Chapter 82 World D: Ethan's Side Story Ends Eha...
Ehan is baking cookies.
He took out the dough, which he had kneaded and frozen an hour earlier with cranberries, from the refrigerator, cut it into thin slices of roughly the same size, put it in the preheated oven, and set the timer.
Ethan felt a sense of pleasure watching the cookies expand due to the oven temperature, because he enjoyed this process.
He was going to give these cookies to the children under government care once they were baked.
His life is very fulfilling. After governing the country for a year, it has become very well-organized and orderly. As a result, he has less official business than before and has time to do other things.
He occasionally travels to other countries and volunteers at his country's government-run childcare agencies, watching his first batch of children grow up to be almost ten years old. Occasionally, he also works part-time at other shops to experience different things, such as flower shops and restaurants.
Oh, of course, he always makes sure to hide his identity before doing these things, otherwise it would be too much trouble.
If he were to go to other countries in his current capacity, they might fear he's there to attack them, but Ethan actually dislikes war even more. If he wanted other countries, or even the whole world, to become like this country, his methods would be unacceptable to others, inevitably leading to repeated wars.
He made the country safer by using more peaceful means, avoiding war and confining the fighting to himself and the will of all the cities, without even touching their guardians.
"bite--"
While Ethan was daydreaming, the oven gave him a timer.
Ethan put on gloves and took out several large trays full of food.
He doesn't particularly rely on magic, even if it's very convenient. Having lived the first half of his life as an ordinary person without any magic, he's long been used to doing everything himself. Unless it's an emergency or something special, he won't even open a portal, but will choose to travel by means of transportation instead.
The excess power that he couldn't absorb was sealed away in another dimension. Of course, even if Starfall wanted to reclaim his power, he couldn't do so, except for him.
Ethan took off his gloves, picked up a still-warm cookie, and took a bite. It was crispy and delicious, with the sweet and sour cranberries adding even more flavor. It was tasty.
Hmm... He's almost ten years old, maybe we should lower the bar a bit? If the parents behave well, could we try meeting the child? Of course, everything has to be perfect, but he's not some kind of monster.
Ethan, who was chewing, suddenly stopped, stuffed the remaining cookies into his mouth, washed his hands, and went into the next room.
Ethan turned on the main power switch, and countless screens lit up instantly, reflected in Ethan's eyes, appearing somewhat cold and inorganic.
His pupils quickly scanned each screen, his steps unwavering, ignoring the screens he had already inspected and continuing on his way.
Finally, he stopped at a screen in a corner. Ethan zoomed in on the screen and saw two more unfamiliar yet familiar faces.
It was a face exactly like his, and he and someone else were sneaking into the alley, muttering something to each other.
So the parallel universe theory is true? Ethan became curious.
His first reaction was that other countries or those city wills were up to no good again, and were going to arrange androids for him or something? With the technology now, it was actually possible to create them, especially since the city wills had some abilities that he didn't even know about. But he quickly dismissed that idea.
Because he remembered who the blond man standing next to his counterpart was—it was Tenas, the guardian of Sunfire City.
Ethan doesn't like him. To be precise, he only loves him, himself, and he also likes Starfall. He is truly indifferent to others, or even hates them.
But Tenas is different. Unlike Reena, who is rational and will temporarily suppress his feelings, he is also unlike Nadia, who is easy to understand and straightforward.
Although he's not as smart as Reena, he's more impulsive. He was very opposed to him in the early days and is still making underhanded moves now. Ethan hates smart people who are also a bit impulsive. How come someone who's older than him isn't as mature?
To reiterate, he still loves his own faction more and himself the most. Even if Xingyun wanted to kill him, he still loved him and was unwilling to kill him.
However, my fondness for Starfall still has to come after my own.
Ethan opened a portal and instantly appeared beside them from another dimension.
“I feel like it really is…” his adorable counterpart whispered.
“Let me tell you something.” Ethan gently placed his hand on Ethan’s shoulder, speaking softly and with barely concealed delight, deliberately teasing his counterpart: “Actually, this is Starfall City, you know~”
He loves himself so much, and his counterpart is also himself. He now finds his counterpart quite pleasing to the eye.
Because of the high initial impression, Ethan smiled very brightly and was very enthusiastic. He immediately wanted to pull the person back to the other dimension. The other person couldn't resist his enthusiasm, and he succeeded.
He was in high spirits and dragged Ethan to visit the alternate dimension, even taking him to a chair that had been transformed into something resembling a throne, a place he would occasionally sit on when he had a fit of chuunibyou (adolescent delusions of grandeur).
As they chatted, they finally realized something was wrong. Oh, Ethan seemed to have a good relationship with Lord Starfall from his world. Well then, let him bring out Lord Starfall too.
He walked straight to the deepest part of the alternate dimension and entered a twenty-digit password in front of a door.
With a beep, the main door swung open to both sides, revealing another door behind it.
Ethan stepped forward and pressed his finger on it.
"Fingerprint scanning in progress... Information comparison in progress... Successful."
The door was opened again, revealing another door behind it.
Ethan stepped forward. Because he wanted to finish quickly and was already quite skilled, he passed through the series of doors for iris and blood verification in no time and finally reached the last door.
He gently pushed the door open, and the light from outside shone into the completely dark room, illuminating a figure on the floor.
Even with the commotion, the person on the ground's unfocused pupils remained unfocused, as if they couldn't see anything at all.
Ethan walked up to him and looked down at him. For a moment, it felt like the night they first met, only their roles had been reversed.
He squatted down, ran his fingers over the black earring on Xingyun's right earlobe, pinched it, and took it off.
"I probably don't need it anymore." Ethan thought to himself, then squeezed the earring into pieces with a sudden burst of strength.
“Starfall… Lord?” Ethan’s throat tightened as he uttered the long-unused title, his finger jabbing disrespectfully at the face of the man on the ground. The more he repeated the title, the more fluent he became: “Wake up, Lord Starfall. Lord Starfall? Lord Starfall.” He even waved his hand in front of Starfall, trying to elicit a response from the man on the ground.
Unfortunately, while the person on the ground did move his pupils in the direction of his hand's movement, it was at a speed that even a snail could crawl faster, and his eyes remained as unfocused and lifeless as ever.
The drug is a bit too strong, Ethan thought.
Helpless, he could only take out his medical kit from his personal space, along with the antidote for the drug, a 3ml transparent liquid in a small glass bottle.
He took out a 5ml syringe, tore open the packaging, drew out the antidote, expelled the air, and then disinfected the injection site with a disinfectant swab dipped in disinfectant. Although Starfall was the city's will, he still disinfected it just in case. Then he injected Starfall's neck and slowly pushed the antidote into his body.
The medicine took effect very quickly. Almost just a few seconds after he administered it, Xingyun's eyes slowly regained their light, his pupils focused, and he finally emerged from the endless darkness and the blurry world.
"Lord Starfall? Can you hear me now?" Ethan patiently called Starfall's name: "If you can understand me, blink once."
Xingyun was still lying on the ground, his messy black hair scattered around him. Because he had just woken up, his eyes were still somewhat vacant and he hadn't fully recovered. It was unclear how he had been doing all these years. His skin was even paler than before, and his complexion was terrible.
"Lord Xingyun?"
Hearing Ethan's deliberately emphasized address of Xingyun, she seemed to suddenly come to her senses. She looked at Ethan, frowned, hesitated, and finally blinked slowly.
"Well, here's the thing, a very interesting guest has come to our world, my counterpart from a parallel world who's super easy to fool..." Ethan breathed a sigh of relief and explained to Starfall with a smile why he had finally let him out.
He needs Starfall's cooperation. Since Ethan has such a close relationship with the city's will and Starfall in his world, he also wants to have one. Would that make them more similar?
From the brief time he spent with Ethan, he had already glimpsed Ethan's happy world.
Yes, happiness.
Although it wasn't like his own dictatorship, making his place a utopia as he perceived it, and although that world was just as terrible, with the same greedy and ugly faces, his counterpart seemed somewhat different.
For example, he should have a group of good friends; at least he wouldn't be so close to the other guardians. He constantly refers to Lord Starfall, and unlike his deliberate attempt to mislead others, his eyes practically light up when he mentions his mentor, children, and friends, with little flowers practically floating around him.
Ethan also has a group of good friends. Among them is Starfall, who spoils him. Although she was timid and cowardly at first, she has gradually become more confident in herself after being raised. She no longer thinks that her first reaction to anything is that she cannot do it, but instead she will try her best.
To be honest, Ethan was a little envious. In order to have something in common, he decided to give Starfall a chance. As long as he cooperated well and made him resemble Ethan, and then had more topics to talk about, he would not let Starfall be locked up again.
"Lord Starfall~" Ethan pleaded in a spoiled manner, like a child begging their parents to buy them a toy they liked: "Did you hear that? Do you know what I just said? If you promise me, I'll let you out! But you have to act normal, okay? I want us to be closer."
"..."
"...Lord Starfall, why aren't you speaking? Are you refusing to agree?"
As Ethan's tone grew increasingly dangerous, Xingyun wanted to roll her eyes at him inwardly, but could only remind him, "Uh-huh."
"Oh." The turmoil in Ethan's eyes vanished instantly, his gaze becoming much clearer. He looked a little embarrassed, scratching his head, his voice sounding somewhat guilty: "Haha, I forgot you can't speak." Speaking of which, should we install lights later? We probably won't be throwing Lord Starfall in, so we don't need to.
Then, she quickly tore off the special tape, allowing Xingyun's mouth to see again. Knowing that Xingyun had agreed, she also untied his restraints and handed him his usual suit.
“I’m glad you’ve finally figured this out.” Ethan placed the suit jacket in Starfall’s hands, his smile returning to his face. “Please hurry, or they might get suspicious if it takes too long.”
Starfall slowly typed a question mark: "?"
Weren't we just talking about Ethan's isotopes? Ethan only said that there's only one person, right? Who are they?
But time was too tight, and he couldn't afford to think any further. After changing into a suit, he was pushed out the door by Ethan, who simply led him down a corridor he didn't recognize.
...He remembered that his alternate dimension didn't seem to have a corridor like that. When did one appear?
I don't want to think about the falling star too much.
After seeing Starfall off, Ethan hurriedly ran back to his kitchen and brought out a plate of the small cakes that he had prepared before Ethan came into this world.
Sorry, kids, the cake portion will be a little smaller this time, but there will still be plenty of cookies. His counterpart is more important; he wants to properly entertain his parallel world self!
Back at Ethan's place, they found Ethan and Starfall locked in a somewhat strange standoff. Being the understanding person he was, Ethan smoothly switched the conversation, changing the topic away from what had been going on.
Let's all eat some small cakes together! If the conversation doesn't go well, that's okay, eating something will make things better! Sharing delicious food always puts people in a good mood.
Seeing Ethan looking at the little cake with curiosity, his eyes sparkling with approval of its appearance, the generous Ethan waved his hand and stuffed it directly into his counterpart's mouth.
The other person was stunned. Ethan thought that if his world were an animation, Ethan would probably be staring at him with beady eyes.
It quickly accepted the idea and started chewing on it without much hesitation, just like a hamster. It was kind of cute, and Ethan thought he might want to get a hamster as a pet.
After feeding his seemingly dim-witted and easily tricked counterpart, Ethan, of course, didn't forget to take a piece of cake from Starfall, who was standing next to him, and brought it close to his mouth with an air of absolute authority.
Lord Starfall must have remembered what he had just made a promise with him. He hesitated for a moment, then lowered his head and took a bite of the cake, not even noticing the cream smearing onto the corner of his mouth.
Strange, is it because it's been too long? There's a kind of eerily cute feeling about it.
Ethan reflected on his current tendency to find everything cute, then reached out and touched the corner of his mouth, reminding Starfall that there was cream there.
But for some reason, Xingyun frowned, looking somewhat uncertain, and silently stepped back.
“…Cream! Lord Starfall.” Ethan, being an adult, quickly understood. Even though they hadn’t talked about it and weren’t planning to, he knew that Ethan had misunderstood. He felt a little helpless, but also a little curious.
Who on earth is it that made Lord Xingyun misinterpret even a simple reminder? Come out, let's have a proper talk.
A blonde city spirit, who only disgusted and hated people with all sorts of things, sneezed.
"Can the will of a city catch a cold?" Novigrad asked, somewhat puzzled.
"No, I feel like Xingyun is cursing me." Yang Yan denied her wild guess: "I knew it, he really didn't die."
Novigrad: "..."
...
Ethan, with great tact, looked away, wiping away the cream with a hint of embarrassment and anger. He realized that the resentment wasn't directed at him, so he was quite frank. However, he didn't want to embarrass Xingyun further, just to avoid making him even more awkward.
Ethan was inviting his companion, Tenas, to eat with him.
The little cakes were quickly devoured, and Ethan was glad he had started making them early in the morning. He had not only made the little cakes as a dessert, but also some other random foods that he wanted to serve to Ethan.
When he was stopped, his counterpart told him that he was not supposed to eat. At first, Ethan thought it was just that his counterpart was picky or anorexic.
As a result, the child stammered and said that he actually became a guardian after death, and the food he ate could not be digested or converted into energy.
Ethan was horrified, even having the urge to gag his throat. His silly counterpart was vomiting so painfully! Why did he have to swallow it all?! He should have just vomited it out from the start! He even had to drink a special emetic.
Starfall was unusually intrigued and took the initiative to strike up a conversation with Ethan, wanting to learn about Ethan's world.
Unexpectedly, the more he listened, the more silent he became. He was fine before, but after his turn to appear, he remained silent.
As the guardian who had spent more time with Starfall, Ethan sensed that he was caught in deep doubt. He probably thought it sounded like a ghost story, since it was unbelievable that they had such a good relationship in the parallel world. Even Ethan was initially surprised.
As a friendly counterpart, Ethan naturally agreed to the counterpart's request, only borrowing some of its power.
However, since Starfall was still in charge of the world, Ethan pretended to ask Starfall questions, and his eyelids twitched as he saw Starfall.
Of course, that's still not enough. For Ethan, the more power the better. Even if the power he can provide is enormous, if you put yourself in his shoes, he would choose to ask other city wills and guardians for more power to avoid other strange and dangerous worlds.
At least the world is safe now; you can take whatever you want from anyone, and lend whatever you can.
So Ethan told Ethan that he didn't get along well with the other Guardians, which made Ethan give up the idea of finding someone else, since he could give more.
Ethan readily agreed.
Ethan quickly tried to persuade Ethan to stay and play with him for a few more days. This was his first time meeting a person of the same sex, and it was a very magical experience. He wanted to get closer to Ethan and play together.
Then he tricked Ethan into agreeing to go shopping with him, bringing out all his treasured possessions and showering Ethan with gifts.
Wear them carefully, these are all star-shaped hair clips that he loves! Nobody else knows this, not even Starfall knows he likes these.
Because he restrained himself at the beginning. Even though he dressed up in a very energetic and sparkly way, he didn't bring such an exaggerated amount of things. Instead, he hid his favorite items first.
Ethan loves stars.
He felt like a star, so small that no one would notice him. There were countless stars like him in the universe, but he was still different.
If Ethan felt he were a star, he wouldn't be one of those near the moon, but rather an inconspicuous, somewhat dim star in a more remote corner.
Even knowing that those stars might not be smaller than the moon and might not even still be alive, he had previously seen students in related majors preparing papers, researching and observing planets for several years that had long since disappeared. What he had previously observed were just some afterimages transmitted to Earth. This student was so devastated that he had to repeat the year.
He is like a star, inconspicuous in the endless galaxy, but he has a strong will to move towards his goal and an unwavering heart: to create a utopia so that everyone can live safely and happily.
While we may not be very happy right now, at least we're safe!
Ethan is actually a narcissistic person.
This doesn't mean he thinks he's incredibly good-looking and that no one can compare to him. It just means that he loves himself more than others, and after feeling like a tiny star, he fell in love with anything star-shaped and filled his outfit with stars.
After happily dressing up his counterpart, Ethan started putting star accessories on Ethan.
"You really like stars." His silly counterpart tilted his head: "Is it because Mom calls us stars?"
……Mother?
Ethan pronounced this unfamiliar word in his mind for the first time.
His mother is... Oh right, he has a mother. Everyone is born of a mother, but his mother had a difficult childbirth and died from postpartum hemorrhage after giving birth to him.
That person never mentioned his mother to him, and he didn't know what kind of person she was. He just felt that she was a very distant existence, and he couldn't imagine what it would be like to have her.
Mom? Oh, I see. Ethan's mother is still alive. That must be the biggest variable.
The Starfall Lord in Ethan's world is probably not much different from the Starfall Lord in his world, except for their different upbringing. He never had a mother, and the way Ethan talked about his mother was full of memories, joy, and a little sadness.
His mother seems to be alive and well, but he probably hasn't seen her in a long time.
What is it like to have a mother? I really want to know. I really want to know what kind of person my mother is. I just want to know what kind of life I would have if she were still alive.
Wait, Ethan, calm down. Even if you know, it's useless. She's been dead for over twenty years. Knowing will only add to your sorrow and regret that your mother didn't survive.
“Of course—” Ethan cleared his mind and responded to Ethan very loudly, as if that would suppress the thought that had just crossed his mind.
Finally dressed, Ethan dragged Ethan back and barged in, demanding that Starfall praise him.
He was not satisfied with the praise, and he was obviously angry, using micro-expressions to express his dissatisfaction. As someone who manipulates people's hearts, Xingyun was also very proficient in micro-expressions. In particular, he dared not underestimate Ethan nor be arrogant, so he put pressure on Xingyun in this way.
He finally succeeded in forcing Ethan. After taking a deep breath, Xingyun showed a sense of recklessness, as he praised Ethan at length.
Ethan was extremely satisfied. Starfall was very cooperative, which confirmed his previous decision that letting him out to manage things was the right thing to do.
Shopping was actually quite fun. After discussing how to solve the food problem, Ethan took Ethan out to eat and eat along the way.
This is the restaurant he worked at and spent a long time figuring out as the best place to eat! The taste is truly amazing, and Ethan thoroughly enjoyed it.
Later, I dragged him to buy clothes. Ethan probably couldn't accept his bright-colored clothes, so I also bought him two dark-colored clothes.
Because it looked so out of place, he carefully put together a new outfit, vowing that he would only take it out occasionally in the future, since it didn't suit his style at all and he really couldn't like it. However, the new style was quite handsome.
Having enjoyed shopping, Ethan leaned close to Ethan's ear mysteriously and said, "Actually, I'm a big bad guy. I rule the world, believe it or not?"
Of course, that's just a lie to children. Wouldn't ruling the world be too tiring? It would require a lot of scheming, and he wouldn't choose to do it until he could be sure that the damage would be minimized. He doesn't want innocent people to die.
He hates war, but others will inevitably clash with him and go to war in order to resist his intrusion.
Seeing Ethan freeze for a moment and then quickly regain his composure, Ethan was also a little shocked. Had Ethan just believed it?
That brief, fleeting moment seemed like his illusion—no, how could he truly believe it? Could it be that before coming into this world, he had encountered familiar villains in other worlds?
Haha, that's too far-fetched. How could such a coincidence happen?
Then Ethan started talking nonsense with a straight face, talking about his forum. Ethan couldn't stand it anymore. He was both amused and angry that asexuality was being spread as a pornographic rumor.
Ethan couldn't believe that his counterpart hadn't shut down the forum! Even he had shut it down because it was such a chaotic mess.
The two people behind were arguing over the gender of the Walmart shopping bag, but Ethan remembered something very serious.
"...On another note, I also use the word 'plastic bag' to swear."
The two looked at each other in bewilderment. After Ethan demonstrated, he stared at Ethan for a moment before suddenly realizing something was wrong: Did Ethan never swear?
"My mother said that swearing is just a way to vent one's incompetence. Capable people don't choose to swear; they choose to solve problems instead."
"..."
He didn't know that he didn't have a mother... and no one had ever told him about this. Although he agreed with this statement, he still liked to swear because some people just deserved to be cursed.
Ethan vaguely sketched out a female character in his mind, but he couldn't help being curious and wanting to know more. However, he suppressed his curiosity and then started arguing with Ethan about paying the bill.
Ethan thought Ethan was being unreasonable. What kind of customer pays? Couldn't he get his bearings? Ethan, you're the entertainer! Your job is to keep him entertained; he's the one responsible for buying everything!
Sometimes it was Tenas who was always in the background, sometimes it was Ethan who paid, and only a very few times did Ethan manage to snatch something while they were still buying things.
“Maybe we could get some more with the moon on them?” Ethan suggested. “Since you like the name your mother uses to call us stars, it would be great to buy some moon-themed items to match! After all, Selene is the name of the moon goddess in Greek mythology, the only true embodiment of the moon, isn’t she?”
Selene? Is that my mother's name?
Ethan had never known her, and even after taking this position, he had no intention of looking up any information about her.
Because they had never spent time together and no one had ever mentioned him, he didn't even have the concept of a mother. If Ethan hadn't told him, he would have forgotten that everyone is born of a mother.
He only knew that his mother's surname was Nix. Because he didn't want to take the surname of that scumbag, he also took the surname Nix. Although any name would do, or even no surname would be fine, he was who he was, and his name would not change.
But is there such a profound meaning behind it? In ancient Greek mythology, the moon goddess Selene said that she represented the moon, and that Ethan "should also be a star," meaning the moon and the stars should always stay together.
...Stars, huh?
Ethan never expected that his love for stars would lead him to this symbolic meaning.
Selene is the goddess of the moon, and Nyx is the goddess of darkness. Because they are the children of their mother, they are called stars. They are the stars that always accompany the moon.
Ethan.
Solid and enduring. It embodies the hope that the child will grow into a resilient and strong person.
According to Ethan, the Ethan in the Bible is a wise man, and perhaps his mother hoped that they would become clever and discerning like the wise man.
...Ethan felt a crack appear in his heart, from which flowed something he couldn't even describe—an unfamiliar emotion, not just simple sadness.
“I miss my mom,” Ethan said.
Ethan didn't say anything, but silently gave him a hug.
He actually thought that he had never even met his Selene before she had already left him, and now he could only know about her from other people.
He managed to piece together an image from the other person's description.
The woman, tortured to the point of losing her vitality, remained as gentle as ever towards the child. She was a gentle, strong, and sensible person who transformed Ethan, who should have been like her, into the innocent and somewhat passionate child he is today, still holding onto hope for the world.
Ethan thought, "People like this should live."
What a pity, what a real pity.
It's such a pity that someone like him didn't survive. It's always the despicable kind people who don't live long. It's such a shame that in the end, he never even knew he had such a mother.
Perhaps she loved him deeply by giving him this name.
No, the more he thought about it, the sadder he became. Ethan wasn't a person who liked to cry. Since he could remember, apart from physical tears, he had never shed tears on his own.
But for some reason, he now has a strong urge to cry.
I really want to meet his mother. I've never known her before, and I shouldn't have cared about her, but after getting to know her, a wave of unfamiliar emotions overwhelmed me. What a pity.
Ethan suppressed the stinging in his nose and hugged Ethan even tighter, like two wounded little animals huddling together for warmth.
Later, after he calmed down and continued shopping with Ethan, he realized that Ethan was much younger than him. Ethan had been a Guardian for less than five years, while he had been one for almost ten.
Ethan thought, "No wonder. Ethan acted like a child on several occasions. I had previously deduced from his few words that his life before this must have been confined to that so-called home, and he hadn't experienced any other setbacks besides that scumbag, so it's normal for him to be a bit naive."
Ethan had a really pleasant time with Ethan; he hadn't felt this relaxed in a long time. He had originally thought that taking care of his first batch of children under government care as a volunteer and working in different places to experience life was already his way of relaxing.
But it was more enjoyable to be with my deskmate, as if I were only a teenager, even though he was in his early twenties, or even younger than Bitners.
They were so compatible that Ethan was even reluctant to let him go and wanted to keep Ethan here, but it was impossible without a doubt, because Ethan had to go back to save his world, where his mother was.
Ethan's rare good mood vanished the moment he saw the empty alternate dimension; the meteorite had disappeared.
Here we go again? Is Lord Starfall going to disappoint him once more?
Ethan took out his monitor, but couldn't find Starfall's location anywhere in Starfall City.
His heart inexplicably slowed down, and his mood gradually worsened until he saw that the meteor's location was in another city, which meant it must have met with the will of other cities.
Are they planning to get back at him? Are they going to abandon him again? Once again?
If it's true, he won't tolerate it anymore; it's not good for other cities to just keep getting the warnings.
After Starfall returned, Ethan stopped pretending and continued to ignore Tenas's presence, directly exposing Starfall's purpose: what was he planning to do in conjunction with the wills of other cities? There was a high probability that he wanted to kill him again. He was no longer surprised, but he was still angry, extremely angry.
He directly threatened Starfall, asking if he wanted to continue lying down. He knew all too well what this drug would do to the city's will.
He asked Xingyun with a grin if he wanted to make some small gifts for the other city wills. As a guardian, it would be really impolite of him not to give them a gift after dealing with them for so long. Although so much time has passed, it's not too late to make up for it now, since there are still city wills alive.
Of course, the gift for meeting was an earring, an earring with that medicinal effect.
Seeing the strangeness of the falling star, Ethan continued to describe it, getting so excited that he gestured wildly. From a distance, the atmosphere seemed perfectly harmonious, but no one actually felt that it was harmonious.
After giving him a slap, it was only natural to give him a sweet treat. Ethan comforted Xingyun and forgave him for running around this time, but asked him not to run around like that again and to stay in the alternate dimension properly.
Even if Xingyun doesn't want to, so what? He says he can't go out, and that means he can't go out. If he goes out, he'll get angry, and if he gets angry, everyone will find him terrifying.
But the meteorite was still just as disobedient.
The night before he left, Turner sought out Ethan to have a talk.
Ethan let it go in one ear and out the other, only vaguely understanding that they lived in peace. He and Ethan were very peaceful; Ethan was his counterpart, and he loved himself and his counterpart.
Sensing the barrier erected by Starfall and curious about his little secret, Ethan casually broke the barrier to hear what Starfall had to say.
But the content was unexpected. Starfall demanded that Ethan never come to this world again, never meet him again, and wanted to destroy his coordinates.
Is Starfall... trying to tell Ethan everything he did? To let Ethan discover that this seemingly lively and enthusiastic man is actually a complete dictator, a ruthless idealist with crazy methods?
Haha, Ethan felt like he was about to burst out laughing, but in fact, his smile completely disappeared.
He met Xingyun's gaze, and as always, he smiled, but Xingyun looked like he had encountered a major problem.
That was indeed a major problem, because he was angry, even angrier than when Starfall wanted to kill him, because he had given him a chance, and this wasn't the second time.
Ethan tried his best to suppress his madness, pretending that nothing had happened, and angrily interrupted to complain about the falling stars, when in fact he was so angry that he wanted to blow the whole place up.
Last time it was the right ear that was worn, shouldn't it be the left ear's turn this time? It's fair, we should take turns wearing them. I just wonder how many years he should be imprisoned this time?
Last time it was almost ten years, this time I'm even angrier, how about locking him up for twenty years?
Ethan appeared furious, but inwardly he was almost coldly resigned to what would happen after Xingyun's death.
He still won't kill Xingyun; killing Xingyun is less desirable than killing the wills of other cities.
After Ethan calmed him down, Ethan lent him his power without waiting for the day he would leave.
Ethan was reluctant to leave Ethan, but after the portal closed completely, he suppressed his emotions and confronted Starfall.
Ethan said, "I'm a little angry, Lord Starfall." Actually, he was extremely angry; he was practically bursting with rage.
It wasn't just that Starfall's actions could almost be considered a betrayal in his eyes, but rather his attitude. He told Ethan not to come anymore for Ethan's safety; he was worried about Ethan.
It's ridiculous. He's clearly the will of his city, yet he trusts his counterpart to be superior to him, even though he's the one who should be his protector. At first, he just wanted to implement the laws he wanted, but he was stopped because he craved power too much. If he hadn't valued his power so much, Ethan wouldn't have started from this angle. But he never expected that this action would make Starfall hate him.
I'm so jealous, so jealous, so jealous.
Although he also had a good impression of Ethan, jealousy grew like crazy because he also cared about Starfall and both loved and hated him.
Haha, Lord Starfall would rather believe the idiot Ethan than give him any more trust. Well then, let's destroy him! Haha.
Ethan didn't waste any time talking. He grabbed Xingyun's tie, forced him to bend over, and put the new earring into his left earlobe.
The earring, stained with blood, flashed with a dark light, adding a touch of strangeness.
"Goodnight, Lord Starfall." Ethan smiled, his eyes crinkling. "Sweet dreams."
Looking at the unconscious Xingyun, Ethan felt no pity. He let him fall back into sleep in whatever way he could regain consciousness.
Because Ethan piqued his curiosity, Ethan's interest in parallel worlds reached its peak, and he devoted himself to researching safe methods of time travel, hoping to take a time trip himself if possible.
Actually, he couldn't wait to see himself in a different world. Maybe he could even go to a world where the mother was still alive. If that mother had just lost her child... that would be too... coincidental. He was willing to share meals with that mother.
Although the alternate dimension possesses a vast collection of books gathered over countless years, some of which might contain the parallel worlds he seeks to study, there are simply too many books, and if he were to learn on his own, he would certainly not achieve the level of mastery that comes from having no one to teach him.
For example, Ethan first taught himself and then was taught again by the Starfall in his world until he mastered it. It felt like they wanted to break all that knowledge into pieces and make Ethan eat it.
Although he didn't have such good conditions, he believed that as long as he spent enough time here, he could also develop it.
Ethan spent a whole year figuring out how to travel between worlds, and he was eager to start his own time travel. But when he tried to pass through the portal, he was bounced back.
He was bewildered for a moment, then, refusing to believe it, he tried to pass through again, only to be bounced back once more.
Upon touching it, he discovered an invisible barrier, barely tangible due to his strength, that enveloped the entire world, preventing him from traversing to other worlds.
Very suddenly, Ethan remembered that Starfall had left the alternate dimension after Ethan arrived. He must have gone to meet with the will of other cities. Could this be what they set up at that time?
Ethan's eagerly anticipated trip turned into a disappointment, and he was so angry he laughed. What were they all doing? Were they worried he would cause chaos in other worlds? Did he really look like someone who would invade and enslave those parallel worlds? Did they distrust him that much? Did he even rule the world? He asked.
He had painstakingly anticipated all the potential problems that might arise in the coming year and made contingency plans, fearing that someone might destroy his utopia. He had given his subordinates many backup plans, enough to support him to travel to at least one world. So what's going on now? He can't even leave his house; he's trapped and dying in this world.
In the past, it wouldn't have mattered. Back then, he wasn't interested in parallel worlds. He spent his days doing things that interested him in his own world, usually visiting the children from his first batch of policy-related children. Being a volunteer was truly the longest he had ever spent outside his own world.
He knew each child very well, and had heard about all their preferences, their personalities, and even their career plans. He had figured out what kind of work they would be better suited for, of course, one that combined their interests.
Actually, there are quite a few children. Ethan starts rotating between different schools. For example, he went to one city yesterday and another today. Usually, the children can see him every few days.
But that doesn't mean he's willing to be trapped in this world forever. He also wants to have exciting time travel. Damn it!
He first approached the wills of the other cities one by one, asking them to remove the barrier. He hated war, so he wouldn't start wars in other worlds. No matter how much defense he took, he should be allowed to go out and get some fresh air.
But no city will responded to him. Most of them remained silent. Even when Ethan resorted to force to try and make them compromise, not a single will yielded, even though they were badly beaten. He even managed to destroy two of the city wills.
Ethan also put pressure on their government, issuing one outrageous decree after another, to see if they would compromise. After all that fuss, Ethan ended up with a glaring zero progress.
He couldn't resist any longer and went to the deepest room again. There were still no lights, and he woke up Xingyun.
Xingyun knew what had happened as soon as he saw him. A long-lost smile appeared on his face, but it wasn't genuine; it was full of malicious mockery.
"Untie it." Ethan was no longer as patient as before: "Lord Starfall, don't make me say it a second time. How long do you think that barrier can hold me? I will master it one day. My time is as long as yours."
“Then at least until then, you can only stay in this world,” Starfall said, his smile becoming even more sarcastic.
Ethan, his face grim, sent Starfall back into slumber. Damn it! It would be better to wake Lord Starfall a hundred years later, then we'll see his power, and no one will be able to stop him.
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Author's note: Nobody loves Ethan, but he loves himself; in fact, he takes pretty good care of himself.
Starfall: You are under house arrest (meaning you are trapped in this world).
Ethan: A tonic! (？д？; )
I wasn't planning on updating today because some things have been bothering me lately, and I just can't seem to focus on writing. My friend hasn't been replying to my messages, and I'm worried something might have happened to her. Then today I saw that she changed the name of her reader account, and I wanted to argue with her... I bombarded her with countless video and voice messages, but she still didn't reply. I contacted every platform I knew about, but she still won't respond. I channeled my anger into writing 10,000 words today, even though I was incredibly sleepy as soon as I started, I just forced myself to keep going.
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