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nHydral closed his eyes and spoke to the rigid, corpse-like Seraphina, “You know I would never lie to you, right, Seraphina?”

n“Now, it’s time for you to ask me questions.”

n“Ask me.”

nAnsel cupped Seraphina’s face, pinching her eyes tightly, forcing her eyelids open, compelling the increasingly terrified and desperate girl to meet his gaze.

n“Don’t…” Seraphina murmured, trembling, “Don’t… Ansel… don’t…”

nBut the devil showed no sympathy at this moment.

n“Seraphina, ask me that question.”

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n“No… no!”

n“Ask me why—”

n“I don’t want to! I don’t want to ask! Please, Ansel… please, don’t say it, I’ll listen to you, I’ll listen to everything you say… don’t tell me… don’t tell me!”

n“Why didn’t I stop you from doing that?”

nSeraphina collapsed to the ground, the once proud, savage, and arrogant girl, the Sky Wolf Emperor who was destined to rule the world with absolute authority, knelt on the ground, begging in the most humble and abject manner:

n“Don’t say it… Ansel, please don’t say it… can we just leave it like this… I’ve grown up, I won’t make mistakes again… I…”

n“Why did the ring on your finger suddenly go out of control at that time?”

n“An… sel…”

n“Why did the crowd’s riot happen so quickly? Why didn’t the city defense army appear? Why was your conversation with Count Stoneheart recorded?”

n“…”

n“Why did he have the courage to try to tarnish my reputation? Why did so many unreasonable things happen three days ago?”

nSeraphina sat there like a puppet, her arms hanging limply, her head tilted to one side, her eyes empty.

nIt was as if she was forcing herself to give up all thought.

nAnsel crouched down, placing his hands on Seraphina’s shoulders, and spoke softly:

n“Seraphina, today, you don’t need to ask me.”

n“I will tell you everything.”

n“I will tell you that from the very beginning, this was all my arrangement, from the moment you learned of my policies, secretly recording Count Stoneheart’s meeting, not knowing how to handle the image crystal after your attitude towards me changed, the mind-reading ring, to the aid for the poor, your unauthorized actions, and the changes and handling of Count Stoneheart afterward.”

n“—Everything was within my expectations and arrangements.”

nAnsel gently stroked Seraphina’s cheek, whispering:

n“Everything you’ve done, all the sins you’ve committed, were all my arrangements, all within… the trajectory I’ve set for you.”

n“Because I understand you, because I am the one in this world who understands you the most.”

n“And this is not all.”

nHe tenderly pressed his forehead to Seraphina’s, “My dear Seraphina, since everything you’ve experienced up until now has been my arrangement,”

n“Then, from the moment we met to everything we’ve been through…”

n“—What reason is there to escape my control?”

n“…Fake?”

nSeraphina’s eyes moved slightly.

nThose lifeless eyes met Ansel’s sea-blue pupils.

n“Is it all… fake?” Her lips moved, uttering hollow, emotionless words.

nThis was the purest, most desperate form of despair.

nThere was no emotional fluctuation, no sadness, no pain, only… a dead silence, a pitch-black despair.

n“No, it’s not fake, Seraphina.”

nAnsel’s tone was unprecedentedly serious: “Everything I’ve done for you, all the emotions I’ve invested, are absolutely true—otherwise, I wouldn’t be here at this moment, determined to tell you all this.”

n“Everything is real, absolutely, purely real, the facts of everything moving according to the laws they should follow, just like the alternation of day and night, the rising and setting of the sun.”

n“I merely provided guidance, but never made anything ‘fake’ or ‘unreal’.”

n“Just like… fate to all beings.”

n“And all this—” Hydral grasped the wolf’s hand, “All this is for your growth.”

nGrowth.

nThe word that made Seraphina feel piercing, painful, and desperate.

nBut at this moment, after experiencing so much pain and immense despair, the word… stirred ripples in her deadened heart.

n“Gro… wth,” Seraphina murmured blankly.

n“Yes, growth.”

nAnsel closed his eyes for some reason and whispered softly, “What you deserve, to become a better version of yourself… growth.”

n“Seraphina , your righteousness and kindness are self-assumed.”

n“I do not deny your character and behavior, but you have not recognized your true nature.”

n“Your goodness is not true moral goodness, but rather a sense of… belonging and closeness to ‘your kind’.”

n“You regard all commoners who have experienced the same upbringing as you as your kind, so you are always willing to help them unconditionally, love them, and be close to them. You harbor unconditional hatred and hostility towards your enemies, the nobles.”

n“This is your true nature, and I want you to recognize it.”

nAnsel spoke without reservation, “I want you to realize that you have never been the same as them, and that the so-called good and evil, right and wrong, are not as clear-cut as you think. This is the growth I expect you to achieve.”

nGrowth, growth, growth…

n“Heh…haha…”

nSuddenly, a glimmer of light appeared in those dark red eyes.

nA smile tugged at the corners of her numb, lifeless face.

n“Growth…hahaha…growth.”

nThe waves that this one word stirred in Seraphina’s heart… were not of water.

n“Hahahahahaha!”

nThe wolf laughed wildly, almost manically: “Growth! Growth! Hahaha!”

nBut… it was fire!

n“Growth!”

nDespite her mental exhaustion, her soul riddled with wounds, and her body weary beyond measure, she suddenly lashed out, landing a fierce punch on Ansel’s face!

nThat flame, it was the raging fire of anger, ignited by the savage, untamed self that was etched deep within her soul…

n“Growth!”

nAs she knocked Ansel to the ground with a single punch, Seraphina straddled him, laughing manically. She showed no mercy, her fists raining down on Ansel’s head with the intent to kill.

n“Growth! Growth! Growth! Hahaha! Ansel! Hydral! This is the growth you wanted! Growth!”

nTears streamed down Seraphina’s face as she laughed, her expression a terrifying mix of horror and madness. Amidst the gruesome scene of splattered blood and brain matter, she screamed hysterically:

n“This is, my, growth!”

n“Die, all of you, just die! You too, Marlina, all you lunatics, psychopaths, hahaha… my growth, my everything, what I’ve been through, my feelings for you…uh…uhuhuh…hahahahaha!”

n“Hydral…Ansel…”

nThe girl, her face splattered with blood, gently laid her body against the chest of the headless corpse.

n“I know you won’t die, right? This is also part of your plan, right?”

nShe closed her eyes, savoring the fading warmth.

n“Ansel, I really like you.”

n“I’ve grown up, just like you said.”

nAfter a long time, she suddenly opened her eyes, her gaze cold.

n“But what does it matter?”

nThe wolf stood up from the madness made up of fangs and claws, looking down at the corpse on the ground with indifference.

n“I’ve grown up, so what? You think I’ll continue to work for you, you bastard?”

n“Whether it’s part of your plan or not, I…hehehe…don’t care anymore.”

n“You just keep on, arranging others from your high position, arranging everything, Hydral.”

nSeraphina flicked the fresh blood off her hand, her face expressing boredom: “You don’t need to bother playing house with me anymore, go play with Marlina, you must have a lot in common with her, growth…growth…hahahahaha!”

nShe kicked Ansel’s corpse away with a laugh, wiped away the last of her tears with her blood-stained hand, and turned to leave.

n— >

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