Phrolova Appeared

Where are you all headed?

A nonchalant voice drifted over from the front.

Kexi paused in her steps.

Not far ahead, a white-haired man in a red shirt leaned against the wall, his face covered with crisscrossing Scar, but a smirking smile played on his lips.

The smile looked kind, but Kexi's hair stood on end.

"Who are you?" Kexi subconsciously took half a step back.

Selina reacted much faster than him, flashing in front of him and raising her right arm slightly to create a safe distance between him and the man.

Her body was taut like a fully drawn bow, and her voice was extremely low. "Young Master, be careful."

"Let me introduce myself."

The man straightened up from the wall and walked towards them unhurriedly.

"I am Scar."

Kexi's pupils contracted slightly. "Fractsidus Scar? Are you here to kill me too?"

"Congratulations on getting it right." The Scar face nodded, his smile widening even further. "The reward is—"

He suddenly raised his hand.

A whole deck of cards exploded from his palm, fifty-four cards like fifty-four flying knives, spinning and engulfing Kexi and Selina.

The sound of something cutting through the air was shrill and piercing, and each card gleamed with a cold, sharp light.

A cold glint flashed in Selina's hand, and a flute appeared out of thin air.

She held the flute to her lips and suddenly blew out a rapid note.

The sound waves exploded in front of her, forming a semi-transparent barrier.

The playing cards slammed against the barrier, exploding one after another. The deafening explosions echoed through the narrow alley, billowing smoke and flying debris.

Kexi was jolted backward, her ears ringing.

He wanted to help Selina, but before he could even stand up straight, a blinding golden light suddenly shone behind him.

A portal.

A golden vortex appeared silently behind him, like an open mouth, and suddenly swallowed Kexi whole.

Before Kexi could even call out Selina's name, her vision was completely engulfed by a sea of gold.

"Young Master!"

Selina turned around, her eyes instantly welling up with tears.

She abandoned the barrier and lunged towards the portal.

Her fingertips were almost touching the shrinking golden edge when a figure blocked her way.

The Scar threw out two playing cards, shattering her last chance.

The portal shrank into a point of light and vanished into thin air with a snap.

Selina's pupils contracted sharply.

Her flute hung taut at her side, gripped tightly.

She slowly turned her head to look at the smiling man, her eyes freezing cold.

Don't be nervous.

The Scar shrugged, his expression innocent as if he had done something good.

"I just asked him to find another place to talk. After all, with you playing this, my hand is completely ruined."

Selina lifted her flute again, her fingers pressing on the tone holes, and a surge of Resonance Energy coursed through her body.

The air in the alley began to distort, and the pebbles on the ground trembled and floated up one by one.

The Scar raised an eyebrow, a serious look of interest finally appearing on his face.

A stunning transition.

Kexi crashed heavily onto a hard surface.

He scrambled to his feet, feeling dizzy and disoriented, with a mouthful of ash in his mouth and his nose stinging from the impact.

"Holy crap... What's going on... Where's Selina? Selina!"

He called out twice to those around him, but only the empty echoes answered him.

He looked up and surveyed his surroundings. It was a completely unfamiliar space, with a gray sky overhead, devoid of sun or clouds, and the light seemed to be pressing down evenly from all directions.

Kexi stood up cursing, rubbing her sore back. "Damn it, which punk tried to kill me? Come out and fight me one-on-one! What kind of coward are you?!"

A red figure appeared three steps in front of him.

Kexi's remaining curse words were stuck in her throat.

Phrolova just looked at him calmly.

Her hands hung naturally at her sides, and her expression was a half-smile.

That smile immediately reminded Kexi of Cantarella; both were enigmatic and beautiful, but Phrolova's smile was devoid of any warmth.

"Nice to meet you."

Her voice rang out, soft and gentle, yet remarkably clear in the empty, otherworldly space.

"The Mysterious Letter Writer."

"Kexi Montelli."

Kexi felt as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over her head, instantly clearing her mind.

The woman in red before me had a bandage wrapped around her right eye. If I'm not mistaken, she is Phrolova, a core member of the Fractsidus.

He had imagined many scenarios of meeting her, but none of them included this situation where he was being bound to another dimension.

"Are you Phrolova?"

"It's an honor that you still remember my name." Phrolova nodded gently, his tone as tender as if he were meeting an old friend.

"You're here to kill me too?" Kexi moved back a little, her body unconsciously adopting a defensive posture.

Phrolova shook his head slightly. "It wasn't me, it was them."

"Damn it! I have no grudge against your Fractsidus, why are you trying to kill me?" Kexi's voice rose, her words filled with grievance.

"Perhaps you should consider whether you've offended anyone that would make the chairman want to kill you." Phrolova's tone remained unhurried, as if chatting with an ordinary old friend.

"What the hell did I do?!"

Kexi grabbed her hair, her mind racing through all her recent actions.

Writing letters is at most a form of emotional fraud, how could it possibly attract the attention of the president of the Fractsidus? Unless some bastard is sabotaging him behind his back, after all, he didn't write any love letters to Napomo, what merit does he have to be targeted by the president of the Fractsidus?

Phrolova didn't answer his question, but simply looked at him with an extremely calm gaze. "These are not my concerns. I'm here for only one thing."

Her gaze deepened.

Do you still remember the promise you made to me in your letter?

Kexi was stunned.

Promises? He wrote so many letters that they needed baskets to hold them all.

He had certainly written a letter to Phrolova, but he genuinely couldn't recall at all what promises were made in it.

Phrolova looked at his blank expression and suddenly laughed.

"Looks like you've forgotten."

"Wait a minute, let me think!" Kexi quickly raised her hand, racking her brains to recall, "Didn't I say your music was very good? That your concert was fantastic?"

"No need," Phrolova interrupted him, her voice suddenly lowering, "I'll tell you."

She took a step forward, tilted her head back, and slowly spoke in a tone that was half reminiscing and half self-mockery.

"In your letter, you said how good my music was, how wonderful my concerts were. You said you watched every one of my conducting performances from the audience. You said you heard my sorrow in my music. You said I was someone who needed to be saved. You said how well you understood me, how bitter and tiring my life was, and how much pressure I was under."

Her voice softened gradually.

You said you would watch me from the audience at every one of my concerts.

Phrolova stopped and closed his eyes.

The dim light fell on her eyelashes, casting a faint shadow.

Kexi's throat tightened, and she couldn't utter a single word.

"But I checked everyone in the entire venue, and I still couldn't find you."

Phrolova reopened her eyes, her gaze calmly settling on Kexi's face.

"You know what? On every tour I go on, I'm trying to find you."

"I searched day after day, year after year."

Phrolova gave a self-deprecating smile.

"I won't look for it anymore."

She looked at Kexi, a very faint smile even curving her lips.

"Now I finally understand."

She walked up to Kexi, picked up the spider lily baton in her hand, and pointed it directly at him with her upper arm.

"You're a complete fraud. You weren't even born three hundred years ago. Where would you have gotten your hands on my concert?"