Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 736 - : The Story of Red Butterfly
Chapter 736 -736: The Story of Red Butterfly
Beyond the door was a massive room, not only in area—it was larger than the entire floor of the Shard Family home—but also in height, being three times that of a normal room.
It was evident that Granny Cassandra had taken great care in maintaining the room; antiques, oil paintings, furniture, and even the music box and crystal ball ornaments on the table all appeared to be of considerable value.
The room overall presented an antique bronze hue because the surrounding walls and the ceiling above were inscribed with copper powder, forming vine-like runes that seemed to spread out. Upon closer inspection, these were runes from various sealing ceremonies of different eras, pieced together to form the seal of this room.
If not for the soft red wool carpet covering the floor, Shard believed he would have seen similar runes there as well.
To the left of the room’s entrance was a fireplace, with crossed swords hanging above it. The roaring flames within the fireplace provided light to this dim room. It was unclear what kind of firewood Granny Cassandra used, or if perhaps a hidden incense burner was lit in some unseen corner, as the air was filled with a fragrant aroma.
Apart from the fireplace, there were no other sources of light in the room, which is why it was somewhat gloomy. After entering, the first thing Shard noticed were the white and black gowns discarded on the carpet. Looking ahead, the largest object in the room was the four-poster bed at its center.
The bed was made of mahogany, so large that it looked like it could comfortably fit thirty people. Its posts reached the ceiling, casting shadows that swayed on the walls with the flickering firelight. Three layers of curtain hung around, consisting of white gauze, pink gauze, and the innermost layer of black gauze.
The barrier of the curtains and the dimness of the room made it difficult for Shard to see his sisters Grace and Helen. He could only make out the silhouettes of two girls sitting on the bed, snuggled together, but could not discern their specific features or clothing.
One leaned her head on the other’s shoulder, while the other wrapped an arm around the former’s back, holding her in a half-embrace. Perhaps since their reunion in the Interstice yesterday, they had not been apart.
Yet, these two figures didn’t quite seem human.
Not in terms of appearance, but in terms of their height. Though they were seated on the bed inside the curtains, just the height of their upper bodies sitting up showed they were definitely no shorter than three meters. They looked like giants magnified in size, but the silhouette of these giants was so aesthetically pleasing, reminiscent of the so-called “divine humans” depicted in religious paintings.
The change in stature was likely an effect of the transient abnormal state following the Red Butterfly Twins’ encounter.
As evidence, the Whisper Element was very pronounced in the room. Although weaker than yesterday, it still made Shard’s breathing difficult and caused a slight headache.
There were no butterflies in the room, yet he could distinctly hear the sound of butterfly wings flapping. Listening more intently, it resembled the whispers interwoven between two distinct female voices.
As the Whisper Element’s influence on Shard deepened, he even saw vague, fleeting shadows of red butterflies in the air, which mostly vanished as quickly as they appeared, leaving behind only specks of red light.
“It’s been a long time, sir.”
“It’s been a long time, sir.”
Although the twin sisters’ voices had slight differences, Shard finally discerned that it was the elder sister, Grace, who was embracing the younger, Helen.
Their voices were hoarse, not particularly clear.
“It’s been a long time, Grace, Helen.”
Looking at them behind the triple curtains, Shard had many questions he wanted to ask at the entrance, but now found he couldn’t utter a single one:
“How… how have you been these years?”
He asked this question again, and light laughter came from behind the curtains:
“Sir, how have you been these years?”
“Not bad, actually. For me, our parting was only a month ago.”
He didn’t hide this fact, and within the curtains, Helen, who had her head resting lightly on her sister’s shoulder, shifted to lean against the other figure’s chest. The indistinct red butterflies still fluttered within the curtains, one of which perched on Helen’s shoulder but quickly vanished as if melting away:
“Sir, for us, our separation hasn’t really been that long either,”
That was Grace’s voice; as the elder sister, her tone was more composed.
“But it’s been…”
“First, I must apologize on Helen’s behalf,”
Her figure gently stroked her sister’s hair:
“We could have met you sooner, but instead, we waited until the end and even hid our identities to take you to such a dangerous place.”
“It’s all right.”
Shard shook his head.
“For us, with each cycle, it’s not simply our bodies that return to their initial state, but our memories and emotions as well. Only the memories before God’s blessing remain vivid; the rest of the past five thousand years, washed away by the 22-year cycle, are as hazy as stories.”
This explained why, despite being immortal beings, their temperament remained similar to the past.
“Crossing cycle after cycle, our only wish was to see each other again. Time flies indeed, sir. In the blink of an eye, it’s already the Sixth Era.”
She spoke softly, her tone tinged with some sorrow.
“Has it been so many years already?”
Helen also asked softly:
“I remember the original story, the repeated reunions with my sister, the repeated waiting, then sleeping, and then waiting again… The meaning of life seems to boil down to just reunions and waiting now. Moreover, we probably can’t be considered human anymore.”
“Back then, why did you choose to accept the Twin Gods’ blessing?”
Shard asked, even thinking that this blessing was almost indistinguishable from a curse.
“It was our choice. Because there was no other way to realize our wishes besides this one. Sir, my sister and I are different from you.”
Grace said, Shard knew that the blue eyes of the tall figure behind the curtain were watching him through the curtain:
“We were just ordinary mortals, even if we survived the Divine Banquet with your help, we remained mortals. For The Great One to even glance at us for a second, it is a tremendous honor for us.”
The tall figures of the girls wrapped their arms around each other behind the curtain, a seemingly charming scene, but so full of sadness.
The raging fire in the room cast intertwined shadows on the wall etched with runes, and Shard’s shadow quietly watched them from the side.
“What we sought was to break free from the family curse of never seeing each other again, and then to be together forever. Hasn’t the deity who blesses the twins fulfilled our wishes?”
Grace asked.
“Yes.”
Helen sighed softly:
“The deity descended personally, defeated the evil object in the subspace that our family had guarded for generations, liberated us from the mission borne through many generations, and broke the curse that kept my sister and me from reuniting; the deity blessed us with immortality so that our bond and affection would last forever; the deity even granted us power, allowing us, as God’s Favored Ones, to wander this world at will, even after the deity had long departed… God has done enough for us.”
“And the price we have to pay for this gift of fate…”
The figures of Grace and Helen in the curtain turned to look at Shard standing by the bed:
“…is but to assist the Phoenix in suppressing the Interstice of Life and Death in a cycle of 22 years.”
For a moment, Shard didn’t know what to say; their choice was truly voluntary.
“Phoenixes are reborn from the flames time and again, and though we were originally just mortals, we are now almost akin to beings who can be reborn from fire. Sir, look at these Red Butterflies.” ƒгeewebnovёl.com
The butterflies flitted around Shard. But when Shard tried to touch them, they dispersed once again.
“This is a testament to time, a testament to the affection between my sister and me, a testament to our mutual torment and bond. Time may erode affection, but our deep feelings and love have become even more profound amidst this torment and bond. Look, even God has helped us maintain our original intentions forever in this way. The bitter waiting, the heartbreaking farewell, and the bruises on our necks, they all polish our emotions and spirit…”
This rich emotion could be described as “twisted,” but for them, this was exactly what they desired.
“God did not bind us; if we wanted to leave, we would just need to embrace death together to end it all. But after so many years, so many times, no one has grown tired of that waiting and reunion.”
The strength in Grace’s words displayed their determination.
The Outlander suddenly felt that perhaps he understood their thoughts; this might not be the best, but at least it’s not bad:
“Grace, Helen. I wonder, if we were to go back to the era when I first met you, would you still make the same choices?”
“Yes, sir.”
The tall figures within the curtain answered almost simultaneously.
“We understood a long time ago that all mortals must die. We do not fear death; what we fear is separation. To always be together, that is the eternal wish of my sister and me.”
Helen sat up from Grace’s embrace inside the curtain, one figure pinched the other’s chin and then kissed it.
Shard couldn’t understand this twisted emotion, but he believed this emotion, whether called familial love, romantic love, or something even more complex, was in fact the real curse inflicted upon Grace and Helen.
In that Divine Banquet, everyone had their own wishes. Shard, who had noticed the twins’ uniqueness from the beginning, had not expected that they would continue the story in this way, all the way up to the present day.
They tortured each other, yearned for each other, waited for each other, parted from each other, and walked the material world alone for 22 years, just for the chance to climb the summit once more to welcome the other.
The Outlander, having witnessed many stories in this world, still found the story of Helen and Grace moving. The Red Butterflies bore witness to that enduring cycle across two Eras, while Shard witnessed the beginning of everything.
He knew the current situation was already good for Grace and Helen. But he didn’t like the story, not at all. If he could complete the Path of the Twelve Divinities, the Outlander would never let this story end with such a cycle.
