Chapter 147: Everyone’s the Same

Ash swatted Freya's hand away, looking uncomfortable.

"But if you don't fall in love or have a family, doesn't that mean you'll always be alone?"

"We've always been…" Freya paused, then her eyes lit up. She pulled her essay out of her bag and furiously started writing. "Another advantage of the socialized child-rearing system: fostering independence from a young age… building solo survival skills… giving a clear edge in Void exploration… 'Every citizen of the Blood Moon Kingdom is a trained sorcerer in the making.' Perfect! If the professor doesn't give me full marks, they're being unfair!"

Ash watched her scribble away and then continued, "But don't you want to experience a perfect connection with someone? Share your joys and vent your stresses with someone you trust? Or have someone genuinely care for you?"

"You're asking such strange questions… You're not trying to become my lover and move in with me, are you?!"

"I already said I'm only staying for seven days."

Freya shrugged and replied, "I don't need a lover. I can pay for a perfect connection at a Mud Café. If I want to share my joy, I can show off my achievements on the Veil. And if I want to vent my stress, I'd go to a therapist. As for someone caring about me—that's just 'investment' in disguise. If someone cares for me, it means they expect to reap greater benefits in return."

"If I'm valuable, everyone will care about me. If I'm not, no one will—lover or not. It's basic human nature."

Ash said softly, "But human nature isn't just about weighing benefits. There's also truth, kindness, and beauty."

Freya chuckled. "Why should I place my hopes on others when I can invest all my resources in myself? If I'm hungry, I go to a restaurant. If I need companionship, I visit a café. If my room's dirty, I hire a cleaner. If I'm stressed, I see a therapist—which, by the way, is one of my potential career paths. It's the 17th century. If you want something, you pay for it. Why gamble on human nature?"

"Even my gambling-addict friend Adela wouldn't take that kind of bet. Entering a close relationship is too risky."

"But don't you feel lonely?"

Freya finished her essay, placed it back in her bag, and turned to Ash with a calm smile.

"Everyone's the same."

She scooped up String, nuzzling the cat affectionately. The feline, however, pushed her away with its paw, looking mildly annoyed. "Besides, I have String. How could I be lonely?"

Meeting the pure, cheerful gaze of the siren, Ash suddenly realized that even Fenanche, the ogre mayor, hadn't grasped the true core of the Blood Moon Kingdom.

He, too, was an orphan. He had no family, no capacity for love.

Just like Freya couldn't smell the odor of her own laundry, the people of the Blood Moon Kingdom couldn't perceive their inability to love.

How could someone who had never felt sunlight understand its warmth? How could someone who had never experienced familial care believe in selfless affection?

They might believe in the existence of love, might even yearn for it. But they were equally certain that love would never find them.

Just as Fenanche thought the Blood Moon Kingdom didn't deserve a savior, its people believed they didn't deserve love.

The ogre believed the Blood Moon had isolated its citizens by sowing seeds of distrust and building walls of prejudice. But in truth, the Blood Moon had systematically stripped its citizens of the capacity to love through education, making them instinctively reject intimate relationships. Distrust and prejudice were merely the stench of a soil devoid of love, left to rot.

Ash thought of Rona, the werewolf considered a traitor to the Moonshadows. Was it because his desires were too strong, too unrestrained?

Freya noticed Ash had gone quiet and asked, "What's wrong?"

He snapped out of his thoughts, smiling faintly. "Nothing. I was just thinking about where I can earn some money."

"If you're willing to show your face, I'd suggest working part-time at a Mud Café. With your looks, you'd rank as mid-tier at worst, maybe even higher. Plenty of clients would request you. Want me to recommend a café? Even if it's just for one night, you'd get a sense of your market value."

"Thanks, but I don't have the skills for that kind of job."

"Beginner status can be a selling point. Some rich women love inexperienced men. And if you want practice, I could help you…"

"Don't you have a class at 2 p.m.? It's already 1:50."

Freya glanced at the time and panicked. "Oh no, I completely lost track! The dishes—"

"I'll handle them," Ash said. "Will you be back for dinner?"

There it was again.

Freya felt that peculiar, conflicting emotion stirring in her chest.

It wasn't lust. It wasn't greed. It was a mix of liking and loathing, wanting to stay close to Ash while simultaneously pushing him away.

Is this a curse of the Four Pillar Gods? Or some kind of aura radiating unconsciously from the Demonic Saint?

These thoughts swirled in her mind, but she found herself answering, "Yeah."

"Any special requests for dinner?"

"Spicy Red Lala Fatty with fish roe, if possible."

"No problem," Ash said with a wave. "Take care on your way."

The strange feeling intensified. Freya quickly nodded, put down String, and hurried out the door.

Ash shut off the restaurant review video and opened a new one titled Kill Void Beasts with Just Your Hands: Slay the Fish Dragon Edition.

After finishing the video, he dressed, donned his mask, and summoned his proxy.

"Wash the dishes, clean the apartment, and if you have extra time, play with the cat. Disengage immediately if there's an emergency. Got it?"

The proxy nodded.

Ash opened a document titled April 29 University Schedule on the Veil of Knowledge. It was a file exclusive to Caimon Comprehensive University's internal network—convenient, since Freya was a student there.

Ash hadn't chosen her apartment at random. He'd planned this.

His gaze settled on one entry:

 4:00–6:00 PM, Ancient Ritual Sorcery, Professor Silin Carl, Room 108.

Confirming his target, Ash prepared to leave. But he noticed String lounging listlessly on the floor, looking uncharacteristically low-energy.

A thought struck him, and he used the Compassion Spell Spirit on the cat. Immediately, a wave of pain radiated back to him.

The cat's condition was clear: congenital cartilage disease.

Despite the pain, String seemed indifferent, its mood as steady as if it had long accepted suffering as a normal part of life. Tilting its head, the cat regarded the spell spirit in Ash's hand with faint curiosity.

"Born with soft cartilage…" Ash murmured, gently stroking String's head. "From birth, only the aesthetically pleasing ones with value are allowed to live. They're neutered and caged, and once out, treated as commodities to be drained of their worth."

"Accustomed to pain from a young age, they don't see it as misfortune—just their natural destiny. Because everyone's the same, they don't even recognize it as suffering, so there's no resentment."

String purred contentedly as Ash scratched its chin, its face breaking into a goofy smile.

"Being a watcher of this world is so damn hard."