Free Web NovelChapter 52: The final day
By late afternoon, the distant walls of the Magneto Kingdom’s border checkpoint finally came into view.
Tall stone barricades stretched across the road while armed soldiers patrolled the battlements above. Several wagons sat lined up outside the gate waiting for inspection while banners bearing the crest of Magneto fluttered in the cold wind overhead.
The moment I saw it, my stomach tightened slightly.
There was absolutely no way we could pass through normally after everything that had happened.
I slowly looked toward Lillith sitting at the front of the wagon.
"...How exactly are we sneaking through that?"
Lillith glanced back over her shoulder calmly.
"I already have a plan."
The moment she said that, I became suspicious instantly.
Every single one of her "plans" recently had somehow involved either unconsciousness or multiple deaths.
Then slowly—
Lillith turned fully toward me with a soft smile on her face before raising one hand toward me.
Her fingers were fully open.
Immediately, recognition hit me.
That exact movement.
The same thing she did before I blacked out while she dealt with Kael.
The same thing she did before she supposedly "purchased" the wagon from the merchant.
My eyes widened.
"Oh no."
The second purple mana faintly started gathering around her fingertips—
I launched myself sideways off the seat instantly.
"Absolutely not!"
Lillith blinked in surprise as I nearly threw myself across the wagon trying to avoid her hand.
"...Leo?"
I pointed at her accusingly.
"What were you planning to do after putting me to sleep this time?!"
Lillith tilted her head innocently.
"Sleep?"
"Yes sleep!"
"I have no idea what you’re talking about."
I stared at her blankly in disbelief.
"You literally waved your hand at me!"
"I wanted to touch your face."
"That is not convincing anymore!"
Lillith sighed softly before slowly crawling closer toward me inside the cart.
"You really should stop dodging my love."
"That sentence becomes more threatening every time you say it."
"It’s romantic."
"No it isn’t!"
Lillith ignored me entirely.
Then suddenly—
She disappeared.
My eyes widened.
A split second later I felt soft fingers gently brushing against my cheek.
I physically flinched.
Lillith had somehow instantly appeared directly beside me.
Purple mana flowed softly around her fingertips while she gently rubbed my face with a disturbingly affectionate expression.
"There."
Her voice sounded satisfied.
"I touched it."
"LILLITH—"
The purple glow intensified slightly.
Almost immediately, heaviness spread through my body.
My limbs weakened.
My vision blurred.
"No..."
I weakly tried pulling away.
But Lillith simply smiled softly before cupping both sides of my face gently.
"You should rest."
"...You’re definitely murdering someone again..."
Lillith looked deeply offended.
"You accuse me of terrible things."
"...Because terrible things keep happening..."
The last thing I saw before darkness overtook me completely was Lillith smiling down at me lovingly while stroking my hair.
Then—
Nothing.
...
Consciousness slowly returned sometime later.
The first thing I noticed was movement beneath me just like last time this happend.
The second was the sound of wagon wheels rolling across dirt.
I slowly opened my eyes.
The wagon ceiling came into view above me while dim evening light filtered through the openings at the sides.
My body still felt heavy from whatever spell Lillith had used earlier.
Then suddenly—
"Good morning sleepyhead."
I slowly turned my head.
Lillith sat at the front of the wagon holding the reins while smiling brightly at me. The moment she noticed me trying to sit up, her expression softened immediately.
"There you are."
I narrowed my eyes suspiciously.
"You made me fall asleep again."
Lillith blinked innocently.
"I have absolutely no idea what you mean."
"You mana-drugged me!"
"That sounds incredibly illegal."
"Because it probably is!"
Lillith giggled softly afterward before glancing ahead toward the road again. free𝑤ebnovel.com
"We’re only a few hours from the Aldric territory now."
That immediately caught my attention.
"Really?"
"Mhm."
The orange glow of sunset stretched across the horizon while shadows from the trees slowly lengthened around us.
"But since it’s getting dark," she continued softly, "we’ll need to camp one more night."
A while later the carriage eventually stopped beside a clearing near the road.
The moment the horses halted, I immediately pushed myself upright.
Lillith noticed instantly.
"...What are you doing?"
"Helping."
"With what?"
"The camp."
"No."
I blinked.
"No?"
"You still need rest."
"I’ve done nothing but rest for almost a week!"
"You need more."
"I’m fine."
Lillith narrowed her eyes slightly.
"Leo."
"What?"
"Sit down and look cute for me if you really want to help."
I stared at her in disbelief.
"That is not a task!"
"It is for me."
Something inside me finally snapped slightly.
Maybe it was frustration.
Maybe pride.
Maybe I was just tired of constantly being treated like I’d shatter if someone breathed near me.
Without responding, I turned and moved deeper into the wagon toward one of the larger supply crates.
If she wanted proof I wasn’t helpless—
I’d prove it.
Outside, Lillith had already begun setting up the campfire when I crouched slightly and grabbed the sides of the heavy wooden box.
Then I lifted.
For one brief second—
It worked.
Then—
CRACK.
A sharp snapping sound echoed beneath me.
My eyes widened instantly.
The prosthetic split apart under the pressure.
Before I could react properly, my balance vanished completely.
I slammed hard against the wooden floor of the carriage alongside the crate with a painful crash.
"...Ah—!"
The next second Lillith appeared instantly beside me.
Not ran.
Appeared.
"LEO!"
Her expression looked genuinely panicked as she immediately dropped beside me and pulled me tightly into her arms.
"What were you thinking?!"
I winced slightly from the pain while Lillith clutched me against her chest almost desperately.
"Why would you do something so stupid?"
Her voice shook slightly now.
"You keep hurting yourself every time you ignore me!"
I looked away quietly.
Lillith tightened her grip slightly.
"Why do you keep doing this?"
The frustration in her voice slowly weakened into something more emotional.
"I tell you to rest..."
"And then you push yourself until you break again..."
I stayed silent for several moments.
Then finally—
"...After my awakening ceremony..."
Lillith quieted immediately.
I stared down toward my broken prosthetic silently.
"I didn’t want to feel useless."
The words came out quieter than expected.
"When they announced I had no mana capacity..."
My fingers slowly tightened slightly.
"...I got scared."
Lillith watched me silently.
"I realized how weak I actually was."
The memories still felt unpleasant.
The stares.
The disappointment.
The feeling of suddenly understanding I could never naturally stand beside real mages.
"I kept thinking about all the things I wanted to do..."
My voice weakened slightly.
"...And how impossible they suddenly felt."
Lillith’s expression softened completely now.
I laughed weakly afterward.
"Without my inventions..."
I looked down at my hands.
"...I’m basically useless."
"That’s not true."
"It is."
I shook my head quietly.
"Even a low-ranking B-rank mage would’ve killed me when I had them."
The image of the battlefield resurfaced immediately.
The flames.
The wind blades.
The helplessness.
"If Finn wasn’t there..."
I didn’t finish the sentence.
I didn’t need to.
Silence filled the carriage afterward.
Then slowly—
Lillith gently pulled me closer against her chest before softly stroking my hair.
"You aren’t useless."
Her voice sounded incredibly gentle now.
"If it wasn’t for you..."
She hesitated slightly.
"...I wouldn’t even have a reason to live."
I slowly looked up toward her.
Lillith smiled faintly.
"My life would’ve been so much emptier without you in it."
Her fingers slowly brushed through my hair again.
"And yes..."
She looked directly into my eyes now.
"You can’t fight high-ranking mages."
Painfully honest as always.
"But that doesn’t make you useless."
She gently touched my chest.
"Most people can’t."
I stayed quiet afterward while she continued softly stroking my head.
Eventually Lillith quietly stood.
"I’ll finish setting up the tent."
Then after one last gentle touch against my cheek, she stepped outside the carriage again.
Left alone, I quietly leaned back against the wooden wall.
Part of me wondered if maybe staying with Lillith really could work.
A peaceful life.
No danger.
No war.
Just her.
Honestly—
It probably would work.
That was the scary part.
But deep down...
I already knew something else too.
I probably wouldn’t be happy forever living that way.
Eventually the wagon flap opened again.
Lillith smiled warmly.
"The tent’s ready."
Then immediately afterward she bent down trying to scoop me into her arms again.
I resisted instinctively.
"I’ll walk."
Lillith stared at me blankly.
"Your leg literally broke."
I remained silent.
Lillith sighed softly before carefully lifting me anyway.
This time I didn’t resist. freeweɓnovel.cøm
A while later she gently placed me down inside the tent before bringing over a bowl of soup from the fire outside.
She started happily feeding me again.
Honestly, arguing had become pointless at this stage.
The night outside had grown quiet.
Only the soft crackling of the fire beyond the tent disturbed the silence while faint moonlight filtered through the fabric walls around us.
After dinner, the two of us laid beside one another quietly beneath the blankets.
For a while neither of us spoke.
Lillith remained close enough that I could feel her warmth against my side while her fingers lazily traced small circles against my arm.
Then softly—
"This is probably the last time we’ll properly be alone together for a while."
I glanced toward her slightly.
"...Yeah."
The moment I answered, something in Lillith’s expression shifted.
Her smile softened.
But at the same time—
There was something deeper beneath it.
Something possessive.
Almost desperate.
Before I could react properly, she slowly sat up above me.
Then both her hands gently moved to the sides of my face.
Her fingers brushed softly against my cheeks while she looked down at me silently for several seconds.
Those deep purple eyes seemed almost to glow within the darkness of the tent.
"...Lillith?"
Instead of answering—
She leaned down and kissed me.
My eyes widened instantly.
The kiss was soft at first.
Warm.
Slow.
Almost careful.
But beneath that gentleness was an overwhelming amount of emotion.
Lillith held my face firmly while pressing herself against me as though terrified I might somehow disappear if she loosened her grip even slightly.
For several stunned seconds my mind completely blanked.
Then the kiss deepened.
Lillith tilted her head slightly before her lips parted against mine, and before I could properly react, her tongue slowly slipped past my lips.
"Mm—"
A quiet sound escaped me involuntarily.
Immediately, Lillith deepened the kiss further.
Her tongue wrapped itself around mine almost greedily, moving slowly but possessively as if trying to claim every bit of affection I had left inside me for herself alone.
One of her hands slid gently into my hair while the other remained firmly against my cheek keeping me completely trapped beneath her.
Like she never wanted let me go again.
The kiss continued endlessly.
Every time I tried pull back slightly for air, Lillith simply followed after me immediately, refusing create even the slightest distance between us.
I could feel her breathing against my face.
Feel the faint trembling in her fingers.
Feel how desperately she clung to me.
And somehow—
That desperation felt more intense than the kiss itself.
Eventually my face had become completely red while my thoughts dissolved into complete confusion beneath the overwhelming affection she poured into the kiss.
Only after what felt like forever did Lillith finally pull back slightly.
A thin trail of saliva still connected our mouths briefly before snapping apart.
Lillith remained hovering above me breathing softly while strands of black hair fell around her face.
Her purple eyes looked hazy.
Possessive.
Completely focused on me.
Then slowly—
Her thumb gently brushed across my cheek again.
"...Mine."
The way she said it wasn’t playful.
Or teasing.
It sounded sincere.
Completely and utterly sincere.
Before I could even process that properly, Lillith slowly lowered herself against my chest afterward, wrapping both arms tightly around me while burying her face into my neck.
"I love you so much..."
Her voice came out soft and muffled against my skin.
"So much..."
I laid there completely stunned while her grip around me slowly tightened further.
