Chapter 142: Revenge is reciprocal
After Ariana had cried herself to sleep in his arms, Seraph gently lay her on the bed in the room, carefully adjusting her position so she would be comfortable. He pulled the blanket over her frail body, making sure it covered her shoulders properly, his movements slow and deliberate, as if afraid even the slightest disturbance would wake her. For a brief moment, his hand lingered near her cheek, his gaze softening faintly before the emotion was quickly suppressed.
Then he turned to the others who were looking at him with compassionate expressions. The room was quiet, heavy with unspoken emotions. The faint sound of Ariana’s breathing filled the silence, steady but fragile.
Seraph forced a smile.
"I can understand what you all feel. Although foreign, I appreciate it. Still, I’ll inform you that I’ve moved on, with nothing but her memory in my heart."
His voice was calm, almost too calm—like a still lake hiding a violent storm beneath.
Dera’s eyes reddened with tears, but she refused to let them fall, biting down slightly on her lower lip as she struggled to maintain composure. Sera’s expression softened greatly, her usual composure melting away as she stepped forward. Without hesitation, she went ahead to hug him, pressing his head against her chest while rubbing his hair affectionately, as if trying to comfort a wounded child.
Meanwhile, Tamar remained silent, her head lowered, her long black hair partially covering her face. Her fingers curled slightly at her sides, trembling faintly. After a few seconds, she whispered.
"I want..."
Hm? The other three turned to her, not catching what she said.
As if in a trance, Tamar’s body trembled repeatedly, her shoulders shaking slightly as suppressed emotions surfaced. Her breathing became uneven, and she finally uttered those words again.
"I want... to kill them. Everyone responsible. I want..."
Seraph’s eyes darkened as he completed her sentence, "... to kill them."
Naturally, the thought of revenge was still in his heart. It was just that he had been suppressing it for a while now, burying it beneath layers of cold logic and restraint. But hearing Tamar voice it so openly stirred something deep within him.
Remembering that hunched woman who had almost knocked the hell out of him, the image of her twisted posture and overwhelming presence flashing vividly in his mind, he gritted his teeth in determination to crush her and reach the true perpetrators.
After all, he could tell that she was nothing but a puppet.
Tamar’s head snapped up, an intense look of obsession in her eyes. Her pupils trembled slightly, reflecting a dangerous resolve that didn’t match her usually quiet demeanor.
"S-Seraph... let me help you."
Released from Sera’s embrace, he stared at the black-haired girl for a few seconds, his gaze sharp and probing, as if trying to see through her resolve. Then he sighed.
"You can’t. With your current strength, you can’t fight them directly."
Saying that, he released a bit of his spiritual pressure that sat firmly at the peak of the Core King Stage, just a step away from reaching the Peak King Stage. The air in the room instantly grew heavy, like an invisible weight pressing down on everything.
The wooden furniture creaked slightly under the pressure, and even the air felt denser, harder to breathe.
"I see..." She nodded dejectedly, her head dropping low again, her earlier resolve wavering under the overwhelming difference in power. With Seraph’s display of strength, she could already tell that his enemies were probably stronger.
What could she, a mere Master Stage cultivator, do in such situation? She could only dream of helping him. Dreams only.
Seraph knew Tamar was a girl of few words, but he could always tell what she was feeling. Her silence spoke volumes to him.
So, to avoid having her wallow in self-deprecation, he pulled her onto his lap with her back to him. The sudden movement caused a faint gasp to escape her lips. Then, he wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her shoulder, his presence calm but firm.
"That doesn’t mean you can’t help me, though."
Tamar stiffened, her head turning slightly to look at him. Unfortunately, she couldn’t see him and could only press her warm cheeks against his cold cheeks, the contrast in temperature making her more aware of his presence.
"How?"
Dera and Sera also payed attention, as they were interested in this. Their earlier emotions settled into curiosity and concern.
Now having their attention, Seraph said, "I destroyed one of their major bases and killed a lot of their members. There’s no way they don’t want revenge too. They already know that I’m here, and they’re getting prepared to strike."
Their eyes widened, and Dera spoke urgently, her voice rising slightly with concern, "Then you should come back to the sect! My grandma and Elder Song can surely protect you no matter the threat. You know that."
"No," Seraph shook his head, his tone firm. "This is my fight, and I don’t want to involve the sect."
His tone was firm, leaving no room for negotiation.
Sera nodded. "I understand."
Then, she glanced at the room, her gaze drifting toward the walls as if imagining the destruction that might come.
"Isn’t this entire village going to perish if you fight here?"
He shrugged, completely indifferent. "It’s not like I really care. As long as my hosts are out, the rest are none of my business. Still, if you really think I should change location, then I would."
Sera glanced at her sister, then looked back at him, her expression turning slightly cold.
"No need. The people here are quite unsightly anyway."
Her words were blunt, carrying a quiet disdain. After all, her first few hours in the village had brought her some unruly perverts.
"So... what do you need me for?" Tamar asked in a low voice, snapping Seraph’s attention back to her.
"I want you to ensure this family’s safety. Their father will come back at night, so you’ll see him. When I tell you to, you must force them out, then take them to the Moonveil Clan. Tell the Patriarch to treat them nicely, as they have treated me nicely."
Dera raised a brow and asked Tamar, "You know where Seraph’s clan is?"
The girl hid her expression and answered in a meek voice. "I was curious once and tailed Ariana."
Seraph chuckled softly, the sound low and brief, but didn’t comment on that. Instead, he spoke to the girl’s ear, his voice quieter now, almost intimate. "Do you accept that I’ll really appreciate it."
Tamar nodded, completely leaning into him, her earlier hesitation replaced with quiet determination. Then, she asked, "How confident are you in beating them all?"
Seraph raised a brow at her question, then thought about it, his gaze drifting slightly as he calculated possibilities.
"I can’t say... as it depends on how many of them comes. However, I can say with all certainty that I will paint the ground red with their blood."
His words, spoken with bone-chilling coldness, made the girls tremble. The atmosphere in the room dropped several degrees, an invisible killing intent seeping out.
Tightening his grip around Tamar, Seraph considered sharing new the cultivation technique with them. However, he was hesitant. He hadn’t fully used the technique to see if there would be any flaws in the long run, so he had to be careful.
’Once I’ve confirmed that it’s safe, then I can have them use it too. At least it’d help them cultivate faster and give them a feeling they could catch up to me.’
Just as he was smiling to himself, a faint, almost mischievous curve forming on his lips, he heard Sera ask, "Why are you smiling?"
He shrugged casually. "I was just wondering how you two have different hair colors."
"Eh?"
The twins were surprised, then involuntarily glanced at each other, their synchronized movements making their resemblance even more obvious.
Sera shook her head. "We don’t have different hair colors. It’s Dera who chose to dye her hair regularly."
"Oh?" Seraph was surprised, and it seemed this was the same with Tamar. The girl had probably never noticed despite having spent years with the twins.
’So they’re THAT identical? Really surprising.’
Seraph finally relaxed, the earlier tension easing slightly, then asked about everyone back in the sect. The atmosphere gradually became lighter as they began to inform him about things he had missed with his absence.
Firstly, they told him about how the Inferno Sect ended up retreating when their side was losing. In the end, they surrendered and returned the remaining kidnapped disciples. They also paid a lot to the sect as compensation.
Chuckling, Dera said, "I wouldn’t be surprised if my grandma emptied their entire treasure vault. It was really satisfying seeing their ugly expressions whenever the Inferno Sect disciples passed by or came to give compensation that was requested."
Her eyes gleamed with amusement as she recalled the scene.
"Oh? That makes it interesting."
Seraph chuckled, clearly entertained by the outcome, then asked, "How is Elder Song doing?"
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