Chapter 126 : The Feeling of Heartbreak

The rain fell from her hair. That day, Stacy stood in the storm for a long time, until the clouds parted and the moon appeared.

She looked up at the round moon. Milly was already long gone.

She could chase after her, but what was the use? Even if she brought her back, the stubborn Milly would just find another way to resist.

A memory flashed in her mind. A sharp pain in her chest. A strange, unfamiliar emotion was budding in her heart.

She closed her eyes. The scene around her changed. When she opened them again, she was back in the mansion.

She went to the bathroom. The tub was filled with hot water. Stacy took off her holy robes. At this moment, Milly was in her soaked clothes, cold, wasn’t she?

If she had just stayed, she would have prepared a warm bath for her. But she had chosen to run out into the storm.

In the steamy bathroom, the water was as still as a mirror. Lillian’s reflection appeared.

“Our dear Fell God, rejected?”

Lillian’s voice was filled with mockery. Stacy didn’t answer. She just stared at the water, her finger tracing ripples, shattering the reflection, which quickly reformed.

“Hey, silence is boring. And our dear Fell God looks… heartbroken?”

“No way. Our dear Fell God isn’t sad, is she? If so, why not just drag her back?”

“Stacy, you’re the best at that, aren’t you?”

Stacy stirred the water. Lillian’s image shattered, and with it, her voice disappeared.

Was she really that sad? She touched her chest, listening to her heartbeat. Her heart was empty, as if she had lost something, as if she were afraid of something.

Because of Milly, because of the figure that had left her, she was sad?

Stacy was silent. She slowly sank into the tub, the warm water covering her shoulders, but it couldn’t dispel the coldness in her heart.

Her shadow was reflected on the ceiling, shattered by the ripples into countless fragments, like broken memories…

She remembered Milly, covered in blood, whom she had dragged into the bathtub. Every painful sigil on her pale body was her handiwork. At that time, she had smiled as she carved them, telling herself it was to help her learn.

She had smiled at her pain.

And there was more…

The memories flashed. Her reflection on the water’s surface, her expression changing. The past was a mountain, crushing her, leaving her breathless.

She remembered the dungeon. The day she had killed the Platinum Knight who had cursed Milly. She had heard a faint “thank you.” The blind Milly had awkwardly thanked the stranger who had helped her.

If she had known it was her, would she have said it?

A bitter smile on her reflection. She remembered the figure she had held in her arms in the dungeon. She could still feel the warmth of her body. The sleeping little one would unconsciously snuggle up to her. She had craved that feeling.

The memory changed. The figure running out of the dungeon, into the storm. Her face on the water’s surface froze.

She saw Milly walking toward her, whispering a few words, and then leaving without looking back. No matter how she called her name, her back was resolute, as if she never wanted to see her again.

Her fingers unconsciously tightened, creating ripples on the water.

At first, when she realized Milly was not of this world, she had just treated her as a pawn, a tool to achieve her goal. When had things changed?

Was it the day she had found her in the puddle, in the rain?

Was it the nights she had gone to the dungeon to feed her?

Was it when she had decided to take most of the pain for her, to heal her eyes even as she was in agony?

Or was it… when Milly had said “I will never forgive you,” and she hadn’t even had the thought of dragging her back?

Stacy laughed softly, the water rippling with her trembling body.

In that moment, she finally understood the strange emotion in her heart.

It was… care.

An emotion she had thought she would never feel.

When the water grew cold, she got out.

The water on her body instantly evaporated. A black mist enveloped her, and when it dissipated, she was in a black dress. It suited her better than Lillian’s holy robes.

She went to the bedroom. A parchment scroll flew from the bookshelf and hovered before her. The sigil Milly had accidentally changed had bound their souls together. It gave her an idea.

She bit her finger, and blood dripped onto the scroll. Using blood as ink, she quickly drew a complex rune. Just as she was about to finish, the scroll trembled and burst into flames, turning to ash.

“Failed…”

She wasn’t surprised. Even though she had taken over this body, it was still Lillian’s. It wasn’t strong enough to complete such a complex contract.

“You don’t really think you can bind her with this, do you?”

Lillian’s voice echoed in her mind… no, it was her own.

She rubbed her healed finger. Her thoughts drifted again.

What did Milly mean to her? A sharp pain in her heart, as if it were being squeezed.

She looked down, her fingers on her chest. She could feel the strange flutter in her heart. Something was budding.

“So, that’s how it is?”

She raised her hand. Another scroll flew to her. She bit her finger again and drew on it.

When the first one was done, she didn’t stop. She needed a two-way contract. A third scroll flew to her. She concentrated on the framework of the contract, not even noticing the dawn light outside.

When the second contract was done, she lowered her finger. Through the thorn sigil on Milly’s collarbone, she could feel her current state.

Grief.

Sadness.

Despair.

And… love.

Because she hated her, the little one would rather endure all that than stay with her.

The contract wasn’t complete yet. If Milly were on her own, she would be captured sooner or later.

She needed to infuse the scroll with a massive amount of magic. She couldn’t be distracted. But helping Milly was simple.

A tendril emerged from under her dress, twisting and forming into Milly’s shape.

“Go to the west of the city and make some noise.”

The fake Milly nodded and disappeared into the ground.

It would draw most of the attention. As long as she hid well, she wouldn’t be discovered before the contract was complete.

A few nights later, Stacy, having finally completed the contract, collapsed on the bed. Lillian’s body was too weak. She had almost failed several times.

She stood up and went to the window. As she looked out at the dark city, her heart suddenly clenched. Something might have happened to Milly.

Her figure instantly vanished.

…

In a dark alley, a Silver Knight lay in a puddle, motionless. After dealing with him, Milly looked at the half-eaten black bread beside her. Hunger forced her to reach for it.

Before her fingers could touch it, a tendril shot out from the darkness and knocked it away.

Milly whipped around, her red eyes shrinking.

Stacy was behind her, her silver hair gleaming in the moonlight.

She glanced at the knight in the puddle. The danger was gone. She didn’t need to intervene.

She looked at the girl’s tattered clothes, her pathetic state. A strange pain, as if her heart were being squeezed.

“You’d rather pick up these things than stay with me, just for this…”

Stacy’s voice was soft, but it held a suppressed emotion.

So, this was the feeling of heartbreak?