Endless Debt Chapter 1382: Prologue: Childish People_4

There weren’t many people at the wedding, mostly the woman’s relatives and friends. Under everyone’s gaze, Serey embraced the woman, waiting for the vows.

"Serey, I love you," the woman said.

"I love you too."

"No, the love between us isn’t the same."

"Why?"

"In your life, you’ve already loved many people, Serey. But I’m different. In my life, I’ve only ever loved you."

The woman asked again, "Do you still remember those who once walked arm in arm with you?"

Serey had wanted to lie, but this time he didn’t. "Not very clearly. That’s the downside of a life that’s too long. Many things that seem precious to others are just routine to me. So they gradually fade, turning into a single, utterly ordinary grain of dust."

"What a pity... So I’ll be forgotten by you too? After a hundred years, two hundred years, or even a thousand, will you still remember me?"

The woman wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his lips.

Serey said nothing. He didn’t want to lie, but he also couldn’t give an absolute promise.

The woman seemed to know exactly what he was thinking. She continued, "I love you, Serey. I love you very much. But I will not become an Undead like you. I know what that would mean."

"Maybe we could spend a hundred, a thousand years together, but I know time would corrupt our feelings. No matter how blazing the passion, it would eventually flatten into something dull and vulgar.

You might end up hating me, and I might end up hating you. The more in love we are now, the more we’ll hate each other then, swearing to grind the other’s bones to dust."

She pulled Serey’s head into her arms, kissing his cheek, licking his earlobe.

"But I also know I’m just a mortal. I will die in the end. In the vast stretch of your life, no matter how bright or fierce I burn, I’ll still only be a single moment in it.

I want that moment to become eternal, to make you remember me forever."

As the woman finished speaking, Serey suddenly caught a sharp, metallic scent of blood. The woman let go of him. A Dagger was buried in her chest, and blood rapidly soaked through the pure white dress, like a blooming rose.

She tumbled heavily down the steps and fell to the ground. She didn’t let out a single scream, only stared stubbornly at Serey’s face, forcing her features to etch themselves forever into his heart.

The woman guessed that Serey would never be able to forget her now.

For a moment the wedding scene dissolved into chaos. People rushed to the woman’s side, trying to save her life. Her family were overcome with grief, their wails filling the air.

Serey just watched it all with indifference, as if none of it had anything to do with him. He was a complete and utter outsider.

He felt a trace of warmth on his cheek. Serey touched it, and found tiny spots of blood on his fingertips.

Suddenly, Serey laughed. He stepped impatiently over the woman’s corpse and strode out of the wedding.

The woman had thought she was special, thought this way would make him remember her... Serey only felt annoyed. Lovers this deranged—she wasn’t the first he’d seen in his long life.

They all thought they were special, all thought they could bind Serey, all believed they would be remembered forever.

No. They were nothing more than toys Serey used to while away his endless years.

Toys don’t need names, nor do they need to be remembered.

...

"So that’s your story, then? Serey."

In the dim tavern, thick with the smell of alcohol, the woman drained her cup in one gulp and slapped Serey hard on the shoulder. "You really are a beast, you know that?"

"A beast? I think I’m not that bad. At least everyone was having a pretty good time back then."

Serey knocked back one drink after another, letting the alcohol flood his brain. "Speaking of which, after we parted ways a few years ago, I honestly didn’t expect to run into you here.

Traveling all the way from the Mountain Ridge to this place—your little adventure has been a long one."

"I didn’t expect to see you here either. I thought it’d be a happy reunion with an old friend, but after listening carefully to your past..."

The woman pretended to shiver. "Wow, Serey, you’re not going to fall in love with me, are you? Please don’t. From the sound of it, nothing good happens to people you love, or people who love you."

Serey fell silent for a moment. Maybe it was the joy of seeing an old friend again, or maybe the alcohol had finally beaten his reason. For the first time, he spoke honestly.

"I don’t know."

"What did you say?"

"To be honest, I don’t know what love is. I can’t really figure it out. After all, I’m an Undead. All that talk of vows and fidelity—before time, it all goes to hell."

"Ha ha!"

The woman listened to Serey’s complaints and burst out laughing. She shot back, "Then what does it mean that you’ve been tagging along with me this whole time?"

"I think you’re interesting. You’re perfect for killing time with," Serey said.

"So... you’ve fallen in love with me? Your love’s really cheap, Serey." The woman didn’t get angry. "I’m just like all those other women who showed up in your life, right? A pet to help you pass the time?"

Serey replied shamelessly, "I don’t know. Maybe you’re different from them, maybe you’re the same. Who can tell with things like this?"

The woman fell silent for a while. Then she grabbed Serey by the ear and shouted.

"You bastard, you’re just a spoiled child. You treat everyone as a way to kill time, so you fall in love with anyone at the drop of a hat. But once you know her well enough, once you’ve seen all of her, you lose interest, swagger off without a care, and go looking for the next toy to amuse yourself with!"