Chapter 377: Unwilling to Let It End Like This

In the basement, both of them sensed that familiar presence simultaneously.

Cold, malicious, and indescribable... it felt like a greasy black mist seeping through their pores and into the very marrow of their bones.

“It’s the False God,” Ansu said.

His gaze slowly shifted downward, landing on the hand gripping his throat. He let out a self-deprecating sigh.

“It’s about to awaken. Now, you won’t even have to do it yourself; both of us are going to die here.”

Celia’s blood-red eyes stared fixedly at him, but she remained silent.

Ansu knew she was listening. He intentionally let out another sigh, his tone carrying a hint of mockery.

“We can’t defeat the God of Clamor and Filth.”

“You think you hold your fate in your own hands, that you can kill whenever you want, destroy whatever you want... but the truth is, your fate has never been yours to decide. Even your death is being manipulated by a being high above.”

“What exactly are you trying to say?!” Celia furrowed her brows in annoyance.

“I’m saying...” Ansu smiled. “You’ve lost, Miss Witch.”

He knew that in this situation, repeating his old tricks would be useless. Since she had synchronized those memories, talking about feelings would only fuel her hatred... the more she cared, the more she would hate.

Therefore, it was better to continue provoking her.

He knew Celia too well. The witch was proud to her very core and had a fierce competitive streak; what she couldn't stand most was being manipulated.

Self-destruction and burning the world were the endings she had chosen. She wanted to choose her own death.

But if she were to be casually erased by a False God, that was a different story—it would be pathetic, a death like a joke, without even a shred of her twisted dignity.

In that sense... Ansu might have understood Celia better than she understood herself.

“Shut up! Ansu! Shut up!!”

Celia’s voice was fierce, her fingers subconsciously tightening. “I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you right now!”

“If you kill me... you’ll never know anything.” Ansu felt a slight sense of suffocation, yet he still met her gaze calmly. “Ending it here by taking me down with you—what kind of ending is that? If you really want closure, why not do something grand? Go and fight the God of Clamor and Filth to the death!”

He gave a grim laugh, his tone carrying an unmistakable weariness.

“It was that damn thing that forced me to use every trick in the book, forcing me to push you into your blackened state, to push you to the point of an explosive burst of power... This time, I went all-in, even calculating myself into the plan...”

“I thought that all my struggling during this time would at least not be for nothing...”

“But now.” Ansu’s voice became increasingly strained. “I’m not willing... Celia, I refuse to let it end like this.”

Celia watched him silently, the emotions churning in the depths of her eyes complex and hard to decipher.

She thought of these past days, how everyone had worked tirelessly to break the curse. She remembered the repeated failures, the repeated deaths, and how Ansu had refused to give up on saving her time after time.

She recalled those overlapping, chaotic timelines—how he went from anxious anger to the weary powerlessness of repeated failure... and finally to the absolute resolve of a final gamble.

He had said: Celia, I will definitely save you.

He had also said: I’m going to confess everything. I wont regret it. No matter what happens in the future, I’m leaving everything to fate.

The strength gripping his throat unknowingly weakened.

“If we waste any more time, you’re going to die at the hands of the False God again,” Ansu suddenly broke the silence. “This is reality. If you die this time, the story really is over for good. There will be no room for recovery.”

Celia continued to stare at him intently.

“Since you’re not saying anything, I’ll take that as your silent agreement.” Ansu took a difficult half-step forward.

To get closer to her, he forced himself to approach the surging Black Flame.

Celia’s pupils shrank slightly, and the Black Flame quickly receded a few inches.

Because the demonic fire that could burn a Saint Rank mage to death could just as easily kill Ansu.

“What needs to be done?”

She finally relented, her voice as cold as ice.

Ansu replied, “Go back to the Filthy Heart.”

Celia let out a cold laugh. “Fine! Since you love dying like this so much, I’ll satisfy you. I’ll give you a quick death!”

Ansu thought silently to himself, I actually don’t want a pathetic death, nor do I want a quick death...

I want to live, dammit!

“Wait a moment...!” Ansu wanted to start a simulation, and the system interface immediately popped up.

The critical node had arrived. It was now.

“Are you going to start playing your little tricks again?” Celia curled her lips mockingly. “Ansu is always like this. No matter what he does, there’s always a calculation involved.”

Ansu glanced at her and said calmly, “If you were me, you’d be the same way.”

“Hmm? What?”

“You’ll find out in a moment...”

...

【Future】

【10 hours later (October 19th, 13:05), consumes 50 points】

【Remaining points: 63】

【Starting simulation...】

Darkness quickly flooded his mind, and the countdown gradually faded away.

Ansu opened his eyes and found that he was actually still in the City of a Thousand Stars.

Celia was not far away, leaning against the wreckage of a building and gasping for breath, the Black Flame flickering unsteadily.

All around them, the ground was covered in distorted and broken corpses. The tallest spire in the City of a Thousand Stars had mostly collapsed, the rubble piled into small mountains. The entire magic academy was as desolate as a ruin.

Did they fail to escape?

Ansu immediately pulled out the 《Future Diary》. Perhaps because the battle had been too frantic, the handwriting on the paper was hurried and brief.

“10 hours...” Celia suddenly spoke out of the blue. “You can travel to the future ten hours from now—which is the present. You use this trick every time to test for mistakes.”

Those blood-red pupils locked onto the diary in his hand from a distance, her smile full of mockery.

“Hehe, to think I didn't notice for so long... I really did trust you too much, Ansu.”

“Miss Witch is clever.” Ansu only paused for a moment before immediately flipping open the diary.

【News has arrived from the rear.】

【Professor Duncan died at exactly 10:35 AM.】

【Barnes and the other four elders died at exactly 12:05 PM.】

【The magic academy fought back with everything they had. The acting principal led a group of Saint Rank experts in a desperate attempt to hold back Celia, and the will of the False God descended.】

【It is watching Celia. The curse patterns on her are spreading rapidly, her body is heavily contaminated, and her will is on the verge of chaos... The False God wants to detonate her directly through this ‘mark.’】

【But in the end, Celia managed to endure it by force. With her current strength, even after the False God’s will descended, it could not erase her directly.】

【Incredible!】

【Because the False God holds the ‘authority’ over magic, it has begun using various underhanded tactics, including but not limited to: interfering with mana flow, locking down teleportation spells, and even distorting her magic formulas.】

【However, in her blackened state, the beauty of raw power is no joke. Even if she is temporarily at a disadvantage, she can still fight back and forth against the combined suppression of the magic academy and the False God.】

【The False God has failed to kill Celia thus far and seems to have no way to deal with her.】

【My plan... seems to have succeeded?】

After reading the last sentence, Ansu’s heart was filled with emotion. Miss Witch in her blackened state was a nearly invincible existence.

Even two evil gods couldn't do anything to her. How could a mere curse possibly take effect?

However, Ansu’s heart was currently a mix of relief and complexity.

I saved her.

I finally saved her.

But things have already reached this point...

The price... is simply too heavy.

Will we ever reconcile?

Will there ever be a truly happy ending?

Celia walked over slowly. her aura was more disheveled than before, and also more sinister.

“What are you thinking about? Thinking about how to escape afterward?”

Celia’s blood-red eyes stared intently at Ansu. “Thinking about how to escape my control, and then, before the time travel ends, cursing me and mocking me one last time to vent your frustration?”

Ansu said helplessly, “Your hostility toward me is far too great right now. I really wasn't thinking that.”

Is she... a bit too sensitive?

Celia paused for a moment, then bared her teeth, her smile becoming even more eerie.

“Since this is the future you’ve traveled to, a timeline that won’t become real...” She stared fixedly at Ansu, her gaze looking as if she wanted to eat him alive. “Then it doesn't matter if I do anything excessive to you, anything atrocious or insane, right?”

“Wh-what are you planning to do?” Cold sweat began to roll down Ansu’s face. He quickly explained, “My ability does work like that, but I still hope you won't overdo it with the revenge...”

“Why?” Celia leaned in close to his cheek, her smile gradually twisting. “If we’re going to settle old accounts, let’s settle them all the way! Ansu, have you forgotten what I was like at the very beginning? A witch! I am a witch! I am bad! I have no values! I do whatever I want!”

“I like to play with people’s limbs, I like to cut things open and study them slowly. Since our relationship is already so difficult to mend...” She suddenly spoke softly, as if whispering sweet nothings, but her smile became increasingly strange and terrifying. “Then why don’t I turn you into a little toy that stays by my side forever? Ansu, do you like puppet shows?”

“I don't...” Ansu shook his head quickly.

“I didn't like them before either; I thought it was just kids playing house.” Her smile deepened. “But now I’m suddenly very interested. Ansu, shall we perform an eternal, warm, and happy family drama? I’ll control you and have you play house with me...”

“Ahem... wait!!” Ansu hurriedly interrupted her. “Celia, time is running out! We need to go quickly, back to the Filthy Heart.”

Wait, the smile on Celia’s face vanished instantly, returning to an expressionless mask.

“I know.”

Because that cold and malicious sense of being watched had never left them.

The God of Clamor and Filth had cast its gaze upon them once again.

Celia’s brow furrowed slightly as she sneered and spat out a single command:

“Get lost!”

A moment later, that terrifying will actually began to slowly recede...

...