Transformed into the leader of an esoteric sect in Japan

Chai Qi's pupils contracted slightly. Without hesitation, his body suddenly shattered into particles of light and dissipated. The next instant, the particles of light re-condensed into an Akita dog next to Suzuki Machiko.

"Be careful, she hasn't completely fallen asleep..."

As soon as she finished speaking, the entire dilapidated ancient castle began to shake again. Kurosawa Shizuki noticed strange ripples in the surrounding spacetime, and cracking sounds echoed in the air.

Suddenly, everyone seemed to be back inside that magnificent golden castle. Countless spectators sat around, clapping. The Forest Nymph, with her narrow, slender eyes, sat on her throne, maliciously shaking the golden Holy Grail in her hand. By the increasingly bright light emanating from the Grail, Kurosawa Shizuki could finally see clearly that the Forest Nymph's body was "parasitic" on the throne like a plant, with countless black roots connecting to the throne and extending into the earth...

In the blink of an eye, it transformed back into the giant fleshy cocoon attached to the throne. The creature curled up and slept inside the cocoon opened her deep red eyes and looked at the people below the throne with an extremely venomous gaze.

"You...you even want to take away my...last... humanity?" The forest fairy and the creature inside the cocoon screamed in unison.

The next second, the two completely different beings from the misplaced worlds merged into one. The bloated body of the forest fairy was like that bloated cocoon. The forest fairy's body continued to expand, and her smooth and delicate skin was torn apart layer by layer, revealing the pulsating red flesh inside, as well as the newly born graceful body. Blood with an extremely pungent smell kept spewing out from the cocoon, splashing everywhere and rising into a towering red mist. In the red mist, the creature that had been sleeping in the egg for countless years finally tore her cage apart. She crawled out of the cage, her whole body was an incomparably noble deep purple, and her scales shone like dazzling morning stars.

Behind her, four pairs of incredibly wide wings unfolded. As the slender bones stretched out, rows of fan-shaped skeletons opened up, as thin as fly legs, with extremely thin membranes adhering between the bones. The ghostly winged woman glided gracefully around her, calmly and lightly waving her curved talons, sharp as the thin blades of a razor. She was naked, yet her entire body seemed to possess an inviolable divinity, and her wine-red eyes rippled with unparalleled charm and vitality.

It gracefully emerged from its fleshy cocoon, its four pairs of bony wings fluttering, and shimmering dust scattered everywhere, as deep as the universe.

P.S. I've encountered some issues these past few days, and I'm in a terrible mood. I'm completely out of sorts when it comes to writing, so my writing speed is extremely slow... I'm sorry, I'll try to adjust tomorrow.

Chapter 123, Section 124: Suzuki has seven scars.

"What a beautiful posture! No wonder it is of the purest bloodline. Its appearance is already infinitely close to that of the superior beings in the forest... The dancers born from the first Misty Spring probably danced their first dance in the sky above the forest in this posture, right?" Chai Qi's phantom and the Akita Inu showed similar smiles. "Using her wings, we can fly towards the Temple of Reincarnation. All the rules of the forest can no longer bind us."

Before Chai Qi, the power of radiance condensed into a strange phantom lighthouse, its scattered light illuminating most of the castle. Inside the abandoned, fake castle, the forest fairy, who had completely lost her mind, repeatedly crashed into the castle. Each of her impacts made the entire hall tremble along with her, as if the whole world was rebelling against Chai Qi. Although the lighthouse that Chai Qi had created was teetering on the brink of collapse, his Akita dog body seemed to be exerting no effort at all.

"But judging from her expression, she probably won't be so willing to lend us her wings, will she?" Kurosawa Shizuki smiled somewhat reluctantly. She and Asahi had already suffered heavy losses in their previous battle with the Centipede Sage. Now, even if they really had to fight, they would probably have to rely on Shiba and Suzuki Machiko. The threat posed by the incarnation of the Forest Fairy was no less than that of the Centipede Sage. The power of the wings on her back might be no less than that of the golden branch in the Centipede Sage's hands that had caused them so much suffering. It was definitely not something she would offer up in a friendly manner just because we asked for her wings.

What particularly caught Kurosawa Shizuki's attention were Sanda and Eiko. They seemed to be following Theresa's will to complete the three trials and defeat the three sages in the forest. Would they really just let themselves be devoured by the forest fairy so easily? Kurosawa Shizuki always felt that these two mysterious doll girls might have a backup plan.

"We just killed a centipede sage, and there was a worm inside him. The two of you from the Anti-Suppression Bureau are severely weakened, so we can only rely on you to deal with her now?" Asakura Yuki said in a matter-of-fact manner, as if she was not worried at all that the Anti-Suppression Bureau would realize her weakness and turn around to attack her.

"The Anti-Suppression Bureau is not so weak that it needs to rely on one cult to destroy another. From the moment we entered the forest, we were prepared to resolve this divine realm once and for all." Chai Qi's illusory figure didn't even glance at Kurosawa Shizuki and Asakura Yuki behind him.

“If this were outside, even the Anti-Corruption Bureau would have to mobilize a lot of resources and make great sacrifices to solve the problem of such a class. But within the forest, imagination and reality can be transformed into each other…” Suzuki Machiko stood in front of her expressionlessly, looking at the forest fairy in the sky who was showing some kind of power like a fallen angel. “Teacher, let me do it this time.”

"Machiko, don't disappoint me again. You understand the consequences of failure, right?" The Akita Inu's eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a strange smile.

Kurosawa Shizuki saw the blurry, middle-aged man's silhouette behind the Akita Inu, who had silently stood behind Suzuki. His finger gently touched Suzuki's brow: "I release the sealed power in your wound. The wound is the entrance, and pain leads to eternity. Here, a door has been opened."

"As a student of my teacher, this time... I will not fail again." Suzuki, as fragile as porcelain, pursed her lips, her voice trembling slightly, as she unwrapped the bandages from her hands, feet, neck, and ankles. To Kurosawa Shizuki's surprise, with each bandage unwrapped, Suzuki's aura surged, as if it could climb infinitely, from the unremarkable third rank all the way to the fourth rank, and even the pinnacle of the fourth rank... Looking at Suzuki Machiko's slender back was like seeing a candle burning brightly in a strong wind, yet giving one an ominous premonition that it might be extinguished at any moment.

Beneath the torn bandages lay countless dense wounds. One could only imagine the profound suffering Suzuki had endured to bear such tragic scars. The scars varied in color and exuded different auras, making it difficult to comprehend how Suzuki had managed to fuse such diverse powers within the same fragile body.

"Your senior is really something else. There's such a monster hiding in the Anti-Epidemic Bureau," Yuki Asakura said, clicking her tongue in amazement as she looked at Suzuki's scars. "A ruthless person, truly ruthless. She has seven scars on her body, yet she's still alive. It's hard to imagine how her teacher 'created' her, but she probably doesn't have much time left to live."

"I didn't know that Suzuki-senpai actually possessed such power..." Kurosawa Shizuki recalled the time in the coffee shop. If she had really clashed with Suzuki Machiko, and Suzuki had released her scars, could she really have fought against such power? Although it seemed like a power that couldn't be sustained, Suzuki definitely had the ability to suppress the fourth tier in the short term.

"If you want to eliminate the esoteric sects, you have to become more ruthless than them. Is this the Anti-Suppression Bureau?" Asakura Yuki glanced mockingly at Shibasaki, who had once again become as lazy as a lapdog, slumped on the ground.

“We have long been aware that as long as it can help us eliminate the power of Tantric Buddhism, we will use it without hesitation, no matter how heavy the price we pay,” Chai Qi said in a low voice.

"If one day we are all wiped out, will your Anti-Extermination Bureau also wipe itself out? In my opinion, you are not much different from us," Yuki Asakura asked with great interest.

"This is only natural. The day when all the esoteric sects are destroyed will be the day the Anti-Suppression Bureau perishes, and we will gladly welcome such destruction." It was impossible to tell whether Chai Qi's words were true or false, or what they had gone through to make the people of the Anti-Suppression Bureau have such a mindset to fight against the esoteric sects.

"The first wound is the wound of the cup, and those who indulge in lust will open it with a passionate kiss," Suzuki Machiko said softly, tears welling up in the corners of the girl's eyes for some reason.

The scar on her left arm was a deep, blood-red color, with blood pulsating like flames within it, stirring a strange urge in one's heart to passionately kiss the scar on her snow-white arm.

Suzuki raised his left arm, pointing it directly at the forest fairy who was rushing towards them from the sky. The deep red influence pouring from his wounds intertwined with the crystal dust falling from the forest fairy's wings, the two seemingly dancing and copulating, the air filled with a lewd atmosphere. Under this strange influence, the forest fairy also let out low, rapid moans, scratching her body, leaving countless bloody marks, as if she wanted to tear her newly grown skin apart again.

The fairy in the forest blushed strangely, and her eyes became hazy, as if she were seeing something extremely captivating. Sweat kept seeping from her body, and the color of the sweat grew darker and darker, turning into something like blood.

“The second wound is the wound of the lamp, which those who thirst for wisdom will open with the dawn,” Suzuki Machiko said coldly, as if starlight were flowing from every pore of the girl’s body.

The scar on her right arm flowed with a cold light, and the girl's entire arm was surrounded by a shimmering glow, as if it were carved from glass. She raised the arm of light above her head and grasped it in the air.

The power of radiance actually condensed into a spear-shaped weapon in her hand. Without even aiming, she hurled the spear fiercely at the forest fairy who was bewitched by the power of the cup and hovering in mid-air, embracing a lover who did not exist.

The invisible spear did not cause any physical wounds; it simply pierced the forest fairy's skull without any resistance. The forest fairy let out a painful wail and covered her eyes, crying out, "I can't see! Why can't I see anything?" She struggled to flap her wings from high above, swaying precariously, her face filled with fear and confusion.

“The third wound is the wound of rebirth; the one who gazes upon the flames will use heat to open it.” Suzuki bent down and pulled down her knee-high socks a bit, revealing a deep black scar on her beautiful ankle, probably left from a burn. Now the scar was burning again, sizzling, but she was completely unaware. From the burning flames, what flowed out was a shadow. Kurosawa Shizuki discovered in disbelief that Suzuki Machiko was actually using the power of the Black Matter!

Suzuki raised her left leg and stomped hard on the ground, her schoolgirl skirt fluttering up and down, but the earth trembled under her foot!

From the shadows, countless black chains materialized and converged from all directions, binding the forest fairy tightly. Finally, they bound her eight pairs of wings as well, dragging her from the air and slamming her heavily to the ground.

“The fourth wound is the wound of change. Those who admire transformation will open it with pain.” Suzuki Machiko raised her swan-like chin, and everyone could see her snow-white throat, where a centipede-like wound was writhing, a shocking sight. For such a wound to remain, her neck must have been torn apart by some extremely horrific weapon. Now that the wound was exposed, Suzuki’s voice became erratic, as if many people were speaking through Suzuki’s mouth at the same time.

Suzuki walked step by step toward the Forest Fairy. Looking at the scar on Suzuki's throat, countless tiny living creatures writhe inside. The Forest Fairy was struggling frantically. For the first time, Kurosawa Shizuki saw terror on the Forest Fairy's face.

From Suzuki's throat, filthy pus and blood gushed wildly, shooting up more than ten meters high and drenching the forest fairy's entire body. It was hard to understand where Suzuki's slender body could produce so much pus and blood. What was even more chilling was that Suzuki's face remained as calm as an iceberg.

Bathed in pus and blood, the forest fairy let out a heart-wrenching scream. Her features were dissolving and changing like water in the pus and blood spurting from Suzuki, like a melting wax figure.

Even though he was bewitched by the power of the cup, had his eyes taken by the power of the lamp, was bound tightly by black chains, and was finally stripped of his physical form by the power of change...

The four pairs of wings behind the forest fairy still shone brightly, shimmering with a deep purple light that was deeper than the universe. The wings cut through the black chains that bound her like blades. The forest fairy crawled on the ground on all fours like a wild beast, emitting painful howls. Her body changed shape again and again, and the shining wings on her back unfolded once more.

She launched a frenzied charge at Suzuki Machiko, whose face was growing increasingly pale and who looked as if she might shatter like glass at any moment. The slender girl stood in stark contrast to the enormous monster with its four pairs of purple wings, and Suzuki would likely be easily crushed in the next instant.

The fairy in the forest resembled the gaping maw of a wild beast more than a human, split open at an angle impossible for any human to see, revealing rows of foul-smelling fangs. A massive shadow loomed over Suzuki's body, and his robes fluttered in the fierce wind.

Behind Asakura Yuki, unable to contain herself any longer, she was about to unleash her Kagerou again. Kurosawa Shizuki was also preparing to muster her remaining black energy to aid Suzuki, but Shibasaki, unmoved, stood in front of them and shook her head.

“This is a battle that Machiko herself chose. If you interfere, it will be an insult to her.”

Without turning her head, Suzuki pressed her left hand to her chest. Her beautifully sculpted chest was exposed; she pulled down her collar, revealing a glimpse of alluring skin. Bluish-purple veins throbbed beneath her translucent skin. Her lips were bitten until they bled painfully. With difficulty, she continued in a hoarse voice, "The fifth wound is the wound of awakening, opened by the pulsating heart of a fanatical follower..."

P.S. I'll post it as soon as I finish writing it. I'm too lazy to revise it. The more I revise, the slower I get.

Chapter 124, Section 125: Flying Towards the Sky with Wings

Hidden beneath Suzuki Machiko's bandages were seven scars possessing peculiar powers, allowing her to unleash incredible strength in a short period. If Kurosawa Shizuki wasn't mistaken, she could simultaneously wield seven different types of power through these seven scars—something unheard of in her previous life's gaming experience. Based on Kurosawa Shizuki's understanding of this world, Suzuki could never have obtained such power without paying a price. The greater the power one wields, the heavier the consequences one will inevitably bear in the future; such is the rule of this world.

"As her teacher, how can you sit so comfortably behind your student? Do you really see her as your student, not a tool to be used and discarded?" Asakura Yuki seemed quite dissatisfied with Shibasaki's attitude, as if it reminded her of something. "It seems that your Anti-Suppression Bureau has also gone down a rather extreme path."

“A tool? You can think of it that way if you want, but when I poured power into the Scar Lock, Machiko didn’t have any objections. Being used by me as a tool is her purpose in life, isn’t it?” Chai Qi laughed without any guilt. “You cultists will never understand our resolve.”

On the other side, Suzuki's fifth Heart Scar Lock was unleashed. Thump, thump, thump—thunderous drumming sounds echoed from the Forest Fairy's entire body, very close to the heartbeat Kurosawa Shizuki remembered. If this was indeed a heartbeat, then it meant that the Forest Fairy possessed five hearts simultaneously! And now, under the incredibly powerful encouragement unleashed by Suzuki, these hearts all exploded!

The Forest Fairy's body collapsed limply before Suzuki Machiko, unable to move an inch no matter how heart-wrenching her cries were. All her "hearts" had been destroyed by the power of encouragement, and the blood within her body could no longer circulate to support such a massive body. The Forest Fairy's four pairs of wings drooped limply to the ground. Suzuki lifted her leg and stepped onto a purple wing, climbing up the Forest Fairy's back step by step, like a queen ascending a throne.

Machiko Suzuki lifted the half of her shirt that covered her lower abdomen, revealing her snow-white belly and cute, round navel. Her sixth scar was etched on her lower abdomen; it was an incredibly horrifying, long, thin knife scar that exuded a chilling killing intent. To implant such a scar, Suzuki's body must have been disemboweled.

"The sixth scar is the wound of strife, opened with blood by those who are attached to war." The wound on Suzuki's lower abdomen reopened, and dark blood gushed out recklessly, swirling around Suzuki's petite body in circles.

It coalesced into a blood-red blade, which Suzuki gripped in his expressionless hand. With a casual flourish, Suzuki swung the blood-red blade eight times, severing the feathers of the eight wings of the forest fairy that drooped limply.

Amidst the forest fairy's desperate cries, eight pairs of wings scattered and fell to the ground. Having lost her wings, the forest fairy's bloated and terrifying body began to shrink rapidly like a deflated balloon, gradually shrinking from a size of five or six meters into a withered old woman's shell. She was still crawling forward with her limbs, which resembled the claws and teeth of a wild beast, as if struggling to escape, leaving a long trail of blood behind her.

The fairytale castle at the end of the entire scroll river was shaking, dust was constantly falling, and it looked like it could collapse at any moment. Kurosawa Shizuki could feel the strange power that the fairy in the forest had been using to cover the entire castle was rapidly fading away. At the same time, the strange influence that had been covering the entire world and "animeting" everything was also melting away, and the world returned to the way Kurosawa Shizuki knew it.

“Phew…it’s finally back to normal. I’m still getting used to the normal world,” Asakura Yuki stretched, showing off her beautiful figure. “If this continues, we might really be trapped in the fantasy of the woodland forever.”

"Don't joke around. If we really reach a point where there's no way out, we both have a final way to escape. A mere forest can't possibly bind beings like us forever." Chai Qi sneered disdainfully. The illusory image of a man behind him completely dissipated. After the fairy in the forest was dealt with, he seemed to have temporarily relaxed his vigilance, but the indifference in his eyes never diminished in the slightest.

"I can't die here... I still have to reclaim what is rightfully mine, I still have to protect Muko... The show has only just begun..." The Forest Fairy was still struggling to survive towards the castle's exit, seemingly trying to crawl out on all fours, muttering incomprehensible words. But no one cared about her anymore, because everyone knew that the Forest Fairy's power came from the eight wings on her back that had been modified by the gods. Without the wings, the Forest Fairy would have no chance of continuing to exist. What sustained her existence now was merely a subtle obsession.

Suzuki Machiko limped toward Shibasaki, blood dripping down her path. Kurosawa Shizuki noticed that her body was trembling constantly. After the wounds were healed, her body was probably in a very dangerous state. If she were to collapse and die on the spot in the next second, Kurosawa Shizuki would not be surprised at all.

Half of her face, touched by the winter's wound between her brows, was completely covered in the frosty white of the cold; her left arm, soaked with wine from a cup, was completely bare, exuding a wine-like fragrance that made one's mouth water; her right arm, illuminated by the lamplight, was almost translucent, like crystal; her legs, as if just scorched by flames, were almost completely charred; her throat was crawling with maggots, constantly changing shape; her heart was pounding wildly, as if it might stop at any moment; and blood was still flowing from her lower abdomen from a knife wound…

It's simply incomprehensible how Suzuki Machiko, who is suffering from the backlash of seven forces at the same time, can still continue to live. She is clearly just a candle flame that will be extinguished at any time in Kurosawa Shizuki's eyes, but Suzuki still stubbornly continues to live.

"Teacher, I didn't disappoint you, did I?" Suzuki lowered her head and gave Shibasaki an incredibly pale smile, which was heartbreaking. Kurosawa Shizuki wanted to step forward to support her, but Asakura Yuki, who was always watching her from behind, made Kurosawa Shizuki dare not make any move. She knew that Asakura Yuki had already sensed something was wrong. If she and Suzuki showed any more intimate behavior, it might arouse further suspicion.

“Very good, Machiko. As expected of my student, you have perfectly utilized the power of the Scar Lock. As expected of a descendant of St. Gonia… Now you can rest.” Shizaki spoke to Suzuki with unusual gentleness.

Right before everyone's eyes, Kurosawa Shizuki saw a silver-gray key symbol emerge deep within Suzuki's empty and bewildered left eye. The key in the girl's eye rotated, opening a silver-white sacred portal. Then, this portal rapidly grew and extended, inexplicably projecting itself from Suzuki's eye onto her front. The silver door opened in front of Suzuki, and within it shone a light as deep as the universe.

A relieved smile appeared on Suzuki's lips. He stumbled forward and was forcibly sucked into the silver door by an invisible force. The next second, the silver door closed, and he and the door disappeared without a trace in the blink of an eye.

"Suzuki-senpai—!" Kurosawa Shizuki finally couldn't help but exclaim in astonishment, "Where...where did she go?"

“Miss Miko, you seem to have a heart that is completely out of place for a member of the Secret Cult. It’s hard to understand how someone as kind as you has survived until now,” Shizaki rolled her eyes at Kurosawa Shizuki with a rather human-like look. Kurosawa Shizuki felt that there was an undisguised mockery in that look. “Don’t worry, she’s fine. She’s just temporarily returning to St. Gonia’s house to rest for a while. I wouldn’t allow such a useful weapon to be broken here.”

“The offspring of Saint Gonia, allies of the nobility, members of the Ligeia Society, shapeshifting beasts, even worms… It seems that the Anti-Extermination Bureau has unknowingly taken in many strange beings that were unimaginable in the past,” Yuki Asakura’s words were always barbed. “Hey, Uncle Shibasaki, are you sure that before we rewrite this part of history, your Anti-Extermination Bureau won’t ruin it first?”

“Miss Asakura, you don’t need to worry about that. Our immediate priority is to retrieve the wings we took from the Forest Fairy and then find the hermit on the pillar who guards the entrance to the Temple of Reincarnation…” Shichi stood up and put the pair of wings left behind by the Forest Fairy on his back. The strange purple wings seemed to have a life of their own, and they became inseparable from his body with just a slight touch, as if this Akita Inu had always had such wings.

Yuki Asakura and Shizuki Kurosawa followed suit, attaching their wings to their backs. There were a total of four pairs of wings. After each of them wore a pair, one pair remained unused.

When Kurosawa Shizuki picked up the pair of purple wings, she felt quite strange. The wings were completely cold, like metal, yet just lying in her palm stirred a strange restlessness within her.

Wanting to attach wings to their backs, wanting to soar, wanting to pursue endless freedom... willing to pay any price to pursue the ultimate transformation.

[Wings of the Forest Fairy, a purple item, usable only in the forest. All life, since ancient times, has yearned for the sky, even if it will eventually melt in the scorching sun, it still wants to spread its wings, even if it only gains fleeting freedom, for only such freedom can give ethereal life a real sense of being alive.]

You will be able to soar freely through the woodlands without being harassed or attacked by any woodland creatures.

Everything was collapsing, and the castle in the dream was on the verge of falling apart at any moment. Kurosawa Shizuki, Asakura Yuki, and Shibasaki had no time to think further. They barely spread their newly acquired wings and struggled to fly into the sky, leaving the collapsing fairy castle behind, and flew towards the Rotating Temple, which resembled a music box, high in the sky...

Beneath the collapsed castle, amidst the wreckage where the forest fairy still crawled, her eyes, which should have been extinguished, were suddenly lit up again. Like a puppet on strings, she crawled toward her last remaining pair of wings, a strange smile on her lips.

P.S. I'll try to finish the Woodland chapter within five chapters; it's been dragging on for far too long.

Chapter 125, Section 126: The Woodland Heads Towards Collapse

The little girl watched the increasingly blurry images on the television screen, the ethereal, swaying shadows like ripples on water, the self-proclaimed heroes of the woodland's destruction, donning wings stolen from her mother, abandoning the fairytale castle she knew so well, spreading their purple wings towards the crimson sky of the woodland, and relentlessly approaching her home...

"Mom... just died like that?" Everything went too smoothly, even though this was exactly what she had always longed for.

Her father, who was possessed by insects, died, and her mother, who used human existence to create fairy tales, also died. She always felt that these two nominal "parents" were shackles imposed on her, but when these shackles were finally broken, she did not feel any of the ecstasy she had imagined in the past.

Although she knew that the people being killed by the heroes were not her real mother and father, after so many years together, a sense of disillusionment still welled up in the little girl's heart. The fairytale castle was built by her mother specifically for her. When she still loved the woodlands, her mother often invited her to visit the castle for afternoon tea and to watch various interesting and absurd fairytale performances. She used to love Disney animation on TV the most, so her mother simply used invisible magic to create a Disneyland for her. Here, all fairy tales can be woven into reality through the power of the Scroll River. If the queens who were devoured by her mother knew that her mother used the power of the woodlands for such a thing, they would be so angry that they would rise from their tombs.

But even the most beautiful fairy tales will eventually tire children. Although she may not grow up in appearance, it doesn't mean her mind will remain forever as innocent as her appearance. She soon realized that those fabricated fairy tales, no matter how magnificent, wonderful, or romantic, are ultimately deceptive. They are all rosy, false kingdoms created by adults for children. However, children will eventually grow up, and everyone will leave the world of fairy tales and enter the cold reality. The little girl is no longer the same as before, but her mother and the fairy tale kingdom she built remain unchanged.

The little girl began to feel weary, tired, disappointed, and then hateful of everything. She hated her fate—being confined to the forest from birth to death, never able to escape this cage; she hated her parents—who gave her life only to lead her to ultimate destruction; and finally, she even began to hate the god above her—what kind of god was worth sacrificing everything for to this extent? What was there about that being named Kirie that was worthy of faith and worship?

The little girl's once innocent heart gradually became corrupted. She began to crave more brutal, more cruel, and more insane stories. However, her "mother" continued to guard that ridiculous fortress, weaving those ridiculous stories for her. The mother no longer had the strength to create more for her, so now the most spectacular performance the mother could offer her was her own death...

But as this story unfolded before her eyes, she did not feel the expected joy and pleasure. Instead, she felt a sense of loss, fear, and emptiness—a void. She felt like an empty shell without a soul, as if she had never truly obtained anything of value.

"Am I really ready for the end of the story?" she muttered to herself, pressing her hand to her heart. Her heart was still beating, but was that really her heart beating?