Chapter 134: The Obsidian Trinket
A week remained until the Rainbow Festival.
Jima was diligently practicing her dance in the dark, windowless basement, fully focused on preparing for the auction event happening in a week.
Ever since she cleverly used her extraordinary abilities to resolve her “interpersonal issues,” her practice went smoothly without anyone bothering her down there.
Just when Jima thought that the remaining week would pass without incident, the old old maid found her.
At that moment, she was twisting her waist along with her dance teacher, getting into the rhythm. The sound of a key turning in the door lock behind her made her turn, and she saw the old old maid’s wrinkled face.
The old old maid was dressed in black, wearing a small soft black hat, a black high-neck collar covering her neck, black gloves, and a black dress that reached her ankles, resembling a black shroud that wrapped around her lifeless body.
She pushed the door open and said, “Practice is over, Jima, come out.”
Jima felt a bit uneasy. The old old maid wished she could have forty-eight hours in a day for her practice, so why had it been interrupted?
She lowered her raised foot and walked step by step towards the old old maid. The latter’s murky eyes scanned her up and down, taking in her ballet dress and her long legs highlighted by white tights. A smile formed on her old face:
“Your demeanor has improved a lot, and you look more ladylike. This dress is for you; your future master will certainly love it.”
Jima hated being treated like a commodity, but she could not help but show a slight surprise on her face, pretending to be innocent as she asked, “Really? I thought men preferred more revealing clothing.”
The old old maid closed the door, her wrinkled face beaming with a smile, and said, “Many men like to conquer and overwhelm the pure white little swan. The scene in the dance room was once all the rage in the city. You are the most beautiful little swan I’ve ever seen; they will like you to the point of madness.”
A scene involuntarily emerged in Jima’s mind. In the morning, she danced in a revealing backless ballet dress in the dance room, being pawed at by her future master, a greasy, overweight middle-aged man, unable to resist and forced to extend her legs while he toyed with her.
She felt goosebumps rise on her skin.
If either she or Arcanis messed up at the auction, it would likely be her fate. She hoped that George could save her then.
He was her last insurance.
Jima asked, “Is there something urgent?”
“You need to change your clothes; the benefactor wants to see you.” They walked to Jima’s room, where the old maid opened the wardrobe, revealing it packed with women’s clothing. “Just… this one.”
The old old maid’s hand brushed over a classic maid dress and landed on a white dress with exposed shoulders. Jima took the hanger and glanced at the outfit.
It was pure and innocent.
This was a classification Jima had given to the clothes. The tight-fitting ballet dress she wore was categorized as seductive pure white.
Before long, Jima had changed into the dress, which reached her knees, and she put on black stockings. She then tied a piece of black gauze around her arm, lightly knotting it. She looked at herself in the mirror: a pure and beautiful girl with black hair, a slim figure, and basically no secondary sexual characteristics. Her black hair fell straight to her waist, and beneath the skirt, her legs were thin and straight.
She looked as if she had aged several years younger.
Jima inexplicably thought of a mobile game she had played on Earth called “Ark.” She vaguely remembered the game featured a black-clad masked medical doctor leading a group of middle school girls to fight in brawls. She recalled that her team was named “Class 2, Grade 1, Yucai Middle School.”
Now, she felt that she could join “Class 2, Grade 1, Yucai Middle School” if she had a sword in hand; that would be even more fitting.
“What does the benefactor want?”
Jima felt a bit nervous, starting to suspect that the benefactor was a copper-refining fanatic.
The old old maid said nervously, “It’s nothing serious. The benefactor wishes to see the results of the past few days; you need to perform well. I’m letting you wear the style of dress that his daughter loved the most when she was little.”
Damn! That pimp might be a copper-refining enthusiast with a thing for girls. If he laid hands on her, it would be utterly disgusting.
Jima nodded, saying, “I will.”
At the same time, she decided that if the benefactor tried anything inappropriate, she would grab a vase or something and smash it over his head; after all, she was valuable, and even if the benefactor revealed his true nature and flew into a rage, he wouldn’t punish her too harshly.
The old old maid smiled and said, “It’s good that you have that awareness.”
Thirty minutes later.
Jima underwent another winding route.
The blindfold on her face was removed, and the sunlight streaming in through the window was a bit dazzling. Jima squinted her eyes and raised a hand to shield herself from the sun. She saw a guy sitting in a rocking chair ahead, flanked by two old maids standing beside him.
After adjusting to the light in the room, Jima scanned the room’s decorations and realized she had arrived at the benefactor’s mansion.
The lean old man sitting on the walnut rocking chair was dressed in black, seeming as if he had just returned from his daughter’s funeral. His neatly trimmed brown beard and steady blue eyes watched Jima, and he smiled, the crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes deepening.
It was the benefactor, Blansy.
However, Jima’s gaze immediately fell on a piece of uneven black obsidian resting on the small table beside him. At first glance, it appeared to be ordinary black obsidian, standing in a tray and jagged, suitable for bashing heads. Without a closer look, one could hardly notice the carvings on its surface.
“Do you recognize it?”
The benefactor, Blansy, keenly caught the change in Jima’s gaze.
“Faintly, from my memory.”
Jima lied. She was quite familiar with the trinket; it was a specialty of the demon race, capable of detecting the usage of extraordinary abilities within a certain range.
In her negotiation room, there was a large pile of such things. After all, the demon race had many cunning extraordinary abilities that were difficult to guard against. With such an item, if someone used their abilities secretly, it would light up, and with its lighting up, negotiations often ceased without any resolution.
“That’s good; it saves me from explaining its uses,” the benefactor, Blansy, said. “My friends advised me to be cautious of succubi; apparently, they possess the ability to easily disrupt order, and I hope you are not someone who will do something foolish.”
Damn! I don’t know which demon race scoundrel has colluded with him. No one understands succubi better than the demon race itself. Who knows how much they revealed to the benefactor?
Jima’s mind worked quickly as she speculated how many demons had quietly slipped into Shalin City, and how many dirty hands had reached her treasury’s doors.
Who knows what price the benefactor, Blansy, paid to find himself a demon race father? To get demons to work for him usually comes at a tremendous cost. Jima, as the former demon king, considered herself the most reasonable demon king; she only wanted her sisters.
Unfortunately, bad currency drives out good. A demon king like her, who had a conscience and was exceptionally cost-effective, ultimately fell victim to the schemes of her own kind.
Jima smiled and said, “I’m not foolish.”
Having said that, her tail tip naturally drooped as she abandoned the idea of “magically neutering” the benefactor, Blansy.
“I hope so,” the benefactor said, raising his hand to touch the obsidian, causing the carvings on its surface to faintly glow, emitting a green light. “At the auction, it will be by your side; if it lights up, then I’m afraid I will have to sell you at a discount. I’ve prepared a ‘Sleeping Beauty’ plan; you will be knocked out and placed on a bed to play the role of Sleeping Beauty.”
Jima covered her mouth and chuckled softly, “You’re quite humorous; I’ve never had much confidence in my appearance.”
“The wealthier and more powerful the customers are, the less they care about appearances,” the benefactor, Blansy, continued to smile, the crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes deepening. “If you unfortunately play the part of Sleeping Beauty, then I’m afraid your future master will be of a lower tier. You will be bought back by a nouveau riche with an empty wallet who is eager to purchase something expensive and unique to prove themselves. You will be treated as an expensive toy for entertaining guests, becoming an object for show.”
Jima’s small face displayed fear as she said, “I… I… I won’t let that happen.”
“Smart child, I believe you won’t; it’s just not a bad thing to have a chat,” the benefactor, Blansy, smiled. “I’ve heard you’ve been working hard these past few days. The head maid praised you for being particularly understanding and enlightened. Why don’t you say something? Let this child feel a bit better.”
The old old maid’s face glowed with satisfaction, appearing ten years younger in an instant as she stepped forward and said, “Miss Jima is the smartest and most hardworking girl I have ever seen; she will surely be the most beautiful flower of Shalin City.”
“This time, I’m putting on a brave face; many dignitaries are attending personally due to my old face. It’s up to you to see if you can make the best of them go crazy for you,” the benefactor said. “I don’t want to see you treated as some toy for show.”
Haha, after hitting her with a stick, he offered a piece of candy. Just based on this word today, the future treatment of his revenge was lowered a notch.
Jima, while jotting something new in her small black notebook, showed a relieved expression and sincerely said, “Thank you.”
Jima was well aware of the obsidian trinket. One thing was certain: unless she had a hard head and couldn’t be knocked out, as long as this thing was there, she shouldn’t expect to activate her extraordinary abilities or cooperate with the Shadow King to stir trouble.
Fortunately, she had a secret connection with the Shadow King, and she needed to ask him to swap this item. He was now “Big Shot Flourish,” and there should be a chance to do so.
The benefactor, Blansy, put his hand down from the obsidian trinket, and the green light dimmed. He said, “Today, let’s take a break. Just sit with this old man, relax while I experience the so-called succubi, how about that?”
I couldn’t very well refuse.
Jima gently lowered her head and said, “It’s an honor to serve you.”
“Then come sit with me on the balcony.” The benefactor, Blansy, stood up and walked towards the balcony. An old maid picked up a tray with the obsidian trinket and followed.
As Jima followed suit, she cursed the benefactor in her mind. Crossing the threshold, she glanced over the balcony towards Shalin City and noticed that today’s Shalin City was livelier than ever.
This balcony was said to allow one to see all the beauty of Shalin City. Yet, Jima saw a row of people hanging at the port. The balcony was definitely not facing the execution grounds, and logically, one would never expect such a ghastly sight as hanging corpses.
Unless the execution grounds weren’t enough.
Jima sensed something was off; she picked up the tea and set it beside the benefactor’s hand, saying, “A lot of people are being hanged today.”
“Very observant,” the benefactor said, the crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes deepening in a smile. “Today, Chamberlain achieved great results by raiding the slave bandits’ headquarters. They actually planned to incite a riot during the Rainbow Festival. Their crimes are heinous, and to appease the public, I have sentenced them to death to cleanse their sins…”
