In the early morning, the dazzling golden dawn illuminated the turbid white on the bedsheet. The bedsheet lay listlessly on the floor, untouched, like a discarded item that no one cared about. A faint, unbearable, debauched smell permeated the air.
At six in the morning, the children were still in their dreams, while Li Mo was immersed in the gentle embrace of his and Kira's world.
Inside the bathroom, the steam was hazy, spreading out like a dense fog on a foggy day, filling the entire bathroom and blurring the vision. The warm air circulated, hovering in the ambiguous space between the two of them.
Li Mo closed his eyes, the white foam on his head being rubbed more and more. Rinsed, then dried. Next was his body.
"We... let's continue next month," Shigure Kira, held by Li Mo, said in a low voice.
This sentence scared Li Mo quite a bit, his face instantly turning pale. Last night, his wife almost broke his waist. Shigure Kira wasn't too heavy, but the weight of her entire body pressing on one part of his body, going up and down, was indeed a bit unbearable. The bed even had a few wooden slats broken...
After all, he was too weak. He hadn't exercised much in over a decade. If it weren't for Shigure Kira specially feeding him medicine developed by Schicksal, he really might not have been able to bear the price of happiness.
Li Mo's mouth twitched, "Let me settle Seele and Bronya's matters first. And... uh... go to the hospital for a check-up in half a month. If there's something, we can't continue."
Li Mo casually found an excuse to brush it off. It was definitely not because he was scared. The three-month battle with Bizarre Kiana in the black coffin didn't make him yield, and Bizarre Kiana was cold and hard. Now, a brief exchange of normal life made Li Mo feel troubled.
It appeared, the biggest drawback of losing the Bizarre had finally come.
"Mmm... okay." Shigure Kira was a little disappointed. But gradually, this disappointment turned into joy. She gently caressed her flat abdomen, her face involuntarily showing a gentle and longing expression.
Li Mo was stunned for a moment, then held Shigure Kira's hand, their fingers intertwined.
"There's still a long way to go, there will be many opportunities in the future. Or... after that old bastard Otto fulfills his long-cherished wish, you can go find Cecilia and borrow the Abyss Flower. Then we can do it whenever we want, you horny Kira~~"
"Ngh! N-no, I'm not..."
"Oh? You were so active last night, your waist was almost a blur, and you still say no. It's not right to lie, horny Kira~"
Li Mo smiled slyly. Since Shigure Kira was now in his arms, Li Mo easily leaned his head over and bit Kira's ear. Perhaps it was because the bathroom was very hot, or for some other reason. Shigure Kira's ears were very hot, red, just like her shy face.
"N-no, don't say it anymore... I, I was just... anyway, don't tell anyone! No one!" Shigure Kira didn't know how to explain, so she could only raise her voice to cover up her guilt.
For Li Mo, he could bully his wife without paying any price.
"Haha, alright, alright, I won't joke with you anymore."
"Hurry up and take a bath. We'll clean up the mess in the room later. I still have to send the children to school in the morning. Since you're free today, let's go together."
"By the way, let's also take care of Seele and Bronya's school admission procedures. At twelve, elementary school might be too childish for them. They should go to the first year of junior high."
"Bronya's IQ is definitely enough, I just don't know if Seele can keep up with the learning progress of the first year of junior high."
Li Mo stared at his reflection in the sink, lost in thought.
Shigure Kira asked in confusion, "Can't you just tell Seele that grades aren't important? For you, grades don't matter at all, right? As long as they are healthy and happy, that's what you originally wanted."
Li Mo nodded, not denying it, "You're right, I don't care about their grades, but Seele might not think so. Seele is very simple and introverted. She's afraid of violence and has a low tear point. She's meticulous and empathetic, and can always notice things others don't. She's a weak but stubborn child."
"You know, introverted people often don't want to disappoint others' expectations. As a student, as a younger sister, she naturally doesn't want to disappoint the expectations of her teacher and older brother."
Shigure Kira had a sudden realization, "So she'll force herself to work hard? Or rather, make herself learn to endure?"
"Yes," Li Mo affirmed. "That's what I'm worried about. But fortunately, with Bronya around, Seele shouldn't feel too much pressure."
With that, Li Mo let out a long sigh. Currently, there were no strange signs in the orphanage. Li Mo's daily task included one more: patrolling the orphanage. Not just the house, but also other parts of the manor, to ensure there were no traces of corruption.
But he always felt strange, a feeling he couldn't put into words, as if... everything was developing in the best direction, everything was too normal. Too normal, on the contrary, was abnormal in paranormal incidents.
A living person's perception is flawed. If he still had the power of the Bizarre, he might be able to perceive clues through the perception of some Bizarre. But now he was completely human, and could only use the most stupid method to search for traces of corruption, unable to have foreknowledge.
Li Mo could only be cautious step by step, and consider everything as comprehensively as possible.
Shigure Kira quietly snuggled in Li Mo's arms. Li Mo was obviously distracted. Shigure Kira didn't want to disturb his thoughts, so she became a docile kitten, snuggling up to him and occasionally rubbing against him.
"Kira..."
Li Mo hugged Shigure Kira a little tighter.
"I'm here."
"If there really is no Bizarre in this world, and no Bizarre Cave. We... let's spend the rest of our lives here, okay? Like countless ordinary couples..."
Shigure Kira's pupils contracted, her face unable to stop showing a joyful expression. She nodded vigorously.
"Yes! Okay!"
If everything went as Li Mo said, after all the children in the orphanage were independent, they would go to a small city with a low cost of living, buy a house, and settle down there.
The wedding... if conditions were good in the future, they could still hold it. At that time, many people would surely come to attend. The Snow Wolf squad, Captain Cecilia, and the children who grew up in the orphanage.
They would offer their sincere blessings, and amidst everyone's blessings, she and Li Mo would walk down the aisle. Although at that time... she might be a little old.
They would borrow the Abyss Flower from Captain Cecilia to cure Li Mo, and the two could continue to love each other. The money Li Mo earned might not be much, but it would be enough for the two of them to live on. Plus, with the savings she had saved from completing commissions, they could occasionally travel to other cities.
When they had children... they would have to be frugal and think about their children's future. Whose surname should the child have? Would Li Mo be angry if the child had her surname?
If Li Mo was angry... then... she would take a step back! And have another one!
A boy and a girl, so that the naming could be a win-win situation. Then the family of four would start to work hard for their livelihood. He would take care of the inside, and she would take care of the outside. Or she could also take care of the inside. It was nothing to work a little harder for their small family.
Perhaps this kind of life wouldn't last long. She and Li Mo would both grow old quickly. After all, an ordinary person's lifespan is very short... When the children grew up and could live independently, she could take Li Mo to retire.
Although she was a Valkyrie, she might find it difficult to even walk when she was old. But holding Li Mo's hand, she could walk as slowly as she wanted. When she was about to die, she would be like most people, lying powerlessly on a hospital bed.
At that time, their children would bring their children's children, and several families would gather in the hospital room. She could only vaguely see the doctor shaking his head helplessly, and everyone around her had a solemn expression.
Because her vision was not good, she couldn't see what Li Mo on the hospital bed next to her looked like. She suddenly realized she was going to die, but she didn't feel a trace of fear in her heart. She struggled to reach out and touch him. Her body was very weak, and it was difficult to even raise her hand. The distance was too far to reach.
But in an instant, she seemed to have grasped him. Looking closely, she found that he had also reached out his hand. Death didn't seem so terrible. If she could die with her beloved... it would be something to be thankful for.
As usual, in the last three seconds before death, her mind would flash back on her life in reverse.
The first second, old age passed too quickly. She couldn't even see the picture clearly. Only happiness filled her small heart.
The second second, the struggle of middle age. The days were always very tiring, and there weren't many pictures. But every time she came home and saw each other's happy smiles, the fatigue of work would disappear. At this time, the children would cry that they were hungry and wanted to eat. The two would smile at each other and walk into the kitchen together.
The pictures flashed by one by one, leaving only the last second. The picture in this second was particularly clear. In the picture, Li Mo was expressionless, cold, and gloomy, exuding an aura of keeping strangers away. Under the bright moonlight, she asked him about the parallel world.
After that, Li Mo led her and all the survivors through the arduous funeral ceremony. Then came Mount Taixuan, and finally the haunted house... He seemed to be always on the run, like a machine, rigidly dealing with the Bizarre, not caring about himself or the feelings of those around him.
His eyes were full of fatigue, but his body never stopped. Countless times he put himself in danger, and finally died. She came to the haunted house and saw his body.
At that moment, Shigure Kira didn't want to think about anything. Captain Cecilia, her family and friends... seniors and juniors, honor and life all became unimportant. Because he was her entire world.
He died, and the world was buried with him. In the logic of the Bizarre, everything is equal, and so are transactions. Therefore, she chose to exchange a life for a life.
After death, she became muddled, her consciousness blurred, like a walking corpse wandering in the Soul-Ferrying Passage. Perhaps... she would face true death at the end. But at least... he survived.
Thinking so, until Li Mo appeared in the passage, covered in blood, grabbed her hand, and cried and begged her to stay. At this point, the her on the hospital bed couldn't help but smile, dying in the beautiful and peaceful memories. This second was eternity.
At 7:30 in the morning, after Li Mo and the children finished breakfast, Shigure Kira pushed the wheelchair, and together with Li Mo, sent the children to school. More than forty people walked out of the orphanage, like a small family.
Li Mo's education was very successful. He devoted almost all his energy to the children, regulating the relationships between them and making them closer. They chatted with each other on the way, lively and noisy.
After sending the elementary school children off, Li Mo and Shigure Kira called Seele and Bronya and walked into an ordinary middle school. The security guard at the school gate opened the door for Li Mo as soon as he saw him.
Because Li Mo was quite famous, as the guardian of so many orphans, and he sent them to school at his own expense. It was hard not to remember him, not to mention that Li Mo was going to talk to the principal this time.
Entering the school, the few children who were in school went back to their respective classes, leaving only Li Mo and Shigure Kira leading Seele and Bronya towards the principal's office.
Li Mo said to the two of them earnestly, "Seele, do you want to go to school like the others? If you don't want to, you can say so. I'll take you and Bronya back."
Seele shook her head and answered sincerely, "No, no... Seele also wants to study with everyone, with Sister Bronya."
After getting the answer, Li Mo didn't say much and continued to lead the two towards the principal's office.
"Study hard at school, but... don't put too much pressure on yourself. Just be happy, grades are not important."
"No matter what, I'm your guardian. If one day you can't make it, you can come to me for help. After all... we're family, and family is supposed to help each other, right?"
Li Mo turned his head and looked at Seele with a bright smile. This child needed a sense of security.
"Bronya will protect Seele!" Bronya said with a blank expression.
"Haha, good, good. As an older sister, Bronya also has to take on the responsibility of an older sister and not let Seele be wronged."
"And then, don't cause too much trouble at school, because it's very troublesome to solve."
The favor Otto owed him had long been repaid. Li Mo couldn't possibly make another deal with this old fox. The principal of the middle school, from a social status perspective, was much higher than him.
Shigure Kira was not a Valkyrie, and it was difficult to achieve effective deterrence. Cocolia was busy with her human experiments all day, fantasizing that she could master the power of Anti-Entropy through human experiments.
It probably wouldn't be long before she created a counterfeit of the Herrscher of Reason, Welt Yang, and then got beaten up by Fu Hua.
Li Mo really couldn't understand why Cocolia couldn't pay more attention to the children.