After Zhou Chen sat down, an image soon appeared on the screen, showing a middle-aged, aristocratic gentleman.
Duke Elizabeth had sharp features, thick eyebrows, and fine crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes. You could clearly see how handso he must have been in his youth. Now, in his middle age, a mature, world-weary air gave him a more masculine charm.
At that mont, Duke Elizabeth’s azure eyes were filled with mirth—it was obvious that Erin had inherited her blue eyes from her father.
"Papa~" Erin bead.
"Erin, how was your day?" The Duke’s eyes held a doting expression.
"It was great!" Erin said tentatively. "I had milk tea..."
Seeing her father didn’t have much of a reaction, she recounted everything she had done that day, one by one.
For example, shopping for clothes, getting her nails done, drinking milk tea, eating fried chicken, trying street food, watching a movie, riding a drop tower, and going on a roller coaster... she even included the pollution incident.
Duke Elizabeth nodded slightly, but his brow furrowed when he heard they had encountered several pollution incidents. He then looked at Zhou Chen beside her. "You must be Mr. Zhou Chen. Erin has been in your care."
"It’s my honor." Zhou Chen offered a flawless, gentlemanly smile. His impeccable etiquette took Duke Elizabeth by surprise.
"I heard you once defeated Fallen Paradise’s ’Gentleman’ in a direct confrontation," Duke Elizabeth asked. He had learned of the situation from Jiang Che.
"I wouldn’t call it a direct defeat. Gentleman was already injured, and my Ability happens to counter his. That’s how I forced him to use his Death Replacent Puppet. But as for defeating him head-on, I’m still a long way off," Zhou Chen said modestly.
"No mber of Fallen Paradise should be underestimated. It’s already quite an achievent to make him use up one of his lives."
Duke Elizabeth was quite appreciative, looking at him with a aningful gaze. "The Magic Wand that Gentleman carries was once the Weapon of another Fallen Paradise mber, the ’Magician’."
"A little over a year ago, the ’Magician’ died at the hands of the Kingdom Guard Team, and the Magic Wand beca the kingdom’s spoil of war. Although the wand was later stolen back by Fallen Paradise, we had already studied its Abilities and found a way to counter it. This is classified information that not even the Star Association knows."
"—All you have to do is play an audio track full of booing, and the Magic Wand becos unusable."
"..."
Zhou Chen was stunned for a mont. He hadn’t expected Duke Elizabeth to reveal such classified information so easily. The Duke even chuckled and added:
"After all, how many magicians can perform normally to a chorus of boos?"
Coming back to his senses, Zhou Chen said sincerely, "Thank you for the tip, sir. I’ll rember it."
’This is crucial information that could completely neutralize the Magic Wand!’
Afterward, Duke Elizabeth and Erin chatted about casual things. When it was getting late, the Duke finally said, "Erin, could you step out for a mont? I need to have a private word with Mr. Zhou Chen."
"Okay." Erin obediently got up and left the room.
Once only Zhou Chen remained in the room, the Duke’s smile vanished. His expression beca placid, betraying no emotion.
"Your Grace, what did you wish to discuss?" Zhou Chen asked.
Duke Elizabeth looked at him and said, "I’ve read your file. How should I put this... you’re a miracle. A miracle that’s impossible to replicate."
"Not only that, but in just one month, you managed to kill Gentleman head-on once. If Lady Jiang Che hadn’t suppressed the news, you’d likely be the hottest topic in the Extraordinary World right now... Rest assured, I won’t gossip."
"...So?"
"You can think of this as—"
The Duke paused. "I want to make a deal with you."
He said, "I have given you the thod to counter the Magic Wand. I will provide for your Tier Two Advanced Secret Ceremony, and I can even continue to provide for your Tier Three one. I can give you the Forbidden Objects you want. I can offer you money, connections, and all kinds of other support."
"And in return, you only need to do one thing for ."
Zhou Chen fell silent. ’You don’t have to be a genius to know this won’t be simple.’
’But what could the great Grand Duke Elizabeth possibly need a re Tier One Ascender like to do?’
"—I want you to accompany Erin for the ti she has left. Make her happy, let her feel joy. I can see that you’re capable of doing that." Grand Duke Elizabeth’s tone was incredibly earnest and serious.
"..." Zhou Chen frowned, his voice gaining an edge. "What do you an, ’the ti she has left’?"
Grand Duke Elizabeth sighed, seeming to age several years in an instant, his expression filled with exhaustion.
"You’ve heard the story of ’Sleeping Beauty’, haven’t you?"
Zhou Chen grasped the key point almost imdiately. "A Curse?"
"Yes, a Curse." Grand Duke Elizabeth nodded. "Before the kingdom was unsealed, there was a notoriously Evil Black Witch. She had lived for over three hundred years at the foot of a volcano. Every ten years, she would wander out to abduct and kill young maidens to brew her Elixir of Immortality."
"Seventeen years ago, Erin’s mother had just beco pregnant. We were attending a ceremony when the Black Witch suddenly appeared, intending to forcibly abduct several young won."
"I, along with a few other mbers of the Royal Guard, managed to grievously wound the Witch. But before she fled, the Witch cast a vicious hex, cursing my child to die a terrible death before their eighteenth birthday."
"During the months Erin’s mother was pregnant, I perford daily checks to ensure Erin was unhard. But after she was born, we discovered a Curse entwined with her very Soul. If we try to forcibly remove it, Erin’s Soul will shatter along with it." Grand Duke Elizabeth looked utterly helpless at this point.
"I have tried all sorts of thods over the years, and all have failed. After the Restricted Area was unsealed, I sought out the Star Association, I looked for many people, I even managed to consult a Great Sage from the Alchemy Realm. But there’s still no solution, because the Curse has completely fused with Erin’s Soul. It’s impossible to remove."
"We protected Erin, forbidding her from doing all sorts of things, terrified that sothing would happen to her under the Curse’s influence... Just like today. Did you think you encountered that pollution incident because of you?"
"You’re wrong. It was the Curse at work. She’s only two months away from her eighteenth birthday. The Curse is making Erin unlucky, causing her to run into all kinds of life-threatening dangers."
’An Evil Witch who lived for 300 years...’ Zhou Chen’s thoughts raced. ’The flow of ti in Zone 052 is different from the outside world, giving it an 800-year history, so that part isn’t a problem. But the Curse... even a Great Sage from the Alchemy Realm couldn’t solve it?’ He asked, "What Tier was that Black Witch?"
"Tier Four. Her Curse Abilities were incredibly powerful. She even cursed a Forbidden Guard Knight of the sa Tier to death."
Grand Duke Elizabeth said gravely, "After the Restricted Area was unsealed, we got help from the Star Association and killed the Black Witch. Before she died, she said the Curse could not be lifted, could not be avoided. The cursed person could only face certain death, because it was a curse that bound fate itself—Destined Death."
He sighed deeply. "We owe Erin too much. All we can do now is let go of the restraints and allow her to live the life she’s always longed for. We can’t even be by her side... As parents, we are failures. Utter and complete failures."
Zhou Chen rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Does Erin know?"
"She knows."
***
Zhou Chen pushed open the door and saw Erin waiting demurely in the hallway.
Erin stood on her tiptoes and peeked into the room. After confirming the video call had ended, she asked curiously, "Mr. Zhou Chen, what did my papa talk to you about?"
"Nothing much. Just so things to keep in mind. He told to take good care of you." Zhou Chen shrugged and started walking down the hallway. "Where do you want to go tomorrow?"
"The zoo! I want to see the giant pandas... And then for lunch, let’s get stinky tofu and snail noodle soup..." Erin said, keeping pace with him as she counted on her fingers.
"...If you eat stinky tofu and snail noodle soup, I’m not taking you shopping anymore."
"Why not?"
"Pretty girls don’t eat that kind of stuff."
"But I really want to try it..."
***
「Late at night.」
Zhou Chen returned to his dorm room and flopped onto his bed, exhausted.
’Destined Death, a curse that binds fate itself... I wonder if I can break it with a wish. The chances are slim. It’s a Tier Four curse that even a Great Sage couldn’t do anything about. Still, I should find a chance to try...’
He was just about to begin ditation when a faint, illusory plea suddenly echoed in his ear.
"Mr. Lamp God... please, save ..."
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