novelonline Chapter 3638 The Story Before the Fireplace
Chapter 3638 The Story Before the Fireplace
Chapter 3638 The Story Before the Fireplace
God stood by the window watching them from the fireplace, while Shad carefully observed Lady Gerd's mother. She should be at the thirteenth rank at this point, and looked even younger than the middle-aged Lady Gerd.
Not everyone is qualified to make requests to the gods, nor is anyone qualified to gamble with them. Although she is not a demigod, her methods and talents are terrifyingly strong; given time, she might very well be able to ascend to demigod status.
Shad even felt that if the other party could make that terrible kingdom more real, she might even be able to become a demigod through it. Lady Gerd's understanding of her mother seemed incomplete; she was a witch far more terrifying than the one she described.
"Before we begin the story, let's talk briefly. I saw a coin with your image on it in the story. Why is your title Queen, and not Emperor?"
Shad bent his right arm and rested it on the armrest of the chair, and the witch with long, peach-pink hair replied:
"Because I haven't yet touched the power of a demigod, the title of emperor is reserved for my future self. However, the queen in the story is just a projection with my own personality and power. I have never directly entered into it. After all, if the creator of the world were to intervene, the story would become less interesting."
I manipulate my own reflection, a mirror in my hand, and she will surely appear in the story you are about to tell.
Shad asked again:
"So how am I supposed to tell the story? Do I still need to enter your kingdom?"
"No, no need."
A giant storybook unfolded on the round table between the two, and the ink written on it leaped and soared upwards, eventually forming an overhead view of a vast landmass in the light screen projected from the book.
There are cities and forests, lakes and ancient castles, with the azure ocean at the edge of the world. This irregular landmass is the general outline of her labyrinthine "kingdom," which is truly terrifyingly large.
"You have already gained a basic understanding of my kingdom, so based on this kingdom, tell a story in your heart, and I will arrange actors to cooperate with your narration, but their actions may not necessarily conform to your arrangements."
The witch slowly swung her right hand, making the projection of the kingdom suspended between the round tables even larger:
"I have discovered the evil in human nature, and I understand that this is what my androids lacked most. Now prove to me that your story can bring some beauty to this kingdom."
"If that's all, I can't beat your magic lock. I need the help of my companions, I need actors who can direct, and I also need some props that can influence the story."
"Of course you can. You can place one of your items in the kingdom for use, like that sword; I also allow you to manipulate your companions to replace characters in the story, but..."
She smiled and said to Xia De:
"While I won't intentionally manipulate the story to oppose you, everything in the kingdom follows a predetermined path of destiny. Once the story begins, everything falls into its predetermined fate. Your manipulated companions can only do what is meant to be in their destiny."
She gestured for them to join in, and half a chessboard appeared on the table on Shad's side, with four chess pieces beside it. The pieces were clearly modeled after Ms. Gerd, Miss Novare, Miss Cohens, and Winnie.
"In addition, I'll give you ten blank androids. You can put them into the story at any time. They have average levels of intelligence and strength. Are you satisfied now?"
Xia De considered it for a moment:
"I don't want ten, I only need seven."
The witch blinked:
"Shall we perform some kind of ritual? Okay, then seven it will be."
Seven unmarked chess pieces also appeared on the table, making the table, which already contained storybooks, a chessboard, porcelain teacups, and a teapot, look even more cluttered.
Xia De didn't examine the chess pieces. He closed his eyes and thought for a moment. When he opened his eyes, he asked:
"Before we begin, I have one last question: You seem to look down on Ms. Gerd? She came all the way here to find out why you adopted her."
The witch replied:
"It's not that I look down on her, it's just that she doesn't have the qualifications I'm looking for. Her time at the Zalas Academy has made her weak and too kind. If she can't even face the work I'm doing, she can forget about taking over my research results."
So I abandoned her and banished her. As for the reason for adopting her, isn't it simple? Every witch hopes her research can be passed down, but unfortunately, in my eyes, Gerd was a failure. Of course, I also admit that I didn't invest enough time and attention in her, which is why she was so deeply influenced by those equally weak witches.
Shad nodded; the conditions were met.
"Alright then, let's begin the story."
He pulled the restless cat out of his clothes and placed it on his lap. Stroking the cat and telling stories by the fireplace helped him relax a little. Mia seemed to be observing their surroundings, while Shad's eyes were fixed on the palace portion of the kingdom projected from the book:
"Our story begins in the center of the kingdom. Long, long ago, on a snowy day, the queen of the kingdom gave birth to a princess with snow-white skin. She named her daughter 'Snow White'."
“The story of a princess? That is indeed a common fairy tale theme, but young man, I have said that all the stories in this kingdom are destined to end in the worst possible way.”
In the projection above the fairy tale book, the palace section grew larger and larger until it showed a scene of the queen giving birth to her daughter on a snowy day outside the window.
The frail queen gazed at her infant daughter with a blissful expression, and her appearance was not that of the witch facing Shad. There was not only visual imagery but also sound; the howling wind and the baby's whimpers were incredibly realistic.
The owner of the fairy tale book began to recount what happened next. This was not her plan; she was simply describing the following series of scenes:
"The queen who gave birth to Snow White soon died of illness, so the king married a new queen, a queen who was more beautiful and powerful."
The story features a witch who was originally the queen of this kingdom, and this development of the story is perfectly fine.
Next, Shad spoke, his profile illuminated by the firelight from the fireplace:
"Days passed by, and the princess who was born in the snow grew up day by day."
Shade reached out and took Lady Gerd's chess piece, placing it on the board. Becoming the "Queen's" daughter was her destiny. Thus, in the story above the book, Lady Gerd, dressed as a princess, truly appeared.
She looked much younger than Shad had expected, but thanks to the natural beauty of witches, her outfit didn't seem particularly out of place.
"Everyone loves the kind-hearted Snow White. Just as her birth mother wished, her skin was as white and tender as snow, with a rosy glow like blood, and her hair as black and shiny as ebony."
Meanwhile, the witch across the table continued to speak of "fate":
"Since you describe her as so beautiful, do you know that this is the cause of trouble?" The Queen heard the people's praise of Snow White, so she went to ask her powerful magic mirror that knew everything: "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?"
The magic mirror replied: "Of course, it's Snow White."
It wasn't that Shad was deliberately guiding all of this; it seems that all of fate was leading to this outcome.
Shad glanced again at the god who was listening intently to their story, and the god, seeing him looking over, reminded him:
"You've lost."
"The queen, having learned the result from the magic mirror, was furious."
"She is Snow White's stepmother. It doesn't make sense for her to kill her with her own hands, at least not in the palace."
Shad reminded her, and the witch across the table nodded:
"Yes, so you see."
In the image projected from the book, a man dressed as a hunter is summoned before the queen and given a mission. The moment the hunter appears, a relieved Shad picks up Miss Coens' chess piece from the table before him:
"This is a true hunter."
As Miss Cohens's piece was placed on the board, the male hunter in the scene was immediately replaced by a female hunter. Miss Cohens, with a resolute expression, clearly didn't want to accept this task, but under pressure from the Queen, she agreed.
“Your Majesty, I will carry out your orders.”
The princess, who resembled Lady Gerd, and the hunter, who resembled Miss Cohens, then walked into the forest outside the castle. As the scene changed and the sounds of birds and insects in the forest gradually appeared, Shad asked the witch across the table:
"The characters in the story seem to retain their personalities, so do they still have memories from the real world?"
"It depends on how strong their will is. I know you're thinking that since they're partners, even if they've received orders, the Witcher wouldn't kill my daughter."
But have you considered this—that huntress inherited the Witcher's loyalty; will she really refrain from acting as you expect? In this world, anything that could potentially lead to a bad outcome will ultimately lead to the worst possible result.
Shad remained noncommittal, simply watching the two witches move through the dense forest in the scene. Just as they seemed about to stop, he used the hand that had been caressing Mia to pick up Miss Novare's chess piece and replace Miss Gerd's piece with it.
"Then I choose to change the actress. In the story, Snow White is just called Snow White, not 'Gold', so it should be possible to change actresses midway through the performance, right?"
"Shad asked, and the witch frowned as she looked at the screen. The "princess" in the screen really did transform into the red-haired vampire girl the moment a new piece was placed on the chessboard."
(End of this chapter)