LRAB Chapter 56 Trial
Chapter 56 Trial
Cecilia could clearly feel that she was dreaming, because the feeling was exactly the same as in countless previous dreams, and she had just been arguing with Mr. Lawrence in his study, so there was no way she could suddenly appear in this place.
As she thought this, she quietly looked around.
Warm lighting, beautiful wallpaper, a cozy fireplace, and—a woman with long, light blue hair by the fireplace.
She had her back to her, so Cecilia couldn't see her face.
"...Who are you?" Cecilia finally spoke after a long pause.
Then she heard the woman chuckle softly: "I've been looking forward to meeting you, Cecilia. I am the gatekeeper of the Lawrence family trials. Meeting me means you are not far from finding your goal."
"Find your goal...?" Cecilia smiled bitterly, her eyes downcast. "But why do I feel more and more lost? I can't even understand what I'm holding onto anymore. After all, even my father and brothers have completely abandoned my aspirations and become the very thing I despise."
"It's just a small setback, darling." The woman stood up from the sofa, gently stroking her head. "Now you need a little help, and that's why the family trial exists."
Cecilia, you need to prove to yourself that what you're holding onto is right.
*
"So that's why you suddenly appeared here?"
By the campfire inside the cave, after listening to what she had said, the boy swallowed the cold, hard bread in his mouth with difficulty and asked a question.
Cecilia, head bowed, used a small stick to lift the charcoal buried underneath and calmly said, "Yes, I think that might be why I suddenly appeared here."
"Oh, looks like you've come to terms with it now." The boy grinned and moved closer. "You're completely different now than when you first woke up. Back then, you looked totally dazed, just spacing out. If you didn't answer my questions, I'd almost thought I'd saved an idiot."
As he recounted his story, Cecilia also recalled events from not long ago.
She had just opened her eyes when she was met with a devastating hurricane.
If it weren't for the stinging pain from the wind blades slicing across her cheek, she would almost have thought she was still in a dream, instead of the family trial that had already begun.
The boy appeared while she was still lost in thought, pondering the principles of the family trials.
"Hey! This place is too close to the border line drawn by Lord Dekalapian, it's dangerous! Even if you want to die, don't do it this way! This kind of death is neither beautiful nor pleasant, and it hurts terribly!"
Before Cecilia could even process what he meant, she was tackled to the ground.
Only after pulling her dozens of meters away from the wind wall did the boy finally let go, sternly reprimanding her: "Didn't your family teach you how dangerous the wind wall is? If you accidentally get caught in it, you'll be instantly cut into mincemeat. Aren't you scared at all?!"
He spoke passionately, but the person being lectured didn't react at all, just staring blankly at his face.
The boy was a little embarrassed, touching his face and complaining, "I told you I should wear a mask when I go out, but Gunnhildr said it wasn't necessary. How could it not be necessary? This handsome face can make people lose their minds. Although I don't make a living with my looks, but—sigh, okay, since you're so unhappy that you're thinking of suicide, I'll let you take a few more glances."
After he finished speaking, he moved even closer, as if he wanted Cecilia to see him more clearly. However, her reaction was not what he expected at all. Instead, she pushed him away with a strange expression.
The boy could tell that this was called disdain.
"Hey, that's really hurtful," he muttered in complaint.
After all, he had just saved her, so Cecilia patiently explained, "I'm sorry for my rudeness. It's just that you look a lot like one of my friends, and I thought I saw him here, which is why I was distracted."
"A friend who looks just like me?" the boy murmured. "That shouldn't be possible. Could there be someone in this world as handsome as me? If there really is, how come I've never met him? It's strange, this place is so small, we should have run into him no matter what, right?"
Cecilia could now see that he was truly narcissistic and talkative, completely different from the Wendy she knew. Even though they had the same face, the feeling he gave off was completely different.
Besides, Wendy shouldn't be in a place like this...
Looking at the completely unfamiliar scenery, and combining it with what the boy had mentioned earlier about "Dekalapian," she finally realized that this was the era of the Lonely Tower King more than a thousand years ago. The Lawrence family became one of the four great noble families of Mondstadt after the battle against the Lonely Tower King.
Why did that person send himself to this era?
While she was still pondering, the boy on the other side had already finished his decision: "Never mind, if there really is someone who looks just like me, I'll have a chance to meet them eventually, there's no need to rush. By the way, what's your name? Where do you live? Since you've done a good deed, why not go all the way and take you home?"
Cecilia was stumped by his question and couldn't answer a single one except for her own name.
Seeing the boy's increasingly suspicious expression, she could only point in a random direction: "My home is over there, no need to trouble you, I can get back by myself!"
The boy's expression suddenly changed, becoming one of understanding.
"I see—" he smiled mischievously, "But if I remember correctly, there's nowhere else to stay in that direction except the border and a lonely cave."
Cecilia quickly added, "Yes, my home is in that cave!"
"Unfortunately, that cave is my and my friends' secret hideout, and we've never seen you there. Cecilia, lying isn't something a good child does!"
He clearly already guessed it!
Cecilia knew she had willingly jumped into the trap he had set, but it seemed he had no intention of holding it against her.
She tentatively admitted to it.
The boy gave him a look that said, "Just as I expected: In that case, I'll be merciful and let you rest in my cave for a while."
And so, things have developed into what they are now...
"Hmm... Cecilia, you're so easily flattered. I just praised you, why are you spacing out again?" The boy waved his hand in front of her eyes.
Wendy had done this move before, and the sense of immediacy was so strong that Cecilia felt for a brief moment that their figures overlapped.
She quickly shook her head, changing the subject: "Anyway, thank you so much for taking me in today. Speaking of which, I still don't know your name."
"You're only realizing this now?" The boy raised an eyebrow and flicked her forehead. "But even if you asked, I wouldn't tell you. My name is a secret; I won't reveal it until my dream comes true!"
Cecilia fell silent.
Perhaps her emotions were too obvious, because the young man couldn't help but explain, "You don't understand, maintaining mystery is a man's romance!"
Cecilia didn't understand, but that didn't stop her from respecting the boy's decision.
"But speaking of which, I don't know whether to call your family heartless or ruthless, to actually dump you in a place like this, just for some so-called family trial. Aren't they afraid they won't be able to get you back later?"
When explaining her identity to the boy, Cecilia embellished the story, leading the boy to believe that she was an outsider who had been sent to the territory of the lonely king in the tower by her elders because of a family trial.
Although it's far-fetched, it's still more believable than telling him that he comes from a thousand years later.
Cecilia calmly replied, "Who knows? But I haven't even figured out how to get through this trial yet. Maybe I'm just destined to be here forever."
The boy, who was rummaging through his backpack, didn't even look up when he heard this: "Don't be so pessimistic. Didn't that person tell you that all you need to do is convince yourself? Maybe you can start learning to hypnotize yourself now, to make yourself firmly believe in something? Don't you want anything?"
"Freedom?" Cecilia blurted out.
But after she finished speaking, she herself realized how outrageous it was.
What is freedom? Now that she has broken free from her father's control, does that mean she has gained freedom?
These two words are far too vague and outrageous.
To her surprise, the boy seemed to really like her answer and immediately became excited: "I knew it! Freedom is something everyone wants. It's no wonder your elders sent you here. After all, where would people crave freedom more than the people here?"
The territory of "Tornado Demon God" Dekalapian, a strange place where everyone is trapped in a wall of wind under the guise of protection.
"Hey, since you're from out of town, you must have seen a lot of things, right? Like the ocean, the forest, and the birds?" The boy's eyes sparkled with anticipation.
Cecilia had expected him to ask some strange questions, and was even worried that she wouldn't be able to answer them given her years of experience confined to the Lawrence mansion. But to her surprise, he ended up saying something so simple.
She nodded: "I have indeed seen these things, whether they are soaring eagles or beautiful flowers, and I have also heard the waves of the sea and the whispers of the forest."
"Wow, this is so cool!" The boy jumped up excitedly. "It's decided! Since you also want freedom, why not join our group? You can compile your experiences into a book, which we can use as a means of propaganda to let everyone realize that what we're doing now is wrong, and that we deserve a wider world!"
"Friend, you think so too, right?"
"Chirp!"
A loud shout drowned out Cecilia's puzzled voice.
She looked in the direction of the sound, bewildered, and suddenly noticed a small, unidentified creature sitting on the boy's shoulder, holding an apple he had taken out of his backpack, munching on it and making sounds of approval.
Cecilia: Huh?
(End of this chapter)
The author says: I finally finished today's update, praise me!
Tomorrow I'm going on a road trip from my grandma's to my maternal grandma's, across provinces. It'll take a very long time, and I get terribly carsick, so I need to avoid using my phone in the car. Therefore, I probably won't have time to update tomorrow. I apologize in advance QAQ