The Year 389, Chapter 381: Yearning for a Death Like Fireworks

"... So that's what it was about."

Aleister sighed and changed the subject, "Speaking of which... do you still have the urge to Path of Transcendence?"

Seeing David's obvious hesitation, Aleister added, "If you have any, you can tell me."

"After all, we'll hardly see each other again in the future, and we won't be in the same social circle. You can treat me as a confidant and vent about things you don't dare to tell the people around you."

"... That still won't work."

Unexpectedly, David rejected Aleister's offer.

"Why?"

"You and Mr. Iver are friends, and I respect him very much. He is a wonderful person... gentle, upright and kind."

Mr. Knight hesitated for a moment, but still said, "I don't want him to know that I am someone who has a tendency to Path of Transcendence."

...Wow.

You're so good at praising people.

Aleister even felt a lump in his throat from the praise, and for a moment he didn't know how to respond.

But soon, a gentle smile, like she was coaxing a child, appeared on her face. "Okay... then let's make a deal, David. I swear I won't tell Iver what you said to me, okay?"

"But is this really a good idea?"

David said with some concern, "You're friends, right? If so, this means you're hiding something from your friends... I'm afraid you'll argue because of this. I respect you both very much, and if you argue for this reason, I'll also share the blame."

"... Okay then. If I want to tell Iver about you, I'll need your permission first. Is that alright?"

Aleister appears to have backed down.

David was clearly fooled. He thought about it seriously for a moment, then slowly nodded. "That's fine. If you two are going to argue about this, remember to let me know... no, if it's an emergency, I'll just assume you agree."

"Honestly, I think you are better suited to the Dedication Path."

"You really are a good boy," Aleister exclaimed.

But when David heard Aleister praise him as a good boy, David pursed his lips, clearly not happy.

He didn't respond, but instead put on a stern face, adopted an adult demeanor, and spoke seriously about the important matter, "Miss Aleister, I have seriously considered the three questions you asked me."

"Just call me Aleister," Aleister added with a light laugh.

"Yes, Your Excellency Aleister."

David was somewhat stubborn, but perhaps he was just too afraid to call Aleister by his name.

He said earnestly, "I think I've been able to consistently do at least the first two things."

"—The courage to face death and the resolve to challenge an invincible enemy."

"Only the third point... 'to abandon a victory already in hand in pursuit of an even greater victory' is somewhat difficult. I think I might be able to do it; I have that kind of determination. But I've never truly faced such a painful choice before... so I'm not entirely sure if I could actually do it in that situation..."

At first, he seemed reluctant to talk. But once he started talking, he couldn't stop.

He clearly has a lot of worries and troubles, but he doesn't dare to tell anyone about them.

Although Iver knew that the illegitimacy of Avalon's Path of Transcendence largely stemmed from the illegitimacy of the Noble Red, who monopolized the knowledge of Path of Transcendence advancement. And now that the Noble Red had been eradicated, the Path of Transcendence would soon be unbanned.

The restrictions on other paths are mostly occupational. For example, the Path of Twilight might lead to either a Preservator or a Necromancer. From the general moral perspective of the Avalon, the former are considered good people, while the latter are considered bad people.

But clearly, David, who is not politically savvy, was unaware of the issues surrounding this stance.

He simply felt that he was touching on Avalon's taboos.

On the one hand, he did feel a resonance with the Dao, but on the other hand, his father's status made him afraid to tell anyone about it.

He was afraid that his father would be disappointed in him, and he was also worried that he would cause trouble for his father.

Only Miss Aleister —a Path of Transcendence being who kindly prevented him from embarking on this path—could allow him to boldly express the sorrows in his heart.

David sat across the table and kept talking to Aleister.

It started with the "Three Principles of the Path of Transcendence" that Iver had shown him, then smoothly moved on to his classmates, and then began to complain to Aleister, this human confessional.

He thought his classmates were all too immature. They had no principles, no dreams, and no sense of responsibility. They seemed to be just living day to day, carelessly squandering their time... This made David feel extremely uncomfortable. He was under immense pressure from his parents' constant lecturing; yet, from another perspective, he genuinely felt exhausted.

That's why he skipped class—not out of playfulness, but because he felt "the teacher couldn't give him what he wanted," and he wanted to learn something more useful and profound. Even his parents didn't know David's true thoughts.

David dared not speak these words aloud. He felt it was "too far-fetched" and would make people doubt his suitability for the path. Therefore, he was still deliberately concealing his true thoughts.

Aleister just smiled and went along with him. As David spoke, he gradually became more natural.

From that upright, proper sitting posture, he gradually transformed into a lazy, slumped position on the table. David was 1.6 meters tall, but the interrogation chair, which was overly tall to emphasize the interrogator's imposing figure, was still too tall for him, causing his legs to swing back and forth very naturally.

Under Aleister's prompting, David easily steered the conversation toward his emotional state.

He does have a girl he likes in his class.

She was the child of a bishop, about the same age as him. Her mother, like Bishop Mathers, was a member of the Round Table Hall Spiritual Councilor. Perhaps that's why they were able to attend the same school.

At first, David secretly fell in love with her because of her gentleness and kindness.

He felt the other person possessed a "mature" quality—or rather, a quality that set them Tai Yi from the thirteen or fourteen-year-old kids around him. It was a caring, older-sister-like quality. Compared to those carefree Children, the other person seemed much more mature than the others.

But David did not confess his feelings to her; instead, he observed her secretly.

But soon, he felt disappointed again. He discovered that she wasn't as mature as he had thought... She could be willful, she could be noisy, and she could like the same things that Children like.

What shocked him most was seeing the girl arguing loudly with her mother at a social gathering, saying she wanted to go home, and even bursting into tears—a completely different image from the gentle and kind girl he knew at school.

David never argues with his parents.

He greatly admired his parents and dreamed of becoming as remarkable as them, someone who could protect others with his own life.

"I see."

Aleister said softly, "So you don't like her?"

"Um."

David nodded, but then looked somewhat disappointed. "Or rather, I never really knew the real her. I only fell for a glimpse of her, but I thought that was all there was to her."

"Not bad, you can even say some philosophical things."

Aleister laughed, "It's good that you can figure it out yourself."

"Yes, so I've decided not to date or get married in the future."

David straightened his back and said earnestly, "I will protect Avalon with my whole life."

"Then you're going to get a beating from your dad," Aleister teased casually.

Upon hearing this, David shrank back, not daring to speak.

He did want to be a "hero." And he did get beaten by his father.

In fact, his initial dream was to become a "sacrificed hero" and be worshipped and mourned by people—but after being beaten up by George, he reluctantly gave in and changed his dream to "hero".

"But I still... want to fight to the very end and sacrifice myself for others."

David spoke his true thoughts in a low voice, "If I had a wife and children, they would definitely be sad because of my death... just like I would be sad if my father died. And if I died, it would probably affect their lives... so I think it would be better not to get too close to other people."

This was a thought hidden deep in his heart.

He would never have voiced such a thought if he hadn't been having such a pleasant conversation with Aleister.

—Because it would be tantamount to admitting that one's sacrifice was "malicious." Then one would no longer be a pure hero, but merely a madman yearning for death.

Aleister seemed thoughtful.

She sensed it too; rather than David wanting to be a hero... he yearned for a glorious, firework-like death.

This is determined by his adaptability Path of Transcendence.

Or rather, given that neither of his parents possessed the adaptability to Path of Transcendence, the fact that he developed such a clear desire to transcend at such a young age indicates that he himself was abnormal. It's just that the Grand Guardian's education was so excellent that it masked his problem.

—Then perhaps we really could entrust the Moulting Warlock to him.

This kind of profession, which involves facing death, is undoubtedly the most suitable for David.

"Alright then, David."

Aleister spoke softly, "Do you believe me?"

"I have complete faith in you, Lord Aleister!"

David said firmly, a hint of eagerness in his eyes, "Is there some task for me?"

Although Aleister was different from the image of a mature woman he had imagined... her gentle and intellectual, sister-like image did indeed make him want to get closer to her.

He also believed that Aleister was by no means a bad person.

Or rather, Aleister, who could gain her father's approval and thus be someone he was willing to interact with... without a doubt, she must be an innocent and good person! And seeing Miss Aleister, wearing only a sweater, bound to a chair in the Interrogation Room in the dead of winter... made him feel somewhat uncomfortable.

If there's anything I can do for her...

"In that case, once you are promoted again... you can go find Miss Ligeia."

Aleister said softly, "Just say that you were introduced by Aleister and that you have Iver's permission. You want to seek the ' Moulting Rebirth's Secret ' from her. Just say that you are searching for seven memories that can be used in the ritual..."

Upon hearing this, David couldn't help but widen his eyes and straighten up.

He suddenly realized that this was not a task, but an opportunity.

He listened intently to Aleister's explanation of the mystery, a faint purple aura swirling in the depths of his eyes.

Holding Aleister's dress, Ligeia, who was about to enter, stopped at the doorway.

She listened with her eyes closed for a while, then silently shook her head.

After Aleister finished explaining everything to David and after David confirmed the details, she waited a little while longer before knocking on the door.

"Miss Crowley," Ligeia said in a childish yet strangely authoritative voice, "The interrogation is complete. You may leave now."

Then she pushed open the door to the Interrogation Room.

A 6,000-word update at the beginning of the month, please give me your guaranteed monthly votes!