Chapter 202-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation
Even though Ye Zheng had long known her fate in the original storyline, the moment she saw the preview, her heavily beating heart seemed to skip a beat.
The manga spoiler was only a single scene. A silent scene. The scene of her being killed by Sykes.
The grand hunting grounds had collapsed on one side. Torrential rain poured down upon the ruins. The brilliant lights of the distant palace were blurred and hazy. "Ye Zheng," standing before the wreckage in an elaborate white dress, had shielded the gravely wounded Percy. Sykes, his expression cold and merciless, drove his sword straight through her chest.
Her body began to dissipate, like raindrops splashing against the ground on a rainy night—insignificant, gone in an instant.
Confronting the death of another version of herself was cruel. Even though the "Ye Zheng" in the original manga had already diverged greatly from who she was now, having been exiled through [Fate Singularity], Ye Zheng understood with perfect clarity that she and the "Ye Zheng" of any timeline were two sides of the same coin of fate—inseparable.
—Therefore, even in the original storyline, "Ye Zheng" would never have allowed herself to become a slave to fate!
Ye Zheng broke down every detail of that scene into even finer details, staring at the screen for a full hour, recording every piece of information she could gather.
Of the three main characters present, "Ye Zheng's" long hair obscured her profile, making it impossible to see her expression when Sykes struck her. But the other two people's expressions were perfectly clear.
Percy, with only his left arm remaining, was barely standing due to his severe injuries. He watched this scene in agony and shock. Meanwhile, the sword-wielding Sykes's cold expression showed a crack—his eyes revealed surprise, as if he had never expected Ye Zheng to appear and take the blow meant for Percy.
But the most intriguing expression didn't belong to either of the two young men. In the distance stood a tall Knight, her posture tense. Her expression was drawn somewhat hastily, but one could tell she didn't seem surprised—her face appeared calm compared to the two male leads.
Perhaps this Knight simply hadn't had time to react yet.
But Ye Zheng knew her too well. That demeanor was clearly a combat-ready state, like a bowstring drawn taut before battle.
Wen De, her most loyal Knight Commander, could not possibly have remained unmoved at the sight of her being killed.
Ever since the System had found Ye Zheng and she learned of the manga and the Creator's existence, she had paid special attention to the manga's presentation every time she read the latest updates and spoilers.
The Creator could use perspective shifts, cuts, close-ups, and various other techniques to present the story in whatever way he desired, but he could not fabricate events from nothing or alter what they had truly experienced in this world.
Everyone's reactions in the spoiler scene had to be real. Wen De's reaction proved that "Ye Zheng's" sacrificial death was something they had anticipated!
In other words, even in the world of the original storyline where the plot's irresistible gravity existed and the System had never appeared, "Ye Zheng" had still been secretly pulling the strings behind the scenes!
Realizing this, Ye Zheng broke into a knowing smile, not the least bit surprised. She gazed at the blurred profile on the screen, the faintly upturned corner of the mouth beneath the hair, and for a fleeting moment felt a telepathic connection with another version of herself.
If even the "Ye Zheng" who was shackled by the plot and could barely move could escape the scripted death, then she—now crowned as Pope, holding past, present, and future in her hands—no longer needed to make shattering her destined death her top priority. She would completely snuff out the flames that symbolized darkness and death.
Besides Wen De's demeanor, the weapon in Sykes's hand had also surprised her.
Sykes's [Destruction] was concentrated in his right hand. He didn't like using weapons to attack—after all, any weapon in his hands could easily crumble to ash. There was no weapon more formidable than his right hand.
Yet on that future night, Sykes had actually used a golden sword to pierce through her chest.
A golden sword.
Ye Zheng recognized it at a glance. It was the true Divine Sword—the legendary Divine Sword left behind by the God of Hope.
She had issued a warrant for Percy's arrest to reclaim the Blood of the God, only to discover in the manga update that Percy had stumbled upon the Divine Sword during his escape. This deliberate coincidence left Ye Zheng caught between laughter and exasperation. It seemed the Divine Sword was definitely a key item in the upcoming plot, bound to Percy by some unbreakable connection.
Once, in that labyrinth, she had been the first to touch the Divine Sword. But the Divine Sword had seemed unwilling to belong to her, so she had simply abandoned it, tossing it into a roaming interdimensional Demonic Domain.
Yet the Divine Sword was actually willing to let Sykes wield it. Ye Zheng couldn't understand—how exactly did it choose its wielder?
Ye Zheng stared at the screen. The only thing she could be certain of was that on the day of the coming-of-age ceremony, Percy and his Divine Sword would definitely be there.
Her knuckles tapped lazily on the tea table. Ye Zheng pulled herself from her thoughts and looked up at Wu Shu sitting across from her. Wu Shu had put on her magistrate's hat, the brim pulled low, her eyes casting a faint, observing gaze.
"Wu Shu, I need you to lead a team that day to monitor Percy's movements."
The Pope's coming-of-age ceremony was destined to be a grand affair. Not only would the Royal Knight Order and the Sei Curia's Knight Order be deployed, but the upper district's peacekeeping force would also be responsible for maintaining order around the palace.
"Percy?" Hearing the name, Wu Shu frowned and took a moment to process, leaning forward. "He's a wanted criminal. Why would he walk right into your birthday celebration?"
Ye Zheng offered no explanation. Her calm, dark eyes looked at Wu Shu as she said, "He will appear. Don't alert him. Have someone report to me at all times."
Then Ye Zheng added, "I need you to oversee this personally. I trust only your abilities."
Wu Shu leaned back into her chair, nodded, and said nothing more, accepting the arrangement.
Ye Zheng turned to Bai Muqing and continued, "Muqing, has your Royal Knight Order assigned tasks for that day?"
Bai Muqing's hand holding the teacup paused. She shook her head. "I haven't been assigned any tasks."
"I can only attend your coming-of-age ceremony as a member of the Bai family."
Detecting a hint of loneliness in Bai Muqing's voice, Ye Zheng pondered for a moment and said:
"Then, would you be willing to accept a special mission from the Pope?"
"What?"
"Be my Knight for a day."
By all reason, whether in the original storyline or now, Percy and Sykes were like fire and water—it was impossible for them to stand together, especially since in the original storyline, the person Sykes truly wanted to kill was Percy.
But Ye Zheng had changed too much of the plot. At a glance the story's direction seemed similar, but the actual circumstances were worlds apart.
She was no longer the diligent Saintess playing the healing support role for the protagonist party. She had chased the protagonist party into hiding at every turn, and even the originally designated main villain had to greet her with a respectful "Your Holiness."
When two enemies found themselves facing a common foe—one whose threat far exceeded the other's—any smart person would choose to temporarily unite against the more powerful adversary.
Right now, Ye Zheng was that formidable adversary, powerful enough to turn the two enemies into allies.
If things followed the original storyline and Sykes clashed with Percy first, that would be ideal. But if both of them pointed their swords at her...
"You need me to stay by your side and protect you, and kill Sykes together."
Bai Muqing tried to understand Ye Zheng's words.
"I've never killed anyone. I don't know how to kill. But... I'll try."
She had gradually grown accustomed to Ye Zheng's extreme and unorthodox methods. Even though she couldn't adopt Ye Zheng's way of doing things and couldn't fully agree with her, she had to admit more often than not that Ye Zheng's approach was the optimal solution for the situation at hand.
This time, too, Bai Muqing chose to trust Ye Zheng.
Ye Zheng gazed at her two friends with a smile in her eyes. In the world reflected in her pupils, she too had her own "protagonist party."
Author's Note
Took the high-speed rail home tonight. Will try to write more tomorrow.
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