"Alright, since you're being so sensible, I'll give you another bottle of Holy Blood Potion.If the Holy Spirit Potion from before could only guarantee that you break through the limits of your soul, then with the assistance of the Holy Blood Potion, even the limits of your physical body can be surpassed. In that case, your Chui-de Family will absolutely be able to produce another Saint-rank powerhouse in the future."
York said this in a seemingly generous tone, though anyone could tell that two potions for breaking into the Saint rank were far less valuable than a single holy artifact.
At this moment, however, the young man spoke up again:
"Ah, th-this is far too much trouble for you, my lord. Our Chui-de Family absolutely cannot accept it."
His words nearly made Old Chui-de explode on the spot.
'Good grief, you really don't mind selling off the family's inheritance, do you? The family finally managed to pass down a holy artifact, and you're just giving it away for free? Do you seriously think the envoy from the Holy Court is some kind-hearted benefactor? How naïve can you be?'
Old Chui-de wanted nothing more than to beat this young man to death, but in front of York, he could only nod and bow submissively.
"Yes, yes, Your Excellency, please don't stand on ceremony."
"This is just a small token of our Chui-de Family's sincerity. We only hope that Your Excellency can grant us some modest reward."
The young man still looked extremely generous as he spoke, and even though Old Chui-de was unwilling, he could only echo:
"Yes, yes…"
"So long as Your Excellency is willing to hand over your consciousness for the next ten seconds."
"Yes, yes—wait, what?!"
Old Chui-de was instantly shocked, and York's expression also darkened visibly.
However, the Grenco gold coin clenched in York's palm had already begun to emit a soft golden glow.
At that moment, the transaction was complete.
For the next ten seconds, York's consciousness would become the bargaining chip in this deal—which meant that during those ten seconds, he would be completely defenseless.
The value of a Saint-rank powerhouse's ten seconds of consciousness was naturally far less than a holy artifact.
And under the influence of the Grenco gold coin, York had no way to resist at all.
This kind of equivalent exchange was different from the corruption inflicted on him earlier by the black-haired loli. Even the Scales of Plutus could not interfere with a fair trade.
And just as the young man finished speaking, a pale, slender hand—like the sharpest surgical blade—precisely pierced through York's chest.
When the hand was pulled back out, it was gripping a still-beating heart.
That heart belonged to York.
And the one who had struck was the beautiful mature woman who had been protecting everyone from the front all along.
With a sudden squeeze of her hand, the heart of the Saint-rank powerhouse was crushed into a bloody pulp.
At the same time, pitch-black feathers rapidly emerged across the woman's body.
As the blood and flesh scattered, her appearance underwent a drastic transformation.
The voluptuous adult woman had turned into a black-haired loli.
"I told you we would meet again."
The black-haired loli looked expressionlessly at York, whose pupils were slowly losing focus.
Without hesitation, she reached toward the metal case behind him—the one containing the Healing Witch.
Meanwhile, a brilliant purple light flared in the young man's eyes as he let out a furious roar and charged toward Old Chui-de.
All the remaining royal powerhouses rushed forward with him.
At this moment, offense and defense reversed.
The black-haired loli seemed destined to be the final victor.
But would things really go as smoothly as she had planned?
Just as her small hand was about to touch the metal case, another pale hand reached out and grabbed toward hers.
The loli's expression changed, and she quickly pulled her hand back.
Because of this reflexive movement, York's corpse fell uncontrollably into the building below.
But the loli had no time to care about his body now.
She stared at the figure in front of her in disbelief.
At some unknown moment, a girl dressed in a black Gothic dress had appeared before her.
The newcomer was Hel's avatar—Morrigan.
"How did you appear here?"
The black-haired loli looked extremely displeased. She had been just about to succeed, and Hel's sudden appearance was nothing but an obstacle.
Naturally, Hel had no intention of revealing the secret of her Thunder-Insect God, and instead looked at her with interest.
"You don't seem surprised by my appearance at all, Imshi."
Hearing Hel casually call out her real name, the black-haired loli stopped pretending. A sly, mocking smile appeared on her lips.
"So it's you—the Death Witch, Nether. No wonder the underground of Chui-de City reeks of undead filth. Turns out you set things up in advance.
Top-tier death magic: Annihilation Domain. It kills all elements within its territory and converts them into death elements—a miracle spell comparable to a pseudo-mind-image.
So, why haven't you activated it yet? Or is it because you discovered that I can also use death magic, and now you're afraid to cast it?"
Imshi's expression grew more vicious.
Clearly, she was still holding a grudge over the heavy loss she had suffered at Hel's hands before.
"Yes, I didn't expect you to be able to use death magic either. That's why I've become even more curious about your true identity. What do you say, 'Clone Witch'?"
"Go to hell with your 'Clone Witch'! Your whole family are Clone Witches!"
Even with her usual deadpan face, Imshi's loli avatar now looked genuinely furious.
But perhaps because this body was too young, her anger only made her look adorably fierce.
"Since you're not going to make a move," she said coldly, "don't blame me for being ruthless."