Published at 1st of November 2023 6:42 am

Chapter 697: [Heart Stopper]

This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml

Even though Annan didn’t do anything, two people died together in the fierce battle.

Up to now, it was less than an hour after the sky went dark. Three people had already gone crazy or died.

Moreover…

“Elle” raised her head slightly.

She stared quietly at the dark night sky in the distance with her pure emerald green eyes.

It might be an illusion.

After the death of those three people, the sky seemed to become darker.

The pitch-black night sky was now seemingly layered with ink, a rich darkness that might drip down at any second. The light emitted by the surrounding street lamps had all become weak and feeble.

[Will this bring any new influence?]

Elle said in Annan’s heart.

She was a little worried about this.

“I don’t know. I don’t need to know.”

Annan, controlling Elle’s body, skipped down the street, responding nonchalantly.

[But I’m a bit worried. This doesn’t seem normal.]

“Of course, it won’t be ordinary. Either it will hasten the madness, or a supernatural event will obstruct us. Otherwise, there will be a mass weakening or illusions affecting the purifiers of the nightmare.”

Annan replied leisurely.

[What?!]

Elle’s voice suddenly rose quite a bit.

The possibilities listed by Annan were much more terrifying than what Elle had thought of — she had originally just thought that the phenomenon only made people more anxious.

But after hearing Annan say it…

Doesn’t this mean things are getting more troublesome?

“That’s what is happening, but it has nothing to do with us. If I distract myself with worries, will the nightmare obediently stop causing surprises?” Annan chuckled, “If that’s the case, then I would have to sit at home, worrying about this world every day, praying for blessings for all beings… What a compassionate person I would be.”

[Then, what are you up to—]

“Everything I can do and want to do has already been arranged.”

Annan looked into the distance leisurely, “Indeed, this anomaly is concerning. But before it actually works, any worries and speculations without evidence are meaningless.”

“Compared to that, what I can get out of talking to him—that’s what matters to me more.”

“Elle” said, stopping in her tracks.

Her heels gently clicked together. The blonde girl in the white dress placed her hands together in front of her, revealing a gentle smile, “Don’t you think so?”

“Arthur the Chief Justice?”

“You should address me as Your Honor, Miss Elle.” The young man with gorgeous golden curly hair walked out of the darkness with his chest and his head raised.

He wore a crisp white suit and white leather shoes without a speck of dirt. Beneath, he had a bright red shirt and a tie with silver and red diagonal stripes. From this, one could see his fanatic love for “white and red”.

Even with the cross-era attire, Arthur was not stumped. Somehow, he managed to dress himself quite appropriately.

He always maintained a dignified demeanor and attentive dress at all times. Those were the pride that he was born with when one regarded oneself as something of extreme nobility.

Not allowing any imperfection in himself—Annan read this type of character from his subtle actions.

Those eyes, shining like flowing lava, were so bright that even at night they made his already pale skin and pure white clothing seem as if they were glowing.

Making eye contact, or even just seeing him, would be blinding, causing one to want to look away.

“It seems like you’re prepared for my arrival.” “Elle” whispered with a faint smile.

“Of course. Who do you think I am?” Arthur spoke nonchalantly, “After seeing the crazed Lucia… it only took me half an hour to roughly understand the current situation. What kind of difficulties we are facing now, what I should do, and the rules of this nightmare… You don’t need to bother explaining these things to me anymore.”

“To save time, I’ll just ask directly — which loop is this? Have you met the captain? How is she doing?”

“In the verifiable history, this is the third loop.” “Elle” replied calmly, “Celecia is dead. Miss Lily’s prayer spell killed her.”

“I see…” Arthur pondered and slowly nodded his head.

He extended his right hand and walked slowly forward as if he wanted to shake hands with “Elle”.

But “Elle” instead hid her hands behind her back. She lightly and gracefully moved backward, almost like a dance. A mysterious and soft smile crept on her lips as she quietly watched Arthur.

Arthur suddenly stopped in his tracks.

“…So you’re that type of person,” he said, somewhat annoyed, as he placed his extended right hand on his forehead. “I originally thought I could kill you in a simpler way.”

“I’m so sorry, Mr. Arthur.” “Elle” said in a crisp voice, “But a friend told me… it’s best to avoid any physical contact with a Destruction Wizard unless absolutely necessary.”

“I don’t like that friend of yours.” Arthur stopped in place, revealing an impeccably standard, eight-toothed professional smile. “Otherwise, you could have died quietly.”

“Can I ask a question?”

“Elle” leaped back even faster, raising her voice to ask, “You don’t seem to have gone mad. Why are you suddenly attacking me?”

“…Asking such a question shows I overestimated you.” Arthur silently shook his head, looking at “Elle” with almost pitying eyes. “Isn’t it simple logic?”

“Since you know this is the third cycle, and I know nothing about it… and you have nothing to say to convince me, it means the clue to retaining memories is with you. And in the past two cycles, you couldn’t persuade me to join you. This means that this qualification, I can surely seize it too.”

“Any nightmare must have its exit. The only difference is whether this exit can be achieved through human power.”

Arthur said, putting his left hand in his pocket and walking forward slowly again.

His confident strides made it seem as if he wasn’t walking on a deserted street but rather on a fashion runway.

The tap-tap sound of his leather shoes on the street echoed leisurely with the evening breeze.

“Elle” had retreated to the end.

Arthur continued to speak slowly, “You have repeated it three times, but still failed to resolve this nightmare.”

“I guess, in this nightmare, the trigger for going mad is probably ‘starting to fear, betraying one’s deepest desires’. I know the captain very well.”

“The captain could never betray her desires. She wouldn’t have gone mad first, so she must have been killed by someone — meaning, you all are trapped in this challenge, unable to find the answer.”

“Then, step back and let me do it.” Arthur said calmly, “Trust me! When I save the captain and Lucia, I will do my best to try to save you as well.”

As he spoke, he took his left hand out of his pocket.

At some point, his left hand had been adorned with a deep red silk glove, so red it was as if holding a broken heart.

Arthur pointed his left hand toward “Elle”.

“Goodbye, Miss Elle.” He said elegantly, “Although you rejected the best [gift], I still have the second best to give you…”

Then, he clenched his left hand.

“Heart—”

“[Heart Stopper]…that’s what you meant to say, right?” “Elle” stood unscathed, tilting her head and smiling, “Unfortunately, things don’t go the way you want.”

“What?” Arthur was stunned for a moment.

The next moment, an uncontrollable terror instantly gripped his heart.

With no possibility of resistance… the invisible hand formed by the power of the curse instantly crushed his heart. The remaining curse power surged through his blood vessels to the other organs, paralyzing them in an instant.

Blood suddenly gushed from his mouth, his pupils swiftly contracted and then dilated — everything in sight was instantly swallowed by darkness as his upright figure abruptly leaned forward, stripped of all its strength.

And the last lingering image in his retina was of Miss Elle, smiling.

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