“Fortunately, the duchess is completely unscathed,” the knight straightened his back. “The duchess should be resting now, and you can also return and rest.”
Naily was silent for a moment, then nodded: “Understood. Please both be careful.” After speaking, she walked back to the side wing where the guest rooms were located, stopping at her own door.
She took a deep breath and pushed open the door. The window directly opposite the door was empty, without even the expected blood stains. Naily’s gaze froze for an instant as Kalsas leaned against the wall corner behind the door, covering his mouth and slightly curving his eyes at her. She closed and locked the door behind her, listening carefully to ensure no one was in the corridor, then said as emotionlessly as possible: “You’d better leave quickly.”
“This city is full of temple and holy water scents, which is not conducive to my recovery,” Kalsas said, smiling at the corners of his mouth despite revealing information disadvantageous to himself. “I’ll leave before sunrise. Until then, you can either ignore me or…”
He deepened his smile, his eyebrows and eyes cunning and sarcastic: “Take the opportunity to kill me.”
Naily observed him calmly, motionless. “Hmm? What’s wrong? Suspecting this is a trap?” Kalsas laughed lowly a few times, pointing to the wound on his chest, seeming nonchalant.
“Objectively speaking, if you used all your strength now, you might have a chance of winning.”
“Repeatedly testing me is meaningless,” Naily stood by the door, with the demon king sitting in the corner. She looked away, taking out a magic potion from her storage space and throwing it to him.
Kalsas caught it but placed the bottle beside him, covering his mouth and coughing: “This won’t help my wounds.”
Naily turned her gaze back to him, asking: “What did you do?”
“You’ve probably noticed, I went underground. There was something I wanted to destroy, but I failed, that’s all,” Kalsas swept his messy bangs upward, observing Naily’s reaction through his fingers, slowing his speech. “You not only spared my life but even… seemed to want to save me. Can you tell me why?”
He smiled bleakly: “If I were in your position, I wouldn’t save someone who had harmed me and is selfish, crazy, and might repeat their mistakes. It would be a waste of effort.”
Naily knew Kalsas was questioning more than just the momentary decision. He was seeking the reason why she wouldn’t abandon either him or the world. They both knew the reason, but he wanted her to say it out loud. He was that cunning and self-centered.
Her throat was locked, unable to say a word; her facial muscles were tightly stretched, unable to even manage a forced smile. She suspected that if she used just a bit more strength, useless tears would flow.
Kalsas softened his voice, each word seducing her, trying to pry the answer he wanted from her mouth. He repeated gently and tenderly: “Please tell me, why did you save me?”
Naily stiffly squeezed out an answer: “If it were another person in the same situation, I would also choose to save them, not abandon them.”
“In other words,” Kalsas laughed softly, “you don’t want any sacrifices to exist. But the ideal you insist on is twisted and dangerous, only dragging you down to drown together. Is that okay?” He looked up at her, clearly relaxed: “Or perhaps, you’re just afraid of making a choice. You know it’s impossible to save everyone, so you simply refuse to choose.”
He lowered his voice: “But that way, no one will be saved.”
Naily turned her back, clenching her fist, saying in a deep voice: “Call me a naive and foolish idealist if you want. I’ve had enough of such cycles and endings. No one is born to be nailed to a pillar of shame. Destiny… is just a lie to deceive oneself!”
She was rarely this passionate and tough. Kalsas found no words to respond, silent for a moment.
When she thought he would remain quiet, he suddenly spoke again: “But why can’t you tolerate the existence of sacrifices?”
Naily did not answer. He let out a laugh without any humor: “This idea is abnormal. Survival and death, redemption and sacrifice, light and shadow, these are commonplace. Moreover, this is such an incurable world, you should be clear about that.”
Their gazes locked in midair; Naily’s body trembled slightly. Kalsas saw this, mockingly touching his chest, speaking in a cold tone: “If repeatedly letting the hero kill me could truly save this world and make people happy, I’d have nothing to say. But even after repeated attempts, humans are still stupid, selfish, repeatedly destroying themselves and heading towards their end. In such a world where no one can be happy, such a bastard of a world, it would be better to just destroy it completely.”
He spoke somewhat urgently and began to cough. Naily took a step forward, but the other party gave her a warning glance. The despair in his red eyes was too intense and too passionate, drawing a clear line before her, forcing her to suppress her own movement.
“You know this, yet you still choose to fight for someone you’ve never known, even if you’ll be hurt and suffer…
Naily closed her eyes briefly, her tone still calm: “I cannot bear the weight of thousands of lives.” She shook her head, repeating a sentence she had silently recited many times: “I cannot sacrifice others because of my own wrong choices. They are innocent.”
“And I am guilty,” Kalsas added expressionlessly.
Naily slowly opened her eyes, looking directly back at him: “If you are determined to think so… then I am equally guilty.”
Kalsas reached out his hand to Naily. His fingertips seemed to draw her, making her take half a step closer.
He grabbed her wrist, pulling her down into his embrace. Those dark night-like wings spread out, wrapping her from behind, creating a small, semi-isolated world.
This embrace was not as bloody as expected; the Demon King had apparently treated his wounds during her absence. He kissed her earlobe gently: “You don’t know what you’re saying,” he paused meaningfully, a hint of laughter in his voice, “but I’m glad.”
As if feeling this wasn’t accurate enough, he shook his head and corrected: “No, the fact that you diverted the pursuers for me is enough.
His frank and pure joy unexpectedly crashed into her heart. Naily couldn’t help but feel somewhat dazed. She bit her lip, unable to muster the strength to push him away.
Because she was pulled into his arms, Naily found herself sitting on the Demon King’s bent leg. It was an awkward position where a slight movement could cause her to slide down completely.
Just imagining it made Naily feel all her blood rush to her face.
In this predicament, Naily tensed her back, slightly bracing against the wall behind Kalsas, wanting to retreat. He didn’t stop her, just observing her with a thoughtful gaze.
Naily felt uncomfortable under his gaze and turned to look out the window, forgetting to maintain her original cold and distant tone in her panic: “The night watchman’s lamp is out. It’s safe to leave now.”
Kalsas fastidiously furrowed his brow, standing up while supporting himself against the wall. The black wings behind him fluttered twice, as if about to take flight.
He walked to the window, his fingers resting on the windowsill, suddenly turning back to say: “Remember to wear a cloak when you go out.”
Naily was stunned for a moment before understanding the implied meaning, immediately feeling her face heat up. Before she could retort about his meddling, the Demon King had already spread his wings and swiftly flown away from the window.
The night wind rushed in through the open window. A black feather floated down. Naily picked it up, turning it between her fingers, frowning slightly. After carefully examining it, she threw it into her storage bag.
