Chapter 166: Your Wife, I Will Provide For
Qin Chu wanted to slap himself. He had meant to comfort Norma, but his words sounded more like a threat.
Norma considered his offer, tempted. If she were to see Karsus, she needed to be presentable. He would be worried if she looked haggard and worn. And the conditions at Sunset Manor were truly awful: thirty rooms to a floor, some crammed with multiple occupants, a single shared toilet, no proper bathing facilities… It was unbearable for a young woman.
She longed for a warm, comfortable place, a private bath where she could wash away the grime and exhaustion.
But after careful consideration, she refused. She was different from the other noble girls. For an unmarried woman to stay at the home of a man she barely knew would invite gossip. If Karsus heard about it, he would go mad.
She knew how possessive her ex-fiancé could be.
Norma took a step back, hands clasped before her chest, and curtsied slightly. “Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Qin… but I’ll be fine.”
“Then, Mr. Qin, I’ll be going. I wish you a good night.”
Qin Chu didn’t press the matter, his gaze sweeping over the shadowed corners of the street. He smiled. “It’s alright. It was presumptuous of me. Inviting a lady to my home so casually is not the behavior of a gentleman.”
“Don’t worry about it, Miss Norma. And if you encounter any problems, please contact me immediately, and I’ll come right away,” Qin Chu said.
Norma nodded, thanked him again, and turned to leave.
After walking some distance, she stopped, a troubled expression on her face. It wasn’t because of Qin Chu’s offer; it was something within her.
As she moved away from him, she felt a strong sense of reluctance, as if a voice was urging her not to leave. It wasn’t just a feeling; there was an actual voice screaming in her mind, telling her to stay, which irritated her.
Now, far from Qin Chu, the feeling vanished. She leaned against a lamppost, catching her breath. She spoke, as if to herself, or perhaps to someone else:
“Gaia…”
“What’s wrong with you? I’ve never seen you so agitated.”
Alone on the deserted street, her words sounded strangely eerie.
Her expression shifted, the innocent sweetness replaced by a vacant look. It was the same face, but a completely different aura, as if she were two different people.
“I…I don’t know…” she murmured, her voice disjointed.
“He has a special…aura…I…I like it!”
Then, her expression returned to normal. “What aura?” she asked herself.
“I…I don’t know, but it feels…warm…”
“Please, even if you like it, don’t scream in my head! I’ll go crazy! I still have an important request for the Hero. It would be terrible if I acted strangely in front of him.”
The unsettling self-talk continued for a while.
Then, Norma tapped her head, shook it, and continued towards the commoner district.
…
Meanwhile, in the Imperial Palace.
Wadsworth, Zimmerman, Augustus, and Saint Monique, the four old foxes, were gathered once again.
A smile played on Wadsworth’s lips. Although the Imperial City had suffered great losses, he had also profited considerably.
There had always been a conflict between the nobles and the imperial power. The nobles were the Emperor’s greatest rivals… It was never the commoners who ascended to the throne, but other powerful nobles.
Even the Aberchian family had once been nobles before becoming royalty.
Wadsworth could accept the losses the Imperial City had suffered. The heads, or heirs, of many noble families had died, forcing their previously overlooked second, third, or even fourth sons to step forward and inherit.
And most of these sons were incompetent fools, posing far less of a threat to his authority.
More importantly, quite a few noble families had been completely wiped out. Wadsworth raised the ranks of these families, viscounts becoming counts, counts becoming marquesses… and then, taking advantage of the situation, he reclaimed the power and wealth they held, ostensibly for the war effort against the Demon Beasts.
Wadsworth’s power was more concentrated than ever before. He hadn’t expected that making use of his useless son would have such benefits.
As for the criticism and accusations directed at the royal family, they were insignificant compared to his gains.
“Qin Chu’s strength is increasing too quickly. Don’t you think there’s something wrong?” Augustus said. “Hard work paying off is easy to understand, but it seems our Hero isn’t that diligent. Since being summoned to this world, he seems to spend most of his time with women…”
“If we’re talking about diligence in conquering women, then he’s indeed quite diligent.”
The other leaders were speechless.
This Hero lacked the…dignity befitting his title.
“As for his ‘Champion of Justice’ ability, it’s a bit difficult to understand. It seems that as long as he adheres to the path of justice, his strength will continue to grow. Eliminating those hundreds of Demon Beast spies in the city should have given him a boost, but not to this extent…”
“I heard that Natia destroyed tens of thousands of Minotaurs before, and the Hero was also present for a while, seemingly gaining quite a bit of benefit from it…” Wadsworth pondered and said, “His strength seems to have skyrocketed since then.”
Even the Demon Beasts eliminated by his companions counted towards the Hero’s growth?
This was cheating on an absurd level.
“As for his sudden increase in Mana, it should be because of Athena… We all know a little about that woman’s ability. What a pity…” Wadsworth shook his head regretfully.
He had also pursued Athena, hoping to obtain her Mana and become a powerful expert in both magic and Battle Qi, but he was rejected.
Now, all the benefits went to Qin Chu.
“Moreover, Qin Chu is definitely hiding some abilities. To be able to suddenly jump from level 40 to the mid-stage of the Champion realm, even if he was weakened for seven days after using it, not even touching the women around him, the effect is still too exaggerated.”
“With such severe side effects, an ability that can’t be used casually, I don’t think it’s worth worrying about,” Zimmerman shook his head. This old man was clearly not as cunning as the others.
Augustus immediately shook his head, “Although the side effects are severe, we can’t underestimate this ability. He can already reach the mid-stage of the Champion realm now. Then, when he reaches the Champion level himself, won’t he be on par with us immediately?”
“Besides the ability to increase his strength, he’s definitely hiding at least one more ability that can disguise his status panel and conceal his true strength, preventing us from seeing his true power.”
“And, more importantly, why is Qin Chu hiding his abilities?”
“What is he wary of?”
Augustus frowned and said, “If it wasn’t because he didn’t trust us, would he need to hide them? I have a feeling that Qin Chu seems to know a lot about the Heavenly Continent, as if he’s been here before.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Augustus felt that this speculation was absurd.
There were only two otherworlders in the Heavenly Continent: the two summoned Heroes.
One was Jie Luo, who was already dead.
The other was Qin Chu…
No matter what, the fact that Qin Chu had come to this world for the first time couldn’t be changed.
“Sorry, forget what I just said. Maybe that guy is really just very smart?”
“Could it be that we’re overthinking it? Don’t forget that the world Qin Chu came from was also ravaged by war. It’s normal for someone living in that kind of environment to be more vigilant and habitually hide some of their trump cards, isn’t it?” Saint Monique said, frowning.
After a pause, she continued, “In my opinion, there’s only one thing about Qin Chu that’s truly worth our vigilance…”
The other three remained silent.
They all knew what Saint Monique was talking about.
The huge phantom of the goddess that appeared behind Qin Chu.
That being, who made them instinctively tremble with awe. As the ones at the top of the pyramid in the Heavenly Continent, they couldn’t even control their own bodies and knelt on the ground. This was unprecedented.
“Augustus, is that goddess the Goddess of Holy Light worshipped by the Holy See?” Saint Monique asked Augustus.
Zimmerman and Wadsworth’s gazes also fell on Augustus.
The Pope frowned, “I’m not sure.”
“After all, we’ve never seen the true appearance of a deity.”
Although that deity possessed the power of Holy Light… Would a deity really appear in such a normal form? Although she was a bit tall, she still looked beautiful.
Augustus had once had the honor of witnessing the seven auxiliary gods beside the Goddess of Holy Light. They were all strange, twisted, and terrifying beings, completely different from the goddess behind Qin Chu.
“If it really is the Goddess of Holy Light, then what’s with the chains wrapped around her? Why was she dragged into the Void? Could it be that the Goddess of Holy Light has been imprisoned by other gods?” Wadsworth frowned and proposed a hypothesis.
If this news spread, it would be a fatal blow to the Holy See.
Of course, the Holy See’s influence was immense. Even if this news spread, their foundation would still remain. It would take a long time to topple them.
“Do you think the Demon Beasts appeared because the Goddess of Holy Light was imprisoned?” Zimmerman also proposed a hypothesis, “And the phantom of the Goddess of Holy Light appearing on Qin Chu, could it be that she wants to use the Hero’s power to free herself from the cage?”
Silence filled the room.
There were too few clues now, and they could only make various speculations. As for how close these speculations were to the truth, no one could guarantee.
But one thing was certain: Qin Chu’s identity was no longer just that of a Hero.
If their speculations were true, then Qin Chu was also a divine emissary.
If this news spread, Qin Chu’s status would skyrocket, and their positions would be in jeopardy.
“Everyone, let’s think outside the box. Since Qin Chu can even summon the avatar of a goddess, then eliminating the Demon Beasts shouldn’t be a problem… We can use Qin Chu to destroy the Demon Beasts in the Heavenly Continent and bring peace to this world.”
“After the Demon Beasts are eliminated, we can encourage Qin Chu to save the goddess…” A strange glint flickered in Saint Monique’s eyes.
“The being who can imprison a goddess is definitely not someone to be trifled with. What do you think are Qin Chu’s chances of survival against such beings? If Qin Chu dies… no, if he sacrifices himself on the path to saving the goddess, then no one can threaten our positions…”
“Even if other gods rule this world, they still need believers, don’t they?”
“If Qin Chu really manages to save the goddess, then as those who have been supporting him from behind, we should also get some credit, right?” Saint Monique said eloquently.
From these words, it could be heard that they had no faith in the deities they worshipped.
Deities and faith were just tools for them to gain power, status, wealth, and strength.
Saint Monique’s words brought smiles to their faces. This woman was truly meticulous. This was indeed a good option. They just needed to maintain their own status and power. As for who the supreme deity was, they didn’t care.
Even if it meant worshipping darkness, they would do it if it brought them a higher status, more power, and greater strength.
“By the way, about the Evil God summoned by the Grand Prince, have you found anything?” Wadsworth asked, “I’ve had people search the royal library, but unfortunately, there’s no information…”
“I’ve found a little something. Over a thousand years ago, there was a small religion in the Heavenly Continent. Its members considered themselves elegant and noble, yet they indulged in lust.”
“Once they became believers, they would abandon all morals and laws, dedicating themselves to pursuing extreme, perverse pleasure through fanatical hedonism and indulgence.”
“And the deity they worshipped was called… the God of Lust!”
…
Meanwhile, at the residence.
In the bedroom, after a moment of intimacy, Qin Chu was being held in Violet’s arms…
Violet’s body was soft and comfortable, but this position always made Qin Chu feel a little strange. After all, he was a man. Shouldn’t it be the other way around?
Even so, he still comfortably rested against her chest.
Violet’s finger traced the lines of his hair, a strange expression on her face. “Qin Chu…”
“What is it?”
“That girl this afternoon…”
“You mean Norma? What about her?”
“That girl, she’s a bit strange,” Violet said carefully, choosing her words, a look of suspicion on her face, as if she wasn’t entirely sure of her deduction, “I seem to sense an aura similar to mine on her…”
Qin Chu was startled, his pupils constricting. An aura similar to Violet’s?
Could it be that Norma was a Witch?
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