Thirteen
At the same time, Xíng Hài was facing the living doll in her house. The arms of the doll were being replaced with new ones.
“IT HURTS! IT HURTS! LADY XÍNG HÀI, IT’S SO PAINFUUUL!”
The work, done with needle and thread, seemed to cause excruciating pain to the living puppet, its temporary soul let out a piercing shriek.
“Patience. It will soon be over.”
“YOU SAID THAT, BUT YOU’VE BEEN CUTTING AND RECONNECTING ME AGAIN AND AGAIN SINCE A WHILE AGO … O-OUCH!”
“Noisy!” she roared.
Despite silencing the living doll, it was a fact, that her work had been slow. Many times her hands went amiss and she had to redo it over and over again. Xíng Hài’s thoughts were now dominated by a strong hesitation, and she lacked focus on her work.
Leaving for the human world together with Lĭn Xuĕyā …
What he had said last night continued to linger in her mind.
How much time had passed since the War of Fading Dusk, when she began a secluded life in these mountains? In recent years, the passion for the overthrow of the human world that she harboured in the post-war period had waned. On the contrary, the long association with Luán Niángzĭ and the short interaction with Lĭn Xuĕyā had led her to believe that humans were not so bad after all. As a demon, she would live a long life. Sometimes she became a little depressed when she thought about spending her long life, without knowing when it would end, in this lonely mountain lodge. Lĭn Xuĕyā’s invitation made her have sweet dreams in her mind.
But …
Considering that she had to continue making Luán Niángzĭ’s elixir, she could not leave. This was especially the case when she considered the unexpected affection shown by Luán Niángzĭ at noon. No matter how many elixirs were used, it was impossible for a human being to live for an infinite amount of time. At best several hundred years. Until that time passes, she needed to continue to look after her. But by then Lĭn Xuĕyā’s lifespan would have long since run out. Xíng Hài’s mind was in a thousand shambles.
“OUCH!” the living doll cried out again.
“Be quiet!” she scolded somewhat hysterically.
That’s right. There was also this blockhead. It would also mean leaving behind this puppet that had already been built to this state …
As a necromancer, her artisan consciousness made her hesitant to leave the doll unfinished.
After I have at least finished this one … she thought but the more she looked at it, the more imperfect was this useless doll. At one time, she thought it was nearing completion, but, whatever the change of her heart, it had recently appeared to be far from her ideal.
Shit. The eyes are no good too. I don’t like the contours either. This isn’t the right hair colour. The eyes should be narrower … the face finer … the hair as silver as snow …
Xíng Hài gasped.
What am I trying to create!?
The colour of astonishment washed over her face and emotions similar to fear welled up in her heart.
“W-what am I trying to create!?”
This time she said it out loud. She held her forehead as if dizzy and staggered back a few steps.
Narrow eyes, thin contours, silver hair. This was the ideal living doll that Xíng Hài was trying to create.
“T-that is my ideal!? T-that would be just like …” she exclaimed.
Lĭn Xuĕyā.
“That man!? With that man as my ideal … I was trying to create!?”
A this moment.
A powerful thought suddenly flashed into her head which struck her brain like an electric current.
“What?”
Xíng Hài stood petrified. The abruptly received thoughts were transmitted by the undead who were hiding as guards around the house. It was thoughts that whined about danger and pain. Xíng Hài closed her eyes and recited. She tried to use magic to project the sight of her undead guardians into her own brain. A bright red scene was shown.
“Wha …!?”
The landscape seen through the eyes of the deceased. It was a forest engulfed in a blazing fire. Raging flames burned down the centuries-old giant trees, and black smoke scorched the night sky. the torrential rain continued unabated, but the intensity of the flames was even stronger. Rather, the strong winds appeared to have contributed to the spread of the fire. Within the flames, the dead who had been hiding and guarding around the house could be seen writhing and burning like slime on a brazier. Then, trampling down the charred deceased, one after another, they came walking towards the house. Men with swords and torches in their hands.
“The men from the Mansion of the Eight Celestials …!? They started the fire? B-but, why!”
A faint burning smell tickled her nostrils. The fire was now reaching her residence. Xíng Hài grabbed her beloved whip Live Mourning Thorn and run out of the house. As soon as she went out the front, something grazed her. It was a burning arrow. She looked in the direction where it came from. With their backs to the raging fire, several men were drawing bows and pointing burning arrows at the house. When they saw Xíng Hài coming out of the door, the arrowheads shook.
“She came out! It’s Xíng Hài!”
“Look! She has horns!”
“She is a demon! She really is the demoness of Night’s Lament!” the men shouted while retreating backwards cautiously.
“You bastards! What is this riot about!” Xíng Hài roared, full of anger. In fear of the tremendous attitude of the demoness, the men backed away, but one of them was brave enough to shout back, “it’s Lady Luán Niángzĭ’s order! Lady Luán Niángzĭ ordered to burn down Xíng Hài’s house!”
“What? Luán Niángzĭ …? Why?”
The Luán Niángzĭ who would show so much affection before. What kind of change of heart was that?
Retaliation for entrapping the Room Owning Trio? But, however…”
A man, who had spotted her bewildered expression, raised his voice.
“Don’t be afraid! Even if it’s against a demon, we outnumber her! Shoot, Shoooot! Burn down the demon’s den!”
Under one command, burning arrows were released at once.
“Shit!”
Xíng Hài swung her whip and knocked down the burning arrows that came flying like a hailstorm. She was able to stop the arrows that came at her, but not the arrows aimed at her house. They stuck to the walls, the roof, the doors and smashed through the windows, piercing the interior of the house and setting it on fire.
“Damn You!”
Xíng Hài’s whip danced. After the whip, which swirled through the air, appeared to be coiled around the neck of one of the beautiful men, a tremendous force lifted its body and threw it in the air. Several of the men around him screamed and were hit in the face with a powerful whiplash, knocking them out instantly. The whip, filled with demonic power, moved freely, stretched and contracted and danced through the men like a small dragon soaring through the air, striking, strangling and throwing them around one after another.
But the effect was temporary. She was still outnumbered. When some brave men came rushing towards the whip-swinging Xíng Hài, their swords drawn, she was immediately forced to become defensive. While fighting off the men rushing towards her, burning arrows were still being shot at the building. When Xíng Hài glanced towards the house behind her, the fire was already well underway, and tongues of flames were leaping from one window to another.
“M-my home is …!”
The house that she had been living in for over a hundred years was burning. It wasn’t just the household goods. A vast number of magic books, collected magical tools, and many herbal medicines created over a long time, as well as other precious items, were rolled up in flames and reduced to ashes.
Xíng Hài, who had temporarily been left in a state of shock, was mercilessly attacked by shining blades and burning arrows came flying.
“Tsk!” she clicked her tongue. Having fought them off with her whip, she had already changed her mind.
Shit! My life is more important than my home! The priority is to get away from this first!
She pointed a sharp look in the men’s direction and sprinted off. She stroked down the men blocking her way with whiplashes of divine speed and broke through their encirclement. The men were bewildered by the sudden onslaught of her violent dance. If she came close to them, they couldn’t shoot arrows and couldn’t swing their blades as they would hit their comrades. Not even half of the men were skilled in the first place. And with the magic of Luán Niángzĭ’s beauty already broken, they had neither the reason nor the nerve to risk their lives to fight Xíng Hài. Hence, when she approached, the men were naturally on the run. Xíng Hài raced through these men wielding her whip. Suddenly, her ears caught a faint voice coming from behind, mixed with the screams and shouts of the men.
… LADY XÍNG HÀI … LADY XÍNG HÀI …
For a moment, she looked back towards the fire-spitting building. Visible in the window was the living doll with its entire body on fire. Its gaze was somewhat forlorn.
LADY XÍNG HÀI WHERE ARE YOU GOING …? WHEN WILL YOU RETURN …? PLEASE, PLEASE … DON’T LEAVE ME BEHIND … LADY XÍNG HÀI …
Xíng Hài looked away from the mansion as if to shake it off. It was not long afterwards that the sound of the house collapsing was heard.
Setsuna's Translation 