News of the church squad seeking ancient ruins spread like wildfire.
The remnants of the demon army, who had been lurking in the shadows, moved upon hearing the rumors, quickly gathering a large number of people like hyenas scenting blood, converging toward the remote town.
By the evening of the following day, various disguised merchant caravans and mercenary squads began to arrive in Limestone Town one after another, and this ordinary mining town suddenly became crowded and noisy.
Under the surging undercurrents of all parties, Limestone Town had effectively become the center of the storm.
But Ansu’s group had already quietly departed in the early morning.
Hours earlier in the wasteland, the sun hung high overhead, and the scorching heat waves caused the distant scenery to distort slightly.
Sweat beads unconsciously formed on Ansu’s forehead, but he remained focused, staring at the profound magic runes on his notes one after another, his mouth occasionally chanting softly.
Ansu was still grinding...
Returning to the inn, he had ignored Celia’s angry expression and secretly studied until midnight; after setting off the next day, he was even studying while riding on Radish...
Celia was truly angry.
"An! Su!"
She stared at Ansu, who was still scrutinizing his notes beside her, her expression tense and her eyes filled with fury. "Why are you still studying? Can't you just rest for a while? What did you promise me before?"
"Ah..." Ansu quietly looked up, not quite daring to look at that pouting, angry face, and could only give a wry smile. "Just a little longer, Celia, let me study just a bit more! I’ll rest in a while! Really!"
"I don't believe you!" Celia had been fooled by Ansu several times already; every time she patiently told him to sleep for a while, as long as she wasn't watching for a moment, he would dare to study behind her back!
"I didn't realize Ansu had such a studious spirit!" Professor Duncan, however, felt that Ansu was a promising student, so he slowed down and stopped beside the two.
"Hailey, you don't need to mind him! Magic research is the same as scientific research; as long as Ansu has a heart dedicated to scholarship, he will surely become a master of the next generation... just like me."
Ansu couldn't help but glance at Professor Duncan, thinking he was quite narcissistic.
"Shut up, Professor!" Celia glared at Professor Duncan in annoyance. "This is our business!"
Professor Duncan laughed awkwardly and returned to the front of the team dejectedly.
Celia’s gaze fell back on Ansu, and she took a deep breath, suppressing her resentment. "Ansu... you are being very naughty. If you keep studying like this! I will..."
Ansu quickly looked up and saw magic energy surging around her. "Ah? What are you going to do?"
"Knock you unconscious and force you to sleep! I'll wake you up when we get to that wretched village!" Celia said with a cold laugh.
"Don't do that..." Ansu revealed a helpless smile; although he knew Celia was doing it for his own good, he really couldn't stop now.
The three prerequisite skills were still a short distance away; according to this learning progress, he should be able to finish them by the time they reached the second level of the ancient ruins.
However, seeing the Witch’s incredibly persistent and even slightly dangerous gaze, Ansu’s expression also became serious, and he decided to reveal some things.
"Celia, remember that dream I had before?"
Celia was stunned for a moment. "Why mention that dream again?"
"Because that dream was very real, so real that it felt like it would truly happen..." Ansu sighed. "In the dream, our ending was very bad, so after waking up, I have been very anxious."
He silently gazed into those beautiful deep purple eyes, his tone firm. "So in order not to repeat the same mistakes, I must learn this sacrificial magic! Celia, this is also for your own good!"
Celia looked at the serious Ansu in surprise, becoming even more curious about this dream of his.
"Is it... a prophetic dream? Otherwise, why would you be so certain..."
She couldn't help but lean in closer, whispering her inquiry: "Then Ansu... besides me, what else did you dream about?"
"Slaughter."
"Slaughter?" Celia asked in surprise.
"That's right." Ansu nodded, his gaze looking toward their destination. "Slaughter, endless slaughter... in the dream, we were trapped deep within an altar, and a voice was bewitching me, making us fight to the death..."
He repeated the words Celia had said to him in the simulation exactly as they were.
Celia’s heart tightened; she looked at Ansu with concern and then followed his gaze toward the wasteland ahead.
"The God of Slaughter... Ersos..."
A sense of unease spread through her heart, and Celia quickly said:
"Ansu, I'm afraid the altar in your dream might actually become a reality! This deity loves slaughter and death above all else! For this reason, the Ancient Enus Empire built countless massive altars to satisfy the deity's thirst for slaughter!"
Seeing the Witch become nervous along with him, Ansu smiled to reassure her. "That's why I must learn this sacrificial magic! I don't care what happened to us in the dream; this time... only we will sacrifice others! No one else will have the chance to sacrifice us!"
"So... that's why you wanted to lure the cult pursuers and the demon remnants over?" Celia suddenly understood, shocked by Ansu's plan. "Ansu... you... had this planned all along?"
"Yeah." Ansu gave a wicked smile. "A grand performance of slaughter is about to begin! Miss Witch, are you looking forward to it?"
Celia didn't feel a hint of anticipation; she only looked at Ansu’s state helplessly because he hadn't slept for days, the dark circles under his eyes were terrifyingly deep, and his eyes were bloodshot.
It was only the 'sacrifice plan' that had kept Ansu going until now, keeping him in a state of excitement; otherwise, he definitely wouldn't have been able to hold on.
"I know you're doing this for me... but why couldn't you tell me sooner?" Celia’s tone became resentful. "I could have shared it with you. Did you think I wouldn't trust you or support you..."
Ansu knew she would trust him, but this matter was truly impossible to explain.
The simulation and everything... he absolutely couldn't let the Witch find out; after all... he had deceived her about more than just a little bit...
He could never forget... the scene where he was once locked in a cave by her and almost had his memory wiped. Celia cared about him, but that extreme... even pathological version of Celia, he really didn't want to see a second time...
So, it was better to maintain the status quo and let nature take its course...
He really liked this current sharp-tongued and cute Witch; he didn't want a crazy yandere...
"What are you thinking about again?" Celia looked at him irritably. "Are you thinking of what excuse to use to fool me again?"
"No!" Ansu replied with a smile. "You said you would support me, right? Then that's great! I'll continue studying, then—studying without food or sleep!"
"No! You rest for a while!!" Celia’s eyes widened, and her small face became stern.
"See, isn't this useless?" Ansu muttered. "How are you supporting me? Good thing I didn't tell you earlier..."
Celia let out a helpless sigh, suddenly feeling a sense of powerlessness toward this version of Ansu.
Rate on N.U.
