Embers of Embers

Chapter 396
The night was long and no one seemed to be in the mood to sleep.
The bright moonlight failed to illuminate the house completely. The girl was sitting on the bed, her fiery red hair glowing slightly under the white light. On the other side of her, Lorenzo stood in a dark corner. , only a vague outline can be seen.
"I saved his life...probably."
Eve recalled the moment that changed everything. In the Black Mountain Hospital, during the seemingly endless storm, she saw Arthur running towards the Original Sin Armor, and Eve, driven by Arthur, looked for escape. road.
In fact, everyone knew exactly what the outcome of that scene would be, and things like separation between life and death always seemed very bad.
Logically speaking, Arthur will die there in the end, and Eve will survive under everyone's protection.
But the story has changed.
"I am who I am, and I don't want to be manipulated by anyone, even if he is my father. He told me to run away. But I regretted it halfway through escaping."
Eve looked out the window. She didn't close the curtains. This is a nice sea view room with a very good view.
Bright lights were lit up on the ships crossing the sea. They were like shoals of luminous fish one after another, swimming in the waves, reflecting chaotic colors on the dark sea surface.
"I was thinking, is this a decision I want to make? Do I really want to escape? Although I will survive, will I not regret it after I survive?"
Lan Jade's words echoed in her mind, and at the last moment of her escape, she suddenly said something to herself.
She wished she could say something to Arthur at the end, like a goodbye, but Eve couldn't.
"so what?"
Lorenzo's question came from the shadows.
It seemed like he missed a lot of things in that storm, about Eve, about Arthur, about a lot of people.
He hadn't seen Joey for a long time. Although no one said it clearly, Lorenzo also guessed what would happen. It was a bad storm, but fortunately it was all over.
"I don't want to do this. In fact, in the final analysis..."
Eve slowly fell silent, but the next moment she spoke with a little anger.
"Why!"
Lorenzo was stunned by this sudden shout, wondering what this guy was thinking.
"Yeah, why, why should I listen to him! Why did he tell me to run away, and I will run away!"
Eve patted her chest, looking upright.
"I'm Eve Phoenix! The daughter of a dignified duke! Detective Suaran! A born ranger!"
She imitated Lorenzo's nonsense tone, and compared her hand to a knife, slicing it in the air.
"So I became angry from the bottom of my heart! I grew evil because of my courage! I turned around, pulled out my folding knife and chopped down all those monsters, and also saved Arthur's life."
Her actions were funny, but Lorenzo knew very well that he could feel the thrill and danger at that time. On that kind of hellish battlefield, courage has become a bit cheap, where what humans need is the ultimate coldness. , only by becoming a monster can you fight against the monster.
"Is it more than that?" Lorenzo asked.
The smile on Eve's face froze. After being silent for a while, she lay down like a deflated ball and looked at the ceiling.
"I was thinking that if I just ran away, even if I survived, I would probably always be lingering in his shadow. The sight of his death hung over me like a nightmare, and I was terrified and at a loss what to do all day long.
I found that what I fear most is not death, but more complex emotions, guilt, shame, grief... I actually have the ability to change these, after all, I am a natural ranger...
If I just ran away, even though I would agree with Arthur's idea and allow him to leave with peace of mind, in that case, would I still be me? "
"So for such a ridiculous reason, you went back? Back to hell."
"of course."
"That's the wrong choice. You might die there."
"But if you were to choose, you would also choose the wrong option, right?" Eve asked, "Lorenzo, there are some things where there is no absolutely correct option, only the option I like."
"It's hard to make me happy if you have money? That's it."
"almost."
Lorenzo nodded with a thoughtful look on his face.
"It really suits your character."
"Of course! So I risked my life for this internship!"
Eve sat up suddenly and looked into the shadows. Unexpectedly, Lorenzo was sitting on the threshold with a cigarette he had just lit in his mouth. The light was a little weak and the smoke slowly rose.
"and then?"
Lorenzo looked disdainful. Thinking of this so-called internship, Lorenzo felt weird, as if Arthur was taking revenge on himself.
The configuration of this team is outrageous.
But he also knew Arthur's intentions. This time Arthur didn't want to protect Eve anymore, or he wanted to protect her in another way.
Instead of wrapping her tightly with a shield, it would be better for Eve to hold a sword that can cut through all obstacles.
Sharpening a sword requires the right whetstone, and this risky and outrageous job is obviously very suitable, but the sword cannot be broken in one go, so Lorenzo came.
"Then?"
Eve repeated Lorenzo's words again. She seemed to be thinking about something and rubbed her face vigorously to make it as soft as possible.
"Then I ask you to work hard! Mr. Lorenzo Holmes, if you slip up, my internship will also be ruined!"
She stuck out her tongue, pretending to be cute, and looked at Lorenzo with flattery in her eyes, her expression was artificial.
Although Eve could only see a faint light spot in the shadow, as she spoke, she could clearly see that the light spot was trembling violently, as if Lorenzo was suppressing a choked breath. The sound made his body tremble violently.
"You are still naive, Lorenzo, is this a draw?"
Eve put away her expression, and giggled and laughed. The so-called hiding a knife in a smile is probably like this.
Miscalculated.
In the shadows, Lorenzo took a deep breath, he extinguished his cigarette, and felt that the girl was annoying for a moment.
To be honest, Lorenzo is not very good at dealing with girls like Eve. Each of them has more complicated ideas than the old foxes, and he is not independent enough, just like a stubborn child.
He began to miss the ladies of Saturday Housewives. Although they were all women, their thoughts were much easier to guess than guys like Eve.
Lorenzo could easily follow their thoughts and make them happy... In fact, sometimes Lorenzo also knew that these ladies were not stupid, but when they lived to their age, everyone He is very good at lying to himself. Real life is already terrible, but living a lie is actually very easy in comparison.
"Sleep, sleep."
Lorenzo was too lazy to pay attention to her and lay down in the bathtub with a pillow underneath. On the edge of the bathtub, there was a nail sword and Winchester.
"good night!"
Joyful voices came in, Lorenzo turned over and couldn't help covering his ears.
……
Its daybreak.
Kestrel climbed out of bed energetically, with the books he read last night scattered around him.
A strange room, beautiful scenery outside the window, no need to go to work, no need to fight monsters.
Kestrel is in a good mood.
But as consciousness gradually became clearer, Kestrel's memories also came back.
This is not a public trip, this is overtime.
His smiling expression froze, and he immediately threw himself back into bed, unable to bear to accept this reality. He felt that this must be some kind of nightmare, and that after he woke up, he would be on a wonderful public-funded trip.
But he couldn't sleep and could only accept this cruel reality.
How did you fall asleep?He couldn't remember clearly. He looked around lazily and saw that the lamp on the side was still on, and then a somewhat sad face came into his eyes.
wow ah ah ah!
In the mind of the kestrel, countless little kestrels screamed for a moment. They were not human-shaped kestrels, but real kestrels among birds. This group of young birds nested in the nest, together. Let out a scream.
"I said... what's wrong?"
Kestrel asked tentatively.
I saw Heibald turning his head stiffly. The face of this strong Viking man was inexplicably soft at the moment. The lines carved by the cold wind were no longer as sharp as before. The corners of his eyes were slightly red, as if I cried bitterly at night.
This kind of Heybold made Kestrel feel a sharp discomfort, not the so-called nausea, but a more confused feeling.
It's like a strange piece of text. You know every single word, but when they are put together, you feel like you can't read them.
"Nothing. It's actually a nice story."
Haybold's tone was as usual, with a slightly deep tone. While speaking, he did not forget to turn the pages and continued to look at the book in his hand.
Ah... this...
The cold wind in the north, the roaring ice sea, and even the fierce battle between life and death, all of these failed to convince this warrior who believed in the god Odin, but a novel circulating in the darkness made him bend.
Looking at the book cover, Kestrel remembered the name of the book. He remembered that it was called "Victoria's Secret", which tells the story of a royal princess who encountered ups and downs in her pursuit of love.
"Is this the only one? I'm almost finished reading it."
Haybold suddenly asked again.
"Oh oh oh, there are some."
Kestrel turned around and took out the next few books from the suitcase.
He had only read the beginning of this book, and he heard it was a tearjerker.Originally, he planned to set up a chair under a beautiful scenery during this publicly funded tour, and slowly enjoy it while fishing, feeling the love and hatred in the story.
Of course, this wonderful development completely disrupted Kestrel's plan. He no longer needed to use the story to feel it. Kestrel himself was now like the protagonist of a tragic drama.
"You... didn't sleep all night?" Kestrel asked quietly.
"Don't worry, our ship won't leave until tomorrow afternoon. According to the itinerary, today is considered a rest."
As if Kestrel was worried about something, Highbould replied intently.
"Is that so..."
He said this, but Kestrel swore that it must be Heibald who said this to excuse himself. Who said that the Vikings were all reckless men? Aren't all of them cunning?
"Yes, in fact, this is indeed a trip. After all, we will stay at sea for many days. We don't need to fight and kill every day. We need to rest, and so do the enemies."
Listening to Haybold's words, Kestrel nodded slightly and then put on his clothes.
"What do you want for breakfast?"
Haybold didn't reply. This majestic Viking was completely immersed in the story, feeling sad and happy about the love story of the man and woman in the story... To be honest, this contrast surprised Kestrel.
But it's not bad, at least Kestrel has gotten to know this stranger who has only known each other for a short time, and everyone seems to be relatively normal.
Unlike people's impression of the warlike and bloodthirsty Vikings, everyone is actually similar. They are all normal people, not all crazy.
"Ah... think about it carefully, it does feel like traveling."
Open the window, the whole city wakes up, throw away the dark parts, and the scenery in front of you is extremely beautiful.
The sea breeze was blowing on his face, and Kestrel suddenly had a very strange feeling, and his body and mind were extremely relaxed at this moment.
This feeling was so unfamiliar, he was like a tight string that had been stretched for so long that he even forgot what a peaceful life looked like.
But what followed was uneasiness, and Kestrel felt an inexplicable palpitation. It was such a peaceful morning, but he felt a sense of crisis.
He was used to a tense life, and a moment of relaxation actually made him feel like he was about to die. Indeed, the beast spent its entire life hunting, and the only way it could rest was when it was about to die.
next door.
Lorenzo slowly opened his eyes. He felt as if he had been beaten in his sleep, and his whole body ached.
Sure enough, sleeping in the bathtub at home is more comfortable.
He reluctantly climbed up, leaned on the edge of the bathtub, threw his pajamas into the corner, then unscrewed the valve, letting the hot water fill the bathtub little by little, swallowing himself in the warmth.
It's so comfortable...
Judging from Lorenzo's accumulated life experience, the only advantage of sleeping in the bathtub is that you can take a bath directly after waking up.
He stretched out his hand to grab it randomly, picked up a cigarette and held it in his mouth. While puffing away the smoke, Lorenzo let out bursts of moans.
"Cool……"
A beautiful day started like this, and I couldn't help but feel happy.
Humming a strange melody, Lorenzo twisted his neck. The bathtub was narrow, and he felt that his body was stiff after sleeping all night.
But in the process of twisting his neck, his peripheral vision seemed to catch something.
Lorenzo's neck froze once again as if it had been reinforced. He seemed a little uncertain, as if going back in time. His neck twisted back little by little according to the previous trajectory. Lorenzo looked sideways. That corner.
Then there was a scream.
(End of this chapter)