VIP Chapter 506: Carver’s Memoir (3)
Twenty years ago.
Carver had entered the mid-stage of life as a “successful person,” making headlines across various gossip columns.
Compared to his youth, when he journeyed from an ordinary adventurer to the strongest, people were more intrigued by how many dungeons he had cleared and in what manner.
The more captivating topics were about him as a charming elite and how he had captivated various beauties, detailing how those glamorous women would cling to him throughout the night.
The tales of a notorious playboy, complete with stories of a harem and domestic dramas, were the very topics people enjoyed discussing.
He seemed to embrace this “image” and did nothing to stop the “rumors” from spreading ludicrously among adventurers.
For example, at one point, the gossip that surprised everyone was about…
His rumored affair with a female professor from Entak Academy, who had already achieved remarkable success.
“So, Mr. Carver… do you really… like me?”
Carver couldn’t recall her name.
But that didn’t matter. Aside from the ones who had borne his children and earned a “title,” even if he mistakenly called another woman’s name in bed, these ladies would cheerfully accept their “new name.”
The young genius professor, barely on the cusp of being a “young girl,” wore a long robe over her almost nude body and pressed herself against Carver’s back.
“I really like it.”
“What do you like about it?”
“Let me think, for example, how you hear your students ask such stupid questions during class, get angry and want to deal with them, but you end up holding back, your face flushing?”
“…Eh?! Really? When did you attend my class? I… I had no idea…”
Of course, Carver hadn’t gone.
This was merely information gleaned from spending a little money on his students.
“Because, love for you extends to everything about you. Because I like you, I’m interested in your research…”
He turned around, his face adorned with a “fake” smile, as his hand grazed her waist, where no underwear was worn,
before deliberately brushing her lips.
“Very few people are interested in this research… after all, it’s just studying some fixed wavelengths that appear in dungeons.”
That being said, adventurers had long known the significance of this matter.
She might possess the ability to predict the locations and types of dungeons.
“So, if I want to work with you…”
“Of course, no problem, dear Mr. Carver~”
The young girl displayed a generous gesture as she embraced Carver.
“I think I understand. Mr. Carver, you really… love me, don’t you?”
“…”
Carver paused briefly, nodded, and without turning his head, reached back and patted her head.
“Yes, of course.”
“I can give you whatever you want. Although, honestly, I might not lack the funding you could provide…”
“I want to use your research to predict the birth of a dungeon…”
“?!”
Carver unabashedly stated his “request,” which was clearly aimed at her.
“That’s no problem. However… if you want to predict, I currently lack something… something you might have once had, but I haven’t heard of it since.”
“What is it?”
“Um… a flower that is sensitive enough to magic…”
…
Carver stopped at the entrance of the Hysterm Family home.
He clearly knew that to acquire such material, he didn’t need to come back here.
Outside of Mits’s vicinity, or having his adventurers scour the underground market, they could have found it.
But…
Gazing at the refurbished Hysterm residence, a well-maintained house, Carver couldn’t resist gripping the doorknob.
Why?
Why did hearing that request make him feel like he had finally found a “reason to come back here and see her,” leading him to the doorstep of the house where they had lived for so long?
It felt like he found a “reason to take a break” after a long five years.
Or perhaps…
It was as if he couldn’t escape a certain fate originating from deep within his heart, standing here.
Although now she had nothing but the title of “wife”…
—When he thought this, Carver had already walked into the house.
In the living room, he saw everything unchanged: Mits, who had brown braids and appeared slightly younger than him.
She sat in the chair, reading a book about modern magic, illuminated by the bright light streaming in from the window.
The pages were colorful, and even at this distance, Carver could see clearly…
It detailed the latest magical research from the academy.
Her brown eyes scanned the pages intently…
Her expression was exactly the same as when they used to sit together in the garden, talking about what they had learned in school.
Just like how they had their expressions when discussing new loot acquired from dungeons, maximizing its usage.
She bore none of the bitterness that outsiders speculated she had from being “abandoned.”
As always, she was the Mits who belonged by Carver’s side and was worthy of being called the strongest mage of her time.
“…”
He took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
“Hm?”
Raising her head, Mits’s eyes lit up with a glimmer.
“You’re back, Carver.”
She spoke with a tilt of her head, smiling as she closed the book.
Then, she walked over and took his suitcase.
This scene felt as if it was something she experienced every day, waiting for her husband to return home, carrying his luggage, and helping him set it aside.
But Carver knew…
He had never returned here.
“So, have you decided what to tell me…”
“I came back to take something from here.”
Hearing that he didn’t intend to reveal the truth, Mits looked slightly shocked but continued speaking—
“Is what you’re looking for… something I have that you don’t? Does it really exist?”
“Yes. To predict the emergence of a dungeon, we need that flower we gathered in a certain dungeon—dried flowers or seeds will do, as long as you…”
“I understand.”
She turned and walked deeper into a corridor within the Hysterm house.
But…
Carver realized he hadn’t been here for five years and had forgotten what lay at the end of that corridor, halting in place instead of following immediately.
“What’s wrong? Not coming? The basement we studied together is just ahead…”
Mits stopped, turned her head, and gently tucked her hair behind her ear, smiling at Carver while pointing towards the depths of the corridor.
That smile, like before, was unchanged.
In the end, they arrived at a small basement.
Inside the basement lay countless messy items. Shelves contained axes, the prototypes of all the weapons Carver had used before.
On the other side, there were experimental records and various magical materials.
And the notes of adventurers they had co-written.
“Let me see, the previous flower. If I remember correctly, I indeed kept a portion of its seeds after cultivation…”
Mits crouched down, searching for something under the cabinet.
“I found it! Right here…”
She extended her hand, revealing a bag of transparent “seeds” resting on her fingertips.
“Give it to me. I just need this item, and then I can…”
“No.”
Mits placed the item behind her, sitting at the center table as if to hide it.
“…You want to use it as a reason to make me leave you, right? That’s impossible…”
“No. Not that. It’s just that as I look at you now…”
Mits swung her legs as she gazed at Carver.
Dressed in a formal suit, with glasses that shone brighter than he remembered.
Of course…
There was much more that only she, as an “adventurer,” could perceive.
The three rings on his right hand were storage rings for instant magic they could hardly afford, his wristwatch could precisely control the infusion of certain potions, and his newly replaced glasses had both magical and physical monitoring capabilities.
The wound peeking from his cuff—a wound he had never seen before—proved he had experienced countless dungeons and adventures since leaving her.
“You’ve truly become the ‘hero’ that everyone speaks of; your story can be found in every street corner…”
She spoke with a hint of sadness. Her gaze turned to the table in the basement, where carved portraits of them as children sat, the craftsmanship not particularly impressive but adorably cute.
“Those stories always tell of your encounters with many people, recounting your experiences with them…”
After her sadness, she lifted her head.
Carver had thought she would complain about his betrayal or press him for answers again, but if Mits could really voice those thoughts, she wouldn’t be the Mits he knew, the one who could understand him at all times.
“Since you’ve become the hero in the stories, then…”
She reached out, grasping Carver’s tie, pulling him closer.
In his ear, she spoke the promise Carver was all too familiar with—
“As a commendation for my foresight, can you… kiss me?”
“I…”
His throat moved, wishing to decline.
But in the flickering basement light, under the cold illumination that couldn’t recreate that sunshine from that day, looking at Mits’s smile that mirrored hers from that day,
he didn’t “refuse.”
“Alright, if it must be done, and you’ll give me that thing, I don’t mind…”
Without a hint of hesitation, Carver skillfully lifted Mits’s chin.
His actions were no different, as if treating Mits like he did countless other girls he had “deceived.”
But…
As someone who always understood him and could hold sway over him, Mits would not let it go that easily.
“Um…”
Carver realized that as he kissed her, Mits pressed something into his mouth with her tongue, forcibly pushing it down his throat.
He felt his vision blur, unmistakably a form of mental control drug.
And Mits’s fingertips glowed with a purple light, seemingly controlling his body.
“Just like before, you can deceive everyone, but you can never deceive me. And just like before…”
Mits held Carver steady and reached to unbutton his shirt.
“Every time, I can fool you. See, I have never changed. You should understand, I’m not some innocent girl. My possessiveness over you has never wavered.”
She whispered in his ear, letting out a sigh.
“Really… just once, let me ‘have’ you again…”
“Let me feel… that you still ‘love’ me, just once.”
