Back when Jiang Ming played Delta Force, he was bridge-camped every single day.
He never expected someone would be camping the extraction point here, too.
Earlier, while he was devouring history books in the library, he hadn’t just been burying his head in piles of old paper. He already had a vague suspicion as to how Lillian had been able to find him.
The “School of Miracles” was an academy dedicated to the manipulation of time and fate. Because its power was akin to a divine oracle and its mastery was as difficult as scaling a sheer cliff, it had earned its name.
Lillian was the pinnacle of this path for the last century—the Emperor of Star River and the only Crowned One.
It was highly likely that she had found him through some old possession that shared a deep bond with him.
His refusal to acknowledge her wasn’t just because of Lillian’s betrayal. Deep down, it was an instinctive exhaustion and a desire to retreat.
“Lord Protector”… just thinking of those three words made a heavy sense of shackling weigh down on his shoulders again.
In the game, he had the assistance of the system and could rely on save files to start over. He could play the role of the savior who accounted for every possibility. But to personally hold the chess pieces that determined the lives and deaths of millions on this real, no-retreat chessboard?
He would work himself to death. Literally.
He hadn’t transmigrated to this other world just to be a top-tier corporate slave again, endlessly refilling the cup of overtime he hadn’t finished in his previous life.
The small, perhaps not-so-noble wish in his heart was simply to escape the giant waves of the past and find a quiet shore where he could live out this life peacefully and smoothly. Seeing different sights and experiencing a life he had never known before… perhaps that would be enough.
Hearing her voice, Jiang Ming turned around and said, “Classmate Lillian? What a coincidence.”
“It’s not a coincidence,” Lillian said, taking a half-step forward. “I was waiting for you.”
Jiang Ming smiled. “It’s so late. Did you wait for me specifically for something?”
“I just wanted to walk together for a bit,” Lillian’s tone was as natural as if she were discussing the weather. “Being new to Opas, the night streets can sometimes make one lose their sense of direction. Having a companion always brings peace of mind.” Lillian looked at Jiang Ming and smiled. “You just gave me The Ring; isn’t walking together allowed?”
At this, Lillian’s voice suddenly dropped low. “Just like a long time ago, someone once told me that the road home doesn’t feel long if there is someone to walk it with you.”
Jiang Ming’s breath hitched slightly. For a moment, he seemed to see the base of the palace walls a hundred years ago, where he held the hand of that white-haired little girl as they walked through a long corridor, the moonlight stretching their shadows very thin.
But he quickly gathered his thoughts and responded with a flat tone, “I heard the security in Opas is quite good. But… since it’s on the way, let’s walk together until the fork in the road.” He did not refuse entirely.
“Alright.” Lillian readily agreed, walking side-by-side with him into the deepening night. After a moment of silence, she suddenly asked, “What do you think of the man known as ‘Lord Protector’ Jiang Ming?”
As expected, his excuse in the cafeteria hadn’t convinced Lillian at all.
Jiang Ming weighed his words carefully. “A very impressive figure. He was the hero of that era. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call him one of the top three figures in the last thousand years of history.”
Lillian tilted her head to look at him, the light of the street lamps breaking into stars in her eyes. “If… and I mean if,” her voice was as light as a dream, “he had the chance to start over, without having to carry all those burdens, only living for himself… what path do you think he would choose?”
Jiang Ming stopped in his tracks, looking toward the distant, faint lights of the inn at the end of the street. He remained silent for a few seconds.
“I don’t know,” he finally said, his voice clear and grounded in the night wind. “But I think any person who has been truly exhausted would probably long for… a peaceful life.”
Lillian stopped as well. She didn’t argue; she only looked at him deeply, as if trying to carve his current profile into the memories of her century-long watch. After a long while, she spoke softly. “Peaceful… that sounds quite nice.”
“Yeah,” Jiang Ming grunted in response, pointing to the fork in the road nearby. “I live over there. See you tomorrow, Classmate Lillian.”
“See you tomorrow,” Lillian stood in place, smiling. “Classmate Jiang Ming.”
Just as Jiang Ming turned to leave, her voice carried through the wind again—soft yet powerful.
“By the way, an ending that isn’t written clearly in the history books… isn’t necessarily a final conclusion. Sometimes, a blank space signifies infinite possibilities, doesn’t it?”
Jiang Ming’s back stiffened slightly. He didn’t look back, only waving his hand as he quickened his pace.
She didn’t deny it; it seemed there was hope for her. Lillian smiled and walked down the other path.
***
After buying two pieces of dense rye bread from the bakery downstairs, Jiang Ming returned to his room in the inn.
Fatigue spread through him like a tide as he relaxed.
He lay flat on the bed, which wasn’t particularly soft, the scent of the rye bread still lingering in his mouth. An inexplicable, heavy drowsiness hit him without warning. His eyelids became leaden, and he let out a long yawn.
“I guess I really didn’t rest enough at noon…” He groggily found an excuse for this abnormal lethargy as his consciousness drifted toward darkness.
Just then—
“Knock, knock-knock.”
The sound of knocking echoed, neither heavy nor light, exceptionally clear in the silent hallway.
Jiang Ming’s sleepiness dissipated slightly. He frowned. At this hour?
“Classmate Jiang Ming, are you there?”
The voice coming from outside the door was Elvira’s. It was calm and cold as always, devoid of much emotion, but it was definitely her.
Jiang Ming rubbed his brow and propped himself up. He remembered that when they parted in the cafeteria during the day, Elvira had indeed mentioned “The rooftop, tonight,” as if she had a story to tell. He just hadn’t expected her to come directly to his room.
“Wait a moment,” he called out. He straightened his slightly wrinkled collar, walked over, and opened the door.
Elvira stood in the dim light of the hallway, still wearing that stiff, dark uniform. Her hair was black and her eyes red, her expression vacant. She wasn’t carrying a book; she just looked at him quietly.
“Something wrong?” Jiang Ming asked, stepping aside to signal that she could come in to talk.
“It’s not convenient here.” Elvira shook her head, her voice very low. “Go to the rooftop. Like we agreed during the day.”
Her reasoning sounded plausible; the soundproofing in the inn’s rooms was indeed poor. Jiang Ming looked at her. Those red pupils seemed deeper than usual in the shadows, lacking the purity of her daytime focus on books and carrying a hint of elusive gloom.
Perhaps it was just an illusion caused by the lighting. Jiang Ming didn’t think too much of it and nodded. “Lead the way.”
Elvira turned toward the stairs, her pace seemingly a bit faster than usual. Jiang Ming followed behind her. The two moved in silence up the narrow staircase, passing through the somewhat rusted iron door that led to the rooftop.
The night wind suddenly became fierce and free, blowing away the stuffy air of the inn’s interior. The sparse lights of the city spread out beneath them, and the starry sky hung low. It was indeed a secluded place suitable for talking—or for doing something else.
Some discarded wooden crates and junk were piled on the rooftop, casting distorted shadows under the moonlight. Elvira walked to the center of the roof, her back to Jiang Ming, appearing to look out over the night view.
“The story you wanted to hear…” She spoke with her back to him, her voice fluttering in the wind.
Before Elvira’s words could fade into the breeze, that figure with its back turned suddenly whirled around with a stiff speed that defied human logic!
In the instant she turned, her arm blurred in the rotation. Three cold glints of light tore through the air without warning, screaming toward him in a triangular formation, aimed directly at Jiang Ming’s heart, throat, and brow!
Behind those cold glints was a fierce, savage face belonging to a strange assassin, the disguise finally stripped away.