Volume 3, Chapter 13-2 – The First Step to Conquering the Abyss

“I have to go.”

Aetlana turned around and walked toward the door.

“Wait.”

Stella instinctively reached out and caught the hem of her clothes.

Aetlana stopped.

“You… can stay here,” Stella said. “The Blood Demon Manor is huge. No one will find you.”

Aetlana smiled.

Her smile was as light as a feather, yet somehow unlike a bird. It was as though a sheet of white paper itself were smiling.

Then she gently cupped Stella’s face in both hands.

“Stella, I am a demon guilty of grave crimes in the Abyss,” Aetlana said. “I am specifically wanted by the Nexus Council. Unless the Regent grants me a pardon, my crimes will never be erased. If you don’t want to attract unnecessary attention, don’t do this.”

“What’s more, I am also a target that Samael has specifically ordered to be hunted down. An illegitimate daughter stricken from the family genealogy, an unwanted castoff.”

She looked directly into Stella’s eyes.

“You erased the Chastisement Brand. Do you know what that means?”

Stella blinked.

“It means I can sleep.”

Aetlana’s smile deepened slightly.

“It means that in this vast Abyss, I can finally live like a normal demon. I don’t have to be chased and bitten. I don’t have to wake from my dreams with a start. I don’t have to constantly worry that the White Tower’s hounds will tear open my throat.”

Aetlana let go.

“I have quite a few things I need to do now as well.” She said. “That’s something I never would have dared imagine before.”

“It’s just… I have one last, very important question to ask you,” Aetlana said.

“What?” Stella asked.

Aetlana was silent for a moment.

The Ash Drinkers would inevitably regard the Pale Daughter as the vessel for resurrecting the Pale Lord as well.

Without a doubt, it was a destiny engraved into their bloodline.

In the past, she too had regarded destiny as an absolute truth above all else.

But now…

“The Ash Drinkers… sooner or later, will come looking for you.” Aetlana said softly. “Mara Nightsong will not give up on her plan to resurrect the old lord. She will definitely do everything she can to bring you to the Ashen Sanctuary, to serve as…”

She paused.

“A vessel.”

Stella said nothing.

“I know it’s cruel. I know you never asked for any of this. I know you don’t owe anyone anything.”

“But I want to ask you…”

Aetlana’s searching gaze held a trace of sorrow. She seemed determined to fathom Stella’s true feelings, like the moon attempting to divine the depths of the sea.

“Are you willing to accept the destiny that has already been decided for you?”

Stella froze for a moment.

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‘My predetermined destiny?’

‘To be used as a vessel to resurrect the old lord because I am the Pale Daughter?’

She instinctively shook her head.

No matter how you looked at it, she was an impostor. If they used her blood to resurrect the Pale Lord, who knew what kind of bizarre development would come out of it.

“I understand.”

Aetlana nodded.

“Now I have plenty of things to keep me busy.” She said. “I’ll pack up and leave during the Fourth Watch.”

“Are you really… going to be all right?” Stella asked hesitantly.

“I really will. It’s just a long way, and besides, there’s a sea between us.”

“A sea between you and what?”

“Between me and Lilith School, Nightmare Street, and…”

“Huh?”

“And you, Stella.”

Aetlana walked out the door.

Stella watched her retreating figure.

She understood now that Aetlana absolutely had to leave.

Having a wanted criminal of the Abyss stay around her really was a ticking time bomb.

But when someone was leaving…

Normally, you were supposed to give them a gift, right?

Aetlana had crossed half the Abyss to find her, dragging her severely wounded body all the way here. She had even been prepared to risk her life fighting Samael’s people in the battle just now.

It wouldn’t feel right to simply let her leave empty-handed.

But what kind of gift would be suitable for Aetlana?

Stella thought about it.

She really didn’t have anything decent herself.

Money? Aetlana didn’t need it.

A weapon? Her own bone blades were already the best weapons for her.

Food? That felt too perfunctory.

Stella looked around.

The dilapidated room, the furniture covered in dust, the bare walls.

Then she remembered the apple on the silver tray.

And the wish-granting ghost from just now.

“If you really can grant any request,” Stella deliberately lowered her voice. “Then help me find the most suitable gift.”

The surroundings fell silent. Only a faint breeze brushed across the tips of her hair, stirring the cold air as it grazed her brows.

After a little while.

Click.

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A very, very soft sound.

The bottommost drawer of the dressing table suddenly popped open a crack without warning.

Stella tilted her head.

It really was responding to her.

She walked over to the dressing table and leaned closer to take a look.

Right in the center of the drawer was something.

An egg.

It was about the size of her palm, snow-white all over, with a faint pearlescent sheen across its surface. It looked just like a perfect pearl.

“…”

Holding the egg in her hands, Stella once again felt a hazy sensation, as though an entire lifetime had passed.

Because she couldn’t have been more familiar with this egg.

Its warm touch, its smooth surface.

Stella froze in place.

‘Wasn’t this the egg I had laid?’

“…”

Stella’s brain seemed to stop for several seconds.

‘Uh… Is this wish-granting ghost really reliable?’

A normal person’s idea of a farewell gift was usually a book, a photograph, or some precious object with commemorative value.

What did it mean to give someone an egg?

And it was even one she herself had laid.

Was she supposed to turn her own embarrassing history into a souvenir and give it away?

Stella rubbed her forehead.

Putting aside the question of whether it was embarrassing, was this thing even suitable as a gift in the first place?

Stella thought for a moment and remembered the common knowledge about the Abyss that Remedios had explained to her after she woke up.

A succubus’ empty egg was a condensation of magical essence. Eating one could restore a large amount of magical power, and if cooked, it was also an extremely nourishing delicacy. It could be sold for a high price on the market, and on top of its exceptional edible value, it was also suitable as a gift.

According to Remedios, it actually made perfect sense for the wish-granting ghost to bring the egg to her.

But the problem was…

How exactly had the wish-granting ghost of the Blood Demon Manor managed to cross such an enormous distance, sneak precisely into Stella’s private dormitory at Lilith School, and dig this thing out from deep inside her bedding?

The Abyss was vast. All kinds of strange things existed.

Having one more ghost that could cross realms to steal eggs didn’t seem all that unusual.

Still, credit where it was due, this ghost was remarkably dependable when it came to getting things done.

Stella turned the egg around in her hands a couple of times.

There was even an extremely neat bow tied around the snow-white shell with a red silk ribbon.

It looked exactly like an exquisitely wrapped present.

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Stella’s face instantly flushed red.

Wrapping up her own egg and giving it to someone else was inevitably humiliating.

But Aetlana was leaving.

The higher-ranking demon had mistaken her identity from beginning to end, taking Stella, a human Saintess, for the Pale Lord’s daughter.

But the sincerity of crossing half the Abyss and risking her life to protect her could not be faked.

Stella felt that since she had somehow ended up receiving another person’s affection and devotion, even if she couldn’t return those feelings in the same way, she should at least express her gratitude. That was only natural, and returning the gesture with a gift was also a necessary part of the process.

The real Pale Daughter probably wouldn’t mind Stella borrowing her flowers to present to another.

At least Stella hadn’t heard her voice any objections.

As for what the gift actually was…

Stella weighed the egg in her hand.

She didn’t have anything else suitable on hand, and Remedios had said it was appropriate for gifting.

Then… she might as well give it to her.

Holding the heavy egg in both hands, Stella hurried out of the guest room. She crossed the dust-covered hall and caught up with Aetlana at the portico of the main building.

Aetlana was walking down the steps.

She had somehow found a wide black hooded cloak and draped it around herself, concealing her tattered clothes and the wounds covering her body.

The effects of the Polyjuice Potion were still holding, so she still wore Cheryl’s face.

“Wait.” Stella called after her.

“What is it?”

Aetlana turned around in confusion.

Stella ran up to her, breathing slightly hard.

Her silver-and-red hair had become somewhat disheveled from running, with several strands clinging to her cheeks.

“A farewell gift.” Stella said.

“A farewell… gift?”

Aetlana froze for a moment.

During all those years of exile, she had long since severed herself from every gift and connection to the outside world.

No one looked at her. No one thought of her.

She felt as though she had drowned beneath the contempt of those bastards who cared only about their reputations. Back then, they had sacrificed her. Now, they had thrown her away like a filthy piece of trash.

Aetlana had nothing she needed.

“Mm.”

Stella nodded, then brought out the hand she had been hiding behind her back.

Resting in her palm was a snow-white egg tied with a ribbon bow.

Aetlana lowered her eyes.

“…What is this?”

“My… My egg.” Stella blurted out.

Then her face turned red again.

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She made it sound as if she were some pearl bird that laid eggs!

Although she really had laid an egg…

Saying it out loud in front of someone else was way too embarrassing!

“Uh… I mean, this is something I… before…”

Stella stumbled over her words as she tried to explain.

But Aetlana had already gently placed her hand over it.

At this moment, she contemplated it. Throughout this life, she had contemplated it, whether to accept, or not to accept.

Once upon a time, she too had possessed an identical egg.

Under her watchful gaze, that egg had eventually hatched into the girl standing before her now.

Her pure and flawless life had inherited some unfathomable heavenly will, transforming from an overflowing tide of sin into a charming, lovable flower that would never wither.

At times, she was a young child who needed to be cared for and guided. At times, she was a mirror that brought Aetlana revelation and understanding.

The breeze and fragrance brought by a young girl were completely different from the turbid world of adult demons.

Because of this, Aetlana had always felt a sense of gratitude toward her.

And now, Aetlana had once again received a brand-new empty egg.

Genuine joy spread through her chest.

Now Aetlana understood.

Stella’s life would never again be filled with nothing but tribulations.

Life would face her in its true form. The heartaches that should hurt would still hurt. The dreams that should come true would still come true. The risks that should be taken would still be taken.

But Stella would always remember her.

Many years ago, there had been two girls who had enriched each other’s lives. They would love each other for the rest of their lives.

This was the finest gift of all.

It could not be eaten up, used up, given away, or thrown away.

Aetlana placed her hand on Stella’s head and gently rubbed her short silver-and-red hair.

The two stood there in silence.

“I’m leaving.”

Aetlana withdrew her hand.

Stella nodded.

Aetlana followed the weed-choked stone path toward the gates of the Blood Demon Manor.

Translator Note

A parting gift for godmother uwu

And since Aetlana asked her about her wish as Pale Daughter, then perhaps Aetlana will betray Ash Drinker to protect Stella?