Although Yaxiu claimed to have lost his memories, he had acted so normal—just as irreverent as ever—that none of them really felt it was serious, and naturally hadn't considered what amnesia actually meant to him.
"Do you still remember the first time we met in the Void Realm?" Sonia suddenly asked.
"I do," Yaxiu said. "Back then, I was still in Shattered Lake Prison."
"Compared to back then, am I prettier, cuter, and gentler?"
Yaxiu's lips twitched slightly, leaving him with no choice but to reply, "Yes, yes." His conscience simply couldn't bring itself to utter a third "yes."
"In other words, even if you only met me now, you would still fall in love with me, right?" A trace of coquettish charm played across Sonia's brow as she fixed her gaze on him.
Yaxiu caught her drift and offered a helpless smile. "Of course."
"Then that's all that matters." Resting her chin in her hand, Sonia bit down on her straw and smiled. "If you really do forget me, then we'll just start over from the beginning. I'll make you fall head over heels for me all over again. It doesn't matter if you have no past, because I will definitely be in your future."
"This time, I definitely want to be the daughter!" Diya clenched her fists.
"Isn't that what Vichy did?" Weise remarked. "Before Yaxiu lost his memories, he hadn't actually accepted her. After losing them, he ended up liking her instead... Ah, I get it. Vichy lost soul fragments before, which caused an effect similar to amnesia, and that's why her heart began to flutter like a young maiden's!"
"My heart did not flutter!" Vichy ground her teeth.
"True. A maiden's fluttering heart wouldn't be thinking about how many children she wants in the future. In that regard, you truly displayed the charm befitting the Spectre Prophet..."
"Could you stop mentioning children?!"
Yaxiu picked up a skewer of grilled prawns. Watching them bicker, the slight apprehension lingering in his heart from his confession dissolved completely into thin air.
He looked up at the starry sky above. A summer night in Nabistin wasn't muggy in the least. Lounging in the cool breeze and enjoying a barbecue was such an ordinary gathering, yet Yaxiu felt it was the most enjoyable night of his life.
Perhaps it wasn't that this night was so special, but rather that after tonight, there was still time for many beautiful stories to unfold, and many precious moments of happiness left to grasp.
However, there was still one matter left to resolve.
Once they had mostly finished eating, Yaxiu asked, "Do you know why the Witch came looking for me tonight?"
Everyone exchanged glances. Felix couldn't resist chiming in, "You might not know since you lost your memories, but the Witch really doesn't need an excuse to crawl into your bed."
Her Majesty the Empress flushed with embarrassment. "Oh, come on, it's not like that..."
Yaxiu's lips twitched. He briefly explained the matter regarding the Black Demon, then asked, "Weise, have you encountered the Mirror Demon?"
"No." Weise shook her head. "What kind of person is the Mirror Demon?"
Yaxiu thought for a moment and said, "According to Dead Frenzy, the Mirror Demon is utterly infatuated with the Observer, so she's probably... a hopeless romantic?"
Weise let out an "oh." "Then she sounds very different from me."
As everyone wore expressions that screamed "Who are you kidding?", Yaxiu turned to Vichy. She had her arms crossed over her chest, watching him.
After a brief silence, Yaxiu turned his head away. Vichy instantly cracked. "Why aren't you asking me if I've seen the Nether Demon?!"
"Because you see her every time you look in the mirror."
"Did you really lose your memories? How is your sharp tongue even more accurate than before?"
"Actually, you're the one I'm least worried about," Yaxiu said. "Even though your personalities are very close, at your core, both of you possess an imperious pride where only you reign supreme. No one can ever enter your heart. You're like two blazing suns. The Nether Demon can't gradually erode you; she can only smash into you like a meteorite to crush you to death, or be crushed by you."
"Hmph." The maid shot him a sidelong glance, the corner of her lips curving up slightly. "At least you have some sense."
"I can guarantee Vichy hasn't been eroded by the Nether Demon," Weise chimed in. "The Nether Demon would never dream of giving bi—"
Before the Silver Lantern could finish, the maid lunged across and clamped a hand over her mouth.
Yaxiu looked at Sonia. "Have you seen Dead Frenzy recently?"
The red-haired girl chewed on her straw as she sipped her orange juice, shifting her gaze slightly away. "No."
"Then do you have anything to tell me?"
"...Oh. Regarding your memories of Diya, Weise, and Vichy, we'll tell you together and cross-check with one another, just to keep certain unscrupulous elements from seizing the opportunity to tamper with your memories." Sonia cast a glance at Diya, who lowered her head and kept eating, pretending not to notice.
"And?"
"And it's getting very late. We should head back to rest—"
Yaxiu pulled Sonia in front of him. Looking at the orange juice in her hands, he said, "Lately, you're always clutching juice and drinking it. You never used to have that habit."
"Can't I just have a craving for sweets lately?" Sonia snapped back defensively. "Don't tell me you think I got fat?!"
"I just noticed that you're always biting your straw," Yaxiu said. "Are you craving something to bite?"
Felix looked at Yaxiu in shock. "Is that really something you can talk about on the balcony? Maybe we should head back to our rooms first?"
Yet Sonia didn't react like someone hearing a dirty joke; instead, she looked uneasy, like someone whose browsing history had just been discovered. Yaxiu took her straw and drank from it, then suddenly leaned in and smelled her lips. Sonia felt a bit shy, but found it amusing too. "I just ate barbecue. What else could you possibly smell besides cumin?"
Yaxiu asked, "Do you still have the cigarettes?"
Sonia nodded and retrieved a cigarette pack from her spatial ring. Yaxiu glanced at it—it was the same pack from last time, missing only a single cigarette.
He wondered if cigarettes had an expiration date... Yaxiu tapped out a cigarette and practicedly lit it up. In the quiet night, he could clearly hear the crackle of the tobacco. The smoke bit his tongue, the mist soaked his throat, and a slightly hazy, tipsy sensation touched his brain. Exhaling a less-than-perfect smoke ring, he felt his whole being become ethereal, his worries dispersing along with the smoke.
I really was corrupted by Dead Frenzy. It doesn't even make me cough anymore, Yaxiu thought.
He took a deep second drag and held his breath, then snubbed out the cigarette butt, stepped forward to cup Sonia's face, and pressed a nicotine-tinged kiss onto her lips. Sonia's body stiffened for a second, but soon softened. As their lips and tongues entwined and smoke drifted between them, the burning sting of nicotine was swiftly replaced by a moist, soft warmth carrying a hint of cumin.
Yaxiu knew why Sonia's stress had been piling up.
As long as the Witch and the others were around, Sonia's stress would keep mounting. It was an irreconcilable conflict, one that couldn't be changed by anything Yaxiu said or did. Currently, the only solution was to let Sonia vent her frustrations by regularly giving Yaxiu a beating, but Sonia was clearly reluctant to do that. So she had bottled it up again, subconsciously looking for an outlet to relieve stress just like Dead Frenzy. But since she couldn't smoke, she could only bite on straws all day as a substitute.
Since Sonia wasn't willing to take the initiative herself, Yaxiu would have to guide her.
Smack! Yaxiu was pressed hard against the wall. Although he had started the war, Sonia had now seized the upper hand, fiercely ravaging his lips like a small nation that had long been bullied suddenly launching a counteroffensive against the superpower that constantly squeezed it. They didn't look like they were being affectionate so much as two beasts mauling each other. From the sofa to the railing, and from the railing into the bedroom, the others instinctively cleared a path, watching in stunned silence as the two engaged in a duo that was as ferocious as it was intensely erotic.
In the end, Yaxiu pressed Sonia onto the bed. Face to face, both breathing shallow and fast, warm breath softly brushed against each other's cheeks. Yaxiu drew a deep breath and said, "Whenever you feel stressed and want to smoke, tell me. I'll smoke it for you."
"Are you that afraid I'll lean toward Dead Frenzy?" Sonia gazed at him, a soft luster shimmering in her ruby eyes.
"No. I just want to know when you're stressed and in a bad mood." Yaxiu blinked. "If you don't want to tell me the specific reason, but still want me to comfort you, just tell me to have a smoke."
Sonia wrapped her arms around his neck, her gaze practically dripping with desire. "Then... are you only going to have a smoke?"
Yaxiu's heart drummed like a war beat. His throat felt dry, and he swallowed hard. Turning his head, he said, "Sorry, tonight—"
The lights in the Amber Palace suddenly went out, plunging the room into absolute darkness where not even a sliver of light or starlight could penetrate the bedroom. Yaxiu felt the familiar touch of skin against his back. The Witch draped herself over him, her sultry voice whispering in his ear, "Just as you asked... I'm only wearing gloves and stockings."
"You're already doing this, so how could we possibly leave?" Weise's voice came from the right; she seemed to be lying on the bed. "Still, so as not to add to the Sword Princess's stress, I blocked out all the light. As long as you can't see, it's fine, right?"
"Mm-hmm." Vichy said nothing more, merely humming a breezy pair of notes to signal that she was sitting by the edge of the bed.
Yaxiu didn't respond immediately, carefully minding Sonia's reaction instead. He heard the Sword Princess mutter a couple of words, and then she sealed all his questions away with her soft lips.
A tender warmth in the dark submerged the room. The final holiday of their lives had begun.
Outside the door, Daedalose kept rapping Felix on the head, but Felix had pressed herself firmly against the door and refused to leave no matter what. Left with no choice, Daedalose pressed her ear to the door as well to listen in.
"Miss Lena, you..."
"I'm merely supervising you to ensure you don't do anything abnormal in the corridor."
"As if I would!"
"Then what were those photos of the Observer you secretly took for?"
"Wh-what?! How did you know about that?"
"Did you forget that I'm also a feeler for the Four Pillar Gods...?"
A sudden cough sounded. Both snapped to attention at once, watching the true ruler of the Yisu Imperial Palace, Chief Witch, legendary sorcerer, and the Purple Moth, Annan, walk over. Before they could explain, Annan gestured for them to stay quiet, then pressed close to the door to listen to the movement inside.
Whether it was just her imagination or not, Felix felt that Annan's already expressionless face turned even colder.
Annan waved them over and stepped a little further away before speaking. "You're leaving for the Blood Moon tomorrow?"
"Yes, through the permanent sky gate," Daedalose replied respectfully. "We must trouble Lady Witch for that."
"No trouble." Annan rested her chin in her hand, her tone slightly subtle. "Heading to the Blood Moon, huh..."
Felix asked, "Is something wrong?"
"Nothing. I'll head back, then. It's time to log into the Void Realm." Annan said, "I will 'arrange' your trip to the Blood Moon properly."
"Thank you for your trouble."
Watching the Chief Witch's retreating figure, Felix was somewhat puzzled. "What did she come here for?"
"Coming to see the Observer alone this late, she must have had sorcery questions to consult him on," Daedalose said calmly. "What other reason could there be?"
Felix looked at her in shock. "Miss Lena, are you serious?"
"You played innocent first, so I had no choice but to play dumb." Daedalose dragged her toward their room. "Go to sleep."
"No! I'm on night watch tonight! I'm going to guard the door for them! Let me go back—"
Chapter 1249