Tears of the Serpent (II)

The blade pierced her heart.

A bewildered expression still lingered on Sally’s face. She lowered her gaze, watching as her beloved’s blade tore through her own heart. Blood gushed from her lips as sorrowful tears streamed down her cheeks.

“Ewan… why… why me? Did I do something wrong?”

“No, Sally, you haven’t done anything wrong.”

Ewan observed her intently, a soft sigh escaping his lips. His gaze swept over her delicate, pitiful face repeatedly. With his free hand, he gently caressed her pale, blood-stained cheek.

“If there was any mistake, it was simply that you don’t exist at all.”

“Don’t… exist?”

Sally still couldn’t comprehend Ewan’s words. What did he mean, ‘don’t exist’? Wasn’t she… herself?

It was then that Ewan’s hand reached for the pair of black-rimmed glasses, which seemed entirely ill-suited for her slender, oval face. He carefully removed them.

In that instant,

The atmosphere shifted abruptly.

The candlelight flickered wildly, losing its warmth and instantly turning as cold and eerie as a ghost flame.

The exquisite dishes on the table no longer appeared appetizing or fragrant. Instead, they revealed their true, hellish forms: grotesque organs, like those of some monstrous creature, writhed on the plates, their fanged mouths twitching and several malevolent eyes darting restlessly.

The once enchanting restaurant transformed into a chilling, ghostly realm in the blink of an eye.

Yet, Ewan paid no mind to the gruesome surroundings. His eyes remained fixed on Sally’s face.

Her beautiful face was still the same; removing a pair of glasses couldn’t alter it in the slightest. However, with the glasses gone, her entire demeanor was starkly different from moments before.

All traces of purity and cuteness vanished, replaced by an unparalleled allure that radiated from her unadorned features.

This kind of deep-seated, seductive charm was something Ewan had only ever witnessed in one other person.

“Long time no see, Miss Siren.”

Upon encountering an old acquaintance, Ewan naturally offered a warm greeting.

He then twisted the short blade in his hand, driving it deeper.

“You don’t look so well. Haven’t you been sleeping properly lately?”

“…Ewan Campbell.”

At this moment, her once affectionate eyes turned cold, glaring intently at Ewan. She asked, bewildered, “When… when did you find out?”

“When? Probably back at the academy, when a certain loli teacher told me that the moon has the terrifying ability to implant suggestions into people’s minds.

If the moon possesses such a power, it’s only natural for its followers to have it too. Once I followed that train of thought, many things that had seemed odd before suddenly made sense.

For example—”

Ewan pulled out a slip of paper, bearing an address familiar to the Siren.

“The first time you invited me, my mind was entirely focused on my date with Senior. I’m not some kind of walking stud; why would I accept an address from you at that moment? Even if you forced it on me, looking back, I could have found countless ways to refuse, couldn’t I?

Moreover, during our subsequent date, we coincidentally chose your shop without realizing it. That’s far too much of a coincidence. Even if my memory were terrible, it couldn’t be so bad that I wouldn’t remember your shop’s address at such a time.”

“Just because of that?”

The Siren coughed up a mouthful of blood.

“Not just because of that. What first made me suspicious was, wasn’t Sally’s affection for me far too sudden? So sudden it felt as if it were influenced by something.”

“You are a duke’s son. Even if a girl is attracted to your power, isn’t it normal for her to throw herself at you?”

“It’s very normal.”

Ewan sighed.

“But Sally’s emotions were simply too genuine, weren’t they? So genuine… that not a single hint of falsehood could be detected. That level of love couldn’t possibly develop after just a few meetings. This isn’t some trashy novel where people jump into bed in three chapters and bare their hearts in five.”

“I see.”

A flicker of understanding crossed the Siren’s eyes.

“It seems I overdid it.”

“Who told you to be such a ruthless individual, willing to even hypnotize yourself to infiltrate the academy and fool everyone?”

Ewan looked at her with a playful smirk. “If you had merely acted, perhaps I truly would have been deceived. But who knew you would actually create a persona that genuinely fell in love with me? I am well aware of Ewan Campbell’s reputation. Your sudden devotion instantly made me wary.

Not to mention, when you later met me in your true form, you acted like an old acquaintance. To be honest, I only knew a few girls at the academy; a simple process of elimination would have told me something was amiss.”

“So you were always on guard against my suggestions?”

The Siren managed a pained smile.

“You truly are completely different from the rumors, Ewan Campbell.”

Her face grew even paler, and her breathing gradually weakened, indicating her life was nearing its end.

“The feeling is mutual. How could I ever relax my guard against someone as venomous as you?”

“Cough, cough… I originally wanted to watch you die with a look of unwillingness, but I never expected to give you an opportunity for a sneak attack. How unsightly.”

“So, would you kindly hurry up and die?”

Ewan had twisted the short blade in his hand almost a full turn. A massive surge of holy light poured into the wound, emitting a foul, scorching stench. By now, the Siren’s heart must have been utterly pulverized by the blade and holy light.

Such an injury would have killed even the Beast Tamer ten times over.

Yet, a strange smile suddenly curved the Siren’s lips.

“Perhaps, you should have cut my…”

Before she could finish, a cold flash glinted.

The smile on the Siren’s lips froze. Her remaining words never left her mouth as her vision spun wildly.

A perfectly good head rolled to the ground, its eyes still holding traces of confusion and unwillingness.

Ewan, holding another pure white short blade in his other hand, flicked off the blood, his expression unreadable. “I was already prepared.”

With a casual flick, he tossed aside the headless corpse whose heart had been thoroughly shredded. He stepped over the Siren’s head and continued forward.

At this moment, perhaps because the illusory surroundings had lost their power, everything suddenly changed.

The narrow restaurant was gone, replaced once more by the gloomy streets of the Lower City. Rain poured down, and the chilling aura from afar drew ever closer.

Ewan’s heart rate steadily quickened. His intuition told him that he was very, very close to Senior.

Now that the Siren was dead, all he had to do was—

“Really, is it so hard to let someone finish their sentence?”

A cold gust of wind swept by, blowing Ewan’s top hat far away. However, Ewan had no time to worry about his hat. His pupils merely constricted, and his racing heart nearly skipped a beat.

He stopped dead in his tracks, his hands clenching Elizabeth tightly, veins bulging on the back of his hands.

That voice…

How was it possible?

Her head had been severed, her heart pulverized. What creature in this world could survive such fatal injuries?

“Heh heh heh…”

Yet, that alluring, coquettish laugh remained impossibly clear.

Ewan turned back, his face devoid of emotion, watching as the Siren casually reattached her head to her neck, even giving it a playful twist.

“What a shame, Ewan Campbell. If you hadn’t been so hasty, and had let me finish my sentence, you would have known that what I meant was…

You should have cut off my head, not my neck.”

Seemingly similar words, yet their meaning was entirely different.

“Because—”

The Siren pointed to her own head, offering a charming smile, then tore open her clothes without hesitation.

Ewan had no opportunity to appreciate the breathtaking, tantalizing sight. For in the next moment, the Siren casually ripped open her belly, just as she had shed her clothes.

Flesh tore, ribs became visible, revealing… an utterly empty interior.

Forget a heart; there wasn’t a single organ inside her belly!

The Siren chuckled softly, saying, “Because, apart from the brain I still need for thinking, everything else… I have dedicated to the great moon.”