Hate me, Miss Witch!

MEOW.

Hurriedly rushing through the twilight, the white cat had barely approached the palace before it heard Isadella's words echoing within the hall.

Consequently, its form suddenly staggered, almost tumbling out of the twilight.

I seem... to have arrived at an inopportune moment?

Such a thought had only just begun to surface.

The next moment, the white cat heard Shiayar's pleasant, light laughter. "No, Silvia."

"You've arrived just in time."

He waved his hand gently.

Following that, the graceful white cat felt its body lighten.

It actually fell out of the twilight's glow.

When it came to its senses once more, the cat found itself in a strong and solid embrace.

A hand, not particularly robust yet with clearly defined knuckles, caressed the white cat's body with tenderness. The faint warmth between the fingers momentarily mesmerized the white cat.

However, the faint sensation that something was amiss swiftly snapped the cat back to reality.

Even though I'm merely a spiritual avatar, a fragment of Silvia's own spiritual power, I'm still of Throne Level, holding the authority of Twilight Divinity. Purely in terms of the Rank of this feline-shaped avatar, I'm a Legendary existence. When necessary, by wielding my authority, I can possess near-Throne Level combat power. Otherwise, Silvia wouldn't have so confidently left a spiritual avatar—me—to look after Shiayar while her actual self went back to the White Tower headquarters to handle affairs. But what just happened was still quite astounding. Perhaps it was because I had let my guard down when facing Brother Shiayar, or even more so because my composure was briefly shattered by hearing the conversation between Isadella and Brother Shiayar. For him to be able to casually pluck this avatar of mine from the realm of twilight and hold it in his arms—that's truly incredible. And what's crucial is—just now, I only had a flicker of a thought, not even expressed, yet Brother Shiayar responded as if he could hear my inner voice and directly picked up the conversation. This... Though I'm just a spiritual avatar with no tangible body, more directly connected and therefore more receptive to the Spirit Realm, and my thoughts are more easily pierced—especially since I have no defenses up against Brother Shiayar, let alone any cognitive barriers—even so, a normal Demigod or those at the Throne Level should not be able to see through what I'm thinking so easily.

"After all, I spent so much time in the ashes of the Imaginary Zone," Shiayar said.

"Even if I were thickheaded, I would have grown somewhat, wouldn't I?"

"What's more, your Brother Shiayar was never a good-for-nothing, but was a legitimate genius who passed the Brunestadt family's rite of passage and earned a contract with your family's guardian beast, the Silver Spirit."

The agreeable laughter rang in the white cat's ears again.

Still the same words that seemed to pierce one's soul.

Shiayar gazed at the cat in his arms, its eyes bewildered and body gradually going limp, "Silvia, do you remember what I told you in the letter when we parted in the hotel in Lokiya?"

He smiled slightly. "I said I wanted to try and experience the passage of time, the quickly fleeting moments, in that Imaginary Zone."

"Because I have always felt guilty towards you. I cannot accept how my previous whimsical actions in the Echo of History led you to bear the weight of a memory, a vow, and a five-hundred-year-long burial and steadfast guardianship."

"If I do not experience something similar personally, I would not be able to forgive my past self."

"And now—"

"I have returned."

Shiayar's words paused slightly.

"Just as I promised you back then."

"This time, I can embrace you without any qualms, without hesitance, or any feeling of indebtedness."

He lifted the white cat, his calm voice sounding softly in its ear.

"Silvia, I am looking forward to meeting with your true form once again."

"And then, to declare to the world, openly and proudly, that you are my lover, my fiancée."

MEOW!

That forthright confession, made without any attempt to conceal it.

In an instant, all of the white cat's mental defenses crumbled.

The tide of emotions labeled "love" and "joy" washed over its core spiritual power, making the cat's form appear somewhat ethereal, as if it would dissipate at any moment.

"MEOW MEOW MEOW! (Brother Shiayar, I will let this avatar return first.)"

A frail twilight glow emerged.

The white cat struggled to leap from Shiayar's embrace and then disappeared unsteadily into the twilight.

Given Shiayar's current strength, if this spiritual avatar stays here a few minutes longer, all of my shameful thoughts about Brother Shiayar will be completely exposed.

That would be too embarrassing.

「The Golden Plains, the White Tower.」

「The Eternal Slumber Plane.」

This place was once the tomb of Silvia, the founder of the White Tower and the Gray-Silver Witch, where she had intended to bury herself.

However, since the ancient witch was awakened from her Eternal Slumber and began to walk the world again, this area, once her tomb, had also blossomed anew. Under Silvia's directives, the White Tower's wizards conducted various renovations.

The once withered, twilight-enshrouded ruins of the palace were rebuilt and rejuvenated once more.