A few days later, in the center of Ish City, weaving through the tangle of steel and weeds, Yvette found a patch of forest and decided to transform it into her own estate.

This place should have once been a park of sorts, with few remnants of buildings left, and a beautiful small lake. If she could build a house here, it would almost count as a lake-view property.

Of course, constructing an estate was a large endeavor that involved many fields, including architectural planning. Even as a master of magic, Yvette knew it would still require a long time and extensive knowledge to bring this idea to fruition. Thus, her focus in farming life remained primarily on collecting various types of hardcover books to absorb the technological heritage left by the original civilization.

Yvette often thought that her existence had nothing to do with Blacktower Pharmaceuticals—after all, the company had itself been destroyed—but that perhaps a deity needed someone to witness and record the existence of the original civilization, which was why she had crossed over and remained immortal and (not hungry) alive.

And so, living a life of knowledge collection, estate building, and land cultivation, the years passed by.

During this time, Yvette traveled across the three cities of Ish Island, from the capital, “Ish City,” to the southwest “Greyport City,” and finally to the northernmost “Lua City.” She marked some areas as dangerous zones, suspected nests of aberrations that should not be approached, and explored many ruins of towns and villages, but as expected, she had not seen a single living person.

Yet she didn’t mind; she was even somewhat numb, quietly enjoying the scenery along the way. Only when she came across a hardcover book containing the technological heritage of the original civilization did a ripple of excitement stir within her.

She sometimes wondered if perhaps Ish Island was simply too remote for inhabitants, and maybe there was a gathering of humans on one of the three continents, already sounding the horn of counterattack against the aberrant creatures.

This thought gave her some motivation, leading her to begin studying Magitek Engineering and contemplate whether she could repair a bit of magitek equipment, even handcraft a few rough, primitive magitek circuits. If successful, she could use some mid- to large-scale spells with higher rune specifications, at the level of ten thousand runes, or even one hundred thousand runes.

However…

Just thinking about the terrifying scale of aberrations in the sea, both in number and strength, made Yvette feel that hope had suddenly become dim.

It was impossible to cross the sea; she silently shook her head. She could never afford to cross the sea in this lifetime.

This was not cowardice; it was simply that she had seen with her own eyes a serpent-like sea monster that once glided along the distant skyline, a terrifying form measuring kilometers long. Even from dozens of kilometers away, it was shockingly imposing, like a myth descending.

What was even more astounding was that this sea beast was unlike ordinary aberrant creatures; its body was covered with scales, and the small portion of exposed flesh had steel bones that dated back centuries!

At that moment, Yvette realized that the mysterious factors that had caused biological aberration were capable of infecting not only carbon-based life forms but also AI-controlled mechanical marionettes and magitek soldiers, some of which would become infected and fused into a mad hybrid form of half-machine, half-organic.

No wonder the original civilization had perished.

If even machines could not escape infection, how could humans resist?

Thus, Yvette silently named the sea monster “Steel Leviathan” and sincerely hoped it would stay as far away as possible, ideally never approaching Ish Island.

…

That night, something rare happened: the aurora appeared in the sky.

Having been here for nearly 300 years after her crossing, it was the first time Yvette had seen the aurora in the night sky.

She moved her little stool to the top floor of her three-story wooden house in the estate, quietly admiring this scene, while the lights inside and some branches around the estate shone brightly, all powered by a simple arcane generator that Yvette had repaired some time ago.

Just as she was immersed in this tranquility, suddenly, a piercing scream echoed from within the forest city outside her estate.

“Ah—!!!”

In an instant, Yvette’s pupils shook; her first reaction was not to rush to save someone but to think she had seen a ghost.

—She had been wandering around Ish Island for so many years and was quite certain there couldn’t be anyone here. How could a clear cry from a human female suddenly ring out?! Thɪs chapter is updated by NoveI[F]ire.net

From the sea? Impossible, as the sea had turned into nests of aberrant creatures; how could anyone cross the sea under such conditions?

From the sky? That possibility seemed greater, but how could she have felt no awareness of it at all?

Could it be an aberration?

A humanoid aberration had awakened its memory and learned to speak?

Quickly, intense curiosity overcame her caution, and Yvette rolled over and leaped from the third floor, stepping into the wind and flying directly towards the source of the cry. Four Flame Dragons emerged from the runic circle around her, swirling outward and illuminating all around with their fiery glow.

All aberrations attracted by the darkness, whether humanoid or non-humanoid, were incinerated in the sweeping flames.

A minute later, at the end of darkness on a road, atop a skeletal vehicle, Yvette saw the source of the voice—indeed a human, and even a blonde-haired, blue-eyed little girl who appeared to be under ten years old. Dressed in an exquisitely styled classical dress, her delicate little face was panic-stricken.

“Σ(⊙▽⊙“a%!~zxcvb&*！！”

Upon seeing Yvette, she excitedly waved her hand and unleashed a string of completely incomprehensible and unfamiliar language.

Not Blacktide Language… Was it Jadeite Language? Or Silvermirror Language?

Yvette’s mind raced. She had only learned Blacktide Language in the fog of her dreams, and now, given the language difference, her first reaction was that the girl must be a survivor from either Jadeite Continent or Silvermirror Continent.

“Who are you? How did you get here?” After floating down to the road in front of the girl, Yvette decided to try speaking in Blacktide Language first.

However, the girl immediately displayed a confused expression, clearly not understanding what Yvette was saying.

This was problematic… No, it was actually fine; at least she didn’t seem like an aberration but a genuine human. They could address the language issue later…

With that thought, Yvette ceased the verbal exchange and instead gestured to guide the girl towards the estate.

…

A few minutes later, back at the grand estate in the city center, Yvette settled the little girl in her three-story wooden villa.

When she had built the house, she had not considered that there could be a second occupant, so she had no choice but to give her the only bedroom while she would sleep on the sofa.

At the same time, she took out some meat and vegetables from her homemade mini-fridge and prepared a simple Magical BBQ to soothe the girl’s emotions.

However, the girl surprisingly displayed good manners. Though she looked starved, she did not lose her composure in the face of the freshly grilled meat and fruits.

At the dining table, she first slightly bowed to Yvette to express her gratitude. Only after Yvette nodded did she sit down, joined her hands in a prayer gesture, and finally picked up her knife and fork to eat in small bites.

Of course, even so, it was evident that the girl’s alertness was still quite intact. While eating, she meticulously scrutinized the interior environment and occasionally cast awed glances at Yvette, promptly diverting her gaze as if nothing had happened just before their eyes met.

Seeing this, a hint of softness emerged in Yvette’s calm gaze, like a river that had been frozen for centuries suddenly beginning to melt.

She thought that the days ahead would likely not be as boring as they used to be.