Chapter: 33. Hero
If a piece of clothing is lost, it is lost; it can be bought again.
But if a person’s heart is lost, I’m afraid it’s difficult to recover even if one thickens their skin and tries to find it.
Look at this.
Seeing Xial insist on using her meager chest to exchange true feelings, Princess Xue Fei swiftly moved aside, causing the poor blue-haired loli to nearly plunge into the lake!
Turning back speechlessly, she saw Xial stumbling to a halt at the lake’s edge.
Instead of adjusting her stance, she prioritized lifting her skirt to prevent the splashes from the lake from dirtying the new dress Xue Fei had given her, repeatedly checking from all angles to confirm that the skirt hadn’t gotten wet or muddy. Only then did Xial let out a sigh of relief, stroking her flat chest.
This behavior of cherishing clothes… is surprisingly similar to how Princess Xue Fei had just cherished her pajamas.
Because of this, it made Xue Fei quite displeased!
I cherish my pajamas because they were given to me by Xiya; she is like a sister to me in a spiritual sense.
But why do you cherish the dress I gave you? What am I to you?!
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. Princess Xue Fei decisively strode over to Xial…
And delivered a righteous knock to her head!
Bang!
“Ah…! Ouch… why did Lady Xue Fei suddenly reward me… did I do something good?”
“Okay, okay, I won’t mention how your wording just now seemed a bit off, but first, I need to ask you a question. You don’t have to lie; my eyes can see through falsehoods.”
“What does ‘falsehood’ mean?”
“It means lies.”
“Oh…! I won’t lie to Lady Xue Fei. Hey? But Lady Xue Fei, you could just say the word ‘lie’ directly. Why say ‘falsehood’?”
After thinking for a moment, the clever Little Holy Sword reached a conclusion!
“Oh! I understand! It must be that Lady Xue Fei thinks speaking like this is cool, right!”
“Ugh! You… what do you know?! Just shut up already!”
“Wah…! Lady Xue Fei won’t let me talk anymore!”
There is nothing like a single sentence to make Princess Xue Fei’s face flush all the way to her neck.
You actually said… that forbidden thing out loud!
So what if it’s cool? Isn’t the invention of so many words just to let you be cool sometimes?
The poor Little Holy Sword Xial was once again whacked on the head hard, completely unaware of why.
The evening lake breeze blew a refreshing breeze.
The silvery-haired girl and the blue-haired girl at the lake’s edge swayed in the same direction.
As the water plants rustled, Princess Xue Fei gazed at the moon’s reflection in the center of the lake… with a faint inquiry.
This question came a bit abruptly, but in front of Xial’s ever-relaxed smile, it didn’t seem out of place.
“I’m asking you… don’t you find me frightening?”
“Eh?” The Little Holy Sword tilted her head, seemingly confused, “Why does Lady Xue Fei ask this?”
“Didn’t you say it yourself? The reason you woke up from the Holy Sword was because I scared you awake. Doesn’t that mean you find me quite terrifying? Since you’re scared, why do you keep sticking to me? Why not find a place far away to hide… and just ignore me?”
“Um… although I don’t quite understand, but is Lady Xue Fei feeling sad?”
“I’m not! I never feel sad.”
“Falsehood.”
“Try saying that word again?! Learning on the spot, huh?! Don’t say ‘falsehood’; say ‘lie’!”
“Does Lady Xue Fei admit to lying just now?”
“……
”
Princess Xue Fei’s output of words felt like an iron fist hitting cotton.
Xial’s pure and innocent smile left Xue Fei momentarily lost for better words to continue her argument.
But Princess Xue Fei has always been someone who values her face; how could she possibly admit that!
She simply chose to sulk!
She huffed slightly, turned her head away, and refused to speak.
Wherever Xial went, Xue Fei turned her head away to avoid looking at her.
However, the Little Holy Sword had a tenacious spirit.
She repeatedly hopped around almost creating afterimages, leaving Princess Xue Fei dizzy!
“Stop…!”
Princess Xue Fei grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to stand still and stop jumping around.
—This meant the two of them finally met each other’s gaze in the air.
“Does Lady Xue Fei admit to lying?”
“I do not.”
“Then I will keep jumping, to make you dizzy.”
“Are you the real devil?!”
After this psychological tug-of-war, Princess Xue Fei finally decided to let go of her youthful pride.
“Alright, alright… I admit it, I was lying. I was a bit sad just now, thinking of the past. Is that okay?”
“Hehe, I get to know more about Lady Xue Fei!”
“I’m saying… you…”
Originally, she wanted to give her another knock on the head, but this time, her raised hand slowly lowered.
Princess Xue Fei was deliberately evading this question.
But Xial wouldn’t evade her.
Didn’t you just ask if we were afraid of you?
Now I can give you an answer.
“I’m not afraid of Lady Xue Fei at all!”
“Tsk.”
“Hmm…? Did I say something wrong again?”
“No, it’s just a bit annoying.”
It was precisely because Princess Xue Fei had the ability to see through lies that she knew the previous statement of “not afraid” was the truth and that Xial had not lied.
But knowing that she was the Calamity Witch and yet saying she was not afraid… besides Xiya, who else could there be?
The more Princess Xue Fei confirmed that what Xial said was the truth, the more displeased she felt.
Until Xial pinched her own skirt and began to mumble softly.
“You are right… I was indeed scared awake by your magic. At first, I felt like I was looking into an unfathomably deep abyss.”
“Right? Everyone says I’m a monster and would rather keep their distance, so you should hurry and…”
“But until I heard you say, ‘I don’t want to fight, I don’t want to see the battlefield anymore; I want to escape.’ I knew… you must be a gentle person.”
“Hah…? What do you mean, just because of that?”
“Hmm… just because of that. Because Lady Xue Fei, you and I are the same kind of existence… so I can understand.”
This time it was Princess Xue Fei who didn’t understand.
Under the shimmering light of the white moon and the red moon.
In Xial’s eyes, the reflection held no moonlight, only Xue Fei’s silver hair, which was even more radiant than moonlight, and the years filled with trials that Xial had witnessed over a millennium.
“We are both trapped in cages.”
“No matter how powerful… we are always bound by various troubles.”
“Lady Xue Fei, I mentioned to you before that a thousand years ago, I threw myself into the forging furnace because the kingdom had captured my family, threatening me that I had to jump in to free them.”
“That is the truth… but there’s one more thing I didn’t say, because that memory is truly painful… but since you are now willing to talk to me, I’m willing to share it with you.”
Princess Xue Fei listened quietly to her speak.
Listening to the girl who resolutely jumped into the flames a thousand years ago, pondering what she was really thinking.
“I could have broken the net with the fish, risking my life to save my family. What’s the difference between dying while trying to save them and dying by jumping into the forging furnace? Perhaps breaking the net would allow me to live on with my family.”
“But at that time, my parents were almost driven mad… they said they regretted having a monstrous daughter, saying that if I were an ordinary person, there wouldn’t be so many misfortunes. Ha… actually, I can understand. I was born as an anomaly; how can I blame my parents for their sighs connected to me?”
Hearing this…
Princess Xue Fei probably already guessed the true reason why Xial chose to jump into the furnace.
“Yes…” Xial blinked as if the terrifying sparks had splashed up again, “I was disappointed… I felt that my existence in this world only brings harm to others, there is no other meaning. I also thought about whether or not to ignore my parents, to ignore any sense of national righteousness, and go to a place I like, where the mountains are clear and waters are beautiful, and live a life I desire.”
“But in the end, I didn’t have that courage…”
“I couldn’t give up on my family, nor could I let go of the fact that being born in Aulus Kingdom means I have to contribute something to this country.”
“So I jumped down, giving up on the beautiful distance, choosing to fly into the fire and put everything to an end; this way, I wouldn’t have to think about anything anymore.”
As she spoke, when Xial closed her eyes and reopened them, the sparks of purgatory in her eyes had completely vanished.
What remained was only the vastness of the lake before her, the layered mountains, and the twinkling stars.
And… the Lady Xue Fei standing right in front of her at that moment.
“Lady Xue Fei is also bearing so much… more powerful than me, carrying more than I do, the more I see the abyss of that magic, the more I realize how desperate you must be…”
“But you chose the completely opposite path.”
“You disdain the honor of the Demon Race and abandon your parents who are the Demon King yet ask you to strive harder. You wholeheartedly pursue the pure land in your heart and even met a hero who can understand you…!”
The more Xial spoke, the more excited she became!
“You achieved everything I couldn’t! How could I ever be afraid of someone like you!”
Xial clasped her hands behind her back and smiled.
It felt as if the one smiling at that moment was not her present self.
But rather the girl who stood before the extremely hot forging furnace a thousand years ago…
The desperate girl, turning back in astonishment.
“I am not afraid… because you are my hero.”
