Chapter 002: For Love’s Sake

Tasia’s expression changed drastically as she said, “Nicholas… stop now! Du Fan must not die at this moment… Besides, even if you want to take revenge, you can’t target him… He…”
Nicholas coughed violently, spitting out blood, yet his face turned even redder. He took a deep breath and said, “Tasia, no need to lie to me. I saw it with my own eyes… I saw Alfred die at Du Fan’s hands…”
“Is what you saw necessarily true?”
A calm voice sounded. Nicholas and Tasia turned in surprise.
The sphere of holy light that Nicholas had desperately thrown was gradually shrinking, eventually condensing in Du Fan’s hand to form a burning silver flame. A silver glint flashed in Du Fan’s eyes—unseen by anyone else.
He held the holy flame and smiled faintly, saying, “What a beautiful and sacred flame!”
As he spoke, he turned his right hand again, and this time, the holy flame slowly disappeared into his palm.
Du Fan showed no signs of injury. He glanced at the stunned Nicholas and smiled lightly, saying, “Saint Nicholas, do you really think you’re still the same as before? Am I still the same as before? My strength may remain unchanged, but what about yours? Not only have you exhausted your divine power, but you also lack stamina. Those few moves you made just now must have worsened your injuries even further. If I were you, I would never attack at such a time, because even if you kill me, you won’t have a chance to survive. But for you, perhaps dying after killing me is the best outcome. Still, even if you and Alfred die, where else can you go but to Hell? Are you afraid you won’t be able to meet him there in the future? Then why not do more evil while you still have the chance?”
Nicholas’s expression was unreadable. He had thought that with that attack, Du Fan would be severely injured if not killed outright, but he never expected Du Fan to be unharmed at all. He had already found Du Fan inscrutable before, and now it was even more so. Moreover, as a divine magician, he naturally had an inexplicable sense for divine power, and now he sensed Du Fan’s faint pressure—something truly strange, leaving him extremely puzzled.

Du Fan’s expression was one of a smirk. She glanced at Tasia again and said, “Miss Tasia, though I don’t know what you’re planning, since you saved me just now, I owe you a favor. Please don’t leave. There are still some things we three need to clarify.”
Du Fan’s words were full of ambiguity; those unaware might think she was referring to some kind of love triangle. But the two others present, aside from Du Fan, could sense the murderous intent behind them.
Tasia let out a soft sigh and sat down, but Nicholas remained standing. Du Fan looked at him and smiled again, saying, “What’s this… Didn’t Saint Nicholas send someone to say he must see me? Well, here I am. You’ve prepared this great gift to welcome me—I won’t blame you… But staying like this without saying anything? Do you really think I, Du Fan, have so much time to play around here with you?”
Nicholas’s face paled slightly. His figure swayed, and more blood flowed from the corner of his mouth. His white shirt was covered in red spots, a sight truly terrifying.
Du Fan frowned and watched him, then suddenly sighed, saying, “Saint Nicholas, why go to such lengths? If you’re going to die, please don’t die here. After I hand you over to Lord Anthony, you can die as many times as you want. Otherwise, if you die like this, it might be quiet for you, but my life won’t be easy at all.”
Hearing Du Fan mention Anthony, Nicholas’s expression grew even darker. Finally, he staggered and sat down again, letting out a low sigh before suddenly saying, “I’m sorry, Lord Anthony…”
Du Fan sneered and said, “Besides yourself, who else have you ever satisfied? Although it’s said that those who don’t serve themselves will be punished by heaven and earth, you must be more aware than I am of all the things you’ve done with Alfred over the years that have wronged Lord Anthony and the Holy Church. How dare you even think of settling accounts with me? Ridiculous… Don’t say I didn’t kill Alfred. Even if I did, so what? I was just removing a spy for our Holy Church, eliminating a blasphemer for the Light God… As a divine magician, what right do you have to seek revenge on me? Don’t forget—your so-called divine power was given to you!”
Nicholas trembled. He looked up at Du Fan and asked, “D… really not you who killed him?”
Du Fan sneered and said, “I’m fine. Why would I kill him? Even if I wanted to, I’d need the strength to do so…”

“How then did De die?”
“Of course, it was suicide. Otherwise, do you think you could have survived? If I hadn’t agreed to him, I would have killed you long ago in the Sacred Palace. Would I have given you a chance for revenge?”
Nicholas’s eyes went blank as he stared at Du Fan in a daze, murmuring, “Then whom should I take revenge on? Who should I seek?”
“Who?” Du Fan sneered again. “Who put you in this situation? Seek them—not me! Not Lord Anthony! Not the Sacred Church! It’s Roland Academy. Do you understand?”
Nicholas trembled violently. He reached out and grabbed his hair in pain, his once handsome face twisted into a grotesque mask. Unintelligible sounds came from his throat. After a long while, he spat out a mouthful of blood, with several pieces of black flesh mixed in.
“Is this what it means to have one’s heart and soul torn apart?” Du Fan said coldly. “Since you’ve figured it out, live properly. As long as you’re in the Sacred Church, don’t worry about not having a chance for revenge. If you’re afraid, I’ll avenge you… If you have the courage, then do it yourself. It’s just Roland Academy. As a holy man, aren’t you afraid of them?”
Nicholas’s trembling gradually stopped. He stood up, bowed slightly to Du Fan, and said, “Lord Du Fan… thank you for enlightening me… I finally understand what I should do next.”
Du Fan smiled faintly and said, “If you know, then recover well. Stop doing foolish things… There are many things waiting for you in the future. Don’t disappoint Lord Anthony’s expectations.”
Nicholas nodded slightly. He had regained his holy man’s demeanor. He stared at Du Fan for a long time before sighing suddenly and saying, “Lord Du Fan, I can’t repay you for helping me this time, but I can only remind you of one thing—it’s better not to let too many people see your companion… After all, within the Sacred Church, although not many people have seen that ‘abomination,’ there are still quite a few. Although you have some backing now, if Lord Anthony finds out… even the royal family of the Gavin Empire can’t protect you… You should know what I mean, Lord Du Fan.”
Du Fan was shocked. He stood up abruptly!
This guy actually knew about Chenchen! That meant…
Du Fan stared at him coldly, not knowing what to do for a moment.

Nicholas smiled faintly and said, “Lord Du Fan, do you want to kill me now? But I think there’s no need for that. I’ve told you these things only to let you know, Du Fan, that I have no intention of threatening you… After all, it seems we now share a common enemy, don’t you think?”
Du Fan stared at Nicholas for a few moments before a wry smile finally appeared on his face. He clapped his hands and said, “Nicholas is still Nicholas after all, and the title of ‘sage’ isn’t just an empty title… Alright, I promise you that if we ever deal with those people from Roland Academy, you’ll be included. But for now, you’d better focus on recovering.”
Nicholas nodded slightly, then slowly sat down and closed his eyes.
Du Fan’s gaze swept over Nicholas and then fell on Tasia. Suddenly, he let out a low laugh and said, “Miss Tasia… What about you? What are you planning to do?”
A hint of helplessness appeared on Tasia’s icy expression. She sighed softly and said, “What else can I do? Ever since I joined your cause that day, you’ve intentionally or unintentionally let me know certain things… Now you ask what I can do? If I don’t keep your secrets, is death the only option?”
Du Fan smiled and said, “Of course. I don’t have many secrets right now, but there are enough. If any of them are revealed, I’m doomed. So I have to ask Miss Tasia to bear with me and keep my secrets. Otherwise, I’ll surely take you with me when I die.”
Tasia nodded slowly and said, “I understand. You don’t need to threaten me… Consider it as something I owe you from my past life…”
Du Fan laughed heartily and said, “Then thank you… I still have some matters to attend to. Well, I’ll be leaving now. As for the comfort in this inn, I leave it to Miss Tasia…”
With that, Du Fan pushed open the door and stepped out. In the hallway, he suddenly sighed softly and said, “Tasia… Nicholas… Hmph… Things that can’t be controlled are truly troublesome…”
Inside the room, Nicholas looked at Tasia and sighed suddenly. “Sister Tasia, I do it for love. Why do you have to do it too?”
Tasia remained silent with a cold expression, but inwardly she also sighed. If Nicholas does it for love, doesn’t that mean I, Tasia, do it too…