That’s Not What Kissing Means! - Chapter 124

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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That’s not what kissing means!
Episode 124

The Envoy staggered forward, continuing down the path.
Having drained every ounce of his divine power, his consciousness wavered on the brink of collapse.
His vision blurred, and his legs refused to obey him.
He had barely escaped thanks to the Marquis from the Seril Kingdom.
Each time he stumbled, the Marquis’s knights caught him, supporting him through the journey.
The Marquis had prepared a ship at the Dock to facilitate the Envoy’s escape.
Only when they reached the Dock did the Envoy finally regain his senses.
As the cold sea breeze brushed against his cheek, his eyes came into focus.
The Envoy barely managed to open his mouth and speak.
“Where… are we going?”
The Marquis answered immediately.
“Didn’t you decide to depart for the Seril Kingdom? I’ve arranged passage for you.”
The Marquis treated the Envoy with utmost deference, his demeanor brimming with loyalty.
But the Envoy shook his head vehemently.
“No, that won’t do… The ceremony hasn’t been completed yet.”
“A ceremony? What do you mean…?”
The Marquis, unable to comprehend, wore a bewildered expression.
“I must return. I need to go back for Calimedes immediately…!”
“This makes no sense. We must leave this place at once. This is your last chance to escape!”
The Envoy fixed his gaze upon the Marquis, his eyes gleaming with an unsettling obsession.
“I must return to that Hunting Grounds. There is unfinished business.”
Calimedes, the God of Death.
If I cannot summon him, everything I’ve accomplished becomes meaningless.
Even if I flee to the Seril Kingdom, I would become nothing but an empty husk—stripped of divine power and purpose.
Time was running out.
This was the final moment to achieve my grand design.
By any means necessary, just once… I had to commune with Calimedes’s manifestation and obtain eternal life.
The Envoy opened his mouth.
“When night falls… they too will lower their guard, won’t they?”
“Envoy…!”
The Marquis began to protest but hesitated.
In the Envoy’s golden eyes, which had always been serene, there now lurked a foreign madness.
Witnessing an obsession that transcended mere desire, the Marquis felt a chill run through him.
The Envoy grasped the Marquis’s arms with both hands.
“Me….”
And smiled at him.
“Please help me. Just once.”
The Envoy’s lips curved upward, as if he knew the Marquis could not refuse.
It was not a request. There was something irrefutable woven into those words.
“Do you not wish to see the Marquis’s daughter?”
At the Envoy’s sinister words, the Marquis drew in a sharp breath.
“….”
The Marquis remained frozen, staring at him.
His eyes began to glisten with sorrow.
The Marquis had already experienced a miracle from the Envoy once before.
Years ago, his daughter who had died in a carriage accident…the Envoy had summoned her back.
He had shown him the smile and warmth of the daughter he had yearned for and ached for so desperately.
Watching the wavering Marquis, the Envoy spoke once more.
“Upon arrival at the Seril Kingdom, I shall grant you a miracle at once.”
So help him now, the words implied, and the Marquis fell silent.
After a moment, he answered in a trembling voice.
“…However, you must depart before the day ends.”
“Of course.”
The Envoy smiled with a satisfied expression.
Not the smile of God’s representative, but one brimming with greed alone.
There was a gaze observing from a distance.
It was one of Theo’s subordinates, sent to track them.
Holding his breath, he had been eavesdropping on the conversation before turning away.
If they remained at the Dock until today…there would be ample time to capture them.
Now that the enemies had ceased their flight, this was the optimal moment to apprehend the Envoy.
As Theo’s subordinate hurried toward the Lord’s Castle.
The Envoy stood alone in a corner of the Dock, having left his escort behind.
And he turned his gaze elsewhere.
Near the Dock lay the Fishing Grounds. Fishermen who had just finished their work sat nearby, kindling a fire.
“Let’s take a quick meal here, then get back to work.”
As if to grill fish, they moved about busily.
Crackle. Crackle.
The flames flickered and danced.
Watching the brilliant red flames rise, the Envoy’s eyes gleamed with an eerie light.

* * *

Evelyn was still examining the ancient records at the Lord’s Castle.
Her eyes widened as she reviewed materials about Calimedes.
A particular sentence had captured her attention.

[The soul travels with memory.]

What did this mean?
Evelyn continued reading through the contents.

[Those who gain life through Calimedes’ power must also bear the memories contained within that soul.]

Memories are embedded within the soul. When one gains vitality through Calimedes’ aid, the memories contained in that soul are also implanted. These memories belong to another, confusing the one who gained life and disturbing their soul.
A single body could never bear multiple souls. It would fracture the body of the one who performed the ritual.
In the end, the price of eternal life was self-destruction.
Evelyn’s fingers stopped as she turned the page.
Suddenly, the third prophecy from Yulia’s Stone came to mind.
Suddenly, I remembered the third prophecy that Yulia’s Stone had made.

Those who harbor evil shall be consumed by an emptiness that can never be filled.

No matter how much life one gains, none of it truly belongs to oneself.
‘Could this be what it meant…?’
Evelyn was lost in thought when—
“What’s troubling you?”
A quiet voice reached her ears.
She looked up to find Theo standing beside her.
She wasn’t sure how long he’d been there, watching her silently from above.
Evelyn voiced her thoughts.
“The third prophecy—I still haven’t properly interpreted it.”
There had been no end to incidents. There hadn’t been a moment to breathe, let alone contemplate prophecies.
“You were worrying about that?”
Theo regarded her with concern.
“You look exhausted.”
Evelyn hadn’t rested properly in some time. Her gaunt appearance troubled him.
Noticing his worry, Evelyn deliberately smiled brightly.
“There’s not much left now.”
She deliberately infused her voice with strength.
“Once we capture the Grand Cleric, it’ll all be over. Then I’ll rest well.”
“Will it?”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, I’ll stay indoors for a few days and spend my time lounging about with my favorite novels.”
At my words, Theo’s eyes softened with warmth.
“That’s right. And you’ll eat plenty of that cake you love.”
We smiled at each other, drinking in the sight of one another.
Then a question flickered through my mind.
“By the way, what about Colin?”
At my question, Theo’s expression shifted subtly.
“I’m thinking of playing with him a bit before sending him to the Royal Court.”
“Playing with him?”
Theo tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear.
“I haven’t forgotten what he did to you.”
“Ah….”
I recalled those past moments—Colin strangling my throat, attacking me.
So much had happened since then that I’d forgotten, but Theo hadn’t.
‘He’s still holding onto it?’
As I looked at him with widened eyes, Theo smiled faintly.
It was a smile tinged with something desolate.
That was when it happened.
The door burst open and one of Theo’s subordinates rushed in.
“Report!”
It was the subordinate tasked with tracking the Envoy. He spoke urgently.
“They’re all gathered at a remote Dock. It appears they’re planning to escape by ship!”
“We must leave at once.”
At Theo’s words, the subordinate continued his report.
“But they’ve stopped fleeing. The Envoy says there’s something he absolutely must do first….”
“What do you mean?”
My eyes widened.
He hasn’t abandoned the immortality ritual?
I cried out in an anxious voice.
“What about the Hunting Grounds? Are they still being guarded?”
“Yes. The Duke ordered it.”
The Knight looked puzzled as he asked why.
“Duke!”
Lord of Aila appeared from behind him.
He shouted, gasping for breath.
“Right now…! The Hunting Grounds are on fire!”
In that instant, the air froze.
The Envoy had finally performed the ritual.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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