Who exactly is in Chapter 229?
Who exactly is in Chapter 229?
"Principal Theresa, Brother Qiong is really brave. He fought against so many monsters all by himself..."
Under Qiong's extremely flattering words and eager attitude of admitting her mistakes, Theresa's anger, which had originally been on a accusatory stance, had already subsided by three points. After hearing Seele's account of Qiong's actions (of course, only the part in Weiming City), Theresa's eyes softened considerably.
Not bad, they didn't embarrass St. Freya!
"Child, it's not your fault."
Theresa, who had been thinking of punching someone, now moved closer to Qiong and extended her little hand.
Theresa tried to reach out and touch Dom's head, but she quickly realized that even if she stood on tiptoe and stretched out her hand, she might not be able to reach the top of Dom's tall and strong head, so she quickly withdrew her hand silently.
"Although you couldn't protect them, you bravely stood up to help them. You truly deserve to be a student of St. Freya."
Theresa's tone was full of approval, which relieved Qiong. She should have escaped unscathed, right?
He looked around, and Bronya nodded rhythmically in agreement with Theresa's words. Seele, who had finished speaking, smiled to the side, genuinely happy for Sora—or perhaps happy that she had helped Sora.
"but!"
"That's enough, I have something to say!"
After Theresa says "however," Qiong can roughly guess what will happen next: criticize herself, then give him a seemingly insignificant punishment and a pointless lecture. But what Qiong wants is not leniency, but an acquittal!
"After emerging from the Sea of Quanta, I gained a holy mark on my neck."
Under the unfriendly gaze of Theresa, who had been interrupted, Qiong squatted down, exposing her neck.
As long as the topic is diverted by the Stigmata, Theresa's little brain will probably forget his punishment. By the time she remembers, she will have already run off somewhere with Bronya and Seele.
"You brat... never mind, turn around and let this headmaster see your stigmata!"
Become!
Qiong's lips unconsciously curled up. Her dear headmistress was still too easy to fool.
Sora turned around, letting Theresa get closer to examine it—of course she knew Sora had a stigma on her back; Himeko had told her about it last night! She hadn't seen what it looked like, but she could roughly guess. If it was bloodline activation, it would be something like Kaslana's in the Schicksal Record…
"Headmaster, don't blink!"
To increase its appeal, Qiong also brandished its Flame Spear.
"Don't vandalize my office!"
But Qiong did not put away the Flame Spear. After a moment, the flame of the Flame Spear turned from red to purple, and Qiong herself began to "fade".
"It actually has this effect?!"
Although we can't see Theresa's expression, judging from her voice, she was probably quite surprised.
"How could this be? This sacred mark?"
Qiong herself hadn't seen the stigmata on the back, but judging from Lao Yang's description, it seemed to be Kiana?
Well, if I saw my niece tattooed on a male student's neck, I probably would find it hard to believe too—but now, if I gave him a piece of heavenly fire, put on sunglasses, and changed his clothes, who would know which one of them was Kevin?
"Yes, that's right, I should have thought of that..."
There was no disbelief as Qiong had anticipated, only Theresa's "sudden realization".
"Headmaster, do you know what this Stigmata is, Qiong-gege?"
Qiong: ?
Doesn't Bronya even recognize Kiana?
“Yes, I know, it’s my good friend, Kiana’s mother, Cecilia Shaniat…”
"Huh? Headmaster, are you getting old and your eyesight is failing?"
What Cecilia? Shouldn't it be Kiana? Qiong still agrees with Welt's assessment; Old Yang couldn't possibly not distinguish between mother and daughter, could he?
Qiong put away his Flame Spear and tried to turn around to talk to Theresa, but a pair of small hands landed on his shoulders, preventing him from standing up and turning around.
"Don't move, let the headmaster take a good look!"
Fine, I'll squat here a little longer.
In Theresa's view, that stigmata was extraordinary: even in the well-lit headmaster's office when Sora's hair turned white, the Cecilia stigmata still emitted a mysterious and faint purple light, which was enough to prove that it was extraordinary.
“I’ve seen Kaslana’s Stigmata, and I’ve seen Shaniat’s, but neither of them are like yours…”
Theresa's voice trembled slightly. She was overwhelmed with mixed feelings as she saw her long-lost friend again in this way.
"Qiong, can you make your hair white again?"
Looking at the dome that had returned to its gray fur state, Theresa reached out and touched his head.
"We'll talk about it later."
"What holy marks?"
A group of people were gathered in the office telling stories, and Yae Sakura lost her interest in working. That's how work is. You can work alone or in a group, but if you're working alone and a group of people are chatting next to you, even the most diligent secretary like Yae Sakura will have to slack off for a while, just like Theresa.
Of course, you have to slack off legitimately in front of the headmaster, like peeking over to see the stigmata on Dora's neck that she just played with in her hair and the color-changing flames...
"Karen?!"
Wait, weren't we just talking about Cecilia? Why is Kallen here now?
"Yae-sensei, you must have seen wrong."
"There's no mistake, absolutely no mistake! I couldn't possibly mistake Karen!"
Yae Sakura was certain it was Kallen, and Sora also believed that Yae Sakura wouldn't joke about Kallen, but Sora still found it hard to accept such an outrageous conclusion... Who exactly is this Stigmata? Why is it Kiana, Cecilia, and now someone talking about Kallen?
These people all seemed to be quite authoritative. Walter wouldn't speak carelessly, and Theresa couldn't possibly mistake her friend for someone else...
Yae Sakura? When it comes to authority on the Kallen issue, Yae Sakura is definitely in the top three – it's hard to say who ranks second or third, but first is of course Bishop Otto.
Although things didn't go as planned, Qiong still stood up and talked to everyone face to face.
"You two, I feel it should be Qi..."
Theresa and Yae Sakura's gazes both fell on Sora, causing him to involuntarily shiver—why did it feel like these two were gleaming with green light in their eyes?
"Qiong..."
Theresa's tone suddenly softened considerably, and Qiong felt that she wouldn't be punished this time.
"From now on, you can call me Auntie, just like Kiana does."
Qiong: ...
"Um, it can't be that bad, can it?"
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"Karen..."
"Kallen is dead, Karen is dead! Can't you look forward? Stop seeing everything in a way that reminds you of that woman!"
Theresa left with the others, leaving Yae Sakura alone in the office once again. She had no interest in working now, simply sitting there quietly, reminiscing about everything that had happened in the past: about Yae Village, about Kallen, and of course, about her return and her encounter with Sora.
But as she sat there quietly, lost in thought and muttering about Kallen, Hishimaru became increasingly agitated.
Suddenly, a judgment flashed through her mind that seemed ridiculous at first glance, but upon further reflection, it seemed quite reasonable.
"Hiyokumaru, do you think it's possible that Sora is Kallen?"
"You're obsessed with that woman!"
“Yes, that’s right! Look, Sora and Karen are the same; they have the same hair and face—”
"That kid has gray hair! And they don't look like them at all!"
"And he also has the virtue of helping others! Moreover, he even briefly gave me Kallen's Stigmata..."
Hiyomaru felt that he, the one who had been with her for eternity, had probably gone mad. Was every white-haired person Kallen? Was the world just a giant Kallen in Yae Sakura's eyes?
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After reading a bunch of news (all Trump's fault), I realized... my procrastination is incurable?
I need to find a solution, it's extremely urgent. Staying up all night writing requires repeated revisions due to energy issues and a lack of inspiration, and I'm not feeling well the next day…
Ugh, headache. Late at night is no good for writing (but it's perfect for pulling an all-nighter like Victoria 3).
funbook-pk