Dragon Raja 3; Chapter 43: The Unsolvable Knot (6)

Dragon Raja 3

The loneliest people fall into two categories—those who wish everyone else would share their misfortune, and those who hope others can find happiness because seeing others happy brings them a small measure of warmth. Chu Zihang was the latter.

A hand moved Lu Mingfei’s hand, revealing the iPhone beneath it.

On the screen was a bronze-colored roulette wheel, the pointer pointing at the halfway mark. The life bar showed two segments remaining, and at the bottom was a skull symbol.

Before falling asleep, Lu Mingfei had been staring at the roulette, counting down his remaining life. That feeling must have been… interesting.

“Brother, you’re really a die-hard fan of Saint Seiya, huh? You skipped the part about burning hope and jumped straight to burning your life.” Lu Mingze looked down at the sleeping Lu Mingfei. “You’ve really got the soul of a hot-blooded anime character, don’t you?”

“But you refuse to admit it, yelling about how you’re just a loser, yet you hold a torch and set yourself ablaze…” He gently caressed Lu Mingfei’s hair.

The empty dining hall held just the two of them, beneath a grand ceiling mural depicting Ragnarok. The apocalyptic dragon Nidhogg rose from the roots of the World Tree, its wings covered with the skulls of the dead. The sun was about to sink below the horizon, and Odin, king of the gods, rode his eight-legged horse forward, throwing his victorious spear at the black dragon.

“If one day you burn yourself to death, what will they carve on your gravestone?” Lu Mingze smiled. “‘Nice Boy Ricardo M. Lu,’ perhaps?”

Lu Mingfei didn’t answer. He merely murmured, licking the egg yolk residue from his lips.

“Really, like a pig.” Lu Mingze smiled bitterly.

He sat beside Lu Mingfei, a wine glass with red wine in his hand. He sipped it slowly, savoring the deep red liquid like blood. As he had once told Lu Mingfei, he tasted wine the way a king savored power.

But his hand remained on Lu Mingfei’s shoulder, sitting close as if caring for a sick, sleeping patient—afraid that he’d wake from a nightmare feeling alone.

The church bell tolled, and the sound echoed through the silent night.

“Listen, the wedding bells, brother. The wedding car is coming to take away the one you care about.” Lu Mingze’s face showed a gleeful, schadenfreude smile. “She’s wearing a white wedding dress, with lace-adorned shoes, holding orange blossoms and white roses… Bridesmaids are holding her veil and train, while the groom has a diamond ring in his pocket, and the flower girls kneel on her dress singing hymns… Wake up! Wake up, brother! Go bless her on her wedding day! I’ll tell you a secret—the bride’s gown has a lace garter over her white stockings, and the groom will remove it and toss it to those hoping for happiness! Go grab it! It’s her intimate garment—quite a rarity! Do you want to keep it as a lifelong memento of your soon-to-be burnt-out life?”

His words grew faster, like a curse and ridicule from a dark sorcerer in the deepest night. With every word, the ferocity and fury on his face grew stronger, until his delicate face was covered in a storm of rage, and his pupils shone like burning gold.

Lu Mingfei seemed to sense something in his dream, shivering slightly, his eyelids twitching as if he were experiencing pain.

“No one can escape sadness, brother,” Lu Mingze said softly. “Sadness is the true devil—the stronger you are, the deeper you bury it.”

“But don’t be afraid! Don’t be afraid! I’m here!” He hugged Lu Mingfei’s shoulder tightly. “Anyone who tries to take anything from you is our enemy. Caesar Gattuso, huh? Together… we’ll kill him!”

In his pupils, golden flames spun in the deep black, like an ancient dragon swirling in dark clouds, ready to unleash a punishing thunderbolt.

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