Chapter 202: The Saintess’s Empty Gaze (Part 2)
The ferocious, beast-like glare in O’Niens’s eyes gradually faded as he regained control of his killing intent.
Although arrogant, he at least knew that he couldn’t harm Anastasia. She was the princess of the Ice Duchy, after all. Although not as noble as him, she wasn’t someone he could casually dispose of.
O’Niens lowered his eyelids, taking several deep breaths to calm himself.
Just then, a few more women left. It seemed that the gathering around Qin Chu had ended, and they were returning to their tents.
O’Niens couldn’t accept that his charm was inferior to Qin Chu’s, so he sought another target. Someone would surely accept his invitation to the small banquet he was hosting.
Anastasia was just a princess from a barbaric land, her lack of manners was understandable. He didn’t believe that the other elegant ladies would be as rude as her.
His first target was Natia.
Although Natia wasn’t a noble, she was a member of Sage Mountain, young, powerful, and talented, the future heir. Winning her favor would also benefit the Church of the Earth Mother Goddess and expand his influence.
He adjusted his expression and approached Natia.
However, he was met with an icy indifference, her face devoid of any warmth, her coldness frightening.
Before she even spoke, her chilling gaze silenced him, forcing him to retreat.
Undeterred, O’Niens moved on to his next target: Carol, the princess of the Auville Empire.
But this princess was even more disrespectful than Anastasia. Her beautiful eyes were filled with unconcealed disdain, and when O’Niens extended his invitation, she simply uttered a single, cold word:
“Scram.”
Two rejections in a row infuriated O’Niens. He had never been so humiliated in his life.
Every nun in the Church of the Earth Mother Goddess was respectful and subservient to him, even Inas, the Saintess, obeyed his every command.
Why did these women disdain him so?
Couldn’t they sense his charm?
Undeterred, O’Niens set his sights on another woman. He chose Norma, who seemed soft and demure. He usually wouldn’t even glance at someone of such low status.
But although Norma was polite, she firmly refused his invitation.
He approached Airi, and a dagger appeared at his throat, as if she would slit it if he dared to speak another word.
He approached Sylph, and she kicked him in the stomach, sending him flying.
Rejected, humiliated, even beaten up…
O’Niens was frustrated to the point of madness. He didn’t understand what was wrong. Why couldn’t these women sense his charm like those nuns?
His mother had always told him that he was the most charming man in the world.
Could it be that these women, despite their beauty, lacked the refined taste and discerning eye to appreciate him?
The furious O’Niens cursed these women with no taste and returned to the Church of the Earth Mother Goddess’s camp like a dejected clown.
As he reached his tent, he saw Inas pacing back and forth.
Her expression was gloomy.
Seeing this woman, O’Niens felt inexplicably irritated.
She always obeyed him without question. She was so boring.
He was more interested in the women who rejected him.
But he still tried to control his emotions. He couldn’t lose his composure.
“Inas, are you looking for me?” O’Niens asked, trying to sound calm, but his impatience was evident.
“Saint Son,” Inas said respectfully, bowing deeply.
She hesitated, glancing around, then, seeing that they were alone, she finally spoke, “Several of the nuns serving you have gone missing recently…”
O’Niens frowned slightly. “Inas,” he said, “I told you already, those nuns couldn’t handle the hardships of life in the wild, and they returned to the Imperial City on their own. Don’t worry about it.”
“But it’s a long way back to the Imperial City. For them to leave alone…” Inas seemed to want to argue.
But before she could finish, her words seemed to displease O’Niens. He stepped forward, his eyes flashing with anger, and slapped her across the face.
Then, his hand tightened around her throat.
He lifted her off the ground, her toes barely touching as she struggled.
Bright red finger marks appeared on her face, her eyes wide with shock. She couldn’t believe that the usually gentle and courteous Saint Son would suddenly become violent.
He hadn’t been like this before they left the Imperial City. No one knew what had happened in these past few days to cause such a drastic change in his personality.
Seeing that Inas’s face was flushed and she was almost suffocating, O’Niens finally let her go. “Inas,” he said coldly, “remember your place. Don’t meddle in things that don’t concern you. Understand?”
After throwing down these words, O’Niens called over a nun and entered his tent.
Inas’s eyes dimmed.
She knew that something terrible had happened.
She wanted to admonish O’Niens, but her eyes suddenly became vacant.
Obey him, protect him, follow his will!
Like a machine without power, Inas stood there motionless.
After an unknown amount of time, a spark of light returned to her empty eyes. She seemed to have completely recovered, a confident smile appearing on her lips as she walked towards her own tent.
But before she reached it, she frowned slightly, sensing a faint Mana fluctuation from the sky above.
She instinctively tensed, worried that someone might be trying to harm O’Niens.
Concealing her aura with Mana, she flew into the sky, chasing after the source of the fluctuation.
High above O’Niens’s tent, seemingly unconcerned about being discovered by the patrolling soldiers below, three figures materialized.
Inas was surprised to see that there were three of them. One of them was the Hero Qin Chu, and the other two were members of the Hero Squad, Athena and Sylph.
What were they doing?
Inas, who had been about to attack, stopped. Although she loathed Qin Chu, he was still the Hero.
Moreover, with Athena and Sylph by his side, she was definitely no match for them.
Just as she hesitated, Qin Chu’s gaze suddenly turned towards her, a smile appearing on his face. “Miss Inas, since you’re here, there’s no need to hide.”
Qin Chu had discovered her. Was it Sylph or Athena who told him?
Inas wondered inwardly.
Continuing to hide was pointless. She dispelled her Mana concealment and appeared before Qin Chu, Athena, and Sylph.
“Hero,” she asked bluntly, “I’m curious, what brings someone of your noble status here so late at night, sneaking around? This isn’t the behavior of a gentleman.”
Her attitude made Sylph and Athena frown, both feeling a flicker of displeasure.
But Qin Chu didn’t care. He shrugged casually, “Miss Inas, aren’t you curious about what happened to O’Niens?”
“Don’t you think he’s been acting a bit strange these past few days?”
Inas subconsciously touched her cheek. It still stung from O’Niens’s slap, and she could still feel the marks of his fingers on her throat.
Anyone who wasn’t blind could see the drastic change in O’Niens’s behavior these past few days.
“Sorry, my words might sound a bit harsh, but I suspect that O’Niens might have been corrupted by some sinister power,” Qin Chu’s voice turned serious.
Inas’s eyes widened.
Her throat twitched slightly.
She naturally understood what it meant to be corrupted. Did it mean that O’Niens would become a monster like Karsus and the Grand Prince?
“That’s absolutely impossible,” she said coldly, her voice filled with denial.
“Nothing is impossible. The Grand Prince and Karsus’s corruption also began with a change in their behavior.”
“Of course, this is just my suspicion. We still need to observe carefully to be sure,” Qin Chu continued, giving Athena a look.
Athena nodded slightly, and a faint light emanated from her staff.
Inas wanted to stop her, but Sylph blocked her way.
The Saintess of the Church of the Earth Mother Goddess was no match for Sylph.
Grand Mage Athena’s magic skills far surpassed O’Niens’s. Although he was level 79, only one level away from Grand Mage, his Mana capacity and control were no match for hers.
The barrier O’Niens had set up was easily breached by Athena, and he didn’t even notice.
Athena seemed to have also used some kind of see-through magic, and a hole appeared above the tent, revealing the scene inside to Qin Chu and the others.
They saw two figures intertwined, the man’s rough gasps and the woman’s seductive moans echoing in their ears.
Inas’s face turned deathly pale.
Although she had already guessed this possibility, seeing it with her own eyes still dealt a heavy blow.
Her heart felt empty.
Her body trembled, an indescribable sadness washing over her. She bit her lip hard, trying to suppress her whimpers.
She didn’t know how she felt, only a deep, aching emptiness in her heart.
Just as she was about to break down, her body suddenly stiffened.
Her eyes became vacant and dull.
Obey him, protect him, follow his will!
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