Their romance storyline only begins on the second playthrough

Merrick.

[Calamity Spirit], a powerful being who has been upgraded seven times.

Moreover, unlike Axel's level, Merrick's peak period was seven times the peak, not seven times the beginner level like Axel.

Merrick was still wearing that ancient elven robe, his eyes were long and narrow, and his face was cold and arrogant.

She took steps barefoot, moving closer and closer to Rhodes.

“Rhodes—” her voice remained long and cold, “It’s been a long time.”

“Professor Merrick,” Rhodes nodded to her, “just a few days, right? Welcome back to the capital. It’s a pity you didn’t get to stay long before you have to fight.”

"No need for formalities," Merrick waved his hand slightly. "This time, it's her we're dealing with."

"Okay, get ready, let's get rid of that last erroneous idea of ​​hers."

“Yes.” Merrick’s voice was calm, but his tone revealed an undeniable firmness.

Merrick is essentially an old-fashioned arrogance.

She had given away all her arrogance to everyone else in her life, but she was always quite kind to her disciples.

“Cecilia has gone astray, and I have an obligation to correct her.”

Rhodes's eyes froze.

In her previous life, Cecilia killed Merrick.

But this time, she couldn't kill the teacher who was going to educate her, no matter what she did.

Suddenly, at this moment, Rhodes actually felt a strong sense of déjà vu that [fate] was being distorted.

People who should have died escaped the point of death and are able to play a role in the future—

“Come on.” Merrick, unusually, didn’t put on airs and instead looked at Lilith. “Correct.”

“Hmm,” Lilith replied softly, following Merrick’s footsteps as the two walked toward the edge of the church.

Lilith, having been upgraded seven times, may not be able to completely reverse Merrick's erroneous circuitry, but it is certainly enough to allow her to maintain combat for several hours.

Sitting cross-legged, Lilith placed her hands on Merrick's back and began to infuse blue threads into him—

Just like the scene during the last revision, Merrick was now no different from being turned into a puppet by Lilith, with every vein in his body pierced by her blue silk.

Then, silver threads, like silkworms spinning silk, began to rise from the ground, enveloping the two of them once again and isolating them from external interference.

Rhodes's gaze shifted to Axel the moment the pupa coalesced:

"Axel, what did the military say?"

“I said it.” Axel raised his arm in a gesture of approval; though still looking disheveled, he now possessed a newfound energy and a hint of menace.

“Executing these scourges that are harming the people in the city is something we absolutely must do.”

"This time, the superior commander did not hesitate and issued an order for me to lead an army to directly help you encircle and annihilate them."

"Or rather, it's not so much that we're helping you to encircle and suppress them, but rather that you're helping our military to encircle and suppress them."

"Because this is something we should be doing, it turns out you're the ones who have to interfere."

Rhodes shook his head.

Fundamentally, without the memory of the first playthrough to start over, the military is nothing more than a huge, empty shell, all power and no substance.

Therefore, he ignored his worthless words and asked directly, "How is the manpower?"

"The configuration of the first army is upgraded six times to five people, five times to thirty people, and four times to several hundred people."

"Alright, the task of surrounding the academy is yours. Your job is to prevent the witch from escaping."

"clear."

...

...

At this moment, people in their respective locations are all doing important things.

Axel and Valerie were counting the number of soldiers and monks that had been eliminated with Rhodes, while Rhodes clearly provided the overall area of ​​the witch's base.

But two people were staring at each other, wide-eyed.

Shirley and Ivina.

This was the first time the two of them had met, and they had never even met in their past lives.

Absolutely unfamiliar, I've never seen it before, I have no recollection of it at all.

Therefore, a natural sense of unfamiliarity arose in Shirley's heart.

Facing the silver-haired girl who was more than ten centimeters shorter than herself, Shirley bent down, her eyes filled with extreme hostility:

"I definitely don't know you. What's your name?"

“Ivina Sanders.” Ivina crossed her arms and stretched one leg out in front of her, her posture extremely aggressive.

It's not that she's brave, but when others look at her with malice, all I've ever learned is to glare back even more violently.

Even if it's just a stranger looking at her for no reason, let alone someone looking at her maliciously, she'll look annoyed.

This is essentially a habit formed while at the Duke's residence.

"You should get along well." Felicity walked behind Ivina, slipped her hands under her armpits, and lifted Ivina up—

"Whoa!" Ivina kicked her legs twice after feeling herself suspended in mid-air, her face turning red like a child's. "Fe...Felicity, put me down!"

"No, you two look like you're about to fight."

No, no!

"Uh-huh."

Felicity nodded, but she didn't put Ivina down at all. Instead, she looked at Shirley and tilted her head.

"Shirley, what are you thinking about?"

“Shirley is wondering what her relationship is with the officer.” Shirley said seriously, “Shirley isn’t stupid. This time, Shirley really doesn’t have this girl in her memory, so she’s definitely not some strange member.”

"But the officer just went to see her, and he even came with her."

Is that so?

Right.

Even if Shirley's memory is flawed, it's unlikely that she would fabricate memories that don't even exist.

Felicity felt a troubling premonition, but when she looked out for help, she saw Rhodes discussing something, while Lilith was helping Merrick repair the circuit.

Neither of these two people could help her... but she also didn't have the ability to manipulate emotions like a seesaw.

Let alone someone as troublesome as Shirley, even negotiating with someone as friendly and mentally sound as Natalie can easily lead to problems, let alone anything as romantic as love.

Excessive reactions can cause distress, and the presence of tears signifies a wrongdoing.

Because in essence, no one is wrong in the process of vying for love; even Rhodes's choices were simply to make them less heartbroken.

That's just how it is...

If you asked them to all give up on Rhodes and then each go about their own lonely duties, they wouldn't be willing, at least Felicity wouldn't be.

She didn't want to recall her past as Rhodes's shadow in the lonely palace.

Then, looking to his side, he remembered the scene where he was no longer there...

I'll cry when I think about it.

Therefore, she needs to make a decision in this instant about who to help, how to help, and whether she will get caught up in this vortex because of helping.

Chapter 183 The Suppressed Inner Turmoil

Even the most concealed hostile gaze is still intense.

Even if Felicity carries Ivina, as soon as Shirley and Ivina make eye contact again, they will inevitably revert to their original state.

Moreover, this is essentially a contradictory problem—

In fact, as long as Ivina gives in, Shirley will relax and let her go. But the problem is that Ivina's dangerous gaze is essentially a result of Shirley's vigilance.

In other words, this is an infinite loop, a loop that can only be broken by other methods.

Moreover, the contradictions here are not just that.

The conflict between Ivina and Shirley was actually triggered by the appearance of the previous few people.

Essentially, Shirley's pent-up emotions stemmed from the strange interference in her romantic relationship, which she then channeled into Ivina, an inexplicable newcomer.

At the same time, it is also Ivina's resistance to the increasing number of people affecting her emotional well-being.

It wasn't just because of the two of them, but because of the limits that the "group" had reached.

"Put me down quickly..."

Most importantly, Felicity can't possibly carry Ivina like this forever.

She is good at using cunning tricks and deceiving her enemies with her vulnerability, but she is incapable of getting others to be friendly.

Finally—she let go, allowing Ivina's little feet to land.

Whether she helps or not, there's nothing she can do anymore.

“Put it down.” Felicity pulled her hand out from the gap. “But you two still look wary.”

"Because she keeps glaring at me like that." Ivina turned her face away in dissatisfaction, her arms still crossed over her chest.

“I just want to understand your relationship with your superior.” Shirley’s gaze was scrutinizing.

"Relationship?" Ivina turned her gaze back. "I don't know. I have no relationship with him."

Ivina is just being stubborn.

In fact, she had long since stopped caring about the number of people—because after one or two times, she had become immune to it.

Now, all she wants is to do something with Rhodes after surviving this ordeal, and to enjoy being part of the team.

But seeing Xia Li's "you're at fault" attitude, she felt a surge of anger.