Chapter 119 : How Pathetic~

“Stacy, was playing dead fun?”

Huh…

The smile on her lips froze. For a moment, she thought she had misheard.

“Little Milly?”

“Stacy, drop the fake concern.”

Milly’s voice was icy. “I know what you’re planning.”

Even though the body was Lillian’s, the face was Stacy’s, the smile the same, and just as nauseating.

“First, you faked your death.” Milly’s voice was low, as if forced from her throat. “Then, I would be taken by the Church, locked in a cage, and tortured. And you would appear in a different form, showing me kindness.”

“And when it was all over, you would reveal yourself, and I would be so grateful that I would become your obedient little puppet.”

“Am I right, Stacy?”

Her voice was soft, but each word was a dagger to Stacy’s heart. She dropped the smile, then quickly put it back on.

“Now, Little Milly, that’s a very hurtful thing to say.”

The familiar tone reminded her of the old Stacy, the one with a mocking smile.

Memories of the dungeon flashed in her mind. She knew now. It had been Stacy all along.

Bringing her water and food in the middle of the night. Using a special spell to heal her eyes. And during the purification rituals, there would always be a period of time when she felt no pain. She knew now. Stacy was using the sigil on her neck to take the pain for her.

She had done so much for her. If it weren’t for what had happened before, maybe she would have been grateful.

But now, she felt nothing of the sort.

She should have known.

Lillian would never have done those things for her.

From the moment she had approached her as Lillian, to hearing that familiar nickname, she knew. Stacy had faked her death.

It was all a plan. To make her dependent, to make her obedient.

“From the moment you approached me as Lillian,” Milly’s voice trembled, not with fear, but with a sharp, pointed anger, “in the midst of the Church’s malice, you showed me kindness, cared for me.”

“Watching me, like a fool, be grateful to the stranger who cared for me, was it fun?”

“Watching me trust you?”

Stacy was a puppet on the sofa. She looked at the little one before her, wanting to explain, but she couldn’t. She had indeed had a purpose.

Her nails dug into her palms, but Milly couldn’t suppress the storm of emotions.

She had thought, maybe Stacy had changed. But even she didn’t believe it.

Wasn’t this just like before?

The day her identity was exposed, she had been taken home, given a bath, a meal. It had seemed so gentle. And the result was what had happened on the bed, a memory she didn’t want to recall.

Now, it was the same. She would approach her with fake kindness, and when she let her guard down, she would become her obedient puppet.

Faking her death, changing her identity, all for the same game. To make her obedient, to make her leave this world, to achieve her goal.

From start to finish, everything she did was for that one purpose.

“Stacy!” Milly’s lips twisted into a smile uglier than a sob. “You really only think of yourself.”

Stacy’s pupils shrank.

The air froze.

The next moment, Milly stood up. Lightning shot from her fingertips, striking the floor between them, leaving a black, jagged scar. She grabbed a cloak from the rack, threw it on, and ran out into the storm without a second look.

Cold rain lashed her face. She ran toward the city gate, her shoes splashing through the muddy water, staining her new dress.

Her heart was pounding, her breath ragged, but her mind was clear.

Even though Stacy, as Lillian, had cared for her, it didn’t mean she would forgive her for what she had done.

Never!

The rain soaked her clothes. She gritted her teeth and ran faster. She had to leave this city, this place of trouble.

She would go to the demon territory.

The recent events had given her a clue. In the demon territory, she might find the answers she was looking for.

…

A clap of thunder. Stacy, as if waking from a dream, reached out, as if to hold on to something, but her fingers only touched the cold air.

“Milly!”

Her voice was swallowed by the thunder. The figure had already disappeared into the storm.

She didn’t know how long she sat there, staring blankly at the empty fireplace.

She had imagined many possibilities.

Maybe Milly would question her angrily, and she could explain everything. Although she had a purpose, it wasn’t as bad as Milly had said. She could have calmed her down.

Maybe, after all she had been through, Milly would have thrown herself into her arms, and she could have held her, stroked her head, and told her everything was okay.

Even if she had just stared at her coldly, or even attacked her, at least… at least she wouldn’t have just left without a word.

Little Milly had made her choice. She would rather run into the storm, face the Church’s knights, than stay under the same roof with her.

Why had it ended like this?

She had done so much for her. Why couldn’t she just trust her a little? From the beginning, their interests had been aligned.

“How… pathetic.” Stacy laughed, her voice hoarse.

She went to the bathroom to wash her face. Her reflection stared back at her. This expression wasn’t hers.

The figure in the mirror, as if alive, its crimson eyes turning violet.

The Lillian in the mirror raised an eyebrow, her voice filled with mockery.

“Well, Stacy, how pathetic~”