Chapter 52: The Kindling’s Origins

Snow shot her a glare, then sharply rapped the woman on the head.

“Go on, scram. Why don’t you ever mention how you spend all day holed up in the Witch’s Guild researching, never bothering to step outside?”

Despite being struck, the woman showed no displeasure; instead, she seemed to grow even more excited.

“Vice-President, would you mind hitting me again?”

A few dark lines appeared on Snow’s forehead, her violet eyes gazing eerily at the woman.

The woman instinctively recoiled, the fervent expression on her face finally receding somewhat.

“Ahem… you know as well as I do that time is growing increasingly short. How could I possibly go out for a stroll?”

“Honestly, Vice-President, you could at least find me a little toy to play with. I’m practically going mad from boredom.”

The woman’s gaze instinctively fell upon Gern, startling him into quickly retreating behind Snow.

The aura emanating from this woman was equally unfathomable; her strength was likely not much less than Miss Snow’s.

‘More importantly, the pathological obsession and possessiveness seemed to ooze from her eyes. Gern would bet his life that if he ever fell into her hands, he wouldn’t fare well at all.’

Snow glanced back at Gern, offering him a reassuring look before turning to glare at the woman.

“Selina, don’t even think about him. He carries the Dragon’s Kindling.”

At these words, Selina, who had moments ago worn a seductive smile, suddenly widened her eyes. Her previously narrow eyes instantly rounded into perfect circles.

“Impossible! How can this be? We haven’t even created the Dragon’s Kindling yet, how could he…”

As if struck by a profound shock, Selina’s eyes remained fixed on Gern’s body.

As her mind focused, she indeed sensed the power of the Kindling within Gern’s body.

“This… how is this possible?”

Selina stared, her eyes wide with disbelief.

As thoughts raced through her mind, a possibility suddenly occurred to her.

“Are these products from the future?”

Snow had no better explanation herself. She had previously attempted some divinations regarding Gern’s situation, but had yielded no conclusive results.

She wasn’t entirely sure of the item’s true origin.

‘If this truly came from the near future, wouldn’t the Kindling they were currently trying to create simply vanish, travelling back in time to some past moment?’

The more Selina pondered, the deeper her frown became. For now, she could only define it as a product from the future.

“So, what do you plan to do next?”

Snow surveyed their surroundings, and Selina immediately understood her unspoken intent, leading them to a spacious room within the castle.

Bathed in bright light, the room was situated on the second floor of the castle. It contained a bizarre assortment of instruments and countless crumpled wads of paper scattered across the floor.

These papers were unlike ordinary yellow parchment; they were pristine white, suggesting a high-quality material.

The crumpled papers were densely covered with notes, most likely Selina’s discarded drafts.

This was Selina’s usual laboratory, and also where she resided.

“My apologies, Vice-President. I haven’t had a chance to tidy up.”

Selina curtsied slightly, her movement akin to that of a maid, a gesture born of habit.

“Alright, can we discuss it now?”

Selina’s gaze inadvertently swept over Gern once more, a flicker of greed dancing in her eyes.

This prompted Gern to shrink back further behind Snow, sensing extreme danger from the woman before him. At this moment, his only refuge was Miss Snow.

Snow glanced back at the wary Gern, smiling wryly.

“Selina, this child has a pitiable background. Please don’t scheme against him. For now, let’s discuss the Kindling.”

“Oh, fine, fine.”

Selina sighed with a hint of regret. Snow then recounted her and Gern’s experiences, detailing Gern’s unique condition to Selina.

Upon hearing Gern’s story, Selina couldn’t help but scrutinize him more closely.

“Come with me.”

She pointed at Gern, then turned and walked towards the deeper part of the room. Gern looked at Snow, and only after receiving her nod did he follow.

After walking about six or seven steps, Selina abruptly stopped before a shimmering light barrier. This curtain of light obscured the view ahead, making it impossible to discern what lay beyond.

As Selina infused it with her magic, the light barrier slowly began to recede.

“Wait for me here for a moment.”

She then walked alone into the light barrier. Before long, Selina returned to Gern’s side, holding a pure, flawless orb in her hands.

“Come, drop your blood onto it.”

Gern gazed at the orb before him, finding it increasingly familiar the longer he looked.

‘This orb was practically identical to the one within his own body.’

Gern swallowed hard. The agony of integrating the previous orb was still vivid in his memory, and the thought of enduring it again was truly daunting.

Seeing Gern’s reluctance to step forward, Selina pouted in displeasure.

“Tch, what a coward. It’s just an orb, what are you so scared of?”

Gern vehemently shook his head. This was more than just a matter of fear. The sensation he’d experienced the last time he touched such an orb was akin to his entire body dissolving.

‘The pain was not unlike being dismembered by Lilia in his previous life. Gern absolutely refused to endure it again.’

“Fine, I’ll do it myself then.”

Before Gern could react, Selina was beside him. He felt a prick on his fingertip, and a drop of fresh blood welled up, falling onto the orb.

The orb absorbed the blood as if it were water soaking up ink, quickly turning completely crimson.

Gern’s heart immediately leaped into his throat. He looked at Selina with a sense of despair, a flicker of anger in his eyes.

Seeing Gern’s expression, Selina grew even more excited, teasing him playfully beside him.

“Oh, don’t worry, it’ll be very comfortable soon. You just need to wait quietly.”

As Selina’s words faded, Gern felt a strange stirring from the orb, as if it intended to merge with his body.

‘This! It can’t be…’

The familiar agony surged through him; he felt his body being torn apart and reassembled. Unlike the previous integration, this time Gern perceived the merging process as exceptionally slow.

He could distinctly feel the orb’s movements as it ripped through his meridians, as if something new were growing within him.

“Ah~”

He could no longer bear it, letting out a cry. Yet, as the orb continued its transformation, his voice gradually softened, becoming delicate and tender, sounding almost as if he were engaged in an indescribable act.

Selina watched the scene unfold, her face flushed with rapture, her silver-black serpentine pupils seeming to brim with something unsettling.

Gern was no longer aware of his surroundings; his legs trembled uncontrollably under the extreme pain, until he finally collapsed to the ground.

Gern felt his body being reshaped, his mind teetering on the brink of collapse amidst the torment.

However, a faint power within him sustained his soul, preventing it from being torn apart and reassembled by this overwhelming force.

He seemed to glimpse once more the colossal, sky-obscuring silver dragon’s body, hovering directly above him.

“The future… entrusted… to you…”