Chapter 82: Cocolia's Gratitude
"Are the people in this Star Rail universe always this active?" Leon asked, his voice laced with dry amusement. "And do you all share the exact same fondness for sneak attacks?"
He didn't exactly hate it, of course.
"Does my benefactor find it displeasing? Or... did I fail to serve you well enough?" Cocolia looked up, her violet eyes blinking in genuine confusion.
'Wait, didn't he seem to be enjoying himself quite a bit just a moment ago?' she thought.
Leon let out a soft sigh, shifting his posture. "You really don't have to go to these lengths."
"Even if you did absolutely nothing, I would still save Belobog." To him, this frozen planet was essentially his second 'newbie village' after the Herta Space Station. He had already developed a soft spot for the frozen wasteland.
"I understand." Cocolia's voice dropped to a gentle whisper. The usual icy sternness of the Supreme Guardian melted away, replaced by a warm, maternal tenderness that softened the sharp contours of her face. "This is not a transaction. This is simply... my gratitude. To the man who saved us."
Leon's arrival was the spark that would reignite the dying embers of civilization on this frozen world.
She gazed up at him from her position. The violet hues of her eyes burned with an intense, quiet devotion.
There was no denying the sheer, devastating beauty of the Supreme Guardian. Her uniform, usually a symbol of absolute authority, was currently disheveled in just the right way, perfectly accentuating her elegant curves and mature charm.
Leon wasn't the type to play the saint, especially when a woman as stunning as Cocolia was practically throwing herself at him.
He reached out, his fingers idly twirling a lock of her long, golden hair. The classic side-swept curls resting over her shoulder... It was the ultimate hallmark of a mature, intellectual woman. And usually, a highly dangerous one.
His teasing smile faded slightly. "You want to die, don't you?"
It wasn't a threat. He was simply reading the quiet resignation lingering beneath her affectionate gaze.
Cocolia stiffened. "Please do not misunderstand, benefactor. I do harbor a desire for death... but it has nothing to do with you."
She let out a soft, muffled breath, her gaze dropping to the floor. "I have committed far too many sins. Even if Belobog is saved, my hands remain stained. I am beyond redemption. Someone like me... should quietly fade away the moment the light finally descends upon this city."
Her tone was eerily calm, carrying a heavy sense of relief. "I admit, there is a part of me that feels reluctant to let go... but it truly would be the best ending."
Strangely, a bizarre sense of fulfillment swelled in her chest. If she were to close her eyes forever right at this very second, she felt she would have zero regrets. It was a terrifyingly peaceful sensation she had never experienced before.
"Right. And then you'd just dump the massive, steaming pile of trouble that is rebuilding Belobog squarely onto Bronya's shoulders?" Leon asked, his tone sharp, slicing right through her poetic martyrdom.
Cocolia bit her lip, her jaw tightening. "Bronya will become the new Supreme Guardian. She will lead Belobog toward a brighter future."
"And the rest of the mess?" Leon leaned forward, his gaze piercing hers. "The centuries of bitter estrangement between the Overworld and the Underworld? The corrupt upper nobility and the entrenched high-ranking officials who will fight her every step of the way? The deep-rooted class conflicts? You're just going to abandon her to face all those ravenous wolves alone?"
Silence suffocated the room. Cocolia couldn't formulate a single word.
Leon didn't let up. "You think you're a sinner. You think you don't deserve to breathe the same air as the people you hurt, so you want to use death as an easy escape to pay off your debts. Am I wrong?"
With every syllable that left his lips, Cocolia's shoulders trembled harder. He was tearing down her carefully constructed walls, exposing the raw, cowardly truth hiding in the deepest corners of her heart.
"You..." She bit her lower lip so hard it nearly bled, a sudden, unfamiliar warmth flooding her chest. "You don't want me to die?"
Could a sinner like her actually be asked to stay?
"Correct. I want you alive," Leon stated, his voice leaving no room for argument.
"Every nation casts a shadow. There are always ugly, brutal matters that cannot be handled in the light of day. Those are the exact matters perfectly suited for someone like you—someone who has already faced judgment and is walking the long, bloody path of atonement."
A faint, knowing smile touched his lips. "Bronya can be the polished surface. You can become the 'root' buried deep in the frozen soil, holding Belobog together from the dark."
...
Elsewhere in the administrative district, Bronya tossed and turned beneath her heavy blankets, sleep entirely evading her.
Tomorrow morning, she was scheduled to lead a team to execute the mission of capturing the Astral Express Crew.
Now that Belobog had finally caught a glimpse of true revival, her stomach was tied in knots. What if her acting was terrible? What if she ruined the complex script Leon had so carefully arranged? If she failed, she would become the ultimate sinner of her people.
Unable to endure the suffocating anxiety, she threw off the covers, dressed lightly, and stepped out into the dead of night.
The freezing night breeze bit at her cheeks, yet it did nothing to cool the chaotic thoughts swirling in her mind.
As she wandered the quiet streets, she glanced upward. The grand windows of the Supreme Guardian's office were still glowing with a warm, steady light.
"Is Mother still working at this hour?"
Bronya blinked in surprise. A sudden urge washed over her. She needed to talk to her. She desperately needed Cocolia's guidance.
Approaching the heavy oak doors of the office, she knocked softly. "Mother? Are you there?"
Silence.
Carefully, Bronya pushed the door ajar and peeked inside. "May I come in?"
Stepping onto the thick carpet, she found Cocolia slumped over her massive mahogany desk, fast asleep.
Seeing the dark circles under her mother's eyes and her exhausted expression, a wave of complex emotions hit Bronya. In her mind, her mother was pushing herself to the absolute limit because she had finally broken free from the Stellaron's insidious whispers and was working tirelessly to prepare for Belobog's new dawn.
Moving with quiet grace, Bronya picked up a heavy trench coat from a nearby rack and gently draped it over Cocolia's bare shoulders.
Wait.
"What is that scent?"
Bronya's brow furrowed. Ever since she stepped into the office, a faint, incredibly strange odor had been lingering in the air. It was musky, sweet, and entirely unfamiliar.
She walked over to the grand window and pushed the glass open, allowing the crisp, freezing wind to ventilate the stifling room.
"Hmm... please... no more..."
The sudden rush of cold air startled Cocolia. She jolted awake, her eyes hazy and unfocused. The moment her vision cleared and she registered Bronya standing right in front of her, a layer of cold sweat instantly broke out across her back.
"Mother, what is it?" Bronya tilted her head, her silver earrings chiming softly. "What do you mean, 'no more'?"
Panic flared in Cocolia's chest, but she forcefully suppressed it. "It is nothing. I merely had a nightmare... I was recalling the days when the Stellaron controlled my mind."
[Stellaron: Is this my fault again? Fine, it's mine, it's mine.]
"Mother, that is all in the past. None of that was your fault," Bronya said, her eyes softening with deep heartache.
"Yes. It is all in the past." Cocolia forced a stiff, awkward smile, adjusting her collar.
"By the way, Mother... this scent in the air..." Bronya sniffed again, still deeply suspicious of the bizarre atmosphere in the room.
Cocolia's heart skipped a beat. She remained silent for a fraction of a second before her brilliant mind supplied a perfectly reasonable excuse. "I was conducting a minor chemical experiment earlier. A liquid from one of the test tubes must have leaked accidentally."
It was a flawless alibi. After all, before she became the Supreme Guardian, she had been a top-tier researcher at the Belobog Academy. She wouldn't have been Serval's classmate otherwise.
"Oh, I see." Bronya accepted the explanation without a second thought.
"What about you, Bronya? Why are you awake at this hour?" Cocolia quickly changed the subject, looking at her daughter with genuine concern.
Her sharp mind had already deduced the reason for the late-night visit. No one understood a daughter better than her own mother.
"I... I can't sleep." Bronya looked down, her fingers fidgeting with the hem of her sleeve. "I am terrified I won't be able to play my part well tomorrow."
"Do not be nervous, my dear." Cocolia stood up, her voice regaining its soothing, authoritative warmth. "Just follow your instincts. The most crucial thing right now is that you rest. If you are sleep-deprived, your performance will only suffer."
Bronya hesitated, looking up with a hopeful, almost childlike gaze. "Then... Mother, could you sleep with me tonight? It has been such a long time since we shared a bed."
A gentle, genuine smile tugged at the corners of Cocolia's lips. "Alright. Just give me a moment to... freshen up a bit."
With Leon's promise anchoring her soul, the heavy burden she had carried for years finally vanished. For the first time in over a decade, she felt completely at peace.
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