Only God
Chapter 396 - 351: Lovers and Beloved

Chapter 396: Chapter 351: Lovers and Beloved

On the way back to Stephanie’s house, the Princess’s breathing became rapid.

Mira turned her head, and under the bright moonlight, Anos’s complexion was as pale as paper.

"Anos!"

The Princess clenched her silver teeth and pointed to her own chest toward Mira,

"Mira, it hurts..."

Mira understood immediately what was happening.

The Golden Heart was causing pain again.

"Let’s walk fast."

Anos gasped, her chest heaving violently, looking incredibly painful.

Mira heard her agony, her heart ached for the girl, and she quickened her steps as she held the copper mirror high.

The Golden Heart had just started to hurt, and Anos could still endure it for a while, gritting her teeth against the heart-wrenching pain.

Soon after, Anos and Mira pushed open the door to Stephanie’s house, and the Princess collapsed onto the couch as Mira hastily set down the copper mirror.

Anos was drenched in cold sweat, she pursed her lips tight, looking at the girl with hopeful eyes.

Mira chanted softly in the Ancient Language,

"Marasoria."

A pale yellow glow spilled forth, and under the spreading light, Anos’s agony was soothed, her breathing gradually calmed.

Mira watched Anos with concern.

This Ancient Language could only suppress the pain.

It was nothing but a numbing soup, utterly useless for Anos’s underlying issue.

After easing the Princess’s torment temporarily, Mira chanted another Ancient Language to probe the situation inside.

Compared to before, the Golden Heart in her chest seemed to have swollen more; the remaining flesh of her heart was being eroded little by little.

Mira let out a heavy sigh.

The fleshly heart appeared darker than before, while the Gold became ever more dazzling.

Seeing Anos’s dire condition, Mira’s heart tightened painfully.

"Sss...uh..."

Anos groaned softly.

Mira had not maintained the Ancient Language, and Anos was in pain once again.

Mira, in her panic, held her tight and then chanted the Ancient Language to relieve the pain again.

Anos’s eyes closed, under the effect of the Ancient Language, her agony was again alleviated.

This time, the pain was extraordinary; Anos didn’t know how long it had lasted, she only knew that Mira had not let go for a long time, switching hands whenever one became numb, back and forth.

The Princess kept her eyes closed; the pulsing of the Golden Heart told her that if Mira let go, she would pass out from the intense pain.

It was already curfew time, and Stephanie had gone to sleep, the night gently enveloping both herself and Mira.

Anos savored this rare peace; from childhood, she had often lived swinging between pain and dullness, dangers lurking inches away.

Peace, endless peace, save for the sound of Mira switching hands and the girl’s faint breaths, there was silence.

Having Mira was wonderful.

In her faint consciousness, Anos thought so.

After an unknown amount of time, the Princess gradually felt her heart no longer throbbed so fiercely, but she never told Mira, greedily enjoying this peace.

However, peace was not eternal, and in a daze, Anos felt it was about time, perhaps Mira’s arms were numb.

"It’s okay now... Mira."

Anos spoke, surprised by how soft and gentle her own voice sounded.

Mira rubbed her arms; maintaining that position for a long time, they really had gone numb.

The Princess felt the warmth Mira had left on her clothes, and oddly enough, it felt somewhat strange.

After a while, she joked:

"It’s a good thing we didn’t wake Stephanie, Mira, otherwise she might mistake you for my lover."

"Lover?"

Mira asked in confusion, and under the night sky, the Princess couldn’t see her expression.

Anos cautiously said:

"... you mean, within a same-sex relationship, you’ve never heard this word before, have you?"

Mira lifted her face, gazing at the Princess under the night sky.

"I hardly seem like a lover."

She shook her head.

Anos felt an inexplicable wave of melancholy.

The Princess looked at Mira and joked without changing her expression:

"Oh, do you want to be a lover?"

The words fell into Mira’s ears as she looked at the woman before her through the darkness.

Mira feigned indifference with a yawn,

"Hmm... Speaking of which, my mother was involved with love."

Was she changing the subject?

Anos’s gaze dropped,

Perhaps she didn’t want to continue on that topic...

Her Highness quickly recovered.

"Mother, huh...

Do you also have times when you miss your mother very much?"

The Princess’s voice reached Mira’s ears.

Mira clenched her fists,

Why had Anos stopped talking about lovers and sweethearts? She clearly wanted to continue... that topic was so interesting.

Mira couldn’t quite understand.

But once a topic was dropped, it was dropped.

The thin veil of the night stood between them, hiding their inner thoughts from each other.

"When I sleep, I sometimes think of my mother."

Mira started, picking up the new topic.

"Yeah, when I’m in unbearable pain, I think... After the pain at night, I don’t want to shut myself up in my room. I go out for a walk to catch some breeze."

Anos opened her heart to Mira, whispering her own secrets,

"This Golden Heart... was bought with my mother’s life.

That year, I was fishing by the sea when a huge wave hit, as if crafted by the hand of the Sea God, engulfing me in its fold.

Several of my guardians were swept away by the waves, leaving only me ashore, but I fell seriously ill."

"And then... what happened?"

After Mira finished speaking, she couldn’t help but yawn,

"Sorry, I’m a bit sleepy..."

"Oh, you don’t need to mind me. Perhaps you’d better go back to sleep now..."

Anos said softly.

Mira shook her head and said:

"I don’t want to miss this opportunity; you’re telling me your secrets."

Anos paused, then spoke in a softer voice:

"After that, I fell seriously ill. It was as if the Plague God had personally inflicted the disease upon me. During that time, I spent nearly all of it in bed, each day was a blur..."

"In the end, was it the Golden Heart that cured you?"

Mira couldn’t help but ask.

Anos nodded slightly,

"You guessed right. At that time, my mother prayed day and night, but my illness never improved...

Until a mysterious stranger came to our family’s land,

He told my mother that I was supposed to die at that time and that the Death God Nakbet had long been awaiting me there. But due to a stroke of luck, I survived.

To cure me, to drive the disease from my body and stave off my death, there was only one way..."