I'll also work hard to conquer the dungeon today.

Chapter 449, 1.27-27: A Bouquet of Blessings

The crying stopped abruptly the moment she finished speaking; the space seemed to freeze, as if a stop sign had been drawn on it…

The girl looked at her in disbelief, tears welling in her eyes, while the other remained calm.

The water droplets splashed from the distant fountain lingered in the air, refracting golden light under the sunlight.

The surrounding pedestrians remained frozen in the last pose before the scene stopped: a mascot in front of the shop was holding a red balloon, about to hand it to a child. The child stretched out his hands, trying to take the balloon.

Time passed again, and the scene shifted.

Water droplets fall into the fountain pool and merge into one.

The child's hand, which was holding the balloon, grasped nothing; the red balloon, freed from its restraints, rose slowly and flew into the sky.

"What are you saying?" The girl's mouth moved slightly.

The child's cries suddenly rang out, drowning out her voice.

Shia glanced briefly at the child who was wailing because he had lost the balloon, then turned and walked toward the fountain in the distance.

"Wait!" The girl chased after her, seemingly wanting to find out why Shia had said that.

Shia stopped in front of the fountain, bent down slightly, and lightly touched the water with her fingertips.

She looked down at her reflection in the water, remaining silent.

The cool, silver eyes glanced briefly at the girl's reflection in the fountain—a little girl dressed in a black magician's outfit. A black magic hat concealed her short, pink-gold hair, and only two loose braids below her ears could be vaguely seen, each tied into a pretty bow with a white ribbon.

She looked up at her slightly and saw a girl wearing a light blue dress, even though she also had short pink-gold hair.

Despite being in completely different poses, she felt that the reflection in the water was her true self, while the one standing in front of her was an illusion.

His fingers swayed gently in the water, his cool eyes fixed on the surface.

What exactly did Shia mean by that?

“Am I really Shia?” she asked. “Her name always sounds unreal coming from you. I feel like I have another name, and this one is just something you’ve forced on me. Are you confusing me with other people?”

"I... I'm not! Shia is Shia! How could she be anyone else! Did that guy say something weird in front of you?!" The girl's eyes widened as she tried to argue.

“Strange guy? So you’ve been watching me all along, observing whether I’m living the life you remember of Shia?” She paused, then added, “Actually, Shia is already dead.”

"No! You are Shia! How could you be dead! No way!!"

She didn't care at all about the rebuttals that followed her statement; in her opinion, they were just self-deception. If Shia were still alive, she wouldn't be called Shia.

"Ah! The Vatican's people are here!" someone shouted, causing a commotion in the surrounding area.

"The Holy See? How could it be so fast?" The girl panicked, then looked at her and hurriedly said, "Quickly hide! Don't let the Holy See's messengers find you!"

Before the two could make any move, they saw people dressed in white divine robes surround the square.

Two men slowly walked out from the crowd. The one in the lead was also wearing a white robe, but his attire did not look like that of a clergyman at all; it was far too erotic.

His slightly disheveled, wine-red hair cascaded down his back to his thighs, a golden wine glass tucked into his waistband. Strands of hair fell across his cheeks, accentuating his exquisitely beautiful face, making him appear like a meticulously sculpted work of art, flawless in every way. He yawned lazily, his long, narrow, golden phoenix eyes slowly sweeping over the two of them, finally settling on Shia.

"High Priest, have you chosen someone?" The other man beside him frowned slightly and asked softly.

"Take this one," Dionysus said casually, pointing at Shia.

"No! Don't take Shia away!" She stood in front of Shia with her arms outstretched, determined not to give way.

Seeing that the two didn't react, she added, "You need to find a container, right? Well, I can make one too!!"

Only then did Dionysus look at the girl properly. There was no smile on his face, giving people a cold and ancient feeling, like a carefully sculpted but motionless statue.

His long, narrow, golden phoenix eyes were fixed on the girl, a hint of unfathomable emotion in them. He spoke slowly in a deep, husky voice, like the richness of red wine, "Pull her away."

Two clergymen stepped forward, grabbed the girl's arms, and forcibly pulled her aside.

"Let me go! Don't take Shia away!" The girl struggled but couldn't break free. She could only look at Shia with despair in her pink and gold eyes, watching the scene from her memory reappear.

“A container?” Shia murmured, then glanced at the girl.

She suddenly thought of a possibility and asked, "In your memory, is this how Shia was taken away?"

Upon hearing this, the girl stopped struggling. She moved her mouth but couldn't utter a single word in rebuttal.

“Indeed, I was the one who took it away back then,” Dionysus said slowly.

This guy, who should have been obediently following her instructions in her environment, suddenly said something he shouldn't have. What's going on?!
"After all, I, as the master of this instance, have to personally come and see for myself the fact that you've arbitrarily led players into a cycle that shouldn't exist. You agree, right, you rule-breaking guide, Jafar?" Dionysus turned his head to look at a corner and said slowly.

Jafar slowly walked out, his face cold and silent.

"Damn it! If it weren't for you messing things up! I..." She glared at them fiercely and said angrily.

"Mu Yegui, you really let her do whatever she wants. Didn't you tell her the truth?" Dionysus frowned slightly and called out to him.

"I was just about to say that you've moved too fast," Mu Yegui said calmly.

"You!" She stared at Mu Yegui in shock, not understanding why this was happening.

“I’m just a player who entered the complex instance and played the role of Shia, not the real Shia. I only just realized this, but your illusion has too many flaws, it’s hard not to be suspicious,” Mu Yegui said slowly.

The surrounding scenery gradually blurred and faded, and the memories she had painstakingly crafted, unique to herself, ultimately ended in failure.

She had known all along that Xi Ya had died years ago, and all of this was just self-deception.

She was furious because when she begged not to take Shia away, no one was willing to lend a helping hand.

That helpless despair turned into anger, and just then a witch from the Kingdom of the Unbelievable happened to pass by. She begged the witch to teach her witchcraft.

She sacrificed the entire town to gain immense power, but ultimately she was unable to leave and could only gaze upon the graveyard day after day, witnessing her sins.

Until this place became a dungeon, and players known as Shia entered...

This was written before the stage play. I couldn't get the emotions to flow for the last two chapters. All I could do after writing about the stage play was laugh. I'll definitely do it tomorrow!
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(End of this chapter)