Chapter 1084 – #258_返回 – DeepL
#1078
1.
The tie was broken.
Lydia had no strength left to maintain the Golden Garden, and Xie Wu had no reason to maintain the alliance.
“…….”
Now that the battle was over, Xiu returned the red branch in her hand to her magic.
Made of distortion fields and twists, the red branches disappeared like colorful flower petals.
“Kuluk! Kuluk…!”
He coughed, and black blood soaked into his palm.
The countless distortions and the damage that the Lotus’s revitalizing abilities hadn’t been able to fully deal with had accumulated everywhere.
It was indeed a miraculous victory.
If only Lydia hadn’t overextended herself against Leroux.
If she hadn’t gambled with her life and planned for the future.
If only she had used her influence at the top of Solidus to deal with Xiu.
Or if she had faced Xiu a few months, not a year, later as a 24th ranker.
The outcome of the fight might have been reversed.
Lydia would have been a hundred times more difficult opponent.
But what ifs don’t matter when it’s already happened.
It doesn’t change the outcome.
Xiu stood on the beach with the waves pounding against him.
Lydia, her legs and arms blown away, stared blankly into the night sky.
The lotus slowly sucks everything out of her.
“…….”
At that point, Lydia regains consciousness because the instant-death spell she used during the battle, Immutabilis, the higher level she attained upon rising through the ranks, is clinging to her lifeline like a vicious grip.
It doesn’t hurt.
Just numb.
Lydia’s golden eyes followed Xiu slowly.
“…Do you have a cigarette?”
Xiu lit a cigarette and placed it between Lydia’s lips.
She was an enemy, a foe.
But she was a foe worthy of respect.
What to call this strange bond that had blossomed in the space of half an hour?
Is it cheap pity, the sympathy of a greenhorn, or the arrogant tolerance of a victor?
Whatever it is, it’s a shallow sentiment that I can harbor because I know Dorothy can come back.
“What the…. That’s cheap….”
“…Well.”
Lydia inhaled the smoke, her voice languid as if the night had not yet broken.
Lydia’s life was slipping away like the sand in an hourglass.
Xiu gazed at the burning lotus and spoke.
“Last words. I don’t have much time left.”
“Hahat…!”
Contrary to Xiu’s expectations, Lydia let out a laugh that sounded like the clinking of gold coins.
Though her voice was hoarse and raspy, like that of a pulmonary patient on the verge of death, the laugh was noble, exuding grace and dignity.
I couldn’t help but laugh.
Lydia used to say lines like that at the bedside of countless losers.
I wondered if this was how the defeated man who was writhing on the ground felt?
“If I die, there will be a war.”
It was Lydia’s ability to bundle these explosive feats under one roof that made them so compelling.
Without the center of gravity, the top of Solidus would be torn apart by the clippings, which would mean the political balance of Hexenacht would collapse.
“It won’t be easy for you to handle.”
Xiu looked into Lydia’s eyes.
They did not hold the pleading or fortitude of someone begging for their life.
Instead, there was an inexplicable madness in Lydia’s dying golden eyes.
She had lived her life greedily taking what she wanted.
Seung-nang has built a vast kingdom by any means necessary among his peers.
Attachment and possessiveness.
But to Lydia, the fact that Solidus Top remained after his own life was over was tantamount to disloyalty.
It was right that Solidus Top should fade into history, like an empire that collapses with the death of its emperor.
She thought so without a shred of doubt.
“So, a gift, then.”
And Las Werpanas?
The stepdaughters who did Lydia’s bidding.
Lost without their mother, lost without their sister, lost without Lydia, lost without her?
Where should they go, who had placed their blind faith and love in Lydia?
Lydia had made arrangements for my death.
The place where it is located is Gehenna.
A place of safety, where the enemy is few and far between, and no exploits are too easy to come by.
Lydia held out her remaining ring to Xiu.
“Gehenna, if you show this ring to the Vault Bank, …. you can open my safe.”
Lydia’s panting starts to get faster and faster.
Her eyesight is already gone, and there is no flavor in her cigarette.
“The will there, my daughters…. Werpanath…go, be…your…faithful…dog…and…give…it…to…me….”
This arrangement is for Lydia’s daughters, either in the distant future when she succeeds her, or when she dies.
But in the latter case, Lydia wasn’t sure she’d ever use it.
Whoever killed her, there was no guarantee they would be a good shepherd to lead the lost lambs.
A terrible deed without blood or tears would be a more terrible end for Las Werpanas than simply being lost.
But even if it was the enemy who took Lydia’s life, there was a trustworthy successor on the horizon.
Hsin-Hsiu is willing to risk getting caught in the middle of his revenge, but he won’t let anyone else get involved.
Xinxiu overcame several obstacles and overcame absurd disparities to achieve victory.
He deserves it.
He deserves Lydia Magnus’ legacy.
“Now, you’re… the godmother, Miss Shi Shun.”
Lydia’s body begins to tremble as she spits out each word as if she were vomiting blood.
Unable to inhale the cigarette anymore, Lydia asked one last time, trying to control her trembling body.
“How was my magic…?”
Xiu replied.
The answer gave Lydia a crooked smile.
“Whatever… you’re an asshole, asshole….”
The Witch of Libra, or the Witch of Gold.
High Priestess of Solidus and Godmother of Las Werpanas.
Head of the largest public coven in history, and the third Archdemoness to reach the 24th rank.
Lydia Magnus’ heart stopped beating completely.
2.
The feel of a fluffy quilt.
The right humidity and the right temperature.
A comfortable sleeping environment with the lovely feel of the pillow against her cheeks.
“Hmmm~”
I must have overslept.
It wouldn’t be this sweet otherwise.
Dorothy fluttered her long eyelashes like butterfly antennae and rolled over with a pleasant smile.
It smells good, by the way.
The clinking of utensils and the sound of something simmering tickled my nostrils as the smell of savory miso stew wafted through the air.
Miso stew….
Dorothy has tasted seafood from all over the world, but her tastes are surprisingly simple.
When traveling for business, she always preferred night market street food to fancy Michelin restaurants.
Charcoal-grilled skewers with sweet Southeast Asian spices and beer that’s too lukewarm to be called cold.
Or the halal gyros, which feature a generous portion of meat, pita bread, and white sauce drizzled over the top, as if quantity were more important than quality.
Or chow mein, a fiery dish of orange chicken served in a square box.
But when it comes to Korean miso jjigae, Dorothy is in an awkward position.
Maybe she’s just not a fan of the fermented food’s love-hate relationship with tangy flavors?
In any case, I don’t remember it being a favorite.
Even the first time Xiu served it to me as a hometown food, I thought to myself, “Ugh, I don’t like this.” But love is a lousy magic.
But love is a shitty magic.
It’s a crappy magic that makes you love other things that the person you love loves.
The miso stew that I didn’t like tastes better just because it’s from his hometown.
You close a thriving business and blow your money into thin air because you want to see him smile.
You’ve kicked the status that Hexenacht guaranteed you and become a hunter of Gehenna. ….
“…What?”
Dorothy jumped to her feet as she realized what had happened.
Hexenacht, Gehenna, hunters, Lehar Group, Herja, death.
Dorothy’s eyes snapped open, the languid calm gone, the memory replayed.
The corners of her eyes crinkle slightly, giving her a gentle appearance, but her gaze is sharp, taking in all the information around her.
This is an apartment.
Judging by the style of the interior, it’s probably Korea.
The view outside the window is also a typical Korean factory-style apartment complex.
What happened after that?
“Oh my God, are you up already?”
That’s when Dorothy heard a voice that instantly released all of her tension.
“Darling.”
Xiu walked into the bedroom from the kitchen, apron in hand, ladle in hand.
Dorothy was a little surprised to see him.
The aura around him seemed to thicken, as if he were a different person altogether.
It’s not the flimsy conventionality that came with the charisma project (which Dorothy found adorable).
It’s the ease of a strong man with a soft smile and an outwardly tough demeanor.
“Come on, come here.”
“What, what, what, suddenly? Is this a secret camera?”
But why is Xiu here?
And why is he in a Korean apartment?
And what happened to the raid?
Did it somehow work out?
“Darling, did you say I’m heavy?”
“Heavy for what?”
Scooping up the confused Dorothy, Xiu sat her down in front of an ornate dining table.
“This is Xin Xiu’s special Korean course. It’s not much, but I worked hard to make it.”
Miso stew, egg rolls, assorted side dishes, white rice.
The end.
“It’s really not much.”
Dorothy, who playfully nudged Xiu, picked up her cutlery and scooped up a tablespoon of miso soup.
After a while, the confusion cleared.
At this point, she realized something.
“I’m dead.”
Otherwise, there would be no such thing as false happiness.
For Dorothy had surely been decapitated by Herja’s axe.
So either I’m in heaven, or I’m in the afterlife, or I’m just a brain in a box and I’m picturing Dorothy at her happiest moment.
“Is it that bad?”
But the first bite of miso stew is so real.
And Xiu’s hand over the back of yours.
The tearful look on his face, as if he’s lost a precious treasure and just managed to get it back, is telling.
This is not heaven, this is not the afterlife, this is not the brain, this is real.
“Darling, I’m really confused, but…. What’s going on, bam!”
Xiu hugs Dorothy tightly.
“…….”
His shoulders shake.
Dorothy’s eyes widen, but then she laughs softly and pats him on the shoulder.
“What~ Shame on you…. It’s okay, it’s okay, I’m really not leaving now.”
After a long journey, Dorothy returned to Xiu’s arms.
