Mage Manual-Chapter 625 - 501: Sleeping Beauty

Boom!

The grand doors of the Court Banquet Hall burst open as a battered, wet motorcycle flew in. The guests hastily rose to dodge it, watching as it skidded all the way to the foot of the throne and shattered against the steps into scrap.

In the downpour, a servant drenched in blood, holding a long sword, strode in. Clad in a tailcoat design, after being drenched in fresh blood, it suddenly looked like a dark red trench coat; only, no one knew whose blood it was. A mask hid all but a pair of eyes, obscuring any glimpse of expression.

Yayin.

Everyone echoed the same thought.

A Saint of fifty years.

The Guardian of Nabistin.

The Sovereign of the Gospel.

The Savior who sheltered all beings, the Emperor of ultimate benevolence and goodness.

However, not everyone was willing to stand by as mere spectators. Yvalin, Anfeier, and Qinna all wished to speak, but at that moment, the Empress gently lifted her hand, and everyone seemed to lose their right to speak, only capable of silently witnessing the changing of the era, the birth of a new emperor.

And then, tomorrow, the sun would rise as usual.

But his steps quickened, faster and faster, as if he couldn’t wait to retrieve the crown, even unfurling golden and silver wings to fly over.

He lifted his sword, like a white rainbow piercing the sun, like a meteor striking the moon!

Clang!

The sword pierced through the veil, pausing before the neck. The tip broke the skin, beading a drop of crystalline blood.

"My blood, too, is red," the Empress seemed to address his inner doubt, explaining. Two Secret Guards stood silently at the sides of the throne, as if indifferent to what transpired upon it, or who sat there.

He looked at the Empress, with complex emotions in his eyes.

"Why do you not strike?" asked the Empress, "Anger, resentment, fear, despair, your heart is a tempest of darkness, why do you not unleash it? I stand before you, why not use my death to fill the void within your heart?"

"Do you hate me? Hate."

"Do you want to kill me? Yes."

"Are you afraid? No."

"So, what is it then?"

The Empress seemed to smile, "It’s because you pity me."

He remained silent.

"You know the process of every Empress’s birth: as the purest, most innocent, most kind, and most lovely girl lives to adulthood, then takes hold of the Gospel, caring for this land for fifty years, until the next Empress takes her place," the Empress said. "You know that Riyin did so to perpetuate the future of the nation; you know the Chasers did so to eliminate noise that would affect the happiness of many; you know that the Gospel weaves the most beautiful future from countless possibilities."

"Even those two who needed to be executed were not wrong, because they had not sinned yet."

"But the Gospel does not afford them the chance to sin."

Ash finally spoke, "The story shouldn’t be this way."

"Reality is not a fairy tale," the Empress replied. "It has to be this way."

"But, it’s wonderful to see you with my own eyes."

"Hm?"

"You are indeed the chosen one of the Gospel," the Empress said. "You will become the purest, most genuine, kindest, and most beautiful Yisu."

At that moment, the Empress stepped forward.

Gracefully pressing her neck against Ash’s long sword.

Facing Ash’s horrified gaze, the Empress playfully winked. In her final moments, she seemed to reclaim the innocence of fifty years past.

"The first meeting among countless beings always greets its curtain fall."

"Thank you, Ash. I’m sorry, Yayin."

Ash watched as the Empress’s body dissipated like a gust of sand, momentarily bewildered—he, unlike her, knew no one even knew her True Name.

But time was not on his side to wallow in sorrow; as the previous host died, the right to the Divine Being transferred outright.

Thump!

Ash staggered ever so slightly, chilled as if he had been soaked by rain for too long.

He stepped forward, grasped the handle, and slowly sat upon the throne.

Everyone, instinctively, knelt, including the Secret Guards on both sides of the throne. The raging storm outside quieted down at that moment, as if the world itself was welcoming the return of the emperor.

Yayin, slowly opened his eyes.

...

...

On the bridge outside the parking lot lay many gravely injured Saints of the Holy Domain.

Below, a river. The downpour was intense, the river currents fierce, fish competing in the waters, and as the waves lapped the shore, the aquatic creatures forcibly pushed a foreign invader onto the waterside platform.

The little girl laid on the damp stone slab, her hair clean and lustrous black. It hurt, Diya thought, so this was her cue to enter, only she could bear her sister’s pain.

But the pain would soon cease, as the rapid loss of warmth took her senses, the intense drowsiness numbed her nerves. She could not think of anything, only wishing to close her eyes swiftly and never wake up.

Unless Ash were to awaken her with a kiss.

Ash.

Diya opened her eyes, and a massive creature suddenly invaded her vision.

It had four beautiful sharp horns, a body covered in shimmering bronze scales, and a mouth full of fierce but neatly arranged fangs. Its eyes were as big as half-length mirrors, and Diya could even see her own reflection in its pupils...

It was a Bronze Dragon.

It watched Diya calmly, and from somewhere within her, a surge of strength asked, "Is the trial over?"

It nodded its head.

The trial of the Bronze Dragon was simple, just one curse, one condition: the curse was that she would lose her past identity, be transported elsewhere, turned into a child, her magic power sealed, and the trial condition was to survive successfully until the death of Empress Yisu.

This trial was undoubtedly tailored for Diya: the Bronze Dragon helped her escape the Tower, conceal her identity, and even change her appearance. And as long as Empress Yisu did not die, she risked being captured and returned to undergo the Armored Saint transformation.

The end of the trial meant that Diya could return to her original body and start a new and wonderful life, yet at this moment, Diya couldn’t feel happy at all.

Because the death of Empress Yisu signified the rise of the new ruler, Yayin.

As the Bronze Dragon gently touched her, with raindrops crisply hitting her, Diya realized that her body had reverted to its adult form—though only halfway.

But that was okay, her magic power could finally be used in reality.

Sun Reversal.

Diya used the "Sun Reversal" Technique Spirit on herself, and her body fully reverted to the state it was one day before—that of the little girl Liss, even down to the same dress she wore.

Ah? Wait? The Sun Reversal Technique Spirit is an instantaneous reversal, and there’s no mention of it undoing this, so does this mean I have to stay a little girl forever?

But then, it didn’t matter anymore.

It was all right.

Diya looked up at the Bronze Dragon: "Although I’ve never expected your blessing, you are such a malicious one, surely you would give me a mocking that’s just perfect, right?"

It actually nodded its head.

As its four sharp horns emitted a faint light, Diya felt like her spirit had become more solidified.

"The Blessing of the Bronze Dragon: Your spirit resistance is increased by 13%, your soul’s adaptability to all divine factions improves by 13%."

By the time Diya had fully parsed the blessing’s effects, the Bronze Dragon had vanished.

She suddenly felt like laughing. She undertook the trial of the Bronze Dragon to evade her fate, but having passed the trial, she needed to embrace her fate proactively.

It was as if everything had remained the same, yet everything had changed.

Fifty years later, when she died, there would certainly be a line in her Mage’s Handbook: All Bronze Dragons are absolute bastards!

She sat on a water play platform, looking at her blurry reflection in the river.

"Liss, sister," Diya called softly, "I need you now."

Little Witch: "Ah?"

White Queen: "Not calling for you."

Little Witch: "But I am Liss."

Black Butler: "You are the second generation Liss; Diya is calling for the first generation."

Little Witch: "There are two generations of Liss?!"

White Queen: "Did you forget? Liss is specifically the sister responsible for real-world activities, so of course there was one before you were born."

The Little Witch paused for a moment, then remembered that she was a sister born after Lissdia escaped the Tower. This also meant that when Lissdia was inside the Tower, there was certainly another ’Liss.’

So who was this ’Liss’?

The Secret Princess was specifically responsible for Void Realm activities, and while the White Queen, Black Butler, and Red Death Cultist could all become ’Liss,’ the Little Witch now understood that ’Liss’ responsible for real-world activities in the Tower was supposed to be a princess who fit the description of "the most pure, the most innocent, the kindest, the most wonderful girl."

Even though the Little Witch loved everyone, she had to admit that none of them could perfectly meet these criteria. Compared to the few of them, perhaps their father was a bit more fitting.

Little Witch: "So, we actually have another sister? Why has she never appeared?"

Red Death Cultist: "Because she is the complete opposite of Diya."

Little Witch: "I don’t understand."

White Queen: "She is the truly purest, the most innocent, the kindest, the most wonderful being, which means that even if Diya told her all the truth, she would not rebel against this fate but choose to sacrifice herself to protect beings. Moreover, we dare not tell her, as she is our cover; the Empress would discover our existence if anything happened to her."

White Queen: "And as long as she exists, the process of becoming the Armored Saint continues, she is our enemy. To survive, she must disappear."

Little Witch: "Disappear?! Do you mean, do you mean you—"

Black Butler: "We once advised Diya to kill her, but Diya did not do so; she sealed her instead."

Little Witch: "Sealed? How?"

Red Death Cultist: "She is different from us; she is not a Technique Spirit. She and Diya are true multiple personalities, unlike us who can appear simultaneously. So when she is in control of the body, Diya can only hide, and that’s why she’s called the ’Secret Princess.’"

"When Diya took over the body, her personality would sleep deep within the soul; unless Diya voluntarily gave up the body, she would not wake up."

"So, we also call her—"

"Sleeping Beauty."

Diya watched her reflection in the water blur, then reassemble into a girl resembling her own form, yet with a wholly different demeanor, like a princess from a fairy tale.

The princess opened her eyes, covered her mouth with a yawn, and looked at her with puzzled yet curious eyes.

"Liss, sister," Diya bit her lip, "please save him."

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