Chapter 151 | From Galgame Nobody to Eternal Sovereign

The late autumn night wind, carrying a thick stench of blood, poured in through the shattered Gothic French windows of the hall, swaying the tattered silk curtains hanging in midair.

Outside the manor, the embers of war had not yet died down. Every now and then, the charred wood crackled in the cold wind, emitting a pungent, smoky odor.

“Why? The Hero is the strongest among us. I don't think she'll die,” Servant A said.

“Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. Even the concept of being the ‘strongest’ has its limits in the face of destined fate.”

“I don't understand.”

“Silvervein City is currently an isolated island drowned in blood. Swarms of bats blot out the night sky, and countless waves of rats pour from every dark sewer opening, greedily gnawing on any living thing. The Vampire Council has laid a very simple trap in the city. It's not particularly ingenious, but for Miss Hero, it is a fatal, open scheme. Besides, they don't plan to kill Little Kai through combat.”

“Could it be...?”

“Exactly. Identity, which is to say, your curse.”

Hill shrugged.

“I'm sure you have first-hand experience with this, so I won't explain further.”

“She could have easily left. No one could have stopped her,” Servant A said softly.

“She is the Hero, after all,” Hill said with a grin.

Servant A pursed her lips.

“I understand,” she whispered. “I will... remember her.”

“There's no need to be so pessimistic.” Hill shrugged. “The interesting thing is, according to her original destiny, Little Kai shouldn't have reached the end of her journey so quickly. She was supposed to make one more return.”

Hill's voice pulled Servant A back from her thoughts.

“Do you mean... her destiny was changed?” Servant A's eyes widened. “How is that possible?”

Miss Hill's divinations had never been wrong.

Then, another thought occurred to her.

“So, you came to confirm the trajectory of her altered destiny... No, are you here to try to change her destiny once more?”

If there was anything different about Kaila's destiny compared to the original...

It was probably that she had brought a certain someone along when she confronted the Witches...

“Partially. I have some conjectures, but I still need to confirm them.”

Hill gave a curious smile. “After all, Little Kai sends her diary to me as letters every single day.”

“Is she a child?”

“Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. Everyone is a child in my eyes. I did watch you all grow up, you know. You can write to me too, Little Shi, if you're lonely.” Hill gave a teasing smile. But when she saw Servant A baring her teeth, she immediately straightened her expression.

“Enough small talk. It's about time.”

With that, Hill set down her massive sack and rummaged inside.

Amidst the dull clatter of metal and the rustling of fabric, she slowly withdrew her hand.

Pinched between her fingertips was a scroll emitting a peculiar, faint silver glow.

The silver light was pure, devoid of any mana fluctuations. It flowed silently, illuminating even the floating dust motes in the hall with perfect clarity.

Hill held the scroll out to Servant A.

“So, I hope you can go help Little Kai, and prove that the destiny I saw isn't her end.”

Servant A stared at the glowing silver scroll but didn't reach out to take it.

Her gaze lingered on the scroll for a moment, but her body instinctively shrank back. She hesitated.

“But... I can't wield weapons right now. If there are so many vampires over there...”

Pointing to her own tattered servant clothes, she continued, “I risked my life to escape Destinos, and I've struggled all this way just to break free from the shackles of this body. Now that freedom is within reach, and I can live peacefully in a place where no one knows me... I didn't come all this way just to throw my life away in a suicidal war.”

“What are you muttering about?” Hill tilted her head. “Weren't you two best friends? Back when you were still in the Silent Sanctuary.”

Servant A fell silent.

The adults of Destinos could not choose their own paths, nor could they choose their own destinies.

But at least...

Before reaching adulthood, they could still choose how they connected with this world.

“She really is... an utterly hopeless idiot.”

Servant A closed her eyes and took a breath of the cold, ash-laden air.

She took the cold scroll.

To her surprise, the moment her fingers touched the scroll, the harsh curse of Destinos didn't trigger any rejection.

So magic scrolls, like alchemical potions, aren't considered weapons? That's good news.

“Alright... I'll go try. What kind of scroll is this?”

The corners of Hill's lips curled up into a mysterious smile.

“A very powerful magic called 【Reality Weaving】.”

Servant A frowned.

She had never heard of this spell.

“Is it a Wish spell?”

“No, no,” Hill laughed. “A bit more powerful than that.”

...

“So many Wish scrolls, King?”

The court mages stood in the council chamber.

Inside the towering council chamber of the Royal Capital, the air was dry and oppressive. It was already late at night, and the red pine wood in the fireplace crackled, casting long shadows across the wide, long table.

Outside the window, the night sky was stained a heavy, bloody red.

Few citizens of Solitude ventured out at night, but the Green Mist King had uncharacteristically summoned them tonight.

However, compared to the eerie clouds brewing outside and the deadly moonlit night, what truly took everyone's breath away was what lay spread across the obsidian table of the court.

Neatly stacked there were exactly one hundred parchment scrolls.

Some were already yellowed with age, their edges frayed by time.

Others were relatively new. In the center of each scroll was the royal family's unique double-headed griffon emblem embroidered in gold thread, but what stood out even more was the mercury-like magical glow flowing subtly across the parchment.

It represented the legendary spell capable of interfering with the laws of reality—Wish.

“Just as you see,” the Green Mist King said, sitting at the head of the long table, his fingers interlaced under his chin. Though his tone was steady, excitement flickered in his eyes.

“Your Majesty... this is the entire heritage accumulated by the royal family over generations, as well as the decades of effort by you and the Azure Sky King since you both became Archmages.” The chief mage's voice trembled. He reached out a withered hand as if to touch the scrolls, but shrank back. “A full hundred scrolls... Bringing them all out, is it to...”

“We are at the point of a final, desperate stand,” the Green Mist King interrupted, his black eyes devoid of warmth. “Silvervein City has already fallen to the vampires' siege. The poor legendary adventurer—the Hero—is trapped in the center of the meat grinder, a trap meticulously prepared by the vampires. If we allow those bloodsucking bats to devour Silvervein City, the next to be torn apart will be Solitude right beneath our feet.”

He stood up, walked to the long table, and looked down at the hundred shimmering scrolls.

“This King needs you all to chant ninety-nine of them together with me.”

“Ninety-nine?!” The mages looked at each other, their faces filled with horror.

Wish was a spell of legendary caliber. Activating each scroll required the caster to exert intense interference on reality through mental strength and the laws of causality.

Even a simple wish would place an immense burden on a mortal's mana pool. If ninety-nine scrolls were activated simultaneously, the colossal torrent of causality, powerful enough to tear through the void, would drain the mages presiding over the ritual into dried corpses!

“King, this is madness!” the chief mage urged in panic. “Even if it is to defend against the vampires, we can use these scrolls in batches to set up defensive barriers. Burning ninety-nine of them at once... our mana simply cannot withstand such a backlash!”

The Green Mist King turned his head, gazing at the crimson crescent moon outside the window.

“Indeed. But this is also for the future of Solitude.”

“My mind is made up. Say no more. We have no time to delay.”

“In this most difficult hour, we will forcibly summon the New Moon Witch and request her to defend our kingdom.”

The hall instantly fell into a deathly silence, broken only by the faint crackling of the hearth.

The Green Mist King produced a piece of parchment.

“This was once a covenant made between my ancestors and the New Moon Church. With this medium, along with our Wish scrolls, we can achieve this.”

Complex expressions of awe and confusion appeared on the mages' faces.

Although there were indeed rumors that the New Moon Church was once the state religion protecting Solitude, that orthodox faith had fallen long ago and had now vanished without a trace.

The New Moon Church was merely an organization of the New Moon Witch's worshipers.

What did the vows they made have to do with the New Moon Witch herself?

Besides, with so many Wish scrolls, they could have blasted the vampires to death. Why go through all this trouble?

Aren't the vampires still in Silvervein City? The Royal Capital is perfectly safe, so what was there to fear?

But with the Azure Sky King absent, they did not dare to defy the Green King.

The Green Mist King did not explain. He quietly stared at the parchment scroll in his hand.

After a brief silence.

Finally, he looked coldly at the mages. Beneath his decent and majestic facade lay a bottomless pit of malice.

“Silvervein City is besieged by the vampires, and the Hero is heading there. Do you all truly think this King is begging that Witch for mercy, asking her to be our savior?”

A subtle, cold curve hooked the corner of his lips.

“To defend Solitude without fail, we must do this.”

“This is also... for the future of Solitude.”

The Green Mist King said softly.

“Now... let us begin.”

Without giving them time to hesitate, the Green Mist King raised the royal seal high, and the Archmage-level mana hidden within him erupted.

A green halo lit up on the floor of the council chamber, instantly activating the complex rune array dormant beneath the obsidian table.

The mages knew full well that their King had already made his decision.

Gritting their teeth, they quickly paired up and stood on the key nodes of the rune array, placing their hands on each other's shoulders to withstand the lightless moonlight that could overflow at any moment.

“By the New Moon's vow of old, in the name of the Solitude royal family—”

The Green Mist King was the first to close his eyes, his majestic voice echoing through the chamber. Along with his chanting, the ninety-nine Wish scrolls on the long table all hovered in midair.

Hum!

A violent resonance vibrated through the air. The ninety-nine scrolls burned simultaneously, dissolving into a viscous silver liquid that crisscrossed in the air, spinning tens of thousands of gold and silver threads of causality.

These threads wove through the air, crafting one absurd yet vivid illusion of reality after another.

“Chant!” the Green Mist King commanded coldly.

The mages closed their eyes in unison, pouring their lifetime of mana continuously into the rune array.

“...Descend, we pray, New Moon Lady, and fulfill your covenant of old...”

Dry and ancient vows echoed through the hall. As the ritual progressed, the threads of causality hovering in the air began to vibrate violently, as if they had pierced through the void to latch onto some incredibly heavy existence.

Tugging at such a high-tier existence instantly brought about a terrifying backlash.

“Ugh...”

An elderly mage let out a painful groan. His face turned deathly pale in an instant, the veins beneath his skin bulging as his mana was frantically drained by the array on the table.

Following that, his body began to wither at a visible rate. Large beads of sweat had barely seeped from his skin before being instantly vaporized by the sheer pressure of the mana.

“Hold on!” the chief mage gritted his teeth, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth as his mental strength wavered in the torrent of causality.

Not only him, but the air in the entire chamber grew viscous, and gravity seemed to warp several times over, pressing down until the mages' bones creaked under the unbearable weight.

Several young casters had already rolled their eyes back from mana exhaustion, yet they could not break free because their hands were firmly stuck to their companions and the array's covenant was incomplete.

This was simply not a domain that mortals could meddle with. They were using their own lifespans and mana to forcibly drag a Witch into descending!

Standing at the core of the ritual, the Green Mist King's face was also pale, but his vast, Archmage-level mana acted as an anchor.

With both hands pressed against the royal seal, his violent mana fluctuations carved a path through the torrent of causality, guiding the reality-warping power of the ninety-nine scrolls to focus entirely on a single point deep within the void.

“Come... Miaoyue...”

He stared into the void, a cold obsession burning deep in his eyes.

“Let us... end all of this. End all the suffering on this land.”

...

Sophie withdrew her gaze from Claire and fell into deep thought.

Black Gallows was a full three-day carriage ride away from Silvervein City.

And now, the vampires' offensive had likely already begun.

Miss Hero's stats should allow her to hold out for a long time.

But the biggest problem was...

She couldn't make it back in time.

Miaoyue could turn into moonlight to move rapidly.

Shironaka Fueno could transform herself into pure mana and re-materialize upon reaching her destination.

But they couldn't take Sophie with them.

If only one of the Witches had bothered to memorize a teleportation spell, would she even have to face this dilemma?

Sophie looked back at Miaoyue.

Miaoyue had already finished eating the chicken heart and was standing by her side.

She had heard the conversation just now as well.

“I'll go help Kaila right away.” Miaoyue patted her chest and said proudly, “With me on the move, I will surely cut down those vampires.”

“I don't doubt that,” Sophie sighed. “The problem is...”

“Can you repel the vampires while ensuring you don't harm any civilians?”

She certainly couldn't rely on her own 15 attribute points; she had to depend on her friends' power.

Shouting about friendship and bonds while rushing in to beat up the vampires.

But Little Yue was definitely the worst option for this.

Miaoyue opened her mouth, stammering.

She wanted to give a confident answer immediately.

Like, Don't worry, My Saintess, or A mere vampire is not worth mentioning, or The New Moon Witch will beat all enemies to a pulp and bring back some loot that goes well with tea.

But she couldn't say it.

Because Sophie wasn't asking if she could win.

But she was asking if she could win without harming any civilians.

That made things very difficult.

The Moon Goddess could launch vampires into the sky, push the moon forward four spaces, or let half of Black Gallows and an alchemy carriage experience a brief and unpleasant aerial trip together.

She was strong, of course—absurdly strong. Strong enough to make a Vampire Duke rethink his life in the outer heavens, and strong enough to turn most enemies into a very distant dot before they even understood what was happening.

But Silvervein City was not the wilderness.

There were streets, houses, civilians strung up by blood threads, screams, ruins, and Miss Hero standing right in front of everyone.

This was exactly what Sophie worried about the most.

Miaoyue's abilities could not be safely unleashed in that kind of battlefield.

On the contrary, if Miaoyue went to assist, the most likely outcome wouldn't be the New Moon Witch descending to save the world. Instead, Miss Hero would have to block the vampires while simultaneously pulling civilians one by one out of the moon, gravity, repulsion, tsunamis, and other disasters that had no business appearing on land.

Miss Hero was already busy enough.

She really didn't need a Moon Goddess-exclusive disaster pack on top of that.

Logically, the person most suited to go and support in this situation was the other one.

Shironaka Fueno.

The Puppet Witch's meticulous puppetry magic could hold ten million threads simultaneously, and could ensure every puppet stepped onto the most precise position in a play.

If it were her, repelling the vampires, separating the battlefields, catching falling people, and pulling trapped civilians away from the edge of the beast tide could all be done faster and better than anyone else.

She wouldn't need a grand, dramatic descent.

She only needed to let down a curtain of threads, and Silvervein City would become her stage.

And Little Dino must have heard the conversation just now.

However, there was only one problem.

Shironaka Fueno would not do it.

Unlike Miaoyue, who would eagerly rush to help Kaila because she shipped Sophie and Miss Hero.

Although the Moon Goddess's logic often looped around the dark side of the moon before coming back, at least her enthusiasm was easy to understand.

Shironaka Fueno was different.

To her, in a play, characters would make their entrances and exits.

Some met on stage, some died during the intermission, and some couldn't even hear the applause during the final curtain call—it was all part of the play.

Life or death was merely a different way to take a bow.

She would never act for people who had nothing to do with her.

Nor did she possess the unreasonable compassion of Miss Hero. Honestly, in this regard, she was closer to Sophie herself.

Calm, rational, observant, prioritizing calculations of self-interest.

If Sophie asked her to help, Fueno would definitely agree.

Sophie had absolutely no doubt about this.

If she said, “Little Dino, help me save that city,” Shironaka Fueno would probably stare at her quietly for a few seconds, then smile and say yes, without another word.

That would be great.

Everything would be resolved.

But what then?

Precisely because Sophie knew her so well, she understood clearly.

Doing this would definitely hurt Shironaka Fueno.

The first time her Elder Brother earnestly asked his little sister to act, the purpose deviated from going home, deviated from her, and deviated from their reunion that had been delayed for over a thousand years. Instead, it was for Miss Hero, and for a city of people who meant nothing to her.

Sophie was unwilling to do that.

Until she had exhausted all other options, she wouldn't do this.

Sophie scratched her head in frustration.

What was this?

Was this the so-called destined fate?

Fate threw Miss Hero into a trap, threw Silvervein City into the flames of war, threw Sophie three days' travel away, and then spread its hands with a smug, annoying expression that said, Look, there's nothing you can do.

Wishful thinking.

Her eyes lit up.

Wait.

Miaoyue couldn't carry living things.

But she could carry dead things.

For example, severed limbs.

Strictly speaking, after her head left her body, shouldn't it be classified as a very fresh, highly conscious dead object that ordinary people are strongly advised against touching?

Flawless logic.

Sophie immediately held her head with both hands.

Miaoyue, who was still trying to find her words, blinked blankly at the sight.

“My Saintess, what are you doing?”

“Don't move. I've thought of a genius idea.”

Sophie took a deep breath and exerted force with her wrists.

Crack.

She pulled her own head off.

“Eh?”

Holding her own head in her hands, the faint blood mist at her neck slowly receded. The expression on her face was exceptionally calm.

“Take it. Carry me to Silvervein City.”

“Ehhhhh?!”

Miaoyue leaped backward, her black hair flaring out in the moonlight as her voice cracked. “My Saintess! D-Don't just take your head off! You're supposed to warn me before doing something like that!”

“Telling you now is still in time.”

“That is not the issue at all!”

“Cut the chatter, hurry up,” Sophie urged. “While I'm still fresh.”

“O-Okay then.” Miaoyue hesitantly reached out her hands, intending to take Sophie's head.

Deep within the surrounding space, ripples began to distort, and countless golden torrents wrapped around Miaoyue.

Miaoyue froze.

“Huh?”

The next instant, the lingering torrent of causality from the ninety-nine burned Wish scrolls suddenly tightened.

A silver rift tore through space.

Moonlight swept backward.

Miaoyue only had time to let out a series of panicked cries.

“Eh? Ehhh? Wait, My Saintess, I haven't taken your head yet—”

Before her words could finish, she was dragged into the rift by the teleportation-like light.

The silver light sealed shut.

Only Sophie remained, standing in place while holding her own head.

Sophie: “...”

She and her body quietly stared at each other for two seconds.

A question mark slowly appeared on her face.

What on earth was this now?

Expressionless, Sophie pressed her head back onto her neck.

Click.

Flesh and blood mist quickly fused together, leaving only an extremely faint red ring around her neck. She stretched her neck and shoulders. After confirming that her perspective was no longer stuck at a very bizarre height, she couldn't help but laugh out of sheer exasperation.

Fine, fine. So that's how we're playing.

“Little Dino,” Sophie called out softly, taking off her hat.

“I'm here. Does Elder Brother need something?”

“How much time do I have left?” Sophie asked.

“Hmm, one minute?”

“I need two minutes.”

“Hmm?”

“Please, Little Dino.”

Sophie put her hat back on and took a deep breath.

A three-day carriage ride, two hundred and forty thousand meters.

If she wanted to cover that distance in thirty seconds, she would need to traverse eight thousand meters per second.

The speed of sound was only three hundred and forty-three meters per second.

She had to run at twenty-three times the speed of sound.

Yet Sophie currently had fifteen points of Agility. Even with Stealth's fifty percent boost, Claire's reversed Duke's Majesty multiplying it by ten, and the instantaneous ejection of the coffin cannon factored in, she could only reach about one hundred and forty-nine meters per second.