I already said this is not a life simulator!

[And you, who will eventually become a Herrscher, will not be able to avoid this ending.]

[So... before that, you have to take care of a lot of things]

--------

"Humph~?"

At this moment, it was already evening, and Xiwang was in her room, humming happily.

Although he was under "house arrest", Xi Wang was not under much surveillance... No one was willing to monitor him anyway, and the guards assigned to him were willing to slack off whenever possible... There were even quite a few people who liked this job very much. After all, being able to get close to Xi Wang and hear the songs he hummed was a great blessing!

However, Xi Wang would not cause too much trouble to everyone, so as to prevent the top leaders of "Fire Moth" from picking trouble with others.

Then, today...

"Aliceia, come in, the door is not locked~"

"...Oh my, have we been discovered~?"

After a brief silence, Alicia's cute and gentle voice came from outside the door. She carefully pushed the door open and looked inside, then asked curiously.

"I didn't see Eden and Sakura today... How strange~?"

"It's not like we're always stuck together. We all have our own things to do, right?"

Xiwang said with some amusement.

"And Alicia has been lingering at the door for so long, I should have been able to detect even the lightest footsteps, right?"

"Oh my~ Xiwang really pays attention to me, I'm very happy~?"

"Well, after all, Alicia is so cute."

"You can praise me more, too~?"

Alicia responded in a cheerful tone.

"…………"x2

A brief silence broke between the two.

Alicia was hesitating, while Xiwang was waiting.

"Xiwang."

"Well, I'm here."

"Are you the Herrscher...?"

"You wish I was?"

Xi Wang smiled and asked meaningfully.

"........."

Alicia couldn't give an answer.

"Aliceia, you don't have to tell me, I already know."

"Eh?"

"You don't have to tell me. At the same time... it's best not to tell anyone else. That would be very dangerous. After all... the existence of two [Suspected Herrschers], the current "Fire-Chasing Moth" can't stand such suspicion."

"Ehhhh?!"

Alicia widened her eyes, looking a little stunned.

"You already know?"

"Hmm~ It's rare to see Alicia look surprised."

"...Why not? We are all the same, everyone likes us, everyone trusts us... Look, even now, everyone is standing by you, isn't it?"

"No, Alicia, we are different."

Xi Wang waited patiently for Alicia to finish speaking, and then slowly shook his head, denying her statement.

"Alicea, you are beautiful, gorgeous, like flying flowers, like the beginning of a story, beautiful like a fairy tale, attracting everyone's attention, so that everyone is willing to continue reading this [story]."

"And I am similar to you, but different."

"Alishia, what kind of [story] would be the most memorable?"

Xi Wang changed the subject slightly and asked.

"Of course it's a [good] story~?"

"Well, yes, a good comedy is always enjoyable and makes people smile involuntarily."

Xi Wang nodded, then turned and asked.

"Well, can you tell me about it? Which [good story] do you remember, and what are the details in it?"

"Wow~ Really? Then I'm going to tell you now, okay?"

Alicia clapped her hands excitedly, and then talked endlessly to Xi Wang about the beautiful things she had seen.

Xi Wang was also smiling, listening quietly, and nodding from time to time to show that he was not in a daze.

"...Xiwang, are you unhappy?"

Alicia slowly stopped and asked Xiwang... because she noticed that Xiwang didn't seem to show much expression because of the story she told. He was just smiling, gentle, and... calm.

There is nothing more to it than this.

"No, not really. Rather, I'm quite happy... And you can actually remember so many wonderful things. You're really worthy of being me. Alicia."

"Then why..."

“Because I’ve heard it before~”

"Have you heard of it?"

Alicia was stunned.

"Because [before], you also told me these things... Later, these [beautiful stories] supported me for a long time~"

"What's the meaning……"

Alicia always felt that she could vaguely touch something, but... she just couldn't grasp it.

"nothing."

Xi Wang shook his head slightly and continued the previous topic.

"But I'm really happy, Alicia, that you can remember these things, including the details... This is something that most people can't do~"

"After all, a [good story] must have a beautiful and satisfying [ending]... There, all the regrets mentioned in the [story] are made up, and the reader will also be satisfied. In the end, he will close the book with satisfaction to show that he has finished reading this [story]."

"After that, people's memory of the content of this [story] will be folded, simplified, and finally become generalized... It will become a [story] that can be summarized in a very short sentence, such as [the hero and his companions went through hardships and finally defeated the demon king, restoring peace to the world]."

"Because people already know that the ending of this story is beautiful and satisfying, people don't have any regrets about it, so they won't remember it. People only need to remember that the final result is good, and that's enough."

“So often… what impresses people most is not [comedy] but [tragedy], because the regrets in it are so profound that they are hard to forget.”

Xi Wang shook his head slightly and spoke in a calm and relaxed tone.

“A sad ending can make people sigh, feel sorry, sad, angry… so many different emotions are generated because of that regret… This is what is called “only tragedy is the most touching”, this is the beauty of “imperfection”.”

“It is regret, it is pain, it is a scar engraved in people’s memory, it is the resentment that remains in people’s hearts… Even if it is healed, it will still leave a mark.”

Xi Wang lowered her eyelids slightly and spoke softly.

"And I am such an ending. A story started by you and ended by me, bringing a memorable story to the world."

"Wait a minute, Xiwang..."

Alicia's tone became a little panicked for some reason.

“Tear apart the beautiful scenery bit by bit, swallow up the brilliant light bit by bit, bury the gorgeous flowers under the sea, and let everything return to silence... Finally, turn all of this into pain and engrave it in everyone's heart.”

"Wait a moment……"

"...Don't worry, Alicia, I'm fine."

Xiwang looked at her and smiled.

"But you just..."

"I'm just stating a fact... Alas... It's hard to change this..."

Xi Wang sighed and spoke in distress, then he laughed again, gently and happily.

"But I will try my best~"

"We can work together..."

"I can't do that~"

"……Why?"

"Don't you understand yet? Alicia."

Xi Wang tilted his head, and his white hair fell down like waves.

"Then let me put it another way... Alicia."

"If one day, you could save everyone by defeating me...what would you do?"

"Please note, it's [Everyone]~"

Xiwang emphasized it specially.

"...Can't this "everyone" include you?"

"You are a little greedy, Alicia, although it's not wrong~"

"Greed is a girl's privilege~ I want both~"

"Yeah, that's in line with your idea... As expected, you are worthy of me, Alicia."

Xi Wang nodded, as if he was not surprised by Alicia's answer.

"So, what if the choice is between me and [Humans], and I have to choose?"

"……what?"

Xiwang's sudden question made Ai Lishiya a little confused... Why did Xiwang say that he would definitely go to the opposite side of [Humanity]? Isn't everything fine now?

Everyone trusts him and is willing to support him. Even if he is labeled as a "suspected Herrscher", everyone is willing to treat him as usual.

Why does he still ask this?

"I……"

"Hush - you just need to know the answer yourself."

Xi Wang placed his fingertips lightly on his lips, signaling to Alicia that she didn't need to say any more.

"I already knew the answer to this question."

Xiwang looked at her and smiled.

No, that's not the case - Alicia wanted to deny it, wanted to say something, but she felt an inexplicable pain in her heart, and even her breathing paused for a moment.

"After all, you like [humans] the most. You love [humans]... right? Ai Lishia?"

Wait a minute... Xiwang... wait a minute...

He was clearly still smiling, and the look in his eyes when he looked at him was still as gentle and smiling as usual.

"After all...it's all for humanity, isn't it? Alicia?"

But why? He looks so sad?

Chapter 5715 [Believe] Him, At Least for Now ()

"…Is that too much?"

Looking at the somewhat lost figure of Alicia when she left, Xi Wang tilted his head and muttered to himself in some confusion.

"But... that's true. After all, she is Alicia."

She [loves] humans, so she definitely has more preferences towards humans, but she also [likes] herself, especially herself at this moment, who she naturally [likes] more.