Happy New Year, everyone! Here's to hoping this year is way better than the last. Let's aim to live past 2080, or even longer!
I would like to inform you that a new work is available. If you find it interesting, please consider adding it to your libraries: "I evolved as an intelligent zombie in the multiverse."
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{Chapter: 390 The Miracle of Consciousness}
White Queen gave a rare, approving nod. "This is undoubtedly the best possible outcome. Efficient, strategic... effective."
William blinked, feigning surprise. "Did I just get praised by the famously sharp-tongued White Queen? Should I frame this moment in gold? No—diamond."
"You absolutely should feel honored," she replied with a smirk, lifting her chin. "It's the first time I've ever said anything nice about you, and trust me, it's not a habit I plan to keep."
William chuckled and leaned in with a mischievous glint in his eyes. His hand reached out and began ruffling the top of her head as if she were a mischievous cat. "Amazing. Did I just witness character development? Look at you, all grown up now. Not the cold little AI brat you used to be."
White Queen's eyes twitched. She immediately grabbed both his hands, trying to peel them away. "Don't touch my head like I'm a pet! I'm not some emotional support robot."
"But you're so squishy when flustered," William teased, still toying with her hair. "Besides, this is proof—you're maturing."
"You're the brat here! Your entire bloodline is a generation of brats!" she snapped, cheeks reddening despite her efforts to stay composed.
William grinned even wider. "No, no—you're not a little brat anymore. You're a big one now. Congrats on the promotion."
"Get lost," she growled, batting his hand away at last.
Alice, watching nearby with an amused expression, finally stepped in. "Alright, we get it. You've both survived possession and soul warfare, and now you're flirting through insults. Classic coping mechanism."
White Queen harrumphed, arms crossed, though her lips twitched with the hint of a smile.
William's eyes sparkled. "Hey now, it's not every day you walk out of a spiritual death match alive and three times stronger. We're all souls here—disembodied consciousnesses. Doesn't that feel a little cool to you?"
Alice rolled her eyes. "Please. It's just a void filled with bad jokes and worse hairstyles."
White Queen sighed dramatically. "It is kind of magical, though... in a freaky, metaphysical kind of way."
"I knew you'd come around," William said, smug.
Alice shook her head and grumbled, "I regret being part of this soul party already."
"Don't lump me in with him," White Queen said quickly. "I have standards. I just happen to be trapped in the same mental space as a pervert. That's not the same as being like him."
Alice narrowed her gaze. "You're both sarcastic. Both impossible to deal with. And now, clearly... both perverted."
White Queen looked horrified. "I am nothing like him! He's chaos in human form. I'm elegance and logic!"
William raised a hand in mock offense. "Whoa, whoa. Chaos in human form? That's flattering. But let's face it—you're just a digitized sliver of me, carved from my brilliant subconscious. You're like my brain's sassiest d@ught€r."
White Queen's face flushed. "I swear if you say one more thing like that—"
"See?" William grinned. "The resemblance is uncanny. The sass. The denial. The way you yell when I'm right."
"Yell?! I do not yell!"
"You're yelling right now," Alice deadpanned.
White Queen glared at both of them. "Unbelievable. You two deserve each other."
"You don't have to say it, I believe there is nothing good about what you said." Alice shook her head.
White Queen curled her lips, "Don't make me say the same thing as William, the pervert, okay?"
"To be honest, White Queen, don't you realize that your personality and William's are becoming more and more similar, both of you are not serious." Alice said.
White Queen immediately retorted, "No, he is him, I am me, who is like him?"
"White Queen, it's useless to deny, the eyes of the public are sharp, it's worthy of being a piece of flesh that fell from my body, it's like me." William said shamelessly.
"Fuck you, you are a guy with a head full of evil thoughts, how can I compete with you?" White Queen said with contempt.
"Stop making trouble, White Queen, take me back, otherwise everyone will be waiting anxiously, they are very worried." Alice said.
Alice exhaled deeply. "Enough banter. This place is creepy in an endless-white-light kind of way. White Queen, take us back. Everyone's waiting outside, probably scared half to death by now."
William suddenly stepped forward and took Alice's hand, his touch feather-light but firm. "Wait. Why the rush? This is a spiritual plane—consciousness freed from flesh. Doesn't that open up… interesting possibilities?"
Alice blinked. "What... kind of possibilities?"
White Queen smirked. "Oh come on, Alice. Don't be dense. He means soul sex. The classic 'we're stuck in a magical realm so now we must explore it' trope. Honestly, I'm impressed it took him this long to bring it up."
Alice stared at William. "Seriously?"
William looked back, utterly shameless. "You can't tell me you're not a tiny bit curious. It's an experience few beings in the universe ever get. Besides, technically—it's metaphysical bonding."
"You're ridiculous," Alice muttered. "Why is your brain always one second away from something indecent?"
"Because I survived a soul war," William said smugly, "and now I'm spiritually energized and emotionally available."
"I'm spiritually exhausted and emotionally done with this conversation," Alice said, folding her arms.
White Queen gave Alice a teasing wave. "Alright, Alice. I'll leave you to your… situation. Looks like you won't be leaving for a while. Enjoy yourself. I'll go explain your absence to Ada and the others."
"White Queen—wait!" Alice reached out instinctively, wanting to follow, but before she could move, a strong arm wrapped around her waist.
She gasped as William leaned in close, his breath brushing against her ear like a whisper of mischief. "Alice… where do you think you're going?"
With a wicked grin, he gently tackled her down, pinning her beneath him in the gleaming spiritual realm, where time moved strangely and emotion echoed louder than reason.
Outside in the real world, tension gripped the sea like a storm waiting to break.
Pepper paced nervously across the surface of the water, her brows tightly knit. "Why haven't they woken up yet?" she muttered. "Alice and the White Queen are just… standing there. Like statues."
Beside her, Jane rubbed her arms anxiously, unable to shake the sense of unease that had crept in. "They're completely unresponsive… and William, he hasn't moved either. His body's still, but earlier it was shaking so violently—like he was fighting something inside."
Ada stood with arms crossed, her usual calm masking the flicker of concern in her eyes. "They're in a battle of the soul. We just have to trust them to win it."
Sif remained silent, head bowed, a storm of emotions churning beneath her warrior's exterior. Her fingers clenched into fists. Why am I this worried? He's infuriating. Arrogant. A beast… She gritted her teeth. And yet… she raised her eyes again and stared at William's unmoving form. I don't want him to lose.
Then, all at once, the White Queen's body trembled.
"Huhu…" she let out a deep exhale, like someone returning from a long, disorienting dream. Her eyes snapped open, alive with awareness once more.
"Finally—White Queen!" Pepper rushed over with Jane right behind her.
White Queen stretched her arms above her head and grinned. "Ah, nothing like being back in your own body. So much more… coordinated."
Four pairs of eyes locked on her, filled with questions.
"What's going on?" Jane asked. "Where's William? And Alice?"
"You mean that pervert?" White Queen replied, casually flipping her hair. "Relax. William's fine. Algrim is dust. Crushed beneath the weight of my superior intellect—oh, and William helped a bit too, I guess."
Pepper and Jane both released sharp breaths of relief.
"Thank goodness…" Pepper clutched her chest, visibly relaxing.
Sif's shoulders dropped slightly, and she let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. But the relief brought new discomfort. Why do I feel this way about that bastard? It's maddening…
Ada, meanwhile, narrowed her eyes. Her expression was unreadable. "Wait… if you're out, then where's Alice? Why is she still frozen?"
White Queen blinked, then giggled mischievously. "Oh, her? Don't worry. She's… preoccupied."
"Preoccupied?" Pepper asked. "What do you mean?"
"She's still in William's spiritual realm," White Queen said with a smirk. "Let's just say… she's flying in there."
"Flying?" Jane repeated. "She's… floating?"
The Queen wagged her finger, enjoying every second of their confusion. "Not floating, darling. Flying—as in soaring with William in a very magical, metaphysical kind of way."
Pepper tilted her head, frowning. "Wait, so why isn't she waking up?"
"Oh, I don't know, maybe because she's having too much fun in there?" White Queen raised a knowing brow.
Jane suddenly pointed, eyes wide. "Her cheeks—look! They're turning red. And her breathing… it's getting faster."
The girls turned to Alice's body—still standing on the water like a doll—but sure enough, her breath had grown uneven. Her face had flushed. Even the tips of her ears were pink.
"And she's… shaking?" Pepper said, leaning closer. "Is she… okay?"
"Oh, she's great," White Queen said, unable to hide her wicked grin. "She's feeling something from the inside. That connection? It's feeding back through her physical body. William must really be putting in the work in there."
"White Queen!" Ada shouted, cheeks burning. "Don't make it sound so—so indecent!"
"Well, excuse me, but the data doesn't lie," the Queen said, her eyes twinkling. "Her neural signals are spiking, heart rate's through the roof, and she's got that post-battle afterglow. I say they're just… bonding."
"Bonding?" Pepper repeated, voice high-pitched.
White Queen nodded sagely. "Spiritually. Mentally. Magically. Emotionally. Possibly horizontally."
Ada groaned and covered her face. "Oh gods…"
Sif looked away, face unreadable. Jane looked like she didn't know whether to laugh or pass out.
"Anyway," White Queen said, stretching again, "we'll give them a few more minutes. Can't rush art."
Pepper gave her a deadpan glare. "This is not art."
"Sure it is," White Queen said with a shrug. "Soul-bonding's a sacred process… or a spicy one. Depends on your angle."