Elysia was devastated. Step by step, she approached the coffin.
Inside lay a pale figure—lifeless, bloodless, skin already wrinkled from severe blood loss.
Faced with this undeniable reality, Elysia could no longer deny the truth.
"No... Yuan... No... How could this... Why... I... I..."
Her heart ached so badly she could barely breathe.
The love of my life is gone. Everything lies in ruins.
Because of a joke, she had lost her husband. She fell asleep, and woke up to find him gone forever.
What a cruel joke fate had played on her.
If she could turn back time, Elysia would never play such a prank again.
She had completely underestimated Yuan's resolve—underestimated how much he loved her.
"Stop crying. Here, burn some joss paper first. We waited until you woke up for the burial. Otherwise, we would've done it days ago."
Handing Elysia a stack of paper money, Hua quietly excused herself.
If she stayed any longer, she might not be able to suppress her smirk.
Elysia took the paper with trembling hands.
Though just flimsy sheets, they carried the unbearable weight of grief.
"Yuan... I'm sorry. This is all my fault. I'm so sorry..."
As she burned the offerings, tears soaked the paper, causing some to smolder without fully igniting.
Midway through, Elysia suddenly had an idea—
A way to save Yuan.
She could become a false god, deceive the Imaginary Tree—just like Otto once did.
But as she stood up, Mobius pressed a hand on her shoulder.
"I know what you're thinking. He isn't within the Imaginary Tree's observation. Like you, he's a special existence—no, even more special."
"No parallel worlds have his trace. Only this one does."
Mobius' words crushed Elysia's last hope.
This time, there was truly nothing she could do.
"I told you all before—no surprises. Just tell him the truth. He would've understood."
"..."
Elysia's eyes were empty, devoid of their usual sparkle—just hollow, emotionless voids.
Once the paper burning ended, the pallbearers arrived—
Kevin. Su. Kalpas. And Ato.
They lifted the coffin, walking ahead of everyone—mainly to hide their laughter.
After all, they knew the person inside was still alive.
Their movements were... unusually rough.
For example, leaping over a large pit, causing loud thuds from inside.
"Goddamn it! Are you assholes secretly getting back at me?!"
Yuan's muffled curses went unheard by anyone but the four.
Kevin had his own grudges—Yuan had tricked him before.
As Kevin's best friend, Su naturally helped—definitely not because Yuan once shipped him with Kevin.
Ato's reason was simpler—Yuan kept sneaking his daughter Griseo out to play, making him, the actual father, look bad by comparison.
If not for knowing Yuan saw Griseo purely as a little sister, Ato would've suspected him of being some punk trying to steal his daughter.
As for Kalpas? He was just there to make up numbers. He and Yuan had no beef.
After a bumpy journey, they finally reached the burial site—
The very spot where Yuan had tried to bury himself.
Seeing these woods, Elysia's mind went blank.
"This place..."
"This is where Yuan... ended his life. He dug this hole himself. Perhaps it held some special meaning to him—though we don't understand what."
Mobius' words struck Elysia like a hammer.
She knew what this place meant.
It was where she and Yuan first met. Where their story began.
So Yuan had chosen to return here—to end his life where it truly started.
Because here, he had met the person he loved most.
Tears Elysia thought had dried up began falling again.
Damn it, Elysia! When you were a Herrscher, you couldn't love him alone. Now that you're free... you've lost him forever.
What have you been protecting all this time? Nothing!
But tears aside, the burial had to proceed.
At the auspicious hour, Kevin and the others heaved the coffin into the pit—
Bang!
Yuan's head knocked against the wood hard.
He swore—once he got out, he'd make these four regret everything.
(He might not beat Kevin, but the other three were fair game. As for Kevin? He was sure Kiana would help—after all the favors he'd done for her.)
Just as they were about to bury the coffin, Elysia rushed forward one last time.
Grief had turned her into a shell of herself.
Like a lifeless puppet, she approached the coffin—
And hugged it.
"Yuan... I'll never joke like this again. Please wake up... You promised we'd stay together forever. I know I shouldn't have lied..."
Her voice trembled with desperation as she begged for a miracle.
Even during the Previous Era's darkest days, Elysia had never prayed for miracles—because she was the miracle herself.
Yet now, the miracle was begging for a miracle.
Would it answer?
No. The dead don't return. That's an unchangeable truth.
But Yuan wasn't dead.
Just as Elysia's heart shattered completely—
A voice echoed from inside the coffin:
"Oh? So you do know you shouldn't have lied to me? Do you have any idea how heartbroken I was?"
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Full Recovery!