Roland knocked on the door, and after hearing Nightingale's response, he pushed the door open and entered the room.
The room was covered with thick curtains, and only in the early morning and evening would the window be opened to let in the air. At other times, in order to keep warm and keep out the light, the window would be closed.
The only source of light came from the two candlesticks at the end of the bed. The candles burned quietly, casting two crisscrossing shadows on the furnishings in the room.
He walked to the bed and looked at the woman buried in the soft velvet pillow and bedding. Her eyes were still closed, and he sighed softly.
"How is the situation at the border defense line?" Nightingale came forward and handed him a cup of warm water.
"Everything is going well," Roland took a sip and handed the cup back to her. "Since that day, we haven't encountered a large group of demonic beasts. After the injured militia members returned, everyone's enthusiasm for battle became … somewhat high. "
"What about the damaged part of the city wall?"
"Carr used a rolling log to move the shell of the hybrid demonic beast to the broken part, and also used a winch and a wooden frame to hang it up, making it part of the city wall." Roland knew that Nightingale wanted to distract his attention, so that he wouldn't be overly worried. But as soon as he stepped into the room, all his consciousness couldn't help but gather on the sleeping woman on the bed.
The last time they faced a large-scale invasion of demonic beasts, the biggest contributor was undoubtedly Anna. If she hadn't used flames to seal the gap in the city wall, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
However, after she fainted in his arms, she never woke up.
"It's already been a week," Roland whispered.
In theory, if a person was in a coma for a week without eating or drinking, and without direct external supply of nutrients (such as injections), the body's functions would collapse, and the brain would gradually die in shock. But Anna didn't show any signs of weakness or illness – at least, she looked much better than when she first fell. Her cheeks were rosy, her breathing was steady, and when he put his hand on her forehead, he could feel the temperature of an ordinary person. Everything indicated that Anna was in a healthy state, but … she couldn't wake up.
"This is also the first time I've encountered such a situation." Nightingale, who was standing at the side, shook her head. "The magic power in her body was depleted in that battle, but now it's almost saturated, and it's even denser than before. If I'm not wrong, tonight will be her coming of age day. "
"Are you saying that she will become an adult in a coma?"
"No, she will die in a coma," Nightingale said bluntly, "The pain she suffers on the day of adulthood must be overcome with willpower. Once she gives up the resistance, the magic backlash will irreversibly destroy the witch's body."
Roland moved a chair next to the bed and sat down, "But I remember you saying that when the demon bites the body, no matter how painful it is, the consciousness will always remain awake. Either you get through this hurdle, or you choose to end your life."
"Indeed, there were some people in the Witch Cooperation Association who wanted to pass the demon's bite by falling into a coma, but it wasn't the day of adulthood … it was just an annual torture," Nightingale hesitated, and then continued, "She relied on alchemy to make herself fall into a coma, but it was meaningless … when the magic backlash came, she instantly woke up, but she also lost the ability to resist."
"Doesn't this pain gradually increase?"
"No, when the time comes, the pain will come like Thunder, but how long it will last varies from person to person. My sister is not strong enough, it's just … "Her voice became lower.
Roland understood what she meant, this kind of sentence with an unknown time limit was in itself a kind of torture, not knowing how long you have endured, not knowing how long you still have to persist – it was like a lonely boat drifting in a turbulent sea, it was easy to give up the desire to survive.
In the silence, he felt a hand press on his shoulder.
"During the years of wandering, I've seen too many deaths, witches were treated like livestock, hanged, burned, or tortured to death by the nobles as entertainment props. The witches who were lucky enough to escape could only stay away from the crowd, living a secluded life. They don't know where the Holy Mountain is, it's just an extravagant hope in their hearts. "Nightingale's voice was softer than ever," But Anna is different, apart from the sisters of the Witch Cooperation Association, it's the first time I've seen someone care so much about a witch. She is needed, valued, and treated like a normal person … Your Highness, even if Anna can't survive until adulthood, she has already found her own Holy Mountain. "
But this was not the ending he hoped for, Roland closed his eyes, recalling the scene when he first met her.
Her feet were bare, her clothes were tattered, and she was trapped in a cage, but there was not the slightest fear on her face, her eyes were like the unpolluted surface of a lake, clear and calm.
She was a flame, but not as lively as a flame.
The scene rotated, like a horse lantern.
[I've satisfied your curiosity, my Lord, can you kill me now? ]
[I've never used it to hurt anyone. ]
[I just want to stay by His Highness' side, that's all. ]
[The Demonic Bite can't kill me, I will defeat it. ]
[Are you dreaming? I'm not going anywhere. ]
…
Roland suppressed his turbulent thoughts, whispered, "I will accompany her until the last moment."
"Me too, and … thank you."
After dinner, Nana also came, hearing that Anna was about to reach adulthood, she also insisted on staying. Roland had to arrange an extra room on the second floor for Sir Pine, who accompanied him, to spend the night.
In this way, Roland and the two witches sat around the bed, quietly waiting for midnight.
For Nightingale and Nana, they also had to endure the pain of the Demonic Bite this winter. Fortunately, everyone's awakening day was different, otherwise the three witches would have to suffer the test of life and death at the same time. Roland estimated that he would not be able to pretend to be calm and stay in the room.
There was no clock tower in the town, in the candlelight in the room, the passage of time became blurred. The cold wind blew against the window, from time to time they could hear the whistling sound of the air passing through the window. Just when Roland felt a trace of tiredness in his heart, Nightingale suddenly said: "It's starting."
Only she could see that the magic in Anna's body began to become restless, the green flame became more and more intense, the center part of the incandescent part turned dark, the manic magic gathered in the center, as if it was being pulled by something, it struggled and rolled, but to no avail.
Roland could not see these changes, but he also noticed that something was wrong.
The flame at the top of the candle swayed, but there was no wind in the room. The light emitted by the flame became darker and darker, as if it was being swallowed by the surrounding shadows, and then the color of the flame changed – the orange-red flame turned into a green flame.
He looked at the woman in the bed, Anna was still sleeping, her face did not change in the slightest, as if all this had nothing to do with her.
At this time, the candle was almost completely hidden – it was not that the flame was extinguished, but the green flame was slowly swallowing the orange-red part until the light completely disappeared, and everyone fell into darkness.
But soon, the flame was lit again. Only this time, the flame on the candlestick had turned into a pure green. The three of them were reflected in the green light, staring at each other, a little difficult to understand what was going on.
At this time, Anna's moan drew the three's attention back to her.
She slowly opened her eyes.
"Anna …" Roland was stunned, she woke up?
The woman blinked, smiled at him, then stretched out her right hand, opened her palm, and held it in front of the prince.
A green flame jumped out of her palm, quietly burning.
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