Magic, alchemy, curses, combat techniques... Generally speaking, even a genius might not fully comprehend one of these in a lifetime, yet the girl named Mohe is highly proficient in all these areas.
Even knowing she has eternal life to learn many things, Doro and Lisidorwei couldn't help but admire the richness of her knowledge.
"Look at this, Doro, don't you find this wood carving somewhat familiar?"
Doro looked at the wood carving in Mohe's hands; it was a sculpture that seemed a bit like a human, but it was hard to identify more specifically.
"This is a sculpture of Saintess Charlette. However, out of respect for the Saintess, people have deliberately blurred her face and figure to show their reverence. Without any indecent thoughts, of course, some say this handling itself expresses indecency. The beauty of Saintess Charlette's visage is a sacred symbol, and these two artistic schools are tied to philosophical debates among humans. One believes that humans are inherently base, and indecent emotions should be discarded, adhering to a moral code to atone and restrain—this is the constraint school. The other believes even base impulses are reflections of beautiful emotions, primitive pursuits of beauty—the so-called beast school in the popular sense."
Holding the wood carving, she continued, "Clearly, this is a work of the constraint school. Usually, the value of artwork is greatly influenced by its surroundings. In a city like Butuo City, common constraint school's works are abundant, but in a place like Baixi Town, it's rare to see works of the constraint school. People usually strive for perfect precision in their depictions, even if they haven't seen the Saintess themselves. Of course, it might just be a shoddy piece... but judging by the craftsmanship, it seems not. It's quite nice; this would make for a great decoration in my room."
Lisidorwei hesitated, but Doro expressed what she wanted to say, "Aren't you afraid Charlette might communicate spiritually with you if you put that in your room? She can do that, you know?"
"Provided there's faith in deities and the Saintess, right? Do you think I'd do such a thing? As an ordinary vineyard owner, it would be strange not to have such wood carvings at home, wouldn't it? I'm also planning to ask someone from a newly established church to get a 'Faith Stone' blessed with prayers, which theoretically can dispel some curses, and place it in the center of my estate. That should bring good fortune."
Who could imagine that such a suggestion came from a Demon King?
She seemed just like a bona-fide businesswoman.
"Alright, let's continue looking at other things! Haven't you two researched these in your past lives? Lisidorwei, weren't you the Vampire Queen and Crimson Queen? Surely you've seen plenty of high-quality stuff, haven't you studied any of it?"
"Well... I thought you never cared about so-called art."
Mohe looked at Lisidorwei and chuckled softly, "You're right. In the past, I never cared. Whatever I found pleasing, whatever I found beautiful, instantly became an artwork, and whatever I disliked was instantly dealt with... until I was defeated by humans."
At this point, her gaze flowed over to Doro.
This man who defeated her.
Doro was surprised to find her gaze lacked resentment. It seemed like being defeated by him was not something Mohe held in her heart.
Mohe continued to walk forward, "To continually grow stronger, one must learn from past defeats. I was betrayed by Lisidorwei, so I will never again trust so-called loyal creations. I was defeated by the coalition of humans and demihumans for the laughable reasons of freedom and pursuit, so I study your human culture... Failure is not something strange. I am merely learning."
Doro stopped in his tracks. He looked at Mohe walking ahead of him, the Demon King walking ahead of him... Once, he regarded the Demon King as his ultimate adversary. At the mere age of eighteen, he defeated the Demon King. At that time, he was at the peak of his confidence, believing there was nothing he couldn't achieve, thinking he could accomplish anything he set his mind to.
He thought he could defeat everything.
But now—this Demon King whom he once defeated is still moving forward, while he seems to have stopped in his tracks.
It is impossible for humanity to defeat this opponent.
This thought suddenly emerged in his mind.
At the moment this thought was born, a killing intent followed.
Mohe stopped and turned around, looking at Doro with great interest, her expression with a faint smile making it impossible to discern her inner thoughts.
Lisidorwei also sensed Doro's killing intent. She dared not speak.
Mohe stared at Doro, "You are right, Doro, this is your last chance. In this timefram, it's your last chance to completely eradicate me. You can fulfill your duty to the last moment, as the Hero, to kill me. Though your contributions remain unknown, you still protect the world you love."
Her smile gradually became radiant.
From this radiant smile, Doro sensed her disdain for him.
Even though he had attempted to kill this girl many times, she still did not think he would act. She did not believe he had the courage to make a move, nor the will to do so.
Protect the world I love?
Do I really still love this world?
The past joys and sorrows all surfaced in Doro's mind, as if weighed on scales. The killing intent within him gradually dissipated, and he shook his head indifferently, "A new Hero has already been born. My right hand's tendon was severed by him—killing you is his task."
"Is that so?"
Mohe turned around and continued walking forward: "You really are a useless person. If I were you, I would definitely find a way to kill that person instead of living aimlessly like you do now. Having an enemy is not necessarily a bad thing, is it?"
Doro said nothing.
Lisidorwei quietly walked to his side and held his hand.
Doro looked at Lisidorwei in surprise, and Lisidorwei just gave him a smile.
Mohe hadn't bought much. As she put it, "There's not much eye-catching stuff in this small town. It's good enough to buy a few things. This is just a small town, and it seems that if there's any artful things, I'll have to create them myself."
She placed the items in the manor, checked the progress of the manor, and then picked up the fishing rod to head out for fishing.
"No, Mohe, your fishing skills..."
"I've already learned."
Mohe gestured at the things in her hand: "Didn't I say so? Learn from failures."
"By the way, you can stay here for now, but you'll have to move out later. Some people are easier to find you than me—by the way, consider our deal, Hero. I have a drop of blood in your body, which can be altered to extend Lisidorwei's life or... help you reconnect the tendons in your hands that were severed. You know, for someone eternal like me, it's not a difficult thing."
She offered Doro another choice.
Also counted as another kind of temptation, though she didn't think this temptation would be useful for Doro, it was a kind of "bargaining chip." Doro would definitely make a deal with her, and surely he would opt for Lisidorwei's longer life—but letting him know that she could help him recover. This way, if he worked for her, he would be more inclined to put in the effort.
This was a little trick of hers.
Mohe, alone, went with the fishing rod to the riverbank outside the village.
Now she just needed to wait.
Wait for when someone would come knocking.
Who would it be? The new Hero? The Snow Elf mentioned in Doro's story? Or perhaps that Mage? Alchemist?
No matter who it was, she was indifferent. After all... Doro and Lisidorwei together would not lose. It was just right to give them appropriate pressure to make the "right" choice.
Hero A·Gedora was a righteous and kind person, but no matter what, he was still a "human."
As a human, he would feel hatred towards betrayal, abandonment, and harm—A·Gedora was not an emotionless being. On the contrary, his emotions were quite rich. His current despondency was merely the result of his hatred and kindness, his past happiness versus his current pain, clashing and leaving him in a paralyzed state. Making him achieve an ideal state would only require him to disregard past happiness, intensify pain, and naturally, his hatred would surpass his kindness, which was what she hoped to obtain.
To the world, this might be the Hero's fall?
She watched the rippling water surface and easily lifted up the fishing rod.
"Isn't fishing a simple thing?"
The girl placed the fishing rod into the bucket, baited it again, and then closed her eyes to condense her Demon King's Blood.
.....
"Lisidorwei, I..."
Lisidorwei stepped forward and held Doro's hand: "No matter what choice you make, I will stand by your side."
She spoke with deep emotion, yet somewhat self-deprecatingly: "In the past, I was jealous of the people around you, so I left your side, wanting to distract myself by devouring the Demon King's left hand. At that time, I was despicable, and after hearing about you, I would shamelessly think 'serves you right for trusting those people.'"
She talked about her feelings back then: "But even with me being like that, you still came to save me, knowing full well you'd walk into the Demon King's trap, yet you appeared by my side, oh, Hero..."
"I'm no longer a Hero."
"No, to me, you are a Hero. I know your love for this world, even if my life only has a few years left, I don't want you to compromise for me. Eternal life is an illusion; the Demon King will be defeated by you. If, in the end, I can be by your side, I think that's a happiness. Please, act according to your own will."