Night World Players

Chapter 276 I want to create brand new memories with you
The western continent, the northern border of the Holy Kingdom of Fran.

A thriving small town sits at the foot of the Three Sages Mountains.

As the northernmost point of human civilization in the western continent, the Three Sages Snow Mountain and its surrounding area were, for a considerable period of time, synonymous with barrenness, desolation, and sparse human presence.

A century ago, when technology was not advanced, it often took more than ten hours to travel by sled to reach the border... Therefore, the only link between the residents of the North and the outside world was the traveling caravans that came every six months.

However, with the rapid development of technology today—the emergence of aircraft, railways and other means of transportation, and the opening of the passage between the North and the West Continent, it is no longer the barbaric land isolated from the civilized world.

Because the Three Sages Mountains contain a large number of rare minerals, extraordinary materials, and extraordinary creatures, the Northland, which is buried with countless treasures, has also attracted a large number of adventurers.

Amidst the comings and goings of people, a brand-new city rose from the ground.

Amidst the hustle and bustle, no one remembers the desolate and impoverished state of the Northland in the past.

……

"It is said that in the distant past, the place we are in now was once a border town called 'Canaan.'"

"However, about two hundred years ago... it seems that due to some inexplicable natural disaster, that town was razed to the ground overnight."

"Sounds incredible, doesn't it? It's as if the great hand of a god wiped it off the map, leaving not even a trace of the Canaan town's existence."

In an adventurer's tavern in the city, a middle-aged man with a large beard held a wine glass and was talking animatedly to the two people in front of him.

Just as depicted in the bard's story—

In every adventurer's tavern, there's an old man who loves to tell stories to new adventurers, and this tradition hasn't failed in the North either.

"It is said that after this bizarre incident, the Holy Kingdom at the time even dispatched a bishop of the legendary rank of the Holy Court to investigate the matter, but ultimately found nothing."

"Left with no other option, the authorities had to block all information about 'Canaan' and classify it as a classified matter..."

It is said that—

The bearded man softened his tone slightly, speaking in an extremely careful and captivating manner:
"The unusual events that occurred in Canaan at that time may have involved something beyond legend, the realm of the gods, which is why the Holy See took it so seriously."

"Uh-huh."

Of the two listeners in front of the bearded man, a black-haired, black-eyed boy nodded earnestly: "And then?"

"And then nothing special."

The bearded man took a sip of his strong liquor: "Initially, because the town of Canaan mysteriously disappeared overnight, the nearby residents believed that the town might have been cursed by the gods, so they designated that area as a forbidden zone and dared not approach it."

"But then, as time went on, nothing unusual happened here... In addition, a large number of rare mineral veins were discovered inside the Three Sages Mountains, so just like a gold rush, people began to flock here from all over the Western Continent."

"Ultimately, this new border city was built on the site of the former Canaan town."

"The world is bustling with activity, all for profit; the world is bustling with activity, all for profit—" In the end, the rugged-looking bearded man revealed a touch of philosophy in his words: "The things here are no different."

He glanced at the man and woman in front of him who had spoken to him.

Both of them looked quite young, like an adventurous couple who had just come of age and were going out to explore together.

"To be honest, I was quite surprised when you asked me about these things."

Even here, on the site of that former Canaanite town, not many people know about this anymore.

"If my family hadn't lived in the North for generations, and if I hadn't heard these things from the elders in my family when I was young, I probably wouldn't know about these things..."

The bearded man glanced at the two of them but didn't think much of it—after all, they were young people, and it was normal for them to be curious.

Judging from their clothing and rather handsome appearance, they must be the offspring of some noble family in the vicinity. Perhaps they saw a record of "Canaan" in some ancient book in the library, which is why they came here to inquire.

"In short, that's all I know."

"That was more than two hundred years ago. Even if there were survivors in that Canaan town, they would probably be several hundred years old by now and have long since died of old age."

"The truth about this is so far in the past that it is impossible to verify. It may have been made up by the old folks to fool children."

"Just listen to everything I'm saying as a story."

"The area around the Three Sages Snow Mountain is very dangerous, so you'd better not have any adventurous ideas and risk your lives by venturing into the snow mountain," the bearded man kindly reminded you.

As he spoke, he downed the strong liquor in his glass in one gulp, his eyes lighting up: "Speaking of which, I really didn't expect your bartending skills to be so good. You managed to make such a good bartender out of such low-quality raw liquor in this tavern."

"You look so young, but your bartending skills are far superior to the bartenders at this bar."

Hearing the bearded man's praise, the young man with black hair and black eyes simply smiled slightly: "Actually, it's nothing, just practice makes perfect."

"Regardless, thank you for your story—"

He paused slightly, then stood up, took the hand of the blonde girl beside him, and waved to the bearded man.

"Xiao Ai and I are both very happy today."

"I'm glad to know... that even after more than two hundred years, there are still people who remember the name of that border town."

jingle.

After a crisp sound, the bearded man subconsciously raised his hand and saw that a gleaming gold coin had appeared in his hand.

Based on the purchasing power in the North, one Cole coin is enough to cover the expenses of the bearded family of four for half a year.

"and many more."

The bearded man stared at the gold coin in his palm for a moment, then quickly stood up.

"I'm not one of those cunning information brokers; I just told a story to satisfy my own desire for self-expression..."

"I don't even know if this information is true or false myself, and I am not worthy of such a valuable gift from you..."

The bearded man paused, seemingly lost in thought.

Because the figures of the boy and girl in front of him had disappeared, leaving only an empty seat in front of him.

In the distance, howling winds swept in from the vast and boundless snow-capped peaks, swirling and lingering over the entire city, whistling and lamenting.

……

"I never expected this..."

"That once secluded Canaan town has now become such a bustling place."

After leaving the adventurer's tavern, Rust and Amys strolled along the wide streets of the border city, their conversation tinged with a touch of melancholy.

"Yes."

Amys nodded: "To be honest, being called an ancient person from hundreds of years ago... it's a strange feeling, and a little unpleasant."

“Hmm?” Last was slightly puzzled: “But we are indeed ancient people who have lived for hundreds of years.”

"Whether it's the centuries-long time loop I experienced in Deep Blue Harbor, or the time you spent with the 'Artificial Angel' project, Xiao Ai."

"If we're being really precise, we're probably already several hundred years old, or even thousands or tens of thousands of years old..."

Last's words froze in place.

Because at this very moment, beside him, Amys's beautiful sky-blue eyes were flashing with an extremely dangerous cold light.

"Seventeen."

"Ok?"

"According to Dean Yin, the standard for measuring the age of extraordinary individuals is more important than the years experienced by the physical body, but rather the state of the soul."

"And my soul has remained in the same state as when I was seventeen years old—"

"So, my real age is..."

Amys stared straight at Rust with her sky-blue eyes.
"Seventeen years old."

"Yes, that's right. My Xiao Ai is of course a beautiful girl who will always be seventeen years old. There's no doubt about that."

Last spoke quickly, only then noticing that the temperature beside him, which had been gradually freezing, had returned to normal.

Seeing this, he let out a long sigh of relief.

Indeed, no woman can escape the concern about her age, not even Amys, who has now become the Angel of Judgment and reigns supreme over the river of time.

Of course, if it were before the two reunited, the Amies in that Canaan illusion would never have said those words to her.

After all, back then, Amys always tried her best to present the gentlest and most flawless version of herself in front of Rust.

But Rust knew very well that the perfect and gentle Amies who always waited for him with a quiet smile in the town was not the real Amies, but just someone who had been putting on a brave face all along.

The real Amys was just a rural girl living on the border, with human emotions and desires, and also human weaknesses.

Therefore, it wasn't until the two reunited in Canaan that Raste felt the girl with the pale golden hair had come back to life.

She has her own fears; she can be scared, she can be affectionate, she can get angry and jealous when she sees him and Hiltina being close, and she can occasionally throw a little tantrum or be willful when they are alone together.

At this moment, Amys is no longer the eternally gentle, smiling, almost unreal angel... but a living, breathing human girl with flesh and blood, truly living in this world.

"That's more like it."

A smile appeared on Amys's lips, and then she moved slightly, leaning her body against Rust's chest.

“I had a dream yesterday,” she whispered in Rust’s ear.

"Oh? What kind of dream?"

"A time-travel dream. In the dream, I traveled back to my childhood, to Canaan before it was destroyed by the 'space-time collapse.'"

"At first, I was happy to see Canaan before it was reduced to ruins and to see the uncles, aunts, grandfathers and grandmothers who were still alive in the town, but I soon realized that something was wrong."

"The Canaan in my dream was so real, exactly like the town in my memory... But, in that town, you were the only one missing."

Amise buried her head in Rust's arms, her long, soft, pale golden hair falling down his arm.

“I searched the whole town and asked everyone, but I couldn’t find any trace of you, as if you, Rast, had never lived in Canaan.”

"I was terrified. I felt like I was falling into an abyss, my vision gradually darkening, as if the whole world had abandoned me..."

"The fear was so real that it almost suffocated me—so much so that it took me a long time to calm down and distinguish between dream and reality after I woke up from the nightmare."

"fortunately……"

"That was just a nightmare."

She nestled in Last's arms and spoke in an extremely soft voice.

"fortunately……"

"I am embracing your touch, your warmth, and the sound of your voice that I hear..."

"None of this is a dream."

The street, which was usually quite bustling, was now eerily quiet.

Only the desolate wind howled and howled as it swept through the streets.

Last didn't speak, but simply stroked the girl's soft, sandalwood-scented pale golden hair in his arms.

"Last."

After a long while, Amys finally leaned close to his ear and whispered something.

"Next stop, I want to go to the seaside, let's go to that Deep Blue Harbor that trapped you for over 300 years..."

"Although Deep Blue Harbor no longer exists with the change of eras, I have checked and found that a new seaside city based on tourism has been built there."

"in addition……"

The girl hesitated for a moment, which was extremely rare for her.

"I used my abilities as a mechanical angel to book a room at a love hotel by the sea."

"Of course, didn't we agree before? I'd take you to see all the beautiful landscapes of this world... wait..."

Last paused abruptly, realizing the girl's unspoken meaning: "Little Ai, you're not in mechanical lifeform form right now, um..."

"Although I have a mechanical body, with my current status as an angel, I can still maintain my human form!"

A blush crept onto Amy's pretty face, but she still spoke earnestly again.

Her voice was soft, but every word she uttered carried a resolute determination to not back down.

"Last—"

"tonight……"

"I want to create entirely new memories with you."

Looking at the girl in his arms, whose sky-blue eyes sparkled with light, Last said nothing more, only nodding gently.

"it is good."

(End of this chapter)