Embers of Embers

Chapter 687 Regret
"Banquet! Banquet! Beautiful banquet!"
In the Stuart family's mansion, Oscar held his wine glass high, stepped on the table, shouted a few times, sneezed loudly, climbed down from the table shakily, and wrapped himself in a warm blanket.
"After a disaster, everything is waiting for recovery... This is really a good time to celebrate, to celebrate that everyone survived."
He sat on the sofa obediently, gripping the blanket tightly and wiping his nose.
The temperature in the room was extremely low. Even the Stuart family was plunged into the cold due to the damage to the pipes. However, Oscar felt that this was nothing. Anyway, before the advancement of technology, people survived tenaciously. Now they just miss it. It’s just the past.
With this in mind, he threw a few more pieces of wood into the fireplace in front of him to make the fire burn brighter.
Of course, as memories come back, Oscar was very concerned about keeping warm. After all, his rheumatoid knees couldn't stand the cold.
The heavy rain made his old body feel pain, and he reluctantly gave up his crutches only a few days ago.
"Will your legs heal so quickly?"
There was a voice, and Oscar looked to the other side, it was Seleu who was working, she lowered her head, correcting the document, and said.
The room seemed a bit crowded, filled with clutter, blankets everywhere, and a sofa with dents on it that looked like someone had slept on it.
"I am experienced in many battles!"
Oscar patted his leg hard and said proudly.
Seliu just smiled disdainfully and continued his work.
There was a loud noise outside the door, and there seemed to be many people.
This is a very abnormal thing. There have never been many people in the Stuart family, most of them are servants and guards, and they rarely break the silence, causing the mansion to become noisy.
The door was pushed open, and the old housekeeper was holding hot coffee and yelling at the people in the corridor.
"Slow down! Keep your voice down!"
He closed the door and came in, complaining.
"Don't these guys from the Purification Agency know to be more careful?"
He raised his head and glanced at Seliu who was working, then looked at the room filled with clutter, which looked like a warehouse, and at the old man leaning against the fireplace, eating and drinking. His heart couldn't help but rise. A nameless anger arose.
Since the heavy rain, the cleanup mechanism has been the most severely damaged. Black Mountain Hospital is full of injured people, and there are still many unlucky homeless people like Kestrel. The Platinum Palace has not much energy to share because it has to assist civilians. Therefore, the Stuart family came to assist in purging the organization, or to be precise, it came from the builders of the country.
In addition to most of the properties that are already in progress, the Stuart family has currently developed most of the properties in Old Dunling to house these homeless hapless ghosts and as temporary offices to house those who have been eliminated. Minor documents rescued from the agency.
The most important parts were evacuated as early as the death row plan. Everything now will speed up the self-healing of the purge mechanism.
As a result, the Stuart family's mansion also became noisy. Except for the few rooms Seleu left for himself, they were all crowded with personnel from the purification agency. In order to prevent these guys from accidentally touching The expensive handicrafts were repackaged and piled in the corner, making the room look like a warehouse.
For the old butler, letting these guys in was already his biggest concession. As a result, he saw that they left messes everywhere, which made him even more angry. And when he saw the dignified Duchess Stuart, just like this This anger reached its peak while sitting in a corner working.
"Okay, okay, it's okay."
Seliu understood the old housekeeper's mood very well and comforted him, "I don't care about this. It's the same no matter where I work."
"But you are also a duke anyway, not to mention, you are still the founder of the country now."
The old butler continued to complain, put the coffee aside, and then looked at Oscar who was slumped in a corner.
"We don't accept useless people here."
Hearing this angry voice, Oscar directly picked up the crutches and let out a painful whimper.
"I'm already like this, you..."
His expression was exaggerated, as if he was going to die in the next second.
Seeing this, the old butler could only look ferocious for a while, and sighed helplessly. He couldn't really drive Oscar away, but facing this old scoundrel, he really had no way to deal with him.
"So you are planning to hold a banquet here? We don't have much space now."
said the old housekeeper.
"No, it's not a banquet. It's just a small gathering. He proposed it." Seliu said, picking up the pen and pointing at Oscar.
"When the banquet is called, doesn't it look a lot more impressive?" Oscar smiled.
"What on earth do you think?"
After a few words, the old housekeeper felt that he was going to be filled with anger again. As the manager of the mansion, he really couldn't bear to see these things.
If fighting monsters is Lorenzo's battlefield, then managing the mansion in an orderly manner is the battlefield of the old housekeeper. But now he is defeated all the way on the battlefield, and even the last position will be lost. His mood has changed. It's getting worse.
"Celebration banquet, we have finally survived a catastrophe. Isn't this worth celebrating?"
Oscar waved his hands happily, and for a moment the old butler didn't know whether to call him childlike or adulterous.
"What do you think?"
The old housekeeper looked at Seliu. She was the master here, and he had no right to overstep her authority.
"Fortunately, I think it's okay."
Seliu's reply was very bland, maybe it was because she was so busy these days that it was really hard for her to express any emotions.
Everyone is busy, dealing with the aftermath of the heavy rain and preparing for the next disaster.
Next...disaster.
Thinking of this, Seriu's face showed a sad expression, and the so-called celebration banquet was also cast a bleak color, and this is far from over.
Seeing this, the old butler didn't say anything more and just followed the two people's ideas. He knew very well that no matter how decadent Oscar was, he, like Seleu, was a member of that world. If he was not, he could not enter. All you can do is do your job well.
"Then I will leave first."
He said and left softly. Soon after, the old housekeeper's scolding sounded outside the door, followed by a clear and crisp sound, as if something had been broken.
"It's so busy."
Looking at the closed door, Oscar smiled and said that he had also seen how busy the old housekeeper was these days.
"The celebration banquet... the celebration banquet..."
Oscar muttered, holding up the wine glass and narrowing his eyes slightly, as if he was anticipating the wonderful banquet.
"This might be our last gathering."
Oscar said nonchalantly. This time, there was not much joy in his words, only as cold as room temperature.
He looked at Seliu, who had already stopped writing and his eyes fell on the paper.
"It sounds really bad, right? We finally survived this heavy rain, but there are still more serious storms waiting for us..."
Oscar whispered, with the same sad look on his face as Seleu.
Erosion is like a huge reservoir. In the endless time, the liquid in it continuously permeates the container, breaks away from the shackles of the container, and affects the world.
This battle only killed two faucets that lead directly to the inside of the container. The monster in the reservoir still exists. Only by killing it can all this be eradicated. And everyone knows that this monster is different from the enemies they have encountered in the past. completely different.
Roger and Adren may make people despair, but in despair, people can still deceive themselves, muster up courage, and move on. But in the face of the unspeakable, everyone's heart is filled with only coldness.
"What do you think Lorenzo is doing now? Is he enjoying his vacation, or is he sharpening his sword and preparing for the final hunt?"
Seleu didn't reply to his words, so it seemed like Oscar was talking to himself.
"What exactly is the Ineffable?"
Seliu shook her head, she didn't know, "Why would you ask such a stupid question."
"Yes, the puzzle is written on the title," Oscar smiled sheepishly, and then sighed deeply, "It's indescribable..."
Invisible, unheard, untouchable, completely unknowable existence.
The only purpose of chaos and disorder is to expand and sublimate.
"Our enemy this time is different from the previous enemies. Whether it is Edron or Roger, they can be understood to some extent, but the Unspeakable is different. Apart from knowing that it is an enemy, we have almost no idea about it. Not knowing anything is like an impenetrable darkness.”
Oscar said.
"For hunters, such prey is the most difficult. You don't know its habits, and it's difficult to set traps in the environment... You can't even chop off a few of its heads to kill it completely. clear."
"I have been avoiding thinking about these things these days," Seliu said slowly.
"Normally, you really shouldn't think too much about this kind of thing. My predecessor, and even further back, extending to the era of the Keepers of Secrets, so many great beings failed to come up with an answer to this question, let alone Stop talking about you."
Oscar remembered something from his youth.
"When I was young, I was also conceited and thought I had the ability to change everything. As you can see in the end, not everyone has the courage to fight against the cruel reality."
"So you just surrendered?"
"What does it mean to surrender! I am looking for a way to survive that suits me!"
Oscar defended hurriedly, his expression relaxed, feeling the warmth of the fireplace, he seemed very relaxed.
"I had no fixed place in the first half of my life, and in the second half I wanted to settle down. It was best to stay in one place forever, so writing books is really a good job. As long as I stay in the house and write, I will make money... Although I didn’t make much money, the job was really good.”
Seliu smiled reluctantly. She was amused by Oscar's terrible life, although logically she shouldn't laugh. After all, it was not good to laugh at other people's suffering.
"So don't put too much pressure on yourself. We are all ordinary people and there is a limit to what we can do."
“Do you accept your own mediocrity?”
"Of course, the stage is only so big, not everyone can stand in the spotlight, and there are so many auditoriums. Even so, some people only have standing votes," Oscar said. "It is difficult to accept mediocrity, but It is also something that cannot be circumvented. You are not a god, and all you can do is the limit of a mortal."
"That sounds really bad."
"Yes, that's why I want to resign, so that I can finally be a helpless mortal, instead of continuing to be powerless as a country builder."
From what it sounds like, being a nation-builder is not a glorious identity, but a painful curse.
"Are you harming me?" Seliu asked.
"You asked for this, we agreed."
Oscar became serious and hugged the blanket tightly, as if he thought Seleu was going to regret it.
After finally hugging his thigh, he has someone to support him for the rest of his life. Oscar will never give up such an iron rice bowl no matter what.
But it was obvious that he and Seliu had completely different thoughts. Seliu didn't care about Oscar's iron rice bowl and how much food he could eat by himself.
"But I...I still..."
Seleu wanted to say something, but was interrupted by Oscar.
"I know, I know, I was like this when I was young. Before every trip, I would hug my friends fiercely," Oscar recalled the blurry faces. "Of course, they were usually very disgusted, and even once Think there’s something wrong with me.”
"There's nothing we can do. Maybe I'll die outside, or maybe they'll all die when I come back. There's nothing we can do about this."
Oscar added a few more pieces of wood into it, and the fire flickered for a while, sparking a burst of sparks.
"I have regretted it, so I feel that you should not be allowed to follow my old path. You can't stop him from moving forward, and even he himself can't stop himself."
The fireworks in the fireplace were reflected in his eyes, making Oscar's cloudy eyes shine golden.
"The time has come. Even if he refuses, his mission and responsibility will drive him and he has to move forward."
"Is that why you want to hold a so-called celebration party?" Seliu said, "This is not a celebration party, but more like a farewell party."
As if he had been discovered, Oscar laughed.
"Almost," he sighed, "just like the ending of the story, you are about to say goodbye to these characters. It is inevitable that you will be a little reluctant to say goodbye, and you can't help but want to stay a little longer and see a few more times..."
"Really?" Seliu asked doubtfully.
After a pause for a few seconds, Oscar said shamelessly.
"Fake, I can finally say goodbye to these guys, there will be no more urging from editors, and I can take a long vacation, too late to be happy!"
After hearing this, Oscar's image in Seliu's heart continued to collapse. It was unclear whether this was Oscar's retirement and letting himself go.
"Okay, just kidding, there's always a difference between stories and reality, isn't there?"
Oscar became serious again, making people wonder what he was thinking.
"I can still look back on the characters in the story and even talk about writing a few sequels. But in reality, if people lose them, they are really lost. All I can say is do what you should do and don't regret it."
Oscar sighed.
"Regret is the emotion I hate the most. It's like an immortal ghost that chases you until you die."
(End of this chapter)