Chapter 415: The Price of Obtaining Divine Authority Is Offering Oneself...
Although both were child prodigies, their talents did not lie in the same areas.
Since ancient times, Witches have excelled at concocting secret potions, using magic to subdue beasts in the forest, and flying freely through the sky.
In this regard, Erica was far inferior to Liliana.
Conversely, when it came to manipulating steel, using Cursed power to forge weapons, and employing magic to create tools of destruction and assassination, Erica was far ahead.
Thus, if the two were to join forces, they would form a complementary relationship.
Naturally, Erica looked forward to having someone like Liliana join her.
Although Lucretia was also a Witch, she was not suitable for Erica.
For one, this woman did not know how to cooperate—no, it wasn't that she didn't know how, but rather she was somewhat lazy, and when it came to cooperation, others had to accommodate her, which highlighted her arrogance.
For someone as proud as Erica, it was absolutely unacceptable to have anyone stepping over her to give orders.
Of course, those who serve are an exception.
Thus, she took a fancy to Liliana, this easily manipulated rival—this foolish girl.
"Don't even think about going back to destroy your notebook. Look, what's this?"
Erica pulled out several photos and tossed them toward the person following her like a vengeful ghost from behind.
Catching the photos and glancing at them, Liliana's face flushed red once again, and she shot a murderous glare at the demon before her.
"I have even more comprehensive photos—ones of you in the act of writing. So, if you don't want your secret exposed, Lili, just obediently join us~"
"You demon!!!"
Gnashing her teeth in fury, Liliana crushed the photos in her hand into pieces, which then ignited out of thin air and turned to ashes.
But anger aside, she was also nervous, for she was following Erica to meet the one they served.
If she joined, would she also gain a Divine Authority?
If so, could she break free from that Marquis?
If possible, she also wanted to free the magical association she belonged to, because that Marquis—a Campione—was a truly vile Satan.
To achieve his goals, he would stop at nothing.
Once, in order to summon a Heretic God, he had captured many Witches and shrine maidens, ultimately causing two-thirds of them to suffer mental breakdowns.
And Liliana had been one of them.
Then, upon arriving in London, she had heard some rumors—it seemed he was preparing to search for more shrine maidens to attempt another summoning of a Heretic God.
This matter filled Liliana with rage, but what could she, powerless, do about it?
After all, he was a Campione, a king, someone she could never hope to oppose.
At most, when he assigned her tasks, she could just go through the motions without putting in any real effort.
In the blink of an eye, they arrived at a small villa.
As if sensing something, Erica suddenly changed her expression and rushed inside. Bewildered and unaware of what was happening, Liliana paused for a moment before following suit.
The two of them barged into a bedroom inside the house and witnessed—
"Wah~~~"
A cute sound escaped Liliana's lips, her face quickly flushing bright red. Her mind seemed on the verge of overheating, leaving her dizzy and disoriented.
In her dazed state, she couldn't quite make out what was being said.
It seemed Erica was arguing with a woman about something—something about it just being an act? How did the fake act become real? They were quarreling as if it were an irreconcilable conflict.
By the time she began to regain her senses, she had already been seated in the main hall by that demonic woman's maid.
"What Authority do you want?"
"Huh?"
Still somewhat dazed, Liliana stared blankly at the young man before her.
He had been one of the main figures in the unspeakable scene she had just witnessed.
But he was asking her what Authority she wanted?
What did that mean?
Wait! Liliana only then realized she had been pulled into a bounded space, and a strange book was floating before her.
It displayed the Divine Authorities?
"Currently, you can only choose two."
"Two?"
"So, what Authority do you want?"
"Authority?"
"Erica, is your friend all right?"
"Well, she's just a bit foolish, isn't that perfect? Easy to fool."
That snapped Liliana back to full awareness...
"My mind is perfectly fine!!!"
Liliana, who spoke these words angrily, also glared at Erica.
She was just having trouble processing everything.
Could obtaining Divine Authority really be this simple? It felt like she was dreaming.
Was there no price to pay?
Suddenly, Liliana thought of something and stiffened.
Could the price be what she had just witnessed? Would she have to offer herself in that kind of service?
Unable to help herself, Liliana began imagining inappropriate scenarios in her mind.
Essentially, she was replacing the woman in the scene she had just witnessed with herself.
For a moment, her wild imagination made her head spin again.
"What's wrong with her?"
Renji watched the seemingly not-so-bright girl with amusement.
Her eyes suddenly seemed to be looking not at him, but at another world.
To be precise, she appeared to have fallen into some kind of delusion, murmuring words like "no" and "gentle" from her lips.
"Probably fantasizing about something, hmph~"
Erica's snort was directed not at Lili, but at him.
Then, while Liliana was still lost in her fantasy, he began the contract.
"Thy body..."
Before she could regain her senses, the girl's lips automatically began chanting the spell.
"...thy guardian"
As the final words of the spell fell, a card flew from him and merged into Lili's body.
The next moment, she trembled slightly, her dazed eyes gradually clearing as she finally came back to reality.
"Huh? Uh,"
Liliana moved her lips but ultimately didn't know what to say.
He actually took advantage of her dazed state to form the contract?
But even if she hadn't been dazed, she would have been forced to join anyway.
Resisting or not seemed meaningless.
It was through the connection established by this contract that she, as a Witch, could sense that Erica was right - it really was that person.
But the disparity between expectation and reality felt quite large, quite confusing.