And as it turned out, Lin Gui's worries were well-founded.
The next day.
Early morning.
Sunlight poured down without hindrance.
The sky above Avalon was actually a clear, brilliant blue.
Why was there sunlight deep within the Wall of Sighs?
The reason was simple.
The Demon King Pillar standing in the center of the city was simply too tall.
Its height completely cleared the eternal mist of the Wall of Sighs,
acting like a giant, open umbrella
that not only kept the prying eyes of demons away but also held the fog outside the barrier.
Sunlight was able to penetrate the barrier, warming the small city.
This light did more than just dispel the night;
it also chased away the suffocating, omnipresent oppression of the Wall of Sighs.
Under the morning light, Avalon revealed a unique beauty.
The grey tiles on the roofs of the low stone houses were gilded with a pale gold.
The vegetable gardens in front of every house were lush and green, glistening with crystal dew.
The winding dirt and stone roads shone in the light, the moss in the crevices damp.
The outline of the distant city walls was clearly visible, rough yet sturdy.
A few wisps of smoke drifted lazily upward, blending into the clear blue sky.
The air was crisp and cool, carrying the scent of plants and damp earth.
Occasionally, early-rising residents would push open their wooden doors and nod to one another in greeting.
Everything was so peaceful... It did not feel like the center of a barren wasteland at all.
In the room where Theia was being held.
Avalon's first morning.
Theia woke up groggily from her soft bed.
Her silvery-white hair was scattered across the pillow, with a few strands clinging to her cheeks.
Her eyelashes fluttered, and her blood-red eyes half-opened, still clouded with sleep.
Last night's sleeping arrangements had been simple.
Theia slept in the only bed downstairs.
Eve had offered to sleep in the loft, saying she “needed quiet.”
As for Lin Gui—
Theia had no idea where he had gone in the latter half of the night.
She only remembered being incredibly tired and drifting off to sleep.
Waking up now, she finally saw him—
Lin Gui was leaning against the wall by the door, clutching his oak staff,
his head slightly bowed and his eyes closed, seemingly asleep.
Theia blinked as her consciousness slowly returned.
She frowned and sat up, turning to the side.
She wanted to wake Lin Gui up gently to ask where he had gone last night,
but she suddenly heard a commotion outside the door.
The sound was very close, as if pressed right against the wooden panels.
Theia froze, instinctively holding her breath.
She slid out of bed quietly, her bare feet stepping onto the cool floor.
Tiptoeing, she moved soundlessly to the door
and carefully pressed her ear against it.
The door wasn't thick, and the voices outside drifted in, disjointed but audible:
“...Is she really Lord Gusion's kin?”
“White hair... I saw it with my own eyes, the exact same white hair as Lord Gusion...”
“But didn't Lord Morpheus say yesterday that she was a descendant of the Demon King...”
“Are you stupid? White hair! How many of the Seventy-Two Pillar Demon Kings have white hair?”
“But...”
“Lord Gusion has white hair too! This must be... it must be a bloodline connection!”
“Maybe she's a long-lost clansmember of Lord Gusion's...”
“Last night, when I went to the restroom, I heard Lord Morpheus saying next door that she is indeed Lord Gusion's clansmember! I absolutely did not mishear!”
“Yes, yes, yes! I was in the latrine too, and I overheard Sage Kilian saying the exact same thing next door!”
“Oh my god, what a coincidence. So the ones in the stalls next to each other in the public latrine that day were you two!”
“Then yesterday... the way we treated her...”
A woman's voice, clearly filled with guilt, chimed in, trembling slightly:
“I even pointed a pitchfork at her...”
“She was clearly so pitiful... traveling all this way to find us...”
“Yet we treated her like an enemy...”
Another raspy male voice spoke quietly:
“Let's apologize.”
“We must apologize.”
“Avalon... shouldn't treat those seeking refuge like this.”
“Especially... someone who might be related to Lord Gusion.”
Inside the door.
Theia stood frozen in place, utterly dumbfounded.
Her red eyes were wide, filled with complete bewilderment.
Gusion's kin? A white-haired Demon King descendant? Apologizing?
Apologize to whom? Had some white-haired demon arrived in Avalon,
and was this white-haired demon somewhere near where they were being held?
It was too much information to process at once.
Just as she was trying to untangle her thoughts—
“Knock, knock.”
A sudden knock sounded at the door.
Immediately after, there was the click of a key turning in the lock.
Theia shuddered all over,
remembering the hostile residents of Avalon from last night.
Without a second thought, she kicked Lin Gui, who was still asleep nearby.
“Wake up!”
At the same time, she grabbed the collar of his mage robe and yanked hard.
With a whoosh—
she practically dragged and pulled the not-yet-fully-awake Lin Gui toward the stairs,
her movements so fast they kicked up a gust of wind.
Lin Gui stumbled from the pull, his staff nearly slipping from his hand.
His dark eyes snapped open, still filled with the daze of waking up.
But Theia couldn't care less.
Her heart pounded wildly as she dragged Lin Gui up the stairs to the loft in a few swift strides,
as if some terrifying beast were chasing them from behind.
Up in the loft, Eve was already awake.
She was leaning sideways against the window, one leg bent and the other casually resting on the windowsill.
Her short, pale-gold hair glowed softly in the morning light.
She was quietly gazing out the window at the waking town below,
her posture serene, her expression peaceful, even carrying a touch of holiness.
Eve Isaiah sitting by the window
Hearing the hurried footsteps, she turned her head slightly.
Seeing Theia drag Lin Gui up in a frantic rush,
Eve blinked gently,
and then, as if nothing had happened, lowered her leg from the windowsill,
bringing her legs together and straightening her posture.
“Good morning.”
She smiled faintly at them, her voice gentle.
“Did something happen?”
Theia lowered her voice in panic: “Eve! Those people are coming in! It sounds like there are a lot of them!”
But Eve only tilted her head and smiled softly: “I know.”
Theia: “...Huh?”
Eve explained with a smile:
“They've been gathering at the door since before dawn.”
“I've been watching them from the window.”
“They were carrying things, pacing back and forth outside, hesitating for a long time.”
“Many of them... had guilt and anxiety written all over their faces.”
“Carrying things?” Theia asked instinctively. “Pitchforks and farm tools again?”
Eve shook her head.
“Not weapons.”
“It's fruits, vegetables, and in their baskets...”
She paused, a trace of mischief flashing in her eyes.
“...some thick, warm, hand-made clothes.”
Theia was completely dumbfounded.
She opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
The tension in her eyes had not faded, now mingled with a massive wave of bewilderment and confusion.
Fruits? Vegetables? Warm clothes?
What on earth was going on?!
Just then,
the door was pushed open.
a crowd of people surged in, carrying large bags and small bundles.
They were the very same residents who had brandished farm tools and looked so vigilant last night.
They swarmed into the room, looking around.
After searching for a moment, someone suddenly looked up—
and caught the eye of Theia, who was peeking down from the opening of the loft stairs.
Theia pulled her head back in fright, her blood-red eyes widening.
“Lin Gui! They're coming up!”
She spun around hurriedly, grabbing Lin Gui's arm and shaking him.
“Quick! Get us out of here!”
Lin Gui's head bobbed up and down as she shook him.
His eyelids drooped, his eyes filled with the exhaustion of not getting enough sleep.
“Mmh... let me sleep a bit more...”
he mumbled sleepily, leaning back against the wall while hugging his staff.
Clearly, he wasn't taking Theia's panic seriously.
Theia stamped her feet in frustration, her silver hair practically standing on end.
“Wake up! They're already downstairs!”
Footsteps drew closer and closer on the stairs.
The wooden floorboards creaked underfoot, accompanied by hushed voices.
“The loft... seems to be upstairs...”
“Keep it down, don't scare her...”
The hatch at the top of the stairs was gently pushed aside.
Faces full of guilt and anxiety peeked out from below.
They held no weapons, only fruits, vegetables, and clothes.
Seeing the three of them in the loft, the crowd visibly relaxed.
Then, they slowly gathered around.
Theia tensed up all over. Without a second thought,
she grabbed the back of the still-dozing Lin Gui's collar and yanked him in front of her,
using him like a human shield to block herself and Eve.
The scene was rather comical.
Lin Gui, held by his collar, finally opened his eyes in a daze,
only to find himself standing between the two groups like a human partition.
He blinked blankly, seemingly still trying to figure out what was going on.
Rate on N.U.
