The lingering summer heat recedes completely, a sudden rain falls, a single wutong leaf startles;
Willows sway in the wind, the autumn wind blows, the cold cicadas chirp in tune.
Yellow hibiscus half opens, cold dew blooms, red smartweed covers the sandy islets;
The sedge path grows late, looking up, wild geese fly in a single-file line.
Lucien and Kallen embarked on the road to “go home” together.
Treading this road they came by once more, the identities of the two had already reversed.
Lucien became the one being taken care of.
At this time, the weather could not yet be considered too cold, with only a gentle breeze blowing, refreshing people’s minds and spirits.
Kallen was particularly afraid of him freezing, insisting on adding a piece of clothing for him.
The mountain path was rugged, yet not steep, enough for one to stride across openly and steadily.
Kallen, terrified that he might get tired, always wanted to take him along to rest for a bit.
In the morning, Kallen cooked porridge for him; in the middle of the night, Kallen held the lamp for him…
Insisting on doing such things she had never done before, she was just like a toddler just learning to walk, stubbornly wanting to walk well in front of her parents.
Stumbling forward, getting back up whenever she fell, and continuing forward.
[You were like an old man nearing the end of his days, whose every breath had to be carefully counted, taken care of meticulously by Kallen.]
[That isn’t entirely wrong, perhaps.]
[After all, judging by the lifespan standard of Void Archives, you now resemble an unexcavated ancient century artifact, only a step away from being illuminated by sunlight and turning into a handful of gray soil.]
[You knew you were old, you knew you were useless, you knew you could no longer take good care of Otto and Kallen.]
[You didn’t want it to be like this either, but you had no choice.]
[Kallen’s behavior of “cherishing” you was just like a magnifying glass facing the midday sun.]
[It both magnified your predicament and scorched your powerlessness.]
[Would you be angered by this?]
[Would you blame Kallen for this?]
[No, neither.]
[Regarding this, your emotions were lingering and very complex.]
[Thinking back carefully across your long life and blurry memories, when was the last time you were taken care of by the opposite sex like this?]
[This question ultimately wouldn’t have an answer.]
[Because…]
[Kallen’s figure had long since covered up everything that had never mattered, leaving no trace at all.]
[You love Otto and Kallen.]
[Giving is hard; for them, you wouldn’t hesitate to do so ten thousand times over.]
[Why on earth could you reach this extent?]
[Is it simply wanting to watch Otto and Kallen grow?
Or is it because you once walked in the rain, so you want to hold an umbrella for others?]
[Not entirely, perhaps.]
[From beginning to end, you were the one who was loved first.]
[Think about your first meeting with Otto; you merely spoke a few inconsequential words to the young child.]
[Think about your initial interactions with Kallen; you lacked even the interest to look this little girl straight in the eye.]
[And what did they both do?]
[They gave you the courage to face two bleak worlds head-on.]
The journey home for Lucien and Kallen was very long.
Along the way, there were still pursuing forces sent by Schicksal to intercept them.
This time, Kallen did not let Lucien make a move, but personally pierced through these pursuers one by one with Judah.
She stepped over countless bones, her gaze unmoving and steady—as if she had completely turned into a different person.
[After accidentally discovering your physical condition, Kallen already had a realization, which also filled her with determination.]
[This seemed like an exceptionally good thing, yet not quite so good.]
[After all, this also meant she would infinitely elevate the priority of her own thoughts and actions.]
[This feeling of stubbornly walking down a single path for a single goal is something you are far too familiar with.]
[It was simply like looking in a mirror.]
[That’s right.]
[After all, Kallen was brought up by your own hands, how could she not be like you?]
[To make a long story short.]
[Kallen tore open the Golden Lock of Constraint, bringing you back to Europe through sheer force.]
[During this time, she repeatedly begged you not to interfere with her choices.]
[You could roughly guess her thoughts, yet you didn’t say much, directly agreeing to it instead.]
[No matter what, you were going to die anyway.]
[The things that should be done, no matter what, you were going to do them.]
[However, you would not stop Kallen from doing anything for you; this was a right that belonged to herself, and you had no right to interfere.]
[So let her make her own choice to hand in this final answer sheet regarding the word “growth” to you.]
[ After that, you will make your move.
]
[ Just as you expected, after taking you back to Europe by force, Kallen made her own choice.
]
[ She did not compromise with Schicksal and reveal the whereabouts of the purple box, but instead turned around to question whether Schicksal’s actions over the past few years were right.
]
[ As if trying to change the unjust world, reverse the unreasonable reality, and uphold the justice in her heart, she directly stood on the opposite side of the Schicksal organization and the entire aristocratic group.
]
[ Facing the cruel reality, Kallen ultimately lacked the ability to turn the tide.
]
[ Schicksal’s upper management — those cunning Old Timers.
]
[ The aristocratic political circle — those dirty power players.
]
[ They made a huge fuss over Kallen stealing the purple box, and even though the current head of the Kaslana family, Kallen’s biological father Francis, argued fiercely with reason, it ultimately only postponed the trial belonging to Kallen for a while.
]
[ In the end, Kallen was locked away in a prison.
]
[ Barring any accidents, a death penalty awaited her.
]
]
[ Why on earth did Kallen make this series of actions?
]
[ Was it because she had completely despaired of this world?
]
[ Or was it because she already harbored a death wish at this time?
]
[ Could it be that she felt she couldn’t change anything, and thus her heart was as dead as ashes?
]
[ No, neither.
]
[ You could guess Kallen’s thoughts, you always could.
]
[ She mostly just wanted to protect you.
]
[ Where in the world is there any resistance or revolution without bloodshed and sacrifice?
]
[ In order to realize her ideals, Kallen, even facing death ten thousand times, was not afraid to treat herself as firewood to be burned.
]
[ But she couldn’t.
]
[ But she couldn’t…
]
[ Because she knew you would definitely help her.
]
[ Kallen didn’t know what state your body had reached, nor did she know whether her choice was the optimal one.
]
[ She only knew that if she troubled you again, you would likely leave her and Otto.
]
[ No matter what, she didn’t want you to die because of her, even if the price was that she would die because of it.
]
[ This was also the direct reason why she walked to this step.
]
[ The affairs of the world are complicated; some can see clearly, while others cannot.
]
[ Otto did not know the ins and outs of the matter, only knowing that after a year’s time, when he and his only friend met again, an insurmountable iron fence already separated the two of them.
]
[ Everything in the world was collapsing, except for his blood pressure, which was skyrocketing.