Deep within the dark cave.
After Celia revealed that gentle yet sickly smile, the atmosphere turned eerily silent.
Ansu could only hear his own heartbeat and the rhythmic dripping of blood behind him...
"Protect... me?"
Ansu stared at the witch in surprise, and she nodded gently.
"That's right! To protect you."
She tenderly brushed aside Ansu's messy hair and whispered, "The greatest enemy of the Echoes of Truth, the one prophesied to change the world... and the Chosen One, whom my teacher has been trying everything to kill."
"So it was you all along..."
"That's why," Celia said, her eyes fixed on Ansu with a strange smile, "to prevent you from being found and killed by my teacher or the others in the cult, I had no choice but to do this."
"Don't worry, Ansu."
"It's safe and hidden here; no one will ever find you..."
"I'm going to... hide you away."
"Forever."
"But I don't exactly want to spend the rest of my life in some rundown cave..." Ansu let out a bitter laugh; to be honest, the turn of events had caught him off guard.
He had been so careful to avoid being hypnotized by the witch himself, taking every precaution, yet he couldn't stop her from hypnotizing Freya...
The Holy Maiden knew at least half of his secrets...
But even half was enough to be fatal.
What surprised him even more was that after learning he was the Chosen One, Celia wasn't consumed by a rage to kill him, but instead wanted to... hide him?
"I'm the one prophesied to defeat you all, kill your teacher, and even kill you..."
Ansu looked up, staring directly into those dark red eyes. "Why didn't you kill me? Why leave such a threat alive?"
"Why would I kill you?" Celia's expression suddenly darkened. "In your eyes, am I really such a heartless person?"
Ansu recalled the simulation by the sea and the hysterical state of the mad witch.
At least in the past, that was exactly how he viewed her.
"I never believed in those so-called prophecies! So what if it's a divine decree? Can the gods control me?" Celia scoffed with disdain, her gaze locking onto Ansu again.
"Besides! I'd like to see how someone with no mobility and no magic power whatsoever is going to kill me!"
Ansu froze. "Wait! What do you mean by no mobility?"
Celia looked Ansu's limp body up and down, reminding him with a smile, "Haven't you noticed something's wrong with your body?"
Ansu looked down and tried to clench his fist, but after just a moment, his entire arm began to tremble.
Ever since he woke up, he indeed felt weak all over, his head was spinning, and he couldn't sense even a trace of mana.
"Don't bother trying. I've placed a forbidden curse on you."
Celia introduced it proudly, "This vicious black magic is a mental plague specifically designed for mages. You'll become a semi-invalid as your brain's control over your body gradually weakens. You'll be perpetually dazed and... eventually, you won't even be able to focus your mental power. You'll never be able to cast a spell for the rest of your life!"
"That is quite vicious..." Ansu sat slumped on the ground, muttering to himself.
"Isn't this what you promised me?" Celia looked down at Ansu, her expression dead serious. "You promised to stay with me in my loneliness... to never be apart. Isn't this perfect?"
She sat down beside him, hugging her knees, her smile remaining gentle and sickly.
"As the Chosen One, you'll never have to worry about enemies again, and I..."
"I can take care of you since you won't be able to look after yourself. I'll feed you every day, sleep by your side, and when I'm in a good mood... I can help you up and take you out to get some sun."
Her dark red eyes darted around as she giggled. "I don't necessarily want to keep you trapped in this place forever. No matter how I renovate it, it's still gloomy... and I know you don't like it here."
"But don't be afraid! Once this all blows over—maybe in a year or two, or perhaps longer—I'll take you away from this country. We'll leave the cult and the church behind and settle down somewhere far away."
Celia seemed to start looking forward to it, her face filled with longing for the future.
"It feels so good to have someone with me! In the future, we can be like family. No! Maybe we can be even closer~"
Ever since that day at the manor when he said those words to her.
"Miss Witch, you aren't alone."
"Because you have me."
Celia knew then that she would never let Ansu go for the rest of her life...
"This isn't good at all!" Ansu interrupted the daydreaming witch, exasperated.
"What's the point of living without freedom? I'd rather you just kill me! Celia, aren't you the one who cares most about betrayal?"
Did she really want to live in a fantasy?
Ansu showed no fear, staring back at her almost provocatively.
The atmosphere fell silent for a moment.
Celia seemed to recall something as she narrowed her eyes gloomily. "I haven't even brought that up yet, and you have the nerve to mention it?"
Her voice suppressed a simmering rage. "You've lied to me so much; every single time was enough for me to kill you! I don't kill you because I can't bring myself to do it. Aren't you satisfied with that?"
Ansu watched her with an expressionless face.
Looking at Ansu's indifferent expression, Celia's body suddenly began to tremble with agitation.
A pitch-black demonic claw with twisted patterns gripped Ansu's neck, and those dark red blood-red eyes stared intently at the person right in front of her.
"Ansu, you've really played me for a fool all this time!"
Celia glanced behind him, staring at Freya's corpse with disgust.
"If I hadn't hypnotized this bitch, I might never have known your secrets!"
"How impressive, Lord Chosen One!" Celia tightened her grip on Ansu, her voice shifting from anger to a tremor.
"From the moment we met until now, there's no telling how much discrepancy there is between what you said and what the Holy Maiden knew! How exactly did you bypass my black magic? Just how many of the things you told me were lies!"
This was the one thing she was most unwilling to accept.
If he had been deceiving her since the day they met, then wouldn't he be...
A foul magical aura continuously spread, and black cracks reappeared on her skin. Those terrifying blood-red eyes were now filled with despair.
Because she was reaching the point where she could no longer deceive herself...
Ansu watched the angry and desperate Celia; he had already rehearsed his response to her questioning countless times in his mind.
Lies were bound to be exposed eventually, no matter how close their relationship grew or how many expectations they held for each other...
But all of it was actually just a beautiful-looking bubble, destined to burst at a single touch.
"Much of it was a lie," Ansu sighed, choosing to be honest.
At least within the simulation, he wanted to be honest for once.
Ansu wanted to know Celia's choice; it was important.
If she killed him in the simulation, it meant she would kill him in reality. Though cruel, he would actually feel relieved.
Because then, Ansu would no longer harbor any expectations.
Once he finished what he had to do, he would choose to leave her without hesitation.
Rate on N.U.
