Genshin: A Bastard Life Simulation (Patreon)

V1 Chapter 040: Reunited in Ashes

At this moment, Li Xingshan, even if he were to destroy the entire Mondstadt city, wouldn't bat an eyelid. But in front of Rosalyne, Li Xingshan, the "monarch" of the Immortal Army, appeared like a child who had done something wrong.

His gaze subconsciously turned towards the shattered display window glass not far away, reflecting a face that had already seen better days. It was neither the determined face of Rostam nor the handsome visage of Li Xingshan. It was more like an indescribable chaos, something too hideous to look at directly.

Would Rosalyne... still accept him like this? If she knew the whole truth, she would probably hate herself immensely, right? After all, in everyone's eyes, he was the one who "killed" Rostam and then took his identity, a deceiver who stole his name. And this scoundrel not only killed Rostam but also married her under his identity.

However, Rosalyne suddenly wore a bitter smile on her face and calmly said, "I know. You don't have to explain. I understand. You are Li Xingshan, not Rostam,... I've known it for a long time."

"What... What?" Rosalyne's words momentarily left Li Xingshan in disbelief. He mumbled, "How... how did you know?"

His disguise had clearly fooled everyone! Whether it was Arundolyn or Roland, the Knights of Favonius, or countless Mondstadt citizens.

"Rostam once gave me an hourglass to measure my time from Liyue to home. That hourglass was enchanted with special magic to reflect Rostam's condition," Rosalyne sighed lightly and continued, "Until one day, that hourglass suddenly shattered. I knew it meant Rostam had met with an unfortunate fate."

Li Xingshan knew Rosalyne wasn't lying. The magic that could reflect the holder's physical condition was one of the results of his research when he was still a doctor. Its effect was somewhat similar to the "Vivre Card" in "One Piece." If the attached item broke, it meant the host suffered corresponding damage.

Li Xingshan couldn't have foreseen that, despite all his calculations, he would reveal himself due to his own creation. He thought Rosalyne would pour out her hatred towards him, but she merely said, "So, that day, I rushed back to Mondstadt. I didn't expect ‘Rostam’ to appear unscathed at the conferment platform. When ‘Rostam’ proposed to me, I became even more certain that he wasn't Rostam because Rostam... never looked at me with such affectionate eyes."

"Sorry... I..." Li Xingshan had never apologized for anything he had done. He always believed that everything he did was correct, but the world couldn't understand him. He saw no reason to apologize.

However, facing Rosalyne, he felt remorse for the first time.

She then said, "You don't need to apologize. I made my own choices. I know the real Rostam no longer exists, but I refuse to accept that reality. So, I chose to accept you."

Tears welled up in Rosalyne's eyes, and she continued, "I deceived myself; you might not be the real ‘Rostam’, and I know it's all a lie, but that lie is too beautiful. You accompany me with your music when I sing, hold me at night... Until one day, I suddenly felt relieved. Whether you are Rostam or not, it doesn't matter anymore, because... I have fallen in love with you."

"Is it really important who the person is when you fall in love with them?" Rosalyne asked as she reached Li Xingshan. She extended her arms and embraced the silent man.

"Thank you, Rosalyne..." Li Xingshan's voice choked up, "Don't worry, no one can keep us apart. I will create a new world, a world that's just for you and me."

This wasn't a mere dream. Li Xingshan's Undying Legion could conquer all of Mondstadt in three days. Even the idea of engulfing the entire Teyvat continent wasn't impossible.

"....No, I’m going to make you stop here; you've made too many mistakes..." unexpectedly, Rosalyne whispered in Li Xingshan's ear, "Don't worry; I'll be with you... forever."

What?

Li Xingshan hadn't grasped the meaning behind Rosalyne's words when suddenly he felt an intensely burning sensation on his body.

When he looked more closely on Rosalyne, he noticed that she was on fire! No, rather than being on fire, Rosalyne had become the fire itself. As she embraced Li Xingshan, both of them were engulfed by the flames.

So, this is it?

Li Xingshan quickly understood. Rosalyne did love him, but to stop his potential madness that could destroy the world, she chose to extinguish him painfully. The blazing fire would soon turn Li Xingshan and Rosalyne into a mixture of ashes, never to part again.

Oddly, the flames didn't cause any pain to Li Xingshan. In that moment, he even thought that maybe, this was a good ending. At least, he could be with the woman he loved forever.

However, at this very moment, Rostam, who had been fighting alongside Roland against Arundolyn, witnessed Li Xingshan being consumed by flames. He immediately halted the battle, turned, and rushed toward Li Xingshan. It wasn't Li Xingshan's command but Rostam's "decision."

From Rostam's parched lips, a hoarse cry escaped, "A... Ah Shan..."

A sharp blade slashed through the air, and a long arc of light severed a wound behind Rosalyne. Yet, from that wound didn't flow crimson blood but scorching, molten, magma-like liquid flames. The intense pain made Rosalyne scream, and she broke free from Li Xingshan's embrace.

"Rosalyne!"

Seeing Rosalyne critically injured and lying on the ground, Li Xingshan regained his consciousness. But the flames continued to burn fiercely on him, and he felt his consciousness gradually fading along with the excruciating pain, ultimately succumbing to darkness…