Finway was trapped in a small labyrinth by Nia with a magic dice, and he couldn't come out until the time when the spell was in effect - it was just a blink of an eye for him.

"Totally harmless. "The only thing that hurt was probably his pride...... He'll only be locked up if he loses playing dice with me!"

As for the elf, he didn't want to play any game with him at all, but just picked up the dice that he had deliberately thrown at his feet...... Needless to say, isn't it important to talk about this kind of unimportant thing?

Dice......

Ed's fingers moved unconsciously.

He remembered the dice that the Elf Elder had lost to him...... He always felt his scalp tingle when he held it in his hand, but he couldn't decide what it was for, so he could only put it away carefully.

He glanced at Is. Sachses called the dice "the dice of the Creator" and told a bizarre story. He had confirmed with Isse that it was indeed Janakgar's collection, and that there was a story...... But what Sackses is telling is just one of many unfounded speculations.

As he crouched in the garden, thinking about the long day, waiting for the hapless Fenway to come out and reassure him that he hadn't been delayed, Nia chose to stay in the same room as Alan, even though there were several empty rooms in what Ed called the "little house" for him to choose from.

He made all sorts of preparations, but Alan only asked one question:

"Who hurt you?"

Nia stayed with her mouth open for a long time. He had several different answers, but he couldn't answer any of them in Alan's eyes that seemed to see everything.

"Yourself, right?"

Nia bowed her head silently.

The old man took off his wooden prosthetic leg and climbed into bed, ignoring him again.

Nia cheekily rubbed over and lay beside him, closing her eyes, as if she could pretend that it was when they were on an adventure together more than ten years ago. If he could stay in a hotel, Scott would always be kicked to listen to the old dwarf snore, and he would probably be in a room with Allen...... They had never stayed in such a luxurious room at that time, the bed was ridiculously large, and even the pillows were scented with roses...... Lydia will love it.

He didn't move and thought all night, and he didn't fall asleep for a moment, as if his soul had been healed by another magic, and he wanted to pick himself up and make another choice...... At one moment, it was so rotten that it was full of holes, and it was so painful that it was so desperate that it couldn't even give birth to the idea of struggling.

Before dawn came, he crept up, and Alan, who had been lying straight all night like a man carved out of wood, had not woken up, so that there was no need to say goodbye...... He slipped out of the door, and in the thin morning mist and gray light, he saw Is, sitting on the railing.

I don't know how long he's been waiting here...... He didn't hear a sound.

Nia chuckled under her breath. When he ran over on impulse, he never thought that the most difficult person to deal with would be Is...... He's obviously been so coaxing.

"Where are you going?" asked Is.

Nia thought about the possibility of perfunctory past with the unfathomable answer of "where to go".

"Go find the crows. He replied, "Make a deal with her." ”

Iss frowned.

"You can't enter the Yuanzhi Valley. He said.

"That's why I'm looking for you. Nia said.

The lines between Is's eyebrows are deeper.

"Not really. He said angrily.

Now he sounded more like the kid he used to be.

Nia grinned, stood on tiptoe and patted him on the head.

“...... What the hell do you want?" asked Iss, irritatingly.

"I want to ......," Nia replied softly, "I want to live." It's a strange thing, I didn't feel like I was afraid of death at all...... Before I met Ellen, I even thought I could die at any time, and no one cared anyway...... But after I really died once, I realized that I was afraid of death. ”

He laughed out loud, a weak, shrill voice squeezing out of his throat, scratching at the blood.

"'I'm afraid of death,'" he said, "doesn't that sound ridiculous?"

Isis couldn't laugh at all.

"I'm a jerk. Nia said to herself, "I lied and killed...... I asked Scott why he didn't die cleanly, and I broke Alan's heart - he was raising me like his own child...... They all raised me as a child at that time, but no one knew about it, no one knew about it...... I'm actually a monster by nature, and sooner or later I'm going to have to peel off that human skin. The world deserves to go to hell, Is, but I want to live, I want you all to live, even if it's in hell...... Hell isn't actually that bad, really. ”

He was incoherent, but Iss just listened in silence.

"I can't stop. Nia muttered, "I can't stop." I was running on a dead end, and I couldn't see a single light at either end...... I can't find the best of both worlds, so I'll have to look out for myself, Is...... You should also look out for yourself. You are a dragon, and the dragon will defend its treasure, but it also knows when to give up. Just take a step back and you'll survive, and if you live well, just take a step back. ”

He looked at Is, with a hint of pleading in his eyes, Iss gritted his teeth, the muscles in his cheeks tensed, but he still didn't say anything.

“...... You're really, as stubborn as Scott. Nia lowered her eyes, but laughed again when she raised them, the twisted lines of her lips with cruel malice, "He'll be proud of you—but what do you think would happen to him if he could only watch death?"

The smell of his body, which almost made Iss feel pungent, was no longer smellable...... But now he was more of a demon than ever.

“...... I won't," said Is, "and I'm not going to watch him die." ”

"But it's useless, Is. Nia laughed silently, and the strong disappointment in her heart couldn't tell where it came from, whether it was to herself, or to these damned, stubborn, people who couldn't see the facts, who he should have let go of but couldn't let go: "If it's just 'hope'...... That's useless. ”

He did his best, he thought. In the future, he should be able to be a heartless demon without guilt, just like he was supposed to be. He had already sacrificed himself once...... There will never be a second time.

But Iss half-crouched down and looked him straight in the eye.

"It's my fault. He said, "It's that I'm not strong enough...... Strong enough to give you hope. But, look at me, Nia. ”

He touched Nia's forehead lightly with his forehead—it was their unique code when they were children.

"Look at me. He repeated in a low voice, calm and firm, "Look at us." ”

One day when you look back, I'll let you see the glimmer of the sky.