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Chapter 78: The Weight of Life (Extra Update)

As she finished this topic, Liliya suddenly remembered something and cautiously glanced at the Priestess, who had just occupied her outdoor lounger, leisurely munching on a Princess-exclusive cream tart.

After some hesitation, she decided to voice it.

“Vilyric, who was that blonde girl named Xiao Guang who was with you when you infiltrated the Iris Flower Orphanage? Can you tell me about her?”

“Cough, cough, cough!”

The subtle resentment in the Princess’s words startled the black-haired girl, who took a long time to finally swallow the tart in her mouth and managed to smile calmly.

Luckily, when she hinted at her identity to the Princess earlier in the day, Vilyric had already prepared her explanation.

“Xiao Guang… You could think of her as the companion and guardian who has been by my side, my most important family in this world. She is quite strong, you know.”

“The most important, family, huh…”

A hint of envy and curiosity crossed Liliya’s eyes; a smart girl like her could already deduce a lot from such a statement.

“So, it was that beam of white light piercing the sky, the so-called divine punishment, that came from Miss Xiao Guang, wasn’t it? Vilyric, you’ve kept that from me so well~”

“Hehe…”

Vilyric scratched her head with a smile but didn’t offer much explanation. After all, talking too much leads to mistakes.

Moreover, she wasn’t obligated to inform Liliya about everything; even between spouses, there are secrets, let alone between her and the Princess.

Though there is the saying, “A gentleman is open and aboveboard,” she certainly wasn’t being one right now!

“Forget it… In any case, I’ve always been receiving Vilyric’s help, and I have no right to criticize your relationship with other girls or ask anything of you…”

“By the way.”

With a shift in conversation, the Princess’s expression suddenly became somewhat intricate.

“When you infiltrated the Iris Flower Orphanage, did you encounter a boy named Eli?”

“Huh?”

The Priestess thought for a moment, casually nodded, and continued reaching for another cream tart.

“That’s true. He should have been rescued too. When we parted earlier, I specifically told that child to stay hidden in his room and not run around…”

“He’s dead.”

Vilyric’s hand, reaching for dessert, froze in mid-air.

Gently letting out those three words, just like handing over some fragile crystal, Liliya took out a carefully preserved, neatly folded piece of colorful candy wrapper from her ring and placed it on the stone table.

Then, looking at the black-haired girl’s astonished, delicate face, she softly explained.

“Vilyric has been to that laboratory, she must have seen Leopold’s notes. If I’m not mistaken, Eli was the one destined to become the main consciousness of the vengeful spirit… the experimental subject.”

“Perhaps due to certain talents, his soul’s strength was much higher than that of an average child, allowing him to endure the longest during Leopold’s vengeful spirit’s invasion until my subordinates arrived, but that was it.”

“Do you know why I insisted against all odds to elevate both you and Miss Xiao Guang? This isn’t favoritism, mind you.”

“Throughout the Iris Flower Orphanage, aside from the underground prison where you were locked up, nearly all the other children, hostages, perished. If it weren’t for you stepping in, this remaining portion might not have been saved. Wouldn’t you say that’s quite a significant achievement?”

The Princess’s light yet heavy whisper gradually drifted into the night sky. After a long time, Vilyric struggled to speak.

“All the orphans… are dead?”

Liliya nodded.

Is that so…

I should have thought of that.

Since the Throne of Immortality went out of their way to capture children from the royal capital to use their pure souls to nourish their fusion with vengeful spirits, how could the kids who were already at the orphanage possibly escape disaster?

Rather, the reason for setting their base at the Iris Flower Orphanage must have been a similar idea.

No wonder Eli and those orphanage kids appeared so limp and spiritless; they likely possessed that kind of mental link…

Strange, why didn’t I notice such a simple matter?

Am I dull?

No, it’s not that I couldn’t think of it, but rather that I didn’t care about such trivial details at all.

From the start, I never genuinely placed the lives of those children in my heart, and earnestly saving those in the prison was merely due to coincidence, combined with a competitive spirit.

Was I really that cold-hearted back then?

Vilyric felt a sense of unease creeping in, but this negative emotion, due to the divine race’s overly stable mental state, didn’t stir much of a wave. She soon calmed down again.

After all, her relationship with Eli barely consisted of fleeting encounters; their time together was short. Though his pitiful plight stirred some sympathy and empathy within Vilyric, it didn’t mean she could make a significant impact on her heart.

Vilyric had no obligation to save Eli; she had already offered her assistance.

Even without the Priestess, the cub raised in captivity within that cage would ultimately meet a fate either to become a vengeful spirit or be killed by the royal forces for the same reason.

Even if he had miraculously survived until the end, would the Throne of Immortality willingly let him go upon their departure?

Not a chance.

Thus, although it was due to Vilyric’s slight mistake that they missed the opportunity to save him, Eli’s death couldn’t be placed on the Priestess’s shoulders. Otherwise, it’d be a classic tale of “good people should be held at gunpoint.”

Taking a deep breath, Vilyric continued to stuff the tart into her mouth, savoring the sweetness that spread across her tongue.

It had a vaguely familiar taste, slightly tinged with bitterness.

Although feeling regretful, since the event had already happened, Vilyric wouldn’t forcibly use revival magic to bring back that boy’s life.

If their bond had been deeper, or the circumstances different, perhaps Vilyric would have approached it with a “there’s really no loss in doing so” mindset.

However, Liliya’s sudden assault to swiftly eradicate the Throne of Immortality’s base had already stirred up a huge commotion in the City of Courage.

People applauded cheerfully, some mourned for lost kin, others despised the cultists, and some were anxious and unsettled by the upheaval; everyone’s gaze was focused here.

At a time like this, to resurrect a child confirmed dead in front of the crowd would surely bring Vilyric, the initiator of this act, a heap of trouble.

Some would feel it unjust, others would covet this miracle, and there might even be sad souls desperately pleading, attempting to invoke emotional ties to persuade Vilyric to save their cherished ones.

Perhaps she could secretly use magic and then slip away without anyone knowing.

But for Eli, would that really be a good thing?

Sometimes, human malice can be more terrifying than death itself.

However, this incident also served as a wake-up call for the Priestess.

Perhaps her mindset was subtly undergoing a transformation, becoming calmer while also growing more cold-hearted.

This might cause her to overlook seemingly trivial yet genuinely important matters.

She must… remain vigilant and aware of the effects this change may bring.

Resolving this in her mind, Vilyric storing that candy wrapper, possibly the last trace someone left in this world, into her inventory and placed it into some empty corner.

The dead are like dust, insignificant to speak of.