Chapter 284: She’s Still Just a Child!

“……Daddy?”

A soft, uncertain little voice echoed clearly through the dead-silent Glass Meteor Crater.

Time froze in that instant.

Wendy’s mind completely short-circuited.

In his arms lay a soft, fragrant little silver-haired girl.

This little girl had just been “reborn” from a world-destroying Self-Destruction scene.

And her former self was none other than Laxana, the Doomsday Witch who had loved him to the point of madness and hadn’t hesitated to Self-Destruct for him.

Now, she was gazing up at him with a pair of the world’s most innocent Seven-Colored Eyes, her expression full of dependence.

Then, she called out…

“Daddy?”

Wendy’s expression went through the full process of going blank, cracking, and then completely petrifying in a single second.

I’m not! I didn’t! Don’t make things up!

His inner scream had already blown the top of his skull off, but his body was as stiff as a stone frozen in ten-thousand-year ice, unable to move even a single pinky finger.

“This… this……”

Not far away, Aurelia’s eyes were about to pop straight out of her sockets. She looked at Wendy, then at the delicate little doll in his arms, completely dumbfounded.

And Layana, the Magic Academy Headmistress who had just been drowning in the grief of losing her daughter, was also staring blankly. She looked at that little face which bore seven or eight parts resemblance to her own daughter, yet was infinitely more childish, her lips trembling, her expression complicated to the extreme—hope, confusion, and disbelief all tangled together.

The entire scene fell into an eerily strange silence.

And the one who broke that silence was the little thing in Wendy’s arms.

Perhaps Wendy’s stiff embrace made her uncomfortable, because the little girl twisted her tiny body, adjusted into a more comfortable position, and like a kitten that had found a warm nest, affectionately buried her face into Wendy’s chest, nuzzling gently.

Wendy shuddered all over.

Wait!

This sensation!

He jerked his head down.

Because of her adjusting position, the little girl’s collar had shifted, revealing a small, jade-white neckline.

And those restless little hands were tightly gripping his shirt, seemingly deliberately or not, tracing small circles across his chest through the thin fabric.

The movements were gentle, carrying a child’s natural curiosity.

But to Wendy’s senses, it was no less than a thunderbolt from clear skies!

This technique!

This position!

This subtle teasing sensation!

Wasn’t this exactly one of the little habits Laxana used to love doing to him?!

A chill exploded from Wendy’s tailbone and shot straight to the back of his skull!

She hasn’t lost her memory?!

Or has this already become instinct?!

The girl lifted her head, those clear Seven-Colored Eyes filled with confusion, her little lips pouting slightly, as if wondering why her “Daddy” had suddenly stopped moving. Seemingly sensing the stiffness in Wendy’s body, the little girl in his arms—

“Eep~”

Then, she made a move that nearly scared Wendy’s soul right out of his body.

Her tiny body leaned forward, and her warm, soft lips pressed a kiss right onto the Prince’s Adam’s apple.

“Mwah~”

A soft sound.

Wendy:

“!!!”

It’s over.

Everything’s over.

Barbecue Q’d.

He didn’t even need to turn around to feel the gaze behind him that could freeze the very air solid.

Wendy’s whole body trembled like a leaf in a storm.

“H-heh……”

The next second, he felt his arms grow lighter.

A slender, powerful hand precisely pinched the back of little Laxana’s collar and, like carrying a misbehaving kitten by the scruff, lifted her straight out of Wendy’s arms into mid-air.

“Eek!”

Little Laxana let out a startled cry, her four plump little arms and legs flailing wildly in the air, her face full of bewilderment and innocence.

Astreia held the little thing up before herself, those eyes burning with purple-black demonic flames sizing her up with keen interest.

“Laxana?”

Astreia tilted her head and smiled.

“You sacrificed everything you had, just to turn into this little thing to win sympathy?”

However, the little girl held in her hand simply cocked her head, looking at her with those pure Seven-Colored Eyes full of curiosity, as if she couldn’t understand a single word she was saying.

“Truly… quite an improvement.”

Then, under Astreia’s slightly amused gaze.

Little Laxana puffed out her cheeks.

“Pfft——!”

A tiny mouthful of crystal-clear, Milk-Scented Saliva landed squarely and precisely on Astreia’s flawless face.

The air seemed to completely solidify at that moment.

Wendy’s eyes twitched violently.

Aurelia sucked in a sharp breath.

Layana covered her mouth.

The smile on Astreia’s face disappeared inch by inch.

A single drop of saliva slid slowly down her smooth cheek.

The entire Dream Demon Graveyard—no, the entire flattened World—plunged to freezing temperatures in an instant.

A killing intent more terrifying than anything before erupted from the Witch Queen’s body like a tidal wave!

“You… are… asking… for… it…!”

Word by word, like ice squeezed out from the deepest abyss.

“Wait wait wait! Don’t be rash! Astreia!”

Seeing a bloodbath about to unfold, Wendy’s survival instinct exploded, and he lunged forward, spreading his arms wide without a second thought to block in front of Astreia.

“She’s just a child!”

Wendy was about to cry from panic, pulling out the world’s most classic excuse.

“She doesn’t know anything! She was just born! She didn’t mean it!”

Astreia’s purple-flame Magic Eyes, burning with killing intent, slowly turned to Wendy, her voice cold enough to drop ice shards.

“Move.”

Yeah right! Wendy steeled himself, stubbornly blocking the way.

As long as this little thing was around, Laxana might still be able to come back to life.

If Astreia really crushed her to death, he’d probably be guilty forever…

After all, Laxana had ended up in this state because she wanted to give him Immortality.

And…

For some reason, looking at that incredibly innocent little face, the softest place in his heart had been touched after all.

“Astreia! Listen to me!”

Wendy gritted his teeth and started frantically reasoning with her.

“Look, her mind isn’t fully developed right now—she’s basically a baby! Why would you hold a grudge against a baby? If word of this gets out, it’ll damage your authority!”

“And look! Dean Layana is still right here, and this is after all her… daughter? Isn’t it a bit inappropriate to hit a child in front of her own mother?”

Wendy felt like his eloquence had reached the peak of his life at this moment.

Astreia stared at him intensely, her chest heaving violently, clearly furious beyond words.

And just then.

Little Laxana, hidden behind Wendy and still dangling from Astreia’s grip.

Taking advantage of everyone’s attention being on Wendy.

She quietly, in Astreia’s direction.

Curled her little lips, and flashed a brilliantly smug smile of pure provocation.

Then, she even stuck out her little pink tongue and made a funny face. That look clearly said:

Are you mad?

He’s protecting me~

BOOM——!

The last string in Astreia’s brain, the one named “reason,” snapped completely.