PS: I'm playing Elden Ring too long these days. It's just too interesting. I will try to spend more time on translation.
Chapter 196: A War With Only Two People
Alice lay sickly in Ade's arms, her body surface glowing silver-white, as if she had no more energy left to control the spectrum absorbed by her skin.
"It's just a sickness, just take some medicine and you'll be fine, nothing to worry about." Ade squeezed Alice's cold, hard hand and said without looking back, "Lacus, you're just in time, I'll go back to the lab to get something, help me take care of her."
After saying that, he got up and left with a big stride, not even noticing that he was wearing only a single coat. In the quiet room, Lacus and Alice stared at each other wordlessly, the hand in her pocket still clutching the "virus" she had received from Ikari Yui.
"Ade has already gone out." Alice suddenly said, "Hurry up and give Alice the stuff in your pocket. It may take some time to take effect, I will try to die before Ade comes back, otherwise, he will be very sad to see my death with his own eyes."
"You know?!" Lacus was shocked, "I obviously had taken the phone battery—"
"It's useless to unplug it, Alice is now a metal-based being, a mere battery won't stop me." Alice weakly smiled, "Alice not only secretly monitored your phone, even including C.C.'s phone, and stupid Ange's phone. In fact, I also monitored Ade's phone, but I don't know why I feel embarrassed and gave up."
"Feel embarrassed …" Lacus was speechless.
She doesn't really care about Alice's monitoring, it is expected. If she had Alice's technical strength, she will also monitor their phones.
"So hurry up and do it, while everyone is not paying attention." Alice said with a serious look, "You don't know much about technology, Ade will not suspect you."
"But I don't feel right." Lacus started pacing back and forth in the room, "There are too many suspicions, and I always feel like I'm being cheated by Ikari Yui."
"There is no problem, Alice is a party to it." The young girl lying on the bed looked at Lacus wandering back and forth, "What can be a problem?"
"First of all, this thing is not even necessarily true." Lacus put up a finger, "Since you have heard that, I will put it frankly. From beginning to end, in addition to the so-called recording, everything was told by Ikari Yui. I feel like she was forcing me to make a decision in this short period of time."
"It's true." Alice said, "Alice has checked the records of the satellite, I'm sure that there is no problem."
"Secondly, this thing doesn't really work." Lacus put up a second finger, "Even Ade and Dr. Aeolia didn't make this thing, how could she make it so quick? If she is a genius, then what Ade and Dr. Aeolia are?"
"Alice can't answer this question, but logically speaking, doesn't it make no sense to give you something that doesn't have any effect?"
"That brings us to the last question, what if it's only partially effective, like if her purpose is to … target Ade." Lacus raised a third finger, "I never understand what that woman really wants, but I can't rule out the possibility that she wants to use my hand to get rid of Ade for her own purposes."
"Alice thinks you might be too worried about Ade, leading to too much delusion." Alice has a rightful expression, "Ade has metal-based cells in the body, but due to his Geass, Alice can not control them at all. So don't dwell on it, hurry up and give that thing to Alice, if you delay any longer, Ade will come back."
"Are you …" Lacus hesitated for a moment and asked, "Do you want to die? Don't you have any fear?"
"Of course I'm scared!" Alice struggled to sit up, looking down at her hands, "In fact, I was not very afraid of death, then suddenly I feel that death is terrible. But, but, if Alice doesn't die, Alice will give Ade trouble."
Lacus slowly walked to the bedside and sat down, silently looking at the young girl who was talking to herself, as if she just knows her for the first time.
"In fact, when Alice first came back, Alice was often unable to distinguish who she was. Ade saw the problem at the beginning and reminded Alice every day. But recently, my consciousness has become more and more blurred, and yesterday, I can't even control my body well." Alice opened her five fingers in front of her eyes, "Alice has been with Ade for so long, but Alice can't even use the first person to call herself."
"You can only strengthen your cognition by constantly shouting your own name…" For Alice has been using her own name to call herself, Lacus also long suspected that was not simply a behavior of playing cute. Now she got confirmation, but she was not happy at all.
"Alice recently often remembered the happy life on the home planet, and occasionally remembered the painful experience of wandering in the universe, and yesterday even recalled the days of looking for her father, but Alice's 'life' is clearly with Ade, that is Alice's most precious thing!" Alice suddenly raised her head, "'I' may not be Alice anymore, right?"
Lacus couldn't answer that question.
"It must be a lie to say that there are no regrets, but there is nothing to regret." Alice's eyes gradually light up firmly, "Alice had a friend, the only friend, the name will not tell you. She, on the other hand, told Alice a very important truth, that is, in order to let the person I like to live, sacrifice myself is also necessary."
"It is probably redundant to ask such things nowadays." Lacus said softly, "Do you like Ade?"
"Alice, no, 'I' like Ade!" Alice's cheeks showed slightly silvery dimples, "So please kill me!"
"Stand up for young girls when they are most vulnerable, become the pillar of their hearts, and then the little girls will beg to die for him. Ange is like this, you are also like this, I also … he is really a terrible man." Lacus held Alice's small hand, "From today on, welcome to the Lingus family."
"Thank you for recognizing Alice." Alice's smile became more and more forced, "But Alice probably won't live long."
"It's this kind of plot again." Lacus leaned in with a long sigh, "On me, on C.C., on you, around all Ade's close ones, repeated over and over again, tormenting him, tormenting us nonstop."
"Hmm?" Alice inclined her head, "What are you talking about?"
"I'm sorry, Alice." Lacus stood up, took two steps backwards, "I refuse to cooperate with you."
"Hey?" Alice's eyes went wide, "Why, why? What if Alice hurts Ade afterward if you don't kill Alice now? Lacus, you don't want to see that happen either, right? So hurry up and kill Alice while Ade is not back!"
"Ade rushed back to the laboratory, and forgot to explain the details. We all subconsciously felt that it was useless and intended to make a decision for him. In order not to hurt him, so you had to die, in order not to make him feel guilty, so you had to hide it from him. Don't you see the trick behind it yet?" Lacus narrowed her eyes, "An elaborate coincidence that gave everyone the worst possible ending."
Miss Music Player looked at Lacus blankly, "Alice doesn't understand."
"Does Ade really have no way to solve your problem? I can't believe the man I like is so foolish. I didn't ask him because I have to hide the fact that I have a connection with Ikari Yui, and that may cause a big mistake." Lacus looked serious, "I guess, since Ade won't have a problem because of his Guess, then Ikari Yui's target must be you. She wants to wipe you out as an unstable factor."
Miss Music Player completely forgot about the sad emotion just now, only felt that her head was going to be down if she continued to listen.
"Ade said that you would be fine with some medicine, when he left, he didn't look panic, and Ikari Yui just implied to me that Ade would not show panic in front of us." Lacus pulled out the small bottle in her pocket, "The most reasonable explanation is that this 'virus' in my hand is the medicine in Ade's mouth, a countermeasure he made after learning about your situation."
"Was Ade the one who did that?" Alice asked weakly, "So, did Ade try to kill Alice?"
"He could even stand still to let C.C. stab him, how could he do that to you? You don't even know how cute you are." Lacus laughed helplessly, "According to this line of thought, you will certainly die if you use it directly, I'm afraid that you must perform some steps that only Ade knows before you use it, maybe it will reply on his Geass or something like that. Ikari Yui wants to lend my hand to get rid of you, and I wouldn't be able to tell Ade the truth out of guilt, so she would never be suspected."
"So terrible …," Alice could not help but shiver.
"I'm sure Ade will find a way, he's not someone who would just sit there and see his woman die. Just like he saved me in the past, just like he saved all of us in the past, he's still going to save you this time." Lacus shook the bottle in her hand, "Even though he's occasionally late, let's be patient."
"Lacus, what you said is too complicated for Alice to understand." The young girl's head bobbed feebly, "So Alice just needs to believe that Ade will save me as he did before?"
"Yes, it might be difficult to think of a way to break the situation, but it's actually incredibly simple to do." Lacus smiled and nodded, "Alice, let's wait for him to come back together."
