“Aren’t you a Brave? Why have you surrendered so quickly, even to the point of wanting to die?”
Vyea tugged the chain in her hand, producing a crisp, melodious clatter.
She then slightly turned her head and leaned back, glancing at Anna, who was humming softly behind her, and couldn’t help but sigh:
“What kind of Brave are you? You have no resilience at all. No wonder you could only defect. Escaping won’t solve any problems.”
“You… you reclusive old—cough, save the preaching! Why don’t you stay holed up in your lair, idling your days away? Why come out and mess with our operation!”
“First of all, I’m not some old hag. If you keep calling me that, I’ll really get angry.”
Vyea put one hand on her hip and rattled the chain with the other, immediately taking the moral high ground. “And besides, you provoked me first. As a Brave, there’s no way I’ll let a runaway like you, who only knows how to run away, do as you please before my eyes~”
So now you finally admit you’re a Brave? You sneaky brat, always pretending to be young and baiting people!
Anna, bent over and forced by the chain around her neck, blushed bright red—not sure if it was from anger or lack of oxygen:
“I’m not running away—I’m looking for a new solution to the problem.” The New World must be born from the ashes of the Old World, and we are the kindling that sets the Old World alight!
Old-school Braves like you are outdated! You should have been eliminated long ago!
Of course, Anna didn’t say those last few lines out loud. She just glared fiercely at the short white-haired girl ahead, yanking the chain carelessly, her blue eyes burning.
Strange, is she shorter than when I first saw her?
Anna paused, ready to probe when Vyea suddenly spoke up:
“Little Goldie, am I your first target? Or have you already caught other Braves before?”
“Don’t call me that!”
Anna pouted, not answering directly, but her attitude towards Vyea suddenly softened:
“Little Whitey, you’re a Brave too. I know every Brave bears an unyielding obsession—without it, you can’t fully unleash the power of the Hero’s Mark. You’re so powerful, so you must be the same… But humanity can’t help you fulfill your obsession. Are you interested in learning about our great ‘Lord of Resurrection’?”
“Lord of Resurrection?”
Vyea subconsciously gripped the chain tighter, ignoring Anna’s odd way of addressing her.
She’d handled cult-related incidents before as a Brave, but behind most cults stood the shadow of some Demon King.
Those Demon Kings almost always hid in forbidden zones considered deathtraps by humans. According to the scholars at the Academic Tower, these Demon Kings were keen on organizing cults, seemingly related to advancing to a higher tier and acquiring more power.
The scholars at the Academic Tower had named that unknown tier the “Ultimate Demon God”.
And Flavail was the Demon King who, for thousands of years, came closest to the Ultimate Demon God.
Involuntarily, Flavail’s smile and demeanor floated through Vyea’s mind again.
She shook her head to scatter the illusions in her thoughts.
“So strange, after all this time dead… and she can still wound me…”
Vyea muttered softly, eyelids drooping.
“Li… Little Whitey, ahem, would you like to hear about our ‘Lord of Resurrection’?”
Anna seemed to sense the low pressure around Vyea, but still did her best to promote her cause, though her tone grew cautious,
“I assure you, the ‘Lord of Resurrection’ is definitely not a Demon or a Demon King, nor some being with a special authority, but a true god dwelling among the stars. Want to know more…”
“Forget it, I’m not in the mood.”
Vyea dragged Anna along, completely ignoring the other’s disappointed look after her failed proselytizing.
She couldn’t shake the feeling that something unseen beneath this city was faintly drawing her closer.
Like a moth to a flame, unafraid of the blaze that could consume it—only wanting to get closer to the light before its eyes, to feel a little more warmth… even if the price… was life.
Suddenly!
A hurried set of footsteps splashed through muddy water from deep within the sewer.
Who?
Vyea lifted her gaze, focusing ahead.
A disheveled, battered man tumbled out from the depths of the dark sewer.
“That’s a Night Watchman,” Xiaolu reminded her nearby. “From the squad badge, he’s the missing team’s captain.”
The missing person had appeared, from underneath this city.
Vyea nodded lightly, not looking at Xiaolu but instead at Anna behind her, and asked, “What are you people planning in this city? If you’re only out to capture Braves, I can go with you to meet your so-called evil god.”
“Of course, we’re preparing for the coming of the New World,” Anna said, gazing toward the sewer depths, blue eyes full of almost devout longing. “A brand new world, one without deception or concealment… hehe…”
“Behave. No tricks.”
Vyea warned Anna, who was about to act up, then shouted at the Night Watchman emerging from the sewer.
“You! Stop!”
Maybe it was because Vyea’s voice sounded too soft and girlish, but the Night Watchman merely glanced at her and ignored the warning, dashing past them in a flash.
Tian Qi wasn’t stupid. Why would he stop his escape just because two girls showed up in the sewer?
Who knows if this was all a monster’s illusion.
No, it must be an illusion.
They’re in league with those monsters!
Run!
“……”
Vyea paused, her eyes instantly turning sharp as she watched Tian Qi’s fleeing back, commanding:
“Get down!”
Thud!
The fleeing Night Watchman tripped and face-planted right into the filthy sewer.
“Ah—!”
Tian Qi cried out in terror. This filthy underground water actually held a trace of healing power. He didn’t want to die—he wanted to keep running—but his body grew heavier and heavier, until he was pinned to the ground, unable even to lift a finger.
“Yeye-jie…” Xiaolu looked at Vyea with concern. The power of the Hero’s Mark always restrained all Demons—even Demonkin with Demon blood were suppressed.
It was a contradiction: Vyea was protected by the Hero’s Mark, yet at the same time, it restricted her.
“Hmph!”
Vyea snorted lightly, dragging Anna, who was sulking over her failed proselytizing, toward the Night Watchman lying motionless on the ground.
“Speak. Why were you running? Do I look scary?”
“No… cough cough cough.”
Tian Qi coughed violently, the all-encompassing gravity making it hard to breathe. Struggling, he looked up, bloodshot eyes filled with terror, his face twisted and his hoarse voice pleading:
“No, please don’t kill me… I don’t want to die. Let me go, I can pay you, lots of money…”
“Who wants your filthy money.”
Vyea glanced at Anna, who suddenly started babbling about divine forgiveness, then looked back at the Night Watchman before her,
“I am a Pilgrimage Brave, directly appointed by the Capital, recently patrolling the southern border on routine inspection. What I see here makes me very unhappy. I hope you’ll cooperate with my investigation.”
As she spoke, Vyea pulled out a green token from her bosom, flashing it quickly in front of Tian Qi before either he or Anna could see it clearly, then tucked it away again.
“Antler City Night Watchman, A-class 107th Squad Captain Tian Qi, please answer me truthfully.”
“I… I…” Tian Qi immediately felt the weight on his body lighten. He quickly sat up, looking at Vyea with a mix of surprise and doubt. “M-My lady…?”
“Tell me what you have seen…” Vyea said, her voice calm and full of authority, “…everything.”