Chapter 151: Reunion (Part 2)
“I’m back.”
A thousand words condensed into this one sentence.
Aside from that, I had no idea what else to say.
Mother looked thinner…
She had become so haggard…
She…
Her hands began to gently caress my face, applying more pressure as they went. I felt her lean in closer, extending another hand to my cheek, her warm breath scented like an orchid, tickling me with a fragrance almost identical to my own.
I opened my eyes again.
In my line of sight was my mother’s face, now so close.
Sorrowful, helpless, and a bit anxious.
Her black, onyx-like eyes stared at me without blinking, as if she were trying to confirm my presence or imprint my likeness into her memory, the circles around her eyes gradually reddening.
“P-Pepé…”
Her voice trembled.
Then, the hands that were caressing my face started to shake too, trembling as they moved to the back of my head, pulling off the black cloth that covered my face, revealing a little face speckled with dust and not very clean.
In that moment, my mother’s pupils dilated.
The rush of emotion made her body tremble uncontrollably.
“You… you’re really…”
Dropping the black cloth, her hands returned to my face, squeezing and pinching, tracing from my cheeks to my mouth, my nose, and finally my forehead, running through my soft hair. Her lips parted slightly, filled with disbelief and shock, and she began looking around in a panic as if trying to confirm this wasn’t a dream.
“Hoover, you… you said this is real…”
“It’s real, my lady!”
Hoover had stepped back a bit, his earlier excitement now calmer. The normally reticent man finally managed a natural smile as he tried to offer soothing words, but could only repeat, “It’s real, this is real…”
“It can’t be…”
But she still struggled to believe it, “My daughter… my daughter is really dead…”
Her thin, icy hands gripped my face tighter, almost pulling my skin off, “This is a dream… just like the dreams before…”
“…Mom, it hurts a bit.”
I really couldn’t help it. After quietly squeaking out a “hurt,” I felt her hands tremble as if startled, her frantic movements stopping, replaced by gently cradling my face, her voice thick with tears as she apologetically stammered, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”
“I’m fine.”
I blinked, instinctively rubbing my cheek against her palm, “Mom, I’m still alive.”
“You’re lying to me…”
Suddenly, she threw her arms around me, pulling me into a tight embrace, “You’re lying to me…”
She held me so tightly.
Her soft chest pressed against my face, the warmth of her body exuding a strong scent of lilac that made me feel a bit breathless.
“I’m not.”
I spoke with a muffled voice.
“You can’t lie to me…”
But she seemed to ignore me completely: “My daughter’s funeral was held in the Holy City. She’s been dead for two years… you can’t lie to me like this…”
“I…”
I honestly didn’t know what to say.
I realized Mother was merely expressing or venting the chaotic emotions swirling in her mind, talking to herself.
She hugged me even tighter, “My daughter… how could she… just suddenly… come back to me…”
“……”
“Pepé…”
“……”
“Where on earth have you been these past two years…”
“……”
“Why… did you only return now…”
“How did you come back…”
Mother’s body shook violently.
She pressed her face against my head, planting several kisses on my messy hair, and soon warm tears fell with a ‘plop’ on my head.
“Wah…”
Mother was crying too.
The stifled sobs echoed in the silent room, pressing down on everyone like a heavy stone, suffocating and painful.
“So many times…”
“So many times… I’ve dreamed of you…”
“I wanted to see you in my dreams, but I didn’t want to see you in my dreams… because you always looked so bloody…”
“You told me, ‘Mom, I’m in so much pain…’ and just like that, you caught fire, your whole body engulfed in flames, struggling in front of me… screaming… and I screamed too… helpless… sometimes I’d wake up just like that… other times, I couldn’t wake up at all, watching you grow still, turning to ash…”
“Mom…”
I reached out, wrapping my arms around her waist, pulling her close.
“I was so scared… feeling so helpless… I kept dreaming of you like that… every time, it left me gasping for breath after waking up…”
“Mom, I’m fine…”
“I beg you… I don’t want to suffer like that anymore… I beg you… don’t treat me like that again… wah…”
“… I won’t.”
“Does it still hurt?”
“Mom, I don’t hurt.”
“Have you… suffered a lot?”
“Not… really…”
Mother sobbed and spoke sporadically, her emotions clearly a tangled mess—if they hadn’t been for a long time already. She wouldn’t let go of me, tears soaking my head, and I didn’t move, letting her embrace me, pouring out all the feelings she had bottled up inside.
After a long while, her cries finally began to quiet down.
She slowly released me, her eyes red like a rabbit as she stared at my face, now lost in thought.
“So good…”
After a moment, she suddenly said, “I really wish it would always be like this in dreams…”
“This isn’t a dream.”
I gently patted her back, my lips curving up slightly, trying to project warmth as I sensed her emotions stabilizing, then asked, “Mom, how did you end up here?”
At the sound of my question, Mother seemed momentarily dazed.
“The Baihao City fell…”
She seemed to suddenly recall these events: “Your father… your father went to find the church people. He wouldn’t let me go with him, insisted Hoover keep me in the city. I didn’t expect… right, Hoover!”
Mid-sentence, she turned to Hoover again, “Hoover, get her something to drink, it should be cool… never mind, I’ll do it myself.”
With that, she smiled at me, quickly dashing to the long table in the hall, grabbing a metal kettle and starting to pour water while asking, “You must be starving, right? I was so busy hugging you that I forgot to ask if you wanted something to eat… ah, we don’t seem to have your favorite donuts… but we won’t stay here for long…”
“Mom, you don’t need to fuss. I’m not hungry; this isn’t the time for these things.”
Mother’s mind was clearly scattered…
I probably wouldn’t get much out of her for now.
So, I turned my attention to Mr. Tarlasya, leaning against the wall, seemingly asleep not far away.
“Hey.”
The call made Tarlasya open his eyes immediately.
I pointed at the hunters in the hall: “Did you set them up here?”
“Yes.”
The man said in a deep voice.
So, he really wasn’t an enemy.
“Whose man are you?” I asked again.
Just then, Mother had finished pouring water for me. Hoover was in a frenzy rummaging through the liquor cabinet and actually found a sugar box—there definitely wouldn’t be any ice in this room. The man used tweezers to drop a small cube of sugar into my cup, and Mother soon walked over with the water.
“You already know, right?” Tarlasya looked at me, calmly stating.
“I need you to confirm it with your mouth.” I said with a straight face.
“Queen Elizabeth.” The man finally let it out without any hesitation, “For now, we are allies.”
“Good.”
I nodded, “Where is she?”
“Not in the city at the moment.”
“Do you know where Duke Skarlick is?”
“Not in the city either. I’m not sure of the specifics…”
“I just want to confirm if they are in the city; we’ll talk about the rest later.”
I interrupted his next words, taking the cup from Mother’s hands, tilting my head back to gulp down the cool water—it felt so good trickling down my throat. I even tossed the sugar cube in my mouth before handing the cup back and giving Mother a bright smile.
“What are you planning?”
Tarlasya furrowed his brow, “You best not act rashly; things are a lot more complicated than you think. The Fourth Knights Order has many skilled members, and that nun that came with me is our biggest obstacle. You just arrived in the city; there are some things we need to discuss properly.”
“Sure, but not now.” I suddenly told him, my tone leaving no room for negotiation, “You can discuss your plans for what to do after I’ve taken my mother out of the city.”
After my words, Tarlasya raised an eyebrow sharply, “Take her out of the city? You mean—”
“Pepé…”
Our conversation was naturally overheard by Mother, who immediately grabbed my hand nervously, “I’m safe here for now; please don’t act impulsively. The church army in the city is significant; if we could leave, we would have already done so. The Fourth Knights Order is no ordinary army; you can’t take me away, and even if we got out, we have nowhere to go. We need to wait for reinforcements to arrive outside the city; it won’t take long…”
“The reinforcements will arrive soon; I met them on the way here.”
I mentioned, and Mother seemed taken aback before her expression brightened, “Seems the message was sent… how many did you see?”
“About two thousand or so.”
“Two thousand…”
Mother frowned again, appearing to be able to think more clearly now: “Two thousand isn’t enough, too few… they’d be overwhelmed by the church army in the city…”
“Not for me.”
I stared into her eyes, speaking sincerely.
“No, you don’t understand; their vice captain is very strong, as skilled as Bella—”
“I said that’s enough. Mom, trust me.”
“……”
Mother opened her mouth, her slightly swollen eyes showing a flicker of surprise.
She didn’t say anything else.
“Phew…”
I took a long breath out.
It felt as if I could expel all the messy thoughts bottled up inside me.
“Mom, wait for me.”
I held her tightly again and whispered in her ear, “Don’t worry; I’ll be back soon.”
Then, I let go, slowly retreating to the door, away from everyone.
“Pepé…”
“Silvya! Don’t you dare—”
Moon Step.
Boom—!
Amid Tarlasya’s reprimand and the puzzled gazes of everyone, I stepped out with the Moon Step, launching myself like a cannonball, breaking through the rooftop to stand atop the church.
The night breeze blew against me as my hood was pulled back over my head.
In my view below, the silhouettes of the Golden Armored Knights were everywhere.
Upon hearing the noise, they all looked up at me.
