Chapter 10
28
Solan went to see the Black Witch on the first night of his resurrection.
She lived in a secret cave deep in the mountains, keeping company with tree spirits, and was rarely seen.
He had once saved her life.
Therefore, we can ask for help.
A triangular snake, coiled up in a pile of dead leaves, led the way.
He saw her.
She had long, wavy, moss-green hair, and her pale yellow eyes flashed. Without any surprise or panic, she performed a courtly greeting, "King Solan, how have you been?"
At that time, Solan was extremely stressed and furious.
Suddenly waking up, you find yourself giving birth in a male body, your whole body aching, while the little thing is crying and fussing, and the blood ties connecting you are so touching.
Upon stepping outside, he found the world in chaos.
When he embarked on his journey in his early twenties, he thought:
After I die, I don't care if the world is flooded.
...But how could he have imagined he'd be able to come back?!
Solan said irritably, "There's something wrong with your medicine—"
“I can guarantee that I did every step you said I did. I collected his essence and blood, but the ritual must have failed at the time, and it may have even accelerated my death.”
"Enough, what's done is done. I just want to ask, what am I now? Am I alive? A living dead? Or will I die soon? If I am alive, how long can I live? And Krieg, did I take half of his life?"
"The most important thing is this little thing."
He revealed the infant in swaddling clothes; golden hair and golden eyes, innocent and pure, clearly a combination of his own and Krig's blood. "What's the deal with this little thing?"
"...Let me examine it,"
The black witch stared at him intently for a moment, examining him from head to toe, every single strand of hair. Then she took out a crystal ball, chanted a spell, and manipulated it, placing the tiny baby in a soft cushion made of leaves and pine needles.
Her eyes were covered with a white film.
Suddenly, a soft, pale golden light shone from his body, and he floated up.
"What's wrong? What's wrong?"
Solan pressed for details and stepped forward to hug the child.
"Don't move," the black witch warned.
The baby itself wasn't afraid. It seemed to be swimming in amniotic fluid, giggling and looking around. After a moment, it settled down peacefully like a feather.
The black witch understood. "I know—you lied to me."
Solan scoffed, "So you're blaming me now."
The black witch shook her head. "When I prepared the potion, didn't I repeatedly remind you to ask about the person being cursed? You said he didn't love you."
"Why did you fail? And why did you come back to life?"
"Because the person being treated loves you, loves you with all their heart."
Solan paused for a long time, then said softly:
"...Nobody would believe that."
"Huh? By the God of the Forest, I swear a solemn oath that I have not been negligent."
She snapped, "You're such a difficult customer. The potion you asked me to concoct already came with all sorts of harsh conditions: it had to take a life, but not a fatal one, only a small one, and you even lied and said he didn't love you. Now look what's happened! The spell's original effect didn't work, but the love and blood of the Holy One did, successfully bringing you back to life. The price is giving birth to your child. Believe it or not—"
to be honest.
He is by no means a soft-hearted person.
He never cared about his own life.
Especially Kligo.
That kid was just a fine knife he kept.
Why……
Why did he say "Then, spare his life" when the Black Witch asked him?
Is it just because this knife suits your hand?
He always remembered the first time fourteen-year-old Krieg was sent into battle, he won a great victory, and returned with dozens of fresh heads. Krieg crawled on his stomach, was allowed to kiss his toes, and said happily, "Master, I did it."
Krieg looked at him.
Krieg often looked at him, secretly, openly, for a long time, for a short time, but even for a very short moment, you would feel that when his eyes were on you, they were only on you, and everyone and everything else disappeared.
He has always been intelligent.
They understand people's hearts better than anyone else.
How could anyone not see it?
Krieg loved him, truly loved him.
29
"sorry."
Solan stroked Krigor's face, his blue eyes trembling slightly, his thin, delicate eyelids drooping. "I almost killed you."
“It’s alright, Master,” Krigor said repeatedly, sincerely, “It’s alright.”
“I didn’t die, and you’re still alive. You’re getting better, and you even have a little prince. I feel like everything is going so well lately, like I’m dreaming.”
"The dream will end sooner or later. Krieg, you are actually pure and good at heart. I raised you from childhood, of course I know that. You are like a docile black bull. You are ruthless when you kill, but it is unnecessary and you do not enjoy it. If I hadn't taught you, you might just be a country farmer, living an honest and law-abiding life. It was I who twisted you into the ruthless killer you are now, making you bear countless blood debts, and you will surely go to hell in the future. It is my fault. Even so, will you still love me? Even if I go to hell, will you come to me and love me?"
Kliger smiled gently, unwavering. "Yes."
"Even in hell, I still want you to be my king."
For a long time after his mother's burial, he didn't know what he was living for.
What was the purpose of his coming into this world?
If it was to take care of his mother, then he has now fulfilled his duty and can die now, right?
But the handsome nobleman bought him.
You must first sell your body and soul to them.
He practiced martial arts and literacy more diligently than the other slaves.
He used to be illiterate, able to act on instinct, completely ignorant; but after he started reading, he often tossed and turned at night.
When he was a child, his mother wanted to abandon him many times.
Take him to the mountains and fields, to the riverbank, and tell him to stay here and wait for his mother.
He waited two days, but couldn't wait any longer, so he went back on his own.
He always manages to find his mother.
When she saw him, she looked like she'd seen a ghost.
"Mother."
He reached for his mother's hand, but it was slapped away without mercy.
His mother hated him.
What tormented him most was that he fully understood why she hated him.
later.
He traveled with Solan.
I once met a city-state lord who refused to listen and stubbornly refused to abolish human sacrifice, insisting that offering human sacrifices was an inviolable tradition.
So Solan smiled and said, “Alright, let’s do it one last time. I’ll be the priest, and you and the people in your family who uphold this tradition will be the final offerings. Haha, what noble offerings! How about using the most devout methods? Oh, it will definitely work, the gods will be very pleased.”
Several bystanders who witnessed the execution went insane on the spot.
And what about Solan?
He watched the whole thing from beginning to end, drinking flower tea and eating snacks.
Amidst the agonizing screams of those being burned alive.
Behind him, the colorful mural "The Fall of Troy" was illuminated, and the shimmering firelight seemed to bring the hellish scene in the painting to life.
That fair, expensive, and composed face was made even more alluring and beautiful by the light.
A sentence was engraved on the wall:
lasciate ogni speranza voich entrate.
Those who come in, abandon all hope.
In Krieger's view—
This is not a curse, but a blessing.
devil.
This handsome and amiable young lord of the city-state is a devil in human skin.
Thirteen-year-old Krieg's soul trembled.
In that instant, he became a follower of Solan.
very nice.
Very good!
This continent is absurd, corrupt, insane, and utterly inhuman—saints and good people have no way to survive, only destruction.
Only the devil, a truly cruel and cold-blooded devil, can rule it.
He finally understood.
It turns out that the world exists to be ruled by Solan.
He was born into this world precisely to become Solan's first follower.
30
"Just to be your king?"
"You are still my God, I believe in you."
Solan was somewhat annoyed by his answer, stood up, and walked to the edge of the eaves.
Krieg followed closely behind, saying, "Be careful, it's dangerous," not understanding what his master was about to do.
The owner was being a bit naughty and wasn't as composed as usual.
He looked at Solan, who was facing east like a child, and said in a childlike voice, "Rise, sun, rise."
He said again, "Fall down, moon, fall down."
The azure sky remained unresponsive.
The waning crescent moon, like a sickle, hangs in the sky, while the twinkling stars are like glittering seeds casually scattered beside it.
A gentle breeze carries the rich fragrance of the Imperial Garden.
After waiting quietly for a while, he turned to Krieg and asked, "Do you see any change in the sky? Tell the truth."
“…” Krieg dared not utter a sound, “…No, Master.”
Solan shrugged. "Yes, nothing has changed. That's the truth."
"I cannot command the sun, moon and stars; I can only command the army and my subjects, and not everyone listens to me."
"Krigo, I am a king, and also a mortal. Not a god, not a demon, just a mortal. I hope you will love me as a mortal, okay?"
As he spoke, Solan hugged him and turned his head to press against his chest.
He liked it very much when he first touched it. The hot, smooth flesh was like a spring of life, and his heart pounded underneath, as if there was endless vitality for him, who had once been weak and sickly, to draw upon.
Now, it's leaping so high it feels like it's about to burst out of his chest and into his palm.
Let them do as they please.
“Krigo, I’ve died once.”
"I did not go to the temple of the gods, nor did I go to hell."
"All I see is endless nothingness and darkness."
A dazzling highlight rises on the horizon.
The crystal ball atop the clock tower in the Royal Palace Square captures the first rays of dawn, bursting forth with brilliance.
One white cloud after another drifted across the sky.
Solan and Klig held hands, watching the sunrise, and Solan said calmly:
"Sweating, howling, cursing, slashing, crashing, panting, screaming, arguing, singing, laughter, passes, wastelands, snow, forests, black lakes, swamps, withered grass, rocks, fruit trees, foothills, flowers, heavy rain, mud, rivers, weapons, scrap metal, musical instruments, sand dunes, the sea, war, banquets, ruins, palaces... all of this, everything. Black and white, beauty and ugliness, good and evil, joy and sorrow, gold and silver, all evil and sin, are all the same, they will eventually cease to exist, meaningless."
Krieg, deep in thought, asked, "Then why do people live?"
As daylight returned, the capital city gradually awoke.
Some people have no worries about food and clothing, yet they live impatiently; others live with great energy, but no matter what they do, they can't live a good life.
But they are all here alive, and will live until they die.
“There’s no reason,” Solan said, gathering his sleeves and looking up at the sky. “Everyone’s daily life is lived on a cloud that shines from dawn till dusk.”
It was communion day again, and the priests and parishioners in the church were busy baking enough bread and boiling several pots of herbal soup before noon.
“A hundred years ago, the proud gods could never have imagined that the god who is now all over the world with countless believers is not any of them who are powerful, but the God of Light who is covered in dust and suffering from torment.”
The brilliant morning breeze blew her golden hair, and her blue eyes were clearer and brighter than the sky.
Solan said with amusement and a slight smile:
“Krigo, I intend to establish the God of Light as the state religion.”
"Perhaps in another thousand years, the great gods will be abandoned by the people, and those honest priests will become corrupt. Perhaps slavery will be abolished, and everyone will be a citizen, regardless of social status. Perhaps food can be grown in the Gobi Desert, and diseases can be easily cured, so we no longer have to leave it to fate... Who knows?"
Krieg listened in a daze, only vaguely understanding.
He only felt that what his master said was very powerful.
"So, what should I do?"
"Krigg asked."
After all that has been said, he still looks clueless and foolish.
Solan didn't know whether to laugh or be angry.
"Fine, I'll just lower my head."
Solan stood on tiptoe and kissed him. "You, just keep loving me."
"Love me forever and ever." It's incredibly tender, yet it also feels like a curse.
The baby woke up too.
They danced and gesticulated wildly, making a ruckus.
Solan held the baby in his arms and leaned down to press his cheek against the baby's soft little face.
Krieg also spread out his cloak and embraced them with his broad chest and strong arms.
He still intends to spend the rest of his life as a king.
Be the best king ever.
To unify the cities, the people, and the mountains and rivers.
But I also know that none of those things can last forever.
It is not stone, not iron, not soil, not the boundless sea.
The physical body will eventually perish, but true love will shine forever, until the end of the world.
·end·
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