Green rejected the female magician’s seemingly tempting proposal without the slightest hesitation.
It wasn’t because his personal moral compass was exceptionally high, but purely due to a very realistic “small problem”—the conditions that seemed monumental to others were, in Green’s eyes, not exactly worthless, but at least lacked any significant attraction.
And so, he flatly refused the female magician’s offer.
Faced with Green’s curt rejection, the female magician showed no sign of annoyance. She naturally hadn’t expected a distinguished Chosen One to be swayed by a nebulous promise.
But, such a stiff rejection?
It seemed there was a chance.
True, after all, we were talking about eternal life and a Divine Kingdom!
The female magician, who believed she possessed an absolute insight into human nature, “analyzed” certain pieces of information from Green’s performance that she deemed useful.
“If a person truly intends to refuse, they wouldn’t speak so quickly. That look of his… it’s not so much that he finds the stakes unappealing, but rather…”
The female magician smiled triumphantly, “Rather, he’s afraid that even he might waver, so he hurriedly denied it to stop me from using words to lead him further.”
The female magician knew this type of person all too well.
Throughout history, countless heroes and even great men praised by millions had succumbed to her methods of manipulating the human heart. This Chosen One before her would naturally be no exception.
“My, my.” Thus, the female magician walked over to the Puppeteer with a playful grin, her fair, slender fingers quietly toying with Colonel Renn’s stiff face.
“I say, Sir Chosen One, before you reject our proposal, shouldn’t you consider your companions a bit more?”
Staring into those steadfast eyes, the female magician unhesitatingly played another card. “You, and your lot… aren’t you always spouting those noble words? Friendship, companions, honor… Sigh, to be honest, I haven’t lived that long, maybe only four or five hundred years? But these lines…”
“I’m truly sick of hearing them.”
Hum—
A large top hat materialized out of thin air. The female magician reached inside and rummaged around. Moments later, several small white rabbits poked their heads out, peeking around timidly with crimson eyes.
“Great Serpent?” The female magician picked up the Ancient Evil that was currently rubbing against her neck. “Do you see these rabbits?”
Hiss!
The killing intent the Great Serpent had been suppressing instantly erupted, weighing down on everyone present until their hearts trembled with fear.
“Those are… the souls of Legendary powerhouses?!”
General Love, standing aside, gasped.
Even though those rabbits looked harmless to humans and animals alike, but… but…
“The level of magic power contained within a soul cannot be faked.”
In other words, these “feeds” that the female magician pulled casually from her hat to feed the Serpent were all distinguished Legendary figures?
Since advancing to a Legendary class, this was the first time General Love felt so utterly powerless.
“I finally understand why back then, the Old Commander—who was clearly superior in strength, at the very top of the Legendary class and just one step away from the Legendary Peak—was still unwilling to fight back.”
Andy’s eyes were equally dazed, a sense of powerlessness washing over his heart. Suddenly, he felt that his behavior of living under an assumed name all these years, painstakingly building the North Wind Chamber of Commerce from scratch, was foolish.
“The Commander must have seen through the trickery long ago. The truth behind the leaked intelligence back then…”
In an instant, Andy’s face, which had been disguised for many days, aged by decades. Not only did numerous wrinkles appear, but several strands of gray hair also sprouted on his head.
“Revenge? Against these monsters that have surpassed the limits of the Material Realm?”
Watching the power displayed by the female magician and the Puppeteer in their every gesture, the anger that had been burning in Andy’s heart since the Old Commander’s death was almost extinguished by the cold water called “Reality.”
“Oh?”
Noticing the internal shifts in Andy and Love, the Puppeteer’s eyes flashed. “A good opportunity! Just the right time to replenish the puppets I’ve lost recently!”
Although his abilities seemed incredibly eerie and nearly impossible to guard against, this “fruit” born from the flowering of the Seed of Chaos was far from being as invincible as it appeared.
“To control a complete Legendary puppet, under normal circumstances, you have to wait until the opponent is heavily injured and their willpower collapses. But now?”
Glancing at the inscrutable female magician beside him, the Puppeteer’s heart grew itchy with anticipation.
Legendary powerhouses were certainly far inferior to him in strength. If it came to a fight, the Puppeteer was confident he could easily kill that Orc General and his companion within a few moves.
But to turn them into puppets?
In a typical situation, he would have to control them and torture them for at least three days and nights before it was even slightly possible to break their will entirely and turn them into complete puppets.
“But if I cooperate with this woman?” The Puppeteer carefully weighed the pros and cons. Although the female magician was someone truly untrustworthy, if it meant obtaining two complete Legendary puppets…
“Mm, although with my current strength, Legendary-level combat power isn’t particularly important, considering that only puppets of Legendary rank or higher can cooperate with my ‘Death Substitute’ skill, and given the risks of the Circus’s next plan…”
The Puppeteer fell into a dilemma.
“That Demon King Majesty is not someone to be trifled with. For so many years, the Church of Light has used countless methods and resources trying to eliminate that Demon King, but they all failed completely. No, wait…”
This powerful existence, who had reached the pinnacle of the Material Realm, sensed something that made him shake his head repeatedly in fear. “That Demon King Majesty… although she hasn’t ascended to godhood, she possesses Authority. The words I just said… she couldn’t have sensed them, could she?”
Thinking of this, the Puppeteer hurriedly reached out and pulled out a puppet that was already tattered but still held a soul that hadn’t dissipated. He began to mutter incantations frantically.
“Death Substitute!” After speaking, the Puppeteer pulled out a teleportation crystal, casually set a coordinate, and hurriedly sent the puppet and the crystal away.
Zizizi!
Almost the instant the substitute puppet was teleported away, the Puppeteer felt his body go limp, as if he were being watched by an irresistible, high-and-mighty existence that could decide his life or death in a split second.
“You idiot!” The female magician noticed what had happened beside her in those few seconds. She widened her eyes and stared ruthlessly at the Puppeteer for a long moment. “You almost ruined our plans.”
Though the two of them were strong, they couldn’t deal with the Demon King, though they wouldn’t necessarily perish—after all, while the Demon King was strong, she did not wield the power they truly feared: the Holy Light of the God of Justice.
However, while they weren’t afraid the Demon King would actually kill them, with that person’s intellect, if she noticed the existence of the Circus members, their original schemes would surely come to naught.
“Sorry.” Knowing he had almost caused a disaster, the Puppeteer hurried to apologize.
“Hmph.” Busy dealing with a formidable enemy, the female magician didn’t say much more, only cold-calling: “If there’s a next time… Hehe, you understand.”
“Yes, yes.” The Puppeteer sighed in relief, then, as if to vent, turned his gaze toward the two “ordinary” Legends, Andy and Love. “Well then, Miss Magician, let me handle these two little fellows.”
He was eager to try, asking impatiently: “After all, this can be considered making up for my mistake?”
“Making up for your mistake?”
The female magician rolled her eyes. “Aren’t you just coveting those two complete Legendary puppets? Fine, whatever. You’ve worked hard these days even if you haven’t gained much credit.”
Turning slowly toward Green, the female magician seemed a bit impatient as she placed a rabbit near the Great Serpent’s mouth.
Flash!
Opening its bloody maw, after devouring the soul of a Legendary powerhouse, the aura of the Ancient Evil surged upward several levels. Even a mere sweeping glance froze Andy and Love in place. Distinguished Legendary figures were so oppressed they couldn’t even summon their magic to counterattack.
“Become my puppets!” The Puppeteer’s eyes lit up. Precisely capturing this moment, he manipulated threads to shoot straight toward the two men.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
“It’s over!” Andy closed his eyes. “I never expected that, let alone revenge, I wouldn’t even be able to touch the threshold of the truth…”
Thread after thread wrapped around him. Andy felt a suffocating despair as his last bit of will was about to collapse…
Hum.
But in that instant, Andy discovered to his surprise…
Those threads had actually unraveled on their own.
“What’s going on?” Not far away, the Puppeteer’s heart nearly stopped.
“I say,” a lazy voice rang out behind him. “You two… are you looking down on others a bit too much?”
How could it be?!
Wasn’t the female magician supposed to be handling him?
The Puppeteer looked toward the female magician in confusion, only to find to his horror that the previously confident woman was now staring anxiously at the top hat in her hand.
“Damn it, how can I be this unlucky?!” Staring at the conspicuous hole in the top hat and the agitated rabbits, a drop of sweat rolled down the female magician’s forehead. “Was it your doing?”
“Well,” Green looked at the parchment scroll in his hand with a face full of innocence. “It’s quite reasonable for a few surprises to happen in a story, isn’t it?”
“Mm, although usually it’s the protagonist’s side that messes up, the ‘different routine’ trope is quite popular nowadays.”
Putting down his quill, Green was very satisfied with the new script he had written.
Especially when he felt his Bard class level showing faint signs of a breakthrough.