Lu Mingfei, become the King of Elden!

Chapter 310 Melina Under the Moonlight

They had known each other for a long time, and he had been learning from him ever since they arrived at the border.

Besides martial arts skills, there's also how to be a good person.

He learned a lot from him, things he hadn't learned in eighteen years on Earth.

Undeniably, Lu Mingfei's style of doing things was deeply influenced by him, and his shadow can be seen everywhere.

Decisive, stubborn, "If you can use your hands, don't use your words," and "Once you've chosen a path, you'll walk it to the end, even if you have to crawl."
These are all things that have been subtly influenced by him.

Therefore, he understood the old man's thoughts very well and knew how to interact with him.

Lu Mingfei raised his chin slightly and replied in an almost provocative tone:
"In your current state, you can't even hold a cup properly, right? And you still want to hit me?"
"Save your breath, old man. You might hurt your back and I'll have to take care of you."

Upon hearing this, O'Neal, who was standing next to him, couldn't help but gasp.

He looked at Harald with concern, fearing that his old friend might faint from anger.

To everyone's surprise, Harald did not fly into a rage upon hearing this. Instead, his tense face showed a barely perceptible twitch at the corner of his mouth, and a hint of... relief flashed deep in his turbid eyes.

"fart!"

The old knight spat:
"Even if I only have one hand left, I can still easily deal with you, you little brat who hasn't even grown your hair yet!"

Lu Mingfei ignored him and continued speaking to himself:

"The matter of Ningmgefu has been settled, and I also have a clue how to get to Athan. After I finish dealing with things in the city, I will head to Lienia."

"I will walk my own path, and I will fight for the throne."

His tone gradually returned to its usual tone, even carrying a hint of impatience:

"You don't need to lie here and worry about this."

"You just rest here. Once I find a way up and get enough Greater Runes, I'll naturally come back for you to see."

He paused for a moment before shifting his gaze back to Harald's face, his voice softening:

"So...you also need to keep a close eye on things."

"It would be so meaningless if I won but you couldn't see it."

Lu Mingfei finished speaking, but did not receive a reply from the old man.

The atmosphere suddenly fell silent.

The old man remained silent for a long time, so long that only his heavy breathing could be heard in the room.

His cloudy eyes simply stared silently at Lu Mingfei.

"Then you'd better hurry."

Harald's voice was calm:

"A knight should keep his promises; if you make a promise, you must keep it."

He paused and added:
"And that little girl, I know you promised to take her to the capital. Don't forget."

Lu Mingfei turned his face away and muttered:

"Okay, okay, you're making it sound like you're giving your last instructions."

"Are you cursing me?"

The old knight suddenly raised his voice, and his remaining anger resurfaced:

"Fuck off!"
-
Lu Mingfei gently closed the door, the heavy oak door isolating the decaying atmosphere of the room from the outside world.

He stood with his back to the door for a while, all his expressions fading from his face like a receding tide, leaving only a deep weariness.

O'Neill remained by his side, the old general's imposing figure casting a long shadow in the firelight of the corridor.

"I need a moment."

Lu Mingfei's voice was somewhat low and hoarse:

"I need to be by myself for a while."

O'Neill looked at him intently, his gaze piercing through the young man's feigned strength.

After a long silence, his rough voice rang out in the quiet corridor, unexpectedly gentle:

"You're still young, kid. Don't put too much pressure on yourself."

The understanding and tolerance in those words almost made Lu Mingfei lose his composure.

He could only nod slightly, then turned around and hurried away along the stone corridor as if fleeing.

He returned to his own room high up in the castle.

The view here is expansive, offering a glimpse into the abyss below Stoneville and the mist-shrouded Lake Lienia in the distance.

He slammed the door shut behind him, his back pressed against the cold door panel, as if he had finally unloaded a heavy burden.

There were no lights in the room, only the cool moonlight streaming in through the window lattice, spreading a silvery frost across the floor.

Lu Mingfei slowly slid down to the ground, burying his face between his knees. At this moment, he finally allowed himself to reveal the powerlessness and sorrow that had been suppressed.

At this moment, he transformed back into that ordinary young man in his early twenties with a handsome face.

Outside the window, the moon hangs high over the border region, its pale light lonely and desolate.

A slender figure solidified silently.

Melina gazed at the figure curled up in the moonlight, her golden eyes gleaming.

Lu Mingfei felt that familiar aura permeating the room.

He slightly raised his head and met the gaze of the girl in the moonlight.

The moonlight outlined Melina's slender figure.

She knelt before him, her single eye silently gazing at him in the dim light, filled with emotions he couldn't understand, yet strangely, she didn't seem distant.

She reached out her cold hand and gently placed it on his clenched fist.

The touch wasn't warm, but it was like a handful of clear spring water, slightly relieving the burning pain in his heart.

“I can sense,” she said softly, “that there is a very heavy sadness in your heart.”

Lu Mingfei tried to force a smile, attempting his usual one, but failed. He could only whisper:
"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to bother you."

Melina slowly shook her head, her flaxen hair shimmering in the moonlight.

She tilted her head, as if deep in thought, her eyes filled with confusion:

"Because he is your loved one, and he is about to decay, are you saddened?"

She paused, then continued:
"Does everyone feel this way when faced with the loss of a loved one?"

His tone was like that of a scholar seeking the truth of the world, yet also like that of a naive child.

As Lu Mingfei gazed into Melina's single, pure eye that seemed to reflect her very soul, a wave of bitterness welled up in his heart.

He paused for a moment before answering in a hoarse voice:

"Yes. Because he is my family."

He took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice steady:

"It's not just that it's about to decay, but that I'm about to lose it."

Lost forever.

Looking at the confusion in Melina's eyes, he suddenly realized that this mysterious girl might have never experienced such mortal emotional entanglements.

"Not everyone will be like this."

Lu Mingfei gently shook his head:
"But most people feel sad when faced with the departure of someone important to them."

This is only human nature.

Melina lowered her head thoughtfully, her cold fingers unconsciously clenching tighter.

She seemed to be struggling to understand this concept, which was completely foreign to her.

"So."

She raised her eyes, her gaze earnest:

Will this 'sadness' last long? Will it hold you back from moving forward?

Lu Mingfei forced a bitter smile:
"It would be a lie to say we can't. But that's precisely why we must keep going. Because that's what they expect of us."

Under the moonlight, Melina's figure seemed even more transparent than usual, as if she might disappear with the night breeze at any moment.

Lu Mingfei suddenly realized that the girl who had always been by his side might also have a past that no one knew about.

"What about you?"

He asked softly in return:
Will you always stay with me like this?

Melina did not answer immediately.

Her gaze drifted to the bright moon outside the window, a fleeting, elusive melancholy flashing in her single eye.

"As long as the mission is not yet complete..."

Her voice was very soft, as if she were sighing:

"I will always be by your side."

This answer made Lu Mingfei's heart inexplicably tighten.

He suddenly longed to hold her hand and confirm that her presence was real.

But in the end, he only whispered:

"That's good."

(End of this chapter)