Chapter 296
“Why are you all staring at me?” Luo Xiu was stunned by their gaze.
The girl in the black dress bit her lip and walked back. She approached Luo Xiu, lowered her head, and spoke in a hushed voice. “Why?”
“Why what?” Eileen looked up, her eyes still shimmering with tears. She clenched her palms; they were soaked. “Why did you save us? You weren’t like this when we were at the church before.”
Eileen’s voice trembled, and her eyes still held a deep-seated wariness as she looked at Luo Xiu. “Or is this what you meant by a cage, by judgment and training?” The girl emphasized the words ‘judgment’ and ‘training.’ Like the abused children she had seen in the slums, Eileen knew that these seemingly respectable important figures might be incredibly dark underneath. Having a peculiar fetish was not unusual at all.
As she spoke, a sliver of unrealistic hope flickered in her heart, only to be quickly extinguished by reason. Everything was likely just the other party’s whim, or perhaps the calm before the storm. Or, it could even be a final meal before execution. Eileen had always been inclined to assume the worst of people. Past bloody experiences had already shown her that they were born bad omens, destined to burn alive on the cross. Even if someone offered help, it was certainly for their own gain.
“Ha, you’re talking about that.” Luo Xiu chuckled. He chose his words carefully. “If I had to say why, it would be hard to explain clearly to you.”
“But then again…” the man’s tone shifted. “Just think of me as having nothing better to do. It’s not a bad thing for you, is it?”
“…Nothing better to do?”
“Yes, what’s the problem?” Eileen sneered and shook her head. “That’s a ridiculous reason. Do you believe it yourself?” The thoughts of a young girl were hard to hide. Even though she knew she should be polite, she couldn’t help but want to taunt him. Beside her, Selena, lying on the bed, was much calmer. She gently tugged at her friend’s hand from under the covers, signaling her not to act rashly. Eileen was about to say more, but she felt Selena’s subtle movement and held back.
Eileen did not fear death. The only thing that could make her yield was Selena.
“Believe it or not…” To their surprise, the man was not angered by her words. Instead, he rubbed his chin and thought seriously. He then laughed, “Whether you believe it or not doesn’t really matter. Time will prove everything.”
He finished speaking and turned to walk out the door. “Since you’re both alright, rest here for a while. I have some matters to attend to.” Luo Xiu knew that the two girls were likely filled with mistrust, and perhaps even resentment, towards him at the moment. So, he decided to give both sides some space and proceed slowly. He had plenty of time and didn’t need to rush.
As expected, after he offered to leave, Eileen’s tensed face visibly relaxed. But in the next moment, the girl suddenly became nervous again. The retreating figure ahead had paused.
Without turning his head, the man left them with a final sentence: “By the way, I never said the word ‘training.’ You’re just imagining things.”
Luo Xiu departed, his footsteps completely disappearing down the hallway. He thoughtfully closed the door behind him. Silence returned to the room, broken only by the faint breathing of Eileen and Selena. Eileen stared blankly for a few seconds before turning her head numbly. She and Selena met each other’s gazes, seeing confusion, helplessness, and a host of complex emotions reflected in their eyes.
He really just left like that? Without taking advantage of the situation to do anything strange to them? Like tying them up with thick ropes, placing them on a rack, and picking up candles dripping with red wax… Images flashed through Eileen’s mind, causing her face to flush. She shook her head quickly, patted her chest in relief, then climbed onto the bed and hugged her friend tightly. “Wuwuwu… Selena, thank goodness you’re okay. When I woke up and found you weren’t beside me, I was so scared…” Her words were filled with genuine emotion.
Selena returned Eileen’s embrace, her brows furrowed with worry. “Eileen, I feel like something is very wrong.”
Eileen wiped her face and nodded in agreement. “Yes, there’s definitely something strange going on. He’s just hiding it and not telling us.” Selena sighed, looking out at the sunlight streaming through the window, lost in thought for a moment.
“Eileen, how long has it been since we last saw sunlight like this?” Eileen fell silent. Before this, to avoid being captured by demon hunters, they had to hide in the foul-smelling, dirty sewers of the slums to survive. Due to a lack of money and income, they could only eat hard, stale bread every day. Even to buy such pitifully small portions of food, they had to wrap themselves tightly and be constantly vigilant to avoid being seen. But one can’t always stay by the river without getting their clothes wet. Eventually, they slipped up a while ago, leading to their current situation.
No, Selena suddenly thought, if all this could be maintained, then this wouldn’t be ‘falling into a pathetic state’… There was warm sunlight here, and a soft bed beneath them. Not to mention the bandaged wound on her chest… Thinking of this, Selena grew more and more bewildered. What did that handsome man really want? After all, from any perspective, they held no value worth the risk for a man to shelter and rescue them. She pondered for a moment, glanced at the girl beside her, and vaguely formed a guess.
Eileen’s emotions had gradually calmed, though her eyes were still a little red. Her cheeks were rosy, her thin lips were red, and the faint tear tracks on her face only enhanced the delicate beauty of her complexion. Just as Selena was struggling with whether to voice her guess, Eileen spoke first. She said in a low voice, “Selena, I think he brought us back because he has some other intentions.”
Selena’s eyes flickered. “Like what?” The two girls had managed to survive this long, so they weren’t foolish enough to naively believe that the man had saved them simply because he had nothing better to do.
Eileen shifted closer and whispered into Selena’s ear, “Perhaps he needs to conduct some special experiments or research on us?” Witches had extraordinary constitutions. Centuries ago, some witches were captured and secretly studied by the Holy See, but ultimately to no avail. As time passed, the Holy See lost interest in such matters. Then, Eileen offered her second guess. “But I think the most likely… ” The girl hesitated. “…is that he has some kind of special fetish.”
(End of Chapter)
