Sorcerer’s Handbook

On a lazy afternoon, sunlight was sliced into squares by the treehouse window, mingling with the aroma of coffee and ink, and spreading like a dip on the carpet where Xiao Xi lay.

Igor sat nearby, holding a book titled The Ten Rules of a Con Artist, with a steaming cup of coffee in front of him. He asked, “Comfortable?”

“Yes, very. Half of me is in the sun, the other half isn’t. I’m half warm, half cool,” Xiao Xi replied, rolling around on the carpet with her large tail. “Irina, come lie down too. Stop reading.”

“No, I prefer—”

Before Igor could finish his refusal, Xiao Xi dragged him onto the floor. The treehouse transformed, the roof opened up, and in an instant, afternoon turned to deep night. The stars sparkled, the Milky Way shimmered, and the countless stars greeted them.

“I thought you would like the starry sky,” Xiao Xi said, lying next to Igor.

“Yes, I am only mesmerized by two things— the starry sky and moral laws. The former represents the greatness of nature, the latter highlights the brilliance of humanity. Only these two things make me feel small.”

“But…” Igor raised his hand to the sky, fingers gently spreading. A Blood Moon, full of oppressive presence, appeared between his fingers. It scattered countless stars instantly, like a giant eye of surveillance dominating the earth. “This is the night sky I’m familiar with.”

“But it no longer exists,” Xiao Xi said, reaching out to crush the Blood Moon. “Whether in dreams or reality, you don’t have to live under the light of this Blood Moon anymore.”

They ventured through ancient forests towering into the sky, mysterious underground palaces filled with traps, eerie cities where residents vanished overnight, mountain villages worshiping mysterious religions… It was unclear whether these were pre-fabricated bubbles of the Dream or treasures from Xiao Xi’s mind. The two girls braved these dangerous lands together, with Xiao Xi charging ahead recklessly and Igor gathering intelligence and solving puzzles. Sometimes they were chased by rolling boulders, other times they marveled at breathtaking, magnificent sights.

Finally exhausted from their adventures, the two lay on the grass under the shade of a tree, inhaling the scent of grass from each other and lazily seeming to want to fall asleep in the Dream.

“Hey, let’s continue playing together tomorrow!” Xiao Xi said enthusiastically. “Tomorrow, let’s challenge the mysterious underwater city. But we should both add Siren bloodlines to ourselves, otherwise, it will be difficult to solve the breathing problem underwater…”

“Just the two of us again?” Igor asked.

“Yes, just the two of us,” Xiao Xi said matter-of-factly. “I don’t want to meet more people. When there are many people, there are conflicts. With more than three people, small groups form, and more voices mean noise.”

“The three words I hate most are humans, society, and communication. My ideal way of living is just the two of us—never lonely, and any conflict can be resolved quickly. We don’t even need to talk; we can understand each other with just our eyes. What about you?”

Igor was slightly stunned. He looked at the sunlight, fragmented by the leaves, and nodded lightly. “Me too. I hate meeting strangers, hate communicating with others, and hate a society full of tangled interests.”

“Right, right!” Xiao Xi excitedly leaned over next to Igor. “It’s a deal. Tomorrow, we’ll continue our adventure together—just the two of us!”

However, Igor didn’t reply. The sunlight quietly receded, and dark clouds took over the sky.

“No need to consider interpersonal relationships, no need to think about conspiracies, just freely use my intelligence, adventuring with the person I trust most, entering uninhabited mysterious places, and witnessing long-hidden wonders… This indeed is my most desired dream life.”

The wind began to blow, and the grass bent slightly. The leaves made a sound like crying.

Xiao Xi: “But?”

“But dreams are dreams because they are unattainable,” Igor said, sitting up. “Dreams that can be easily realized are meaningless.”

Xiao Xi also sat up. “But aren’t we dreaming right now?”

Crack! With a flash of lightning across the sky, it first started drizzling, then turned into a torrential downpour with gusts of wind. The shade of the tree was no longer a refuge for them, and the rain soaked Igor’s hair, blurring Xiao Xi’s face.

“Why is it raining?” Xiao Xi pulled out a large umbrella from somewhere and sheltered herself and Igor together under it. “Irina, do you like the sound of rain?”

“I don’t like the rain, but it always rains here, and I’m always caught in it,” Igor said. “That’s why dreaming is pointless. You can stay with me now, but when you leave, I’ll still be in the rain.”

“I will stay with you until the end.”

“The end and forever are actually the same word, meaning ‘a future so distant that I will break my promise.’”

“But our future is not distant,” Xiao Xi blinked. “When the Weaving Festival ends, that day will be our end.”

“You don’t have to walk the last stretch alone. We bought the same ticket to the end, and we’ll arrive at the terminal station together.”

Igor looked at her calmly. “Are you really going to stay with me?”

“Yes.”

“No regrets?”

“No regrets.”

“Phew.” Igor sighed. “Alright then.”

The rain stopped, the wind calmed, and just when Xiao Xi thought Igor had finally opened up, the ground suddenly shook violently. The earth sunk into an arena, with the surroundings rising to form spectator stands. The spotlight shone only on the sandy center at the bottom.

“Do you know where this is?”

Xiao Xi looked up and saw that Igor was no longer dressed like a literary girl but was wearing a tight combat outfit, wrapping bandages around his arms.

“This is the Deathmatch arena of Shattered Lake Prison,” Igor said calmly. “I used to break the ulna of countless thugs here, plunder the property of numerous bad guys. To put it bluntly, I survived by absorbing the nutrients of the dead.”

“But Irina, you already left-“

“I never left.” Igor shook his head. “I just moved from one Shattered Lake to another. As long as I don’t change, everywhere is a prison that confines me.”

“But you can change now,” Xiao Xi said anxiously. “I will change with you! Don’t you want to escape that loathsome life, to rid yourself of that loathsome self?”

“Yes, I do.” Igor lowered his eyes. “My soul urges me to accept you, my Heart Wall has been completely destroyed by you. Your words, your values, your appearance, everything about you is my ideal type. Although I don’t know who you really are or how you knew my preferences, even if you are a trap, you have completely entered my heart.”

“Then why—”

“Therefore,” Igor took a battle stance, “you must die.”

Xiao Xi was stunned, completely unable to understand the logic of the Con Artist.

“Although I would love to invade the Blood Moon with the Gospel army, there are still many valuable lessons from Blood Moon education,” Igor said coldly. “‘Every relationship that worries you will pollute you,’ ‘Every relationship that makes you feel wronged will hurt you,’ ‘Every relationship that changes you will control you’… Personality freedom is fundamental, especially for a mental sorcerer.”

“If I change to the point where I’m no longer myself, how is that different from being dead?”

“I never kill, unless someone crosses my bottom line,” Igor said seriously. “And my bottom line is—anyone who can enter my heart, anyone who can break my Heart Wall, must die!”

“I already gave you a chance, but you refused to leave.”

“Wait, wait…” Xiao Xi backed away, waving her hands. “Your view of love is flawed. There is selfless love that changes for others in this world—”

“Sorry, but your view is flawed,” Igor said. “The first rule of the Con Artist: believe that everyone in this world is selfish.”

When Igor charged at her, Xiao Xi was dumbfounded.

The information didn’t mention that Igor had this kind of trap—rarely falling for anyone, but once he does, he has to kill them to maintain his purity—how do you find a balance in that?

You Blood Moon people are really messed up!

“Also,” as Igor rushed into her arms, Xiao Xi heard him say something very strange, “I’ve always wanted revenge.”

Revenge for what?

Bang!

With a full-force punch from the Con Artist, Xiao Xi’s figure exploded like a bubble!

“Phew.”

Igor let out a long breath, lying on the sand exhausted, raising his fist high, his face flushed with excitement.

“Damn, I really want to punch him in reality too.”

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