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“Alice… I’m sorry, I might… have to break my promise.”
The girl, her hands stained with blood, knelt nearby. She turned, offering Alice an apologetic smile.
A swirling vortex of darkness erupted around her, slowly consuming the girl at its center.
Alice lunged forward, desperate to save her, only to find her own legs ensnared by shadowy, tentacle-like tendrils.
She unleashed her potent Light Magic relentlessly, yet it proved powerless against the dark restraints. They seemed to multiply endlessly.
Alice could only watch helplessly as the girl’s final, pale and bloodless face was swallowed by the black vortex, vanishing completely.
“No… don’t…”
“Don’t!”
Alice jolted awake, bolting upright in bed. She gasped for air, her back drenched in a cold sweat.
After a moment of disoriented scanning, she realized it had all been a nightmare.
She tried to rise, but found her legs felt strangely numb.
It was then that Alice discovered the true culprit behind her terrifying dream.
Eve was asleep, curled on her side with her head resting on Alice’s lap, one small hand clutched there too.
‘So those tentacles in my dream were Eve-chan’s hands…’
Alice chuckled, a wave of relief washing over her. She had feared encountering something sinister.
Gazing at the girl’s serene sleeping face, Alice couldn’t bring herself to wake her. Instead, she reached out, gently caressing Eve’s head through her soft, black hair.
At the tender touch, the girl instinctively nestled closer into her palm.
This sensation made Alice feel as though she were petting a kitten.
‘How utterly therapeutic, meow! o(*////▽////*)q’
A blush crept across Alice’s cheeks.
After slipping into the bathtub last night, she hadn’t managed to do anything before the sheer comfort of the bath overwhelmed her, sending her straight to sleep.
Remembering this, she intensified her head-patting, as if to make up for all the missed opportunities from the previous night.
Only when Eve’s delicate brows furrowed slightly, and she turned over, evading Alice’s hand, did Alice finally cease.
‘Today’s dose of Eve-chan energy has been fully replenished. Satisfied!’
However, the nightmare from last night still gnawed at her thoughts.
Alice averted her gaze, looking towards the window obscured by curtains. The tenderness in her eyes, so evident when she looked at Eve, was now replaced by a chilling resolve.
Xien had been correct; Alice did indeed know who had funded the construction of the cemetery outside the city.
She had stood by Eve’s side all those years ago, watching as the burial grounds were completed.
At the time, Eve had confided her thoughts to Alice, remarking that a cemetery finished at such a juncture felt utterly inauspicious.
Alice understood that finding clues about Eve through conventional means, especially with her traces deliberately erased from historical records, offered little hope.
She would have to find other avenues to investigate.
“Continental Calendar, August 719…”
Alice’s hand involuntarily clenched into a fist.
This was the date she had seen etched on Eve’s tombstone.
Despite the passage of so many years, Alice vividly recalled the time she had departed Yarokan City for the Holy See to be appointed as a Saintess: December 717, in the heart of winter.
Less than two years after her departure, Eve had died, buried in the very cemetery she herself had financed.
It was as if Eve’s ominous words from back then had been tragically confirmed.
That cemetery was indeed inauspicious.
‘I will uncover everything that happened back then, Lady Eve.’
‘You will not die a mysterious death, leaving even your murderer unknown.’
Alice withdrew her gaze, turning it back to the still-sleeping Eve, her thoughts a silent vow.
After applying a healing buff to her numb legs, Alice remained motionless, sitting quietly and admiring Eve’s profile.
Not long after, the girl’s eyelashes fluttered. She rubbed her drowsy eyes, slowly stirring awake.
“Good morning, Eve-chan.”
“Mmm?”
Still groggy from sleep, Eve instinctively mumbled, “Morning…”
She attempted to sit up, but found her entire body devoid of strength. Her mind felt utterly blank, as if a zombie had devoured her brain.
Eve lifted a hand, pressing the back of it to her forehead. This small gesture alone cost her considerable effort.
‘Huh? Did I… overindulge recently? Why am I so utterly drained?’
These were the thoughts swirling in Eve’s mind as she slowly roused from sleep.
Alice’s brow furrowed, having noticed Eve’s unusual state.
“Eve-chan, what’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”
‘What could be happening? Why is Eve so weak?’
‘Did something occur last night after I fell asleep in the bath?’
Alice’s heart instantly leaped into her throat.
Unfortunately, Eve was now an undead, utterly devoid of life force. Otherwise, Alice could have used her priestly abilities to check Eve’s physical condition.
Moreover, as a Saintess, all of Alice’s powers were useless against the undead Eve. Most of her equipped items were designed to combat the undead.
Not only could she not help Eve, but she might even worsen her condition, potentially killing her. It would be a blessing if she didn’t add insult to injury.
Faced with such a predicament, Alice felt a profound sense of helplessness for the very first time.
After a brief moment of mental buffering, Eve’s mind finally cleared from the lingering sluggishness of waking. She remembered the reason for her sudden weakness.
‘It seems the Physique attribute also encompasses one’s physical constitution…’
‘A one-time deduction of five from all attributes is truly brutal!’
‘I need to complete my class change quest quickly and raise my attributes back up, or I’ll truly become a delicate, soft, easily-toppled clumsy loli.’
With this thought, Eve hastily shook her head at Alice, beginning to explain, “It’s fine, Alice. I was just a little too tired last night. No need to worry.”
“…Really?”
Alice remained unconvinced. Eve was still slumped on her lap; such words carried no persuasive power.
On the contrary, the more Eve insisted, the more Alice suspected something was genuinely wrong with her.
Eve understood that simple assurances wouldn’t suffice. She needed to add some convincing details to put Alice’s mind at ease.
Taking a deep breath, she feigned exasperation. “Of course, it’s true! Why would I lie about something like this?”
“I wonder who it was last night who kept saying she wanted to bathe, only to plunge into the tub and immediately fall asleep, leaving me to scrub her clean and carry her back to bed?”
Indeed, this genuine, albeit slightly resentful, grumbling made Alice blush and avert her gaze, feeling a pang of guilt.
Naturally, that alone wasn’t enough.
Eve continued, “Besides, aren’t all undead suppressed during the day?”
“I was already tired, and with the daytime suppression, it’s only natural I’d be this weak, you silly Alice.”
Her explanation was logical, well-reasoned, and ultimately convincing.
Alice, upon hearing it, conceded that Eve had a point. Though she had been called “silly,” it was far better than hearing bad news, and her worries finally subsided.
The adventure continues! If you loved this chapter, Spring Delight Circus is a must-read. Click here to start!
Read : Spring Delight Circus
