He and It Chapter 94: Dark Sky Sanctuary (29)

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Chapter 94: Dark Sky Sanctuary (29)

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: GaeaTiamat

 

“What the hell are you up to?” Ether, after pondering over Yu Mengzhou in despair, couldn’t help but wonder about Blasphe’s motives.

Blasphe leisurely brushed past him. “No harm done, brother, trust me. Now we’re clear.”

As he bypassed a skeptical Ether and led Yu Mengzhou, Blasphe continued on towards the treasure trove at the bottom.

The spell formations came one after another, like brilliant auroras that washed over the bodies of the passers-by in a continuous stream. As they went deeper and deeper, the dome along the way was synchronized with those auroras and had mountains of orchid-colored ice flowers, so it was as if there was a sudden burst of the heavenly river, that swirled up a tidal wave like a shooting star catching up with the moon.

Without looking, Blasphe skillfully reached out and grabbed the key to the vault from the light of one of the meteors, and then proceeded to tuck it in his sleeve.

“This was laid by Noel at the time,” Gao’er explained to Yu Mengzhou. “But he didn’t remove the defensive formations from the place after we left.”

“For you.” Blasphe added. “Things have changed to such an extent, everyone’s concepts and ideas are no longer compatible, but as long as it’s for you…It’s fine to give in. It’s fine to make peace. It’s fine to do anything.”

“But why?” Yu Mengzhou asked suspiciously. “I really don’t understand. Is it worth it, for me? In our…In the hearts of humans, death is a hurdle that must be faced. I’ve been dead for so long, no matter how unwilling I am. It’s time for you to move on, get on with your lives, go your own way.”

Gao’er didn’t say anything. Blasphe spoke softly, “From my point of view, human beings willingly accept death, not out of true spontaneity, but out of a powerless compromise. Because of their weakness, they are forced to apply embellishments and sing psalms of joy to their eternal rest, and see their education in death as a sign of true maturity of thought and values. As for us? We are demons. Forgetful, forgiving and meek creatures cannot be demons.”

“Destroying and killing…It’s all so easy. But to love and remember causes us to delve in confusion for the rest of our lives,” Blasphe murmured. “You see, before you even death is at your mercy, but if the one you love takes his last breath in your arms, will you ever figure it out? No, you will only be deeply tormented by regret and remorse, which will be a shackle that you will not be able to get rid of for the rest of your life.”

He took the key from his sleeve and pressed it into the door of the lowest treasury.

“Come,” Blasphe said. “All your things are here. Hopefully you can turn Falchion back to his former self, and put an end to this needless internal conflict.”

Yu Mengzhou thought carefully about what he said and nodded wordlessly. The lowest level of the treasury was empty, with only a few large bubbles that undulated and floated like crystals at the very front, covering the hoof trimming tools he used in the past.

The youth looked left and right.

The hoof trimmer was too short to be a good choice for head-banging. The hoof clippers were a good option, but if he couldn’t control the force, he wouldn’t knock Falchion out, would he? The same went for the hoof file, heavy and thick at 40 centimeters…

…And so on.

Yu Mengzhou approached his toolbox.

He suddenly remembered that he actually had a hammer in his toolbox.

That’s right, a hammer. A simple wooden handled hammer with an alloy steel head; a hammer.

It wasn’t a serious hoof trimming tool, it was just used to hammer the nails of the horseshoe firmly in place, and incidentally, to deter a few unsuspecting muggers while walking at night. It was just that when he was facing thirteen Demon Horses in hell, he had been so engrossed in hoof trimming that he couldn’t care less about this horseshoe-specific hammer, so he’d never thought of it.

Yu Mengzhou dug hard into the bubble, felt for the inner pocket of his toolbox, and drew the new, shiny implement from it.

“This is it,” he said solemnly, and turned to Gao’er and Blasphe, who were looking at him wide-eyed. “Let’s go.”

“Are you going to knock…knock Falchion over the head with it?” Gao’er asked numbly, as he did his best to make his expression well-behaved.

Yu Mengzhou nodded. “Yes. Let’s go.”

Blasphe turned away quietly and coughed.

“Then we’ll…Go meet Falchion.”

Chief, you hang in there! He bemoaned in his mind, It’s not that I don’t want to help you! As small and cute as the human is, he’s got a hammer in his hand!

Standing outside the bedchamber, the Prince who had taken charge of the court and the government, looked straight at the armed guards who had passed on the order and took a deep breath.

“Open the door. I want an audience with the Emperor,” he said. “The two princes inside do not have to leave either, just wait a little.”

Among the thirteen Demon Horses, Blasphe was the only neutral faction that didn’t move like a mountain. He voluntarily stayed in the royal capital, because according to Falchion’s kind of tyrannical ruling tactics, it was estimated that the flames of war would soon burn to an unstoppable point. Even though he was the Emperor, he didn’t have the great righteousness like his brothers who rebelled against him, so someone else had to stay and help.

It was that fact that meant Blasphe’s position was second only to that of a monarch with great power here. With the exception of Falchion, he was the equivalent of a chancellor who actually did real work.

The armed guards bowed without making a sound and turned to the Emperor’s chambers. Moments later the dark bronze doors opened again.

Blasphe stepped inside and Falchion raised his head and gazed at him with scarlet eyes.

“Is it time to discuss the shit of the courtiers?” Striker asked with difficulty. “Then why do you want me to stay? Can I go first? My brain hurts just listening to that and I want to kick them all to death.”

“No,” Blasphe shook his head slightly. “This is an exception, not a court issue.”

“Then tell me,” Falchion hissed. “What made you change your mind and bring a traitor who has cut himself off from me before me? I would like to hear your reasons as well, Blasphe.”

Striker’s torso arched violently, and Crusade rolled his eyes as he stared coldly at the side of Blasphe’s face.

The atmosphere in the palace chamber was on the verge of flaring up. Just then Gao’er materialized from the shadows that flowed over the room, as he blatantly appeared in the midst of the enemy’s base camp.

“Don’t get me wrong! Don’t get me wrong,” he held up his hands and smiled falsely towards the group. “It’s not actually me who wants to see you, but another…guest.”

While Striker’s hands grabbed at sharp weapons and Crusade’s tongue gathered incantations that would surely be fulfilled, Falchion rose uncontrollably for a moment, and hissed, “Scent! What is that smell on you?!”

The Monarch of Hell erupted suddenly. The dark shadows he brought with him instantly enveloped the entire high and open chambers, while the air simultaneously stagnated like a chaotic quagmire. Under such oppression, even if Gao’er was the Master of Shadows, he couldn’t have the slightest chance of escape.

However, he wasn’t thinking of escaping either.

-A voice filled with dark anger that raised the provocation high, rang out behind him.

“What smell? Me! Who else could it smell like?”

Falchion froze, and the much-agitated Striker and Crusade were petrified in place. Yu Mengzhou leapt brazenly off Gao’er’s horse back, and the light of his sinless soul suddenly dispersed the shadows that had been cast.

The human stubbornly glared at the Demon Realm’s Emperor and strutted towards him, not hiding the fact that he was carrying a hammer in his hand at all.

“Hi! You!” he exclaimed. “Yeah, I said you!”

Falchion stared at him with undivided attention as his brain went down, and words died between his lips. His eyes were dull as if he were back in the old days. On the surface, he was the chief of the herd, mature and stable, sworn to guide his compatriots out of slavery; but secretly, he used to sneakily gaze at the human, at his smile, his demeanor, his sweat, and the taut body that glowed with power, and when he shouted out loud, his face glowed with freedom and joy.

Hearing Yu Mengzhou’s words, he subconsciously stretched out a finger and pointed at himself.

Yu Mengzhou jumped up and hit the emperor’s chest with a hammer.

“You’ve gone too far!” he shouted with rage. “Why did you let your herd split, and then call them traitors?!”

Even as Gao’er nervously wrapped his tail tightly around his hind legs, he straightened up with joy at the words.

A hammer to the chest from the Innocent One was no joke, and Falchion immediately stifled a grunt, unconsciously covering his heart and bending over.

“Why do you have to use a policy of even draws against the inhabitants of Hell?!” Another angry hammer blow, this one on Falchion’s waist. “They are guilty, but that’s no reason for you to be a tyrant! You think I’d be happy to trade their lives for mine? Then I’ll tell you right now in person that I won’t be happy!”

Falchion immediately sucked in a breath of cold air. He had to press down on his lower back and stomach which were already overflowing with ebony bruises.

“And there’s that!” With his head bowed, it was low enough, so Yu Mengzhou gripped his hammer and, quick as a flash, banged the Emperor on the head with a “bang,” his voice already taking on a sobbing tone, “Why did you have to treat yourself so poorly? I am very sad! If you didn’t know I was upset, well, I’ll say it to you myself now! Seeing you mistreat yourself makes my heart sick!”

Falchion couldn’t make a sound now. His brain ached, his ears buzzed, and his hooves were too weak to support his body, so he had to fall to his knees with a huge collapsing sound, but even after this fatal triple blow, he still stared at Yu Mengzhou without ever taking his eyes off him.

Yu Mengzhou gasped for air and threw away the hammer. His vision blurred as they looked at each other. He sniffled, suppressed the urge to cry, and choked out, “According to my plan, the next step is for us to embrace each other and cry a lot. Does that work, do you think?”

Falchion remained dumbfounded. He opened his arms speechlessly, Yu Mengzhou was silent for a moment, then he rushed over and hugged Falchion with the greatest force of his life.

“I didn’t expect you to be so stupid!” he cried hard and slurred his words. “What were you thinking?! Was it necessary to go this far for me? I’m going to have a heart attack!”

Falchion said in a daze, “…I love you.”

“I really don’t know what to say. How did you become like this? I feel strange seeing you!” Yu Mengzhou continued to hug and cry. “What the hell were you thinking? The family is torn apart. Aren’t you a family now? Why can you only share the pain but not the sweetness?!”

Falchion said in a daze, “I love you.” 

“Say what you will about love…I love you too,” Yu Mengzhou sniffled hard and cried a lot. “Although this is not our oriental language habit, I love you too, and when the time comes, we will go to the farm together to retire. You are also my family!”

Falchion said in a daze, “Yes, I love you.”

Blasphe, “…”

Blasphe woodenly said to Striker and Crusade, “Remember, you can’t leave. When the chief is done, it’ll be your turn in a minute.”

Crusade’s look of joyful sobbing froze, and Striker, teary-eyed and naïve, asked, “What? Is it a hug?”

“Yeah,” Gao’er said, smiling and grimacing at the same time. “I promise, what awaits you will be an oversized hug.”

 

Author’s Note: 

Falchion: *Seeing a human, totally soul-crushed* I love you, I don’t know what to express my love with, but I love you.

Yu Mengzhou: *hits Falchion with a hammer and proceeds to hug him* You’re an asshole, but you’re still my family and I love you!

Falchion: *immediately passes out*

 

Striker: *filled with anticipation* So, will I be next in the hug?