Chapter 198 Chapter 199 Paying the Price (Part 1)
The carriage raced along the road, the shouts and neighs from outside, along with Van Helsing’s curses, were incessant.
Amid the noise, Jenna remained motionless, like a statue, deep in thought.
She increasingly felt that coming home was a mistake. She never expected things would eventually develop to this point.
The negotiation mechanism brought about by order had completely failed; both sides were at odds, unwilling to give an inch.
A voice echoed in her heart, “You’re like the princess who ignited a war between two countries… a beauty that brings disaster…”
After thinking it over, she still believed it was her fault. Clearly, despite so much time having passed, she had never delved into the matters of that year. She sensed something was off and subconsciously avoided it, which only made the mistake grow larger.
“You must take responsibility, take responsibility.”
“Yes,” Jenna murmured, “I must take action.”
Lord Is gently asked, “Jenna?”
Jenna lifted her head as if awakened.
“We’re almost there,” he said, trying to suppress the excitement in his heart, like an old fisherman who, seeing a fish about to bite, dared not speak loudly for fear of scaring it away. “What were you saying just now?”
“I was thinking about the past,” she gradually steadied her gaze. “I’ve always hesitated, always been indecisive. I need to act and resolve this as soon as possible.”
A heavy stone lifted from Is’s heart as he said, “Things will be resolved soon.”
The carriage stopped in front of the black iron gate of Is’s residence.
In the distance, the flames from a burning building cast their glow on the tall white walls surrounding the residence, transforming into myriad shapes.
The guards, holding long swords and shields, moved the roadblocks aside.
Compared to other places, it was much safer and quieter here, like an island of peace. Throughout history, most natural disasters and man-made calamities only made the strong stronger and the weak perish.
…
…
I must be crazy, probably out of control.
Jima leaned against the tall white wall, her silhouette cast in shadows by the flames on the wall, engulfing her.
The succubus Jima’s situation was dire.
Her red lips had lost some color, a side effect from the Blood Horn Cup. Though she had handed it over to Lianxi, the aftereffects of being “anemic” still lingered.
Despite the wounds having closed, an unsettling itch persisted deep within them, like new granulations rubbing against each other.
The extra heart in her brain pulsed more and more palpably, and with each beat, her head would throb.
A mixture of chaotic potions and the blood from the Blood Horn Cup caused complex reactions within her body. Jima was forced to divide her focus to cope, so she could no longer drink any liquid with magic unless she wanted to see her belly suddenly split open and sprout clusters of flesh mushrooms.
Her magic was nearly exhausted, only 16% remained. For an ordinary extraordinary being, such a poor state, combined with such low magic levels, was basically equivalent to standing on the edge of an abyss, preparing for a long jump.
But for the more powerful-souled Jima, she should have had only a single-digit magic left to be in such a state.
“Jenna wasn’t wrong, I am also sick,” she took a deep breath, ignoring the pounding in her brain and the impulse to split her head open. “I should run, run far away, get George that useless tail to come over; with a few swords, he could decapitate Is. My life is more important than a woman’s.”
But she felt a jolt at the thought of the gentle knee pillow, Saint Jenna, possibly falling into another man’s embrace. Her head throbbed, her chest felt as if being torn open by a pair of hands, and the pain intensified, her feet unwilling to move.
“Is that so? It seems no one can escape their inner demons,” Jima muttered to herself. “Or perhaps that’s just the way it is. Ah, there’s no saving me.”
The sounds of hooves and iron wheels grinding over stone came; without looking, she knew it was Lord Is’s carriage.
After cursing Van Helsing, Jima initially intended to pack up and flee to George. But suddenly, she had a flash of inspiration about a bargaining chip, once placed on the scales, could cause Jenna to lean toward her.
That would be herself. The abstract threat of slaughtering all would evoke little emotion; a living person suffering in front of her would stir more sympathy.
The guards pushed open the iron gate, the rusted hinges squeaking ominously.
Jima donned a “mask” on her face, displaying a smile from the past, but the discomfort flowing through her made it hard to maintain that facade. She stepped out of the shadows, made her presence known, and walked to the center of the gate, blocking the carriage adorned with an oil lamp. Her dark horns reflected the carriage’s lamp light.
The guards immediately presented their shields toward Jima, shouting, “It’s a succubus!”
Van Helsing jumped in surprise, almost pulling the trigger again, and upon seeing Jima, cursed, “What do you want again? Aren’t you annoying? I’ve had enough of you. Is the church’s extraordinary team just sitting around? Why haven’t they found your true form yet? Seriously, after so many years of witch hunting, this is the first time I’ve seen something like you, popping up to annoy everyone all day.”
“I want to speak with Jenna.”
Van Helsing kicked the side of the carriage with the heel of his boot, yelling, “Hey, did you hear that inside? Get out quickly and state your purpose, enough of this mess.”
Lord Is said, “Jenna, if you have made up your mind, you should dispel her illusions.”
“No need for your instructions,” Jenna pushed the carriage aside, gazing complexly at the black-haired succubus, saying, “Jima, you still have a way back—”
“I hate you,” Jima interrupted her. “I hate how good you are, how forgiving you are to enemies and harsh to your own. What have you done besides holding people back, dying for others, and stripping off your clothes to share a bed with your enemies? Is just a casual item from Is enough to make you go berserk? What the hell can I do? I can only threaten through fire, let him call for help, being chased while dealing with an idiot teammate like you. Look at how I am now!”
She pointed to the rips in her clothes, each stained with blood.
“Jenna, are you satisfied? I’m being good for the greater good, but I’d rather stand with the bad guys and get my good sister killed, wah wah wah.”
“Jima, it’s not like that—”
“Shut up! Honestly, listen to my criticism,” Jima shouted. “A QJ criminal facing a popular person! Such a simple matter and you’ve complicated it. Long before fighting the greenskins, I should have seen you clearly. You insisted on staying on the walls to burn the greenskins, making a group of deserters cover your retreat, all for the sake of appearing pitiful to others. As for whether it would endanger your teammates, you couldn’t care less. I couldn’t even bring myself to sell out my teammates and nearly got my head smashed by the greenskin warlord.”
Jenna felt a pang of guilt.
Is quickly said, “Be resolute, you have no time to waver; this city is waiting for you to save it.”
“Well, I don’t have much time left either,” Jima put her hands on her hips, looking at them.
On the opposing side stood the impressive assembly: Van Helsing, the great preacher, Lord Is, a bunch of mundane guards, and also some extraordinary members of the council mounted on horses, including the black pudding mage.
Jima raised her chin at Van Helsing, “Shoot me.”
“Huh?” Van Helsing excitedly said to those below, “That’s such a strange request; I’ve never seen that before.”
Before the great preacher could say anything, Van Helsing, unable to contain himself, pulled the trigger. The silver arrow shot straight toward Jima’s forehead but was deflected by an invisible force, grazing her dark horn and landing on the stone road behind her, igniting sparks.
Van Helsing questioned, “What was that?”
Lord Is asked, “Can’t shoot accurately?”
“Nonsense, within twenty meters, I can hit a swaying leaf with my hand up.”
“Because it’s a real person coming,” the black-haired girl faced her enemies alone, raising her steel crossbow. “I’m tired of this. You all can do whatever you want, but I will never surrender.”
Lord Is was taken aback, but quickly waved his hand and shouted, “Her true body is here! Hurry and capture her.” Then, recalling something, he shouted, “Don’t use lethal force.”
That said, Jima pulled the trigger, shooting a solitary bolt toward Lord Is.
A short sword split her bolt in half.
“I’m coming!”
Van Helsing ran toward Jima at incredible speed, reaching her in just a few blinks, his sword thrusting straight for her heart.
“No!”
A semi-transparent light shielded Jima, and Van Helsing’s short sword thudded against the barrier as if struck against an iron wall, rebounding and causing him to take a few steps back. He turned his head, raising his sword, and pointed at Jenna, shouting, “I knew it, you’re colluding with demons.”
Lord Is hurriedly said, “She just wants to capture her alive.”
“Is, you’re right, I don’t have time to waver.” Jenna’s gaze was more resolute than ever. “I’ve made my choice; I’m no longer a puppet in your hands.”
The great preacher, witnessing this, immediately raised his war hammer and shouted, “Sigmar!”
A cluster of white flames descended from the sky, directly burning towards Jima.
Jenna clasped her hands together, the incense burner tied to her wrists, rushing toward Jima, “Shield!”
A semi-transparent shield was immediately placed around Jima.
The white flames reached her, a wave of white light engulfed Jima, lifting her as the shock wave sent her flying. She flailed around, trying to grasp something, but her head landed on something soft.
As the white light faded from her retina, Jima saw Jenna’s oval face, looking like a Valkyrie, her gaze determined, her golden hair flowing behind her. She held Jima close, raised her hand, and a soft white light burst forth, striking Jima’s chest powerfully.
Jima almost spit blood; the next moment, a warm sensation invaded her chest, healing her soul’s injury.
She must be taking revenge for what I said to her earlier.
“I knew you would choose me,” Jima quickly put on a smile, as if the previous quarrel had never occurred, her hands involuntarily reaching towards the snowy peaks.
A blush appeared on Jenna’s oval face as she said, “Jima, don’t be inappropriate.”
Jima responded earnestly, “Sorry, I can’t control myself.”
After touching down, Jenna let go of Jima.
Is’s voice rang like a school announcement:
“Jenna, I know you were enchanted by her. Because you’re not the kind of demon who disregards innocent lives!”
“Sounds like he does care,” Jima retorted. “So what’s your plan now?”
“I’ve figured it out; I’m in a dilemma, but you won’t harm me. Is might, so I can’t let you down again.”
Jima was overjoyed. “So we’re going to kill Is’s entire family together?”
“No,” Jenna said. “I want to communicate with the imperial army, requesting them to dispatch troops to suppress the rebellion. The cost is that I will serve the empire.”
“That’s a decent idea,” Jima looked at the crowd rushing toward her and Jenna, “but I think we can’t take them head-on.”
