Chapter 95
The Price of Stealing Shadows
But Chloe hesitated, and still did not touch the key first.
Although she didn’t know if this key had any warning functions… it was better to take it last, just in case.
The closer she got to victory, the calmer Chloe became. She began to consider all possibilities, thinking about her own oversights and mistakes.
After a quiet review, she confirmed there were no loopholes.
Eivass was truly drunk, and his actions in his sleep were without any abnormality.
Only then did she boldly step forward. She took out a dark red lipstick from her pocket and applied it lightly to herself.
The basic ability of the Path Adaptation was resistance to poison and disease. The higher the level, the stronger the resistance. This was why they could consume large amounts of herbs without worrying about side effects, or eat any visible creature in the wild to supplement their energy and nutrition. Many poisons were useless against them, but effective against others. Through this difference in perception, the assassination ability of the Path Adaptation was very strong.
As a member of the “Eagle Eye” organization, she knew how to make various potent and cursed poisons. Besides applying this potent paste to the “Hawk Feather” throwing knives, she also made them into easy-to-carry and concealed lipstick, to be triggered by a deadly kiss.
Of course, this did not have any special meaning. It was just a quirk of hers… if anything, a kiss was lighter than applying lipstick. But what she really wanted was just to “kiss”.
A kiss that quietly took someone’s life felt romantic and charming. As if she were a legendary succubus or siren. It had a sense of ritual.
But Chloe thought back now… perhaps she had leaned towards the Path of Love from the very beginning. The habits along the way had been constantly strengthening her affinity for the Path of Love, without her ever realizing it. Only now did she truly realize how strong her desires were.
Just like how she always wore clothes that were too revealing and conspicuous for Avalonians, dressing herself up beautifully. This seemed a bit too high-profile for an assassin.
She had always disguised herself as a follower of the Path of Beauty, but perhaps she was more suited to the Path of Love. Unfortunately, the Path of Love of the Iris Flower was completely controlled by the Child of the Moon, and while she could leave the organization, she could never become the Child of the Moon—or she would definitely be found and killed by her colleagues.
—But it didn’t matter.
Once I get this Holy Weapon, I’ll have the leverage to negotiate with the organization.
After finishing her lipstick, Chloe looked at the sleeping, alcohol-scented Eivass and smiled.
…Looking closely, although he was infuriating before, this young man still looks quite handsome up close.
Kissing him, I won’t lose out.
She leaned down and gently kissed Eivass—but for some reason, her waist could only bend halfway.
She could already smell the faint scent of alcohol on Eivass’s breath as he slept, and the scent of the opposite sex emanating from him. But her waist felt as if it had been anesthetized, holding this strenuous posture, unable to move at all.
“—Have you had enough fun?”
A cold female voice echoed in her mind.
Judging by the tone and voice, it sounded like a strong and arrogant mature woman.
—Not Eivass’s personal maid.
Damn it, is there someone else hiding in this room?!
Chloe sobered up instantly, subconsciously melting into shadow, breaking free from this binding of unknown origin, and diving into Eivass’s shadow.
But unlike all previous shadow stealths—
Or rather, just like the last time she infiltrated Eivass’s shadow. A great, extremely strong sense of fear gripped her heart.
—But she was already too late to escape.
The shadow, which she could traverse freely before, was now like frozen ice, cold and solid.
It was as if she had thrown herself into a cage, freezing herself in a block of ice.
And the cold voice mocked in her ears, “You little thief who steals the power of shadows, you trust this power quite a lot…”
At this moment, Chloe felt a dizzying sensation.
When she could see again, she saw Eivass lying in bed very far away.
And her perspective…
—It was as if she had been sealed in a mirror!
And a “second self,” who looked almost exactly like her but with pure black hair and eyes, stood in her previous position, sneering at Chloe in the mirror.
She slowly “walked” closer to the mirror—her “walk” was merely a gesture, and in reality, she floated. Half of her feet merged with the ground as she walked. Her body did not rise and fall with her steps, but emitted a faint black smoke.
In the mirror, Chloe’s body was completely out of her control. She was forced to perform the same actions as the “other self” outside the mirror, approaching the “other self” that filled her with dread.
As the “other self” got closer, Chloe noticed… her pupils and hair were not black, but a constantly flowing void. It was not the kind of black that reflected light and showed individual strands of hair, but “non-existent.”
Her skin was as pale as a ghost, almost semi-transparent… only the clothes she wore were physical.
—Who are you?
Chloe wanted to speak, but couldn’t even open her mouth. It was as if she had truly turned into a reflection.
But the self outside the mirror seemed to hear her thoughts, the corners of her mouth turned up slightly, revealing a rather charming smile.
But at this moment, the Chloe trapped in the mirror did not synchronize her movements.
Chloe in the mirror still had caramel-colored short curly hair. Visible fear appeared on her face, and her beautiful features were contorted.
“You follower of the Lord of Scales and Feathers, a thief who steals the scales of fish and the feathers of birds… To this day, you don’t even remember where your power comes from?”
She sneered, extending her slender, pale fingers to lightly slide across Chloe’s cheek.
*Crack*—
Chloe heard an illusory sound. Like her soul being cut, an indescribable pain surged—her mirror image was suddenly cracked, but she couldn’t utter a single word.
Her brain went blank from the pain, but the word quickly entered her mind—
—Who is the source of her power?
It’s Shadow Demon!
…There’s a Shadow Demon in Eivass’s shadow?!
How is that possible!
But… if this is true…
At that moment, she understood everything.
Why Eivass could see her, why he wasn’t afraid of her at all, why she felt immense fear when she entered Eivass’s shadow…
And she also realized that Eivass’s words at the banquet were just a trap and a disguise to lure her in!
—”Priest,” “Hero”! All fake!
He’s not a good person at all—a Demon Scholar who can contract with an Upper Demon could never be so young!
This must be a very powerful Demon Scholar who moonlights as a Twilight Path user, reincarnated into Eivass’s body, stealing his identity and shell!
At that moment, regret washed over her.
If she had another chance, she would never provoke Eivass!
But it was too late.
She could never escape from a Shadow Demon!
The power of the Path Adaptation comes from imitating others. Whether it’s poison, precognition, invisibility, regeneration, or other abilities, they come from imitating other life forms in nature. Her shadow stealth skill was an ability created by seniors of the Eagle Eye organization by imitating the demon known as “Shadow Demon.”
However, it was ultimately a bootleg. They couldn’t truly capture a Shadow Demon to imitate its talent. It was just a weakened version of the ability constructed through observation and imagination.
Now she knew that the Shadow Demon’s control over “shadows” also included mirror images!
It wasn’t so much that this was how she was caught, but rather that the Shadow Demon had already caught her and was specifically showing her how a real Shadow Demon hunts…
“I don’t mind you copying its talent from one of my kin. But you’ve done it so ugly, like a toad singing or a donkey dancing. I feel like an elephant stomping overhead… It’s so noisy.”
The Shadow Demon’s voice was full of malice, and Chloe increasingly realized that the Shadow Demon’s voice was gradually shifting towards her own—from that arrogant and mature female voice to her own charming, honey-like voice.
“And, more importantly—my master’s shadow, that’s my territory.”
Her voice was soft yet cold, and her slender fingers reached through the mirror and grasped the neck of the person in the mirror: “You’ve overstepped your bounds, little thief.
“If my master wasn’t merciful, I would have torn you to shreds then. Fortunately, Father Snake protected you, and you dare to come back.
“You’re even foolish enough to want to kill my master—who do you think you are? So weak, yet so confident…”
The distorted Chloe in the mirror was constantly being corroded by shadows. The edges of the full-length mirror also began to bleed, as if it were not solid glass, but an iron maiden slowly closing.
And before Chloe lost consciousness, the Shadow Demon’s voice echoed in her mind: “You copied from me, so I’ll copy from you. I happen to need a skin set that suits human aesthetics.
“Since you tried to steal shadows… your voice and face are mine now.
“In human terms, this should be called settling a debt.”
Saying that, the Shadow Demon’s finger touched the mirror surface, making a big ‘X’ on it: “You’re in debt now, Miss.”
In an instant, Chloe’s already cracked soul was completely torn apart by the Shadow Demon’s claws.
It wasn’t until the next day that Eivass woke up groggily. He hadn’t been woken up by the Shadow Demon.
This was what he had agreed with the Shadow Demon beforehand: to quietly get rid of the assassin. No need to wake him up unless there was something special.
This was also his way of showing trust in the Shadow Demon.
“How was the situation last night?”
As soon as he woke up, he asked in his mind: “What were her last words?”
Eivass wasn’t worried that the Shadow Demon had let her escape.
Because when he woke up, a pop-up window had already appeared before his eyes:
[Killed a Fourth Tier Extraordinary, gained 120 Free Experience]
About a hundred less than the Deformed, but the experience that came to him was enough. Including the experience Eivass hadn’t used before, he now had 364 points of Free Experience. This way, after advancing to Demon Scholar at the beginning of the month, Eivass could advance continuously at the beginning of the next month—in just two months, he could directly reach the Third Tier!
What restricted Eivass now was the cooldown time of the ritual. Of course, to prevent experience from overflowing, he would read normally first and then use Free Experience to supplement his level at the end.
Every bit saved was a bit earned!
Eivass was just a little worried—would the Shadow Demon have torn apart and corroded everything on her?
“I remember telling you to leave any equipment that could be kept… Where did you put it?”
He asked again: “Also. Didn’t you mess up the floor or anything?”
“She had no last words, not a single word spoken until her death. She only regretted offending you.”
The Shadow Demon’s voice, which was different from yesterday and sounded more human, echoed in his mind: “The spoils of war are on the sofa next to you, all of them, Master… As for her blood, I’ve eaten it all. There won’t be any traces left.”
Eivass looked over—and indeed.
The clothes were neatly folded, arranged in order, and categorized. As if he had taken them off and placed them there himself. Completely intact, not a single piece damaged.
“…Did Lily come by?”
Eivass’s first thought was, did Lily come and tidy it up?
But he quickly realized—he had already reminded Lily last night not to wake him today. She would not enter his room without permission.
This Shadow Demon… is quite organized in its work?
Update complete, requesting votes~
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