Chapter 20

“I haven’t come to see you in a hundred years...”

The Mayor had lived alone in Winterless Town, trapped in this sealed pocket of time, yearning every waking moment to lay eyes on Drian just once more.

It stemmed from his guilt—he knew exactly what he’d done all those years ago.

That was why Luo En’s sharp words had hit him so hard.

No matter how kindly he’d played the part of a gentle old man in front of Luo En, it couldn’t hide the truth.

He was a liar. He’d deceived his own son. He’d deceived everyone else in Winterless Town.

In the end, this liar had even deceived himself.

“The only one who wanted to freeze Them away was you,” Drian said. “But you handed me this spell and made me cast it myself.”

With that, he fixed the Mayor with a cold, indifferent stare. “You wanted to play the hero, but you wouldn’t shoulder even a shred of the responsibility.”

“You’re right...” The Mayor didn’t deny a word of it. “That’s why I paid the price...”

“The price?” Drian smiled, and there wasn’t a trace of anger in his expression.

But the face on his chest was constantly oozing flames, as if venting the rage burning deep inside him.

“I’m trapped in time now—unable to die...” The Mayor’s voice trembled as he spoke.

Luo En had said some things to him earlier, but he wanted to set the record straight: it wasn’t entirely accurate.

He hadn’t opposed others dispelling the spell for some grand, noble reason.

He just couldn’t bear to watch his son lose his mind, couldn’t accept the monster embedded in his chest.

In that process, Drian would slowly stop being himself.

And unfortunately, it wouldn’t take long at all—maybe a week, or even just a day.

All this time, the Mayor had sat idly in front of his cabin, doing nothing but running from the truth. The shattered photo frame had been the final straw, the one that broke him.

In the end, he’d released the Snow-White Squirrel, sending it to guide this visitor.

Why Luo En, of all people? Why now? He couldn’t answer that himself.

He just wanted one last look at his child, then to confess everything he’d done wrong.

But his words didn’t move Drian in the slightest.

“Father, if that’s the case, why not just die right now?” Drian said with a smile. “What, do you want immortality?”

Ever since that day when the Mayor had tricked him—made him unroll the scroll in the middle of town—Drian had refused to acknowledge him as his father.

“You’re the one who implanted the Evil God. You’re the one who sealed it away.” Drian’s smile seemed calm on the surface, but it carried a savage edge.

The Mayor searched those murky eyes for some hint of understanding, but all he saw was pure fury.

Hypocritical, insidious, cunning, ruthless—the Mayor’s entire past had left Drian utterly disillusioned.

“You should’ve implanted the Evil God in yourself, just like us,” Drian said softly. “Then you’d finally get it.”

He thumped his chest where the Evil God dwelled, and a dull, drum-like thud echoed around them.

“It healed our sicknesses. It gave us power.” Drian’s voice rose. “And yet you—the one who brought It to this town—call It evil.”

“Without a doubt, you’re the one who’s wrong.” He stared intently. “The Evil God’s malice is only for those who don’t worship It. To us, It’s not evil at all.”

In that moment, after years apart, the Mayor looked utterly deflated as he spoke to his child again.

He’d probably hoped that once Luo En freed his son from the seal, they could have a proper reunion.

But reality dealt him a crushing blow—one that wasn’t at all surprising.

The people sealed in ice were on the verge of waking once more.

Even so, these madmen could never escape the Time Prison, no matter what.

After all, it was a spell the Mage Tower had crafted specifically for the Evil Gods—a vicious curse on everyone in town.

The Mayor set his cane aside and dropped to his knees, clasping his hands tightly. “I’m sorry... Vandall... I’m sorry...”

Even knowing no one could ever leave Winterless Town, Drian’s words still cut deep.

After all these endless years, he still couldn’t make peace with what he’d done.

“If you can... please tell me... how do I atone now?” A mournful whisper escaped his thin lips.

“Vandall?” Drian burst out laughing. “Father, even now, you haven’t changed a bit.”

“You know, back then you told us not to trust Vandall—that we should trust the Evil God instead.” He paused. “So what are you doing now?”

The Evil God in his chest spat flames, letting them spread across his entire right arm. Veins stood out beneath the skin, pulsing like molten lava.

Drian swung his arm toward Luo En and the Mayor, and flames erupted without warning into the cold air.

“First, the outsider.” The heat wave slammed into Luo En, hurling him against the wall.

“Then you, Father.” Drian approached the Mayor and snatched his cane away.

Without a hint of mercy, he drove it straight through the Mayor’s gut, then shoved him aside.

The frail Mayor collapsed into a pool of blood, the cane buried deep in his abdomen.

The end of the cane, where Drian had gripped it, sparked and sizzled, leaving scorched black marks once the embers died.

The Snow-White Squirrel let out a mournful cry beside the Mayor, but no one paid it any mind.

Drian didn’t even glance at whether his father lived or died. He strode straight to Luo En. “Tear up that Magic Scroll in your hand.”

If the Magic Scroll was destroyed, everyone sealed away would awaken.

Right now, Drian’s mind was as consumed as his body, burning in endless flames.

He wanted to grow. He wanted to keep growing. But the purpose of that growth? It didn’t even cross his thoughts.

The Evil God urged him on, pushing him to free all the sealed people and escape Winterless Town.

“Tear it yourself if you want it gone.” Luo En didn’t obey. Instead, he instinctively shoved Drian away.

In the instant he’d been thrown, he’d gone with the force, stumbling back a few steps. Otherwise, he’d probably be out cold by now.

The old Luo En never could’ve reacted like that. But in that moment, it had felt right—instinctive, like a battle-hardened warrior forged in a thousand fights.

Even the burst of strength he used to shove Drian aside was something Luo En had never possessed before.

It might have been the effect of achieving "Warrior First-Rank," or perhaps the results of that hellish training.

Either way, it had brought Luo En back to life.

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