Chapter 704
Eivass and Alistair
Eivass stared blankly at No. 14—and at the same time, his bewildered, wondrous, and excited complex expression at this moment was also transmitted into his own mind through No. 14’s gaze.
Black long hair, crimson eyes, a small face as delicate as a doll…
Completely different from the weak, cowering, helpless aura of “Blood Slave No. 14” in his dream—the “Eivass’s Shadow Side” currently possessing the power of the Fourth Tier Transcendent Path which had been split off, exuded an indescribable sense of danger and wickedness.
Although she wore a pure white lace dress without any adornments, she gave off the aura of a young lady. Chest out, head held high, she looked at the much taller Eivass with reserve, indifference, and arrogance. Her lips were expressionless, simultaneously conveying both “stoic impassivity” and “a dismissive, seem to smile yet not smile” air.
—In a trance, Eivass finally recalled where this aura came from.
It was Beyad from his childhood!
Perhaps because he had obtained some of Beyad’s memories when sealing the Night Demon… Eivass had a deep impression of her appearance when she was young. No. 14’s current features bore a resemblance to Beyad.
It was to the extent that if Beyad were to appear at the same time, she would easily be mistaken for their mother and daughter.
At this moment, Eivass’s right hand and No. 14’s left hand… their palms were in contact.
No. 14’s slender and fair middle finger only reached less than half the length of Eivass’s middle finger. Eivass’s fingers, already considered slender and long, seemed much thicker in comparison with No. 14’s, giving them a firm and powerful feel.
Eivass could clearly feel the peculiar texture of No. 14’s ice-cold and slippery skin—like a jade pendant that had been left outside for a long time and then suddenly placed inside clothes.
At the same time, No. 14 could also feel Eivass’s palm, which was as hot as fire.
It was like enduring a long blow of cold wind outside in winter, then suddenly entering a warm room; or after a bath, walking for a long time dripping wet, and being wrapped in a warm and dry towel that had been heated… She couldn’t help but shiver, feeling the heat unilaterally invade her body.
However, the common ground was that when the two were in intimate contact, the severe pain in the depths of their souls from being severed was immediately soothed.
The degree of relief was like the difference between taking painkillers and not when one has a fever and headache… It was enough to instantly calm their originally anxious hearts and allow them to endure it silently.
They maintained this silent, finger-to-finger contact for a long time before Eivass suddenly spoke, “Truly, a wondrous feeling…”
“It’s not quite right to say drawing circles with the left hand and squares with the right,” No. 14 followed up with a retort. “It’s more like watching a drama while chatting… for the brain to be able to operate in parallel without any obstruction.”
Lily, who was beside them,’s eyes widened. “So fast…?!”
Although “The Creation of the Egg Moon” and “The Chasm of Two Principles” were completely different methods of dividing the Path, she had not even fully adapted to this feeling of separation and connection for one or two days—and this was even with Lily and Selene having completely different personalities.
Judging from the expressions of Eivass and No. 14, they did not seem to have much conflict. The two bodies could be considered a single consciousness.
“My situation is different from yours, Lily.”
No. 14 spoke with a light chuckle, her young yet slightly hoarse voice like reciting poetry in the evening breeze. “You aim to separate as much as possible from Selene, a permanent division. The faint connection between you is merely an uncut adhesion… like phantom limb pain after an amputation. as if the limb still exists.
“But my situation with Eivass is different—although we are separated into yin and yang, we will eventually return to each other. And before that, we must wholeheartedly strive forward in our respective directions.”
“Yang and yin separated… sounds like you’re going to die.”
Eivass retorted, “Don’t die, okay? Be careful, and don’t ‘transcend’ too much.”
He could clearly feel that the close connection between him and No. 14 was gradually fading. It was as if they were originally watching a drama while chatting, but at some point, the sounds from the drama became unconsciously ignored white noise.
And at their connected palms, that feeling was even clearer.
It originally felt as familiar as the right hand touching the left, but the sympathetic resonance of that touch became increasingly bland. The sensitive flesh that hurt with a single touch gradually adapted after multiple touches.
—This was “Dissolving Soul” taking effect.
When a solid and a liquid are divided in half, the healing speed of the wound is naturally different.
“I never expected that the method of self-severing in this World would be so prevalent… even considered mainstream.”
Eivass sighed, “The creation of the Moon Egg, the Chasm of Two Principles… plus the Ring Heavenly Envoy’s method of cutting off the tail. There must be other ways of separation, it’s truly bizarre.”
“After all, the influence of mixed Paths becomes more severe at higher levels… but this World doesn’t have a respec potion.”
No. 14 immediately followed up with a retort. “The points added incorrectly in the early stages must be repaid in the later stages. Just consider it as severing the three corpses… doesn’t it sound very orthodox if you think of it that way?”
Seeing Eivass and No. 14 start chatting amongst themselves, Lily suddenly felt that the world had changed—she could even talk to herself?
Selene, however, looked on with great interest and pulled Lily along. “Shall we chat too?”
“……What do you want to chat about? Let’s forget it.”
Lily clearly had no interest. She was quite resistant to the aspect of her Path of Love and had not accepted her other self to this day.
“Don’t you think that not talking at all is also a form of communication?”
“I don’t think so.”
While Selene held her arm, Lily only responded indifferently, trying to pull her arm free. Before she could finish, Selene bared her teeth and tried to bite her hand, causing Lily to quickly reach out and pinch her mouth shut.
When Eivass looked back at Lily and Selene playfully bickering beside them, his heart stirred.
Just as he was about to pinch No. 14’s cheek, his hand suddenly moved—No. 14 reached out, grabbed Eivass’s hand, and then lightly rested her chin on it with a smile.
Eivass and No. 14 exchanged a smile, and he said, “I need to give you a name…”
“How about Alistair?”
No. 14 said, “From now on, I will bear this name—let Beyad just be Beyad.”
Originally, it was just a casually fabricated identity, a pun made by Eivass.
But under layer upon layer of reinforcement and the Star Antimony people’s tacit cooperation, Alistair had become a real person.
And now, within this real identity, there was a similarly real flesh and blood, and it could truly inherit all the external identities and stereotypes of Miss Alistair—this was the wonder of fate.
“That’s fine too.”
This was the answer Eivass had intended, so he naturally nodded in agreement. “Alistair Crowley… I still remember we made a claim within the Crowley Family.”
“Indeed… we should make use of it.”
The newly born Miss Alistair said with a smile. “Since the Star Antimony people dared to tell such a lie, they must pay the price.”
“…Wicked woman.”
“You are also a wicked one, my most esteemed His Majesty the Pope…”
Alistair murmured softly.
This was also an incredibly peculiar experience… proposing a question, confirming it, and giving the answer oneself. Although it was something one had thought through and decided upon oneself, just speaking it out and being affirmed—even if the affirmant was essentially oneself—provided a completely different experience.
“It feels… like having an extra eye.”
Eivass carefully chose his words. “Suddenly there’s a sense of space for many things.”
“More precise than seeing with just one eye, isn’t it?”
Miss Alistair chuckled softly. “Even a cleaning robot uses a dual-eye structure, so what’s wrong with us using it?”
Then the two looked at each other and smiled.
On the side, Lily and Selene froze and looked at each other.
It was a warm scene of intimacy between the Pope and the little girl under the sunlight.
But for some reason, there was a sense of a conspiracy unfolding…
