CHAPTER 181: CAN’T LET YOU GO

He had actually caught Yaguk Theocracy’s knight order meeting with the Fallen Demons. What a rare and delightful surprise for an elf.

Now, even if Yaguk Theocracy wanted to betray them on the day of the war, they wouldn’t be able to.

That single discovery had nailed them right onto the pillar of shame.

With such irrefutable evidence in his hands, Drow could finally breathe easy.

All he had to do next was protect Illiya on the day of the war.

Illiya noticed that the dark elf standing in front of him had calmed down considerably. His expression had returned to its usual blank slate, his pitch-black eyes devoid of emotion, his mouth drawn into a straight, tight line. He looked like a sculpture without feelings.

But to Illiya, this was the familiar look of the dark elf he knew. Even if this particular dark elf was his soul-bonded partner, unless someone was actively teasing him, he rarely showed any visible emotion.

In any case, Drow had finally pulled himself out of his mental corner and could now begin trying to break free from the chains that bound him.

As a kind-hearted light elf, Illiya figured this was as much help as he could offer.

Seeing that things were more or less resolved, Illiya prepared to send off this silently arriving and silently departing dark elf.

He also intended to seek out Sebastian, to discuss the matter further and remind him to pay closer attention to internal affairs when the war ceremony began just in case things spiraled out of control.

With that plan in mind, Illiya began to act.

He glanced over at the dark elf, who still stood there like a wooden statue, and, after some consideration, opened his mouth to speak. "Drow, you..."

Drow reacted like a wind-up doll that had just been triggered—he immediately sprang into action and quickly picked up where Illiya had left off. "Illiya, did you call me?"

Illiya began, "I want to—"

But before he could finish his sentence, Drow once again jumped in, cutting him off, "Hmm? Illiya, what exactly were you going to say to me?"

Illiya, interrupted again, fell silent: "..."

He was speechless.

This was starting to feel deliberate.

Illiya realized things couldn’t go on like this. He still needed to speak with Sebastian about important matters.

If he kept getting delayed here, it wouldn’t do any good.

Still, he couldn’t quite figure out why Drow kept interrupting him over and over.

It almost felt like Drow knew something, something Illiya didn’t want him to meddle in.

Then again, his conversation with Sebastian had been private; barely anyone knew about it. And hadn’t Drow been outside this entire time? That meant there shouldn’t be any way for the dark elf to know anything about it... right?

Having come to a conclusion, Illiya cleared his throat in a tactical attempt to regain the upper hand. He was determined to finally catch the dark elf slipping. As expected, Drow once again jumped in.

Drow said, "Illiya, were you trying to say..."

At this point, Illiya knew exactly what was going on, Drow simply didn’t want to let him leave.

Sometimes, Illiya really didn’t understand why Drow treated him like he was some kind of fragile porcelain figure. Did he really look that weak?

Illiya was exasperated. "Drow, although I appreciate your concern, I do actually have things I need to do right now."

Drow opened his mouth as if to respond but found he couldn’t get a single word out. He quietly closed it again and remained silent, looking helpless.

Hearing Illiya say such blunt and revealing words, Drow fell into a deep silence.

To be honest, he realized he hadn’t been acting like himself lately, he had become overly concerned with safety.

Even though he knew the future had already changed and the ending would shift along with it, he still couldn’t relax.

The shadows of his past life had never truly left him; they still bound him, weighing heavily on his mind.

Even after living a second life, he hadn’t grown at all.

Illiya watched as the dark elf seemed to be wrapped in shadows, and for a moment, his heart softened.

However, that fleeting softness was quickly snuffed out.

He had a feeling that he couldn’t afford to keep coddling Drow.

Not if he wanted to prevent the situation from spiraling into something worse.

More than that, he believed that Drow shouldn’t be this sensitive and fragile, he should be brave, confident, like a true warrior.

The dark elf had changed too much, so much that Illiya didn’t even know how to begin comforting him.

Why?

Perhaps because, in some strange way, Illiya himself had been a catalyst.

His very existence had helped trigger all of this.

Still, regardless of that subtle, unclear "connection," as Drow’s friend, Illiya couldn’t just sit back and do nothing.

He softened his tone and lowered his voice, letting it become slightly more gentle: "Drow, you should know that I’m perfectly capable of keeping myself safe. There’s no need to worry so much. I promise you—I’ll protect myself. And you know light elves never break their word, don’t you?"

Drow still didn’t speak.

He stared blankly at the elf speaking before him, silent and unmoving. His chest tightened.

It wasn’t Illiya’s words that made him sad. It was the sudden, painful realization that, even with the chance to live again, he still caused his soul-bonded partner to worry about him all the time.

He didn’t want to be like this.

However, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t control himself.

Things always seemed to go in the opposite direction of what he actually hoped for.

This wasn’t right.

It was pathological.

He was truly heartbroken.

After Illiya finished speaking, he turned his eyes away, but his peripheral vision never left the dark elf standing in front of him.

He needed to carefully observe Drow’s condition.

And when he saw the dark elf go from looking slightly deflated to looking like a withered eggplant, the alarm bells in his mind immediately went off.