Chapter 115: The Only Bond
The silver-haired half-elf’s head lay on the red velvet, placed on the exquisite round table. The good master Blanxi appeared calm, showing only a satisfied smile, but Jima noticed that his hand was tightly clenched in excitement.
He reached out, touched the silver-haired half-elf’s head, and after confirming it was real, he took a deep breath, revealing a delight in revenge on his face.
Jima carefully inspected the head and confirmed it looked exactly like the head of the Shadow King, Akarnis. She seemed to see Akarnis’s sinister smile on the face of the head.
When the big boss, Flouris, caught her, Jima realized the Shadow King had a purpose in slipping gold coins to her.
The Shadow King Akarnis already knew that the original flower of Shalin City was dead. Furthermore, Jima and Akarnis were the first to locate the treasure trove, leaving the big boss Flouris with only a sealed treasure, rendering his “achievements” hard to accept.
Shadow King Akarnis understood big boss Flouris too well. In order to become a noble, he would surely take the risk to betray the treaty and attack the virgin succubus.
Slipping gold coins to Jima planted the seeds for the assassination of big boss Flouris.
But…
How did the Shadow King fail? I painstakingly stuffed the vulnerable gold coins into the fat guy’s clothes. What a loser! Look at that dead virgin, worth a gold coin, spitting out Chamberlain’s shit, surrounded and still not dead.
Jima inwardly cursed the Shadow King for dragging her down.
“You’re not afraid?” the good master Blanxi said with satisfaction as he closed the box.
Jima suddenly broke down, a sorrowful expression on her face. She clasped her hands together and pleaded:
“Please let me go, I will remember your kindness. I don’t want to be a slave, I don’t want to be forced on a bed by a man.”
Her tone was mournful, and if her eyes could flow tears, it would be even more pitiful.
The good master Blanxi was momentarily stunned.
Jima’s sadness vanished in less than half a second, and she said flatly, “Satisfied?”
“Hahaha, interesting, interesting.” The good master Blanxi laughed and clapped his hands. “A vibrant and spirited girl like you is perfect to be the flower of Shalin City. My teachers often complain to me that the hardest to educate are those lifeless, unenergetic girls who look like zombies. They still have to give them hope.”
“Hope?”
“Yes, the hope of escape. Some lover outside always wanting to rescue them.” The good master Blanxi said, “I’d rather have a girl escape every day than see her lifeless. Guests wouldn’t like girls who are like the living dead.”
Jima lowered her eyelids. What she had just joked about was fundamentally an expression of her anxiety about her future fate.
At this moment, the silver bell rang once more.
An old maid brought a note and whispered, “News from the boss.”
The good master Blanxi took the note, and the old maid retreated. Blanxi unfolded the note, and a smile appeared on his face.
“Can it satisfy my curiosity?”
Jima extended her small hand and asked.
“With pleasure, miss.”
The good master Blanxi politely placed the note in Jima’s palm. Jima quickly scanned its contents:
“… The boss is very sorrowful, saying that the Shadow King was once his little brother and that he executed the Shadow King himself, severing his head… A shadow blade was found on the Shadow King, along with a distinctive gold coin…”
The Shadow King Akarnis is not dead! The gold coins were stuffed into the boss’s belongings and could not possibly appear on “the Shadow King’s body.”
Jima’s mind sparked, and she quickly pieced together the situation.
Most likely, the Shadow King used the shadow blade to enable both sides to steal each other’s identities. Speaking of which, is this stealing ability really that impressive? I remember the boss’s head is much bigger than the Shadow King’s.
Jima couldn’t help but glance at the box, comparing the size of the boss Flouris’s head in her memory, and confirmed that this box could not contain it.
Of course, throughout this process, a subtle hopelessness appeared on Jima’s face.
“Are you feeling hopeless?”
“Not at all.” Jima forced a smile, as if she were putting on a brave face. “I never placed my hopes on the Shadow King. The brave George will save me; he has escaped.”
The good master Blanxi found Jima’s “naivety” amusing and said:
“You’re not as mature as you seem. You actually place your hopes on the brave man? You would be better off placing them on the Shadow King. His goals at least overlap somewhat with yours.”
Coincidentally, I think similarly. When I have time later, I need to brainstorm a plan to collaborate with him and aim to kill your entire family.
Jima placed her hands on her hips and said:
“You don’t understand George. He is a brave man who would never give up on me. He can even kill the Demon King; killing you will just be a matter of time.”
The good master Blanxi couldn’t help but laugh, saying:
“You are so naive and adorable. Do you think, why did the hero bring you to Shalin City all alone?”
“He said it himself, that it was to grant me freedom. He said my fate shouldn’t be enslaved.”
“Do you know the oath of the paladin?”
“To uphold the sacred oath, to temper one’s mind, and to firm up one’s faith,” Jima recited the official words.
“Sure enough, he didn’t tell you. The oath grants power to the paladin, and violating the oath results in backlash, diminishing strength. He had made a vow of freedom, and signing a contract with you has already breached that—”
I knew it all along, and I was the one who told you.
Jima pretended to panic, interrupting with a denial: “No, that’s impossible. You’re lying to me.”
“Clever girl, you’re not mistaken. He desperately brought you to Shalin City, but in the end, it was merely to restore his own strength.” The good master Blanxi said, “The only slave contract on a slave is to sell you off. I will first break the slave contract on you, so I and the hero can both win.”
Jima rebutted, “He could have killed me. He’s not that kind of person; he promised he would come to save me.”
The good master Blanxi’s eyes displayed a look of pity as he said:
“Foolish girl, don’t you understand that your only bond with him is merely a slave contract? Oh, he may try to rescue you. But he is only one person. Even after restoring his strength, he will only be at Platinum level—very strong, but not enough. After failing a few times, he won’t persist; do you know why?”
“I won’t listen; you’re lying to me.” Jima repeated, “He is the hero who killed the Demon King.”
As a victim repeating this fact, she felt unhappy, but this was the most suitable “performance.”
“The hero George had the full support of the Holy Hall to kill the Demon King, Jima,” the good master Blanxi relished the process of destroying Jima’s hope, “You also know how the Holy Hall feels about you. This time, their support is pitifully little; they only gave him a life-saving teleportation scroll. He must be determined to break your slave contract.”
Jima said nothing.
“If the Holy Hall finds out you have become the flower of Shalin City and are auctioned off, they would actually be pleased. Because that way, the loathsome succubus won’t cling to the hero, and the hero can restore his strength. Even if the hero insists, without the support of the Holy Hall, he cannot save you. How many times do you think he will persevere? Do you think you are special to him? He is simply good-hearted; he treats all the desperate well. So many people in the world need a hero to do good. You are just a demon, and he will eventually abandon you to save good people.”
A pained expression crossed Jima’s face:
“No, no, you’re lying. He likes me.”
“Illusion. Do you think you captivated him? I’ve heard he has a childhood sweetheart saintess, well-matched and deeply affectionate.”
Jima’s wings drooped, and her tail lay weakly on the ground.
“Admit it; your only bond with the hero is just a slave contract.” The good master Blanxi’s hand formed a cut gesture, “Once it’s severed, it’s gone, and you will become strangers from then on.”
Jima stared blankly at his action, truly feeling as if something had been severed.
She must be too immersed in her role, actually feeling somewhat sad. She clearly knew this principle all along. But the thought that once the slave contract was broken, they would completely separate, made her feel a tinge of sorrow.
It must be because the tool, George, was too useful. Yes! It must be that, mixed with a bit of Stockholm syndrome…
Jima lowered her head, softly saying:
“Yes, I understand. How could a succubus possibly be with a promising hero? Once the slave contract is severed, the two of us will be completely apart.”
“Glad you understand.”
The good master Blanxi smiled with satisfaction and said, “As long as you earnestly receive education and become the most beautiful flower of Shalin City, I will definitely find you the best master.”
With her head down, Jima rubbed the corners of her eyes, trying hard to make them moist so she looked very sad.
Jima was sad for a moment.
Suddenly, she realized this ending wasn’t bad. After she escaped, restored her strength, and became the Demon King, when she found George for revenge, she could confront the dead virgin with a face full of rage:
“At that time, why didn’t you come to save me? Look at me now; it’s all your fault, hero. The virtuous path you promised is all lies, fake!”
At that moment, George’s expression would surely be incredibly entertaining, both guilt-ridden and sorrowful, feeling that her being so bad was all his doing.
Then, when I defeat George and prepare to kill him, I will pull out a photo of when I was a man and laugh heartily, saying, “You’ve been tricked; I am the Demon King Jima.”
Jima’s mind conjured an image of George’s shocked and indignant expression, and she found it amusing, uplifting her spirits. She adjusted her facial expression to avoid showing any flaws to the good master Blanxi.
She lifted her face and looked at the good master Blanxi, who maintained a polite smile.
Ha, after I kill your entire family, let’s see if you can still smile.
Jima formed a preliminary plan to collaborate with the Shadow King, thinking about pulling the strings from behind the scenes, but now she needed to continue the performance to avoid suspicion. A normal girl captured to become a female slave should panic a bit.
At that moment, the silver bell rang for the third time.
The old maid came in and bowed, saying, “Sir, the contract master has arrived, and the best trainer in the whole city is ready.”
The good master Blanxi nodded to Jima and said, “You follow her and prepare to sever ties with the hero.”
At this point, Jima’s face broke into a smile as she said a lie she didn’t even believe:
“I believe in the hero. On the day of the auction, he will definitely ride in on a white horse, breaking through the crowd under the eyes of everyone to rescue me.”
The good master Blanxi did not smile but instead gazed into the distance, saying:
“When my daughter was eleven, she loved these stories and insisted that I read them to her.”
After saying that, he seemed to age again and waved his hand.
The old maid approached Jima, and Jima stood up willingly, leaving with the old maid.
