Chapter 102
There are essentially two types of people who want to live: those who want to live themselves, and those who have someone else want them to live.
Most people have both, while some have only one.
The only options for losing both are depravity and suicide.
That's how Lady is now; she only needs to step out of the room to regain control of her body.
But she wanted to stay in this room because she knew she had nothing. Nothing at all.
Does anyone actually want her to live? Perhaps, those who want to exploit her power.
So, do I want to live?
I don't know, this world is hell. As long as you can die a natural death, whether you go to the underworld or heaven, it's better than burning in hell. This is a place where even surviving requires immense courage.
However, I don't seem to have that kind of courage, especially with this kind of body, or it seems particularly difficult for me.
Strangely, the guy who had traveled with me for a while managed to find this place and even hugged me without saying a word.
Lady didn't understand much; she only knew about relationships, but didn't really comprehend them. She just felt a strange warmth in being held in someone's arms, like finding a cozy fireplace in the dead of winter.
Yak sat down beside her, letting her lie on his lap. He rubbed her head with his hand.
Suddenly this guy started telling stories, some very strange stories.
For example, about four hundred years ago, I encountered a giant serpent that could coil around a mountain range, or a mountain range that rose from the sun.
Once again, the earth cracked open, and magma formed a gigantic fire giant. In another quiet city, there were delicious snacks.
This guy didn't know how to express the beauty of being alive to her; he just told her about the things that can happen while alive.
Ark was still clumsy in this matter, and could only use his own past experiences to tell a guy who was unwilling to leave his room about the beauty outside.
They didn't know when it started, but Leili disappeared, leaving only the two of them in the huge room.
I don't know when it started, but the floor began to crack, and the walls next to it suddenly turned into tree bark. Plants were growing.
The ceiling was wide open, and fire meteorites streaked across the sky, like scattered stars.
This is still that small world, but it contains a magnificent scene.
Those were Ark's memories; he allowed this girl, whose memories originally contained only the library, to fill her heart with almost the entire world.
Although his method of inducing subconscious desires in others had caused Ark a lot of trouble, he still really hoped that the girl would be alright.
Living is not pleasant; it is full of suffering. But only by living can we experience beautiful things.
No one just wants to live; rather, there are small expectations beyond that. Some can be spoken, some are kept in the heart. In any case, Ark still wanted to give this girl a reason to live.
For example, traveling the whole world—there's nothing more interesting than that. The world is constantly changing because of chaos; it's a morbid beauty and grandeur, and once you accept it, you become addicted to it. Just look at it all through pure aesthetics—isn't this world incredibly beautiful? Amidst the bizarre and comical landscapes, there's a chaotic mess.
But Lady just stared at Ark, at this guy who had inexplicably appeared there, oblivious to everything around her.
"Yak".
“I’m here.” He looked at the girl who was resting her head on his lap and said, “So you’re finally willing to say something?”
From the beginning, he had been saying things that others would find strange, and from the start, Ark was prepared to be slapped.
But this guy just listened quietly. He only started speaking now.
"Do you think anyone needs you?" Lady asked softly.
This question is a bit strange. Just as Yak was about to answer, he suddenly realized that he shouldn't say anything.
After all, in a sense, this involves people's psychology.
Don't say anything meaningless here; Ark always has this realization whenever he comes to a similar place.
After all, any word spoken here could become a lifelong creed. You can't say anything bad, you can't say anything you're not sure about, and you can't say anything that could cause serious consequences.
But even if it doesn't count as something from before, how should this question be answered?
Will anyone need you?
What a pointless question. Does anyone need me right now?
My subconscious instinct is to answer yes, but after careful consideration, the answer is changed to no.
What I mean by "need" is perhaps that some things can only be done by oneself. No one else can help; only one's personal presence can make a difference.
The surrounding scenery slowly changed again, but this time it didn't transform into a more magnificent scene; instead, it turned into a rather boring space.
That was inside the carriage, Yak's carriage.
But it wasn't the carriage she had ever ridden in, nor was it any kind of carriage that had ever existed. Yet it felt very familiar, as if it were a carriage she had once ridden in.
In fact, Yak frequently changed his carriages, and after a long time, he sometimes couldn't even remember what kind of carriages he had used.
So this is how he remembered the carriage: the view outside the window was always gray, and he was always surrounded by animal hides. He could faintly hear voices talking; they sounded familiar, but he couldn't quite place who they were.
On such a long journey, perhaps the only truly real person is oneself. Everyone else is fake, everything is false.
Only he himself was real, because it had been so long, so very long, that he truly didn't understand anyone but himself. "How pathetic," Ark often told himself.
"Do you want someone to need you?" Ark didn't answer, but instead asked the question in return.
For a long, long time, Lady remained silent. Just when Ark thought the conversation had completely cooled down, he suddenly said something.
“I hope, I hope someone needs me,” Lady said. “Just me as a person, and nothing else.”
Yak looked at the guy and roughly understood what he meant.
It's just that I hope others can need it, but it's this fragile soul encased in a hard shell.
"Would a monster work?" Ark said softly. "If possible, I need you at least."
Lady paused, then suddenly sat up and looked into Ark's eyes.
After a long while, he asked very seriously.
"Really?"
“Yes, really.” Yak looked into her eyes, without turning his head or trying to deceive her. He just looked at her and then said softly, “I need you to live. You’ve slept long enough. It’s time to wake up. Otherwise, the person who cares about you, which is me, will be very worried.”
......
Lady opened her eyes, as if waking from a nightmare.
Welcome back.
Hearing the gentle female voice, she looked up and saw Apari, who was sitting in a wheelchair and smiling at her.
"Where is Ark?" Lady whispered, but found herself too exhausted to move.
“He left about three minutes ago. He was busy, so there are some things I need to explain.” Aparie looked at Lady and asked, “What’s wrong? Did you need to see that guy for something?”
“He needs me,” Lady said softly, then looked at Aparie sitting there and said, “Ark needs me.”
“Sigh~ I won’t let that girl off easily next time I see her. How could she let such a cute child have such thoughts?” Apari chuckled as she looked at her. “But you’ll only cause trouble if you go out now. I think you should at least know something to make yourself more useful.”
Lady didn't answer, but watched as Aparie shifted herself so that she could see the whole scene.
Then he stood there, stunned.
The vast space was filled with traces of battle, and everywhere was a scene of destruction caused by huge weapons, just like an ancient castle filled with the flames of war.
“First, welcome to your newfound demonhood. Second, a moment of silence for your sister.” Aparie looked at what Lady was holding in her hand: “Do you want to know what exactly you’re holding?”
Leili looked down at the huge scythe in her hand, and a chill ran down her spine, making her gasp for breath.
Because she knew perfectly well, absolutely perfectly well, that red, ferocious thing... was her sister.
The moment she finished, her power went out of control. As the creator, she was the closest person to Lady. So, without any doubt, she became a victim of the power, ending up like the image before us.
“Let me explain what this so-called ability is, since you probably haven’t encountered similar knowledge before.” Apari paused and said, “Simply put, it’s applying modified rules within a certain field.”
Lady looked at her, waiting for her to continue.
Apaly really loves this quiet, attentive personality of hers. Her expression is as gentle as a spring breeze.
“In short, if we compare what we’ve experienced to a game, then what the demon god gives you isn’t something from the game, but rather unseen and intangible rules.” Apari paused and said, “Like me, my rule is to transform any undisturbed matter into whatever I want it to become. I can activate it simply by thinking about it, because it’s a rule, and there are no restrictions.”
“My ability is to reconstruct what I come into contact with,” Lady said softly. “Or change its nature.”
“Ha, what a powerful ability.” Apari nodded and looked at her. “She does seem to be a demon of the same kind as me. I’m glad. It was definitely worth doing this experiment.”
Then she rested her head on her hand and looked at Lady.
“And what follows is the key point, simple and easy to understand, but it’s something you’ll always be trying to explore.” Apari paused and said, “It’s interpretation, the interpretation of your entry.”
"Interpret?" Lady asked Aparie, puzzled.
“Yes, in other words, it’s about the application of abilities.” Apari looked at Lady and said, “What you have grasped now is only the most basic interpretation. You need to learn to extend the interpretation method. In other words, it’s about conducting logical deduction in a modified world.”
She hesitated for a moment, feeling that she should give some examples, otherwise the child might not understand.
"To put it simply, it's like how you use a cup to hold water, and one day you'll find that you can also use your hand to grow flowers." Apari paused and said, "Although it's a bit vague, that's roughly the idea."
"I do not understand."
“You’ll have plenty of time to figure it out, and I don’t expect you to understand it all at once,” Apari said, watching Lady slowly stand up. “And more importantly, don’t use your abilities under the Sun Wheel.”
Lady paused, waiting for an explanation.
“Because everything that can be illuminated by light is in the eyes of the Church. As long as we are under the sun, everything we do is monitored by the Church. Especially since you have become a demon, and a demon they don’t even know about.” Apari snapped her fingers, and the surrounding environment completely transformed into the royal palace ballroom: “So please wait here for a moment. Going out now will only cause trouble.”
"Would I cause Mr. Acker trouble?"
“You’ve caused him a lot of trouble. He’s a guy who hates trouble, but you’ve gotten him into a lot of trouble.” Aparie sighed. “Although I don’t know exactly what that guy did to you in your mind, I can only say that he’s someone to be wary of. I don’t think he’s a bad person, but he’s so good that it makes me suspicious of him. It’s like that saying, be careful of those who seem perfect. Because you never know how much they’re hiding in their hearts.”
“That guy said he needed me,” Lady said, looking at Aparie. “He needs me.”
“Well, actually, he should have told you this himself.” Apari looked at the platform that had risen up next to Lady at some point, with a coin on it.
It was only after the coin was seen by the Ketchums that they were allowed to pass, and it was also because of this silver coin that they were able to protect Lori.
"This is?"
“Actor, let me explain this to you.” Apari’s expression was slightly subtle: “The gist is, please don’t have any uneasy thoughts about him.”
"What?" Lady was stunned, suddenly realizing that the belief she had just been building was on the verge of collapse.
“Let me make this clear from the beginning. What I’m about to say is just a retelling of what I’m about to say. Don’t hold any grudges against me.” Apari paused and said, “He’s a good person too. I’m afraid that telling you this now will only make you more upset later.”
"Can you tell me quickly?"
“Okay, okay, although it’s a little embarrassing for me to say this… Ark has a fiancée, and this is a token of his engagement from her. Her name is Benny, and she’s a member of the Central Church.”
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com