"Yes, it was during Your Majesty’s birthday... I dreamed of you from that time."
Kafney said, shifting her gaze slightly with a faint blush, "You were quite adorable then..."
Are you implying that I’m not adorable now?
Annan thought to himself.
Her right hand held a biscuit but she did not continue eating, while her left hand’s fingers curled slightly in unease, retreating into her sleeve.
After a moment of silence, she said in a low voice, "I almost forgot that dream when I woke up. But I vaguely remember... in the end, you killed my uncle."
"...Do I need to apologize?"
Annan chuckled, "Apologize for the actions of my dream self?"
Yet, he vaguely understood something in his heart.
No wonder Kafney was the key to that nightmare...
No wonder that Kafney could remain so composed, not breaking down at critical moments, without panic or tears.
Even if she was reclusive, her mind would not have matured this much without having experienced anything.
It was probably a shared nightmare.
Only Kafney herself had no memory of the future... just like real dreaming.
"—No need to apologize!"
Kafney said subconsciously, her voice a bit louder than usual.
Then she quickly realized her faux pas, her voice lowering, "Sorry, Annan... I just meant... no, it’s nothing. Sorry. I don’t know what’s gotten into me today... my emotions..."
If only you could have really killed Philip back then...
But her reason made Kafney swallow those words back.
After all, Annan was the future Duke of Winter.
Such words were not only improper... they might even make Annan think she was cruel and greedy for power.
You’re also an apologetic freak...
Annan smiled helplessly and did not say anything.
Suddenly, Kafney’s eyes lit up.
"Right, I just remembered something else!"
She spoke in a slightly hasty voice, standing up quickly to bow to Annan, "Please wait a moment, Your Highness Annan...!"
Annan nodded kindly, signaling that he had heard her.
Not to mention... after this nightmare was over, Kafney, who used to speak in a ghostly and indifferent manner, seemed to regain some sense of humanity.
Her speech became more fluent, and her emotions became richer.
It was as if a corpse was gradually coming back to life.
...Has the erosion level decreased?
Annan watched as Kafney took her jewelry box from the dressing table, surmising something vaguely.
After Kafney opened the jewelry box, a blue gem marble lay quietly inside.
"The Eye of Frost, ah..."
"The gift you gave to me years ago... It was a great help," Kafney said, still shaken, "Thanks to it, I was able to realize that my memories had been altered.
"It’s just... I’m sorry, but I can’t return it to you yet. I still need it to confront my enemy... and I... don’t have anything of equal value to give to you... I didn’t know you were here; otherwise, I would have brought my collection with me..."
Watching Kafney trying to explain herself earnestly, Annan felt somewhat bewildered for a moment.
...Did the original Annan Winter also choose to give ’The Eye of Frost’ to Kafney?
He even said something similar to himself.
This made Annan a bit puzzled.
He himself did not have the true memories of Annan Winter and couldn’t be influenced subconsciously—he gave ’The Eye of Frost’ to Kafney and told her to give something of equal value back to him the next time they met; that was exactly Annan’s own personality.
He knew himself very well.
However, the historical Annan made a similar choice to his own...
"You keep it, Kafney. It’s no use to me."
Annan spoke gently, "As for your enemies... you don’t have to be afraid.
"When spring comes, I’ll go to the Royal Capital with you."
"But that’s too dangerous!"
"It’s not dangerous, Kafney."
Annan said slowly, "I’m about to advance to silver rank."
At these words, Kafney’s eyes widened slightly.
In the morning sunlight, her ruby-like clear and pure pupils sparkled.
"...Haven’t you been a Transcendent for just one month?"
"Maybe I’m a genius."
Annan said with a smile.
But Kafney got up seriously and walked over to touch Annan’s forehead with her own.
At this distance, Annan could clearly smell the scent of gardenias and citrus on Kafney, as well as a body temperature lower than a normal person’s.
Annan initially thought this was some kind of ritual, or that she wanted to see if he had a fever...
But soon Annan saw a message appear before his eyes:
[Kafney Noah is attempting to absorb your erosion...]
Annan quickly interrupted her action.
"—What are you doing?"
"I wanted to see if you have been eroded by my curse..."
Kafney looked up at Annan with some confusion.
She stressed, "Advancing so quickly is not normal."
"Aren’t you quick too?"
Annan asked back with a casual smile, "So what’s the result?"
"...Nothing. Your soul is very clean, so clean that it doesn’t resemble that of a Transcendent..."
It even shone with a dazzling light.
Just like the Annan that Kafney had seen in her hallucinations.
She spoke with some worry, "Do you still remember... what I told you about demons in the Royal Capital?"
When it was a serious matter, Annan became serious, "What are they exactly?"
"At that time, I wasn’t very clear-headed, I might not have explained well..."
Kafney bit her lip and explained softly, "Have you heard of the Path of the Fallen?
"Actually, what we often refer to as the ’Path of Transcendence’ is correctly called the ’Path of Sublimation’. The Path of Sublimation combined with the Path of the Fallen is the true Path of Transcendence.
"If the Path of Sublimation is about continuously purifying nightmares and extracting curses, then overcoming them with willpower, and finally reshaping one’s soul with one’s strong desires to reach the ’Stigmatization’ phase, which is now the ’Gold’ rank...
"The Path of the Fallen is about allowing oneself to be completely eroded by curses.
"On both paths, only the bronze rank is overlapping. If you choose to purify your soul, you will reach silver... If you choose to overflow with curses, then you step onto the Path of the Fallen. There is no silver rank on the Path of the Fallen... you can directly reach a new realm equivalent to ’Stigmatization’. So they are all mistaken, I am not a silver rank without a curse carrier... I am on the Path of the Fallen.
"It also requires a strong desire of a different nature, but it’s not about reshaping the soul with desire, but reshaping the body with desire.
"...That is to say, to become a demon. A demon with self-awareness... just like those out-of-control people."
Having said that, Kafney fell silent for a while and looked at Annan, "After becoming a demon, one cannot bear truth. Because our souls are still mortal.
"There is one exception. That is if a demon receives the blessing of a True God, willing to purify the erosion on themselves... then the demon will become an ’Angel Envoy’, and like a Demigod who holds the truth, obtain eternal life. They just need to respond to the ritual’s call... That’s the price of the shortcut."
—That is the Summon in the ritual.
Kafney took a deep breath and looked at Annan.
"And ever since seeing you... my erosion rate has been steadily decreasing."