Volume 6, Chapter 12 – A Circuit of Bitterness

A ghostly blue light suddenly appeared in the spacious and ornate room. Initially only the size of a baby’s fist, the blue orb of light expanded as time passed, gradually opening into a vertical ring with rippling edges, like a jellyfish’s bell. This process was quite lengthy, lasting for over a full minute, before the ring finally grew into a large portal two meters in diameter.

When the portal stabilized, an elf girl with jet-black hair falling naturally, dressed in a black formal dress, stepped out. The aura of indifference surrounding her made her already delicate and moving features even more outstanding. The moment she appeared, she became the center of everything in the room.

Following closely behind this girl were a tall silver-haired human and a golden-haired elf. Next came a light-purple-haired elf, a Stellacryst Beast with wing-like ears and a white side ponytail, and a tiger-folk girl with fluffy beast ears and long gray hair. Finally, at the very end, there was a girl with fiery red cat ears on her head, carrying a flame greatsword on her back.

Except for Estelle, the Knowledge-Seeking Demon General, and the Watcher, all of Fia’s group had returned to the Fire Cat Tribe city in southeastern Cold Night.

Although the Saint Alexia Festival had only reached its sixth day, various matters had piled up to a point where they could no longer be ignored and had to be dealt with.

First, the most anxious person was naturally Nola. With the help of Yulisha and Fia, she had already solved the problems of grain and helpers. Now that these two issues were resolved, she couldn’t wait to return to her territory and check on the condition of her people. The situation in Cold Night was complex, especially with countless deserters now scattered in the Fire Cat Tribe’s territory, and monsters from the Weeping Mountains in the south eyeing them covetously. As the strongest combatant and the acting chief of the Fire Cat Tribe, it was difficult for her to calm down and enjoy the festival.

Although Nola hadn’t said anything during her time as a maid, even Tilulu could tell that Nola was weighed down by worries. Whenever she had free time, she would become absent-minded, her thoughts drifting back to Cold Night. So, Fia didn’t actually make Nola wait until the end of the Saint Alexia Festival to quit her maid job, as she had agreed with Yulisha. Fia made up an excuse, saying she had finished celebrating the festival, packed her things, and set off.

With the [Transmission Beacon], returning only took a few extra minutes; it was no big deal. Moreover, after seeing the fallen Wasteland, Fia felt a greater sense of crisis. No one knew why the Wasteland had fallen, or if the same fall would happen in downtown Blossom. Coupled with the frequent appearances of The Abyss and the unsettling “last words” left by the past Eldest Princess—”It’s too late”—Fia had a bad premonition. She needed to find someone knowledgeable, like a god or someone of Absolute Evil’s ilk, to clarify things.

Aside from Nola’s affairs, Estelle, as the lord of the Oro territory, couldn’t stay in Blossom forever either. A quarter of an hour before Fia departed, she had sent Estelle back. As for the Knowledge-Seeking Demon General and the Watcher, the former could freely enter and exit Elf Towers other than the High Elf Tower thanks to the access rights Fia had granted, immersing himself in a sea of magic books. The latter devoted herself to the orphanage and collecting stories.

As the wealthiest country in the Northern Continent, the Silvar Kingdom had facilities for homeless children and the elderly. The institutions for adopting children were named orphanages.

Although the conditions there were average (mainly because overly good welfare would attract opportunists), they were favored by the Watcher. The Watcher even praised Blossom as the most perfect city on the World Tree Continent and, like the Knowledge-Seeking Demon General, decided to stay there.

Her daily work involved traveling between the orphanage and the Witch Sanctuary, serving as a teacher. She taught children without magic common sense, and for the trainee witches, she explained the history of the Darkborn and the differences between races, and even how to respond if they encountered Darkborn, looking for all the world like a traitor to the Darkborn.

Interestingly, the Watcher didn’t think she had betrayed the Darkborn. To be precise, she didn’t feel she had betrayed Absolute Evil. She was chosen as one of the Seven Demon Generals solely because of her intense desire for young girls. If she lost this pursuit, she would no longer be qualified to sit in the seat of a Demon General. So, she felt that, like the Knowledge-Seeking Demon General, she was just doing her job.

Also, by coincidence, Fia found a side job for the Watcher—writing stories.

It started when the Watcher discovered the fairy tale and fable books Fia had written for the “young girl group.” She took these stories to the orphanage and told them to the children there. They were a huge hit, making her very popular with the kids. Consequently, the Watcher began to revere Fia as a second Absolute Evil, practically hugging Fia’s leg in gratitude and hoping Fia would tell her more stories. However, since Fia was just copying them from memory, she simply told the Watcher the key points of writing fairy tales, pointing her in a direction and letting the Watcher make up stories herself.

Finally, as the weather gradually warmed and the Northern Continent entered spring, the Netherworld’s winter offensive finally ceased. This gave the elves the opportunity to turn their spears around and spare the energy to punish the Alfrieg Kingdom for going back on its word. In a great mood, Yelido decided to personally lead the army on a western expedition.

All in all, except for Nola, who hadn’t yet emerged from the depression of her social death, everyone had returned to their proper places.

“Ugh.”

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The moment her feet touched the ground, Nola’s body swayed. Although it wasn’t her first time experiencing it, the long-distance teleportation still made her feel extremely uncomfortable. The dizziness, reminiscent of drunkenness, especially triggered bad memories.

Fia not settling accounts with her didn’t mean she pretended nothing had happened. After she skeptically watched the recording crystal Colita handed over and saw the footage of herself clinging to Fia despite several maids trying to pull her away, her vision went black. She felt she could never be a proper cat again in this life. For the past few days, she had wanted to find Fia to whisper an apology, but there were always other people around Fia, so she couldn’t find an opening.

It was worth mentioning that the maids of the Twilight Palace had taken the opportunity to make fun of her these past few days, asking her how it felt to hug Fia, saying things like “So nice, I want to hug Her Highness too,” or “Back when she was five or six, we could hug and comfort her properly, but now it’s completely impossible.” Nola wished she could retort, “Why don’t you try getting drunk yourself?”

In addition, Colita was true to her word. First, she ordered Nola to clean the entire bathhouse alone, with Colita personally inspecting it. Then, she made Nola stand in punishment at the dormitory entrance for a whole day with a bucket full of water on her head.

“Are you alright?”

Seeing Nola’s face turn pale as if she wanted to vomit also triggered bad memories for Fia. She quietly took a step back, letting Liti block her front, and then asked hesitantly.

“Do you want some water?”

“No… drinking water now would definitely make it worse. Thank you, Your High…”

Before the honorific could fully leave her mouth, Nola realized something was wrong. She had addressed Fia as “Your Highness” too many times in the past few days, so much so that she couldn’t correct it immediately. Even her body had subconsciously bowed.

Fia waved her hand indifferently.

“You aren’t a maid anymore. You are now the Holy Son of Cold Night, the acting chief of the Fire Cat Tribe. Just use the old form of address. Hah, in the end, even if you hadn’t mentioned repaying the favor, wouldn’t you have gotten the grain you wanted anyway? Leaving that stuff in the Silvar Kingdom, it would either rot or be given to the people in the Land of Exile. You paying for it actually makes us the beneficiaries. You really did something unnecessary.”

“My creed is not to accept favors for free. You said the grain wasn’t from you, so who gave it?”

“You don’t need to know that.”

“There are too many things involved; it’s better for the Holy Son not to ask,” Liti chimed in after Fia, reminding her with an innocent expression. “We just arrived in Cold Night, and everyone has various things to deal with. Big Sister needs to go settle accounts with that Wandering Knight, the Holy Son has her own clan matters, and Tilulu has to report her safety to Radric. There will be plenty of time to talk during dinner. Shall we all go do our own things first?”

“Ah, indeed. It’s not too late to talk later. The Hunting Grounds shouldn’t be this quiet at this time. I’ll go out and take a look.”

“While you’re at it, help me check where the Wandering Knight is.”

“Mm.”

After a brief exchange, everyone left the room to return to their own quarters and unpack. The only difference was Claire. As Nola was leaving, Claire secretly tugged at Nola’s dress with an almost imperceptible movement, signaling Nola to wait a moment. Only when everyone had left and only Nola and Claire remained in the room did Claire finally sigh softly.

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In an instant, Nola felt as if she were about to face judgment. Previously, Claire had not seriously responded to her confession—although she had said it to Fia at the time, Claire had heard it clearly from the side. Claire was not the type to play dumb and keep people hanging. She probably hadn’t said anything before because of the Saint Alexia Festival; giving an answer then would have ruined the festive atmosphere. Now that they had returned to normal life, it was naturally time to explain the answer.

Claire’s lips moved, then her eyes lowered as if she felt guilty, a shadow cast over her exquisite face.

“Nola, I have something to say to you. Can we go to a quieter place?”

“…”

Nola fell silent.

Although her heart was full of anticipation, Nola could tell from Claire’s slight biting of her lower lip what Claire was about to say to her. Her subconscious understood that Claire would likely give the answer she least wanted to hear, such as “I only see you as a niece, I have no other thoughts,” or “I’m sorry I didn’t notice your feelings earlier.”

These words might not explicitly state “that answer,” but a little thought would make it clear that Claire was politely rejecting her, just as Claire had vaguely hinted to her back at Count Yureidon’s castle.

Perhaps she had vaguely sensed this answer long ago. If Claire had held a place for a lover in her heart for her, she wouldn’t be with Fia. She was merely holding onto a one-in-ten-thousand fluke, thinking, “As long as I explain my feelings to Claire, maybe Claire will think in that direction and consider the possibility with me.”

However, this was just a fool’s dream. She had realized it too late. If it had been five or six years earlier, maybe there would have been a chance.

Mocking herself in her heart, Nola didn’t wait for Claire to continue. She shook her head and feigned lightness.

“You don’t need to say any more, Claire. Leave me with a glimmer of hope.”

“But—”

But that’s unfair to you, Claire wanted to say.

Leaving someone with hope only to reject them in the end was too cruel to Nola. It was better to be clear from the start. However, Claire couldn’t say those words. This suggestion had come from Nola herself. Perhaps Nola had already vaguely guessed the answer she was about to give. Rather than clarifying everything in one breath, it was better to let Nola accept this reality slowly. That was likely what Nola meant.

Struggling to control her expression, which was on the verge of crumbling and distorting, Nola pursed her lips and smiled back at Claire. She turned around and waved to Claire.

“It’s not over yet. I will definitely beat that girl.”

Not giving Claire a chance to hold her back, Nola felt as if something was stuck in her throat. She tried hard to swallow, suppressing the emotions that were about to surge onto her face. However, emotions were like a flood, instantly destroying her efforts. Her face, hidden in the shadows, contorted. With quickening steps and a sob stifled in her throat, Nola finally disappeared into the corridor.

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“She got dumped…”

Liti, hiding at the other end of the corridor, quietly poked half her head out of a door. Along with her, Milu and Tilulu appeared above Liti one after another, like a totem pole.

“She can’t win.”

“Miss Nola is too pitiful.”

“Tilulu, you’re sympathizing because you’re in the same boat, right?”

“I-I wasn’t rejected by Lady Fia! Lady Fia said these things should be discussed after I come of age. The current me isn’t outstanding enough. Only by becoming a qualified queen will I be worthy of Lady Fia.”

Hugging her arms in front of her cute chest, adorned by a light purple dress, Tilulu frowned and corrected her dissatisfiedly.

“No… I don’t think Big Sister ever said that if you became an excellent queen, she would live with you.”

“Have you three seen enough?”

Abruptly, Fia’s voice appeared behind the three members of the “loli group.” From the moment Liti dragged the other two into her room, Fia had sensed they had other motives. Now, seeing Nola run quickly out of the reception room without looking back, the answer was already obvious.

Although she had caused this result, after spending time with Nola recently, Fia couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy. Claire had never given Nola a chance from start to finish, yet Nola held onto hope for Claire. This feeling was suppressed by the mission of revenge, causing her not to voice it in time, and finally leading to her completely forgetting Claire. This matter had become a grudge in both their hearts. If Nola had asked Claire to join her in revenge back then and poured out her heart to Claire, maybe Fia wouldn’t be in the picture now.

However, there weren’t that many “what ifs” in this world. Once anything was missed, there was no turning back. Time forced people to roll forward relentlessly; even looking back at one’s past self was a luxury.

While Fia was lamenting in her heart, Liti and the other two, startled by her, shuddered and stood up straight one by one.

“We… we were just curious…”

Liti hid her hands behind her back, lowering her head in embarrassment, her toes drawing circles on the floor.

Fia put her hands on her hips like a mother and sighed helplessly.

“Even watching the fun should depend on the occasion. Seeing it at a time like this only makes it awkward, doesn’t it? We’re going to the Weeping Mountains later. Although I’ll catch a batch of monsters for you to level up, before that, you have to learn higher-level combat techniques from Anastasia. Otherwise, it’s useless to have magic power if you can’t use it.”

Because Tilulu raised her head beside her, looking as if she wanted to say something, her tail wagging incessantly, Fia looked at Tilulu.

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“Does Tilulu have something to say?”

Tilulu tucked away her ears and tail, timidly pointing in the direction Nola left.

“Isn’t Lady Fia going to chase after Miss Nola? She needs someone to comfort her right now…”

“Me?” Fia smiled gently, then patted Tilulu’s head like she was handling a child. “Anyone can chase after her, except me. I’m the person she hates the most right now.”

“But if it’s Lady Fia, it will definitely be fine. Besides Lady Fia, there’s no one more suitable right now.”

Fia hesitated for a moment.

Tilulu was right. Besides herself, there was no one more suitable here. Although there was the option of leaving Nola alone to adjust her mindset slowly—after all, Nola was strong—that was a bit too cruel.

For the sake of being a friend, I’ll bite the bullet and go check on her.

Fia clicked her tongue.

“I have my considerations. You go find Anastasia; there’s nothing for you here.”

“Hoh~”

As if sniffing something out, Liti curled her lips in interest. Milu, also curling her lips, pulled Liti back and put her index finger to her lips in a “hush” gesture.

“Shh—”

“No need to shush, I heard everything,” Fia pinched Liti and Milu’s ears in exasperation. “It’s not as complicated as you think. I’ll be back soon.”

Delaying any longer would mean not knowing where Nola had run off to. Fia didn’t stay any longer and left the Hunting Grounds from another direction.