In this realm of supposed despair and madness, Teda felt no fear of death, nor did he taste unbearable sorrow.

Teda was not entirely indifferent; now absolute tranquility filled his mind. It had been a long time since Teda last felt this; his exhausted will found liberation, eternal rest was near, only waiting for him to handle the last affairs.

He firmly embraced the cold shell and whispered intimately to it, speaking words only Teda could comprehend.

"I was genuinely happy when you escaped; you finally left, escaped this destined fate, and began a new life."

Teda controlled the entire Alchemy Workshop. Aimou thought her escape went unnoticed, but every time she left, Teda realized it, yet he still allowed her to go.

"I don't know how to explain my feelings; it's so complex, and I'm too old, having faced too many setbacks. It's hard for me to understand and handle these matters well."

Teda's tone gradually lightened, confessing to the corpse.

"I cannot sever my connection to Alice, nor dare to form a new connection with you, because life is such that when a connection is established, there always comes a moment of rupture.

I've experienced loss once; to avoid losing again, I accepted no one..."

Teda chuckled self-deprecatingly, as Alice waved countless arms like a deformed spider quickly approaching from afar.

"I suppose this is also my way of shirking responsibility, but I am trying to change..."

Teda was silent for a moment, then continued.

"During my time at the Order Bureau, there was a game called black and white chess that was popular within. There is a term in it, called the forced move dilemma.

The general idea is that no matter how you play, the situation only worsens, and yet it is your turn; you have no choice but to make a move."

Teda displayed a numb smile and shook his head.

"One always has to make a change, regardless of whether it is good or bad, right or wrong. When decisions arrive, we must choose a path.

For instance, to continue down this road until self-destruction, thus fulfilling my desire, and ending my own life.

I've always felt that death is fate's last mercy to humanity, that when you can no longer hold on, you can just end it all through death.

This is also how I've been planning, to use death to end my uncontrollable thoughts and pain."

Teda picked up the Constant Motion Core and placed it back into Aimou's broken chest, but it was not enough to awaken Aimou, for when the Constant Motion Core was removed, flesh devoured the internal mechanical structure.

"Yet you returned, using your death to punish me."

A fiery glow rekindled in Teda's eyes, this time with Ether's radiance stronger than ever, as if a blazing sun was embedded within deep sockets.

"I deserve punishment, but not at the cost of your death."

Alice arrived right in front, slender fingers merged into sharp blades, slashing down towards Teda's head, driven by absolute hunger, capable of swallowing even cold rock without hesitation.

The sharp bones could tear through steel, yet they halted inches before Teda, unable to descend.

Alice couldn't comprehend what was happening, clearly Teda should have been exhausted, so how could he still possess the power to resist?

Teda paid no mind to the monster that was so close, only gazing at the cold visage in his arms.

"If you wish to summon a Devil, first you must know his name."

Teda whispered that sinister name, as if uttering a spell.

"Tyrant Mammon."

A grand force descended upon this place, disturbing the workings of the world, stealing brief moments of time, and in an instant, everything stagnated.

In the stagnation, the Sea of Mist boiled, surging upwards like overflowing tides, engulfing the battlefield in the blink of an eye, placing everyone within the mist.

In this dark and blurry world, a sinister and frenzied voice sounded, gently responding.

"Your summons... I heard it."

Teda saw all light fleeing the place, then fell into complete darkness.

In the darkness, one dim light after another illuminated, and a red carpet stretched forth, reaching the end of the darkness where a mountain of Mammon Coins lay, and beneath this endless wealth, a chaotic figure seated behind a desk.

The Tyrant crossed his legs, hands resting on his knees; this time he did not appear through Vika's body but truly, in his own entity, sat before Teda.

This was a domain exclusively for the Tyrant, transcending space and time, harboring endless souls.

"So, what is it that you want, Teda Yazhede?"

The Devil questioned, listening to his wish.

Teda didn't immediately respond but looked at the cold shell in his arms, which had accompanied him into this unusual domain, the Constant Motion Core still within that incomplete chest, with the Fantasy Species emitting a faint glow.

"Resurrect her? That's beyond my capability, even I cannot change what has already happened." The Devil sneered.

"Resurrect? No, she was merely an Alchemy Puppet; she never truly lived, so how could there be death?"

Teda shook his head, unfazed by the Devil's words.

"As for being unable to change what has already happened..." Teda looked at the Fantasy Species entwined around the Constant Motion Core and continued, "None of this has happened yet."

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