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Chapter 508.2: A Life for A Life (2)

“According to the ancient apocalyptic prophecy, humankind is already reaching its final years. This can be seen just by looking around—the Savior and the Mother Goddess are awakening from their slumber, and the Six Calamities and the deviants are wreaking havoc everywhere.

“With the apocalyptic prophecy slowly coming to be, humankind has started uniting to fight these irrationalities. In times like this, those who wield the power to suppress the Six Calamities like us will be valued more than ever. We’ll be granted the highest level of protection, for we are humankind’s hope in overcoming this ordeal,” explained Roel.

“You’re right! Most people would have turned a blind eye to our plight if it had happened during a peaceful era, but if our strength proves to be vital to ensuring the survival of humankind…”

Hearing that the entire humankind would be backing them was highly galvanizing to Charlotte. Roel nodded in acknowledgment of her words.

Had this happened before the disappearance of Tark Stronghold, before humankind had a clear glimpse at the danger posed by the Six Calamities, Roel and Charlotte would have likely been doomed to deal with the Six Calamities by themselves.

No rational leader would devote their resources to protecting two strangers, after all.

But everything changed the moment Tark Stronghold and its hundred thousand troops vanished to the colossal mouth of Shrouding Fog. Humankind panicked upon learning what the Six Calamities were capable of. They were forced to categorize them as a major threat.

These changing circumstances meant that Roel and Charlotte were far more important than they used to be. As the only ones known to be able to curb the Six Calamities, the other countries wouldn’t dare to turn a blind eye to their plight.

Otherwise, they would be the next ones to fall.

“If a confrontation with the Six Calamities is inevitable, at least it’s happening in this era. Furthermore, the awakening of the Mother Goddess could be an opportunity to resolve this problem once and for all,” said Roel.

Neither Roel nor Charlotte could accept the notion that their descendants would live under the constant fear of being hunted down by the Six Calamities.

The fact that the Six Calamities were a conceptual existence meant that they would eventually regenerate, even after being killed. For that reason, their ancestors could only passively retaliate against the Six Calamities whenever they appeared.

However, the awakening of the Mother Goddess, the origin of the Six Calamities, could spell an opportunity for them to get rid of those ancient monsters once and for all.

“I don’t want our children to have to go through the same things we did. I want to pave the way for them to lead a peaceful life. That’s what my goal is, and I’ll make it happen no matter what it takes,” Roel vowed.

“But darling, is it… possible? The Mother Goddess has been a supreme existence since the ancient era,” asked Charlotte.

“To be frank, I don’t know. We know too little about the Mother Goddess…but it’s at least something we can slowly work toward.”

Roel tightened his arms around Charlotte as he gazed at the distant sky with uncertain eyes.

Charlotte took some time to digest everything she had just learned. Then, she slowly shook her head as a smile reappeared on her face.

“I understand your concerns now, but that doesn’t change my decision.”

“Charlotte…”

“We’ll protect our child together if those monsters ever seek to harm him. Isn’t that the reason we’re working hard now? Besides… this is the only way I can compensate you.”

“Compensate me? For what?”

Roel looked at Charlotte in confusion.

Charlotte chuckled seductively upon hearing his question. With a slightly reddened face, she climbed onto his body and wrapped her hands around his neck.

“I can\'t let the fool who nearly lost his life trying to save me go unrewarded. A life for a life. I’ll compensate you with one down here,” Charlotte whispered into his ear as she glanced at her womb.

“!”

“Darling, your heart is beating really fast… Are you that excited about having our child?”

“… You only got that half right.”

Looking at the charming woman hanging on his neck, Roel’s lips curled up as he pulled her in closer.

“One is far from enough.”

…

What does it mean to recuperate in peace?

Roel Ascart’s interpretation of this concept was largely influenced by the knowledge of his previous world—a bed surrounded by four white walls, a fruit basket on the bed side table, an IV drip inserted into the arm, and, god forbid, dreadful hospital meals.

The Sia Continent didn’t seem to follow the same conventions, at least based on what Roel was currently going through.

For one, the concept of an IV drip didn’t exist in this world of supernatural powers. There were healing spells, yes, but nourishment still had to be orally consumed. This typically wouldn’t have been a problem, if not for the fact that doctors here paid zero attention to the taste when preparing tonics.

He would be lucky if his tonic only had a charred taste, but over the past few days, he had tasted one with a mysterious bitter taste, one with a sulfuric stench, and all sorts of weird flavors. To make things worse, the portions were, by no means, small.

This was practically torture for a gourmet like Roel!

He had thought that his breakthrough to becoming a high transcendent had strengthened his constitution to the point where he could withstand most trivial issues, but a single sip of the Sia Continent’s tonic proved him wrong.

“Uweh!”

After retching for the umpteenth time in his attempts to swallow the tonic, Roel was forced to conclude that he was physically incapable of ingesting that biological weapon.

So much for the adage that bitter medicine is good for you.

On the other hand, Charlotte had refused to take the tonic right from the very start. It wouldn’t be fair to simply label her as a spoiled child—she had been through her fair share of suffering from a young age due to her responsibilities as a Sorofya. That being said, she had never compromised on her quality of living before.

That led to her being extremely picky when it came to food.

Back when she was staying in the Ascarts’ manor to research the Golden Fleet, she had grumbled more than once about how the Ascarts’ cuisine didn’t fit her palate. She claimed that she wasn’t able to eat much and that it was affecting her productivity. She even tried to bribe Roel to change the menu…

… and it worked.

Unable to resist the allure of money, Roel shamelessly betrayed the ‘salt gang’ for the ‘sugar gang’. Sweetness became a compulsory element in everything that was to be ingested, ranging from appetizers to main dishes, and even their tea as well.

It was also during that time that Roel introduced the Ascart Fiefsom’s sweet wine to her, which swiftly became her favorite alcohol. Quoting her words, ‘Sweetness is the taste of happiness’.

With such a history behind her, it was to no one’s surprise that she refused to consume the repulsive tonic.

Grace and the others were understandably worried about it. Charlotte hadn’t fully recovered yet, and it would pose a problem if she refused to eat her medicine. Thus, they approached Roel in hopes that he could do something about it.

As a matter of fact, there was an exception to Charlotte’s pickiness.

Over the past month, whenever Roel personally fed her food, she would try her best to swallow it no matter how much she disliked it. The same ought to apply to the tonic too.

Roel accepted their request, knowing that it was all for Charlotte’s sake. Unfortunately, he had underestimated just how potent tonic was.

When he attempted to feed her the tonic, she did try to approach it despite the look of disgust on her face. However, she couldn’t bring herself to ingest the horrid tonic. It got to a point where she began begging him to spare her with pitiful eyes.

“… Wuuu. Darling, can I not drink it? Please, I really can’t do it.”

Roel’s determination crumbled before her tearful face.

“Alright, alright. We shan’t drink this anymore…”

He quickly removed the awful tonic before comforting her with his embrace. It was from then on that she got a free pass from the tonic.