Chapter 74: That Butterfly Flapped Its Wings
“Let go of me, you impudent human!”
“Ai, you were so well-behaved before. Alright, alright, Dad will let go now. Oh dear, don’t bite my neck. Are you a Wuzhi or a butterfly catcher?”
“How did this child become so mischievous? Has she entered her rebellious phase early?”
“Xiao An is still just a child, how did her chest become…”
“Her physique hasn’t changed at all, and her chest even seems to have shrunk. I was wondering about that for a while, thinking she was growing so fast.”
“As a god, her physique should remain constant like Xuan’er’s.”
“Now it seems, it must be the result of her own fantasies. As a god…”
“An Xia’s intelligence is clearly superior to these two, and now Xueqing…”
“Before, comparing Xiao An, Xuan’er, and Xueqing, Xiao An completely surpassed the other two. She has returned to being the top among the three lolis in terms of chest size again.”
“Xuan’er hasn’t changed at all. Speaking of which, she probably won’t change anymore, right? After all, she’s lived for over five hundred years. I think this can only be a dream loli. She herself doesn’t care about this at all and is happy because she can play many dream-type characters.”
“But unlike Xuan’er, she still seems to have lingering feelings about her own chest.”
“Tsk tsk, poor child.”
“Where are you looking! Why are you looking with pity!”
“I was looking at her chest… cough, no. I was just recording my daughter’s chest growth.”
“That’s right, I wasn’t looking with any lewd gaze. I was observing with utmost seriousness!”
“This looks much more normal. Yes, this is the appropriate chest size for a loli. I don’t acknowledge voluptuous lolis!”
“Speaking of which, there’s really nothing to see, is there? After all, it’s as flat as can be.”
“Who is your daughter! You pervert!”
“That Japanese pronunciation is quite standard.”
“Whoa, wait, don’t lose me. If you abandon me from now on, how will I get through the next few decades?”
“Honestly, I haven’t started losing hair yet, nor do I have that ‘old person smell.’ Although my hair is a bit white, I’m still considered young overall.”
“So don’t despise your dad, I’ll cry myself to death!”
“Hmph, I was still thinking about how to deal with you… Now it’s completely collapsed! It’s all your fault!”
Suddenly, I heard Xiao An cry out halfway through. I quickly covered her mouth with both hands, tears welling up in her eyes.
“What? Bit your tongue? You, you, if you’re going to say indecent things, don’t shout so loud. Does it hurt? Stick it out, and I’ll blow on it for you.”
“She’s quite well-behaved now. Xiao An lowered her hands and obediently stuck out her tongue.”
“I gently blew on it to relieve some of the pain.”
“After she felt a bit better, I picked her up and gently patted her back to comfort her.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Alright, alright, I…”
“Juncheng, you seem to have a particularly high affinity for dream lolis, and your gentleness towards lolis reaches a level of doting.”
“Huh? Is that so?”
“That you act so naturally might also be a cover for your inner conflict, but you’d better not treat her as Xiao An completely. If you do, this foolish bird will be very sad too. Your true feelings, Zi’ai loves you too…”
“…Although I know I can’t hide my true feelings, Zi’ai loves you, Father.”
“You can read not only my thoughts but also my emotional changes?”
“Heh, I’m the ghost in your heart.”
“I’m truly defeated…”
“I brought Xiao An in my arms to face me, and said with a bit of awkwardness and shyness.”
“…Um, can I still call you ‘An Yanling’?”
“…Is it okay to continue calling you ‘An Yanling’?”
“…Afraid of not being accepted by me, and scared…”
“Her golden eyes also held a hint of anxiety. It was only then I realized she was worried too–she was afraid of being blamed by me.”
“It feels like this father-daughter pair has finally reconnected.”
“I hugged her tightly again and said, stroking her back.”
“Of course, I can. Whether it’s on the surface or in my heart, you are both my daughters.”
“The distance between our hearts is closing, and the warmth in my palms spreads throughout my body.”
“There’s one more thing. I must tell you. When I descended, all your spiritual bodies were expelled from the Mirror of Eight Divinations.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Those spiritual bodies did not assimilate with this world and turn into dust. Under the protection of my great divine radiance, if nothing unexpected happens, they should be able to return to the unconsciousness of their main bodies.”
“You don’t mean!”
“Heh, in other words, their experiences in the Spiritual World will become vague memories like dreams, mixed with their unconsciousness, becoming a part of the main body’s past experiences… But that’s about it. After all, the replicated spiritual bodies have no souls. After leaving this town and returning to their main bodies, at best, they can only turn into memories, and might even be gradually forgotten. So, this can be considered my final compensation. I wanted to do more, but I could only…”
“That’s amazing!”
“Huh?! Whoa!”
“I’m more than just happy; my expression is uncontrollable.”
“This is already enough! That’s wonderful! Well done! You did so well! Hahahaha! Come, let’s lift you up! Ohohoo!”
“I excitedly lifted Xiao An and spun her around.”
“Heh. Is there a need to be so happy…”
“Because this will prove that everything was not in vain!”
“This is what they endured.”
“They left something of their own.”
“That also means they existed!”
“Even if it’s just a fleeting memory, it’s a miracle! This is… Isn’t this a miracle brought about by you, my treasure?”
“…Ruanruan?”
“Light novel.”
“I suddenly thought of her, gentle as water, and my excitement cooled down a bit.”
“At the last moment, when I didn’t see Ruanruan, I had already guessed this.”
“Juncheng… knows everything?”
“Looking at Zi’ai’s shocked expression, she must have been involved too. Later, to prevent me from going to create anew…”
“Ah, I can probably guess. Lan must have told her, so Ruanruan…”
“When I left home, Ruanruan and I made eye contact on the rooftop. With that exchange of glances, I already knew everything.”
“I already knew everything.”
“…Understood.”
“‘Because I know, I left. I clearly told Ruanruan my decision. I want to leave this world.”
“‘It’s her turn to make a choice now.'”
“I said with a smile to Zi’ai, who was listening with her mouth agape.”
“‘If she appeared in the end, it would mean she wanted to stay, so even if I exhausted my life and lifespan, I wouldn’t abandon her. But I waited until the end…”
“‘She still didn’t come.'”
“Yes, she still didn’t… In the end, she softened first.”
“I shook my head with a bitter smile. What’s past is past.”
“‘I respect her decision.'”
“Ruanruan must feel the same. She also respected my decision to leave.”
“You two are still… Even ‘model couple’ isn’t enough to describe your relationship. Even I, who can see through you, feel disgusted.”
“Heh, of course. Moreover, Ruanruan hasn’t completely disappeared, has she? According to Xiao An, she has merged back with Lianbing.”
“‘Yeah, as for that woman’s alter ego, she might take the lead again someday.'”
“Who knows. Ruanruan, although she looks gentle, is an extremist like Lan when she’s serious. If they merge… Adding Ruanruan’s shy personality to Lianbing’s dissolute one… It’s alluring and sickening! Once it erupts, it’s irresistible! But it won’t reach the point of yandere, only loving me… A perfect…”
“I actually think it’s better for you to stay dead. This gaze from my daughter and best friend is so piercing! I feel their gazes could kill me!”
“Why is reviving your body so time-consuming? How much longer do I have to wait?”
“I don’t know. It seems like something unexpected happened with Xiao An… Let’s wait a bit longer. Even in a game, inputting ‘revive’…”
“But I still have to wait, it’s so boring–”
“Hmm? What’s wrong, what’s wrong? Do you need to pee?”
“Light Novel.”
“Of course not! I just want to ask a question that has been bothering me.”
“What question?”
“Xiao An straightened her body slightly and then pointed at me and Zi’ai with both hands.”
“What is your relationship with Zi’ai?”
“Uh? We…”
“This question is a bit too direct…”
“How can I answer this to avoid embarrassment?”
“After thinking about it, I chose the most chuunibyo answer.”
“We are soulmates!”
“‘That’s strange. Is it that? You were twins in your mother’s womb, and one died at birth?'”
“‘Hah? No, although we are indeed twins, both my brother and sister were born safely!'”
“‘Although I still can’t quite accept that Keling is my biological sister, this fact has been confirmed. I don’t know how it happened that Xinran became my nominal biological sister. I’ll have to ask Dad when I get back.'”
“‘Anything else? Then… what about Zi’ai?'”
“‘Hah? Wait, are you referring to twins when you say me and Zi’ai? No, how could we be twins?'”
“I thought Zi’ai would also retort.”
“But I never expected Zi’ai to say after a moment of silence.”
“‘…Sigh. As expected of a god, you can see even this?'”
“I was completely stunned, thinking they were joking and ganging up on me, but their expressions didn’t look like a joke at all.”
“‘Hah?! Wait, wait! Zi’ai, what are you talking about!'”
“‘But I and Juncheng are not twins, we are ‘one body, two souls’.'”
“‘One body, two souls…'”
“I realized the importance of the matter and asked seriously.”
“‘What is going on? Zi’ai?'”
“‘I don’t want to talk about this… And then… Firstly, let me ask you something. Juncheng, do you have any impression of your grandfather?'”
“‘You mean Grandpa, who has been living overseas? I remember the old man is in good health. He’s celebrating his 80th birthday this year. He stays in touch with us every year and is a very robust and cheerful old man.'”
“An also made a second name for himself, one of the permanent council members of ‘Pandora,’ the highest decision-making body within the organization, An…”
“I feel like my brain is already overloaded.”
“‘He gave you two names, right?'”
“‘Yes. If it was a boy, he would be called Juncheng. If it was a girl, she would be called Ai…'”
“‘Then why, even though you are Long Fengyou, your sister didn’t call you Zi’ai? Instead, she gave you another name?'”
“‘…'”
“‘So ‘that saying’ is incorrect, An Juncheng.'”
“‘Is your name, and ‘An Zi’ai’ is the name given to me.'”
“‘He knew from the beginning that there would be two souls in his grandson’s body.'”
“‘Juncheng, don’t you find it strange? Why are you the Master of Destiny who carries the Great Destiny?'”
“‘And the Fate Witches just ‘happened’ to be around you. You know, most Masters of Destiny in this world might not even find their Fated Witch in their lifetime, let alone conquer the Four Calamities… But you carry the Four Calamities, and you’ve even gathered them all. Can this really be explained by ‘coincidence’?'”
“‘Of course, it’s not a coincidence. Rather, you were destined to be the Master of Destiny. How could someone who has gone through nine cycles of karma not be the Master of Destiny? Rather, precisely because you were destined to be the Master of Destiny, you became ‘An Juncheng.'”
“You don’t mean!”
“‘An Tianxia, when his daughter was pregnant, used a soul-summoning secret technique to bring a soul from a nine-cycle reincarnation into his unborn grandson’s body. And at that time, there was already another soul in the body…'”
“Zi’ai stated the facts calmly.”
“‘And that soul is me.'”
“‘…!!'”
“‘So that’s how it is!'”
“‘Ah, Kuuga, Kuuga… I, who am empty, why did I call myself this way… It’s because you took it all away! This body, this life, this name… Zi’ai took everything from me!'”
“‘How could this happen…'”
“‘Don’t blame yourself, Juncheng. It’s not your fault. I’ve never hated you.'”
“‘Why…'”
“‘Rather, it’s because of you that I can continue to exist. At that time, Juncheng, your soul was very powerful, and you could have completely devoured my soul. But you didn’t. Instead, you left a space in your body, in your heart, to accommodate me. So I became…'”
“Zi’ai came to me, cupped my face, and said sincerely.”
“‘I can exist because of you, so from that moment on, I vowed to fulfill your wish… And this time, it’s my turn to save you… But, why would Grandpa do this…'”
“‘I’m not very clear about this.'”
“‘I’m not very clear about this matter, but there must be some plan…'”
“I turned to look at the person who interjected.”
“‘No, that’s not it.–…'”
“In her palm was a beautiful butterfly.”
“That butterfly flapped its wings, striving to ascend…”
“Only to change the future.”
