Chapter 20: Ask the Artist!

For a while, Lillian did not know where she was.

She was in a space of “The Void.”

She could feel her own existence, but she could not sense anything else.

Even though her eyes were clearly fixed on Master Atiste and she wanted to call out to him, she could only watch as he drifted further and further away.

She even saw countless versions of “Master Atiste” within this space.

She saw his “past,” “present,” and “future.”

Yet, she did not know if any of it was real or fake.

Countless versions of him were trapped in countless “bubbles.”

In some bubbles, he was invincible, destroying everything in his path; in some bubbles, he held the world in his heart, saving the weak; in other bubbles, he suffered total defeat, his body crushed to pieces…

Seeing this, Lillian did not feel any joy; instead, her heart felt as though it were breaking.

‘How could Master Atiste fail? He is an absolutely powerful man, an invincible man, the man who grasps “Justice”!’

Lillian made up her mind.

She would definitely destroy all those fake bubbles!

Those things could never be the “future!”

“Lillian… Lillian, Lillian!”

Lillian heard a familiar female voice.

the voice was crisp and pleasant, though the tone carried a sense of urgency.

“Teacher Eileen?”

Lillian opened her eyes and saw only a phantom of Eileen.

Wearing her maid uniform, Teacher Eileen’s figure flickered in and out of existence, looking like a mirage.

Lillian reached out to touch her, but her hand passed through empty air.

She immediately realized that things might have become difficult.

Seeing Lillian’s face full of questions, Eileen took the initiative to explain, “I cannot interfere with the events of this time and space right now, but fortunately, you can see me.”

Lillian observed her surroundings.

It was a world of ice and snow, a landscape of pure white, and heavy snow was falling from the sky.

Strangely enough, Lillian did not feel cold at all.

The same went for Teacher Eileen.

Despite wearing a short-skirted maid uniform with a black short-sleeved top and black silk stockings, her clothing was very light and offered no warmth.

Lillian asked, “Teacher, aren’t you cold?”

“This timeline cannot interfere with my state,” Eileen said.

“So, I am currently only able to watch you from your side.”

At that moment, Atiste sent a reminder to Eileen.

[Eileen, give her a brief summary of the situation and the mission objectives. Do not mention the System.]

Eileen received Atiste’s Sound Transmission and quickly organized her words in her mind.

She explained to Lillian, “You shattered into powder and turned into a storm. To save Master, I was swallowed into the storm you created. When we woke up, we had arrived 500 years ago.”

Lillian looked stunned.

“How could I… hurt Master Atiste?”

“No,” Eileen explained calmly, though her heart was full of jealousy.

“It was Master who chose to embrace you.”

Lillian told herself to stay calm.

She had indeed lost her memory for a period of time.

It was a “blackout.”

She only remembered that before she lost consciousness, she felt very disappointed.

Now it seemed that her mood at the time had affected her physical state.

She looked at the calm Eileen and said, “Is Master Atiste alright now? I saw him in a strange space…”

Lillian trailed off.

She did not want to admit that the “futures” she saw could be real, nor did she want them to come true.

Therefore, she chose to stop and remain silent.

Based on her understanding of her Master, he would want Lillian to be in her best state.

Thus, Eileen asked “concernedly,” “What is wrong?”

Lillian shook her head.

“Do not worry about me, Teacher Eileen. You do not need to be so fake with me. Just treat me with your true feelings, just like you did during yesterday’s training.”

Eileen’s expression remained calm as she spoke bluntly.

“Then I hope you can complete the mission Master assigned.”

“Mission?”

Lillian pretended to understand.

She had already lost part of her memory.

Even if she knew more, it would not serve much purpose.

Because Master Atiste only recognized Art; he did not care for any extra explanations.

Eileen had never thought she would end up handling such a difficult situation.

Actually, perhaps it was not that much of a hassle.

Regardless, Eileen knew what she should do.

But Lillian did not.

Lillian was very nervous.

She felt she had done something wrong.

Master Atiste would surely be furious.

Atiste also saw Lillian’s unease.

He wanted to speak.

But he knew that saying too much would be useless.

So he could only tell Eileen.

[Eileen, do not be over-talkative. Make Lillian feel safe; she will only work for me wholeheartedly if she feels secure.]

Although Eileen heard him, she was indignant.

She felt that if Lillian could not hear him, it was Lillian’s own failure.

She would not consider what Lillian was actually thinking at all.

In reality, Lillian did not know what she was supposed to do either.

Because Master Atiste had only told Eileen.

He seemed to only trust Eileen.

Was Lillian a complete stranger to him?

Lillian felt her guess was correct.

But Eileen told her, “You do not need to think too much. Master values you highly.”

Those words seemed to give Lillian a great deal of encouragement.

Did Master Atiste really trust Lillian?

She did not know.

She only knew to execute Master Atiste’s mission.

Lillian knew Master Atiste’s wish.

He only wanted to create exquisite Art.

Lillian was that kind of Art.

But where exactly was Lillian’s value?

She could not figure it out herself.

Eileen, however, understood very well.

Lillian was a complete unknown.

Master was very interested in Lillian.

Lillian did not seem to belong to this world.

Though it was just a guess, Lillian truly possessed no power.

Not even Mana.

Then why did Master like Lillian?

No…

Master only appeared to be very interested in Lillian.

In reality, he did not know what “thing” Lillian was either.

Yes, Master must be thinking that.

Otherwise, his attitude could not be explained.

For a successful “Art” like Lillian, why did Master only “spare her a glance”?

Eileen’s intuition would not play her false.

Master’s attitude was too perfunctory.

He would not be so perfunctory about things he was truly obsessed with.

But where exactly was the problem?

Eileen could not see it.

Even if she wanted to ask Lillian, she knew Lillian was nothing more than a tool.

Ask her?

It was better to think for herself.

But her own thoughts yielded no answers.

‘What is Master thinking?’

Eileen did not know.

Lillian did not know.

And Atiste would not say anything himself.

How irritating.

He really was a troublesome fellow.

But Atiste was an Artist.

What should be done?

‘Go ask the Artist!’