"A year ago, I probably wouldn't have been afraid. Anyway, I just had a worthless life. Every day I was just eating and waiting to die, getting by without any hope or expectation of living."
He raised a hand and ruffled his hair.
“But it’s different now.”
What kind of courage does Hayden need now?
The answer is actually very simple – he now has to admit something, something he never wanted to admit before.
"Although I'm still very busy every day, I can now feel that there's hope in life. I feel happy every day. Even though it seems far away, I can now see the direction to achieve my ideals. In this state, who wouldn't be afraid of death?"
Hayden gave in.
"And all this hope—was brought to me by Angela."
This is the truth Hayden has been refusing to admit lately: he has now completely transformed into Angela's likeness. If a major corporation were to actually come knocking and destroy or abduct Angela, Hayden would absolutely be unable to cope.
Death is indeed terrifying.
However, Hayden's greatest fear now is actually losing Angela herself completely.
Rather than merely surviving under those circumstances, it's better to fight to the death!
Of course, this might sound a bit strange, which explains why Abigail looked him up and down with a very odd expression.
She does seem less angry now, but the way she's looking at Hayden is strange.
So the silence in the office lasted for quite a while.
"...So, this Angela..."
It wasn't until much later that the Dark Witch spoke again, breaking the silence.
"What...is she?"
As Abigail finished speaking, she glanced at Hayden, then at the wind-up doll behind him.
Angela, whom they were talking about, was standing innocently at the office door. Hayden's words seemed to have pleased her, but she didn't show any other reaction, simply waiting patiently to observe their conversation.
In other words, he completely disregarded how Abigail looked at her and suspected her.
"I do not know."
Hayden spread his hands,
“I really don’t know. But she gave me tremendous, and unconditional, help. In fact, you received some of that help as well.”
He was referring to Angela's earlier reduction of the cost of the Dark Witch's spellcasting contract. Of course, strictly speaking, this wasn't exactly Angela's unconditional help... but Abigail wasn't foolish enough to refute that. Rather, upon closer inspection, she found the whole thing rather terrifying.
If Hayden's inability to trust Karen is due to a lack of understanding of her, then why is he able to trust Angela?
Hayden rarely thought about this problem seriously. In a way, he had given up on it a year ago. But Abigail wouldn't give up. Rather, she now saw the essence of the problem.
—Could it be that this silly boy is actually just forced to trust Angela?
If Hayden couldn't even fully trust Angela, he was basically doomed. So he might as well trust Angela completely. After all, he had nothing else to lose besides Angela.
At this point, Abigail even began to feel sorry for Hayden.
Of course, Hayden claimed that living aimlessly and aimlessly was meaningless. It was Angela who gave him hope and motivation in life.
However, the Dark Witch never thought that way. She hadn't had any particular goals for over four hundred years, and yet she still survived, didn't she?
As long as people have a hot meal and a warm bed to sleep in, they will always want to live—for the old witch born more than four hundred years ago, it's that simple. This is why, although she dislikes large corporations, she never thinks modern capitalist society is wrong. After all, capitalism does provide food for more people.
But these are issues of differing values and perspectives. This is not something we should be discussing now.
Besides, Abigail thought about it again and realized that Hayden was still a young man with ideals and a sense of loyalty. In this kind of world, such a person was actually somewhat admirable. Moreover, she didn't intend to provoke Angela, so after thinking for a moment, she simply pointed out another obvious problem:
"If you're really just afraid that the big companies will trace you back to the little goddess, then you can simply cut ties with that young lady."
Clearly, this was something Hayden hadn't considered beforehand, so much so that he was momentarily stunned.
"You just need to hide to the end, or even just run away. Rather, if you hadn't actively engaged with that girl first, she wouldn't have noticed the problem."
The Dark Witch paused here, then suddenly sighed for some reason.
“Even now, you’re still meddling in things that have nothing to do with you. What’s even more ridiculous is that you haven’t even realized it yourself—does the smuggling have anything to do with you? Does the small company being suppressed by the big corporation have anything to do with you? Not at all, at least not now. Even now that you’ve come to me for help, it’s not actually for your own sake, but because of your ‘intuition,’ your ‘premonition’ that you’re worried about that young lady from the divine race, isn’t it?”
That's...that's really weird.
But Hayden couldn't completely refute this. He had never even thought about it, never.
"Considering that she subconsciously responded to your witchcraft and borrowed your power before, this has become ridiculously obvious. You, Hayden, truly dragged yourself into this mess because of that goddess!"
As a witch over four hundred years old, Abigail doesn't usually speak so directly. Most old witches are good at riddles, but this time she really couldn't hold back anymore.
"Isn't it just that she likes you a lot, and you like her a lot too? What are you so conflicted about?"
Hayden was stunned.
Then he was speechless.
Even stranger, Angela was nodding vigorously behind him, her face showing deep approval of the little witch. What are you doing here now?
However, on the other hand, Abigail was actually a little flustered when she brought it up herself: what if Angela was unhappy that she had revealed this, wouldn't she be in big trouble? But seeing that Angela seemed to be happy about it now, the Dark Witch secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
So, how will Hayden react?
After feeling relieved, Abigail also felt a bit like an elder watching young children having fun, and immediately looked towards Hayden.
She was pleased to see Hayden's expression change several times in a few seconds and couldn't help but wonder what the virgin mercenary would ultimately do.
"you're right."
So she didn't expect this reaction.
"That is indeed a good question."
About six seconds later, Hayden spoke again, seemingly having calmed down.
“I don’t want Angela to be discovered by big companies, but I also don’t want Karen to get into trouble. What conditions would you want for me to help me? I need—I’m begging you, wise Barba Abigail, to give me an idea.”
Hayden exhaled a long breath and lowered his head to speak.
"I will definitely get the anti-aging potion you need later. If you need any other conditions, feel free to discuss them. I only ask that you share your profound knowledge and wisdom and help me think of a way that can satisfy both parties."
I want both.
It was embarrassing to say that, but he was going to say it anyway.
So now it was Abigail's turn to be stunned.
"...Don't you feel embarrassed at all saying things like that?"
Even the old witch was stunned for two seconds before she couldn't help but complain.
Hayden, on the other hand, was now completely at ease and answered seriously, "What's there to be embarrassed about? What did I say wrong? Since you and Angela both told me to be honest—I have no other choice!"
This person actually thinks they're right?!
For a fleeting moment, Abigail really wanted to give him a good beating. However, Angela was still watching from behind, and she was smiling at her, so in the end, the witch gave in.
"Give me some ideas? Okay, okay."
Thinking about it carefully, she has been dragged into a small circle of interests centered around Hayden and Angela.
There were pros and cons to hanging out with Hayden and Angela. But seeing Hayden's various amusing antics, she actually found it quite entertaining.
Besides, the situation has now returned to her area of expertise. Since Hayden needs her help with ideas, Angela certainly won't just kill her off.
So Abigail rubbed her temples, rallied her spirits, and gave a sly smile, feeling confident she was back in shape.
"Although you didn't specify, you claimed that the young lady of the gods now possesses extraordinary power and technology. Her business has been doing so well lately, so I'll assume for now that it's related to the new technology she has."
She tapped the pipe, thought for a moment, and then began to speak.
"Then, considering that her products were intercepted in Golden Bear State, and the Mitra Group executives in charge there... I guess this matter is not actually related to smuggling."
Hayden nodded slowly: "You mean, those Italians' convoy was attacked by the devil simply because they were transporting Karen's goods. This wasn't about smuggling, but about... Karen's goods?"
"When you look down from a high place, individual trees will be more or less blurred together, making it easier to see the shape of the forest."
At this point in the conversation, it turned to what Abigail excelled at: the internal politics of the Protoss.
"To be frank, I think this whole thing has nothing to do with all the messy details. It's purely an office politics battle among Mitra Group executives. The most powerful Mitra Group executive in San Francisco, the Golden Bear State, is the Deputy Production Director in charge of several major factories in the Americas—Venayaja."
"In ancient terms, this name means 'Joyful Heaven'."
Venusa, also known as the Great Deity of Joy and Freedom, was originally an elephant-headed, human-bodied demon god in ancient India, a demon king who used wicked lust to tempt others with love and desire. It is said that he was later severely subdued by the bodhisattvas of the rising Mithra group and transformed into a guardian deity who brings love and good fortune.
However, that's not the point Abigail is going to make right now.
"The key point is that the relationship between the Great Sage Huanxi Tian and the Peacock King, the father of the little girl from the divine race, is not very good. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that they are enemies."
The witch's expression turned serious as she spoke.
"As for Huanxitian, as one of the demon kings of the old god era, I really don't believe that it doesn't have any remaining demons that it can command now."
"Now, back to the main point: if Karen is producing and continuously expanding new products, and these are indeed the incredible technologies and capabilities you're talking about, how do you think her father's political opponents would view this?"
Is Hayden really so stupid that she needs to continue explaining?
Of course not. He felt a sinking feeling in his heart; he understood.
This is truly an ironic and, at the same time, a very sad thing for Karen.
“She’ll be seen as her father’s underground agent in the black market,” Hayden said, sighing. “But she isn’t. Karen, on the contrary, is always thinking about breaking free from her family background and becoming independent…”
His words, however, amused the Dark Witch.
"Silly boy, you underestimate the connection between family and blood. Even you, as that young lady's friend, can't separate the Peacock King from her; you're constantly worried about her divine identity."
As Abigail finished speaking, she couldn't help but purse her lips.
"Is there anyone in the world who wouldn't consider her and her father as equals?"
"This is the curse of blood, a karmic obstacle that even the gods cannot escape."
083: The Karmic Obstacles of Bloodshed
血脉
Going back further, it undoubtedly inherits from its ancestors.
Furthermore, it should theoretically be something passed down to future generations.
It would always be a regret if the genes passed down from generation to generation failed to be passed on in this generation.
However, Abigail, the Dark Witch, gave "bloodline" a very cruel definition—she actually called it "karma."
That's really not a nice word.
Karma originates from a concept in Indian religions. Karma is the factor that constitutes cause and effect, and also the cause of karmic retribution. It is both the result of all actions and the cause of subsequent circumstances. The consequences of karma govern present and future experiences.
This is what is known as "karma".
If it were simply a matter of individual good deeds bringing good results and individual bad deeds bringing bad consequences, then there would probably be nothing to complain about, since everyone should be responsible for their own actions—the so-called "you reap what you sow." However, in reality, things are often not so simple. Karmic obstacles often stem not only from one's own actions, just as no one can be born into this world solely on their own. Leaving aside the influence of the environment, isn't the inheritance and constraints of blood ties also a form of negative karma?
Simply put, if parents have a criminal record, their children will also be treated as criminals—of course, this is just a metaphor, but the underlying principle is the same. The family you're born into, and the parents you're born into, to some extent, already bind you to your bloodline.
Even the gods cannot escape such chains.
In truth, the gods might actually be bound even tighter by the chains of bloodline!
So, what's wrong with Abigail calling it a blood curse or karma?
Hayden, at least, frowned and didn't know what to say for a moment.
Karen longed to escape the constraints of her family her entire life. But even after starting her own business, she was only seen by the other executives at Mitra Corporation as her father's agent in the black market trade.
No, let alone starting a business. Whatever she wants to do or tries to do, anyone who knows Karen's family background will inevitably connect her with her father.
A life can only exist because another life brought it into the world. Blood ties are the fundamental reason for a person's existence. Every person is connected to their family members by countless bonds.
But in another sense, it could be described as an inescapable curse.
This is certainly true, at least in the case of Karen.
Now, Karen is focused on developing her own business, building, growing, and expanding. However, her father's political enemies in the office see Karen's efforts as her father's covert machinations... Yes, this is not a time for laughter.
Because next, there will be a hostile deity—the Deputy Director of Production in the Americas of the Mithra Group, the Great Sage of Joy and Freedom, who is going to target Karen.
And Hayden? He wanted to protect this rebellious young lady of the gods.
How can we protect it?