Chapter 1044: Lingering Thoughts
When Madam Magician returned, Franca, like Lumian before her, entered deep into the mirror world with the help of the Angel of the Door pathway"s positioning and containment, and saw her Mirror Person sitting cross-legged on the ground.
Her Mirror Person bore the original body"s appearance, his face stained with blood, his eyes filled with contempt, disdain, and resentment.
"You dare show your face to me?" the Mirror Person shouted before Franca could speak.
Franca"s mouth half-opened as she said, both angry and amused, "What do I have to be ashamed of?
"I didn"t cause all this. You"re a part of me, split from my soul. When we drank the Witch potion back then, can you say you didn"t agree, that it wasn"t with your permission?"
Why blame each other when we"re both responsible?
"I"ll admit to that.
The Mirror Person was silent for two seconds.
"But you clearly had a chance to become a man again, yet you refused. Have you become addicted to being a woman? What right do you have to face me?
"Have you forgotten your original appearance and conviction?"
Franca was momentarily speechless, and only after about ten seconds said, "I feel that gender isn"t important, what"s important is a person"s character spirit, morals..."
"Don"t try to pacify me with that Instigator rhetoric, know you too well! We"re the same person!" the Mirror Person interrupted Franca.
Being able to talk is good, being able to talk means there"s room for discussion... Franca sighed and said, "After knowing we can"t go back, I only care about certain people and things now. I don"t want to lose anymore, to have any more major upheavals…
"Besides, you"re right, you"re not wrong! Maybe I"ve been a woman for too long, I"ve gotten somewhat used to it. Since I fear change, staying unchanged is acceptable too."
The Mirror Person sneered, "You admit it then? You can fool others, but you can"t fool yourself!"
Franca said self-mockingly, "Besides, it"s almost the apocalypse, even the deities and angels think so. Let"s do meaningful things first, leave other matters for after the apocalypse. We can make changes then, maybe we"ll have new ideas by then. If we can"t survive the apocalypse, everyone"s finished anyway, so thinking about these things is meaningless."
She paused, then said softly, "And we can"t avoid the Demoness Sect matters, someone has to help him after all."
The Mirror Person shot Franca a glance. "Don"t you know how dangerous it is?"
"I know, but I"m the only suitable one." Franca suddenly smiled. "If I were in a similar situation, needing someone to take a great risk to do something. I believe both Lumian and Jenna would do it."
Her voice was soft, but without a trace of doubt.
The Mirror Person looked at Franca, his eyes gleaming with envy.
After a moment, he sat cross-legged and sneered, "Whatever. Whether you become a man or court death, it"s all the same to me now, it has nothing to do with me."
As he spoke, his eyes grew dim, his whole person becoming dejected.
"After knowing we can"t go back, nothing matters anymore."
Franca recalled her emotions when learning the truth and said empathetically, "We can only gradually accept our current life, accept this reality.
"At least there are still people we care about, people who care about us, life still has some meaning."
"That"s you!" the Mirror Person cursed, "What does that have to do with me? If I were to turn the tables and replace you, do you think Jenna and Lumian would maintain the current relationship, or eliminate me on the spot?"
The Mirror Person looked up at Franca, his expression suddenly turning sad. "I have nothing left."
Franca fell silent, her mouth slightly closed, saying nothing.
The Mirror Person sighed again and said, "My greatest wish originally was to find a chance to replace you, to lock you in this dark prison while I lived the good life in the real world, searching for ways to become a man again and return home. In the end, I would return home with a handsome face, strong masculine physique, and many superpowers, becoming an urban hero like Batman, admired by many, pursued by girls I liked..."
As he spoke, the Mirror Person"s voice gradually lowered.
After several seconds, he said quietly, "Now, I have nothing left..."
As Franca listened to the Mirror Person"s fantasies, she suddenly truly recognized that he was indeed a part of herself.
Those fantasies, except for the reversed roles of inside and outside the mirror, were all things she had once imagined, the thoughts that had helped her persist in this world.
At this moment, Franca had a sudden realization.
There was one more prerequisite for reconciliation that Lumian hadn"t summarized-the host had to truly acknowledge that the Mirror Person is a part of themselves, another aspect of themselves, rather than harboring deceptive intentions and using the Instigator"s abilities to persuade.
Recognition should be mutual, only then can reconciliation occur, only then can consciousness be unified.
Moved by this understanding, she said, "You are me, and I am you. What I have is also yours. Let"s reconcile, let"s merge."
The Mirror Person, still sitting cross-legged on the ground, was stunned for a moment before once again speaking mockingly, "Forget it, we can"t go back anyway, what"s the point of saying these things?
Franca walked toward the Mirror Person, crouched before him, and extended her hand.
She smiled and said, "Let me help you up.
The Mirror Person stared at her steadily, and after a long while smiled and said, "You probably thought you could Charm me, make me fall for you. You know, I"m most vulnerable to feminine wiles.
"Actually, thinking about it. If I really replaced you, leaving aside whether Jenna and Lumian would accept it, I couldn"t continue being a woman either. I"d definitely switch to War Bishop, then live a life of debauchery, sleeping with women everywhere, cursing while sacrificing myself when the apocalypse comes?
"Thinking about it, it"s all rather pointless..."
The Mirror Person fell silent for a few seconds, then suddenly extended his right hand, grasped Franca"s hand, and stood up following her pull.
He looked at Franca"s beautiful lake-colored eyes and slightly darkened flaxen hair, clicking his tongue as he smiled.
"I haven"t forgiven you.
"And I don"t accept your reasoning."
Suddenly, his whole person relaxed, and he said in a low, gentle voice, "I just have no more lingering thoughts..."
"I still have some." Franca smiled bitterly.
That Mirror Person also chuckled. "So, you continue on. I won"t be joining you."
Hearing these words, Franca truly felt the distance between them closing, their mystical connection transforming into something substantial.
A phrase suddenly flashed through her mind "Yesterday"s matters die with yesterday, today"s matters live with today."
This too was a way of reconciling with oneself.
…
"The ritual succeeded, the Primordial Demoness just watched for a moment, who knows what She"s waiting for." In a bedroom of the luxury villa. Madam Magician said to Lumian and Jenna, "I"ll change clothes and come back."
With that, she opened an illusory door and walked through.
By the time she had changed back into her orange dress and returned to Lumian and Jenna"s side, Franca, who had finished examining her own state, walked out of the full-length mirror.
Seeing that Franca"s eyes had become slightly bluer and her hair slightly darker and thicker, Jenna asked expectantly, "Have you also fully digested the Unaging potion?"
Franca smiled, seemingly brightening the entire room.
"Yes, Lumian"s a.n.a.lysis of the Demoness of Unaging"s acting principles should be correct."
Her current bearing was that of someone twenty- seven or twenty-eight, someone with both life experience and sophistication.
Madam Magician chuckled. "Your advancement speed and digestion rate would make many of the Major Arcana card holders envious."
But not you? Lumian thought privately,
Madam Magician continued, "But don"t think about rushing to the Angel level yet. At Sequence 3, you still have many things to do.
"Most importantly, anchors-faith anchors.
"Without proper preparation in this aspect, even if you have the potion formula and are lucky enough to collect the corresponding materials, the probability of losing control during advancement will still far exceed the probability of success.
"The apocalypse is approaching, many of the earlier Sequences have become easier, but becoming a true Mythical Creature remains difficult and dangerous."
"Faith anchors? We need to establish our own faith and spread it?" Franca, well-read as she was, immediately understood Madam Magician"s meaning.
But establishing a new faith in lands that worship true G.o.ds could only be done secretly, or in the Southern Continent.
Seeing Lumian also looking at her, Madam Magician pondered before saying, "If you don"t mind, the Church of The Fool can list you as Saints, a.s.sign corresponding parishes, and make you the patron saints of those areas. This way, you can quickly gain followers through the Church of The Fool"s influence and Mr. Fool"s authority-followers who are subsidiary to Mr. Fool.
"All orthodox churches help their Angels and Saints this way."
After exchanging glances, Lumian and Franca said, "We have no objections."
Madam Magician smiled again.
"Then quickly design honorific names that point to you, five pa.s.sages, and send them through a messenger to Judgment.
"Also, you"re planning to stay in Trier, right? I"ll have the Church of The Fool a.s.sign two cathedrals in Trier to you-ah, there"s another one now, in the suburban area. This way, when followers pray, you"ll be able to respond, and the more miracles there are, the more believers there will be.
"That"s one aspect, you"ll also need to do things to increase your own anchors.
"Well, you"ve just advanced, rest first, and seriously consider these matters tomorrow."
With that, Madam Magician hurriedly left.
"Let"s rest first," Lumian then said to Franca,
Although the potion had been fully digested, advancement was a battle, and his body, mind, and spirit were still exhausted.
"Alright," Franca agreed.
Without waiting for nightfall, they both fell asleep in their respective bedrooms.
Lumian had a dream where he returned to Cordu. In that house In Cordu Village, Aurore was waiting for him, and had even prepared a guest room for Franca and Jenna.
The mountain pastures were green as carpets, the sunlight abundant, and Lumian was reluctant to wake up.
The mountain pastures were green as carpets, the sunlight abundant, and Lumian was reluctant to wake up.
Lumian got out of bed and walked toward the door when suddenly, he saw a white paper on the desk, with an ink bottle pressing down one corner.
It wasn"t like this before I slept... Lumian was stunned for a moment as he looked carefully.
His gaze suddenly froze.
There was a line of words on the white paper, in handwriting he knew very well.
That was Aurore"s handwriting!
Aurore"s handwriting... Did she become active while I was asleep? She wrote this note, was she trying to remind me of something? Lumian approached the desk with dilated pupils and read the paper"s contents.
It was a short line in Intis: "Summon White Paper!"