Chapter 101: I Miss You So Much (Two-in-one)
Deep in the Astral Realm.
Gudrian Borgia coughed up blood mixed with shattered organ fragments. The seven Soul Pacts had shattered his internal organs simultaneously. Even for a legendary Beast Tamer, this was a mortal wound. The current Borgia was only barely holding on thanks to his powerful life force as a plant-element Beast Tamer.
Yet, despite the severe injuries, Gudrian dared not stop to recover. He continued to flee desperately through the Astral Realm. Isadorella and the unfamiliar Throne-level Beast Tamer had not pursued him from the Astral Realm. This had initially relieved Gudrian slightly.
However, he was then horrified to discover that a legendary Undead Creature was lurking in the Astral Realm. It wasn’t a human Beast Tamer, but a legendary-tier Bone Demon… and it was only one step away from the Throne boundary, much closer than Gudrian himself had ever been in his prime. What shocked him most was that Gudrian detected the aura of a Soul Pact from the Bone Demon.
Yes, a legendary Bone Demon, one step away from becoming a Throne, already worthy of the title “King of the Undead,” was actually a familiar bound by a Soul Pact to a Beast Tamer. What then would be the rank of that Beast Tamer?
“Damn it, where did all these unfamiliar legends come from on the Western Continent!” Gudrian’s face was contorted and twisted, devoid of his usual calm and composed demeanor like a gardener.
It was no wonder he was enraged. After the Land of Calamity, Legends were beings of supreme status on the Western Continent. The number of active Legends could be counted on two hands, each capable of suppressing the destiny of a nation. Throne-level beings had become ethereal legends, with perhaps not even one appearing in a hundred years. In such a context, Gudrian, a veteran Legend who had once challenged the Throne boundary, had every reason to be proud. In the entire Freista Empire, only a handful of people were qualified to contend with him.
His original plan had been perfect. Once this engagement was sealed, Isadorella and the royal family’s reputation would plummet. Coupled with the Rose Emperor’s promotion to Legend, once successful, the Freista Empire would completely lean towards the Old Nobles. But this excellent situation had completely collapsed overnight. Not only was the original plan disrupted, but two Legends had been inexplicably involved, one of whom had already reached the Throne. If it weren’t for the countless life-saving treasures and Holy Relics he had accumulated as the head of the Borgia Family, which he had thrown out without regard for cost when encountering the legendary Bone Demon, Gudrian would likely be a cold corpse by now.
His eyes turned icy, and he began to consider his next move. He certainly couldn’t return to the Empire. Who knew how long those two unfamiliar Legends would hunt him? In his current state, he would struggle against any opponent of the same rank. Therefore, he could only head to the Lost Domain. Although Gudrian had had some dealings with fugitives and cults in the Lost Domain before, and had even engaged in some mutually beneficial exchanges, it was precisely because of this that he knew how troublesome those lunatics could be. Who knew if these people would add insult to injury. But no matter what, this had become Gudrian’s only retreat.
From the dignified head of the Crimson Rose Family to a disgraced fugitive, it was only a single night. And all of this was because of the young man he had once considered merely a pawn.
“Shaya Egut.” He spat out the name with venom: “When I recover and find you, I will tear you into a thousand pieces…”
Gudrian’s words stopped. Because in the next moment, he clearly saw the endlessly rolling illusory starry sea before him suddenly dim. In its place was a silent and pitch-black night sky.
It was a woman in a dark, classical long dress. Her clothes were layered but not complicated, embedded with points of starlight, like the night sky. As he looked at the woman with a graceful and languid figure, her face obscured by a hazy black veil, Gudrian’s pupils contracted. This time, it wasn’t an unfamiliar Legend he had never heard of; Gudrian recognized the woman before him. Or rather, any Legend on the Western Continent would recognize her—the leader of the Shadow Council, the “Queen of the Night.”
“Augustina.” Gudrian uttered the name in a low voice. “Did you anticipate the legendary battle that was about to unfold here and come to gather information?” His voice calmed slightly. “I admit, your Shadow Council’s intelligence capabilities are indeed beyond our reach.”
“Therefore, I need to purchase some information.” A chill flashed in Gudrian’s eyes. “I need the exact information about the previous female Throne-level Beast Tamer, and intelligence on the legendary Bone Demon that attacked me in the Astral Realm, as well as its mastermind.”
“In addition, I need Shaya Egut’s real-time coordinates and information on everyone close to him.”
However, in the next moment.
The only reply Gudrian received was the woman’s languid and hoarse voice.
“Sorry, head of the Borgia Family, you’ve been blocked by our shop.”
“Blocked?” Gudrian repeated the somewhat inexplicable word. After a long while, he finally understood from Augustina’s tone and frowned slightly. “Are you worried I don’t have enough money to pay for ‘Death Angel’ level secret intelligence?”
“Although I can’t return to the Empire for a while, as the head of the family, I still have plenty of money and Holy Relics and jewels on me.”
“It’s not for such a superficial reason.” Augustina paused slightly. “If I have to give a reason, it’s probably because you’ve offended our VIP guest.”
Hearing Augustina’s casual and perfunctory words, Gudrian’s heart sank. Although he still didn’t understand the term “VIP,” as a Legend with spiritual power and analytical ability, how could he not discern the hidden meaning in Augustina’s perfunctory words? But how was this possible?
The “absolute neutrality” maintained by the Shadow Council was an ironclad rule in the transcendent world of the Western Continent. This organization never had any taboos, nor did it care about secular moral public opinion. As long as the price was right, even a piece of information like “what color underwear a certain Cardinal of the Holy See wore today” could be sold without hesitation, and the intelligence would be absolutely authentic.
As if seeing through Gudrian’s thoughts, the woman, shrouded as if by a veil of darkness, extended a slender, plain white finger.
“The Shadow Council has never been a neutral organization.”
“The absolute neutrality you perceive is simply because I don’t care.” The hoarse female voice echoed in the illusory night sky of the Astral Realm.
“But—”
“Today, I am very unhappy.”
Amidst the sudden surge of immense fear, as soon as the hoarse female voice sounded, Gudrian quickly activated a Holy Relic. As the head of the Borgia Family, Gudrian valued his life more than anyone. He carried a large number of extremely rare Holy Relics, many of which could even be effective in a legendary battle.
But it was useless. Gudrian watched helplessly as the activated Holy Relic in his hand suddenly dimmed and then disappeared. Next, his right hand began to disappear inch by inch, rapidly spreading upwards towards his body, unstoppable.
A trace of astonishment flashed in Gudrian’s eyes. “You too…” The head of the Borgia Family’s words abruptly stopped.
In the next instant, his form, flesh, and even his outline were erased as if by an eraser from a sketch. Then, the being once known as Gudrian Borgia vanished into the night, leaving no trace.
And in the center of the night sky, the woman in the black veil merely retracted her plain white finger indifferently, without even glancing in the direction Gudrian was being erased. It was as if what was being erased by the night was not a legendary Beast Tamer who had challenged the Throne, but merely an insignificant ant.
Her beautiful eyes, like the night, looked down towards a certain direction outside the Astral Realm through the hazy, dreamlike veil. After a long while, Augustina sighed softly. Her voice, with the crispness of a maiden, was tinged with a hint of hoarseness, as if spanning a long, distant time.
“How lucky.”
“A little girl who ran away…”
…
Prime Material Plane, Imperial Capital Camelot, Palace of Oaths.
Shaya, of course, had no idea what had happened deep in the Astral Realm. Or rather, even if he did, he had no mind to deal with it at the moment. The entire hall was silent. Only the girl with silver hair and silver eyes remained in the twilight glow. And in Shaya’s mind, a voice unheard by anyone else, “Brother Shaya, long time no see.”
Shaya had to admit that he was a bit stunned. Although the entire banquet had been full of ups and downs, overall, it was still within his expectations and plans. Only this final conclusion had completely exceeded Shaya’s expectations. Even after emerging from the Historical Echo of the Azure Court Duchy, Shaya had confirmed his guess through some collected information – it was not a reflection of the past, but a real historical event. The Legend in the ancient scrolls who built the White Tower and was known as the Azure Silver Witch should be the girl he encountered in the Historical Echo.
However, in the real world, the owner of the White Tower had been missing for five hundred years, with no news. So even Shaya had not expected that the Azure Silver Witch, who should have disappeared into history, would appear before him like this. Moreover, she was much more powerful than Shaya had imagined. Gudrian, who was considered a veteran Legend, was heavily injured with just two Word of Powers.
Of course, these were not the main points. The main point was that according to the experience in the Historical Echo, Sylvia should still remember the betrayal he committed against her. However, facing the somewhat stiff Shaya, Sylvia gave him no room to breathe.
“Don’t pretend to have amnesia or play dumb and say you don’t know me.”
“I’ve secretly investigated all of Brother Shaya’s public information in the Imperial Capital, and I also witnessed the entire banquet from the side.”
“Silver, sparkling… and that rare beast species unique to the Brunnhildr Family that should no longer exist in this world – the Silver Spirit.”
“If merely having the same appearance and name could be a coincidence, or explained by reincarnation, but having the same familiar as well leaves no room for denial.”
“And I know your personality, Brother Shaya. You are not the type of person who discovers many clues yet pretends to be foolish and calls it a coincidence, deceiving yourself with forced logic that even you cannot believe.”
A voice as pleasant as wind chimes, audible only to Shaya, sounded in his ears repeatedly. Sylvia’s pure silver eyes lost the indifference that had been veiled. She walked towards Shaya step by step, her azure silver eyes becoming brighter and clearer.
However, Sylvia suddenly stopped, as Aerora blocked Shaya, looking at Sylvia with a hint of confusion. Aerora had not heard Sylvia’s telepathic communication with Shaya. Shaya had never mentioned anything from the Historical Echo to her, so she naturally had no idea about Shaya and Sylvia’s relationship.
However, it was certain that the silver-haired, silver-eyed girl before her was not Shaya’s enemy. Aerora detected no killing intent from Sylvia. If Sylvia had hostility, she wouldn’t have killed the legendary-tier Rose Empress earlier. But Aerora still stood in front of Shaya because, with her understanding of Shaya, she clearly sensed some embarrassment and evasion from him at the moment. The last time this happened was when Shaya was secretly making a magitech communication call to the Holy See one night and Aerora discovered it.
“It’s okay, Little Ai.” Shaya sighed. “I’ve thought it through. Since it’s the path I chose, I have to see it through.” He pulled the blonde girl in front of him behind him.
“Sylvia, let me explain. I had no choice back then…”
However, hearing Shaya speak, the silver-haired Witch simply nodded obediently. The voice like wind chimes echoed in Shaya’s mind again.
“I understand that Brother Shaya had no choice; in fact, it was for my own good.”
“Brother Shaya came to this world from a Historical Echo and couldn’t accompany me to the end… If not for that, I wouldn’t have been able to leave the Royal Capital of the Azure Court that night, nor would I have been able to survive the chaotic times of the Land of Calamity with the personality of an innocent maiden…”
“I may not have understood these things at the time, but looking back now, I can guess the general outline of many past events.” Sylvia stopped two to three meters in front of Shaya, looking directly into his eyes.
“But I still can’t forget that night.”
“I can’t forget that time at dusk in the Twilight Hills, amidst the sea of Night Blooming Flowers.”
“I closed my eyes with joy, but what greeted me was the blade that pierced my chest… That pain was my nightmare day and night, and it was the motivation that drove me to become stronger, a pain I have never forgotten even after five hundred years.”
“I searched everywhere, scouring every corner of the Western Continent, but I could never find your whereabouts. Today, it has become a demon and an obsession.”
“So, Brother Shaya, I want compensation…”
Shaya gave a wry smile. Frankly speaking, although his initial intention was for Sylvia’s good, he had indeed deceived the heart of an innocent maiden. The blade that pierced her chest, countless nights of tossing and turning, the nightmares… Five hundred years of obsession could not be explained away by a simple misunderstanding or “it was for your own good.”
“What compensation?” The silver-haired Witch tilted her head and thought for a moment, a small arc formed at the corner of her mouth.
“Then, Brother Shaya, can you close your eyes first?” Sylvia’s voice held a hint of playfulness. “I have something very important to tell you.”
“For example… yearning is the emotion furthest from understanding or something like that.”
What a scene replay, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth… I didn’t realize you were so cunning and held grudges when you were young. Shaya couldn’t help but complain in his heart, but he obediently closed his eyes.
There was no choice; the situation was beyond his control. The delicate girl who called him “Brother Shaya” and followed him was gone. In her place was a legendary Beast Tamer who commanded the world, the peerlessly beautiful Azure Silver Witch. The blade he had thrust out back then had ultimately boomeranged back at him. But so be it. If it could help a legendary Beast Tamer resolve her obsession and inner demons, it would be worth it… Besides, regardless of anything, Sylvia’s actions had saved him fifteen Sands of Time worth of life-saving items. Taking a stab in exchange for fifteen Sands of Time was not a loss at all.
However, then. He felt a graceful body draw close to him. The warm breath on Shaya’s neck made him feel warmth and moisture, and a slight itch. A slight touch on his palm, Sylvia was writing on his palm with her finger.
“Brother Shaya, I actually lied to you.”
“That stab was indeed my obsession… but from beginning to end, over these five hundred years, I’ve had an even greater obsession in my heart.”
“That is—”
“I really miss you so much…”
“I think of you all the time.”
Sylvia leaned closer, then stood on tiptoe, looking up at the black-haired, black-eyed young man before her.
In the next moment. A cold yet soft sensation bloomed on Shaya’s lips.
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