It took a full ten-plus minutes, plus dozens of spatial kisses, before Annabell finally managed to soothe Charlotte, that utterly overturned “vinegar jar,” completely.
From the other end of the communication imprint, the golden-haired girl’s satisfied, coquettish giggles finally came through.
Annabell helplessly rubbed her brow and instructed, “Alright, stop giggling like an idiot. You’re in the Dragonbone Mountain Range right now, and that place is a nest for high-tier fire-type magical beasts.”
“Things like Wind Speed Dogs, Roaring Tigers, and Fire-breathing Dragons are as common as stray dogs on the roadside. You absolutely must be careful.”
“Strange fire is not a kind thing. If you run into danger, tear open the spatial teleportation scroll I gave you immediately, got it?”
Charlotte’s voice came through, soft and sticky: “Hehehe? Anna… actually, deep inside your storage ring, I secretly hid a bunch of life-saving potions and explosive scrolls that I refined myself too.”
Meanwhile, in the distant Dragonbone Mountain Range, inside Charlotte’s spiritual body, the old lady was clutching her chest in agony.
I can’t take it anymore, I can’t!
Why, whenever those two little girls showed their affection, did she, a lonely old woman with no one to her name, have to listen to the whole thing?
As a remnant soul dwelling in her host’s spirit, she simply had no way to block out this feeling of being force-fed dog food over and over. The old lady felt a wave of speechlessness wash over her heart.
Finally, after the two had been all lovey-dovey for quite a while, Charlotte reluctantly ended the communication.
Annabell leaned against the bed. After cutting off the connection, the gloomy, irritated mood she’d been in from facing those perverted elders of her family suddenly cleared and lightened considerably.
A gentle smile, one she didn’t even notice herself, tugged at the corner of Annabell’s lips.
“What a clingy idiot.”
But soon, her thoughts drifted back to the Trandy Family, to that cousin locked in the dungeon who bore an eighty percent resemblance to herself—Xue Lei.
“Once the abyssal blood sacrifice ritual is over, I have to take her away from that godforsaken place immediately. I hope the mental trauma she’s suffered over the years can gradually heal.”
Annabell watched the family’s Dark Castle draw closer outside the airship window, silently planning: “I might as well just transfer the deed to my most luxurious flat over to her too. The moment I return to the castle tomorrow, I’ll instruct the Inner Affairs Steward to handle it.”
“Consider it… a measure of material compensation from me, this cruel, arrogant, and insufferable Villainess Sister.”
Annabell was still thinking—were the arrangements she’d made before really enough?
The more she thought about it, the more she felt that those scumbag branch family members who usually bullied Xue Lei getting off with just having their magic circuits crippled didn’t seem harsh enough. What she’d done for her still felt far too little.
After all, a huge part of Xue Lei’s miserable childhood had been caused by the original owner.
Since she’d taken over this body, she, Annabell, would never run from this heavy burden of guilt.
“For her whole life, it’s only right that I, as her sister, protect her. Even if she hates me to the bone right now, I’ll quietly clear every obstacle in her path from the shadows.”
“Even if it lowers her growth ceiling, I hope that after the ritual, she can accept my compensation and become stronger.”
When it came to outsiders like the Prince or the Saintess, she could be cruel and cold, arrogant and conceited, looking down on everyone, even slaughtering without mercy.
But for that cousin whose fate was so tragic in the original story, she could only choose to care for her carefully, in her own way, and make amends for past wrongs.
That night, Annabel lay in bed, thinking about many things.
However, Annabell had no idea that in the darkest Dungeon Side Room of Trandi Castle, fate’s gear had already slid into an irreversible abyss.
“Do not fear the truth. Do not be afraid of the facts.”
“Once you know everything, you will grow, learn to be ruthless, and become stronger.”
“Oh, or more precisely, become more like a cold-blooded Trandi family member, isn’t that right?”
“Familial love? It’s fuel! It’s the stepping stone for her to reach the pinnacle!”
“It’s written clearly in this top-secret plan! You are the material! You are the fuel!”
“You always hoped she loved you, hoped her occasional charity was out of familial affection, but has she ever loved you?”
“Has she ever treated you like a sister?”
“No, you’re just a human-shaped container in her eyes.”
“To activate that abyssal holy artifact, she will unhesitatingly and cruelly throw you into the Soul Furnace as a living sacrifice.”
“To conquer the Continent, she will drain your last drop of blood, your last wisp of mana!”
“The entire Trandy Family, even the sister you once relied on most, is using you as a tool.”
“During the forging process, what kind of soul burning you’ll experience, what kind of monstrous existence worse than death you’ll become, they never cared at all.”
“What they want is for you to die!”
“What they want is for Annabell to wield a demonic weapon forged from your flesh and blood and resentment, to build the family’s unparalleled dominion!”
“When that time comes, no one will remember who you are. You will be trapped forever in the abyssal holy artifact as a mindless Weapon Spirit, suffering eternal suffering!”
Xue Lei remained silent as the other “her” continued to pour it on.
“Want to know how she really sees you in her heart?”
“Let me help you recall those memories you deliberately buried.”
The next second, a magic projection forcibly replayed a scene in Xue Lei’s mind.
It was Annabell, looking down at her with an icy cold, condescending expression.
“No pure-blood trait, actually black hair, utterly lacking any pure-blood trait. Truly the shame of our clan!”
“As a direct-line member of the Trandy Family, having black hair, you’re worthless.”
“Instead of living uselessly like a dog, you might as well die in my place.”
“This shameful body of yours—isn’t its only remaining value as firewood?”
“I have never once been happy being your sister.”
“See? That’s the real truth in the heart of your dear sister Annabell.”
The Mirror Demon murmured in satisfaction.
“She loathes you. She wishes you’d drop dead right now. What are you still hesitating for?”
“Cast aside those ridiculous and pitiful hopes of yours!”
The dark side, like black water flooding in reverse, swiftly filled every corner of Xue Lei’s heart.
In her pitch-black pupils, a bone-chilling crimson demonic light began to bloom, bit by bit.
The pained, struggling expression on her face gradually faded, replaced by an utterly frigid coldness.
In her heart, there was no longer a trace of hesitation.
The purest malice and hatred of the Original Demon Clan erupted fully within her body.
“You never truly saw me as a sister.”
“You’ve already forgotten the childhood promise.”
“You never once loved me…”
“I’m just material for your sacrifice.”
Xue Lei slowly rose to her feet. The dark magic around her began to churn uncontrollably, and even the walls of the dungeon began to crack.
“If you show no mercy… don’t blame me for showing none either!”
The other “her” revealed a bizarre, maniacal smile deep in her heart:
“That’s right, that’s right! The Trandy Family and Annabell are so vicious—you can be even more vicious than them! You can be even more of a demon than them!”
“We’re going to…”
“Destroy her!”
“Please, another me.”
“Yes, yes, I really can’t do anything about you.”