Indeed! It was just as he imagined… Looking at the group of people in front of him, Franlot chuckled inwardly.
‘This white-haired girl is the Lady they were talking about.’
His previous guess had been correct.
With that thought, Franlot cast Detection on the Lady…
“Huh?” In an instant, Ileya felt a gaze land on her!
It was a gaze that pierced through her clothes, through her flesh and bone, and reached directly into her soul!
The sensation made her very uncomfortable. It wasn’t like the way those old foxes who could see through people’s hearts sized her up.
In those situations, she could hide, play dumb, or maneuver around them.
But the feeling this gaze gave her was extremely unpleasant. It was the difference between being willing and being forced.
And the thing Ileya hated most in this life was being forced.
Even fate could not force Ileya! Much less the person standing before her…
Whoosh!
In the next second, before the panel could even manifest in front of Franlot, a large foot encased in black armor slammed into his lower abdomen!
“Pfft… Cough, gah?!”
Crack! The crisp sound of bone fracturing and the man’s miserable scream instantly echoed through the Ruined City, causing even the departing Bellelily to look back subconsciously.
Arthur, standing beside Franlot, certainly had the ability to save the young man he favored just now…
However, he did not intervene. He only sighed to himself.
The Lady was very smart. Since she still had a use for him, she wouldn’t kill someone he cared about.
Therefore, using this incident to give the boy a lesson was for the best.
It would prevent him from using that ability of his to go around peeking at things he shouldn’t.
Thud!
Franlot’s entire body flew more than ten meters into the air like a tattered sack of grain before crashing heavily onto the ground!
“Ugh! Cough, cough…”
If the ground had not been covered in the thick ash left behind by the cultists and the building remains purified by the Holy Flame…
Perhaps that strike would have cost him his life.
“Keep those dog eyes of yours in check,” Ileya said, looking coldly at Franlot, who twitched twice on the ground before falling still.
She then shot a cold glance at Arthur.
This caused Arthur to scratch his cheek in considerable embarrassment.
“Cough, cough. Thank you, Lady. You taught him well. It’s good for him to learn about the dangers of this world.”
“Eh?” Holly, standing nearby, was completely stunned.
Did that man do something just now?
And judging by the sound… at least three ribs must have broken, right?
Under such circumstances… can he really stay alive?
“I do not wish for such a thing to happen a second time… Let’s go.”
Ileya turned her gaze away, speaking in a tone that seemed devoid of any emotion.
Then, showing absolutely no intention of checking on Franlot, Insmouth took large strides toward the underground passage they had come from.
“Yes… Lady.” Arthur bowed slowly toward Ileya, then reached out his hand and grasped at the empty air!
Whoosh! As if performing a magic trick, the unconscious Franlot, who was more than ten meters away, was suddenly slung over his shoulder.
‘The Lady really did hold back… That strike only broke four ribs. As for the internal organs… there’s no irreversible damage for the time being.’
Tap, tap, tap…
Just as the group descended dozens of meters underground, they encountered Reliel walking upward between the stairs.
“You’re awake?” Ileya tilted her head, a gentle smile replacing her previous coldness.
“You’re awake? How do you feel? Is there any discomfort?”
Reliel shook her head with her usual quiet gloom…
Only her pale blue eyes, which were identical to their Mother’s, sized up the people present.
Besides Amisa and Arthur, who had already returned, there were two more people in cloaks…
‘Wait, that’s not right…’
The Miss Younger Sister stepped forward slowly and leaned down.
“Um… Senior Reliel?” Holly was startled by the pretty face that suddenly appeared in front of her.
She subconsciously met Reliel’s gaze, then realized she was currently… wearing… nothing but a cloak!
Her face turned bright red instantly.
Grab!
Despite Holly’s panic, Reliel directly grabbed the cloak that was Holly’s only covering. Then, her gaze, sharp as a frost blade, turned toward her own Lady.
Those eyes seemed to be asking, ‘Did you do this?’
‘Huh…?’
Ileya felt quite wronged at this moment. It was true she liked to tease idiots every now and then, but she wouldn’t go that far, would she?
And besides… when did these two get so close?
This gave the Lady a nervous feeling of being an outsider.
“That! Sister Reliel… I’m like this because of those cultists… not because of the Lady…”
Holly clearly understood what Reliel meant and couldn’t help but feel moved.
‘Aww~ So Sister Reliel worries about me that much~’
Reliel also seemed to calm down at that moment. She opened her mouth as if to say something but ended up remaining silent.
She simply let go of Holly’s clothes and looked at Ileya with a scrutinizing gaze.
“Phew… Honestly, Holly, you should tell this little lazybones about what happened before. I wouldn’t want her constantly accusing me!”
The moment she finished speaking, the Lady felt several incredibly cold glares slice across her cheeks.
‘This girl really is… sigh.’
Along the way, Holly began to tell Reliel everything they had experienced.
Reliel listened, feeling somewhat bewildered.
Evil cults, evil gods, the Inquisition, Cardinals, the Underworld…
All of this seemed so far away from her, a girl who had just been a minor mercenary a month ago.
And hearing that the Lady seemed to have reached some sort of agreement with that Cardinal…
‘Is this truly a level we can involve ourselves in?’
Holly, the transmigrator, didn’t understand what the Holy See represented, but Reliel knew a thing or two.
Did their Lady really have the capital to negotiate with the Holy See?
She could only say that her nap had indeed… been at the wrong time.
While Holly was recounting the events, the group returned to the Ratman Village.
At this moment, many Ratmen had gathered at the village entrance, seemingly waiting for the return of Ileya and the others.
Seeing this scene, Holly’s mood, which had relaxed slightly, sank into a low point again.
In the end, she hadn’t fulfilled her promise to bring back the little Ratman she had never met safely…
“Xiaoxue… My Xiaoxue…” Among the crowd, a snow-white female Ratman, supported by Jerry, had already cried herself into a mess.
Beside her, several other little Ratmen with the same pure white fur were also crying and calling for their sister.
The scene made Holly feel even worse. The ashes in her hands seemed to weigh ten pounds at that moment.
“Sigh…” Jerry supported the White Rat Mother as she stepped forward. He took the ashes from the Holy Sword Bearer and patted her shoulder.
“Don’t blame yourself. You all… have already done your best.”
“I…” Holly was at a loss for words.
It was that feeling again. Looking at the mother who was clutching her daughter’s ashes and crying her heart out…
Holly couldn’t help but think of her own past life… how she had been helpless and tortured to death by that demon…
At that time, when she, an only daughter, died in front of her father and mother, their hearts must have been in even more pain than this, right?
Thinking of this, the girl slowly clenched her fists.
‘Just you wait, demon.’
‘You must be hiding somewhere in this world, aren’t you?’
‘I will find you! And then, I will take back everything you owe me… everything you owe my parents… using these hands, with my current conviction, and with the companions I trust now!’
‘I’ll take it all back!’
‘And then… I’ll send you to the Eighteen Levels of Hell!!’
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