Thinking that his attacks might be detected in the future, Xia De once again thoroughly suppressed his magic.
He sighed in his heart.
“I am still too weak!”
Although Xia De's train of thought seemed long, in reality, less than a second had passed.
He looked at the young girl with the bandage wrapped around her left arm and reached out toward her.
A green magic circle appeared in his hand.
“Thank you for your explanation. This is your reward. Actually, I'm a Healer.”
Before Milia could even process Xia De's words, she felt a warm current spread throughout her body.
Immediately after, all her pain vanished, and a surge of powerful energy welled up inside her.
“Incredible!”
Milia looked at Xia De with sparkling eyes, her face lighting up like lightbulbs as she exclaimed in excitement:
“Your healing magic is actually this strong too? One of my companions is also a Healer.”
“His healing magic is really amazing too.”
Xia De did not respond to her. Instead, he deliberately slowed down his casting speed, quietly healing her.
He planned to project the image of a mediocre Healer. As for why he didn't heal her injuries in an instant...
That was because Xia De wasn't sure if Milia had a big mouth and would blab about him being able to instantly heal wounds. Once she let that slip,
Xia De could already foresee a swarm of annoying flies coming to bother him.
If they came with ill intent, it would actually be fine; he could just turn them into nourishment for his shadow.
But if they came with good intentions, Xia De was the worst at dealing with other people's goodwill.
Therefore, maintaining a mediocre level of healing was best.
Milia seemed to be a natural chatterbox. Even though Xia De remained taciturn and ignored her, she didn't feel bored at all.
Nor did she feel like she was being shut out. It was as if she naturally didn't know what an awkward silence was, and she chattered away tirelessly while Xia De healed her.
“That companion of mine is named Charles. Have you heard of him?”
Xia De: "..."
“His healing magic is truly the most incredible I've ever seen. No matter how severe the injury, he can restore you to perfect health, and he can even heal many internal, lingering injuries.”
“And not only that, but he heals incredibly fast too! Sometimes, our wounds are already healed before we even realize what's happening.”
“It's just a shame his rank is only Tier Four, Rank Nine. If his rank were a bit higher, he would definitely be an even more outstanding Healer!”
“Though he's already a very outstanding Healer, hehe! And he's our companion.”
“Even though Charles's perspective is always so strange, and he has a really strong inferiority complex—always thinking he's weak and that we'll abandon him...”
“...none of us would ever abandon him, because he's our companion!”
“Sigh, I wonder if Charles is done with his business. We haven't heard a single thing from him since we parted ways.”
“I wonder where he is now.”
Xia De: "..."
About half an hour passed. Throughout it all, Xia De remained silent, while Milia talked on and on without stopping.
“Why do those guys from the Demon God Cult always have to do bad things? Why do they have to hurt others? Why can't they just get along with everyone?”
Detecting a keyword, Xia De suddenly replied to Milia.
“Do you really think peaceful coexistence is possible? And who would it be between? Humans and humans, or humans and magical beasts? How would they coexist peacefully then? Through understanding? Forgiveness?”
Milia was taken aback, seemingly not expecting the silent Xia De to reply, but she still answered without hesitation:
“I don't know if humans and magical beasts can live in peace. I've never thought about it. But from the quests I've done, magical beasts are always eating humans. I will never allow a human-eating magical beast to live.”
“As for peace between humans, I know it's very difficult. You ask if it's through forgiveness?”
“Forgiveness has its limits. For minor issues, I think appropriate forgiveness is fine, but some things simply cannot be forgiven!”
“And I will never forgive them either!”
Suddenly, the young girl's voice grew low, her tone carrying a deep, profound hatred.
“I used to live in an ordinary little village. The strongest person in the village was only a Tier One extraordinary, and he was my dad.”
“Then one day, a band of bandits raided our village. My dad hid my six-year-old self in a very secret place.”
“I hid there for three days before I dared to come out. During that time, I only survived by eating wild grass and earthworms.”
“But when I came out, I found that everyone... was gone.”
“The village was gone. My mom and dad, and the uncles and aunties who looked after me daily—they were all gone.”
As she spoke, the girl's body trembled slightly, but her tone became incredibly intense, burning with intense hatred.
“So I will never forgive them!”
“And I don't want anyone else to experience what I felt!”
Suddenly, her expression froze as if she had been struck on the head. Her pupils trembled uncontrollably as she murmured:
“Then... why did I forgive them back then? Huh?”
“Huh? Huh? Huh?”
“Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?”
She remembered how she had voted to spare those disguised bandits. Her body froze, a thousand thoughts racing through her mind as the light in her eyes gradually faded.
Seeing that her state of mind was unstable, Xia De added a mind-soothing spell to his magic and changed the subject.
“So what is your dream? Seeing how you're pushing yourself to help others even while severely injured, it must be a very grand dream.”
Snapped out of her thoughts by Xia De's words, the light slowly returned to Milia's eyes. She scratched her head sheepishly, her eyes crinkling into a smile as she said firmly:
“I want to create a world without conflict or slaughter, where the strong do not bully the weak, and everyone can live happily.”
“But wanting such a world requires strength. That's why I'm constantly working hard—I want to help the weak.”
“How arrogant.”
Xia De murmured, his voice incredibly soft.
Milia tilted her head and asked, “What was that?”
“Nothing. Alright, I've stabilized your most basic injuries. You should be fine for the upcoming battles, but you still need to treat the more severe wounds in time, or they might damage your foundation.”
Feeling the familiar strength returning to her body, a bright smile bloomed on Milia's face once more. Just as she was about to thank Xia De,
...a grand voice from the sky drew her attention.
“Disturbances within Toka City are strictly forbidden! Violators will be punished accordingly by the Count's estate afterward!”
“It's Count Toka! They're back. This means the monster tide outside has been wiped out. That's wonderful!”
Milia said happily, but when she turned to look at Xia De, she found that he was already gone.
Xia De walked alone through the shadow-drenched alleyways, his face expressionless. Recalling Milia's words, a mocking sneer played on his lips.
Taking it upon herself to view others as the weak and as objects of her salvation—that girl was truly arrogant.
But... she was also a good person.
Initially, Xia De had been contemplating whether he should kill Milia, since she was Charles's companion.
What if she found out he killed Charles and sought revenge? However, after hearing her words, he abandoned that idea.
Because she was a good person, and good people had a one-time privilege with Xia De.
Because Xia De's parents in his past life had also been good people who frequently helped others. But...
...during that heavy snowstorm, who had stepped forward to help them?!
Therefore, Xia De would not be a good person, nor did he want to be one!
“Yo! Look, there's another kid here. Looks like we're back in business, boys!”
A few ruffians emerged from the shadows, glaring menacingly at Xia De.
One of the thugs licked the knife in his hand and threatened:
“Kid, if you don't want to die, hand over everything valuable on you.”
“Otherwise, with all the chaos going on right now, it wouldn't be strange for a few people to turn up dead.”
The thugs slowly closed in on Xia De. The shadows deepened, and the atmosphere grew increasingly silent.
Xia De tilted his head, his pitch-black eyes so dark they seemed capable of swallowing everything.
Suddenly, his lips curled into a chilling smile!
...
Back at home, Xia De took a shower, destroyed all his bloodstained clothes, and lay down on his bed in his pajamas.
In his hands, he held the booklet Hilia had made for him. Now that his Combat Power was approaching one million, he could navigate most dangers with ease. Thus, he wanted to see if there were any places with high concentrations of magical beasts where he could quickly absorb nourishment.
Throughout the page-turning, his expression remained entirely blank, until he reached a page with a message from Hilia. There, he paused for a long time.
His slender fingers gently traced the handwriting. Then, a faint smile tugged at the corners of his handsome face, and he continued turning the pages.
On the yellowed paper, which felt gentle to the touch and carried the faint, fresh scent of vegetation, were rows of elegant, delicate handwriting:
“I know you will travel to these places, and I know you will read this, so I left some words for you here, hehe!
I don't know if I should say what comes next, but I still feel like I must.
And I'm saying this in a very, very, very serious tone!
Xia De, although you possess immense power, I can see pain in your eyes. On top of that, you are still so young. I'm afraid you might be used by some people, afraid you'll run into danger, and even more afraid you'll be brainwashed with some strange ideals.
Like helping the weak and fighting the strong—while that's nice and all, I don't want that for you!
I only want you to stay true to yourself. As long as you are happy, and as long as you can live according to your own heart, that's enough. Don't worry about what others think—just be yourself!
If anyone beats or curses you for it, ignore them—no, wait, don't ignore them. Strike back ruthlessly! No mercy allowed. Be as cruel as you possibly can, remember that! Show them the true meaning of the ‘Grim Reaper’!
Make sure those people never dare to mess with you again!
Or, if you're too hesitant to strike, write their names down first. When we meet again, I'll help you pay them all back one by one!
Of course, you can also come rest in Sister Hilia's embrace for a bit. I will gently, gently help you forget all your troubles!
Mmh—anyway, I will absolutely never allow you to be left all alone. I will always, always, always support you and stay by your side!!!”
Rate on N.U.
