Chapter 374: A Slow Farewell
At the end of a relatively secluded corridor within the Magic Association lay a room known to very few. It was specially arranged by Rhodes for Olivia.
Flamme stopped in front of the door.
She took a deep breath, straightened her clothes, and tucked a strand of red hair behind her ear, ensuring her appearance was flawless. Only then did she raise her hand and knock gently.
"Please come in," Olivia's gentle voice came from inside.
As a legendary mage, Olivia had sensed Flamme's presence the moment she arrived at the door.
Flamme pushed the door open and entered.
Olivia's room was completely different from the rooms of other mages in the Association.
There were no magic books or research tools here. Instead, it was incredibly tidy. Besides a table, chairs, and a bed, there were only simple flower arrangements as decoration.
These flowers were picked by Olivia from the small garden on the top floor. She occasionally went there to help tend the garden and pick a few beautiful flowers to bring back to her room.
Having stayed on the ground for so long, she had begun to learn from humans, decorating herself and her surroundings.
At this moment, Olivia was sitting in a chair with a cup of flower tea on the table before her. Her pale golden hair was tied up loosely, revealing her smooth forehead.
Seeing Flamme enter, she smiled slightly and gestured for her to sit opposite.
"Sorry to disturb you, Senior Olivia." Flamme sat down as instructed. Her posture was proper, but the resolve between her brows didn't escape Olivia's eyes.
"No need to be polite, Flamme." Olivia poured her a cup of flower tea. "You came to see me because of what you mentioned before?"
Olivia had told Flamme earlier that she would return to the Heavenly Kingdom soon. Now, seeing Flamme's sudden visit and recalling her previous request, she had a guess.
"Yes, Senior." Flamme accepted the tea with both hands but didn't drink immediately. "I have thought it through. I hope to accompany you to the Heavenly Kingdom and... meet my end there."
Olivia gazed at her without speaking.
For a moment, only the faint sound of wind outside the window remained in the room.
The silence lasted for quite a while, long enough for Flamme to almost think Olivia would refuse directly.
Finally, Olivia put down her tea cup gently and sighed. "Flamme, actually, you do not have to return to the Heavenly Kingdom with me."
She was going back simply because she had stayed on the ground too long—long enough to become somewhat addicted to the prosperity of human cities.
After all, she wasn't an emotionally detached creature like an elf. She was a Sky-Winged; her emotions were almost indistinguishable from humans, so she was naturally attracted by various interesting things.
Although this was what Lord Rhodes hoped to see, Olivia was unwilling to abandon the oath she made a thousand years ago just like that.
At least, she needed to give herself time to adapt slowly.
Moreover, she was concerned about the condition of the Heavenly Kingdom over these years.
Although the altitude of the Heavenly Kingdom meant most mages couldn't reach it, and even if they did, they couldn't breach the outer defensive barrier...
Basic mana replenishment work still needed to be done. Otherwise, if the Heavenly Kingdom lost its mana support one day, it wasn't impossible for the entire city to disintegrate suddenly.
This was the important reason Olivia wanted to return.
"Actually, under Lord Rhodes's persuasion, I have figured out a lot. This time, I am not leaving forever. Perhaps in a few hundred years, I will return here again to continue my unfinished responsibilities."
She looked at Flamme with clear eyes. "Therefore, you can absolutely stay here. Stay by Lord Rhodes and Lady Serie's side, stay by Frieren and your other companions' side, and spend your remaining time."
"When it is truly necessary, it won't be too late to come to the Heavenly Kingdom then. The gates there will always be open for you."
What Olivia said was very reasonable.
She knew Flamme's deep affection for the Magic Association, her two teachers, and Frieren, believing she should cherish this final time together.
However, Flamme shook her head. "Thank you for your kindness, Senior. But... if it really comes to that time, I fear... I won't be able to leave."
This sentence seemed to carry the weight of a thousand pounds.
She couldn't bear to leave Master Rhodes, couldn't bear to leave Master Serie, couldn't bear to leave Frieren, couldn't bear to leave this Magic Association she had poured countless efforts into.
Precisely because she couldn't bear it, she had to leave proactively while she could still make a rational choice.
Dragging it out until the fire of life flickered weakly, until reason was eroded by the fear of death or attachment to the mortal world... she feared she would waver, linger, and make irrational pleas.
Everyone feared death to some extent; it was just a matter of having more or fewer attachments. Flamme was no exception.
Unfortunately, she had many attachments.
Olivia nodded, understanding her resolve, so she stopped persuading. Instead, she asked curiously, "Flamme, how much time do you estimate you have left?"
Flamme answered frankly, "About five years. If I use some unconventional Life Magic, perhaps I can barely extend it to ten years."
"But if I do that, the final period might be spent in weakness and pain, and... the preservation of my appearance will also have problems."
Hearing this, Olivia's lips moved slightly, seeming to want to say something, but swallowed it back.
She naturally hoped Flamme could spend more time with those she cherished, but she also understood that for someone as proud and considerate as Flamme, leaving at this time might be the best choice.
"That child Frieren..." Olivia only said half a sentence.
Flamme understood her unfinished words immediately. Her eyes dimmed for a moment, then were replaced by a firmer light.
"Yes, Frieren is who I worry about most. That child... looks cold, but she values feelings more than anyone deep down."
"If I let her see me weakening day by day with her own eyes, see the Stasis Magic gradually failing, see my aging appearance... she will definitely be very sad. I am afraid she will do something irrational for me."
She knew her disciple too well. Beneath Frieren's seemingly cool exterior lay a near-stubborn persistence and a desperate desire to protect those she cared about.
She couldn't become the trigger for Frieren to make the wrong choice.
The room fell silent again.
Finally, Olivia nodded gently and said no more. She reached across the table, placing her hand gently on the back of Flamme's hand.
"I understand, Flamme. I promise you. We will go to the Heavenly Kingdom together."
She paused, giving a specific time: "I plan to depart tomorrow morning. At sunrise, I will wait for you outside the main gate of the Magic Association."
Flamme grasped Olivia's hand back and nodded firmly. "I will definitely arrive on time."
Leaving Olivia's room, Flamme didn't return to her own room immediately, nor did she go to the top floor.
She followed a familiar path to the door of another room.
Pushing the door open, Ela was struggling with some documents.
She wasn't very good at handling these things, but over the years, Master Serie had forced her to learn.
Fortunately, there were many mages in the Association who shared most of the work, leaving only the more important documents for her to handle.
"Flamme? What brings you here? Didn't you say you'd finish the budget for the Southern Border today?" seeing it was Flamme, Ela scratched her head and laughed.
Unlike the early days of the Association where one person wished they could be two, the current Flamme could be said to be the most idle person in the entire Association.
After all, over these years, she had handed over most of the matters she needed to handle to others, and the rest to Ela, acting like she was retired.
"Already finished." Flamme walked to Ela's desk. "Senior Sister Ela, I will be leaving the Association soon. I came this time to say goodbye."
The smile on Ela's face froze slightly. She keenly sensed the strangeness in Flamme's tone—it sounded like those dying humans she had occasionally seen giving their final instructions to their loved ones.
She scrutinized Flamme carefully. "Flamme, you... what is wrong? You sound like you are leaving your last words." She said it half-jokingly.
Flamme avoided her probing gaze, keeping her tone as relaxed as possible. "Nothing. Just some matters to handle, so I am preparing to leave the Association."
"Leave? For how long? Where to?" Ela asked repeatedly, frowning.
As one of the Association's veterans and Flamme's senior sister, she knew Flamme's sense of responsibility and dedication too well. Unless it was something huge, Flamme would never leave her post easily, let alone use such a tone of final entrustment.
"Time... uncertain," Flamme answered vaguely, then changed the subject. "Rest assured, Senior Sister. Over these years, I have consciously distributed the work at hand and cultivated quite a few managers capable of handling things on their own."
Ela clearly hadn't grasped the situation yet. Or rather, as an elf, she obviously hadn't realized what the decades since the Association's founding meant for Flamme.
Finally, she just stood up, walked around the desk, and hugged Flamme gently.
"Wherever you go, whatever you do, take care of yourself, Flamme." Ela's voice rang in her ear, filled with sincere worry.
Flamme's eyes heated up slightly, but she suppressed the sourness quickly. Hugging Ela back, her voice was a bit muffled. "Mn, I know."
Leaving Ela's office, Flamme stood in the empty corridor, taking a few deep breaths to calm her emotions.
The last, and most important stop.
She started walking toward the stairs leading to the highest level of the Association.
Every step was steady, as if to imprint this path she had walked countless times clearly in her memory for the last time.
Finally, she stood before that familiar door.
Inside was the place where the two most important people in her life were, the source and end of all her secret emotions.
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