“A familiar presence...” Her expression held a trace of confusion. She sat on the sofa where she had once slept, sitting upright. After only a moment, she grew weary of the feeling. There was movement at the entrance, and a woman appeared at the door.
“You’re back! I’ve been hiring someone to clean this place every week.” The woman seemed to be in a very good mood. “I’m just on my way to a gathering, so I won’t stay to chat.”
Sunlight bathed her, and her smile was radiant, just like everyone else basking in the sun on the streets. Not only had the world grown warmer, but under Reinhardt’s enforcement, the families’ care and welfare for the commoners had increased. Merchant ships and travelers were becoming more frequent.
This once-dead city was beginning to glow with life, yet it felt so utterly foreign to her.
Her face remained in the shadows, watching everything with an expressionless gaze. She wandered around aimlessly, but that elusive sense of familiarity slowly faded away.
“Boring,” she said softly. A blue figure constantly flickered through her mind. She could barely remember who she was, yet she still remembered that graceful blue silhouette. She remembered that the girl liked sweets, remembered the books she hated, remembered the flowers she loved, and remembered every word of every letter she had written.
But where was she? She searched through her memories but could not find her.
She remained the same—her snow-white eyes devoid of any emotion, leaving only the blood-red sclera to tell the story of her past struggles. Now, however, none of that seemed to matter.
Her figure slowly merged into the shadows. In an instant, she appeared inside a room in the Asylum. Here, too, was that elusive, familiar scent. It seemed there had once been someone here she considered a friend.
She sniffed, her pale nose twitching slightly, and then an expression of disgust crossed her face. She tapped her foot lightly. The moment her toe touched the ground, pitch-black shadows spread outward.
“Let me count your sins...” Closing her eyes briefly, she delivered her judgment. Those with heavy sins, the death row inmates whose hearts remained dark and violent, were dragged into the abyss by her. They didn't even have time to scream before their wicked souls were shattered within the Death Abyss.
“If the soul is resilient, the mind will break first. What a pity...” She began to walk around, passing the small dining table where four people had once eaten, and then the greenhouse.
“Not here...” She looked at the white flowers in the greenhouse, her brow furrowing slightly, before her figure vanished into the shadows once more.
In a mansion within the Inner Ring, the group had gathered after concluding their half-month search. This was the room where Helen occasionally enjoyed afternoon tea. Because it was spacious, Reinhardt, Lane, and Aestherin had all congregated here.
As for the other family heads, they hadn't been invited since they weren't particularly close.
“We’ve analyzed the wreckage from the seabed.” Reinhardt raised one hand. His left arm was mostly healed, and it no longer trembled when he lifted it.
“Except for the captain’s body, the bones of everyone else have slash marks on them.” Reinhardt’s voice was heavy. “I suspect these people eventually resorted to killing one another.”
“In the end, Li Yue likely killed the captain, though given her personality, she shouldn't have been capable of such a thing.” Lane frowned. “She probably killed the deranged captain and then continued forward.”
“We found a large amount of lead in their canned food and the water purification pipes. The substances I collected... I can feel that they definitely contain high concentrations of lead,” Reinhardt said.
“That is likely what caused most of the deaths.” Aestherin recalled the scene when they first boarded the ship; it had looked like a projection of hell. “Afterward, a small number of people with higher resistance began to travel on foot.”
“Based on the location of the remains, that seems to be the case,” Reinhardt nodded.
“In the northern region, there are several broken bricks—the remains of the sealed tower.” Helen’s fingernails dug deep into the base of her thumb. “She failed... but the Death Abyss has disappeared...”
“Which means Li Yue...” Aestherin covered her mouth.
“Three shards of God’s remains... and they were critical parts of the divine body.” Reinhardt sucked in a cold breath. “Is she... still herself?”
“Li Yue?” A voice suddenly repeated the name Aestherin had just mentioned. No one in the room had sensed her presence at all. In an instant, a massive pressure enveloped everyone.
They stood up and turned around, only to see a figure that was both familiar and strange.
Was this her? She seemed taller, her figure more slender and perfect. Most importantly, those eyes... Was she even still human?
“That name sounds familiar. It must have been one of the pseudonyms I liked to use.” She remained expressionless, looking coldly at everyone. “But since I liked it, you may continue to call me that.”
“Are you... alright?” Aestherin asked cautiously, suppressing her fear.
“I am fine. It is just that my memories are fragmented, and I must pick them up now.” Li Yue spoke indifferently. She chose a seat and sat down, gesturing for them to continue—to tell her everything from the moment they first met her.
She remained silent, searching for something within her ring. As the others fell quiet, she nodded and took out a magic recording, examining it closely.
“Is this me?” She handed the recording to Aestherin, pointing to the smiling girl in the center.
“Yes...”
“This reminds me of something. In that warm city, there is also an important person.” Li Yue rose slowly. She mimicked the smile of the girl in the magic recording, but the result was a fake smile that even an ordinary person could see through.
“I am going south...” she said slowly. “I want to find her, as soon as possible.”
“I’ll arrange the ship,” Helen responded quickly, fighting the urge to kneel. The girl before her actually made her see the silhouette of the deity she worshipped.
“I want to go there directly, but it is too far...” She paused. “But before that, I need to go somewhere else.”
Li Yue rose slowly. A pitch-black abyss appeared beneath her feet, and she vanished just like that. At this moment, everyone realized the whereabouts of the Death Abyss.
In front of a small western-style building on a bustling street, a girl appeared silently and suddenly. The crowds were bustling, people coming and going, but no one seemed to notice her.
She pushed open the front door. A chestnut-haired woman at the entrance gave a warm welcome, but her polite words died in her throat the moment she saw the girl’s face.
“You’re... Li Yue?” Kelly felt a flood of words rush to her lips, but looking at the lifeless girl before her—dressed in divine raiment, with blood-red sclera and white eyes—she couldn't say a thing. Everything felt so distant and strange.
“Are you... okay? Have you been eroded by something?”
“I am fine. I am very well,” she said softly. “So well... it is like I have been born anew.”
“The extreme cold of Yakutsk is gone. Did you do that?” Kelly’s lips trembled. She felt inexplicably sad, especially after seeing the girl nod.
“I want to go see him.” Li Yue didn't say it explicitly, but Kelly knew exactly who she meant.
She led Li Yue to a quiet cemetery. There was a tombstone covered in flowers, bearing a magic recording of its owner from when he was alive. It showed him sitting behind a desk; he didn't look old, but there was always a faint weariness at the corners of his eyes and a touch of sorrow in his gaze.
“Mr. Roland...” Her hand gently touched the tombstone, and her eyes softened slightly. “I have lived on well... but in the future, I might disappoint you. Having come this far, I think I’ve finally realized...”
“The greatest monster... seems to be myself,” Li Yue said slowly, a hint of sorrow creeping into her voice. “If only you were still alive... I am leaving soon, traveling further and further down a road of no return.”
“Goodbye, Mr. Roland. I hope that next time, I will still have the grace to face you.”
She gave the tombstone one last touch and turned to leave like a lonely traveler. Her figure slowly sank into the Death Abyss, but at that moment, she seemed to hear the melodious strains of a violin once more.
Flowers were caught in a gentle breeze. Amidst the dancing petals, she seemed to see that figure. He was just as he had been before, gently patting her head with a faint smile on his lips. He picked up his violin and played a sorrowful tune for her, just as he had played for himself during countless sleepless nights.
Thank you, Mr. Roland.
I remember now. So much... and there is more. I must find it myself...
She left quietly, just as she had arrived. Aside from Kelly and Roland, no one knew she had been there.
On a quiet afternoon, her figure appeared at the Yakutsk docks. It had once been crowded with people, it was now, and it likely always would be.
Li Yue walked against the flow of the crowd. This time, she wore a snow-white dress, light blue sandals, and a brown round hat—outfit choices Helen had made for her. She carried a small suitcase, looking just like any other traveler.
Inside was a music score Melina had written for her; the girl had cried bitterly when they said their goodbyes.
Inside was a Sacred Book Lane had written himself. It seemed to contain many theories that contradicted his own sect. Li Yue had flipped through a few pages; the simple words and sincere emotions had touched her slightly.
Inside was a bouquet of flowers Aestherin had promised her—a bunch of snow-white Cecilia flowers—along with a journal Aestherin had written.
Inside was a small projector, Reinhardt’s latest invention. It could project their group photos. There were two in total: one of Li Yue in her divine robes with white hair and white eyes, and another of her dressed as she was now, with white hair and blue eyes. Both wore the same smile—though it was faint, just a slight curve of the lips, they looked genuinely happy.
Finally, there was a silver fountain pen. This gift came from Diana, who had successfully been admitted to the Engineering Academy. It was a gift distributed along with her acceptance letter, and it was the item Li Yue had received at the last place she visited before leaving.
Diana had received a photo of the two of them together. Li Yue didn't understand why she had helped the girl back then; it was just a faint feeling in her heart, likely that she was happy for her.
This was enough.
She could easily change her appearance or even her height using the Death Abyss. She chose her current look—white hair and blue eyes—to say her goodbyes.
As for that demigod form, it would only reappear when she used magic seriously, replacing her altered appearance. After all, she knew clearly that the demigod form—with its tall stature, waist-length white hair, blood-red sclera, white eyes, and pitch-black divine raiment—was her true self.
She took one last look at the people still waving to her from far away, then merged into the crowd and vanished without a trace.
With a long whistle, the passenger ship slowly set sail. On the deck, a girl with black hair and black eyes stared toward the distant south. She looked very ordinary, dressed simply, like a girl from a common family.
She had begun another journey, but this time, it was for nothing else but to find her lover. To go to that warm place and find her.
In this world, though there may not be a perfect first encounter, there are the most beautiful efforts made for the sake of meeting or reuniting.
(End of Volume 2)
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