It seems that the villain is targeting me.

Gwyneth's heart was filled with sorrow. She suddenly became panic-stricken. The tears she had been trying to suppress could no longer be controlled and she almost burst into tears.

She wanted to ask a few more questions. She wanted to know if she could write to her again, and if she felt better, could she go see her again?

She wanted to persuade Xiaoniao not to abuse her body like that anymore, and to take good care of herself, even if it was just to relieve the pain.

Gwen rambled on for a long time, as if she wanted to say everything she wanted to say for the rest of her life.

She vaguely remembered that Xiao Niao should have agreed at that time.

As if extremely tired, she leaned on Gwyneth's shoulder, her eyes closed as if she was asleep, and her feathers hung down softly, as always.

Xiao Niao leaned quietly in her arms, her body becoming a little heavy. Gwyneth gently held her hand and pinched it lightly at the base of her thumb. She thought Xiao Niao was just tired.

This kind of thing had happened in the past. The physiological schedule of a half-human was always a little chaotic. Gwyneth had become accustomed to Xiaoniao falling asleep in all kinds of strange places. She spent a lot of time memorizing this person's preferences and habits bit by bit.

Finally, she realized what was happening.

This is actually a very short process, but when you recall it afterwards, everything will be stretched out, so the pain will continue for the rest of your life.

Gwen hugged the bird's neck tightly, close to her body, close to her temples, trying to grab the familiar heartbeat.

Neither Xiao Niao nor Xiao Niao's heart responded to her.

She maintained the movement of her hands steadily and completed the last hug between them alone.

She thought of the bird that had placed its large, warm wings on her shoulders when she had woken from a nightmare, telling her, "It's okay, Gwen, it was just a dream, you'll be fine, I'm here." She thought of the wedding when they stood side by side, greeting the guests, and how she had whispered her long-buried love to her for the first time, her soft earlobes gradually turning crimson.

Gwyneth hoarsely recited the bird's name, as if trying to bring it back to consciousness, but this belated recovery was tantamount to a farewell.

Her hopeless, short-lived, passionate lover.

No response to her again.

end

Dear Miss Beau:

Hello there!

I'm very sorry for my late reply. Before I wrote, I looked at the date and found that it has been almost a month since the agreed time.

We are now separated by almost half the empire, and this letter went through many twists and turns before it was delivered to me. This place is very remote, so it arrived much later than the scheduled time.

I heard that you have now entered the Imperial Council and become one of the assistant ministers.

I'm really happy for you.

The year I left the capital, most people had already obtained full citizenship rights, and the entire empire was developing in a prosperous direction. Now I can travel freely within the country and will not encounter any difficulties in any territory.

More than ten years ago, such a thing would not even be conceivable.

If Butcher knew this news, he would also be pleased with what you have done.

I still remember that back then, you were the subordinate she respected and favored the most.

Forgive me for mentioning your name in this letter.

I know you haven't been keen on discussing her, but I've recently discovered some things while traveling that I've decided to share with you.

You know, after my mother passed away, I left the capital and began to travel throughout the empire. You advised me to stay, but I still insisted on leaving and made the same decision as Sister Luna.

I was 22 years old when my mother passed away. For most of us, most of our lives have passed. I have been constantly experiencing separations on this land, and the people I care about have left me one after another.

This makes me heartbroken, and the capital has become a sad place for me.

At first, I didn't understand why Sister Luna gave up all her honor and chose to be a wandering knight without a lord. She told me that she would never return to the capital, and for this, I cried when she left.

After growing up, I gradually understood her original choice. Perhaps for her, the capital also had too many painful memories.

Along the way, I've heard rumors about the Red Moon Knight. Everyone has heard stories about this wandering knight's heroic deeds, how she single-handedly defeated bandits, how she crossed the dangerous Death Forest...

You can hear people singing poems about the Red Moon Knight in any tavern. Yesterday, when I passed by a small village, I heard a child say that his dream was to become a wandering knight.

I followed her footsteps, Sister Bier, and I had a magical intuition that she must be looking for something.

Sadly, I never got to actually meet her.

A month ago, I settled in a very remote town. I didn't expect that in this place I would unexpectedly uncover the truth that you and I had been searching for several years ago.

I just came here accidentally. In my original travel plan, I would not pass by here, but the sudden rainstorm made me choose to stay here temporarily.

Afterwards, I heard from the people in the town that Sister Luna had been here, so I stayed here for a while longer.

It is late autumn now and it is very cold here. I am staying at a local farmer's house. As I sit at the table writing this letter, my hands are frozen red. The owner of the house made me mint tea with pine nuts, which has a nutty aroma when I put it in my mouth.

I want you to take a deep breath, because I'm about to tell you the truth: I found where Levi Butcher is buried.

She was buried here, on a sunny hillside, with the river flowing below.

When we received the news of Lord Butcher's death ten years ago, you and I refused to believe it was true. Later, you learned that what was standing in the royal mausoleum was just a cenotaph. Since then, you have been secretly investigating Lord Butcher's whereabouts.

In fact, after so many years, you should also understand that it is impossible for adults to still be alive.

Even I have reached the age where I am counting the remaining years on my fingers.

The life of a half-human is always short and fragile.

I don't know if you remember, Sister Bi'er, but Lord Butcher once told us that she was abandoned by her parents by a river.

I asked the residents here in detail, and they said that a nobleman with long light blonde hair bought this mountain (originally there was only a small village here, and they used the money to build the current town) and erected a stone tablet on the best location on the mountain.

She buried Butcher here, where he was born.

I think this is probably the answer you and I were looking for, and this may also be what the adults themselves meant - you know, Lord Butcher has always wanted to return to his home.

I don't know if this will give you any relief.

Your everlasting and sincere friend, Qiya.

------

-

[Inspecting the results of the XH-153 world mission...]

[Operating system number 71603, identity detection confirmed to be correct.]

【Do you want to start? Yes.】

[No distortion node detected, scheduled mission goal achieved]

【Mission completed, reward paid】

[New Instructions: Recover 71603]

【…】

[…I guess there won’t be a chance to say goodbye or see you again, but I’ve been quite happy along the way.]

[In the main world, it would be better to never see each other again.]

【Goodbye, little bird.】

Wei  Ce

The first volume ends here

I might consider publishing a personal spin-off in the future, but it’s really not possible at the moment.

Ale has an exam coming up soon, so he has to concentrate on reviewing. I'll have to stop writing in November and December, and I can only come back to continue writing after the exams are over.

The story of the doctor in the second volume will have to be left for later.

I had originally discussed with the big guys in the group that we wanted to speed up the pace and finish the first volume quickly so we could announce the suspension of updates. In the end, we forced the plot forward, which was not only painful for everyone to read, but also painful for Ah Le to write, and it only wasted more time...

I still owe you extra chapters, but I can only pay them back after I finish the exams.

I will come back and finish writing it, and the group will not disband. I will have no complaints whether I abandon the book or support it until it is finished. I will stand at attention and listen even if I am scolded.

But after all, this is my first book, so I still want to work hard to finish it.

Thanks everyone

[Bi'er Extra] She Opened Her Eyes

Beau woke up under the shade of a tree, slowly opened her eyes, and saw Levi Butcher standing in front of her.

The infamous butcher bird, the terrifying shrike...the mysterious, free bird.

Xiao Niao just stood in front of her.

Bi'er raised her head with a little confusion, and her light brown eyes looked at her quietly, as if this was a very normal thing.

"you……"

Bi'er wanted to grab the arm of the person in front of her, but her body felt so heavy for some reason that she couldn't lift her arm at all.

She tilted her head slightly and looked around, and saw a road that had been simply repaired.

Bi'er couldn't remember how she got here, she had no recollection of it.

"You're awake." Xiao Niao's voice was a little hoarse, just as calm and confident as the adjutant remembered.

Bi'er felt herself being helped up, and the other person's warm right hand passed through her armpit and rested on her shoulder blade, supporting her tired and weak body.

Bi'er lowered her head. She was wearing the work clothes she most often wore when she was an adjutant.

Uniform attire evokes order and rules, which is what Butcher once told himself.

Xiao Niao slowly helped her up, his voice sounding a little gentle, "Come on, Bi'er, we should go back."

The adjutant tried hard to get her brain working again.

She wanted to ask, where is this? Where have all the servants gone? Where is Knight Luna?

But Bi'er didn't ask these questions.

Her body felt very heavy, and people don't want to talk when they are particularly tired, so she pursed her lips tightly and stared at Xiao Niao without saying a word.

"Can't you stand up?" The Shrike lowered its head and looked at her with concern, appearing gentle and tolerant.

Bi'er was sure that this person had never looked at her like this before.

"It's going to be dark soon," Xiao Niao said to Bi'er in a casual tone, "There's no other way. I'll carry you on my back."

Bi'er looked at her in a daze and asked in confusion, "Where are your wings?"

The half-human Xiaoniao had a bird-like wing covered with soft feathers, but the person in front of him had complete arms - they were human arms, slender and thin, but strong enough.

The Shrike did not answer Bi'er's question, but just squatted down in front of her.

Bier reached out to grab Xiaoniao's neck.

The moment she tightened her arms, her heart ached, and the touch of her arms made the adjutant's eyes moisten uncontrollably.

The two of them walked slowly on the road. Xiao Niao's steps were steady. The slight shaking made Bier's nerves relax a little. She took a breath of cold air and tried to calm the trembling of her chest.

Xiao Niao didn't seem to be in a hurry. She held the adjutant's hand steadily and didn't look very strenuous. Bier could clearly see her fluffy drooping ear feathers.

The man's shoulders were not broad, and for fear of falling, the adjutant had to wrap her arms tightly around his neck - this was undoubtedly a legitimate reason, and no one could say anything.

No one's watching.

This idea made Bi'er indulge in her behavior.

She actually wanted to take another look at Xiaoniao's eyes, but she showed no intention of turning her head, so Bi'er could only see the outline of her profile and a small shadow cast on her face.

This is actually a very familiar perspective for the adjutant lady.

She always stood two steps back from Xiao Niao's side, as the most trusted and capable subordinate, the Prime Minister's political aide.

She got the job at the end of her disastrous undercover career, and then spent more than a decade doing it to perfection.

Xiao Niao once hoped that Bier could change her original fate through this. She did it and kept her promise, but in the end, she was the only one who still remembered this promise.

The adjutant lady could hardly even remember what she looked like before she became an adjutant.

For countless times in the past, Bi'er had stood in such a position, silently watching from behind the Shrike fighting in the bloody power struggle.

She could not block the sword for that man like an invincible knight, nor did she have the courage of a princess to walk side by side with that man.

Until the moment she received the news of Xiao Niao's death, Bi'er, the adjutant's daughter, could not be considered as anyone related to Levi Butcher, and could not even sit at the main table for meals.

She could only come as a mourner, and looked no different from countless ordinary mourners.

The funeral was held on a bitterly cold winter day, longer and colder than any other winter in the history of the capital. Beau stood at the front of the procession in black. When the sun disappeared below the horizon, the funeral bell rang.

Knight Luna refused to attend the funeral and quickly left the capital, disappearing not long after.