Chapter 123 : She Wasn’t Interested

“Milly… can you just listen to me for a moment?”

Her voice held a rare tremor.

A memory flashed in her mind. That rainy night, she had collapsed in a cold puddle, her consciousness fading. She had seen Stacy appear beside her.

It had been raining heavily then, too. But Stacy’s dress had been untouched by the rain. The raindrops had bounced off an invisible barrier, as if in fear.

But now, as the figure walked into the alley, her soaked white holy robes clung to her body, outlining her full curves. Her wet hair was plastered to her cheeks. Her familiar, almost nightmarish, face was unnaturally pale.

Compared to the last time she had found her, Stacy’s complexion was off. And the rain that should have been repelled was now soaking her.

It was the first time she had seen her like this.

As for her current state… with her appraisal skill, Milly knew it wasn’t an act. And there was no point in faking it. Unless Stacy’s brain had been kicked by a donkey, she wouldn’t think that showing weakness would earn her forgiveness.

What a cliché.

Milly had never expected to see such an expression on Stacy.

She met her gaze, her own eyes void of any emotion.

She had made her feelings clear.

Now, Stacy had something to say. Whether it was to explain her motives or to ask her to stay, Milly wasn’t interested. She wouldn’t listen.

She crawled out of the pile of junk, a hint of regret for the hiding place she had found. She had planned to wait for the rain to stop. Now, she had to leave.

Seeing her emerge, Stacy took a step forward. “Milly… listen to me, I…”

Milly walked past her, stopping to interrupt.

“Stacy… in those days in the dungeon, in those days of malice and torture, I was grateful that someone was willing to take care of me, to be kind to me. To come to the dungeon to feed me, to heal my wounds, to bear the pain of healing my eyes. And now, too. The knights who couldn’t catch up, they were all dealt with by you.”

“I don’t know what your real purpose was, whether you thought it was fun or if you were sincere. But the kindness was real. I can’t deny that.”

“I…”

Milly’s words made Stacy realize that there might still be a chance… a chance for her to come back. She turned, about to speak, but her pupils shrank when she saw Milly’s eyes. It was a look she knew all too well.

“But Stacy, before that, everything you did to me, I won’t forget, and I won’t forgive.”

A clap of thunder. A flash of lightning lit up Stacy’s pale face.

Milly’s words left her frozen. Her lips trembled, but no words came out, only a puff of white mist in the cold rain.

“Milly…”

Stacy finally reached out, trying to grab her wrist. But Milly didn’t hesitate. She walked away without looking back.

“Milly!”

For a moment, she hoped Milly would stop, even for a second.

“Milly…”

She could only watch as her back grew smaller, until it disappeared into the rain.

She never looked back.

Two tentacles emerged from under her holy robes. If she had the thought of dragging her back, they would have shot out and wrapped around her. They writhed restlessly, waiting for a command.

But Stacy didn’t move. She just stared in the direction she had left, her lips moving, as if calling her name.

Seeing this, the tentacles disappeared.

The cold rain continued to fall, trickling down her face, dripping into the dirty puddle below, reflecting her broken image.

She didn’t know how long she stood there. The coldness woke her. She looked down at her muddy boots. She realized her right hand was still outstretched, as if trying to hold on to something.

Her fingers slowly opened, as if trying to catch a dissipating wind.

The sound of church bells brought her back to reality. She pulled her hand back, tucking it into her soaked sleeve. She had been standing in the rain for a long time, so long that her every breath was cold and damp.

She looked up. The rain was letting up. The moonlight was peeking through the clouds.

She had been standing in the rain, in that position, until nightfall.

“This is so unlike me.”

Her reflection in the puddle. If Milly were here, she would have said something sarcastic.

She wasn’t wrong. Lies don’t hurt. The truth is a sharp knife.

She wiped the rain from her face. Whether there were other things mixed in with the rain, only she knew.

…

One of the two knights suddenly stopped.

The other looked back. The next moment, a strange sound came from inside his helmet. With two pops, both their heads exploded, their headless bodies still standing.

Seeing this, the remaining knight was terrified. But the next moment, he was back to normal, as if he hadn’t seen anything, and continued to search for Milly in the opposite direction.

The broken silver threads disappeared. Stacy looked at the remaining thread and did nothing.

As long as one knight remained, as long as he was still searching for Milly, the short-staffed Church wouldn’t send anyone else.

She laughed dryly. When had she become like this? To do so much for Milly.

Thinking of the figure that had left her, she bit her lip until she tasted blood.

“Enough.”

Magic enveloped her, and the water on her body instantly evaporated. In the rising mist, her golden hair turned to silver.

She looked into the distance. She knew that Milly was heading for the city gate. With her current speed, and the time she had to hide during the day, it would take her several days to escape.

She still had enough time to prepare.

Even if Milly hated her, there were some truths she had to know, some things she had to do.

“No matter where you go, you can’t escape. And neither can I.”