Chapter 91 The Fallen Demon Lord Living Under a Bridge
George and Jima ran back to the inn like fugitives, taking all their valuables. Although George had a dimensional space bag, it was already full of essential outdoor items like food, water, and sleeping bags, leaving little room for heavy gold coins, weapons, equipment, and potions.
Jima regretfully tossed a few small dresses into the fire. Over the past few days, she had grown accustomed to wearing women’s clothing and had come to like outfits that helped fill her stomach.
She had no choice but to put on a rough hooded cloak, long pants, and a piece of leather armor that had a strange smell. In the end, she only took a few pairs of stockings, burning the rest.
Thus, the two blended into the crowd, trying to escape the city and figure things out later.
However, they hadn’t expected Chamberlain’s ban to take effect so quickly.
Town guards went out onto the streets, shouting everywhere, sealing off the main roads. After much effort, George and Jima reached the city gate only to find it already shut.
Farmers and merchants struggling to transport goods pushed against the gate, grumbling in discontent.
It wasn’t until a row of guards raised their spears to push back the crowd that everyone quieted down. A squad leader in a yellow cloak and a nose guard helmet climbed onto several stacked wooden boxes and shouted:
“From now on, the city is under martial law! Anyone attempting to breach the gate will be executed on charges of rebellion!”
This command stirred a massive uproar in the crowd, and for a moment, people were abuzz with conversation.
“Is Deepwater City attacking us?”
“Must be the Doske people.”
“Aren’t we selling slaves to them?”
“I just want to go home, sir. My family has been law-abiding for three generations!”
A panicked farmer shouted, and the guards, showing no mercy, kicked him in the stomach to calm him down.
At that moment, panic spread throughout the crowd.
Shalin City had been peaceful for a long time—unless you counted the wars at sea.
Jima and George exchanged glances, both startled by what they saw in each other’s eyes.
Logically speaking, they hadn’t done anything heinous in Shalin City. It shouldn’t warrant a citywide lockdown, especially one so swift. Even the Shadow King Arkanis didn’t get this treatment.
It must be the foolish people of Shalin City, realizing that George was the brave hero who had killed their protector, with a bounty of around ten thousand gold coins. But this was too hasty; with the Rainbow Festival approaching, wasn’t the benevolent overlord supposed to use it to uplift Shalin City’s spirits? A lockdown now would only drive people away.
But no matter how you looked at it, it seemed to be George’s fault.
George said, “I have a question that might upset you.”
“Go ahead.”
“You didn’t do anything to make them lose their minds, did you?”
“Hey, hey.” Jima put her hands on her hips and said, “I’m still just a child under a month old; you’re being so stereotypical, it hurts my feelings.”
“Sorry. But did you or didn’t you?”
“Of course not,” Jima replied. “And don’t put the blame on me, okay? It must be your glorious achievements that they found out about.”
George turned his head away and fell silent. Jima couldn’t see if George was blushing or just embarrassed.
“I just remembered, the book said that succubi have the innate ability to bring order to ruin. They can easily cause chaos in a city, incite military strife, and make a ruler lose their sanity.”
“Oh, if only I were that powerful.” Jima displayed an aggrieved expression. “If I had such abilities, I wouldn’t have lost my first kiss.”
Thinking about giving her first kiss to an enemy annoyed Jima, making her want to stab George a few times.
“Ahem… I’m very sorry.”
Wait, did I just think I had kissed Saintess Jenna? Ah, she was a big-breasted blonde beauty.
Jima felt better, only to recall George’s assessment of succubi.
She asked, “By the way, where did you learn about succubi?”
“The fourth-floor library of the Sanctuary, in the section for evil creatures.”
“Do the higher-ups of your Sanctuary all know about this?”
“The Sanctuary’s laws require that anyone promoted to a certain command position must possess relevant knowledge.”
Jima immediately understood why the Sanctuary was so concerned about succubi.
The inflexible folks at the Sanctuary revered order. They loved establishing a multitude of rules for everything; it was said they even regulated standards for bed affairs.
One could see this in George, who had educated himself and had a whole page full of regulations that counted as conduct points.
Naturally, they were very hostile to succubi, who spread chaos.
Jima thought about her own abilities and realized she could easily disrupt societal order without even realizing it.
Wait, did I overdo it in my attempts to escape, stirring too much “rage” desire, leading to Chamberlain losing his temper and intellect?
Jima closed her eyes to feel her stored “desires.”
After being forcefully kissed by a certain pervert with a tail, she had depleted one-third of her stored “desires.” Since Jima leveled up, her capacity had increased, and she silently assessed her consumption.
Uh, she had indeed gone overboard. No, rather very overboard. But it wasn’t entirely my fault; if that certain virgin had the energy he used while “attacking” me, it wouldn’t have turned out this way!
With these thoughts, Jima straightened her small waist defiantly.
At this moment, an officer in a yellow cloak and nose guard helmet stepped onto the platform made of four wooden boxes.
He shouted:
“Silence! Silence!”
The crowd quieted down.
“Now, Shalin City has two extremely dangerous dogs from the Sanctuary, as you all know, who conspired with Deepwater City to harm us in Shalin City. The last time they failed to assault the city, seeing us rising up, they sent two dogs to set fire and kill!”
The crowd fell completely silent. A nearby young man muttered under his breath, “Those dogs from the Sanctuary!”
Jima, excited by the spectacle, tugged on George’s cloak and said, “Hey, someone’s cursing at you.”
George shot her a glance.
“We have no choice; we can only impose martial law to protect everyone’s safety,” the officer continued shouting. “Whoever sees the dangerous fugitives—a male and a girl, as well as a horse—should report! The male has blonde hair, is tall, and wears full armor; the girl has black hair, and the horse is white!”
Jima quietly tucked her black hair back under her hood. The divine warhorse behind them was stretching its head toward a nearby mare.
“Witnesses providing evidence will receive one silver coin! Those who report their hiding places will get one gold coin! Remember, they are cunning religious fanatics who might heal your wounds, cure your son’s illness, and even give you money to buy bread to fill your stomach. But don’t be fooled by these little tricks because they will eventually send you all to the pyres to burn alive. Remember, the Archbishop Gregory of the Sanctuary himself said that anyone who has touched a slave deserves to burn!”
The crowd resumed their noisy chatter. Jima intentionally looked around, seeing panic on everyone’s faces, but not much surprise. Perhaps what the officer said resonated with their beliefs.
Jima actually agreed with half of what the officer said. For example, about religious fanatics.
She considered and observed George.
This damn virgin secretly snuck up to someone’s bedroom door and stabbed someone to death. He was undoubtedly a religious zealot, the kind that had doctrines ingrained in his mind. Moreover, he was very cunning, despicably taking away her “first kiss” and boldly placing the blame on the victim.
Heh.
George noticed Jima’s gaze, reached out, and firmly held her hand, whispering:
“Don’t be afraid.”
As he spoke, he took Jima’s small hand and turned to lead her out of the crowd.
Jima understood that her acting skills were good enough. Even if she secretly slandered the other party and didn’t deliberately perform, there wouldn’t be a hint of flaw on her face; on the contrary, her expression would evoke sympathy.
What a fool.
She unconsciously lowered her head, covering up a trace of mockery on her face.
Behind them, the crowd remained noisy as people hurried to catch Shalin City’s public enemies, inquiring about the fugitives’ physical characteristics.
“He wears full armor, white!”
Jima observed George discreetly and noticed he was only wearing a long-sleeved chainmail shirt and a breastplate, still sporting a barrel helmet. A few puzzled gazes examined George up and down before moving on.
“He has a white warhorse clad in battle armor.”
The divine warhorse draped in a blue horse blanket let out a loud bray.
The people nearby directed their looks away, muttering, “What a strange donkey.”
“That man also wears a barrel helmet, which is white!”
As soon as that was said, George instinctively removed the barrel helmet and held it in his arms. Jima quickly glanced around; no one noticed.
Just as George blocked the helmet with his cloak, a man in gray happened to turn his head, saw the white helmet, and his eyes immediately went wide. Glancing quickly at the divine warhorse and Jima, he gaped and leaned back, pointing at them and shouting in horror:
“He’s here! The dog from the Sanctuary that burns people without blinking is right here! Over—cough, cough, cough!”
Jima was very displeased and bent down to pick up a dirty stone to throw in his mouth.
However, that chicken-like scream drew all eyes. When everyone began to suspect, it was natural for them to connect Jima and George to the wanted criminals; their disguises were quickly seen through.
“Quick! Sound the horns! The fugitives have been found!”
The officer shouted.
George hurriedly put the helmet back on his head, bent down to grab Jima, and tossed her onto the horse. Jima gripped the saddle tightly as the divine warhorse took off, and George easily stepped onto the stirrup and mounted.
Behind them, a long horn echoed.
Jima watched the crowd on the streets disperse in fear, recalling how terrifying she was when she was the Demon Lord, wielding a sword and scaring people in the streets. From the east of the city to the west, anyone who dared block her path was cut down in one blow, and within the city, passionate youths were left in halves, no one could stop her; she was extremely arrogant.
Unexpectedly, following the brave hero George, she could enjoy the same treatment she had as the Demon Lord. Her feelings were truly complicated.
A group of people chased behind, trying to corner and capture them. Fortunately, George had already prepared an escape plan.
After half an hour, they finally shook off their pursuers and hid in a complex alley. George sent the divine warhorse back to the Divine Realm, and the two hastily reapplied their disguises before setting off again.
Searching for a place to stay, every inn was checking guests.
The sky was nearly dark, and George and Jima still couldn’t find a place to spend the night.
Finally, they stopped in front of a dark bridge tunnel.
George said, “Let’s make do here.”
Jima looked at the damp tunnel, where a homeless person rose from a pile of filthy rags, watching the two unexpected guests warily. A swarm of mosquitoes, frightened, flew out from the tunnel.
At that moment, Jima had an absurd thought.
Why not just turn myself in?
