When Sylvia followed Dan Shu to the Court of Tranquility, they quickly spotted a little girl trapped on the steps by the pond, wiping away her tears, while a group of other children gathered below, jeering at her.
Instead of offering help, the onlooking children laughed and taunted the girl with glee. One of them even chanted a mocking rhyme:
"Little blind girl, climbs the stair, goes up fine, but stuck up there! Tumbling down with a clumsy flare!"
As the rhyme echoed, the other children burst into raucous laughter.
The harsh laughter erupted so suddenly that anyone unaware might have thought these children had stumbled upon something wonderfully amusing.
"She can't get down, hehehe—she's stuck up there!"
These little ones, dressed well and healthy, clearly had no real troubles of their own.
Yet, they remained unsatisfied, as if only by witnessing the suffering of others and mocking their flaws could they find pure joy and delight.
There weren't many adults around, and those who passed by simply assumed it was childish play, brushing past without a second glance.
Dan Shu, blind and unable to see, listened but did not turn toward the commotion. Sylvia, however, stared directly at the scene, her brow furrowing.
She understood exactly why Dan Shu had brought her here, but that didn't stop her from despising these children who found pleasure in ridiculing others.
Two different things entirely.
Just then, the ringleader of the group noticed Sylvia.
He immediately recognized her as an outsider—her white hair, blue eyes, and clothing clearly marked her as not from the Xianzhou.
This boy was dressed more lavishly than the others, his demeanor and bearing setting him apart from the rest. He glanced disdainfully at Sylvia, raising a single finger in a ridiculous, pointing gesture—as if poorly imitating someone—and demanded with thick condescension:
"Hey, you there, outsider! What are you staring at? This is none of your business!"
Hearing their leader, the other children turned to look. Seeing Sylvia still standing there, they boldly shouted:
"Who do you think you are? Mind your own business! Our boss hasn't beaten up an outsider in days!"
"Get out of here! Don't interrupt what we're doing!"
Arrogant and full of themselves, their tone dripped with contempt for outsiders.
So this is what it feels like to be on the receiving end of the protagonist's treatment, Sylvia thought.
Looking at these unpleasant children, she felt nothing but annoyance. Besides, given their probable age, these "children" likely weren't as young as they seemed.
With a slight wave of her hand—
A flash of turquoise flame cut through the air, and an invisible, massive hand seemed to slam down out of nowhere!
Thump—
The leading boy let out a sharp cry as he was thrown backward, landing right in the middle of the group before crashing to the ground in a perfect kneeling position.
Before he could even try to get up, a biting frost spread across the ground, forming a solid layer of ice that trapped him in place, forcing him to remain kneeling before Sylvia.
The other two who had spoken up were dealt with similarly, slammed flat onto the ground.
"Who gave you permission to speak to me like that? Get on your knees and apologize."
Not in the mood to waste brainpower, Sylvia simply forced the leader to his knees. She adopted a haughty, discriminatory expression herself.
For those who looked down on outsiders, being made to kneel and kowtow to one was a fate worse than death.
Sure enough, she soon saw the boy's face flush bright red. It seemed he had never imagined that an outsider would ever dare to look down on him like this.
It was as if his pride had been stomped into the dirt and spat on—especially in front of his friends!
With just one sentence, Sylvia had utterly shattered the boy's laughable self-esteem.
"Ahhh—! Ahhh—!!"
A meaningless scream suddenly tore through the air.
The other children were startled by what had happened.
"W-what's going on?"
"I saw that woman wave her hand—she must be a spy on the Xianzhou! Everyone, go get the Cloud Knights!"
Now, the children could no longer bother with their trapped friend or the bullied little girl.
After witnessing Sylvia's ability to strike from a distance and summon ice out of thin air, they were terrified, ready to scatter in a panic.
But Sylvia wasn't about to let them go.
Whoosh—
A curtain of eerie green flame erupted and spread, encircling the children. The scorching tongues of fire forced them to halt, trembling where they stood.
Within the ring of fire, daylight faded into night, the ghostly green flames casting a dim light over everyone.
Accompanied by a mournful, whispering wind, the atmosphere turned deeply eerie.
"What do you think you're doing?! My father is a Cloud Knight! How dare you, an outsider, lay a hand on me—you're dead!"
"Yeah! If you hurt anyone from the Xianzhou, I'll have the Cloud Knights arrest you and send you to the Ten-Lords Commission for execution!"
One of the children, putting on a brave face, tried to threaten her with his parents. But Sylvia didn't just disregard it—she let out a derisive laugh.
"I know exactly what the Ten-Lords Commission does. Besides, if all of you were to die and turn to ash, who could prove I had anything to do with it?"
She continued to press down on them with her presence.
Sylvia knew she couldn't protect the little girl forever.
But this little group, thinking they were powerful because they stuck together, built their sense of worth by bullying others.
People like that became utterly powerless once they were separated.
She might not be able to shield the girl, but she could break this group apart.
Humiliate the proud leader, turn the cruel ones against each other, force the followers to bear the blame from everyone else.
By shredding their childish bonds and leaving them with a few psychological scars, these kids would have no time left to bother the little girl.
As for what the girl would make of herself afterward—that was beyond Sylvia's ability to predict.
Stepping through the flames toward the group of brats, Sylvia recalled the killing intent and aura she had once felt from Acheron.
It was a crude imitation, but more than enough to terrify these children.
In fact, the kneeling ringleader was so scared he wet himself, the trickling sound drawing everyone's attention.
The strange looks from the other children shattered what was left of the proud boy's composure.
"Are you okay…"
"Shut up!! Get away from me!"
A child who usually got along with him tried to show concern, but the humiliated leader screamed at him to leave.
Everyone had witnessed his complete loss of dignity.
Then, Sylvia spoke:
"Now, you will choose two among yourselves to remain here. The rest may leave. Don't bother hoping the Cloud Knights will save you—if they haven't come by now, they won't be breaking through this fire."
"No way—!"
"My dad will definitely come for me!"
The children continued to talk big, but through the power of the Heliobus, Sylvia could clearly sense the fear and terror growing in their hearts.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.