Chapter 284: Dekan’s Dream of the Holy Kingdom (2) |
A few minutes later.
The aurora was like a faint wisp of smoke in the starry sky, unmoving for a long time.
The moonlit night was cool, and all was quiet. The gray-haired young man walked through the mountains and fields without looking back.
He walked straight ahead, the bright moonlight generously shining on the flower bushes beside him.
Behind the lord’s manor was a sea of flowers on a cliff.
And at the end stood a towering ancient tree.
His destination was there.
Leaning against the tree was a red-haired girl with a slightly pale face.
His footsteps quietly sank into the grass, but unexpectedly, he shattered the rare tranquility in the sea of flowers.
The gray-haired young man frowned, seemingly unable to understand why she was smiling.
Just as the gray-haired young man was about to say something.
The red-haired girl gently raised her hand, placed her index finger to her lips, and motioned for him not to speak.
The words that were just about to leave the gray-haired young man’s mouth were forced back down, and he walked towards the girl with a slightly gloomy expression.
The red-haired girl watched the gray-haired young man walk up to her, a smile on her face, and asked:
“Delois, I guess you want to ask me now whether I am smiling out of goodwill or malice? Or neither?”
Delois shook his head:
“Miss, you know that I cannot understand human goodwill and emotions. Why must you deliberately make things difficult for me?”
He did not understand this girl.
Her name was Corotia, and she was the daughter of the lord of this territory.
He first met her and her father almost three years ago.
At first, it was just a whim, and he casually saved a lord who had been ambushed and was on the verge of death, wanting to study this down-and-out middle-aged man who had a desperate yet stubborn look in his eyes.
He did not expect that this lord, with his unique insight, would see through his disguise to the demon underneath.
Just as Delois was about to kill the lord to silence him, the lord actually proposed a contract with him.
The lord promised to teach Delois more about humans and how to disguise himself more perfectly, while Delois would lend him his power.
And at the end of the contract, the lord was also willing to give his life to Delois.
Perhaps it was because he found some interesting emotions and traits in this lord.
For example, compared to demons, the lord actually found some humans to be more evil.
Delois readily accepted the contract.
After the contract, he completed all of the lord’s commissions in just a few months. During their time together, he also successfully learned a lot from the lord.
For Delois, their contract had long been over.
He should have taken the lord’s life as agreed and then left this place.
But changes were always one step ahead of plans.
In the eyes of Delois, who loved to study anthropology, the lord’s daughter, this conspicuous red-haired girl, was like an outlier.
Delois could not understand her thoughts and feelings at all.
She was like a collection of difficult problems that perplexed Delois.
He had originally planned to leave this territory long ago.
But because of this girl, he had stayed here for another two years.
He had also lived like a real human for two years.
Although in the first few months, Delois mostly did dirty work like eliminating evil-doers.
But in the following two years, he helped the lord with many other things that could be called doing good deeds and accumulating merit.
This was extremely absurd for a demon.
Perhaps an ordinary demon would have long been driven mad by such a trial of falling into goodness.
But for Delois, he believed it was all worth it.
If one day he could understand this girl’s thoughts, he would surely be able to take a great step forward in the great academic pursuit of understanding human emotions.
Unfortunately, Corotia suffered from an incurable terminal illness of this era and did not have long to live.
He did not know if he could figure out the answer before she died.
But that was fine too.
Once she died.
He would have no reason to stay in this territory anymore.
He could peacefully head to his next destination.
As Delois thought, his face gradually returned to its original expression.
That perfect fake smile.
However, before the girl Corotia could say her next words.
Her expression turned pale, and her figure swayed.
It seemed that just standing up had used up all her strength.
Delois quickly stepped forward to support her.
It was not out of concern.
But a conditioned reflex of an excellent butler.
The moment he truly touched her, Delois realized that she had become so thin and haggard, as if she were a feather that could disappear at any moment.
Perhaps those chosen by death become thinner and more beautiful, as if to show that death is superior to life.
There was no sadness on her face.
Only that warm smile that seemed to be able to dispel even the moonlight.
For some reason, Delois felt that she was more beautiful at this moment than any work of art he had ever seen before.
“I probably don’t have much time left… I might not be able to give you the answer you want.”
Corotia said in a weak tone.
She gradually lost the strength to even stand.
She let Delois hold her, nestling in his arms without any reservation.
“It’s alright. This was an unexpected surprise outside of my deal with the lord. I will not be disappointed by your death, nor can I feel the sadness and grief that the lord does.”
Delois' words sounded very vicious.
And what he said was indeed the truth.
A demon could not feel the kind of sorrow humans feel at parting.
However, this did not make the red-haired girl sad or angry. She seemed to have gotten used to this gray demon friend.
She just continued to say:
“Although you say that and think that, the memories of our three years together are all in your mind, right?”
Delois: “Yes.”
Hearing Delois' affirmative answer, the red-haired girl smiled sweetly:
“Let me tell you, people’s thoughts change over time. When you think of me again someday in the future, you might have different thoughts.”
Delois frowned.
He seemed to have become even more confused.
“I cannot understand. It has already taken me several years just to learn to distinguish between the good and evil that humans speak of. Not to mention these strange things you always say. After all, it is impossible for me to become a true human.”
The girl shook her head with a helpless smile, as if preparing to change the subject, and asked:
“Then if it were possible to become a human, would you want to be a good person or a bad person?”
Delois did not dislike communicating with her. As long as she asked, he would answer.
As long as she could still pose difficult questions.
His interest in her would not diminish.
If he could have another five years, another ten years, perhaps he really could find the answer.
So Delois thought for a moment and replied:
“…I don’t know, but I know that if I follow the wishes of you and the lord, the things you have me do can be called punishing evil and promoting good, so I have done the things of a good person.”
“Then are you willing to continue being a good person?”
The red-haired girl immediately pressed on.
Delois was stunned.
He had never thought that there would be a naive human in the world who would ask a demon if he wanted to be a good person.
Even if he answered “Yes.”
Would anyone really believe it?
Both the question itself and the possible answers sounded like a joke.
PART 2
He had originally intended to give a perfunctory answer.
But looking at Corotia, and thinking that this interesting girl was about to die.
Her eyes seemed to be looking forward to him continuing to be a “good person.”
How ridiculous.
However, he, a demon obsessed with studying humans, seemed to have no right to say that about her.
To achieve this strange scene, not only did it require a strange human, but also a strange demon.
The story had developed to this point, and half of the reason was because of his own obsession with studying, imitating, and learning from humans.
Since that was the case.
According to human logic, it seemed that he should comply with her wishes to be in line with reason.
Hospice care?
Yes, that was the concept.
Delois thought for a moment and replied:
“If you wish, I don’t mind being a ‘good person.’ After all, ‘good person’ or ‘bad person’ makes no difference to me. But I will only follow your instructions to act or to play the role of a human. I don’t know how to become a ‘good person’ as you define it.”
“Delois, I’ll teach you,”
A faint smile touched the corner of the girl’s mouth.
She seemed to be whispering, what a fool.
The end of a demon’s intelligence and rationality looked like human clumsiness.
But no matter what, she was happy with Delois' answer,
“If you cannot understand goodwill, yet you are striving to understand human emotions, then go and stand on the opposite side of evil, always, forever, and you will be a good person…”
“…”
Delois fell silent.
He suddenly realized.
He seemed to have made a tremendous promise.
“When you truly understand one day, you won’t regret what you’ve done in the past…”
The girl’s eyelashes trembled slightly, her vision blurred, and she continued to murmur as if she were about to lose to sleepiness.
She knew that demons could not feel guilt or the condemnation of conscience.
But she believed in Delois.
One day he would understand.
It was a pity she would not be there to see that day.
Her last wish to the Goddess was that when that day came, she did not want Delois to suffer.
“I understand. As you wish. Consider it the tuition fee I have paid.”
Delois sighed as if he had figured it out and accepted his loss.
Although his tone was as cold as if establishing a contract.
But these words, devoid of any emotional fluctuation, put the girl’s mind at ease.
“But out of selfishness, I hope you never understand the human heart…”
From the corner of the girl’s face, which seemed to be carved from moonlight, a crystal tear seemed to fall.
“Why?”
Delois looked at the girl and asked in confusion.
Although there were many things he did not understand during his two-plus years with the girl.
But what puzzled him the most every time was always about the things the girl mentioned regarding the human heart.
“Because your heart will break, you know…”
The red-haired girl in his arms slowly closed her eyes.
It seemed that she would not wake up again for a long, long time.
……
Dekan woke up with a start.
He sat up in bed, panting.
He recalled the scene from his dream.
In that dream, he had forgotten who he was.
He only remembered that his heart had remained untouched from beginning to end.
However, the moment he woke up, recalling the red figure that had vanished like a phantom.
He felt flustered, his heart aching as if it were about to shatter into a thousand pieces, as if he were about to lose half his life.
Dekan raised his paw and suddenly realized he was still in cat form, and this was not his room.
And beside him, Cornelia seemed to have just woken up as well.
She sat up, rubbed her eyes, and a smile quickly appeared on her face when she saw the little gray cat.
“Did you sleep well?”
Cornelia reached out to pet the little gray cat and asked in a gentle voice.
Dekan did not say a word.
He dispelled his cat form.
He turned back into a human and hugged Cornelia.
Although Cornelia was stunned.
She still placed her hand on Dekan’s back and patted him gently.
Unlike the cold and weak hand in the dream, Cornelia’s hand was warm and reassuring.
“I’m sorry… those weren’t my true feelings…”
Dekan’s voice was full of pain and self-reproach, intermittent.
“What words?”
Cornelia asked in confusion, then, as if she had thought of something:
“Could it be, the heartless Delois telling Corotia that ‘he didn’t care if she died’?”
“Did you dream the same thing too?”
Dekan asked in surprise.
He wanted to push Cornelia away to ask her properly, but found that Cornelia did not let go, and he could not push her away.
The difference in their strength was too great.
“Yes. And let me tell you, although Corotia said she wasn’t angry at the time, she was actually very sad inside!”
Cornelia’s tone did not betray any joy or anger.
But she seemed to be secretly laughing.
“I’m sorry…”
Dekan became listless again and gave up struggling.
Being held by Cornelia, he was in a state of being at her mercy.
He had already verified this before.
“Why are you apologizing to me? You are not Delois, and I am not Corotia. You are the Dekan who cares about me the most.”
Cornelia rested her chin on Dekan’s shoulder, her head pressed against him, and she closed her eyes and said.
Slowly.
It seemed to gradually calm Dekan’s mood.
……
At this time, outside Cornelia’s bedroom window, a black cat was also nimbly jumping, then skillfully opened the window and passed through the curtains.
“Cornelia, meow! I’m back! Quick, tell me…”
The Cat Teacher shouted excitedly, as if he had just been released from prison.
However, before he could finish his sentence.
He saw the scene in the bedroom.
The two of them were silent.
Dekan’s expression was complicated as he bit his lip, but his eyes were filled more with relief and release.
And Cornelia had her eyes closed, a smile on her lips like that of a long-lost reunion.
They just embraced each other quietly, as if they had forgotten time.
“Meow? Meow meow??! Meow meow meow!!!”
He rolled his eyes and fainted from excitement on the spot.
A transparent cat-head ghost seemed to be about to emerge from the corner of his mouth.
The Cat Teacher was murdered for unknown reasons.