In this Doomsday Era of the Past, Shade could leave as long as he viewed the memories within the Calamity Cards in his hand. But constrained by the terrible conditions of the Doomsday Era, he could not wait for very long. Therefore, the time he had to spend with Adele had already begun counting down.
"Can Adele still enter Saint Derain Square? I remember that when I appeared here, Saint Derain Square should have been completely sealed off, both inside and out."
As Shade rekindled the fireplace, he was still thinking about this when "she" smiled gently:
She bears the Moonfire Mark you left behind, so she can enter.
Adele returned even faster than Shade had expected. Since the kitchen had been completely destroyed and was unusable, he was trying to brew tea over the fireplace when he heard sounds from downstairs.
Then came the continuous creaking of boots upon the long-neglected stairs. As Shade walked around the sofa and looked toward the living room doorway, the travel-worn Blonde Witch happened to emerge from below the stairs.
She smiled at Shade, joy and affection filling her golden eyes, before throwing herself into his arms:
"Shade~"
Shade smiled as he embraced her:
"It really has been a long time. When I dreamed last night, I dreamed that we were embracing here. I was worried that dreams and reality might be opposites, but now it seems this moment is no different from my dream."
Then he asked inwardly:
"This isn't a dream, right?"
No.
Held in his arms, Adele carefully studied his face:
"I often see you in dreams where I can no longer distinguish reality from illusion. I thought I could control my emotions, but, Shade—"
She closed her eyes and kissed him. Naturally, Shade did not refuse.
The fire in