Chapter 96: Stuck On

No one knew how much time had passed.

In this frozen world, even the flow of time seemed to lose all meaning.

The first to break free was Leah.

She looked around, patting her full chest in lingering fear.

“So that was the Evil God worshipped by the Sirens? How terrifying… Thank goodness we didn’t let It descend.”

Miss Leah thought to herself, if the Sirens had really succeeded, perhaps only the Goddess of Light herself could have stopped It.

“Ayla, are you alright?”

After sighing in relief, her first concern was for the girl.

It was hard for Ella to say she was truly alright, but even if something was wrong, she didn’t dare say it.

She could only force a smile as sweet as cherry-flavored sugar-free cola.

“I’m fine.”

Vina blinked, her peach blossom eyes filled with curiosity and excitement.

“So that was the Evil God just now? The power of a god-level being!”

This world was so interesting—she absolutely loved it.

Celes said nothing, silently gripping her Knight Sword. The feeling of helplessness just now had left her a bit down, making her realize a simple truth.

We won—at least for now.

Not long after, the sound of footsteps echoed nearby. The girls turned to look and saw a petite figure, followed by a dozen or so cloaked people.

Cloaked Ones?

Weren’t they the ones who killed outside the Workshop before?

Celes instinctively raised her Knight Sword, but quickly lowered it again.

She realized the Sirens were the true enemy.

So, the Cloaked Ones who assassinated Sirens in the street shouldn’t be their enemies in theory.

“They’re my friends.”

Zero stepped forward and said, “With their help, I learned about the Shrine and managed to find it.”

“You all…”

Leah looked at her, then at the girl, feeling a bit confused.

Who found it, anyway?

Why does everyone have a different story?

“Um, here’s what happened.”

Ayla hurriedly explained, “Zero learned a new form, allowing her to enter the space where the Shrine is and stay hidden there. When I said I could destroy the Shrine before, it was just to lure them out so Zero could sneak in.”

Vina tilted her head.

“So you didn’t actually have any magic? Then what was all that chanting just now?”

“Ahaha, how could I possibly know such an evil spell?”

Then, Zero explained her recent actions to everyone, as well as her connection to the Evil God’s gaze and why she hadn’t told them before.

She also introduced Leah and the others, and talked about the First Generation Sanctuary of Silence, which left everyone sighing with emotion.

But for the girls, their thoughts were still on the previous events in the Royal City.

“So that’s how the Silent Sanctuary started.”

“Yeah, so many things in this world begin with the best intentions.”

The young girls all felt a wave of sentiment.

No matter what, one thing was certain now: the Sea Demon Priest incident was over.

They had seen with their own eyes as the Evil God hung in the sky, taking away Its servants’ souls.

And starting tomorrow, Harbor City would have a brand new beginning—returning to the Kingdom Gold Coin, the sea open to fishermen, the independent Demon Race Army guarding the city.

There would be no more Sirens, only humans.

As for those Sirens from before, all the Priests who ruled them were dead.

Now, they’d be like headless flies until a new batch of Priests appeared.

Who knew how long that would take?

The people of Harbor City now had a bright future.

Half an hour later, the girls returned to the inn. It was about one or two in the morning—plenty of time for a good sleep.

“Good night, everyone. Rest well. If there’s no need tomorrow morning, I won’t wake you up early.”

“Mhm, got it~”

After exchanging goodnights, the girls went back to their own rooms.

Ayla had just sat down on her bed, about to change clothes, when the door creaked open.

A golden-haired girl poked her head in.

“What’s up, Leah?”

“It’s nothing really, just wanted to let you know in advance.”

Miss Leah’s pretty face flushed a little.

“It’s been several days since we, um, did that. And since we’ll be traveling for a few days on the way back to the Royal City, before we leave, we should at least… do it once.”

Once they set out, they’d be spending days in the carriage—no time or space for that sort of thing.

“Uh, okay….”

“Great! Then I’ll come find you tomorrow night or the night after!”

Miss Leah left cheerfully, even thoughtfully closing the door behind her to prevent any other women from sneaking in.

“Is this what you wanted? The lust of intelligent beings, so alluring.”

The female voice in her mind shifted constantly, from a loli’s sweet childishness to a mature lady’s tone.

Ayla sighed, taking out the Necromantic Sword and looking at the new starry hue on the bone blade, her feelings complicated.

Earlier, after the Evil God appeared in the starry sky and took Its believers’ souls, It had glanced at her. That glance wasn’t for nothing—It had definitely done something.

Afterward, Ayla started hearing a voice in her head—

“Life is short and bitter. If you wish to do something, I can give you everything you desire.”

The Evil God’s voice, in that one short sentence, covered every pitch and timbre, young and old, male and female.

As a normal person with her own auditory preferences, Ayla naturally reacted differently to each voice.

So in the next sentence, the voice settled on a female tone, though it still contained every age.

Was It testing which type of voice I liked?

Ayla instantly realized it, but unfortunately, human instincts are hard to change.

So by the third sentence, the voice had fixed itself somewhere between a loli and a mature lady.

Why me?

“You’re better than them. You’re more skilled in schemes and trickery.”

It spoke in a blend of loli and mature woman, “What takes them a hundred years to barely accomplish is effortless for you.”

But I’m not that foolish, Ayla thought to herself.

I won’t recklessly do things like they did.

The Demon King wants to rule the world to live better, not to turn the world into a mess—what’s the point of that?

“You will have need of it.”

After saying this, a strange power slipped through the cracks of reality and stayed by her side.

It couldn’t interfere in the real world directly, but Ayla just happened to possess something not of this world, something that could serve as a vessel.

The Necromantic Sword.

And so, with a sense of responsibility, she brought this power back to the inn, sat on her bed, and sighed repeatedly.

Don’t even talk about good or bad—it’s called the Evil God for a reason, what good could come of it?

Maybe she could have Leah summon the power of the Goddess of Light and try purifying it.

But here’s the problem: she couldn’t just hand over her trump card to let Miss Leah purify it, could she?

Ayla put away the Necromantic Sword, closed her eyes, and flopped onto the bed.

Whatever, sleep first!

***

[Necroblade, Bone Summoner, Starseeker]

Type: Sword (?)

Quality: Mythic (False)

Description (New): Something is hidden upon it, quietly watching you.