novelraw Chapter 170: Pure and Unblemished
Chapter 170: Pure and Unblemished
Loren went to the market again with Laila. For the next while, he didn't plan on going out casually anymore;
it was better to just have them deliver the groceries.
They wouldn't ask Loren for his reasons either. Whatever Loren did, there was surely a deeper meaning behind it.
After returning home, Laila couldn't wait to go back to her room and try on her clothes. Everyone else carried on as usual.
Not being able to go out didn't affect them much;
they were homebodies to begin with.
Luna was still diligently studying magic. Apart from Scarlett, she had the worst talent, but her Arcane Ability value was the highest.
Naclis was playing the violin in the living room, performing a piece written by Loren, while Anna accompanied her on the piano on the balcony. The house was filled with melodious music.
After all, Loren's earliest title was 'Musician,' and his home indeed had quite a few instruments.
Loren liked this music played on traditional instruments. In his previous life, traditional instruments were basically obsolete. Everyone used AI to compose music, AI to write lyrics, and AI to sing.
In that era, AI became more and more emotional, while people, in turn, became increasingly unhinged. If a person died, they'd shout "good riddance," but if a cat died, they could burn down a whole mountain to bury it with the cat.
This was why Loren felt that world had no future in sight. All kindness came from AI programs, while the living only gave him endless malice.As the piece ended, Loren began to applaud.
"You've already surpassed certain musicians."
This wasn't him comforting Naclis;
it was the truth. People in this Gedlan Kingdom were all chasing fame and fortune. Many musicians were famous because their parents were famous musicians. Those like Loren, who relied on actual skill, were few.
Even if Loren was copying songs, his performance ability was stronger than those worthless hacks. Moreover, Loren's fame didn't come from skill alone, but from status.
People first knew of Loren, the writer of the Hymn, and later knew of Loren, the musician.
With Loren there appreciating her, Naclis played even more vigorously. Amidst the music, Laila, having changed her clothes, made her reappearance.
She wore a white dress, her shapely thighs sheathed in white stockings, and on her feet, a pair of high heels.
In contrast to her elegant and pure attire, her steps were unsteady. She still hadn't gotten used to the high heels, so much so that as soon as she walked a bit faster, her foot twisted.
Seeing she was about to fall, Laila hurriedly used her hands to brace against the floor, doing a handspring to readjust her position. But the high heels on her feet still affected her balance adjustment, and she ultimately fell to the ground.
"..."
Laila covered her eyes in embarrassment. Her ideal entrance should have been beautiful.
"If you're not used to them, you don't have to wear them. What I like is you yourself. There's no need to deliberately change anything."
Loren reached out, helped Laila up, and guided her to sit on the sofa.
Hearing this, Naclis suddenly played several wrong notes, her agitated heart reflected in the music.
Only after the performance ended did Loren step forward to ask Naclis,
"Do you have something on your mind? You might as well tell me."
Actually, Loren could guess the young girl's thoughts. Many children feel resentment when they learn their parents are remarrying. Naclis was having similar thoughts.
"It's nothing..."
Naclis put away her violin and ultimately said nothing. Anna even showed an anxious expression and even casually played a piece of sorrowful music.
"..."
"No matter what happens, I will always be by your side."
Naclis was already an adult, so it was normal for her not to want to voice her concerns. When something like this happens, only a child can cry and shout, "I don't want her!" An adult can only silently accept it. That's why Loren took the initiative to comfort Naclis.
"Me too."
Laila had already stepped into her role. She took off her high heels and walked directly to Naclis's side.
She felt the roles of Naclis and Anna were reversed. The younger one accepted it quite calmly and even actively helped Loren find another partner, while the older one couldn't accept it for the moment.
But her approach only made Naclis more resentful. Laila could only resign herself to this;
this matter could only be resolved by letting Naclis slowly adapt.
After Naclis returned to her room, Loren picked up Laila. Wearing high heels made walking impossible, and bare feet were too cold, so she chose to have Loren carry her.
Back in the room, Laila began changing clothes right in front of Loren, except she never took off her tights, directly putting on trousers over them.
"Why are you dressing like that?"
"What? Don't you like it?"
Laila suddenly stepped onto Loren's thigh, then lifted her trouser leg.
"Anna said you like white stockings."
"..."
Loren silently stood up and closed the door...
...
In the afternoon, Loren locked himself in the laboratory. His research into necromancy had reached a bottleneck. Unlike other magic, many necromancy spells required a medium to cast, and Loren found it difficult to obtain mediums here.
Due to his identity, it was even harder for Loren to get a corpse than for an ordinary person. Before tearing off the mask, Loren's persona had to be maintained.
"Forget it, it can only be this way."
With a thought from Loren, Gwen, who had been sitting on Loren's cabinet, suddenly moved.
Because Mirrorheart often came here, even though she hadn't been used, Gwen didn't gather much dust. After landing, her features began to gradually change. Her hair turned green, her spiral-shaped twin tails became straight, and her face changed too, directly turning into another person, also an acquaintance of Loren.
Having Gwen transform like this was also due to Loren's mischievous taste.
'Killing, arson, Hatsune Miku;
revered by all, Luo Tianyi.' Hmm.
Loren planned to operate another identity to handle dirty work for him. His Loren identity had to remain pure and unblemished. Moreover, with this high-level puppet Gwen here, doing such things was easy.
Although Gwen's physical strength wasn't very high, she could use Loren's various abilities. As long as she didn't encounter Angel-level enemies, escaping wouldn't be difficult when the time came.
[Strength] to break control, [High Tower] to escape. There really weren't many who could keep Gwen. What's more, because she was a puppet, she was immune to mental-level control.
Recently, the Rainbow Plague was rampant. Among the treatments, there were quite a few deceased infected individuals and people killed by the infected. Getting a few corpses wouldn't be hard.
Loren didn't know whether he should be happy or sad. He had the most basic empathy and would sympathize with the innocent victims' plight, but sympathy wouldn't hinder Loren's actions.
I feel for you all, but that doesn't stop me from borrowing your corpse. Compared to useless sorrow, helping you get revenge is more important.
Save the sorrow for after the revenge is successful and the anger has dissipated.
Gwen changed into the clothes Loren had prepared in advance, draped on the black robe, and walked through the wall.
Loren had always been prepared to use Gwen, so he had prepared many things for her, not limited to just clothes.