Chapter 213: Sloth X Charity

’Just go away, just go away, just go away.’ Dante kept repeating in his mind, hoping that she’d finally leave.

Why?

Because Greed was curling around her neck!

“Why are you looking at me like this? It’s not like I can hurt her.” Greed laughed: “You should be more worried about the parasite. She can pierce her heart at any moment. Maybe this parasite is my plan.”

“Hey! Don’t listen to him!” Aza roared, trembling in anger inside Dante’s body.

’I won’t listen to him, of course. It’s just that I don’t like seeing him happy like that whenever he sees her. Seeing him like that is worse than the barrier’s pain!’

Dante sighed and stared at Anastasia, wondering about what was happening in her mind to spend all that time thinking.

Although he just wanted her to leave, he actually didn’t tell a single lie. That was really what he saw about her.

He came to the conclusion that being selfish or selfless wasn’t the problem, but hypocrisy was. Thus, he didn’t feel anything about seeing a selfless person like her.

But her problem was just that she cared about others more than herself despite having someone who already cared about her.

’Not to mention her father who genuinely cares about her.’

Dante was now ready to spread misfortune in the prison to cause chaos. He was greedy enough to prioritize himself over the others.

But did that mean he was controlled by his own greed?

Absolutely not!

He could break the collar anytime if he wanted. He could have used the Silver Ether or his Crown’s ability to cause more chaos, but he didn’t.

Being greedy didn’t mean being foolish! He had to control himself, especially now that corruption was a part of him.

“But…”

Anastasia finally muttered a single word, getting Dante’s attention.

“But I might die soon.” Anastasia let the words escape her mouth: “Do you know what my bloodline is?”

“Aren’t you an angel?”

Anastasia nodded to Dante’s response: “I am an angel… or was one. Now, I have a demonic bloodline inside of me.”

“Huh?” Dante looked at her with a puzzled expression: “Why would you end up with that?”

’Greed, is it possible to have an angelic bloodline alongside a demonic bloodline?’ Dante asked inwardly.

“I tried doing that.” Greed yawned: “Three subjects exploded immediately, five survived for a month before exploding, four turned into disfigured monsters, three survived for a year, and one escaped after killing a subject that survived for three years.”

“…”

’That’s… how the hell did you capture all those angels?’

Unaware of Dante’s internal conversation, Anastasia responded: “It was done by Valor. He had a Sloth Bloodline and wanted to test it on me. The results… weren’t good.”

“This bloodline is conflicting with my original bloodline. It causes sudden pain spikes at random times with random intensity.”

“The Charity Bloodline was chosen for me because it suited my nature, but the Sloth isn’t. I was forced to take it. The thoughts it’s giving to me aren’t what I truly am… yet it’s still affecting me.”

Anastasia paused for a moment, allowing Dante to register her words, then continued: “I might die because of it, so I am trying to die while being myself. It’s not like I’m ignoring Braham’s efforts… but I might not have enough time to recover.”

Dante nodded casually, seeing the depression in Anastasia’s eyes.

“So basically, you are ignoring your own happiness for some strangers because you might die soon and not have enough time to actually be happy, right?”

Anastasia nodded, accepting his summarisation.

Dante sighed: “That’s stupid…”

“I see… I didn’t expect you to understand—”

“—No, I understand.” Dante cut her off: “But you just said “MIGHT”! It’s a possibility. You aren’t certain. What if you don’t die at the end? What if there is a way to stay alive that just requires you to try instead of giving up like this?”

“If you find out that there was a way a few seconds before dying, won’t you be regretting your decisions and choices?”

Anastasia tilted her head: “Won’t it be the same if I do my best to survive and fail in the end?”

“No? Who said anything like that—?!” Dante raised an eyebrow, which was immediately chopped off with his skin, making him bite his lower lip for a second before continuing: “If you do your best to survive and die, the people who are close to you won’t feel like they failed you.”

“But if you do the opposite… won’t they feel like they could have saved you if they changed your mind? I understand that your bloodline is about being kind to others… but who said that your kindness should be equal to all people?”

“You are becoming a philosopher! Woohoo!!” Aza suddenly shouted with a cheerful voice.

“Shut up for a moment, she’s thinking.” Dante murmured under his breath, though Anastasia heard it clearly.

“Inequality… in kindness?” That idea seemed like blasphemy for Anastasia, especially with the Virtue of Charity existing in her head.

“Ana, you don’t have to listen to this.” Charis appeared in front of Anastasia, speaking with a serious tone: “Selective kindness isn’t charity. The moment you accept the idea of inequality, you won’t be an angel of charity anymore!”

“You can find a way to help all people and reduce the guilt that Braham would feel if you die and try to survive simultaneously. You can do all of them together.”

Anastasia frowned: ’But… doing different things together is exhausting. It’ll reduce the efficiency of trying to find a way to save myself.’

Charis’ expression softened: “That’s the sacrifice you have to make. Doing anything requires sacrificing something, including following your true nature.”

Anastasia sighed, she couldn’t disagree with Charis.

Any person can say that they don’t lie and hate all liars, but once they’re put in a situation in which telling the truth isn’t beneficial, their true nature would be revealed.

And now, Anastasia was put in a similar situation.

She could reject her nature for a higher chance of survival, but she wouldn’t be able to call herself a true angel of charity anymore.

It was a shame, but… she couldn’t do anything about that.

However, as she was about to respond to Dante, he suddenly spoke: “Wait, don’t you have the Sloth Bloodline now? Why don’t you use it to alter the charity nature slightly?”

“To do what?!” Anastasia raised her voice, confused by his idea.

“Alter it, or modify, whatever works.” Dante thought for a moment before continuing: “If charity is loving all people unconditionally, and sloth is avoiding things that require sacrifices, then maybe you can remove the “unconditionally” part.”

“Wait, Ana, don’t listen to him—”

“Loving an enemy requires sacrificing too much for someone who wants to harm you.” Dante continued, unaware of Charis: “Loving a stranger requires sacrificing too much for someone who might not meet you again or even turn into a bad person.”

Charis floated in front of Anastasia, trying to cover her vision: “Ana—”

“However…” Dante added, smirking: “Sloth can actually save you from that part! You can still love them a bit, but when it comes to choosing between a stranger and, for example, your father, you choose your father over the stranger. You can help strangers, but when it doesn’t cost you too much!”

“And who knows, if you accept this idea, you might become suitable for the Sloth Bloodline too and live for a longer period of time, right? You might even fuse your bloodlines!”

Anastasia stared at Dante with hesitation: “Isn’t… isn’t fusing bloodlines impossible? Would it work with two conflicting bloodlines?”

“Would simply accepting that idea be enough to—”

TZZZZ!

The barrier suddenly appeared, cutting Anastasia off.

“Ouch.” Dante inhaled deeply, but before he could respond…

Ring!

…Anastasia’s collar rang.

“…”

That meant only one thing.

She couldn’t spend more time with Dante… at least not today.

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