Chapter 32

In the misty bathroom, the young man stood in front of the blurry mirror, casually brushing aside his wet hair.

There was no need to conceal his appearance here, and he revealed his original features.

Water droplets dripped from her forehead, running down her brow bone, across her high nose, down her lips which were flushed red from the heat, and down to her chin. She paused for a moment before slowly dripping down.

His hair had grown longer, reaching his shoulders. He had handsome, beautiful features, pale skin with a hint of color, and long, thick eyelashes beneath a pair of deep, heterochromatic eyes.

A blurry figure was reflected in the mirror.

The poet has an inconspicuous little mole under his lips.

The image fell on that pale skin, carrying a somewhat ambiguous meaning.

He was still dripping wet, his muscular body was well-defined, his back was somewhat thin, and his skin was as pale as his face, but because he had just been soaked in hot water, it had a slightly ambiguous pink tinge.

"Ah... what was the drying spell again?" Veris put on a bathrobe, casually tied a knot at his waist, thought for a moment but couldn't remember, so he simply ignored it.

He's not casual about clothes, especially those worn outside.

The silk bathrobe was made by the most skilled tailor in the palace, and the material was of the finest quality. The pure black fabric slid with the young man's steps, further highlighting his snow-white skin.

Veris dried her hair, and once it stopped dripping, she opened the bathroom door.

The air was slightly chilly, and for the first time ever, he sneezed. He was startled at first, then horrified: "Damn it, can I get sick too?"

Realizing she needed to take care of her health, Veris immediately went to the window, closed it (which she had only opened half a day ago), and then increased the temperature of the bright flames overhead.

The entire second floor quickly warmed up.

He shook his head and stepped barefoot onto the carpet—a carpet that Sylvain had previously cleaned with magic.

Then he went down the stairs and walked into the inner room where Sylvain was organizing books.

The inner hall has a long table, which is smaller than the main hall, but about the same size as the small attic Veris used to live in.

Sylvain placed the categorized magic notes on the table. Hearing light footsteps, he paused, turned around, and as he was about to speak to Veris as usual, his gaze froze.

It was the long-awaited face that truly belonged to Veris.

The man was still shrouded in moisture, and the sudden increase in temperature in the space was probably because he had forgotten the drying magic and wanted to use this method to dry himself quickly.

She was only wearing a black silk bathrobe, revealing her fair collarbone and calves. Sylvain glanced down at her and saw that Veris had come barefoot. The reddish-brown carpet made his skin look even more striking, and Sylvain felt a little dizzy for a moment.

The events that had chilled him to the bone were now completely forgotten. He felt his head spinning, the flames above his head radiating an unbearable heat, and the air itself seemed to be filled with scorching heat.

"Hmm? Are they all categorized?" Veris had already walked over to the side, picked up a notebook at random, and opened it. It happened to be a notebook marked "somewhat difficult." He paused for a moment, "You haven't looked at the contents yet, have you? You've only categorized them according to this label on the title page."

Sylvain sighed and replied, "Yes, it needs more detailed categorization, doesn't it?"

They have plenty of time... He was confident that once these things were sorted out, it wouldn't take seven days.

Veris shook his head, turned to one of the pages, looked at it carefully, and handed the notebook to Sylvain, saying, "No, it's not that. It's correct to classify by level, but most of these specially marked notebooks are forbidden books."

“The magic I experimented with isn’t really applicable right now,” Veris said, somewhat conflicted.

In the more than one hundred years after the founding of Lortheran, there were many magic books of unknown origin. The Church collected them, removed the inappropriate content, and then compiled them into the magic books published by the Church. The inappropriate content was also sorted out by Veris.

Monopolizing magic is a long process.

Magic spells that sound evil are, of course, classified as forbidden arts.

Veris has a high talent for magic, but that doesn't mean he knows all magic. So, over the long years, he has always liked to try out certain forbidden techniques.

Some forbidden spells may appear to be incredibly powerful, but in reality, their damage range is quite small. With some modifications, they could even be added to the church's magic books.

Sylvain looked down at the page Veris had opened, and a crack appeared in his expression.

[A magic spell said to make the other person fall in love after being cast]

[A spell that supposedly guarantees pregnancy after casting]

On the left and right were two large titles, with a long string of text below them. After scanning them haphazardly, he saw at the bottom that Veris had annotated: "Heart-fluttering magic seems to work, pregnancy magic is pure nonsense."

"How...did you conduct the experiment?" Sylvain asked with difficulty.

Veris leaned closer to take a look; he had only glanced at it earlier, but now he could see the contents clearly.

"This... I've used it on others, and that young man did indeed fall in love with the girl. However, the pregnancy magic is fake; a new life can't just appear out of thin air. It really does have to follow the most basic rules," he sighed.

Sylvain: "Isn't the specific incantation written on it?"

“A spell?” Veris blinked.

He moved closer, his body still carrying the lingering scent of soap, mixed with his own unique aroma, making Sylvain feel the flames above his head grow even hotter.

Immediately afterwards, he heard Veris recite a long string of incantations in a smooth and flowing manner.

The magical elements within the space instantly surged, Sylvain's pupils contracted sharply, his hand holding the notebook trembled as he closed it and turned to look at the person next to him.

Veris added, "Don't let the strange sound of this magic fool you, the incantation is quite long. It seems that many people used to enjoy using it."

The magical elements almost converged around him the moment he uttered the incantation, but they immediately collapsed upon touching something. Sylvain's eyes reflected the withered magical elements as he lowered them.

Reciting the incantation with complete confidence would, of course, prevent the magic from taking shape; for Veris, the continent's top magician, this was far too easy.

"Yes, everyone hopes that their loved one will like them back," he said softly.

Veris wholeheartedly agreed. He snatched the notebook from Sylvain's hand and put it back in its original place, saying lazily, "In short, there's no need to organize forbidden techniques. Manipulating emotions and such are unreliable things anyway."

"Is it unreliable?" Sylvain looked at him.

The person, wearing only a yukata, hummed in agreement and continued flipping through the notes. However, he soon turned to the stack of scrolls and said, "For a race with a soul, emotions are indispensable. There may be exceptions, but it is undeniable that the concept of 'love' absolutely exists in all souls at the beginning of their birth."

like……?

Sylvain stared intently at Veris, his hands hanging at his sides, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing together, and said calmly, "You seem to know a lot about this."

Veris, holding a scroll, looked up at him with a hint of surprise.

The young man smiled and said, "I don't think I've ever revealed a secret before."

He held the scroll in one hand, stroked his chin, and seemed to have thought of something interesting: "But it concerns the faith of the church, which basically no one knows. I forgot to tell you."

The faith of the church?

Sylvain looked up at him.

Veris put the scroll back, turned around, leaned against the long table, crossed his arms and pondered for a while before saying, "The sudden appearance of the hero will definitely cause trouble in the Demon King's Forest, that's a certainty, but there is something even more important."

He drew a line with his long, slender fingers in front of him, and a light golden magic circle appeared. He reached out and plunged his palm into the magic circle, quickly taking out an item from it.

It is a crystal ball, an alchemical artifact known as a "record stone," capable of recording a scene.

After the magic was infused, a star chart quickly appeared in front of me.

Sylvain looked at the star chart without saying a word; he knew nothing about astronomy.

But when Veris touched the star chart floating in the void, the stars dimmed, except for ten stars that shone exceptionally bright, and the brightness of those ten stars varied.

“Hero, Demon King.” Veris pointed to two stars on the map, one in the north and one in the south.

He explained to Sylvan earnestly, as if he had returned to the days in the small attic, where he carefully taught Sylvan various kinds of magic.

“And of these eight stars, the middle one is the brightest, overshadowing both the hero and the demon king,” Veris said proudly, pointing to the star. “That is me.”

"And the other seven correspond to the Seven Great Gods." He pursed his lips as he said this.

Sylvain stared at those long, slender, white fingers for a long while before saying, "Originally, there were no stars surrounding the Pope's Star."

Veris snapped his fingers: "That's right, but now, Pope Star is surrounded by the other nine stars, which means the Seven Gods are beginning to revive, and magic is awakening ahead of schedule. Do you understand?"

The Seven Gods have been revived, that's what they say, but Yannis is the one who's jumping around the most enthusiastically.

It's also possible that this guy has more conscious memories than other gods.

But Sylvain was clearly more concerned with something else, staring intently at Veris: "With the seven gods resurrected, will the others also be resurrected?"

"Resurrection?" Veris asked in confusion, but he honestly thought about it for a moment before answering, "It's probably impossible. For ordinary people, reincarnation is possible, since it's about the same as the cycle of reincarnation established by the demons."

“…Hmm.” Sylvain looked at the star chart again. “Is there anything I can do?”

Upon hearing this, Veris immediately remembered something important. He frowned, but didn't say anything immediately. Instead, he erased the star chart and smiled, "The current task is naturally to organize the notes. I'll go get the new books; I've already asked those people to prepare them."

The blank books were something Veris had been requesting the Papacy to prepare. Now that so many had been requested at once, the bishops were both excited and thrilled, speculating that the Pope was about to make a big move.

Most importantly, even the Holy Son has been summoned away!

How to determine the standard for shortening overly lengthy magical spells is also a problem.

Veris led Sylvain to another proper study, which contained only a large table. After looking at it, he happily decided to go to the Papacy later to bring over another one.

The study was quite spacious, with brand-new notebooks neatly arranged on the floor. After all, these were meant for the Pope, so the paper was of the highest quality.

“Those spells are just syllables and symbols going back and forth. Just delete anything you see that's unnecessary.” Veris was quite reassured. “You’ll understand once you read through my notes. If you’re still unsure, just tell me.”

Sylvain nodded, then was ushered out of the study by Veris, who smiled and said, "Go wash up first."

He did not refuse, and he also needed some time to return to the Papacy immediately.

As he watched Sylvain walk upstairs, Veris's smile vanished. He turned around, casually closing the study door behind him, instantly darkening a section of the bright corridor.

He stood in front of the desk, on which lay a scroll. It was not inscribed with intricate magic circles, but rather with a long string of incantations.

Veris lowered his eyes, his fingertips brushing over the incantation, finally landing on the last symbol, his expression complex.

It wasn't quite a symbol, but rather a pattern, a small heart shape, adorning the end of the incantation, making one wonder about its purpose.

In fact, it wasn't a proper incantation.

Veris raised his palm, and a small magic circle appeared in his palm, but instead of the light gold that others were used to seeing, it was a beautiful pink.

He stared intently at the patterns on the magic circle. Even the pattern at the center of the magic circle had turned into a beautiful, unidentified flower, and upon closer inspection, a heart-shaped pattern could be seen adorning the center.

The main reason for Sylvain's departure was that Veris remembered something equally important.

He wasn't sure if this would affect his future, but he had a nagging feeling that something was wrong.

With the seven gods resurrected, Yannis will awaken, Sylvain will be reincarnated, and there is another character who may also appear.

But if He doesn't appear, it means something bad is going to happen to Veris.

He pursed his lips and withdrew his fingers, and the pink magic circle on his palm disappeared as if it had never been there.

"This is not good," he muttered to himself in distress.

He hadn't figured out how to deal with all the uncontrollable factors that might occur if Sylvain's memories were to awaken, such as triggering a riot by certain species, or his friend falling into a state of chaotic will.

Now another deadly one has arrived.

Whether the resurgence of the seven deities is a revival of their souls or their divine status is still open to debate.

A resurrection of the soul is one thing, but if it's a divine essence...

Veris felt a chill run down his spine. He simply couldn't imagine that one day he would fall madly in love with someone, then fawn over them and beg for their affections until he got them.

Veris's gaze returned to the scroll on the table. He poked at it irritably and muttered to himself, "What karma."

He sighed, sat down, and pulled out seven or eight coins from thin air. The coins had different designs on them, and Veris looked down at them, seemingly struggling.

The attic was surprisingly well soundproofed, perhaps because it was inlaid with sound-insulating crystals during construction. Veris subconsciously looked up at the ceiling, as if trying to sense what Sylvain upstairs was doing.

For some reason, he felt a little guilty.

But now he was really troubled. Veris sighed again and murmured, "Now that the seven gods have begun to revive, your will is probably starting to awaken as well."

"Sylvan, my good friend, tell me, what should I do if one day I truly fall in love with someone?"

The coins rolled in the air. Veris raised his hand, gathered them up, and pressed them down, right onto the scroll.

He instinctively closed his eyes, and slowly spread his palm open, revealing the patterns on the coins one by one.

The eight coins are engraved with different patterns. The divination techniques from hundreds of years ago have long been lost, but they were very popular during the time of the Seven Gods.

In the past, when Veris was bored, he always liked to play with these eight coins.

Ask your deceased best friend all sorts of random questions.

Where should we go if the weather's bad tomorrow? The new crown prince seems very mischievous; I don't know how to discipline him. Should the church's taxes be increased...?

He wasn't sure if his divination was accurate, since the results were mostly positive, as if Sylvain was earnestly telling him, "Whatever you like."

However, he suddenly felt inexplicably nervous. The flames above his head seemed too hot, and a thin layer of sweat appeared on his forehead.

He knew the results were in, but he was a little afraid to look.

After a while, Veris finally made up his mind: maybe this divination wasn't accurate either.

He opened one eye a crack and froze when he saw the pattern on the first coin.

Then he opened both eyes and stared blankly at the pattern of the eight coins in front of him.

Front view—I love you.

Veris felt as if he had been hit on the head. He stared at the eight coins, each pattern, no matter how they were combined, had only one meaning.

To express love.

The eight patterns stacked together form eight "I love you" messages.

An unprecedented look of embarrassment crossed his face, and he stubbornly flipped the coin over.

However, the negative outcome is far from the positive one.

Veris pressed his trembling hand to his mouth, struggling to breathe.

On the other hand—I will always, always, cling to you.

The ultimate love and hate, sixteen patterns. Veris had used these eight coins to divine countless times, and he couldn't possibly be wrong. But now he couldn't help but wonder if he had asked the wrong person.

"It's a ghost." He covered the eight tails-up coins with his hand, repeating the same phrase over and over.

The results were completely different from those of past divinations.

The young man frowned, stubbornly stirring the eight coins again, muttering, "Sylvan, you must be joking with me."

However, the result this time was almost the same as the last time.

It's just that the reverse side has a slightly different meaning.

[do not leave Me]

The reverse image often signifies negative emotions, and this statement certainly doesn't convey the same positive meaning as the forward image.

Veris abruptly stood up, stuffed the eight coins into his storage space, and said expressionlessly to the air, "Sylvain has gone mad."

I don't know if I'm comforting myself or trying to convince myself.

If he had another chance, he wouldn't have thought about those messy things, and he wouldn't have taken out the coin. Now, he's upset and can't find the culprit.

As for the person upstairs, Veris prides himself on separating public and private matters, and he also has a saying that goes, "Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt its debtor." What does his adopted son have to do with what his close friend did?

Thinking of Sylvain now, Veris's expression improved. Although he didn't know what was wrong with Sylvain's godhood, his reincarnation was still a good child. Apart from having a slightly strange temper, he was good in every way and the most perfect person in the world.

Of course, this doesn't mean that the previous Sylvain wasn't perfect.

It's all the fault of the seven great gods' resurrection, which has turned Sylvain's will into this state.

Veris was furious, and in a short time, he had already blamed other gods for his best friend's abnormality.

"By the way," he looked up in confusion, "why has Sylvain been gone for so long?"

After carefully sensing the surroundings, Veris exclaimed "Huh? Why is Sylvain back at the Papacy?"

They probably need to take something, like clothes or something.

Veris immediately thought of a reason and stopped dwelling on the matter. Those eight coins had infuriated him, and he desperately needed to find something to do.

Since things have come to this, let's get back to work.

-

Deep within the Vatican's library.

Only two people have the highest authority: the Pope and His Son Sylvain.

The saint, dressed in a plain robe, walked to the end of the bookshelf without changing his expression, and placed his hand on the wall.

A huge, light golden magic circle appeared. The magic belonging to Veris vanished in an instant. Soon, the walls disappeared, and at the end of the library was a secret room.

This wasn't Sylvain's first time here, but he hadn't really looked through the contents before, because Veris had casually told him that it wasn't important, that most of the things were from many years ago and had been put here because they weren't well preserved outside.

Soft light fell on his long, silvery-white hair as Sylvain stepped into the secret room, and the wall behind him reappeared.

Will Veris know if I open this?

The answer is undoubtedly yes.

But Sylvain still chose to come here. His green eyes swept over the shelves in the secret room. The items on them were indeed as Veris had said, ancient and easily destroyed if not handled carefully.

This time, he first picked up the tattered pages from the shelf, which had been carefully bound together with the softest silk thread and surrounded by a protective magic circle.

The magic circle was not protected against the Holy Son.

Sylvain hadn't expected to find what he was looking for so easily. He pursed his lips and turned the pages. The handwriting was a little blurry, but still neat. Judging from certain handwriting habits, it was written by Veris.

[Sylvain sealed away my constitution, saying it's permanent. Thank you, my dearest friend!]

On the next page, Sylvain's gaze paused. The handwriting was different from Veris's, and the paper was of lower quality.

It says on it:

[Remember, if your divine nature becomes agitated, leave the group.]

Below, a few more words were scribbled out, then written in a much smaller font, clearly showing the writer's carefulness: "[You can also come find me]"

Then came tattered pages, followed by messy scribbles, and a simple sketch of a kitten with its fur smeared black. Next to the kitten, Veris wrote: [Sylvain]

The wicked humor of a young man from hundreds of years ago is vividly portrayed, and the intimacy is also obvious. Sylvain watched coldly, tidied up the tattered pages, and put them back on the shelf.

He stood in the secret room, his eyes lowered.

Does Veris possess some kind of constitution? And is it necessary to seal away his past life's essence?

It's related to divinity... When it flares up, stay away from everyone.

Why did he shamelessly add that he could come find him?

-----------------------

Author's Note: Sylvain, you'll thank your past self later [dog head with rose in hand] That was your only possible chance.

Xiao Wei's constitution is related to his mother, but his mother has passed away. If she recovers, his constitution will also recover, essentially unlocking version 2.0.

The Mysterious History of Seven 2

When Veris was a child, he fell ill, and his anxious mother killed a colleague and fed the food to her sick son.

Later, Veris's physique completely transformed into that of an immortal being.

An anonymous colleague: Speaking up for me.jpg