Chapter 133: I Do

“Hi, Sister Cynthia! I came to visit you!”

Caitlin abruptly pushed open the door to Cynthia’s office. It looked rather rude, but given their relationship, it was hardly an issue.

And then… she saw a burning parchment scroll floating in midair…

And also… Cynthia, who looked unmistakably three or five years younger…

Good heavens! Three or five years younger???

Caitlin stared at Cynthia in the chair, who was gazing at her own hands in astonishment. Her fingers kept pointing here and there, her mouth opening and closing repeatedly, yet in the end, she could not get a single word out.

At last, Cynthia noticed Caitlin standing by the door. She smiled and waved.

“Caitlin, you’re here? Don’t you have any work today? Where’s Lenora? Did she come with you?”

“Um… Sis, you look… really young today…”

After holding it in for a long while, Caitlin could manage only that one sentence.

Cynthia tilted her head and looked at Caitlin in confusion, as though asking what she meant.

Caitlin walked into the office, glancing around as she went, until she found a mirror. Using her psychic powers, she lifted it and placed it in front of Cynthia.

Cynthia’s breathtaking face appeared in the mirror.

Add a fraction, and she would resemble the youngest daughter of the Yang family; subtract a fraction, and she would be like a swallow skimming over a drum. Give her another trace of color, and she would be the evening clouds in the western sky; take a trace away, and she would be a white plum blossom beneath the snow.

What a celestial beauty, a goddess descended from the Luo River. With a single glance over her shoulder and a single smile, she could bring half the world to its knees.

Even Cynthia herself was stunned. Without thinking, she reached out to touch the person reflected in the glass.

“This… is me?”

This was far more than the effect of becoming several years younger. After signing the life-sharing contract, Cynthia had undergone an elevation in her level of existence. Such an elevation was comprehensive, improving everything from physical ability and strength to appearance.

The same thing had manifested in Chen Ou. However, his level of existence had always been in a state of continual advancement. As a result, his appearance had been improving little by little all along. Precisely because it happened so gradually, no one paid much attention to it—much like a frog slowly boiled in warm water. Yet if someone compared an old photograph of Chen Ou with his current appearance, they would be astonished to find that the improvement was anything but minor.

It simply had not been as sudden as Cynthia’s.

Nor was this some sort of face transplant. It merely repaired the tiny imperfections that had originally existed on her face. Under the strain of heavy work, Cynthia would inevitably appear worn out from time to time, and that exhausted state had actually persisted for quite some time. Fortunately, she was naturally beautiful; even when weary, she possessed a distinctive charm. Otherwise…

In any case, she no longer had to worry about it. The effect was permanent and effortless. If Cynthia wished, she could take over all of Lucian’s work, finish it without sleep, and still remain radiant and utterly free of fatigue. She would not even need to rest.

Chen Ou was the same. He was not tired; he simply wanted to be lazy.

“I’m shocked too! Did you use some kind of cosmetic product? The effect is incredible! Could you recommend it to me too?”

Caitlin spoke with great excitement. After all, for human beings, the pursuit of beauty was endless.

(Author’s note: Just whispering here—men are the same. It isn’t only women who want to improve their appearance. Men just find it troublesome. At least, I do…)

Before Cynthia could answer, another soft, sweet voice came from the doorway.

“I’m not late, am I? I just came across an amazing subject. The story I write about it this time is sure to become a bestseller! Ah!”

Lenora appeared in the doorway. She had been talking about herself, but the moment she saw Cynthia, she froze, then let out a startled cry.

“Cynthia! What happened to you? What kind of cosmetic product did you use? Recommend it to me right now!!!”

Lenora rushed to Cynthia’s side, grabbed her arm, and shook it while pleading pitifully.

Seeing this, Caitlin first marveled at Lenora’s swift reaction. She immediately put down the mirror, ran over, and seized Cynthia’s other arm.

“Cynthia!!!”

“Cynthia!!!”

Cynthia could only laugh helplessly.

“Both of you, let go of me first. I didn’t use any cosmetics.”

The two women’s first reaction was, of course, disbelief. But after thinking it over, they realized Cynthia had no reason to deceive them, and so they released her.

Caitlin sat down in the chair Lucian had occupied earlier. Lenora thanked Garchomp, who had brought over another chair, then sat down as well. The two of them waited side by side for Cynthia to explain.

Once they were settled, Cynthia smiled helplessly, quickly tidied the desktop, and accepted the tea tray and pastries Lucario brought over.

“Thank you, Lucario!” Cynthia said with a brilliant smile.

Lucario stared at Cynthia’s smile and froze for a moment before recovering.

“Luca.”

Then she walked away. She still had no idea what Dr. Chen Ou had given her master. It felt as though, once her master learned how to use aura, conjuring aura spheres with her bare hands would be no great difficulty at all.

Cynthia poured each of the two women a cup of tea before beginning.

“This is the effect of a gift Chen Ou gave me.”

She then raised her eyes to look at them.

“But don’t get your hopes up. There is only one of this item, and it was a gift Chen Ou received from Arceus.”

Hearing this, Caitlin and Lenora still wanted to say something, but neither could bring herself to speak.

The two exchanged a glance and let out quiet sighs.

Cynthia smiled at them, her heart overflowing with sweetness, though beneath it lay a trace of worry and reproach.

The scroll had not been given by Arceus, of course. Cynthia knew that perfectly well.

She also knew exactly what the scroll did. As it burned, its contents had been conveyed into the depths of her mind in a language she had never heard before, yet somehow understood.

When she heard the words, “From this moment onward, the levels of existence of the two parties shall be equal, and their lifespans shall be divided equally,” she felt tears welling in her eyes.

In this world, there really was someone who loved you enough to divide his life equally with yours.

He and she were deeply in love, but they had known each other for only a few short months. And this contract could not be altered…

【Cynthia, I know you’re listening. What I want to tell you is that, with Arceus’s help, I have already completed my elevation in the level of existence. But immortality is destined to be lonely. I hope you can accompany me until we reach the end of our lives together.】

“I’m willing.”

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