Chapter 665

Chapter Fifty – Evading

“… Hm?”

In the dim and dirty tavern filled with people, the silver-haired man stood amidst the crowd, his brows raised in slight confusion and bewilderment as he turned his head towards the direction the woman was pointing.

His eyes were initially hazy, wandering aimlessly for a moment before suddenly locking onto me.

Then, he froze abruptly.

The man seemed to have seen something unbelievable, his beautiful eyes the same color as the sky, pupils dilating instantly, eyelids that had been half-closed now opening wide. His body instinctively moved forward, stepping out in one swift motion, only to suddenly stop again.

He appeared to be unable to believe what he was seeing, completely at a loss, throat moving as his constricted pupils trembled slightly. He stared intently at the girl partially hidden behind the crowd, her face half-concealed. His bearded face was a mix of indescribable shock.

“She… is…”

This man, who had previously been arrogant and powerful enough to make the entire tavern wary, now seemed to have his words tied up, unable to speak coherently.

“Little, Little Hill…?”

That slightly trembling call, filtered through the flickering candlelight and the murmurs of the crowd, reached my ears. The voice suddenly sounded distant and unclear, as if coming from far away, vague and illusory, like an echo.

He saw me…

He…

Recognized me at first glance…

What should I do…

I really saw Carlos…

How should I react…

I…

I’m completely confused about my own complex feelings right now.

I really want to rush over and hug him, bury my face in his reliable chest, and loudly express my grievances, crying freely without restraint. This impulse is unrelated to any emotion; it’s simply because of the complete trust I have in him.

I once trusted this man so much, believing that no matter what happened, he would never be the person who wanted to hurt me.

But that trust seemed to become uncertain due to the changes that had already occurred.

I can no longer be fully confident.

Confident that no matter what happens, he will remain steadfast, choosing to stand by my side.

Because I have been deceived and betrayed before. The wound left by the betrayal still heals, but it leaves an ugly scar that can never be erased.

Even though I really want to and am willing to trust this man now.

I have come this far, I planned to see him, I have so many questions for him, I just want to see the familiar and reliable person here.

With such thoughts, I stood here, but I never thought, or perhaps didn’t want to think, that during this journey, subconsciously, I had been avoiding one thing: how would I react when I truly saw him?

Or what I should do…

I am full of vigilance.

Only at this moment, when I truly see Carlos, do I suddenly realize how strong and profound this vigilance is, so deep that it leaves me at a loss, unable to take even a small step forward…

I fear he might be like Angel, stabbing me in the back when I least expect it.

That would crush me completely.

I can’t bear such immense pain anymore…

And Carlos…

I remember the bond between him and Angel…

I dare not

I won’t trust him again…

I can’t…

I won’t trust anyone from the church again…

So…

…it’s better to escape.

I only came here to see him, and I saw him…

That’s all that matters…

In the dimly lit tavern, the atmosphere was quiet for several seconds. The nervous drunkards’ eyes flickered as they followed the line of sight of the man in the middle, gradually focusing on a young girl hidden in the crowd at the back.

Perhaps sensing something unusual, people instinctively moved aside, making space for the two of them.

The powerful man seemed to finally regain his senses. He looked at the bottle in his hand, hesitated for a moment, then obediently put it back down and started walking towards the girl. The red-haired woman saw this and pursed her lips, rolling her eyes, seemingly displeased with something but not stopping him.

But in the next moment, just as the drunkards began to feel tense and excited, thinking tonight would be worth it because they expected some new spectacle, the girl suddenly grabbed the hand of a little girl beside her and, without saying a word, lowered her head and ran out of the tavern.

This left the man who had been about to approach her frozen in place.

“Hey, where are you going!”

“Hold on—”

The hasty call came from behind, but the girl ignored it, instead quickening her pace, weaving through chairs and people, pulling the little girl out of the tavern’s inner door. She noticed many drunkards gathered at the entrance, peering inside, and many others, unaware of what was happening, whistled loudly when they saw them come out. Someone tried to approach and talk to them, but the girl ignored all the buzzing sounds.

“Sister, what’s wrong…”

“Who is that person? Is he someone you know… Why do you suddenly want to leave…”

“Sister, be gentle, Betty is hurting…”

As they walked through the dirt path outside the courtyard, the girl held Betty by the wrist, running quickly behind her. Betty’s hesitant words made the girl realize she had been holding her too tightly, so she loosened her grip slightly but continued to walk faster without saying anything.

She wasn’t sure if she really wanted to run away.

If she truly wanted to run away, she could simply pick up Betty and use her moon step to leave; even Carlos would have difficulty stopping her. Or she could simply ignore everything and decide to become a coward, brandishing the branch of the white tree and hiding in the land of dragons where no one could find her.

She could do that.

But she didn’t actually do it.

There seemed to be a faint hope still lingering in the girl’s heart. She chose to escape but didn’t follow through completely. As she walked out of the tavern under the arched gate, her steps abruptly stopped.

In the puzzled gaze of the little girl, the girl slowly turned around and looked behind her.

Inside the tavern, the noise was still chaotic. Behind the chaotic crowd, she saw the man chasing after her, stumbling and panicked.

“Little Hill—!”

The man called out her name.

The girl hurriedly turned back, pulling Betty into an alley, continuing to walk silently.

But as they walked, their pace gradually slowed down.

By now, it was completely dark. There were no streetlights in the alley, making it hard to see the way forward. Beside them, there were drunkards mumbling to themselves, occasionally bursting into insane laughter. The air was filled with an unpleasant stench. Betty covered her nose again, but the girl seemed to no longer care about these things.

She let go of Betty’s wrist, her mind wandering, walking with her head down.

“Sister…”

Betty’s voice was muffled, lagging half a step behind, wanting to say something but afraid to speak, looking up at the girl’s back, her face full of confusion and worry.

And then, footsteps approached from behind.