"So, do we still have to work little by little?"
"What else? It’s already a civilized society now, not the era of lords looting from each other!"
Serey showed a hint of sympathy, "I can only say you were born in the wrong era. If I had known you a few hundred years ago, I’d definitely take you raiding."
Bologue waved his hand forcefully, opened the door, he just wanted to leave this damned place as soon as possible.
"Yo! Serey, see you next time!"
As he left, Palmer did not forget to greet Serey.
"What’s with the grudge you Clarks have?" Bologue asked Palmer.
"Huh? Actually, the grudge isn’t that deep. After the Dawn War, we Clarks made a lot off them, it was quite profitable," Palmer replied, "Of course, if those old geezers knew I was getting close to the Villeries, they’d definitely be pissed."
"Sometimes the enemy of your enemy is your friend. If it can annoy those geezers, I don’t mind being a brother to Serey."
Bologue gained new insight into Palmer’s complicated family situation.
"So this damned place... really is called the Undying Club?"
In the dark alley, Bologue looked at the door he just left, a solid wood door tightly shut, with a neon sign above, crookedly spelling "Undying Club".
"Yes, they only open late at night, closed during the day, so we have to use the ’Key of the Crooked Path’ to get in," Geoffrey said.
"Can’t we just knock and enter?" Bologue asked.
"Never tried. Usually, when we come during the day, we break the door down and try to drag that damn Serey to the street... Don’t worry, this guy used to be one of the lords of the Night Race, and his dad was the Night King. Just a bit of sunlight won’t kill him, it even helps his blood circulation."
"Feels boring again, huh."
Serey lay flat on the bar counter, staring at the glasses hanging above, complaining endlessly.
Wei’Er leapt onto Serey’s chest and sat there with her azure eyes fixed on him.
"Wow, Wei’Er, have you gotten fatter again? Feels like there’s a lead ball pressing on my chest," Serey said.
"You’re not telling the truth, Serey."
Ignoring Serey’s nonsense, Wei’Er, who had known him for a hundred years, knew well how to communicate with him.
"No, I’m speaking the truth!"
Serey raised both hands in surrender, fully aware of how sharp Wei’Er’s claws were.
"Then you’re hiding something, right? You’re not lying, just not telling the whole truth," Wei’Er said.
Serey’s smile faded, replaced by a cold mask-like expression as he grabbed Wei’Er by the scruff of her neck, placed her aside, and jumped off the bar, casually opening a bottle for himself.
"Wei’Er, you’re always this sharp," Serey said.
"If I weren’t sharp, how could I deal with all you men?" Wei’Er said, dipping her tail into Serey’s wine, stirring it without hesitation.
"Truly worthy of the name ’Enchantress’!"
"I’ll take that as a compliment."
Wei’Er knocked over the glass with a paw, spilling the drink everywhere, and pressed on.
"What’s going on, Serey?"
Serey’s face showed helplessness, hesitating before letting out a deep sigh.
"Wei’Er, you must have sensed it too, right? The Devils’ intentions. They’re affecting this world. I’m not sure why they’re doing this, but it’s certain that this world is like a chessboard, and we’re just pathetic pieces being moved around."
He glanced at the glass Wei’Er had knocked over, and chuckled bitterly.
"Sometimes they might not really have any purpose, just find it amusing to do all this.
But think carefully, Wei’Er, think carefully. The pieces on the board differ; some are ’pawns’ of lowly origin, others ’queens’ of glory.
Different pieces have different impacts on the game.
Like our Villeries, the bloodstained Night Race, I guess we’re the ’queens’ on this board, we nearly created an Eternal Night Empire."
"What exactly are you trying to say?" Wei’Er asked.
"Each Debtor, to the Devils, is a different piece, impacting the world differently. Now look at Bologue, his nearly perfect ’Resurrection’.
I don’t know what the Devils want Bologue to do, but certainly, Bologue’s impact on this world is greater than yours, than mine, than the Villeries’, than any Debtor. It might even completely change this world."
Serey felt a deep chill encroaching from all directions, threatening to freeze his blood, though it was already cold.
"Sometimes it’s not about losing something to gain something. Sometimes the powerful ’Blessing’ you receive is not to influence this world."
His voice grew quiet, as if narrating a long-forgotten curse.
"Because he will fundamentally change this world, he’s been granted a powerful ’Blessing’."
Wei’Er’s fur stood on end, her cat ears flattened, "Why don’t you tell Bologue all this?"
"Because the Devils are enjoying themselves. You wouldn’t want someone to ruin your fun, would you?"
Serey said as he raised a finger to his lips.
"Shh, Wei’Er, we finally ’retired’, freed from the Devils’ entanglements. All we have to do is drink and be merry here until the end of time."
A large cup of wine went down Serey’s throat, numbing his nerves further. He squinted as if recalling past memories.
"Sometimes I think of my damned father. Back then, I always saw him at dawn, standing on the balcony, greeting the first light of morning sun, scorching himself until near death before stumbling back to the shadows... I guess he wanted to commit suicide, to end this undying fate. But he was a coward, tried thousands of times, only to crawl back into the shadow like a dog."
A woman’s fiery face flashed in front of him, leaving Serey expressionless.
"I tried too... Should I say, ’like father, like son’? I’m as cowardly as him, crawling back to the darkness like a dog."
Wei’Er listened quietly. The Undying rarely spoke of their pasts, those being stories meant to be forgotten and sealed away.
"One day my father told me that if a person didn’t die when they were supposed to, escaped the scythe of fate, then they’re no longer human.
Serey spoke fiercely, as if cursing.
"Fate destined our death, anyone who escapes is a monster.
A monster beyond destiny."