Conquer the other worlds with abandon, they've fallen in love with me!

Meanwhile, on the other side—

The castle sits on a gentle slope of a ridge, its gray stone walls glowing white in the moonlight, and the spires of its towers piercing the deep blue night sky.

A window lit by a candle is embedded in the curved wall of the third-floor tower, like a half-open eye.

The witch "Angnes" sat by the window, with an oval-shaped silver-framed mirror in front of her.

Her face was reflected in the mirror.

Her cheeks were full, her jawline was taut, and the fine lines at the corners of her eyes were almost invisible in the candlelight, making her look like glazed porcelain.

She raised her hand and touched her cheekbone. The touch of her fingertips against her skin was smooth and warm, like caressing a carefully maintained object.

Her lips curved slightly, then flattened again.

The facial features in the mirror are exquisite, but not realistic, like a painting that has been repeatedly repaired.

The base color is already faded, but the surface pigments can only maintain their freshness for a short time.

There was a light knock on the door twice.

"Master, the materials are ready." The servant stood at the door with his head down, his voice flat and low, like some kind of trained tool.

Angie didn't turn around, but glanced at her in the mirror: "Lead the way."

...

The dungeon's stone steps were damp and slippery, and every few steps along the walls on either side was an oil lamp, its flame flickering gently inside the iron cage, casting shadows that were sometimes long and sometimes short.

The iron bars of the deepest cell were rusty, and a thin layer of dry grass covered the stone floor. Three or four children were huddled in the corner, the oldest being less than twelve years old and the youngest looking only seven or eight.

They were wearing coarse cloth clothes, the fabric of which was worn through at the knees and elbows, revealing the abraded skin underneath.

Upon hearing footsteps, no one looked up; they simply shrank back, as if they were used to such moments.

Angie stood in front of the iron bars, looking down at the few bowed heads through the rusty fence.

The servants had retreated to the top of the stairs, their footsteps disappearing at the end of the stone steps, and the iron gate closed behind them with a dull thud.

Angie raised her hand, her fingertips brushing against the side of her face, as if gently pulling off a thin veil.

The well-maintained skin slid off her face, revealing the real skin and flesh underneath.

His wrinkled skin resembled a cracked riverbed, his eye sockets were deep-set, his cheekbones were high, and his lips were as thin as two withered leaves.

She took a deep breath, her voice squeezing out from her dry throat like sandpaper rubbing against a stone surface:

"This body is still too old..."

Her gaze fell on the children, and a greedy glint appeared in her cloudy eyes:

"Once today's transformation is complete, I will be reborn."

As she spoke, Agnes took another step toward the iron railing, her heel striking the stone ground with a crisp sound.

The youngest girl finally raised her head, her eyes filled with tears, and opened her mouth but no sound came out.

Angie's lips curled into an unpleasant smile:

"Crying won't help. The more scared you are, the more I like it."

She took another step forward, her skirt brushing against the dry grass on the ground, and said with a touch of reminiscence:

"It's a pity... that young lady got away back then, otherwise she would have been the most suitable. Hehe, she's so beautiful, it's really enviable."

After saying that, she glanced at the children again, her withered fingers gripping the iron bars:

"Heh, I'll soon free you, but unfortunately you'll never see your parents again."

The children didn't answer, but some of them started to tremble.

Angie withdrew her hand with satisfaction, then turned and walked up the stone steps.

Her skin covered her withered face again halfway there, like putting on a familiar coat.

She returned to her room on the third floor, sat down at the table, where several items were already laid out.

A silver bowl, a small bottle of dark liquid, a few dried herbs, and a bone knife.

She picked up the bone knife, twirled it halfway between her fingertips, then put it down and began mixing the liquid in the bottle.

Meanwhile, on the northern horizon, the castle's outline finally came into full view.

Lin Yu slowed down, and the light blue wind wall rippled slightly, like the surface of water being touched by a fingertip.

Liuli Chun leaned forward slightly in his arms, her gaze piercing through the night and landing on the gray stone building.

Her breathing became shallow, and her fingers unconsciously clenched the fabric at his waist.

"The castle is still the same as before." Ruri Tsubaki's voice was very soft, almost drowned out by the night breeze:

"Sometimes I dream about what this castle looks like from the outside, standing on the hillside, just like I am now."

In my dreams, I always want to go inside, but my feet won't move; it's like they're nailed to the ground.

Lin Yu didn't answer, but simply pulled his arms closer to her.

Feeling Lin Yu's embrace, Liuli Chun felt a warmth rise in her heart.

She understood that the so-called castle was a thing of the past, and only the person in front of her was her future.

Just as Lin Yu embraced her, she also held Lin Yu tightly, grasping her own future.

At that moment, Lin Yu's calm voice came: "Let's go."

Ruri Tsubaki nodded.

Lin Yu took out a bottle of magic potion that could shield one's aura from his storage bag, uncorked it, and held it to her lips.

The medicine was colorless and odorless. After drinking it, it felt as if the whole person was wrapped in a very thin membrane of air, and even the sound of breathing became as if it did not exist.

She looked up at Lin Yu. He didn't say anything, but tightened his arms around her waist and then flew towards the window on the third floor with her.

A gust of wind seeped in through the window cracks, and the candlelight flickered violently.

Angie looked up, frowned, and gathered the herbs beside her onto the table.

Lin Yu landed on the windowsill with extremely light movements, his boots not even making a sound against the wood chips on the window frame.

Liuli Chun followed behind him. When her feet stepped onto the wooden board on the inside of the windowsill, her gaze went past Lin Yu's shoulder and landed on the back of the figure sitting at the table with his back to them.

The blurry face in my memory is overlapping with the back of the figure in front of me.

She once crouched behind a narrow gap in the cabinet door, and through a finger-width opening, she could see this person standing in front of the bed, the moonlight shining on her hand gripping the dagger.

At that time, she dared not cry, dared not move, and even dared not breathe too loudly.

Now she stood outside the window of this room, looking at the back of the same person's neck, and a surge of anger rose within her.

Just then, Agnes suddenly turned around.

She first saw Lin Yu, then her gaze passed over him and landed on the familiar face behind her.

She froze for a moment, then her eyes widened in shock: "It's you—Ruri Tsubaki?!"

Lin Yu turned to the side, allowing Liuli Chun to stand completely within the candlelight's illumination.

Liuli Chun neither stepped forward nor retreated.

She stood there, her gaze fixed on Agnes's face, looking at the fear and disbelief that shone through the face that had just recovered.

She thought she would yell and scream, rush up to her, and throw all the vicious words that had been building up for years in her face.

But she didn't.

Ruri Chun tilted her head slightly, as if examining something that no longer held any meaning.

Then she turned her head, raised her hand from her side, placed it on Lin Yu's arm, and said calmly:

"Master, she's so noisy."

Lin Yu didn't answer, but instead leaned down and whispered gently in her ear:

"It's alright, she'll be gone from this world soon."

After saying that, Lin Yu raised his hand, and a bottle of dark-colored magic potion appeared in his palm without him noticing.

He pulled out the cork and poured the liquid toward Agnes.

The liquid dispersed in the air, turning into an almost invisible cloud of mist that drifted away silently.

Angie reached for the bone knife on the table, but she froze the moment her fingers touched the hilt.

She let out a short, sharp sound from her throat, then slumped to the floor between the chair and the edge of the table.

Her limbs were still twitching slightly, as if she was trying to grab something but couldn't.

Lin Yu didn't give her a second chance to speak. He raised his other hand, and the soundproof barrier silently closed in the room.

Then he placed his hand on Liuli Chun's eyelids, his palm pressed against the thin eyelid:

"The following scene is a bit gory, my little maid, you'd better not watch it, just listen."

As he spoke, Lin Yu poured the corrosive potion onto Angus.

Then he calmly watched her being slowly corroded.

Liuli Chun did not move or resist.

She stood there, her eyes veiled by a warm glow, the surrounding sounds suppressed by the barrier.

She first heard the sound of a glass bottle hitting the floor, followed by the sound of some liquid moving, like water falling on hot iron, continuously and slowly.

Then came Agnes's voice, a scream of extreme pain squeezed from deep in her throat.

A few minutes later, a long hissing sound was heard, followed by complete silence.