Upon hearing Jorge’s story, Yurisien immediately got up from her seat and looked out the window. As she listened and observed, the increasing number of undead became apparent.
“How on earth should we deal with this…”
Yurisien muttered with a dizzy expression. The news felt like someone was trying to suffocate her. However, there was no time to despair.
“Moreover, if they are the former leaders of Heaven’s Bridge, aren’t they more than just ordinary undead?”
“Yes. Among the undead identified so far, they are the closest to ‘human.’ The so-called ‘Great Ancestors,’ known as the founders of Heaven’s Bridge, are said to have even implemented the heartbeat. This means they have transplanted the hearts of those sacrificed while still beating… in other words, from someone who was alive.”
It was a gruesome story. Yurisien eventually staggered.
“Yurisien, are you okay?”
Although Benjamin supported her, Yurisien, whose legs had given way, couldn’t stand up. The end was now imminent. It truly seemed like everything was coming to an end. With undead who had received transplants of living hearts now emerging, correcting this world seemed impossible. She felt it keenly.
“Everything… it’s all over now. Why… why did it have to be like this? What do they gain by destroying this world? Why do they engage in such actions?”
Yurisien sobbed. The word ‘end’ that had seemed so unreal now overwhelmed her as the impending conclusion. It felt like being swept away in a flood. Observing her, repeating that she truly didn’t understand what was happening, Benjamin spoke to Yurisien with a somewhat pointed tone.
“Pull yourself together, Yurisien!”
“Ugh, ugh.”
“Don’t lose your reason. You said you would find a way. You’ve always been like that. Even in any desperate situation, you never gave up. It’s the same now.”
“Your Highness…”
“You will surely find a way. I will make sure of it.”
Benjamin’s firm voice steadied Yurisien’s wavering heart, like a fragmentary boat encountering a storm. Yurisien, embraced in Benjamin’s arms, felt a slow peace settling in her heart.
Looking up at Benjamin, who gently held her shoulders, Yurisien spoke softly.
“Yes, that’s right. I will find a way again, just like always.”
Undead had overrun the Solzerion Empire as if it were their own, and the sky, darkened due to the magical aftermath, was so overcast that it was hard to see even a glimpse of sunlight. Nevertheless, Yurisien’s red eyes sparkled intelligently, like rubies holding a flame.
Greta did not attend the ritual summoning the ancestors of Heaven’s Bridge, and Dolores found her in her carriage.
“Greta? Are you here?”
Although no sound came from inside, Dolores was convinced that Greta was inside. There was no particular indication, but Dolores wasn’t expecting an answer in the first place.
“What are you contemplating?”
Even though Dolores asked, there was no response. However, it seemed like Dolores wasn’t hoping for an answer in the first place as she continued speaking.
“Do you regret it? Or… are you looking for a way to undo it?”
Dolores’s voice remained unchanged. It was the same tone as when Greta first visited her, when she mentioned the name of the mother who gave birth to her, and when she pledged to help the Roma for their revival. Dolores always had the same voice.
“Tell me what makes you agonize. Perhaps what tortures you.”
Perhaps that’s why, the more Greta experienced Dolores, the more she realized that the family she desired was far from what she had.
Greta leaned back against the chair’s backrest, staring blankly at the carriage ceiling. Everything felt hollow and empty. Even Yurisien, who habitually cast curses, escaped Greta’s grip with Benjamin’s help.
“I still don’t understand.”
Why was it that Yurisien, who always struggled alone with the traps and fences she had created by squeezing her brain, easily escaped them? Unlike Greta, who felt increasingly empty, Yurisien’s hands were continually being filled. Greta wondered where she had gone wrong. Why were Yurisien’s hands being filled while hers remained empty?
“No matter how much I try to snatch or forcibly take, Yurisien’s hands are still getting fuller. While mine remain empty and vacant.”
Yurisien’s hands, despite Greta’s attempts to snatch and seize, were filling up even more. Greta, lying with her body stretched out, raised her hand. Watching her white and pale palm, Greta soon closed her eyes.
“There’s nothing…”
With these empty hands, she created true emptiness and futility.
“Greta, let’s talk about the sadness you have. Shall we?”
Dolores whispered in the world of destruction. Solzerion was correct. The Guisian faith was correct. The Romani had to disappear. Heaven’s Bridge should not exist as a religion. What they worshiped was evil.
Undead should never have been created in the first place. It should not have been used as a source of power. Despite numerous warnings through dark magic, Greta did not stop. Now, she paid the price. Greta let out a quiet sigh. Eventually, she opened her eyes.
After Being Cheated On, She Picked Up a Treasure (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: The husband I married on a whim had been secretly in love with me for a long time.
On the day when Jun Shao finally obtained the imperial decree for her marriage, Lan Qu, the person she had admired for six years, defied the decree and ran away.
Her gentleness and devotion, her promise of a lifetime together, were all disregarded by him. Instead, he dreamed of entering the palace to serve the Emperor’s sister as a sixth-rank attendant.
News of this incident spread throughout the capital, and the alleys in front of and behind the Lan mansion were crowded with people who came to watch the commotion.
Jun Shao should have been embarrassed and angry.
But someone stepped in to protect her dignity.
The figure was in a miserable state, yet still possessed an undeniable elegance and handsomeness.
The young lord struggled to climb the wall of the Lan mansion and shouted to her, “If he won’t marry you, I will!”
So, Jun Shao took advantage of the situation and married the person.
She thought the young lord did it to save the Lan family from the crime of defying the imperial decree, but never imagined that from beginning to end, what he coveted was her.
*
After the wedding, Jun Shao felt like she was living in a dream.
Her Wife-master was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, skilled in the six arts, well-versed in poetry and literature, capable of being gentle and attentive, and also grand and dignified. Most importantly, she was the only one in his heart and eyes.
Jun Shao didn’t know how Lan Shiwu, as a illegitimate son without a father and blessed with beauty, had managed to preserve his purity, recklessly escape, and use his last ounce of strength to ruin his own reputation, all because of his love for her, just to stand before her.
She could only see him gazing at her with eyes full of love, and when she bestowed a name upon him, his eyes shone like stars.
“You have come to me like a weary bird perching on a branch. I shall call you A Qi.”
