I hate winter, Mr. White.”

“Mr. White…”

“……”

How long has it been? His fingers touched something like a pimple. The low growls and footsteps of other creatures began to appear around him. Although none of them intended to approach, the darkness began to become particularly noisy, but he didn’t consider changing his direction, not even for a second.

Nemo now remembered every detail. The end of that long “night”. He easily inserted his fingers into the rock wall and began to climb upward. Time had long lost its concept; Nemo couldn’t figure out how long he had been climbing. He only had a clear impression…

The surroundings were getting hotter and hotter.

Then he saw the sun for the first time.

It was hot and dazzling, and for a moment he thought he had been attacked. Then there was color, boundless color. In fact, in the late stages of climbing, many things could be vaguely seen in the dim light, but they were all gray and single-scenes. Now those colors smashed into his eyes fiercely that he even forgot the unbearable heat in the air. Nemo remembered turning his neck carefully and looking greedily at everything around him, as if they would all melt in the strong light in the next second. At sunrise and sunset, he stood in the distance like a statue. All the colors made him dizzy…

And that familiar voice came back again. A child groaned angrily in the forest. The little boy moved himself behind a stout trunk and looked out of the forest with an unhappy face.

In his memory, he finally lowered his head and looked at his hands. Those hands were full of dirt, but pale skin was exposed in the filth. His palms were wide, and his fingers were slender and powerful. They were a pair of hands belonging to young humans.

He didn’t have any special thoughts at that time, but instinct told him vaguely that this wouldn’t work. If he wanted to leave, he needed to integrate, to imitate, to become them.

Blend in, imitate, get closer to the music and laughter, and get closer to his light.

And the source of intelligence was right in front of him. He didn’t need more information. His bones made cracking sounds as they twist and shorten. His slender fingers became rounded. His field of vision was narrowing, and his viewing angle was getting lower. He walked instinctively towards the other and extended his hand, just as he had always done…

Six-year-old Oliver Ramon found him, and then he burst into tears without hesitation and cried loudly. Something familiar came to him with the cry. It was the pure fear of the other party. It caused Nemo to quickly shrink and stop moving.

Immediately, they were carried back one by one by Piper Ramon, who came.

The young Oliver cried so much that Old Ramon had to send this “child” of unknown origin to Old Patrick first. The orphanage director at the time adopted him very happily.

“This little guy is really lucky.” Patrick Light nodded at Old Ramon in a pleasant tone.

That was the beginning of everything. He first learned to forget, then fear, and then more knowledge and “feelings”. With the improvement of common sense, those memories that exceed common sense naturally turn into “fog”. He was successful. He had indeed fully integrated into a corner of human society, like a cuckoo’s egg, lying quietly in a nest called Roadside Town.

Until now.

‘He wasn’t human,’ Nemo thought. He couldn’t be. No human being could survive in that kind of environment, and he may have survived for more than the so-called six years.

The only hope left in his heart was completely extinguished, and all that remained was an unexpected calm. The details of his memory were still gradually returning into place; every minute and second from waking up in the dark, but that was no longer important. He clenched his fists so that his hands would no longer tremble. ‘This was the answer,’ he thought, ‘This is…’

An old fairytale flashed through his mind…

And many more.

He stood in the swirling memories, and his heart twitched suddenly. If this was all he had experienced since he was born, and if he had really never “forgotten” any details now, why could he understand the Bluebird’s language? That couldn’t be the effect of ability. Pure knowledge must be obtained from the outside world, and he…

The corrosive pain interrupted his thinking. The witch’s magic power was strangling his arms fiercely. Nemo blinked slowly, finally regaining the focus of his gaze.

He was still sitting in that spacious, sunny room with brightly colored knitted cushions stuffed under his ass. The glass with iced lemonade in front of him was empty, and only condensed drops of water slid down the outer wall of the glass.

“Your memory has been sorted out.” Nadine withdrew her hand tremblingly. It might have been Nemo’s illusion, but the witch seemed a little younger. “I’ll take the price as well. You need to rest for a while now.” She stood up and picked up her cane, leaning on one side.

“Depending on your reaction, you may have something to say to your companion.” The old lady knocked on the wooden floor with her cane. “I’ll go to the yard for a cup of tea first, so I won’t bother you. But remember, you have to stay here. I have a guest room here, so you can stay the night. Although I don’t know what you are…” she paused for a moment, “You’re still my patient. I have to observe you and make sure you take your medication.”

Nemo opened his mouth and failed to make a sound, so he could only nod his head and show a reluctant smile.

The old woman bowed her head and waved her hand at him. The orange cat followed the witch step by step, but the original high-cocked tail was now drooping behind its ass.

The atmosphere suddenly became tense after the witch left. Nemo was still staring at the empty glass in front of him, and the earlier restless sense of resistance was gone at this time. The answer in his mind made him feel unreal, so he took a deep breath for half a minute and took the lead in asking the question.

“Do you know the structure of the Abyss?” Nemo turned his face and asked solemnly.

Oliver didn’t have a special expression. He scratched his hair and turned his gaze to Adrian. The knight’s brows were so furrowed they could clamp mosquitoes. Ann was a few steps away. He gave a glance at Jesse Dylan, who was sticking out his fingers to poke at the gray parrot who was playing dead on the workbench.

“Why do you want to ask this?” Adrian didn’t directly answer his question. He stared into Nemo’s eyes tightly, and his voice had a bit of wariness.

“…I need to confirm where I came from,” Nemo replied slowly. He pursed his lips, and then went on. To his own surprise, his voice was not trembling, but was extremely calm. “If I remember correctly, I am indeed a superior demon.”

“This is not big news.” Ann crossed her arms and leaned against the wall. Her tone was a little stiff. “At least you told me about this. It seems you are finally sure?”

“It’s not what you think, Ann.” Nemo shook his head. “It’s not the kind of ‘flesh and blood’ of Bagelmaurus and Telaranea. I should be a complete superior demon.”

“Amazing,” Ann commented sincerely, with a numb expression.

“Impossible,” the knight commander said categorically. “A complete superior demon can’t come to the surface. This is the iron-clad rule. Moreover, there has never been a record of humanoid superior demons. Their bodies are all huge and alien-like. There aren’t even records of ordinary humanoid demons.”

“Then I don’t know. Maybe there’s a wrench in the law. I…”

“Wait… He’s not lying.” The gray parrot lay half-dead on the long table. Its outstretched feet twitched a few times. “He… The aura he exuded just now will not lie. That is definitely a genuine superior. It’s not at the same level as flesh and blood.”

There was a terrible sense of familiarity in that aura, as if it had been touched somewhere. Nemo just now had no hostility; it could only recognize the tip of the imposing iceberg. It must all be an illusion, Bagelmaurus thought tremblingly as it curled up its claws. If Nemo Light was born like this, even if he crawled out of the Abyss… It should be impossible for it to have seen it. Otherwise it would have an impression of him.

“But one thing!” It raised its voice, turned over, and jumped up. Jesse Dylan, who was poking it in the belly, finally stopped. “The fraud is right; it’s impossible for a demon to become a human being. This must be mimicry! Have you ever seen someone who looks exactly like an ant?”

“But I don’t know mimicry. At least not now,” Nemo said dryly. He lowered his head again, and the appearance of his hands gradually merged with the dirty hands in his memory. “I looked like this from the beginning.”

“There is no such demon!” the gray parrot shouted in a hoarse voice. It plucked up the courage to look at Nemo, and then took a small step to hide behind Jesse. “There can be no such demon—”

“Describe the environment you remember, Mr. Light,” Adrian interrupted the gray parrot’s howls blankly.

“It was very dark. There was hardly any light. Most of it was sandy. Judging from the temperature difference with the surface, the temperature should be very low.” Nemo remembered the feel on his skin. “Occasionally I touched something sticky, but I couldn’t see it.”

“It sounds like a description of my life,” Ann interjected dryly, looking up at the ceiling.

“What else?” the knight commander thought for a moment and continued to ask questions.

“I didn’t encounter any living things. There were some white eyes like stars in the sky, moving in pieces, and the speed wasn’t fast.”

Adrian moved his arm, as if subconsciously trying to grab the bow and arrow on his back, but he held back.

“The bottom of the abyss,” the knight commander whispered. “At least as far as I know, this is the only place that fits the description.”

“It’s a wanderer! It’s definitely a wanderer—” The gray parrot fluttered its wings vigorously. “If it’s really the bottom of the abyss, it can only be those freaks! But even if it’s those freaks, it’s impossible to defy the law…”

“What law?” The female warrior returned to her senses and raised her eyebrows. “Let’s hear it.”

“We have known since birth. What to do, what you want to do, and what you can do,” Bagelmaurus said nervously. “Creatures all have instincts, right? If they have cognition, they will be bound by the law. Even the so-called ‘Demon King’ must obey the law. If they can escape this… First, they have to be incapable of using powers. Second, they must have no instinctive desires, even the most basic ones like hunger and thirst. That’s the bottom of the Abyss! Even if there is such a demon, it will either starve to death, or be eaten by other demons in its aimless wandering.”

Not only was Nemo Light’s problem not solved, one answer had brought out more questions, but at least one fact was clear, a complete superior demon had left the Abyss.

In contrast, those questions weren’t so important at this moment.

“Are you going to inform the Holy Church, Adri?” The blond young man spoke carelessly. “This is a big event.”

Adrian Cross moved his lips but said nothing. He took a few deep breaths and turned his gaze to Oliver.

“Oh.” Their leader was very calm, as if Nemo had just declared which town he came from in Alban. “I don’t think it’s… Can the Holy Church even beat a complete superior demon?”

“There is no relevant record,” the knight commander said dryly, “but I don’t think so.”

“If Nemo was malicious, he could have caused great damage before.” Oliver shrugged. “This fact has not changed much now… I am more inclined to continue to get along amicably than to fight in advance. But Mr. Cross, it seems that for that promise, I have to train harder.”

Nemo finally turned his head and looked at Oliver seriously. The other party was standing in the sun, with a smile on his face… Even though he now knew the truth.

“Are you okay?” Oliver asked a completely different question. “That bottle of stuff just now… Uh, do you feel uncomfortable?”

This time he still didn’t run away.

Nemo stood up. Sorting out his memory had left him with a hangover. He shook his head a few times before standing up firmly, using the table as support. He then took a step and walked towards his light, stretching out his arms again.

“No,” he muttered, and gave Oliver a hug. Oliver’s body didn’t stiffen or tremble.

Oliver seemed a little surprised. He hesitated for a moment, and then patted Nemo on the back. “What’s the matter?”

“Mr. White…” Nemo whispered, “What does Mr. White look like, Ollie?”

“A very big skull, on the top of a giant fir tree in my backyard. I don’t know what species it belongs to.” Oliver answered his question suspiciously. “It should have been put there by someone, and sometimes fresh flowers were placed next to it.”

Nemo let out a tiny sigh.

Another question. His original life, which was unobstructed in black and white, was filled with questions at this moment, but now he had no time to think about it.

“Listen up, Ollie,” Nemo said, in a very serious tone. “Hansen moved away, and so did Jeremy, but I will not leave.”

“As long as you’re not afraid, as long as you need it, I will not leave you.”

---

The author has something to say:

Everyone is lvl 1, so there is no difference between being beaten by a lvl 999 or being beaten by a lvl 999,999. Oliver’s mentality is stable.

Jesse, who saw through everything, was in a stable state of mind.

Ann has long been unworthy of the world.jpg so her mentality is stable.

The knight commander and the gray parrot exploded in mentality and even wanted to call the police.

—————

And this is why they are the same age! Nemo copied Ollie’s age…

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Kinky Thoughts:

Oliver is Nemo’s light!!! Kyaaaa~~

Are we all putting the clues together?

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

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

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Chapter 73: Memory and Lifespan

The old lady seemed to be accustomed to such a reaction. She shakily put the watering can on the wooden shelf holding a flowerpot, and then knocked on the ground with her cane. The wooden fence door of the courtyard opened in response.

“You have to tie those two goats outside,” she muttered in that pleasant voice. “They can’t be chewing around… Okay, which one has the problem?”

She approached with her cane and took out a pair of glasses that looked like the bottom of a wine bottle from her pocket. “Let me see…”

The old woman’s little sandy golden eyes peeped out from under her flabby eyelids. She looked hard at the group. The orange cat slipped out of the open courtyard door and began to circle around the two fuller goats. Its fluffy tail stood upright and finally selected White II, who had no luggage on its back, and jumped neatly on the back of the goat. White II remained motionless and even chewed some blades of grass.

“It’s me,” Nemo admitted honestly, taking a step forward from the rest of the team. The gray parrot was still standing firmly on his shoulder, staring vigilantly at the cat not far away. “I’m missing… Um, perhaps a very important memory.”

“I see.” The old lady stretched out her right hand like a chicken claw, grabbed the front lapel of Nemo’s robe, and pulled his upper body down. “Get closer and let me see your eyes… Very well, you’re not lying. But before I invite you in, you have to know the price first.”

She took a few steps back slowly and put away her glasses: “You can pay if it’s a physical illness or injury, but if it is an invisible injury caused by mental problems or magic… you need to pay with your natural lifespan.” She coughed a few times.

“Lifespan?” Oliver’s voice was a little nervous. “What do you mean?”

“As an example, this beautiful young man—” she raised her chin to Nemo, “he could have just hurt his head, or he could have been cursed by magic from other creatures.” Both conditions could cause memory loss. If it’s the former, you pay some money, and I can deploy potions for him… but if it’s the latter, and he wants to restore his memory for those few years, I will take away from him the life span equivalent to those years. You can come back after you think about it. My bones are brittle, so I don’t want to mess around in vain.”

Ann’s mood became serious, while Adrian frowned slightly. Only Jesse let out a long “oh” sound full of interest.

“You said natural life span.” The blond young man raised his arms. “This statement is very interesting… Can you take away people’s life span?”

“It’s just life essence. I can’t determine when they’ll actually die.” The old lady turned her head with some difficulty. “I just take part of their physical time. But how many people really die of old age nowadays? Diseases, natural disasters, man-made disasters—I’m not the goddess of fate, and the natural lifespan of the body will never replace the real time of death, dearie.”

“Then I’ll trouble you.” Nemo didn’t hesitate for long. He walked directly to the courtyard that was covered with clusters of flowers.

“Interesting,” the old lady sighed in a youthful voice as she trimmed the frills of her skirt. “Most people suffer for a while when they hear this price.”

“It doesn’t make much difference, does it?” Nemo pressed hard against the strange feeling of his internal organs. He had a premonition that the answer was right in front of him. “Money is also exchanged for time, and what you take away is also time. It’s essentially the same thing.”

“Very well.” The old lady raised her brows and returned to the yard with her cane. She pointed to the watering can with it, causing the kettle to sway and float as it watered the flowers by itself. The orange cat that had just been grinding its front paws on the back of White II hurriedly twisted its ass and jumped off the back of the fake goat when it saw its owner was going back.

Oliver followed Nemo with a complicated expression. He stretched out his hand as if to pat Nemo on the shoulder, but the hand paused for a moment before he took it back.

Six years.

If Nemo Light was really an ordinary human, then six years would be a lot of his life, but the black-haired young man walking in front of him had firm steps, and his back even faintly exuded an unspeakable power.

He had to respect Nemo’s decision. Oliver grasped the hilt of the sword fiercely, thinking bitterly. That was Nemo’s own choice. If the situation was truly not ideal, maybe they could find another way…

The courtyard was really small. Before this thought ran through his mind, they had already walked into the witch’s residence.

The house was well lit, and the bright sunlight crossed the open windows and painted the wooden floors with a layer of gold. Everything was orderly with soft colors that interweaved with each other, giving off a clean and warm feeling. They didn’t see any legendary or terrifying witchcraft materials. There was indeed a long workbench in the corner of the house, filled with bottles and cans of various powders. The label looked brand new, without any strange traces of corrosion, and the logo on it was round and cute. Over the clear glass instrument, the wall against the workbench was plastered with parchment rolls. Oliver glanced hastily and saw most of them were images and research materials about plants.

There was only the fresh smell of herbs in the room, which wasn’t a good smell, but it didn’t make people uncomfortable.

“Sit down.” The old woman pointed to the cushion wrapped in a knitted sleeve. “There’s ice lemonade on the table. This is just a pre-diagnosis. Don’t be nervous—just pay for the pre-diagnosis. Besides, you may really just have a head injury.”

Nemo reluctantly smiled. He thought from the bottom of his heart that this possibility was pretty low. “How should I address you? What do I need to do?”

“Just call me Nadine. You have to give me your hand.” The old lady stretched out her wrinkled, skinny right hand. “Then… don’t resist.”

Nemo just wanted to ask what she meant by resist, but he understood in the next moment. Several cold incantations climbed up his skin along his hand like snakes made of ice. They slithered around his arms, wrapped around his chest, and finally around his neck. They weren’t powerful, and Nemo was sure that he could destroy them in an instant, but he obediently didn’t resist, and didn’t even dare to move.

The old woman still had a little smile on her face, but as time passed, those smiles seemed to be erased by the sound of the second hand. She frowned, causing her wrinkles to gather into a pile.

“What is this?” Her voice was a bit cold this time.

Nemo didn’t react for a while. The old woman was still grasping his hand tightly with his right hand, but her palm became cold and wet, and her force became a bit stronger. “Ms. Nadine, I don’t quite understand—”

“Your body…” she said slowly, her voice clear and cold. “At least this body has never lost its memory. On the contrary, it has never abandoned any details. You shouldn’t even be able to do something as ordinary as ‘forgetting’.”

“But I really can’t remember what happened before I was six years old.” Nemo took a deep breath. He was even mentally prepared to pay for it with his lifespan, but the answer was beyond his expectations. “I didn’t lie to you.”

“Maybe…” The old lady put her right hand back and pondered for a moment. “Your memory is really messy… Have you been gradually remembering trivial things of the past recently?”

“Yes.”

“Although I don’t know why your physique is only revealed now… Perhaps it’s your body that is protecting you. It’s not a good thing to forget.” She held up her glass and took a sip of lemonade. “When excessive memories flow back all at once, it could cause a great burden on your mind. I think so far, you will only remember the parts you want to know. You don’t need medicine for this situation, as you’ll recover by yourself sooner or later.”

“But…”

“If you insist on not remembering, then there is only one possibility left.”

“What?” Nemo also retracted his hand, and the touch of being entangled by the cold snakes completely disappeared.

“You’re remembering it wrong.” The orange cat jumped on the old lady’s knees, squeezed its head into the glass in front of her, and licked the water in the glass desperately. The old lady stroked the cat’s back gently and sighed. “People always add their wishes to their memories and distort them into their expectations. This is normal.”

Nemo swallowed his saliva. He suddenly felt a little dry in his throat.

“…Of course, I can also help you sort out your memories so that you can remember what they were like.” After the cat drank the water, it laid on the old lady’s lap and purred loudly. The old lady began to scratch its ears. “The kind that won’t put pressure on your mind, and you only need to pay me for one year of life.”

“I’ll pay.” Nemo tried to ignore the beating of his heart that was getting faster. “Uh… How do I pay?”

“Drink this, and then give me both hands. I’ll wake you up when the time is right.” The old lady snapped her fingers, and a small glass bottle appeared in the air. “You can pay your price after you recall it. This is a simple contract.”

“…How do we know how much life you’ll take away?” Ann stared at the bottle vigilantly. The liquid in the bottle was like melted gold, with a beautiful and dangerous color.

“This is the interesting thing—you don’t.” The old lady put the cat back on the floor with difficulty, patted off the cat’s fur that was on her knees, and then squeezed her eyes slyly at them. “I might steal it for two or even three years. Unfortunately, such is the deal. If you don’t trust me, you’re welcome to find someone else.”

Nemo grabbed the glass vial floating in front of him, unscrewed the cork and sniffed it. It looked good, but the smell was unbearable. It was like rotten medicine residue or moldy berries.

His answer was in this cold vial.

Ann’s brows furrowed even tighter. She wanted to continue saying something, but Nemo didn’t give her another chance. He pursed his lips and drank the bottle. Then he stopped and stared at a point that didn’t seem to exist in the air, as if he was in an aimless daze.

Nemo’s eyes were open and unblinking. The originally flat round pupils gradually cracked and turned into a cross shape that didn’t belong to humans. The orange cat, who was still lying at the feet of the old woman just now, jumped away abruptly. Its fat body arched, and its hair exploded.

It began to hiss at Nemo, wrinkled its nose, and bore its sharp teeth.

“Be quiet, Caramel.” The old lady stared at those abnormal eyes. She hesitated for a while, then held the other party’s hands on the small table.

The witch Nadine had treated many people, and she had also treated many creatures that weren’t humans. She had always justly taken away their lifespan, and thanks to her ability, she could see the degree of aging of those bodies and the remaining time they should have left. The matter of “taking away lifespan” was difficult to describe directly. If one had to make an analogy—human lifespan was like water bottles of different shapes. Some were almost full, and some were half empty. She would take a water cup and wait quietly for the contract to be completed. When she was done, she would take a little out with her cup; just the amount that they agreed upon before.

The length of life is nothing more than the difference in the size of the container, and the degree of aging is nothing more than the difference in margin. She had even treated a dragon before. At that time, she saw a small pond with ripples. She had thought that was the limit she could see.

Until now.

She was still holding her “cup”, and at this time, her feet were like in a boundless ocean.

The old lady closed her eyes and tried to suppress the trembling in her hands.

The cat wasn’t the only one in the room who overreacted.

Oliver had seen Nemo like this a long time ago, so he didn’t have much reaction. The two veteran soldiers lowered their heads; it was unknown what they were thinking. The gray parrot, who was strutting around on the workbench, was stunned and plopped directly on the workbench.

Jesse Dylan was unmoved. He took the opportunity to drink the last glass of iced lemonade.

Nemo was unresponsive to everything in the outside world now. He only felt that he had drunk a bottle of concentrated magma. It rolled through his esophagus, and then exploded and burned in his body. The still water floating with memory residues was boiling, and all the details of his past were quickly returning to place, like scattered books being put back on the bookshelf one by one.

The witch Nadine was right, he didn’t lose his memory.

[I remember hearing someone talking and there were stars in the sky. I rushed over and saw you. I don’t remember anything before.]

He once said this to Oliver during the Black Chapter test.

In a sense, he was right… That was the only thing that happened in the “lost” six years.

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

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

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Chapter 72: The Witch

Those fragments were like a whole piece of debris falling from his memories, creating gaps. They were blurred and broken, making people unable to distinguish between reality or a dream that was too far away. Since fighting Witherspoon, their hands had turned into cold hands, stroking the back of Nemo’s neck when he was most unsuspecting.

Nemo could probably guess their source.

When he was first adopted by Old Patrick, he didn’t understand the lingua franca at all, and the words of others were just meaningless syllables in his head. Before being attacked by Bagelmaurus, Nemo thought there was nothing special about him except that his memory was better than others’, but no matter how good his memory was, he shouldn’t remember a bunch of irregular noises more than ten years ago.

And now, they were gradually returning.

From every little trifle, every word that was said to others, every wrinkle on their clothes, every word in a book, all the details going back in time, came brand-new knowledge out of the depths of his mind. He was pretty sure he had never touched them before, as only the memory from before he was six was still vague, with a few afterimages and echoes.

He couldn’t figure out why some of these fragments had returned again. They were like blisters floating at the bottom of the water. They were different sizes and floated in a disorderly manner, as if they were following some kind of mystical and incomprehensible law.

For example, when he woke up this morning, the temperature had picked up. Nemo slowly removed the blanket Oliver was still clutching, causing White II to awaken from his movements. It stuck out its tongue in the early morning air and opened only two of its four eyes. Everything was calm and peaceful until he removed the blanket and ran his fingers through the soft hair of the other party. The string of uncomfortable blisters popped into his mind again.

Nemo could now remember every encounter with Oliver Ramon. Roadside Town wasn’t big, so he had some of his own impressions; except for the first time, they only encountered each other three times after that.

When he was twelve years old, he went to help people run errands and bring news. The reward was a silver coin.

Nemo walked through the town and stepped into the front yard of the Ramon’s inn for the first time. At that time, it was so hot that he felt uncomfortable all over his body and almost suffered heatstroke. Nemo could still recall the feeling of dizziness and irritability. At that time, at the corner of the inn, a young man about his age hid in the shadows, staring at him.

Light brown hair and beautiful emerald eyes. Oliver was even shorter than he was at that time. They looked at each other briefly for a moment, and then the other slipped away along the root of the wall.

The second time was at the age of seventeen.

Debby Light, who was in her early teens, was about to be taken away by a mercenary group the next day, and she insisted that Nemo carry her to the candy shop on the other side of town. The weather was nice that day, and Oliver was holding a box of falling vegetables, trying to kick the potatoes that had fallen to the ground back into the wooden box with his feet. Seeing this, Nemo put down Debby and helped the innkeeper’s son stuff the potatoes back into the box. They nodded to each other, simply introduced themselves, and greeted each other very perfunctorily. He still remembered that Oliver’s smile was a little stiff at the time.

The third time was when they fled Roadside Town together and have been in exile ever since.

But Nemo just remembered the young and familiar voice and was positive that it belonged to Oliver Ramon. When did they talk? Or rather, when did he hear Oliver’s words? Even if he didn’t have the memory of before he was six years old, Oliver wouldn’t have suffered from amnesia like he did.

And he was about to get an answer.

Nemo rolled the blanket into a roll and tied it firmly to the back of the fuller goat with a thick cloth soaked in grease. He glanced at Oliver, who was still asleep, and suddenly felt his stomach tangled in a ball because of the tension. A resistance that seemed to originate from instinct was pricking his brain, screaming frantically for him to give up.

But he needed that answer, Nemo thought. However, that odd sense of resistance didn’t disappear because of his firm mind.

In the days that followed, Nemo couldn’t hide his absent-mindedness at all. Considering his situation, his teammates all expressed their understanding, except for the gray parrot who occasionally mocked him. Even Jesse Dylan didn’t touch on this topic.

When they arrived in Caleb Village, this resistance reached its peak. It was as if an invisible claw was scratching his internal organs and pulling him away from the village. Nemo suddenly punched himself in the stomach and continued towards the village with gritted teeth. Oliver, who was walking beside him, thoughtfully ignored his eccentric actions.

Compared to the towns on the edge of the desert, Caleb Village was more like a real oasis. The village was very small, and one could see its entirety from a single glance. The village and the yellow sand were clearly demarcated by a strange planted fence. The dense shrubs formed a low wall that couldn’t cover the green scenery inside. The wind here was much softer than in the center of the desert, with a refreshing dampness. The grass was soft and stepping on it made people feel light.

Although it was located on the border between two countries, there wasn’t even a garrison. There were only two people dressed as soldiers lying under the tree at the entrance of the village, and one of them seemed to be sleeping soundly.

White II, who followed them all the way, shrank uncharacteristically. It lowered its body and rolled its tail into a ball.

“We can’t bring it in,” Adrian said. “The arthropod monitor lizard has the ability to kill plants. It’s okay in the desert, but it’s absolutely unwelcome here. “

“The fact that it’s an ‘intermediate demon’ alone is enough for it to be unpopular,” Jesse said casually. “Captain, it’s time to get rid of it.”

White II tried to raise its face and looked at Oliver pitifully. The four small eyes of the arthropod lizard were very wet and full of sadness.

“What do you want?” Oliver squatted down and looked straight at it.

White II shook the bone shell on his body, as if thinking about something, and then suddenly, the next moment, it began to transform.

The white hard shell became thick hair, the four eyes became two and condensed towards the side of its head, then curly hard horns protruded out from its head. Within half a minute, another fuller goat appeared in front of them. It even bleated, then it bit Oliver’s pants and dragged him in the direction of the village.

“’Demonic mimicry’,” Jesse touched his chin and commented with interest. “It’s pretty desperate.”

Oliver slowly regained his pants and ignored Jesse. “I hear you’re very smart… Can you understand what I’m saying?”

The fuller goat nodded quickly.

“If you can guarantee that you won’t hurt people or kill the plants inside, I’ll take you in with me,” Oliver said seriously. “I’ll watch you carefully… If you can’t do it, I will definitely be the first to send you out.”

The fake goat nodded frantically and licked Oliver’s hand flatteringly.

“It’s taken care of,” Oliver announced, shaking the saliva from his hand. “You said it wasn’t malicious, didn’t you, Mr. Cross?”

The knight commander pinched his brows and decided not to express his opinion on this matter.

After briefly greeting the soldiers at the entrance, they entered the village that was wrapped in green. It was in the afternoon, so it was still a bit hot outside, and there weren’t many people in the street. The atmosphere was calm and lethargic, and the villagers didn’t even show much curiosity. Even if it was a bit unnatural to bring two fuller goats, not many villagers gave them a second glance.

Just when Nemo was almost overwhelmed by his own sense of resistance, they finally arrived at the witch’s residence.

Nemo thought it would be a dark and gloomy corner at the edge of the village that all the townspeople would be secretive about, but it turned out he didn’t guess anything right except the edge. The villagers didn’t shy away from talking about the weird witch, and even calmly pointed out the directions for them.

When he arrived at his destination, he vaguely understood the reason. The house was not like a witch’s residence at all.

A hut that was extremely warm. The front yard was full of all kinds of flowers. Each clump was alive and full of vitality, and the colors matched just right. Clusters of wisteria hung from the windowsills, and even half of the roof was covered with climbing vines decorated with flowers. This was like a scene that appears only in fairytales.

A round orange-haired cat was lying at the front door of the courtyard, showing its belly unabashedly as it basked in the sun leisurely. The scenery was so soft and gentle that it made Nemo feel bad about facing his sense of resistance at this moment.

“Witch?” He pointed to the orange cat with only a fluffy tail. “Did a witch raise this thing?”

“Uh, that’s just a cat,” Ann’s tone was shocked. “Don’t ask too much… That’s not our goal.”

An old lady came out of the hut tremblingly with a watering can in her right hand. Her dress wasn’t the plain color common to the elderly, but a lively style that matched the bright colors of the lovely garden.

Nemo was sure that she was older than all the old people he had ever seen combined. Though it was an impolite thought, he was too shocked by the fact that “she was still alive”. The old woman’s hair was all white, terribly sparse, and a little burnt of dirty yellow. Her facial features were almost completely covered by wrinkles and sagging skin, and because she had no teeth, her mouth was severely deflated inward. The old lady suspected of being a witch was leaning on a crutch in one hand and holding a watering can in the other. She moved carefully; her back hunched as if she was carrying another person. Every step she took made water leak from the mouth of the watering can.

The whole team fell silent.

“Old madam, there is something wrong with my companion’s memory. We are here…uh…” Oliver found that he couldn’t say the words “for your help” for a moment. Even if they could provide the remuneration, he couldn’t open his mouth.

“Which one has a problem with his memory?” The old lady arched her back even more severely, and she began to carefully water the flowers at her feet. The orange cat, who was still basking in the sun just now, quickly got up, jumped to the old lady’s feet, and rubbed against her thin ankles back and forth.

But none of them could answer this question.

A strange feeling appeared for the first time. From a distance, it was definitely an old woman who seemed to be on the verge of death. They could smell the moldy smell unique to the elderly, but the voice definitely belonged to a young woman; crisp, clear, and powerful.

---

The author has something to say:

Black cat, it doesn’t exist!

————

Oliver (12 years old): !!! This is the shadow of my childhood before— (escape)

Nemo (12 years old): ?

Oliver (23 years old): I like you.

Nemo (23 years old): ???

……Happy growth, Oliver, who started to chase his childhood shadow.

---

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

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

---

Chapter 71: Night at the Bone Sand Tower

The sun finally sank on the horizon. They had been walking for an entire day.

The temperature had dropped, but it was a pity that it went too low. Oliver rubbed his hands together and exhaled a faint white mist. To prevent the tip of Adrian’s bow from poking in any direction, he still kept his back straight. Nemo was a lot more comfortable. He himself wasn’t afraid of the cold. After his physique strengthened, he became like a fish in water. He didn’t even bother adding on another layer to himself and generously gave Oliver his coat.

That thing was still following them.

“Arthropod lizard. Intermediate demon,” the knight commander explained succinctly. “This one left its group, probably because it’s interested in Mr. Light.”

“Is this thing an intermediate demon?” Nemo’s impression of intermediate demons was something more terrifying, like the deadwood jellyfish. He turned around in surprise and glanced at the little thing still behind them. Its head wasn’t much different from the fuller goat in size, and it walked like it was swaying. It was full of the aura of a subordinate demon.

“Categorically speaking, yes. They use abyssal magic for their spells.” Adrian glanced at the arthropod lizard with no intention of doing anything. “Their strength is pretty strong when they act in groups, but their personalities are very docile and generally they don’t hurt people.”

“You are really impious.” Jesse Dylan buttoned his coat and breathed on his hands. “That’s a demon! Won’t you destroy it, Mr. Knight Commander?”

“It’s alive and well. It didn’t do anything. I have no reason to bother it.”

“…You’re really unholy.”

“This is one of the reasons why I was dismissed,” Adrian said seriously, as he looked at the young blond man with a little surprise. “I thought you knew?”

“Don’t you feel heartache when you pray?”

“No.” The knight commander shrugged. “The doctrine is written by humans, and I am also a human. I have my own mind.”

“Oh, that’s great. It seems I still have a chance,” Jesse Dylan joked. “It seems that you will not resolutely reject the love of an atheist.”

“Of course, if I love her,” Adrian replied quietly, while heavily emphasizing the “her”.

“I don’t mind pretending to be—”

“I don’t think it’s interested in me, Mr. Cross.” To prevent the conversation from going in a more unpredictable direction, Nemo coughed dryly and interrupted. He hesitated in the same place for a few seconds, and then approached the arthropod lizard again, which made it quickly turn over and play dead. It turned more quickly than the spinning spindle of a textile worker. “I think it’s… Uh, pretending to be dead.”

He stretched out his hand and scratched the lizard’s abdomen, but it stopped breathing.

“They are very sensitive to magic, and their IQ is not much lower than that of humans.” The knight commander paused. “It must have its purpose, but at least so far, I haven’t felt any malice.”

Oliver wrapped his two-layer coat tightly around him, and he also leaned near the lizard. It wasn’t Nemo’s illusion this time.The thing moved carefully in Oliver’s direction and even put its bony carapace towards his hand and rubbed against it flatteringly.

“…” Nemo sighed. “If I recall, aren’t I the demon warlock?”

“Give it a name?” Oliver said, with emotion while patting its shell. “I don’t think it wants to leave us.”

“Is your hobby…” Nemo stopped talking.

“It reminds me of an ‘old friend’.” Oliver smiled and patted the lizard’s carapace again.

“Bone soup,” Nemo suggested amicably. “How about that for its name?”

“…White II,” Oliver responded sincerely. “I feel that’s a little more handsome.”

“I’m a little curious about what your previous ‘old friend’ was called,” Nemo muttered in a low voice. The four small eyes of the named arthropod lizard gleamed, sticking tighter to Oliver’s side, as if Nemo would boil it into soup in the next second.

It was already dark, and the sky was clear and full of stars, as if light holes were poked into them by the tip of a needle. The last trace of heat left by the sun also dissipated, and the winter-like cold replaced the suffocating heat during the day. Fortunately, the air was dry, so the chill wasn’t too difficult.

“Oh, I called him Mr. White.” Oliver exhaled white mist again, but this time it was a bit thicker. “But it was real; only slightly smaller than this thing. When everyone was young, they would have one or two imaginary friends. I just found a more specific one.”

“If it goes well this time, I might be able to remember my ‘imaginary friend’,” Nemo decided to divert the topic away from Oliver’s hobbies. Oliver Ramon might be more interesting than he thought. “Seriously, do you want to raise this thing?”

“It’s pretty good as a travel companion,” Oliver said, finally taking his hand off the carapace. “At least it’s smart, isn’t it? It should know more about this shithole than we do.”

It turned out that this was indeed the case.

The freshly acquired White II ran to the other side of Oliver so as to stay away from Nemo. It walked in an orderly manner on the side without much change in its speed. It occasionally stopped, probed its tongue vigilantly, and arched its back away from suspicious locations. It even saved Oliver and dragged him away before a big lamprey-like mouth bit into the place where he was, making a numbing crunching sound.

“Its combat awareness may be greater than yours and mine combined,” Ann sighed as she watched Nemo lift Oliver out of a sand pile. “Even though I don’t like too many demons crowded into one team—forget it.”

She glanced at White II again. “It looks like a piece of white bread with long feet.”

After that, she took out a piece of dried meat from her pocket and stared at it, making it as if she was going to eat it for dinner. White II quivered all over, and its steps became faster.

They arrived at the weird-looking white towers at midnight. After approaching, Nemo could clearly see its original appearance. It was indeed not an artificial object. Several towers leaned askew and were as thick as ten people. Its construction was made with all kinds of bones. Yellow sand mixed with mucus was used as the glue to combine the different animal bones together. Countless “spines” were entangled in the tower, leaving terrifying traces.

It was the habitat of arthropod lizards.

White II didn’t join its kind. It obediently lay down by the burning campfire and curled its tail around its carapace. The other arthropod lizards didn’t make any movements upon their arrival. They continued to crawl around the bone sand tower, as if the newcomers were just a few tumbleweeds.

“Their towers can withstand storms and are often next to fresh water. I think Mr. Ramon has probably discovered that it is easier for you to cast spells here.” Seeing that Nemo and Oliver were still glancing around, the knight commander explained patiently. “Arthropod lizards only eat stones. As long as you don’t destroy their towers, they generally don’t attack other creatures.”

“It’s a bit strange.” Ann reached her hands closer to the flames. “There shouldn’t be a source of water in this kind of ghastly place.”

“It may be artificial,” Jesse yawned and interjected naturally. “As long as the magic is strong enough, a water source can be created anywhere.”

Nemo said, “So they are here… squatting? They do nothing but drink water?”

“They’re on vacation. After all, their king isn’t here.” Seeing someone answering, Jesse choked back his words and pretended to yawn. “Otherwise, they wouldn’t be so… loose. Lizard communities usually have a leader; usually the smartest one. It will command these things to expand the bone tower and their territory.” Adrian casually touched the tower behind him, not caring about the source of where the bones came from. “…And these seem to have not expanded for a long time.”

“Maybe their king was killed.” The gray parrot flew into the air. “Humans are always like this. They will hunt everything with long feet.”

“Then a new king will appear.” Jesse grinned. “Their king is definitely still alive.”

The blond young man looked meaningfully at the center of the tower, in the direction where the water vapor was strongest.

“It’s a pity that we don’t have a translator this time.” Oliver shivered as the coldness deepened, wishing he could sit closer to the fire. He raised an eyebrow at Nemo. “Otherwise, we might be able to chat with them and exchange our views on ‘vacation’.”

“We are not on vacation at all,” Nemo murmured bitterly as he thought about the day’s battle.

At this moment, now that his stomach was stuffed with fresh cacti and dried meat; while the arthropod lizards crawled around the tower, making regular rustling sounds like the second hand of the clock, combined with the sound of the bonfire burning, the noise made Nemo’s eyelids heavy. He casually wrapped his blanket tightly and unexpectedly didn’t feel cold.

He narrowed his eyes slightly. Everything became blurry in the darkness. He was familiar with this feeling.

As a result, as soon as Nemo became drowsy, he was awakened by Oliver, who was struggling to suppress his shivering. They didn’t bring much clothing and were dressed in line with the summer climate, and no one could sleep close to the campfire.

Fine. Nemo sighed in his heart. It would be hypocritical to worry about such things.

“Lean over and give me your hand,” he said softly, and divided half of the blanket out. “I’m not afraid of the cold.”

Oliver stared at him in silence. His expression was vague under the flickering firelight. About half a minute later, he carefully untied the scabbard from his belt and slowly approached. Nemo wrapped his hands around Oliver’s and was shocked by their coldness.

“Oh, thank you,” Oliver wrapped the blanket tightly and muttered in a low voice. “Don’t look at me like that just because I use ice… I hate winter.”

“I quite like it.” Nemo didn’t look at Oliver’s face. He kept his gaze at the burning bonfire. “Spring and autumn are also good… Summer’s a bit…”

White II hesitated to get closer before it sat up and moved next to Oliver. Oliver’s hands were warm now, and Nemo was overcome with drowsiness again. He gave up talking and let his consciousness slowly drift away.

‘Everything was familiar,’ he thought in a daze. This darkness, this temperature, and that sentence.

“I hate winter.”

A vague voice sounded in the deepest part of his mind, intermittent and vague like fragments.

“…I hate winter, Mr. White.”

---

The author has something to say:

…An ice warrior who’s afraid of the cold! I have long wanted to do this!

---

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

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

---

Chapter 70: The Running Spine

The knight commander was right. They really didn’t lack food. There were many edible cacti in the desert, the roots of spiked spines, and fat gerbils who didn’t know where to get food. If they were lucky, they were able to catch a few round four-legged birds. Even the fuller goat had no shortage of food, and its enthusiasm for gnawing on cacti was fiercer than anyone else’s.

The biggest problem was the heat.

When it came to heat before, Nemo could think of the summer sun and the hot soles of his boots at most. The summer in Roadside Town wasn’t too hot, but even so, he still didn’t want to go out on days when the sun was too strong. Usually, he would nestle in the deepest part of the library, directly below a cool breeze array, and then stick to the stone wall with a novel that had a description of a winter scene.

Now, it was different. Everything was hot. Even though Nemo covered his head with the dark shadow, the heat still pressured him from all sides. His whole body seemed to be stuffed into a red-hot metal tube, and every time he breathed, it felt like he was losing the last of the cool air that was left in his body.

Thus, he lay flat.

“…Nemo, you’re defaulting,” Ann said hoarsely, raising her hand and throwing a small piece of cactus into the sand at will. “Be a man. Since you have admitted defeat and dared gamble, you need to hold up your end and talk to Dylan.”

“But I’m dying,” Nemo responded sadly, crossing his fingers on his chest. He was lying flat on a large shadow, with some cover on his head, looking like he was imitating a half-shelled oyster. The black shadow stretched out countless tentacles and dragged the large oyster forward with difficulty, not much faster than the fuller goat. “Ann, if I really die, please be sure to leave my debt to Oliver.”

“Oliver is at least still standing,” Ann said coldly. “Even the goat is still standing—if someone were to die from the heat, that person would not be you. A demon warlock’s body is not that fragile.”

“Really?” Nemo reached out his hand from the shadows and shook the thing in his hand. The gray parrot was slumped into a ball unknowingly, with an unnatural tongue that was hanging outside that kept getting longer and longer. “Superior demons are like this.”

“The bird’s body is too fragile,” Adrian explained. “It’s not very powerful now, so it’s not unusual… Don’t worry, it will get better at night. The night here will probably drop below zero degrees.”

“…” Nemo didn’t think that was “getting better”.

A few steps away, Oliver was still standing, but he seemed to have only half a breath left. As they went deep into the desert, there was little moisture in the air. Adrian’s conjecture was correct. This climate did have great restraint on both of them. At first, Oliver tried to make some ice to cool down, but now he couldn’t even conjure up a tiny piece of ice.

Nemo could barely help him out with his shadow.

“Don’t help him block it.” The knight commander instructed calmly, and even poked Oliver’s slightly hunched back with his bow. “Stand up straight, Mr. Ramon. This is the most basic… if you want to continue practicing.”

Oliver wiped the sweat from his face and gritted his teeth and walked forward. Although his posture looked like his feet were forcibly dragging his body forward. In this atmosphere, Nemo didn’t want to continue lying down, so he sat up straight.

There seemed to be no change in Jesse Dylan. He didn’t even sweat a single drop, as if the endless wasteland was just a stage set. Seeing Nemo sitting up, he opened his mouth with interest—

“Help me!” As soon as Jesse was about to speak, he was interrupted by a hoarse cry for help from a distance. Nemo now seriously sat up and looked towards the source of the sound.

In the hot twisted air, a somewhat vague figure was waving desperately at them. “Help—”

But the team didn’t stop.

Nemo became distracted and stopped, suddenly falling behind. He quickly put away the dark shadow and was almost knocked down by the billowing heat on his face. After he stood firm, he found that he wasn’t the only one who had stopped. Oliver was standing next to him, also looking at the figure calling for help. His face was filled with doubts.

“Someone is asking for help over there!” Nemo yelled at the advancing team. Ann’s style had always been arbitrary, but even the knight commander seemed unmoved, which was a bit odd.

“That’s not a human!” Ann turned her head and shouted. She inhaled dust from the sand blown up by the wind and coughed a few times.

Nemo turned his head to look at the rickety figure who was trying to call for help, and goosebumps suddenly appeared.

“He’s not moving,” Oliver murmured, “…He’s not getting close.”

Nemo suddenly felt that the air wasn’t so hot anymore. “Then we…”

“You two, please help me! I’m really not a monster. My feet are trapped!” The figure became clearer, revealing the decent appearance of a typical businessman. “Please!”

“…He looks quite human,” Oliver whispered. He thought for a moment, then picked up a stone from the ground and threw it at the figure’s leg. Based on the speed of the stone’s flight, it didn’t seem like he needed to use much force.

The stone fell silently a few steps in front of the man, as if it had hit some invisible barrier.

The clear figure was distorted and its whole body spread out like melted butter in hot water. Its facial features became a tangled mess, turning into a fuzzy mass. It stretched out what were once its arms forward and leaned towards them.

The two of them glanced at each other, but they couldn’t even make a face in the heat, so they quickly turned and ran.

“What is that thing?” After catching up to the tail end of the team, Nemo asked in shock.

“That thing just now? That’s a tongue.” Jesse finally seized the opportunity to speak. “The Mirage’s tongue in the desert. By the way, Mr. Ramon’s stone may have hit its jaw.”

“In other words…”

“It was asking you to walk into its mouth on your own volition.” Jesse sounded like he was in a good mood.

“…You all realize it at first glance?” Oliver sounded deflated.

“I’ve heard of it.” Jesse shrugged. “That thing can’t speak human words on its own. Although those few words of help sound similar, they are different from the voices of people. You are really the most naïve snake-level I have ever seen. You’re quite lucky to have survived until now.”

A familiar voice faintly came from behind that was slow to fast, astringent to smooth.

“Someone is asking for help over there!” Nemo heard his voice coming from a distance, and then Oliver’s. “…He’s not moving.”

Finally, it was Ann’s voice.

“That’s not a human.”

“That’s not a human.”

“That’s not a human.”

It was repeated over and over again. The slightly low female voice echoed in the wind. Nemo shivered and hurriedly took a few more steps forward. Despite the loud wind, he could hear Ann and Adrian’s small talk clearly at this distance.

“Have those two been bitten?” Ann asked leisurely. 

“It doesn’t sound like it,” Adrian replied quietly, still holding a bow in his hand.

“It doesn’t seem like they’re stupid,” the female warrior said with relief.

Unlike Jesse Dylan, the two veteran soldiers didn’t even bother to look back. Nemo suddenly felt tired. He and Oliver walked dejectedly together and began to make a fuss about everything that seemed normal on the road. In a way, this was a good thing. At least their attention had been distracted a little bit from the heat.

It was a pity that the next cactus was only a cactus, and the stone was just a stone. No other strange monsters appeared. The scene in front of him kept repeating, and the annoying high heat once again became impossible to ignore.

Until a pile of strange things appeared in their vision.

Originally, the scene in front of them was cut into two flat pieces; half was the desert and the other half the sky, but now the two pure color blocks began to mix with impurities. Several strange towers stood in the distance, with odd shapes that didn’t look like man-made objects.

“Go over there to rest tonight.” Adrian pointed to the towers that seemed to be fixed on the horizon.

At this moment, the sun began to set to the west, and the temperature was no longer unbearable. Nemo’s steps suddenly became a lot lighter, and even the gray parrot could flutter its wings and fly a few paces. Oliver did his best to freeze a few small pucks of ice; although they all knew that as the temperature dropped and the utility of this thing would be greatly reduced.

After walking through the desert for most of the day, Nemo’s deerskin boots were filled at least halfway with sand. Now that everything was back on track, he grabbed Oliver and planned to lean on him so he could empty out the sand in his boots.

Suddenly, a huge spine passed between the two of them.

Oh, spine. Nemo thought lightly. He almost dropped the boots in his hands in the next second. He looked at the giant spine-like thing in horror. Oliver didn’t look much better either. He stared blankly at the monster next to him, subconsciously trying to draw his sword, but he instead grabbed the deerskin boot that Nemo was holding.

The two of them froze in place.

The spine went away leisurely and swam on the sand like a snake, making a pleasant rustling sound. Seeing that it finally crawled away, the two of them breathed a sigh of relief at the same time. Nemo numbly snatched the deerskin boot from Oliver’s hand and shook off the remaining sand inside, then changed his foot and took off his other boot.

“Your whole body is so stiff.” Nemo continued to support Oliver as his eyes were fixated on the sole under his feet as he focused on emptying out the sand in his boot. “No way, Ollie.”

“…I think that’s probably because…” Oliver’s voice was dry and cautious “…The one you’re leaning on isn’t me?”

Nemo’s movement paused for a few seconds. He solemnly put down the deerskin boots and shook the sand clean, then put them on carefully before taking a few steps back…

A small bone joint more than half a person tall at the end of the spine fell out of line. It was standing beside them in a daze, staring straight at the two of them with four black bean-like eyes.

On a closer look, the gap between it and the spine was quite large, but the slightly yellowish white shell was close to the shape. A face belonging to a reptile was exposed where there was supposed to be a cross-section of bone, but it was surprisingly flat, like a lizard who had flattened its face on a wall to survive. There was a thin tail that dragged behind the shell that was covered with silver powder-like scales.

No wonder he felt something was wrong. Oliver shouldn’t have turned around to let it lean on him. Nemo controlled the dark shadows between his fingers but couldn’t find the strength to defend. The small creature looked at them pitifully before rolling over stiffly on the spot.

“…Forget it.” Oliver put away his sword. His expression twitched a little. “Even if it’s dangerous, you should be able to defend against it by yourself.”

Nemo nodded with a sullen face.

It turned out that their trouble had just begun. The two had just taken a few steps forward when the thing whizzed up. As soon as their footsteps stopped, the monster would stop immediately. Nemo sighed, turned his head, causing the bone-like creature to immediately pretend to drop dead.

“Are they in trouble again?” The small talk of the team ahead came again.

“Seems like it,” Adrian answered the question for the female warrior.

“Cross… Let’s just throw them away.”

“……”

---

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

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

---

Chapter 69: Testing the Sword

“…Do you hate me that much?” Jesse Dylan’s smile showed a bit of reluctance for the first time.

He was to the left of a large string of smoked fish, and on his left were round cheeses covered with moldy spots. A few bunches of dried garlic strewn in rings hung from his shoulders, enveloping the small carriage in an indescribably strong odor. This wasn’t a carriage meant for people to ride in, as the wheels were not reinforced to dampen the bumps on the road. Only the two veteran warriors were calm, while Oliver’s eyes were dull, and Nemo was in a state of confusion over the smell and bumps. The gray parrot wasn’t much better. It hung half-dead on Nemo’s robe as if it were pretending to be a bat.

The fuller goat was squeezed in the middle of the carriage, filling the entire space, and was now biting at the straw rope wrapped in spiced paper. Everyone was busy stabilizing their emotions, so no one answered the blond young man’s question.

Not wanting to owe their newest member any more favors, they decided not to pay to take Fritz’s carriage. Instead, they went to the grocer in town, who didn’t mind their black badge status and happily accepted their request, thinking it was just like adding on five more bags of potatoes.

Unfortunately, the treatment for the entire team was similar to that of five bags of potatoes. They struggled for space among the crowded ingredients inside the carriage, and their sense of smell was completely numbed by all the strong odors.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Now there were only two people who still had the courage to open their mouths. The female warrior stuffed the onion that fell on her knees back into place and turned her head to look at Adrian Cross.

The knight commander was carefully looking at the roughly formed bone sword. “Yes. It’ll be good for them.”

“But we’re not ready yet.” Ann cocked her legs to prevent more onions from falling on her knees. The goat took up too much space, which made her movements difficult. “Supplies may…”

“Don’t bother with food. I’m familiar with the desert and can always find it. Mr. Ramon is used to attacking with ice, so we won’t lack any water. The current supplies are enough—”

“But we don’t even have pillows,” Jesse interrupted bitterly. “Forget those stuffed with feathers. There are not even ones with straws.”

“I can help you find a soft enough cactus.” Ann’s eyes lit up. Her face was saying: “Then get off”.

Just as Jesse was about to respond, another bunch of garlic fell on top of his head, causing him to roll his eyes back and close his mouth bitterly.

“Mr. Ramon has been fighting in a relatively normal climate.” Adrian ignored the unpleasant spark between the two. “The desert is more suitable for his training… This is the same for Mr. Light. I have only seen him use dark-based abyssal magic, so the light from the desert can also have a certain inhibitory effect on him.”

Oliver nodded reluctantly through the bumps and then subconsciously looked at Nemo. Maybe there was no need for strong light since the said Mr. Light looked like he was about to die.

“And this is indeed a good sword.” The big goat was squeezed in front of him, so Adrian could only rub the sword with his hands. “Bluebird bones are quite famous magical materials. The hardness is also very suitable. If it’s given out voluntarily, there won’t be too many impurities in the bones… It’s very suitable for you, Mr. Ramon.”  

He grabbed the hilt of the sword. “It’s just a little rough, but I’ll help you deal with it.”

Oliver wanted to open his mouth to thank him, but he only made a precarious “uh” which sounded like nausea. He hurriedly closed his mouth and tried his best to express gratitude with his eyes.

They were heading in the direction of Caleb Village. Truthfully, it wasn’t a good choice. The border between Alban and Willard was naturally formed by a large desert in the middle of the two countries. If they followed the normal route, they would have bypassed this desert and passed by towns on the edge of it or used the teleportation arrays.

“If we go at full speed, it won’t take long to cross it.” The knight’s breath was calm and relaxed.

When they got off the carriage, Nemo had serious doubts about such a statement. The desert in front of him spread to the distant horizon, and the sand was glowing a hot red, making it look endless. The sky was amazingly blue, without a trace of clouds. Many boulders lay obliquely on the hot sand, and masses of tumbleweed rolled down from the sand dunes. The twisted air wavered, making it unquestionable how high the temperature was.

If this was only a painting, the scenery would be beautiful, but Nemo didn’t want to put his feet in it at all.

However, their only hope, the smelly carriage, was already bustling away. Behind them was a wasteland without sparse grass, and ahead was only endless desert. The female warrior and the knight commander had already begun to prepare for sunburn protection. Even Jesse Dylan took off his coat and covered his head.

“Mr. Ramon,” Adrian determined the surrounding environment, then stretched out his hand to point to the boulder-like rock not far away. “Try your sword on that first. This sword should be able to exert all your strength… I need to know how strong you really are. Remember, don’t use magic. I have to consider the intensity of the training based on the degree of the split.”

Oliver squinted his eyes at the dazzling sunlight. Beads of sweat had already begun to slide down his forehead. He clenched the hilt of the Rest in Peace, took in a few breaths, then coughed with the hot air.

Nemo pondered for a moment before he summoned a dark shadow to cover the area above their heads. At first glance, it looked like two black umbrellas without handles. Oliver could finally open his eyes with the shade.

“Thanks.” Oliver wiped the sweat from his forehead and weighed the sword in his hand. He took a long inhale that made his movements jerky.

“Can’t use magic?” He raised his hand and couldn’t help but turn his head to confirm it.

“Can’t.” The knight commander was merciless and pulled his hood on. “Pure power. You should have been taught how to control it.”

Oliver took another deep breath before swinging his sword downward.

Nemo didn’t know what the move would be like. Even if the swing was full of strength, he thought it would only cut a crack at most. Unfortunately, he completely miscalculated. The sword force blew sand everywhere and, like an angry tidal wave, slapped Nemo in the face, giving him a mouthful. He didn’t dare open his eyes.

Others fared better. The female warrior and the knight commander took a few steps back while Jesse had preemptively shielded himself behind the goat and their luggage. The gray parrot was swept away to god knows where.

When Nemo finally finished spitting out the sand in his mouth and raised his head again, the small, mountain-like boulder completely disappeared. A huge rift-like gap appeared out of thin air, and the end disappeared into the sky. Nemo quickly looked at the sword in Oliver’s hand. The bone sword was safe and sound, and the tip even glinted a little with beautiful blue light.

Oliver swallowed hard in front of the freshly made rift. “Sorry,” he said subconsciously.

Ann looked at the sky expressionlessly. Adrian rubbed his temples fiercely with both hands and had a rare blankness on his face. The gray parrot cursed and flew back from behind them, swallowing its curses the moment it saw the sword mark.

“Wow,” Jesse said, with emotion. “With all due respect, Mr. Ramon’s reward of 300,000 is not enough for this sword.”

“Mr. Cross?”

“It seems that I can’t guide you through battle; at least not against this sword,” Adrian said quietly. “Now I can adjust the basic exercises for you, but your combat training must not fall behind. Mr. Ramon, you’d better not use this sword casually until you master your strength.”

“That’s right. If you had come like this to Vincent Town, you’ll be the reason for the genocide,” Ann added dryly.

“But if you can’t guide me, who am I going to fight against—”

Adrian raised his chin slightly in Nemo’s direction.

Nemo subconsciously looked behind him, only to find a thriving cactus. He turned his face away in disbelief. “Mr. Cross, don’t joke like that—”

“I heard Ms. Savage describe your battle… If there’s anyone here whose strength is closest to Mr. Ramon, the answer is only you. Based on your sparring, I may also be able to find some clues about you.” Adrian’s voice was serious.

“How could you just ignore me?” Jesse stood up from behind the goat and patted the grains of sand off his shirt.

“Then please volunteer.” Oliver’s face instantly brightened, and he became eager to try.

“…No! I don’t want to exercise intensely under such heat,” Jesse decisively refused.

It could be seen that the knight commander was trying his best to hold back from rolling his eyes.

“But I haven’t fought much.” Nemo glanced at the sword, a little scared.

“This is the most effective.” Adrian quickly calmed his emotional fluctuations. “I can see that you like each other very much. I think Mr. Ramon has even expressed this very clearly. Subduing each other without seriously injuring each other will have the best effect on improving control, assuming your purpose isn’t to slaughter your enemies.”

He paused for a few seconds.

“Is that your purpose?”

“Of course not!” the two shouted almost at the same time, tacitly ignoring the first half of Adrian Cross’ words.

“Then let’s get started.” The knight commander nodded with satisfaction. “We can take a break before entering the desert.”

“…Did I miss something very important?” Ann’s ears pricked up as she raised her voice. “Oliver confessed? Have you confessed? When…?”

Oliver stared at the tip of the sword thoughtfully, as if he had suddenly become very interested in it.

“This is not called taking a break…” Nemo protested weakly.

“Tell me about it later.” Ann patted the knight commander on the shoulder. “What are you two doing, fighting?”

“But win or lose—” Nemo tensed in place, as if he were about to flee at the slightest rustle of leaves in the wind*.

*(风吹草动) Metaphor referring to extremely small changes. 

“I guess it’s fine.” The knight commander pinched his eyebrows.

“Let’s move away from here.” Nemo pointed to a relatively flat wasteland with an expression like he was about to die a heroic death. “Ollie, why don’t you… You attack first?”

“No, you should go first.”

“But you use a sword—”

“Ah, the one who loses will have to talk to Dylan next time.” Ann was dragging the knight commander far away before suddenly turning her head and adding, “Go on then, boys.”

“Hey!” Jesse shouted in a voice full of grievance as he pulled on the fuller goat.

In the next moment, cold air collided with the dark shadow. A huge blast of wind hit the pair. The surrounding sparse turf was lifted in an instant, and the ground cracked like a spider’s web and collapsed more than half a meter. Ann reacted quickly this time and activated a protective barrier.

“…I knew you didn’t like me that much!” The dark shadow firmly entangled the front of the sword as Nemo shouted out in a deep voice.

“This is a matter of principle.” Oliver’s voice was equally deep. “You moved first, Nemo. It’s supposed to be ten thousand steps back… Aren’t we close friends?” The Rest in Peace slashed horizontally, causing the shadow to split apart from its blade. “How could you treat your friend like this?”

“…It’s a matter of principle.” Nemo coughed a few times and couldn’t help laughing. 

The two took a few steps back and, at the same time, burst out laughing, but their offense didn’t diminish. For some reason, Nemo felt that the atmosphere felt a bit familiar. Although he hadn’t experienced any major battles, his body had instinctively reacted most appropriately, as if he had long been accustomed to it.

The ice spikes arched from the ground, followed by a wind slice from Oliver’s sword. Nemo kicked his shadow and jumped into the air, landing on top of a broken icicle to avoid the sword’s force, which left shallow cuts on his cheeks that healed instantly. At the same time, the dark shadows reached out towards Oliver’s shadow, and countless hands grasped tightly at Oliver’s legs. The latter stabbed the sword into the ground at random, creating a pothole.

Nemo pounced.

“You really don’t want to talk to Dylan that much?” Nemo raised his hands, causing countless curly black vines to entangle Oliver. “Ollie, you should have met a worse guest than him—”

“Aren’t you good at taking care of children? Could he be more annoying than a three-year-old kid—” This time, Nemo wasn’t met with an ice spike but a semicircular ice shield. The shadow vines bombarded the smooth ice surface and slid in all directions.

Nemo exhaled and stepped on the ground again, only to slip under his feet and lose his balance. Oliver somehow covered the ground with ice, and now it was melting.

Seizing his chance, Oliver swooped in and hooked the fallen body in the opposite direction. He held Nemo’s waist with his left hand and casually pointed the sword’s tip at Nemo’s neck with his right. “I win, sorry.”

“…I hate you,” Nemo said weakly as he reached out his finger to push the blade away.

“Wishing you happiness,” Oliver said affectionately.

“I don’t understand why some drag others down with them when they fall in love.” Jesse held his cheek with one hand while scratching the neck of the gray parrot with his other. “Ah, I just want to talk to them. That looks more like flirting than fighting.”

Feeling a bit despondent, he made a pergola with his hands and looked at the sun.

“…Forget it, we will become friends in the end anyway,” the blond young man murmured as the corners of his mouth tugged upwards.

---

The author has something to say:

Jesse: …Don’t beg me when you can!

It’s too miserable when the gray parrot isn’t the most miserable. At present, his status may be a little lower than it… The twisted melon is not sweet, Mr. Dylan.

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

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

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Chapter 68: Unreliable Divination

Ann drew some defensive arrays near the ruined home, but except for insects crawling everywhere, no other living thing approached. At that moment, the female warrior leaned her back against the corner of the ruins and slept soundly with her spear in her arm. Adrian hadn’t slept at all after last night. His right hand was placed on his chest, and his lips moved silently. He seemed to be doing a morning prayer.

Nemo and Oliver were still leaning against each other in their normal sleeping routine. Nemo’s head was resting on Oliver’s shoulders, while Oliver’s cheek rested on his head. Oliver was still fast asleep, as his breathing was even and gentle.

Nemo Light didn’t dare to move, so he stiffly fell into serious contemplation.

How could he face Oliver? He couldn’t pretend nothing had happened. Neither of them were hot-blooded youngsters who couldn’t hold back a moment of impulse. Now that they had too many things to worry about, the team wasn’t strong enough to withstand too many intense feelings and the possible bad consequences that could come from them.

However, these were all excuses, and he knew it.

He could, of course, directly reject Oliver. The other party didn’t seem to be the stalkerish type, and they might be able to return to a blissful relationship of being friends. A single “no” would cleanly solve all the problems.

But he couldn’t deny it completely.

‘How strange,’ Nemo thought. He had read too many love stories and had never forgotten those words. People loved to sing love songs, and the burning emotions between the lines were always separated from reality. Passionate people claimed it was as if the heart melted and the brain froze. It was like swallowing 10,000 bees and having countless wings buzz softly in one’s ears. When they looked at the scene in front of them, it was divided into their lover and the rest of the world.

Nemo really couldn’t understand. In the ordinary days of Roadside Town, he and Oliver only passed each other a handful of times. He was positive that there were no hallucinating bees in his stomach except for stomach acid and food. However, he found that he didn’t care about gender as much as he thought. He was more concerned about another issue.

He didn’t want to disappoint Oliver Ramon.

Like the last biscuit in the cupboard of a hungry person, or the first flower blooming in summer, it was a very precious and fragile thing. He didn’t want to make mistakes at any step, but he didn’t have a clue about how to proceed. He lost his guidance for the first time, and there was no book or person to tell him how to deal with this feeling.

‘Maybe it’s “cherish”’, he thought.

Nemo leaned stiffly on Oliver’s shoulder while maintaining a serious expression. Just when the knight raised an eyebrow at him, he finally made up his mind. Dylan’s affair alone was enough to worry about, and he wasn’t a 15-year-old girl. There wasn’t anything to linger about.

He raised his head and awakened Oliver unexpectedly. Their captain rubbed his eyes in confusion and stared at the ruined home in front of him for a few seconds.

“Ollie,” Nemo said very solemnly, as if he was informing the other party about a funeral he was attending, “I can answer you.”

“What?” Oliver responded blankly. “What…” he got stuck halfway through speaking as his entire body straightened up. It was like an invisible executioner was wiping his blade behind him, ready to decapitate him at some point.

“First,” Nemo said seriously, “don’t be so nervous. If you do this, I’ll start to become nervous… You’re moving too fast, Ollie. I don’t know if I like you.”

Oliver’s expression was solemn. The phantom executioner’s knife seemed to have attached itself to his neck.

“So I can’t give you a positive answer.” Nemo stared intently at the button on Oliver’s chest before carefully moving his gaze up. “I don’t want to be casual with you.”

Oliver’s expression became even more intense. It seemed like his neck was now half broken.

Nemo looked into Oliver’s clear emerald eyes when suddenly a thought appeared unconsciously in his heart. If he really “liked” someone, then for now, that person could only be Oliver Ramon. However, he wasn’t sure if this was another illusion that sprouted from self-suggestion, so he didn’t want to give the other party some ethereal hope.

“Which means I have to refuse you first.” Nemo gritted his teeth. “I need time to figure things out. Once this matter clears, let me be the one to confess to you.”

Seeing Nemo Light’s confession as if he were paying for dinner, Oliver wiped his forehead in tears and laughter. “…I thought you would mind the gender. Anyway, thank you for being straightforward with me.”

“Our races may be different.” Nemo picked up the gray parrot, who was still asleep. “But if it’s what you say… If it’s just that, that’s not an issue that I mind*.”

*Clarity: He’s saying if Oliver’s worried about just being the same gender, Nemo’s saying that’s not a problem for him.

“Then it’s settled?” Oliver raised his eyebrows.

“Settled.” Nemo patted Oliver on the shoulder with inexplicable pride.

The awkward aura had mostly dissipated. Oliver didn’t seem to have the kind of expression that suggested he had a stomachache any longer. The two stood up as if they had completed a major mission and turned their heads…

The expression of stomach pains had now shifted onto Adrian’s face at this moment. He looked at the two of them in silence with an indescribable expression.

Thankfully, Ann was still sleeping. Nemo’s courage, which he had just mustered, quickly leaked out. He didn’t know if such an answer was appropriate, but he believed that Ann would definitely tease him nonstop for three days and nights.

Now, there was only one thing left.

When they found Isaac Delaney, the tall and thin old man was moving the wrapped furniture into the carriage with his wife. The old cloth was wrapped in scattered objects, and sharp metal corners pierced through its thin layers, revealing a little reflection. Compared to yesterday’s evening, Mr. Delaney looked like he had aged a ton to the naked eye. His waist, which had always been straight, was slightly arched.

“You cleared our mission.” Oliver cleared his throat. “Thank you very much.”

“Only the initial remuneration.” Melody’s father didn’t look at them. “You didn’t kill that Bluebird, so I won’t pay for that portion.”

There was some suppressed trembling in his voice.

“I know,” Oliver replied. “Are you leaving Vincent Town?”

The old man’s back stiffened. “No, but we have to change places. Thanks to you, it’s no longer safe here. Now that the mission is complete, what else do you want? Get out of here.”

“Where’s Melody?” Nemo still couldn’t help asking. “You—”

“She’s not my daughter! She’s no longer—!” Mr. Delaney roared while still refraining from looking at them. “In any case…I can’t accept it!”

Oliver stretched out his hand and made a gesture to stop and shook his head.

How pitiful. Nemo thought that Melody Delaney’s expectations may not have been realized until the end. He shrugged and turned away, signaling that he didn’t mind leaving now.

At this moment, Mr. Delaney threw the last of his luggage into the carriage, and a piece of paper fell from the loosely wrapped cloth bag and was swept by the wind that blew it to Nemo’s feet. Nemo picked it up; it was beautiful and neat handwriting, which was a bit close to the sacrificial text of the Bluebirds. The set of circles were the same as the handwriting in the fairytale book.

He raised his eyebrows, turned around, and handed the sheet of music to the old man who wanted to stop talking; the latter quickly accepted it and then nervously clenched his cuffs.

In that brief glimpse, he saw the beautiful color of a Bluebird’s feather.

“Let’s go, Ollie.” This suddenly made him feel much better. “Ollie…?”

Unlike his heart full of warmth, Oliver looked a little dejected, which made Nemo a little nervous. “What’s wrong?”

“Jesse Dylan hasn’t shown up yet,” Oliver said unhappily. “Maybe shamelessness is also a valuable trait. I really want to slip away while he’s not here.” Unfortunately, his skin wasn’t thick enough.

“You can’t escape a diviner.” A pleasant voice sounded. Jesse Dylan was chewing on the edge of a piece of bread. He had flashed out from God knows what magical corner. He no longer had the bag full of Bluebird bones anymore. He didn’t even bring any kind of small luggage with him when he came, as if he was determined to act with them. “When will we go and register the team? Today? Tomorrow?”

“Information.” Oliver had probably used all the cold attitude that he had accumulated over more than 20 years on this blond young man. “Then we’ll go to the nearest place from here to register.”

“Oh, oh, oh, that.” Jesse patted off the breadcrumbs on his hands, then took out another stale piece of bread from a paper bag and began to stare at it intently.

“…Is this divination?” Nemo whispered. “What does he use to infer my identity? The distribution of the sesame seeds, or is it the location of the bran?”

As soon as his voice fell, Jesse Dylan sighed and stuffed it into his mouth.

“On the border between Alban and Willard, in a village called Caleb on Alban’s side, there’s a witch,” he said vaguely. “She’s good at exploring memories… Mr. Light, didn’t you say that you couldn’t remember your childhood? I think it will be good for you to restore your memory. This is currently the most efficient—”

“You got this off the side of a piece of stale bread?” Ann asked, dryly.

“No, I have only seen her picture.” Jesse spread out his hands. “You see, I’m not that good. You can’t believe the Bluebirds. After all, they’re very easy to deceive, don’t you think? ……I just remember that the witch is as old as this bread.”

“But you will find some of the answers you want!” he quickly added when he saw that Oliver’s face was turning blue and was about to open his mouth.

“…Well, at least we don’t need to do another task this month.” Oliver had to squeeze these words out with great difficulty. “If the result isn’t ideal, please leave by yourself. And from today onwards, please don’t play those kinds of games, Mr. Dylan.”

“Of course.” Jesse smiled and pointed to the carriage next to him. “Then one last thing. Let me tell you which carriage you should take—”

Fritz was also carrying luggage to a carriage, looking somewhat depressed. A girl who looked a little familiar was talking to him with shining eyes. The young hunter was showing her a faint but sincere smile.

They had all seen her. Nemo remembered it very clearly. In the tavern next to the transit station, they had seen Jesse Dylan holding her hand and divining for her.

“You will see good things soon!” That was what he said at that time.

As if perceiving Nemo’s line of sight, Jesse Dylan smiled at him. “As I said, my divination is accurate, but on your side… You should think about it clearly. I have a hunch you may not necessarily like the answer.”

---

The author has something to say:

Knight Commander: I seem to have eaten some amazing melons*. No, I don’t want to eat them.

*Eating melons is slang for watching gossip. This is referring to how Adrian basically heard Oliver’s and Nemo’s entire conversation regarding Oliver’s confession.

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Kinky Thoughts:

Well, it’s not a flat out rejection, but we can look forward to seeing how Nemo confesses!

---

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

Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

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

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Chapter 67: Forced Entry

In that small-scale war, they had no time to really look around. Now that the smoke had dissipated, there was only the slightly muggy night left. The crickets chirped among the grass, and the flying insects buzzed and slammed into the glass shade of the oil lamps. Due to the melting of the large amount of ice, there were many small puddles on the damaged streets. The smell of wet straw and mud eventually masked the smell of burning and fire that was still leftover after dusk.

There were lights in the windows of buildings unaffected by the battle, but there were no figures in the damaged ones, like the one that they were in now.

“Why?” Oliver was momentarily stunned. His gaze stopped on Adrian’s pale face.

“I know about the plans of the townspeople.” Ann’s tone was stiff. “Some people decided to stay in place. For safety, you know, to prevent us from leaking their secret—they will rebuild the town in a different place. Others decided to leave… In order to never fall in love.” She smiled bitterly.

“But I have to say, it’s better than both sides dying together. That hoodlum who started the war probably used some means to incapacitate his father. Now that the mayor’s awake and the kid is locked up. They are probably discussing future arrangements at this moment.” She turned her gaze to the brightly lit building not far away.

“But no matter what the outcome, Vincent Town will no longer exist.” Nemo couldn’t tell what he was feeling at that moment.

“Yes, that’s why I was going to say,” Ann whispered. “In order to protect their ‘human indentity’, no one will tell the truth to the outside world. After all, neither side believes in prophecies, and you’re still just outsiders who stuck their nose in their business. Since the two of you returned safely, it seems that the attitude of the Bluebirds towards you isn’t bad, but…”

“The townspeople of Vincent Town may not necessarily think that way.” Oliver raised his eyes. “Maybe in their eyes, we’re the culprits who caused their failed crusade.”

“Not everyone likes the ‘truth’. There will definitely be some who think like that, and these people are most likely to leave. After the information gets out… Haa.” The female warrior shook her head for a few seconds. “Oliver, Nemo, although we haven’t known each other for too long, you… are all good young people. If you continue like this, I don’t know if you can maintain your current state of mind.”

And they were too powerful. Ann Savage couldn’t say these words. After being in this business for more than 20 years, she knew exactly what they would encounter. She could tell that they were different from her. These two people had grown up in a safe environment with warm love, but human nature had never stood to this many tests.

That simple and pure kindness, if it kept hitting a wall over and over again, it would turn into disappointment and anger, because even if one made the most perfect choice, they may not get their fairytale happy ending. The world was much crazier than what they had come into contact with. Maybe they could have persisted, maybe they couldn’t. She admired them greatly. If they were just two young people with ordinary strength, Ann Savage wouldn’t mind continuing to lead them forward.

But their powers were too dangerous.

A good person in complete despair was sometimes much more terrible than a wicked person. They would know the pain of being hurt and how to attack others.

“Of course, it’s not a real dissolution… You don’t have ambitions, right? This would be a good opportunity for you to find a peaceful place to settle in Willard. You only need to complete one Black Chapter task a month, and I’ll help you find the simplest one. With your strength, there won’t be much trouble,” Ann said with a sigh. She stared at the flying insects that were attracted to the oil lamp without looking them in the eyes. “You can live normally for the rest of your life. As long as you show such actions, the Mercenary Guild will no longer keep an eye on you. The danger level will not rise, and the task will become less difficult. Think about it, Oliver.”

She didn’t want to see them sink.

“……Ann.” Oliver looked her directly in the eye. “I know what you are worried about.”

Nemo turned his head. While the other party’s attention was focused on the female warrior, he quietly looked at Oliver.

It felt like it was yesterday that Oliver had dragged him through that forest that night. At that time, they had nothing. No destination, no direction, and no plan on how to live for tomorrow. They were also panicked and completely unable to imagine what was waiting in front of them… And then they met Ann. Although their first encounter was rocky, without her, they probably would’ve been killed by some other bounty hunter long ago or would be rotting in a prison by now.

Until now, he didn’t think Ann was afraid of the trouble they caused. Nemo had seen her eyes that resembled Old Patrick. He had the same expression when he watched those talented children leave with the mercenary groups.

The female warrior was truly worried about them.

“I admit that I don’t particularly care, but personally, I didn’t do it to get their gratitude.” Oliver scratched his head. His tone was cautious and solemn. “I believe Nemo is the same. It’s a bit uncomfortable, but I’m not disappointed.”

He stroked the rough hilt of the bone sword with one hand. “At least we have changed something, haven’t we? We really have no reason to move on, but if we are not here, even if we hear about it—”

“It will become a simple story of ‘humans resisting monsters’.” Nemo took the words out of his mouth. “It’s very ordinary, and it’s not even worth mentioning, but we know that’s not the case.”

The world was crazier than they thought, but was also more gentle than they had imagined.

“I’m not sure if my decision today was correct, and I’m not sure if my approach has always been correct,” Oliver glanced at Nemo, “but if I stay where I am, I may never understand. I want to continue, Ann.”

“It makes no difference to me.” Nemo shrugged and didn’t look away. “…As long as you don’t leave me alone. It’s too tiring to meet new people.”

“…Okay.” Ann closed her eyes tightly as if she had made up her mind and breathed a long sigh of relief. “Anyway, that was just a suggestion. You’re the captain.”

“Thank you,” Oliver said softly.

Nemo subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief and was surprised by his reaction. It stood to reason that he should want to settle down sooner than everyone else. In the battle at dusk, the moment the space was split, Oliver’s trust and cooperation made him instantly relax and feel free—this feeling made all of his hair stand up. The attitude of the townspeople and the Grace Bluebirds all became irrelevant at that moment.

He was like a person who had tasted honey once and could no longer survive the unchanging bitterness.

“If we need do a task at least once a month, then our task this month has failed… Do we have to find another one?” Nemo suppressed those messy thoughts and asked a more realistically question.

“Well, let’s get out of here first.” Oliver nodded. “Nemo, can you treat Adrian? If we can, we’ll leave tonight.”

“This time, I’ll pick the task.” Ann instantly became alert.

Nemo coughed dryly. He stretched out his right hand and held it close to the sleeping Knight Commander. The dark shadows dripped like liquid around his fingers, but they did not succeed in healing Adrian Cross’ wounds. Rather, the opposite happened. The skin under the dark shadow made a hissing sound, and the wound even festered a bit. Nemo quickly withdrew the dark shadow almost immediately, as the boiling shadow slid suspiciously between his fingers.

“That won’t work.” Jesse reappeared like a gum one couldn’t get rid of. He was squatting on the half-broken wall, carrying a bulging cloth bag while the gray parrot was resting on his shoulder. “The attribute of your power is the opposite of his, dear Mr. Light. Your treatment will only kill him.”

Nemo raised his head and squinted his eyes at the gray parrot, who turned its head guiltily.

Jesse jumped off the wall neatly, pulled out a piece of paper with a magic array, and ignited it directly above Adrian’s chest. Under the soft white light, the knight’s haggard breathing became more even. There was still some cold sweat on his forehead, but he finally opened his eyes slowly.

“…It has to be done like this,” he concluded.

“Mr. Dylan, I thought our cooperation was over.” Oliver glanced at the outline of the bag. “It seems that your mission was also very successful. Congratulations.”

Jesse looked at him with a grin, raising one eyebrow.

Oliver sighed. “You have indeed helped us a lot, but our mission has failed. I think we’re done—”

“Really?” Jesse said, while Adrian, on one side, struggled to sit up as he pinched his eyebrows. “Have you confirmed your mission?”

“Things have reached this point.” Oliver quickly called out the task screen with one hand. “I don’t think Mr. Delany… will…” His voice hesitated.

Behind their task, a logo that symbolized completed hung.

“You can confirm with the client tomorrow morning.” Jesse Dylan put down the bag in his hand and gently lay the gray parrot on the sofa. He lowered his head, allowing his blond hair to fall down his cheeks. “Permit me introduce myself again. Jesse Dylan. Liar, thief, robber, and wandering diviner. Choose which ever word tickle your fancy.”

“…Okay,” Oliver wiped his face fiercely and responded dryly. “Without you, we really couldn’t finish the task. Now we might as well have an open discussion. What do you want?”

“Is anything on the table?” Jesse asked expectantly as his eyes swept around the group of stiff people.

“You can’t poach anyone.” It may be due to the other party’s gaze feeling too explicit that Oliver couldn’t help but add, “…Nothing involves physical contact either.”

“How stingy. Then I can only take a step back.” Jesse curled his lips. “Let me join you.”

“Okay… No, what are you talking about?”

“A change in team, a change in mood.” Jesse rolled his shoulders. “Look how hard I work! Besides, can’t you see, we had such a great time working together, didn’t we? You can always kick me out at any time if I’m not behaving—isn’t this a good deal?! You won’t kick me out in the next second, will you? You don’t seem to be such a shameless person… Right?”

“…Another request.” Oliver turned his face.

“I don’t want to change it.”

“Then let me put it another way. We heard Pasotalo mentioned it,” Oliver said loudly enough for Ann and Adrian to hear. “You’re a powerful diviner, or prophet. I believe you have your purpose… And we don’t welcome those with ulterior motives.”

“Even if I am willing to provide clues?”

“What clues?”

“Don’t you want to know the origins of Mr. Light? I can divine clues for you.” Jesse straightened up his collar, which contained intricate embroidery. “If no progress is made, you can kick me out at that time, and I promise I won’t bother you again. As you can see, I can’t possibly beat the four of you.”

Oliver warily glanced at Nemo. Nemo shook his head quickly, making a crazy gesture of rejection.

“Besides, even if you don’t agree, I can always follow you,” the blond young man added.

Nemo’s actions froze.

“Wait a minute,” Adrian finally said, his voice a little weak.”Mr. Ramon, the Nightmare Praise, was destroyed by Mr. Dylan. He is most likely related to the Laddism Church.” He sat up straight, not intending to hide his thoughts. “I have an unscrupulous request. I need to figure out his origin. If you don’t plan to agree, I will apply to leave the team for the time being.”

He lowered his head. “I’m very sorry for the trouble I caused after joining so soon.”

“You’re no longer the commander of the Knights of Judgement.”

“But if he’s really related to the Holy Church and uses that power to do evil, then he’s my responsibility.”

“Well spoken,” Jesse said affectionately, in a very ambiguous tone. “Please be responsible for me.”

Adrian looked away. His expression was still firm but a little green.

“Why don’t we let Dylan join us temporarily? I think he’ll somewhat behave,” Nemo whispered. “If worst comes to worst, we can just tie him to the goat. He’s a diviner, so he’ll never go on a fatal mission with us. At any rate, he can at least be a weather vane. This way, Mr. Cross doesn’t need to leave the team.”

Although he didn’t know what this dangerous person with a strange personality liked about them, Nemo was confident in the boring life that their team was about to unfold. After suffering two big losses, they would never touch a suspicious task again, which could make Jesse Dylan become bored of them soon.

“…You know I can hear you, right? How can you talk about me like this!”

“Fine.” Oliver was still staring at the completion logo behind the task. “I have no opinion. Ann, what do you think?”

“Can’t we kill him?” The female warrior exhaled and touched her spear.

“…Can’t.”

“Then I have no other opinions.”

“Thank you, Mr. Ramon. I will monitor him during this period.” Adrian stood up a little shaky and did a standard church gesture solemnly. The gray parrot eagerly flew up from the back of the sofa and landed happily on the shoulders of the blond young man, as if he was the object of its contract.

“Then I have some private business to deal with. I’ll be leaving first, darlings. See you tomorrow—” He took the gray parrot off again and politely put it back on the sofa. “This matter requires some privacy.”

He put up his index finger and made a silent gesture to the gray parrot.

Honestly speaking, none of them had any real sense of Oliver’s decision, including Oliver himself. The air became dull and depressing, and the sense of ease at the end of the event was swept away. Because Adrian was still weak, after a simple exchange of information, they all fell asleep in the ruined home.

At four in the morning, the last light in Vincent Town went out.

Carrying the bag of broken bones on his back, Jesse Dylan hummed a minor tune and stepped into the Holy Land of the Bluebirds. At this moment, the tree bird in the center had long disappeared, and all that remained was the pearl-colored powder that was gathered in a pile.

The blond young man untied the mouth of the bag and poured the contents out back onto the pile of bones on the ground. The mission scroll unfolded in the air and he signed his name at will. Unlike when Oliver checked it, the client’s name twisted like a worm for a moment before it turned into the words “Jesse Dylan”.

He completed his own task.

“Not only do I have to pay taxes, but I also have to share with them.” He shook his head. “Haa, this is just charity for the Mercenary Guild.”

No one responded to him. He went to the pile of snow-white ash, stretched out his hand to grab it, and then let it slide down between his fingers.

The last meeting between Jesse Dylan and Lavinia was very short. Originally, he only planned to return the book and told her to take a good look, but she still stopped him.

“You’re really helping us, Mr. Dylan.”

“Yeah, didn’t I tell you earlier? You’re being too excessive.”

“But divination and prophesizing come at a huge price. Why are you…”

“There’s no such thing as a prophecy in the world, love. That’s something calculated after combining countless details to get the most likely result. Instead of learning about the ‘future’, you have to obtain ‘enough information to predict the results’. The price is nothing more than the cost of information. In other words, as long as enough unreasonable variables occur, the prophecy could be overturned.”

“You didn’t answer my question directly. You didn’t seem to have paid any price for the prophecy.”

“That’s interesting. I just answered the same question to someone else before. Why should I ask others for what I already have in my hand? There’s no need to ask, so naturally there won’t be a deal.”

“Are you……”

He didn’t answer at that time, but he thought she should know the answer to that question.

“Are you satisfied now?” the blond young man said nonchalantly to the ash. “You see, even you… resented your beloved faith for a moment.”

He paused and showed off an insincere smile. “That’s only right. It’s normal, isn’t it? Why wouldn’t Adrian Cross do it?”

“How hateful,” he concluded.

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Kinky Thoughts:

End of the third arc. The next arc is very exciting.

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