Arc 2: Epilogue

Sevianna's life in this world was truly magical and fulfilling. The only thing she probably regretted was not seeing her children marry and start their own families. It had been the same in the last life.

She had probably lived for almost five hundred years now—honestly, she could no longer remember. She had seen what "death" was to the angels and devils, and she knew that Adounis was also reaching his last breath.

Her steady heart began to beat furiously in panic.

Was she still not satisfied with two lifetimes? Her mind couldn't give her an answer. But she did know that her heart was telling her it wasn't enough.

In her favorite place, the garden in their castle filled with the flowers that Minea had grown, Adounis held Sevianna in her embrace. The only sound that filled the space was the rustling of the leaves as the air moved through the trees.

Suddenly, the weight of Adounis on her body increased.

"Adounis?!"

Sevianna frantically embraced him, fearing that he might fall. She let him lean against her chest as she looked down to see what was wrong. His pale face made her heart sink.

"Adounis...?" she whispered, her lips trembling.

Adounis finally stirred. He weakly wrapped his arms around her waist and brought his head to the crook of her neck. His shallow breathing terrified her.

"Adounis...?" Sevianna almost begged. Tears formed at the corners of her eyes as she tried to look at his face.

"Sevi~ I think..." Adounis' voice had softened considerably, as though just speaking had drained much of his strength. "I'm about to fade." His arms seemed to tighten around her, but he no longer had the strength to do so.

"N—No way... You're lying!" she said in a soft voice, her heart pleading that he was. But she knew all too well that he wasn't. Adounis had never lied to her before. If there was something he didn't want her to know, he would simply keep it a secret. But every time Sevianna asked him, he would end up relenting.

"Mn." Adounis hummed, unable to open his mouth any longer. His eyelids were growing increasingly heavy. His fears... were coming true. "Sevi~ I love you." He used all his strength to say those words, even panting lightly as if he had done something strenuous.

Sevianna bit her lip hard, but she couldn't stop the sob that stubbornly escaped. Her tears fell down her cheek and onto Adounis' clothes. Her arms, wrapped around him, trembled as she tightened her hold. "I love you~ More than you think I do."

She said the words from her heart through her sobs. Although she believed that the three words "I love you" weren't enough, at that moment, it was all she could think of.

Adounis smiled sweetly, but Sevianna couldn't see. He nudged his head against her neck and sighed longingly. 'I wish to spend another lifetime with you. But is it an impossible request?'

Sevianna could feel warm tears on her shoulder, leaving her stunned. Her own tears fell even harder.

Adounis never thought there would be a day when he would cry. Was it really impossible? Was the connection between their souls not strong enough? After all, it was only a connection of a lifetime.

He wanted to repeat the vow he had made to Sevianna at their wedding, but his mouth wouldn't cooperate, and his eyelids had already won the battle. His vision turned black, but his consciousness still remained.

Sevianna didn't know. When she felt that Adounis had turned eerily silent, she gently shifted his position to let his back lean against her chest. To her horror, she realized he had already closed his eyes.

"Adounis... Adounis...?" She gently patted his face, hoping he would stir awake. But he didn't. "Why...? Must it always come to an end?" She bawled, no longer suppressing her sobs. Her cries drew out the sympathy of nature, and soon, rain engulfed their castle.

Sevianna kept her arms around Adounis. Even when he finally started to disintegrate, she stubbornly held on.

"You're leaving me again... !"

She couldn't help but utter. She was not even the least bit confident that the same thing that happened in the last world would happen again. The familiar torment in heart, like the one she had felt before, was overwhelming her to the edge of breaking character.

Adounis was still conscious. And his heart sank at her words. 'Again?' He was leaving her again? He couldn't help but scold himself. According to Sevianna's words, they had already met before and he was leaving her again? And though it sounded ridiculous, Adounis got an idea that Sevianna was referring to a past life.

'How cruel was I to leave her again?'

His unwillingness became even more intense. Although he was already slowly disintegrating, Adounis mustered the last bit of strength to move.

He woke up with heavy eyes and pushed his burdensome body up. While staring at Sevianna's widened eyes, he leaned in to give her his last kiss. Since he couldn't talk anymore, it was the best that he could do.

His kiss seemed to have been the catalyst as his fading body vanished after he finished.

He left a wide-eyed Sevianna who held her shaking lips.

Sevianna's pale blue eyes abruptly turned black.

But her sanity was quickly reeled in because she saw the colour of red from the corner of her eyes. It was the red thread, floating in place of Adounis, and before she could reach out to touch it, it had already curled itself around her left wrist. Upon closer look, the red string was with a single thread of gold. But Sevianna was too unstable to notice it.

Sevianna caressed it in disbelief. 'He came back.'

She still had no clue about what it really was but she was now certain that this was her Yan gege—her Adounis. As long as she reminded herself of this, she can keep her sanity in check—although it was already at the edge of breaking and she could just barely keep a reign over it, she was satisfied.

Despite her restless heart, she was able to calm herself and remain Sevianna for a little longer. In the past life, she had left too abruptly. She didn't know what her two children had felt then. So in this lifetime, she had to at least say goodbye.

For her sake, and for Adounis.

Sevianna's eyes returned to normal, much to Lily's relief. She hadn't disturbed the solemn scene earlier, but Sevianna's blackened eyes had truly scared her silly.

In a dense forest far from Antitheus and Angelus, Minea and Wayward were playing with a hydra. Yes, the same hydra that had almost died in Wayward's hands. The hydra had successfully formed a pact with Minea, and as a result, it no longer had to die. It had literally cried in happiness at this.

Minea had created a large, harmless, bouncy ball of light and let the hydra play with it. If any angels, devils, or humans, in particular, saw this, they'd have fainted in shock.

A hydra... playing with a ball. It was a sight to behold.

Wayward was sitting under the shade of a tree when he suddenly stood up.

Minea turned to him. "What's wrong, brother?"

"I feel... mother's presence."

As soon as he said that, Minea froze, feeling their mother's presence as well. They looked at each other in confusion.

"Wayward, Minea." Sevianna's voice called softly from behind them, her sweet tone filling the quiet forest.

"Mommy~!"

They both said in unison. It should also be pointed out that even Wayward, despite his age, still called Sevianna 'mommy.' They ran toward her and stood obediently a few steps away, their faces beaming with smiles.

"Mom, why are you here? Does dad know?"

"Are you going to the labyrinth with us?! Aww, that would be great!"

"Where is dad, mom? He would never let you come here unless he's with you."

"Dad should be somewhere?"

"But I don't feel his presence."

"Mom? Where is da—"

Sevianna couldn't take it anymore and pulled the two into an embrace. She dared not cry anymore, or her already unstable heart might break the last thread of her sanity.

"I'm s—sorry." Her voice was quiet and trembling. "I'm about to fade, and your dad—"

"Mom?"

"Mom, please don't scare us like that..."

The two were terrified to hear the rest. In their panic, they pulled away from the hug and finally saw the distraught expression on their mother's face. Their hearts both sank.

"Mom...?"

"Mom, where is dad?"

Sevianna could feel her heart sinking. She knew that if this continued, she might truly break. Summoning all her mental strength, she gave a bright smile.

Minea and Wayward were stunned. They knew their mother had always been beautiful, but at this moment, her smile only seemed to magnify it.

"Your father and I love both of you. Please, don't be angry with mom and dad, okay? I'm sorry~"

Sevianna felt as though she had used every ounce of her strength to say those words. Her shoulders slumped, but she continued to smile.

'Lily, please do it.'

Lily hesitated for a moment. 'Okay.'

Under the horrified gazes of her children, Sevianna gradually disintegrated. The more she felt her consciousness being tugged, the sweeter her smile became. When she felt her vision begin to fade, she mouthed another "I love you."

She woke up in the vast space of the galaxy. The numerous stars still appeared near, despite their immense distance. She turned back to look at the world she had just come from. A large mass of clashing colors—white and gold against black and red—seemed to represent the two superior races of that world.

Sevianna looked forlorn.

Beside her, Lily had long since transformed into her younger form, with white hair and red eyes, wearing a simple white dress. She looked at her master with concern.

"Aria, do you need to stay here for a bit?" Lily asked, halting the invisible force that tugged them toward the next world.

Aria was startled. She quickly caressed the red string around her wrist and, only then, regained her composure.

"No need. Let's go."

She had to check the red string again. If her guess was right, this was her Yan gege's soul. Then, maybe—just maybe—she could meet him again in the next life?

She wasn't confident. But at least, the existence of the red string calmed her enough to keep her from losing control.

On an island floating above the clouds, there was a wide platform made of marble, with four pillars standing at each of its corners.

Two men stood across from each other. One wore a pure white robe, while the other donned a red traditional Chinese robe. The aura they exuded made the air grow still.

"Terra, explain this to me." The man in the white robe said, his expression stern.

Terra's face darkened for a moment before he regained his composure. "As you can see, that soul was mine."

"Yours!" The man exclaimed. "Yours?! That was clearly mine!" He was enraged.

"It was mine. Then, yours merged with it." Terra said through gritted teeth. His cold eyes made the other man freeze.

"Tsk, merged??" The man clearly didn't believe his words. His eyes suddenly glinted. "Then explain this to me." He took out a golden string, proof of the remnants of a god.

"You let a god sneak into my world to take one of my superior souls. Is that not so?" The man glared at Terra menacingly.

Terra sighed and massaged his temples. "Euclase, that god was the one who stole one of my souls! I have no affiliation with him!" Thinking about it now, though the soul he had lost was average, it had still considerably affected his world.

Euclase scrutinized Terra's expression. Though he didn't believe that Terra didn't know the god, he did believe that one of Terra's souls had been stolen. After all, in Terra's world, the original plot was changing.

His eyes lowered. He, too, needed to change his original plot.

He waved his hand, creating a small portal to the galaxy, and placed the golden thread inside. It was disrespectful to keep a remnant of a god.