Chapter 271: A Guide to Knee Pillows |
“Do you know? It is said that just before death, a Sorcerer’s Soul enters a state known as ‘Elysian Dreamscape.’”
Lying on the ground, Ashe opened one eye and saw Annan squatting beside him. Her purple stockings elongated her legs, pressing a plush white rabbit outward, and her short skirt did little to fend off intruders, instead stirring a desire to conquer and explore.
Annan spoke leisurely, “In the ‘Elysian Dreamscape,’ time is infinite. There, Sorcerers erase all memories and relive an entire lifetime.”
“However, unlike reality, everything in the ‘Elysian Dreamscape’ unfolds as the Sorcerer desires. People they like return their affection, desired things are obtained easily, and disliked individuals meet an immediate demise… Sorcerers can dominate the Destiny of everyone in the Dreamscape, doing as they please, in boundless bliss.”
“Is there really such a thing?” Ashe couldn’t help but laugh, which made him tremble in pain: “I’ve neared death a few times myself, why haven’t I experienced it even once?”
“How do you know this isn’t your ‘Elysian Dreamscape’ right now?”
Annan blinked like Ashe and chuckled, “The ‘Elysian Dreamscape’ only appears at the moment before death, and once the dream ends, it means the Sorcerer is certain to die. Ashe, do you know where a Sorcerer’s Soul goes after death?”
“Hell?” Ashe asked tentatively. “But I’ve heard that the Divine Master’s heaven might also accept Soul migrations…”
“That’s right, either hell or heaven,” Annan confirmed. “And what determines whether you go to hell or heaven is your behavior in the ‘Elysian Dreamscape.’”
“Ashe, would you prefer a moment of pleasure or eternal happiness?”
“Can I choose not to die?”
“Do you know why I’m telling you this story, Ashe?” Annan propped her chin with her hands as she gazed at Ashe lying on the ground. “Although I can’t delve into your past, from what Mr. Bukin and Mr. Harvey have said, I gather that you were cellmates and recently escaped from prison, eventually crossing through the Virtual Realm Passage to reach Gospel.”
“Because of this, I had already braced myself for the moral lows you might exhibit. That’s why Mr. Harvey and Mr. Bukin actually surprised me—if we were to measure them by the standards of the Firm, they’ve surpassed the average moral level.”
That must mean your line of work is really lacking in standards…
“If the two of them were a surprise, then you, Ashe, have been a shock.”
Annan glanced at the bruises on Ashe’s face. “I really didn’t expect you to complete the task by faking a fight.”
“What fake fight? I genuinely couldn’t beat him!” Ashe spoke a bit too forcefully, pulling at the bruises on his face and wincing in pain. “That was an Orc! Not only was he heavier, but he seemed to have learned some combat skills. Luckily, my skills in the Fist and Claw Faction are decent enough; otherwise, I couldn’t have escaped him. I’ve completed the task you assigned, winning cleanly and decisively.”
“You call this battered state of yours a win?” Annan was somewhat speechless. “The victory was probably more like seventy-thirty.”
“How is it only seventy percent?”
“Seventy percent for the Orc, thirty for you!”
Annan helped Ashe up, and he naturally placed his hand on her shoulder, shifting his weight towards her. Purple Moth spoke irritably, “I need to take a photo of this moment later. It will definitely prove that I’m sincerely collaborating with you. Even Mr. Bukin can’t accuse me of treating you like slaves—what kind of slave owner helps up a slave?”
Ashe chuckled, “You’re underestimating Igor. He only uses reason when it’s to his advantage. If reason is detrimental to him, then he’ll resort to ‘double standards,’ ‘logical fallacies,’ ‘shifting the topic,’ and other miracles to find ways to blame you. For a Con Artist, reason is such an inconvenient thing, isn’t it?”
“I can understand that,” Annan snorted. “People can’t betray their own interests. Reason is just a consensus that benefits most, and if it’s harmful to oneself, there’s no need to acknowledge it.”
“But because selfishness is a common human trait, I can’t understand you—why didn’t you use a sorcerer’s power to beat the Orc?”
“I did,” Ashe replied. “I enhanced my skin’s defense, but I didn’t expect the Orc’s basic attack power to be so high…”
“What about your Sword Technique Miracle? Your Defensive Miracle?” Annan said. “Even without using miracles, if you had just drawn the sword hidden on you, the mere presence of a Swordcerer’s spirit could have scared him into kneeling.”
“Being a Production Sorcerer, he understands the terror of a Battle Sorcerer more than ordinary people.”
“How do you know I have a sword hidden on me?” Ashe was somewhat surprised, as he had never exposed his Honeyed Blade in the Gospel Kingdom.
“As a Swordcerer, the fact that you never carry a sword with you already says a lot,” Annan glanced at him, the Amethyst Earring shimmering with a dazzling halo. “Any sorcerer with equipment would carry their weapons at all times, like the Red Cap units that are auxiliary trained in Gun Technique; they even take their Firearms to the bath.”
“And when they go to the bathroom…”
“Why?” Annan cut off his attempt to continue the trivial topic. “Why don’t you show your true strength and instead fight like an ordinary person?”
“I completed the task, didn’t I?”
“Do I need to order you to get a serious answer from you?”
“I almost forgot you can now demand anything from me,” Ashe muttered. “Well, I just didn’t want to bully anyone. It already felt weird intentionally causing trouble for him, and using a sorcerer’s power to suppress him would just make me a plain villain.”
“I used to be assigned stupid and offending tasks by my terrible boss when I worked. But to make a living, I had to grit my teeth and do them.”
“Because I knew that if I didn’t do it, someone else would. And if it was me doing it, I could at least minimize the harm.”
The Cult Leader paused, “Though I didn’t reduce the harm much, since I did kick the Orc hard enough to send him flying—”
“Alright, alright.” Annan said. “So are you accusing the person who assigned the task—me, your terrible boss?”
“Terrible boss is just a metaphor,” Ashe shrugged. “In life, you will inevitably have conflicts with others; there will always be something forcing you to hurt others, like living conditions, desires, beliefs, family… and yes, including you.”
“I can’t resist you now, and besides me, you have other executors,” Ashe spoke calmly. “Since that’s the case, I’ll complete the task in my own way.”
“That Orc will probably think about how to punch better when he goes to bed tonight, and by tomorrow morning, he’ll have forgotten this fight. If I had bullied him unnecessarily with a Sorcerer’s power, he might never forget the humiliation I caused him until the day he dies.”
By then, they had left the school, and Annan pressed his car key, signaling the Hovercar to come over.
“He’s not even the same race as you, you don’t find his appearance appealing, and you have no relationship with him, why would you choose the most troublesome way to help him?”
“He never offended me before, so why should I hurt him in the cruelest way possible?”
Both remained silent, waiting until the Hovercar arrived. Annan got into the back seat and gestured for Ashe to sit next to him.
“Ashe, do you remember the story of the Elysian Dreamscape?” Annan said. “I’ve always found the Elysian Dreamscape to be unfair because most of the people I know can’t pass the dream’s tests to enter heaven, but they aren’t bad enough to fall into hell either… I’m the same.”
“The Elysian Dreamscape purposely creates an environment where evil can be vented, drawing out people’s desires, thereby proving they should fall into hell… It’s just arrogance, like a Sorcerer oppressing mortals with power, or a Divine Master manipulating lives with dreams.”
“But you’re different, Ashe,” Annan said. “You’re not someone who would be in-between. I have a strong feeling that in your Elysian Dreamscape, it would either be a paradise where everyone is happy, or an unimaginable hell. You would either stand above the heavens or become an enemy of the gods.”
“I appreciate the compliment, Miss, but I’m just a zero-star genius who hasn’t made any Ranking List,” Ashe responded calmly, not tempted by Annan’s grand visions. “I don’t wish to go to either heaven or hell.”
“Hmm,” Annan hummed softly and patted her thigh. “Lie down.”
“What?”
Annan summoned a hydrotherapy spirit. “Don’t you need healing? Or you can go back and have Banjeet treat you.”
“Don’t think you can harass me just because you’re my boss…” Ashe said as he lay down on her lap.
The faint scent of violets, the elasticity of her thighs, the smooth texture of her stockings… Well, it’s not bad.
Unknowingly, Ashe had also amassed a wealth of experience in lap pillows.
The Swordswoman’s lap pillow, Freya’s lap pillow, and now Annan’s lap pillow could be said to rival each other in quality. The Swordswoman would sing during her lap pillows, Freya would clean his ears, and although the Miss didn’t have any special skills to add, she was currently Ashe’s boss, and that alone was enough to earn a nod of respect.
While Ashe was mentally rating them, Annan, while treating his bruises, asked, “So, are we heading back now? Or do you want to buy something?”
“Huh?” Ashe was taken aback. “Is the mission over?”
“It’s over,” Annan smiled. “Did you think I would assign you something very difficult? You just wanted to spend money in the game; I certainly wouldn’t make you kill someone… at least not to do it personally.”
“Then why did you have me drive that Orc away?”
“Curious?”
Ashe suddenly sat up, turning to look at Annan. “If Harvey and Igor are curious, then I am too.”
“After all, that was your real purpose for taking me out tonight, wasn’t it?”
Annan pulled him back down to lie down and continued to leisurely treat his injuries, but she didn’t answer his question.
Although Ashe didn’t know Annan’s attitude, he first took a good look, his eyes wide open.
That Amethyst Earring, really big and flashy!
