Chapter 1486 The Polite Demon <TOC> Chapter 1488 Life and Death in Other's Hands
Translator: SumTLMan
As Alex had surmised, Lady Connie told no one. After returning from the Church of Kruja, she immediately packed a bundle and left her desolate home without a moment’s delay.
Lady Connie headed towards the outskirts of Ghust Town.
In the beginning, she was in a daze, stumbling along and making slow progress. It wasn’t until the velvet curtain of night spread across the sky and the distant sound of a rolling river reached her ears that Lady Connie lifted her head out of her reverie.
Only then did she realize that she had unwittingly traveled far from Ghust Town and had now reached the banks of a long river.
Not far ahead stood the stone bridge where her son’s skull had been found.
Upon seeing the bridge, tears instantly filled Lady Connie’s eyes. She hastened her steps, breaking into a run towards the stone bridge, her eyes filled with sorrow, her lips continuously calling out her son’s name, Reven.
At that moment, a hundred meters behind Lady Connie, hidden behind a large tree, Alex watched the scene unfold with a cool detachment.
“Although I’m unsure whether this cage is real or imaginary, at least Lady Connie’s love for her son is genuine,” Angel remarked, floating behind Alex and observing the poignant scene. He continued, “Do you really have the heart to cast someone like her into the Abyss?”
“What I’ve done is merely share a fragment of the truth with Lady Connie,” Alex replied, his face emotionless, but his inner self slightly disturbed. As he looked at the unfolding scene, it seemed to evoke a certain memory, one featuring a blurry figure slowly turning its head deep within his recollection.
However, no matter what he tried, Alex could not discern the face of this shadowy figure.
“Do you think that what I told Lady Connie would be harmful if it weren’t for this cage?” Alex posed the question to himself. “No. Therefore, the fault doesn’t lie with me, but with this cage.”
Alex spoke the harsh words with a dispassionate calm.
Angel raised an eyebrow and thought: At first glance, Alex’s words seem to make sense, but upon closer inspection, one would realize that he’s subtly shifting the premise.
Angel didn’t bother to correct him, believing that even if he did, Alex would probably just say, “Oh, I get it,” offering you superficial agreement while behind your back, he’d continue doing what he wants — just as he’s done with Father Bertrand.
Most importantly, Angel knew that Alex wasn’t self-unaware or oblivious to the ethical high ground he’d set for himself.
Alex was fully aware of his actions and words.
His indifference was deeply ingrained.
He was an extraordinarily unique and fascinating individual.
Angel increasingly felt that perhaps Alex really was the epitome of the purpose behind this cage?
Just then, a wail came from the distance. Lady Connie was kneeling by the river, her eyes fixed on the rope hanging from the bridge piling, tears flowing uncontrollably.
Looking at the scene in the distance, Alex suddenly said, “If we assume that the cage is what Mr. Pat calls the ‘second cage,’ created by the cage’s master, then are Lady Connie and Knight Reven truly mother and son?”
“There’s a slim possibility they’re not,” Angel responded.
The corner of Alex’s mouth curled into a smirk: “Then I’m genuinely curious. If all of this is a façade, why would the creator of this cage burden them with such meaningless emotions?”
“After all, the moment any emotional bond exists within the cage, variables arise. When someone living inside it even subconsciously considers leaving, that’s a variable. So what does purifying these caged birds amount to?”
To sum it up in one sentence: What exactly is the purpose behind the creator of this cage?
As Lady Connie’s wails gradually subsided, she lingered by the riverbank for a while longer. It wasn’t until a cold breeze swept over her, causing her to shiver, that she snapped out of her reverie.
Staring into the dimming twilight, Lady Connie seemed a bit fearful. She rummaged through her bundle and ignited a pre-prepared handheld lantern with a flint.
The dim, yellow glow offered her a modicum of comfort. Slowly standing up, she looked at the rope hanging from the bridge pier and whispered, “Last wish — I will fulfill your last wish, allowing you to depart to the heavenly realm without regret…”
With that, Lady Connie took a deep breath, her eyes gaining clarity. She proceeded towards the bridge with steps noticeably more resolute than before.
Seeing Lady Connie begin to move forward, Alex followed her at a distance.
“Mr. Pat, how far are we from the edge of the cage?” asked Angel.
“With Lady Connie’s pace, we should reach it in approximately an hour,” Angel replied.
Alex nodded, a ponderous look in his eyes. A question nagged at him: Were the victims of this string of murders killed after discovering the truth about the cage, or had they been discovered by the murderer before reaching its edge?
If it’s the latter, that might mean the murderer could already be lurking nearby.
However, both Alex and Angel were inclined to believe it was the former — that the victims had been killed upon discovering the cage’s secret. Perhaps the cage’s barrier had some sort of mechanism that alerted the murderer when touched.
To be on the safe side, Alex decided to proceed with even greater caution.
As time slowly passed, an hour had gone by since Lady Connie left the stone bridge, and there had been no unexpected occurrences.
Because the main road was blocked, Lady Connie had actually started traversing mountainous terrain by this point. The dark forest at night carried its own menacing aura, not to mention the various dangerous snakes and insects. Lady Connie’s pace had noticeably slowed, so even after an hour, she had not yet reached the barrier of the cage.
Lady Connie seemed weary from her walk and briefly rested on a stone stool.
Dozens of meters behind Lady Connie, Angel descended gently from the sky, landing beside Alex: “She’s less than a hundred meters from the cage barrier.”
Upon hearing this, Alex nodded solemnly.
Regardless of whether Lady Connie had discovered the truth, the area had become perilous; a murderer could appear at any moment.
Lady Connie rested only briefly before rising and walking ahead. Alex didn’t dare to follow too closely and could only watch from afar as Lady Connie, lantern in hand, ventured deeper into the darkness, disappearing from sight.
Alex waited in silence.
A minute later, a bone-chilling scream suddenly pierced the night sky.
That scream… it was Lady Connie!
Had the murderer finally appeared? Alex abruptly lifted his head, looking in the direction of the scream. Initially, he saw no sign, but it wasn’t long before a figure carrying a night lamp ran haphazardly toward him.
A gust of wind blew, carrying a faint scent of blood.
At that moment, Alex was hidden between two rocks, peeking cautiously, trying to get a clear look at who the murderer might be. However, Lady Connie was still quite a distance from him, making it hard to see clearly.
“Huh?” Alex suddenly heard a rustling sound behind him. Turning his head, he saw, illuminated by the dim moonlight, Angel’s brows deeply furrowed as if he had discovered something.
Alex was eager to ask Angel for details, but he dared not make a sound at the moment, fearful of attracting the murderer’s attention. He could only continue to look through the gap between the rocks to the other side.
As the scent of blood grew more intense in the wind, it indicated that Lady Connie must be getting closer to Alex’s location.
As moments like these approached, Alex’s mood grew increasingly calm. Not a whisper of emotion escaped him; he was like a wolf hunting in the dead of night, silently watching for the scent of blood.
A flash of light!
When a light suddenly flickered nearby, Alex’s pupils contracted. He had finally caught sight of the assailant pursuing Lady Connie.
However, when Alex saw who it was, his mind exploded in disbelief.
Why him? How could it possibly be him?
Lady Connie was only about twenty meters away from where Alex was hiding. Due to the undulating terrain of the ridge, she had not thought to run in Alex’s direction but was making a rapid descent down the slope.
Thanks to the night light Lady Connie was barely managing to carry, along with the faint moonlight, it was clear to see that her left arm had vanished from the elbow down. The pungent smell of blood in the air was coming from there.
Lady Connie was panting incessantly, her face marred with fear as her pursuer drew closer and closer.
Suddenly, Lady Connie’s foot slipped, and she fell to the ground. The night light she was carrying in her right hand also descended, tracing a parabolic curve as it fell.
When the night light landed on the ground, its dim flame illuminated a pair of feet.
The assailant was supposed to be behind her. How could there be a pair of feet in front of her as well? Frantically lifting her head, Lady Connie saw the owner of those feet — a woman with a graceful figure but a face veiled with resentment.
“It’s… it’s you… how can this be?” Lady Connie stammered as she looked at the woman.
At that moment, the silhouette of the pursuer also revealed itself in the flickering light.
He was a man nearly two meters tall, wearing dark bronze armor. A knightly sword hung at his waist, though only the scabbard remained; he held the blade in his hand.
The man should have a handsome face, but unfortunately, like the newly appeared woman, he exudes malevolence and cruelty.
As the man approaches step by step, wielding a knight’s sword, Lady Connie continues to weep uncontrollably.
“Reven, Reven… it’s your mother. Don’t you recognize your own mother?”
Lady Connie’s words raise an eyebrow from Angel, who’s watching from a distance. His gaze shifts to Alex, who subtly nods, confirming the man’s identity.
This relentless pursuer is none other than the recently deceased Knight Reven, Lady Connie’s only son!
…
At this moment, Lady Connie lies helpless on the ground, unable to move, as she watches her once-dear son draw closer.
On the other side, the newly appeared woman also approaches Lady Connie with palpable malice.
Lady Connie now feels as though the world has turned surreal. Why has her deceased son come back to life, failing to recognize her and seeking to kill her? And what about Camille, who she thought had died a year ago — why is she still here?
Furthermore, why did she just walk into an invisible wall, when there appeared to be nothing but empty space ahead?
Why has the world suddenly become so unfathomably strange?
Chapter 1486 The Polite Demon <TOC> Chapter 1488 Life and Death in Other's Hands