Chapter 395
Blood of Heracles
Clang~
With a crisp clang of metal, the headless, blood-stained blade was casually discarded by Lily.
Minister Griffith, bound by the gray spiderweb, hung his head, completely unconscious.
“Always causing trouble…” Lily said in a low voice, disgusted.
Under Lily’s interrogation, he was already a bloody mess. Lily had also obtained very detailed information.
Minister Griffith possessed power at the Third Tier of the Path of Authority. Before becoming a minister, he was a Law Master who graduated from the Royal Law University. Reaching the Third Tier before the age of thirty was already a remarkable talent.
Concurrently, Lily could sense he had an Affinity for the Path of Love at the First Tier. But it was only of that strength. After becoming accustomed to high-level matches, Lily, when ambushing a true Third Tier Extraordinary, didn’t even give him a chance to resist.
Throughout the entire process, the Shadow Demon didn’t even get a chance to act. Lily alone defeated Griffith. By using the spiderweb woven from lies and the control of the “Alchemist in the Shadows,” he was completely subdued by Lily before Minister Griffith could launch an effective counterattack.
Subsequently, Lily alternated between using the hawk feather dagger for violent interrogation and the “Love Potion” attached to the “Alchemist in the Shadows” for control, quickly extracting information from Minister Griffith.
Part of the reason for this was Griffith’s prolonged lapse in vigilance; another part was Lily’s excellent equipment. But the most crucial reason was his own complacency. He had stayed in Star Antimony for ten full years, yet his Path of Authority remained at the level it was a decade ago. Although he had gained an Affinity for the Path of Love, its Tier was simply too low. It failed to synergize with his main Path, and the excess “desire” instead hindered the progress of his primary Path.
Lily, as a “Witch” at a higher Tier on the same Path, used the “Love Potion” from the bone sculpture relic, capable of affecting the Third Tier, as a means of control, which was just enough to subdue Griffith. The Witch’s potion exerted extreme pressure on Griffith, who was below her on the same Path, making it almost impossible to resist.
When Paths are different, there might be a chance to exploit an advantage; but suppression from a superior on the same Path is almost insurmountable. Just like the Giant Prince of Noble Red—his curse of the “Three Great Sins” is unsolvable for Demon Scholars below him on the same Path. Eivass’s escape was entirely due to intelligence suppression.
Lily’s brutal methods were because she understood Eivass well. Her Master, Eivass, was a highly protective person. In a certain sense, he could be considered biased towards those he cared about. And among Eivass’s current “intimacy ranking,” Miss Yulia, who grew up with Eivass and relied on him, was undoubtedly first. Eivass dared not even let her know what he usually did. When he was doing bad or dangerous things, he often told Lily not to tell Yulia.
When Miss Yulia first wanted to become an Extraordinary, she possessed talents for the Paths of Balance, Wisdom, Devotion, and Transcendence. But among these choices, Eivass directly ruled out the latter two—he wished Yulia to become an Alchemist or a Mage, as these were relatively the safest professions. They required her to stay indoors, not interact with others, and avoid direct danger. The threat of Extraordinary knowledge was not as great, and once formed, they could possess a certain degree of self-protection, and would not be too powerless during their Ascension Rituals.
Although Eivass didn’t forcibly require Yulia to choose these two professions, Yulia was remarkably intelligent—she easily perceived Eivass’s expectations for her and became an Alchemist. …Of course, in Lily’s opinion, Yulia could never be considered “overly fragile” or “in need of protection.” A girl who endured years of high fever, maintaining quiet, rational focus on her studies without complaint or crying, possessed a mental fortitude unimaginable to ordinary people.
Although Eivass perceived her as seemingly always frail… when Eivass was not at home, Yulia, three years younger than Eivass, was the one in charge. All the servants in the house respected her, including Lily. Furthermore, Yulia possessed a strange, utterly inexplicable brute strength. Though her body was weak and lacked stamina, when she occasionally rallied her spirits, she could exhibit strength greater than an adult man. This was a secret known only among the servants. Old Master James also knew, but Edward and Eivass did not.
Although she rarely displayed it in front of others, especially in front of Eivass, where she would not intentionally exert herself… on the night Eivass encountered the Shadow Demon and fell into a coma, Yulia directly carried him. Eivass had believed that Lily was the one who bathed him at the time, and Oswald had helped carry him—but that was only half true. Because after Eivass entered the house, Yulia carried him away. Lily did help with the cleaning, and after washing, it was Yulia who carried Eivass away. At that moment, she moved with incredible speed, appearing exceptionally healthy… but afterward, she seemed to have been “backlashed,” and the Phantom Demon Egg within her reactivated.
And now, Lily finally understood the reason for all of this.
“…Heracles.” Lily murmured in a low voice. According to the crucial information provided by Minister Griffith, Yulia possessed the bloodline of the Heracles family. That was royalty from the Hrasal Empire. White hair and red eyes, possessing immense strength, these were the characteristics of the Heracles family. But this was impossible… because this family had long since died out before the War of the Dividing Land.
If they hadn’t died out, the War of the Dividing Land would not have occurred—the reason the Hrasal Empire split into Star Antimony, Iris Flower, Narcissus, and Black Eagle was because the royal family was wiped out, leaving no legitimate successor to the throne. Therefore, each of the four states claimed to be the true successor of the old empire, while the other three were rebels. Even if one Heracles had survived at that time, the War of the Dividing Land should not have happened. Unless…
“…Swamp Dweller?” Lily muttered, dimly realizing something. She had also followed Eivass throughout Eagle Cape Village. Although she usually remained silent, it didn’t mean she didn’t have ears or didn’t listen to anything. Quite the opposite. She had been listening to conversations, constantly collecting information. If Yulia was a Swamp Dweller created with the “Blood of Heracles,” then it would explain why her birth parents had never been found.
It was said that when Old Master James prepared to take Yulia from the orphanage, she exhibited extremely powerful strength—several adult men couldn’t pull her away. When Lily first heard this story, she thought it was “because they were afraid of hurting Yulia, so they didn’t dare to use force,” thereby highlighting Yulia’s unwavering resolve not to leave. But recalling it now… that might have been a literal “couldn’t be pulled away.”
Minister Griffith himself didn’t even know his “intended master’s” objective, but Lily, with more information, understood the full picture. Star Antimony had somehow obtained information about Yulia. They ordered Minister Griffith to find a way, but ultimately to obtain Yulia’s blood. Minister Griffith’s method was to claim Yulia was a Phantom Demon Egg and demand an examination—they didn’t actually know Yulia was a Phantom Demon Egg; it was a complete fabrication. The objective was simply to obtain Yulia’s blood. Although Yulia had indeed been a Phantom Demon Egg, and harboring one was a grave offense… Eivass possessed a special secret ritual that could safely remove the Phantom Demon Egg from the body. Now that Yulia no longer had a Phantom Demon Egg within her, they would naturally not fear an examination. Thus, Minister Griffith could obtain Yulia’s blood.
But when Griffith proposed this idea, the Eye Demon presented a new demand. It required him to attack Eivass—at least to clearly display an antagonistic stance towards Eivass and not stand with him. Minister Griffith didn’t know why, so he was confused. But Lily knew. In reality, Griffith was merely bait. He was being used to catch a bigger fish.
If he opposed Eivass, coupled with his displayed hostility towards Yulia… then in Eivass’s style, he would most likely send someone to deal with him directly. But the Star Antimony people did not know of “Lily’s” existence. In their expectation, the one to act should have been “Alistair.” So the Eye Demon most likely immediately jumped away and left after seeing traces of the Shadow Demon’s existence through “Future Sight” or “True Sight.” Because it had already prepared to flee at any moment. If everything went according to plan, then “Miss Alistair” would learn information about Yulia’s bloodline from Griffith.
But… what about afterward? Lily’s brow furrowed slightly. She was ultimately not as intelligent as Eivass. She could only analyze up to this point, her thoughts hitting a transparent wall. If it were Eivass or Sherlock, they would surely guess what the Star Antimony people intended to do. But one thing, she realized clearly. Therefore, “Miss Alistair” could not appear here.
Others might not know, but Lily knew. There was no such person as “Alistair Crowley”; it was merely another identity of her young master. And Eivass was currently entertaining reporters not far away. His objective was to pressure the knights in the Round Table Hall through such means—telling them, “I’m watching you.” And that he could potentially resort to violent means beyond the meeting to achieve his goals, and he actually possessed such power, which they couldn’t counter.
Because, in name, Eivass and Miss Alistair had already fallen out. At this point, even if Alistair assassinated a minister, it couldn’t be blamed on Eivass; it could even be said that Alistair was deliberately causing trouble for Eivass. In that case, Isabel surely wouldn’t “punish Eivass for the mistakes of a foreign spy or assassin trying to cause trouble for Eivass.”
…But, the situation was different now. This matter could potentially involve Miss Yulia. And there seemed to be a larger conspiracy behind it. Eivass had taught Lily some methods of handling such situations beforehand. Lily hadn’t understood many things, but she clearly remembered and understood one sentence—”If you know what your enemy wants you to do… then you had better not do it. From this perspective, the essence of a game lies in discerning the opponent’s true intentions amidst layers of deception and misdirection.”
Eivass said, “You are not my tool, Lily. You must have your own thoughts.” Lily thought rapidly. This was the first time she encountered a situation where doing as Eivass planned would lead Eivass into a trap. She had to independently devise the best solution in a short amount of time. And the Shadow Demon had been very silent lately, not speaking a word. In the past, she could have consulted the Shadow Demon’s opinion. But now, she had to think for herself.
Since the Star Antimony people wanted to catch “Alistair” as their fish, then “Alistair” could not take the bait. Fortunately, Lily had prepared a second plan… And fortunately, she hadn’t used any of the Shadow Demon’s power so far, thus leaving no trace of shadow tainted with the aura of the Transcendent Path. The shadows she had used came entirely from herself, bestowed by Eivass; they were the auras of the Path of Love and the Path of Adaptation.
She pushed up her glasses and gently rotated the wristband of the glove on her left hand by one notch. She switched the “Love Potion” attached to the glove, used for torture, to “Lunar Mist,” capable of rapidly melting a person’s internal organs within seconds.
Then, Lily extended her left hand, clad in a black silk glove, and slowly, firmly placed it around Minister Griffith’s neck. Pink tree-like patterns rapidly spread downwards from his neck. Black blood slowly trickled from his nose and mouth. This young talent, not even forty years old this year, lost his breath in an instant.
Miss Chloe, I’ll have to trouble you to take the blame again… Lily sighed silently, slowly removing her glove. To this day, Miss Chloe had taken the blame for many things. And this one might be the biggest.
Lily’s body then gradually mutated, transforming into an upright, gray werewolf with scarlet pupils. Without hesitation, she tore apart Minister Griffith’s corpse, destroying the traces of her interrogation—though she only destroyed part of them. If investigated thoroughly, the traces of dismemberment with the “hawk feather” while he was alive could still be found. But it was just right. What one found themselves would be more convincing.
