Chapter 361: Chapter 361 Uncontrollable Desire_1
"Hearing you say this, does this person still hold value for the Witch Assembly?" Aiden asked, looking at Qiqimora.
"His black magic research, whether it’s his own or stolen from others, would mostly be destroyed or sealed if given to the Heretic Inquisition, but it is of great value to us," Qiqimora spoke slowly. "Besides, he possesses authority over ’matter,’ a power..."
"You want to learn it?" Aiden asked.
"I do, but at the moment... I’d prefer to focus on a single authority since I’m already close to my goal. By comparison, Vila would probably be more eager to learn, as she is pursuing the authority over ’matter.’" Qiqimora lowered her voice, "We could make an offer to her. Whatever compensation she provides, we split it seventy-thirty, with the larger share going to you."
Aiden glanced at Joey Lawson. Joey remained silent, merely cradling his injured right hand and supporting himself on one leg. After losing all means of attack, he clearly had lost the will to continue fighting.
"So, what do you ultimately plan to do with him?" Aiden shifted his gaze back to Qiqimora.
"Have him impart the Divine Words, then strip him of his divinity before handing him over to Abigail. Although we never intended to avenge those witches he killed, his actions have always harmed the interests of the Witch Assembly," Qiqimora answered. "If he cooperates, maybe we won’t take his life, but we won’t let him off easily either—at least we’ll ensure that he will never be able to use magic again for the rest of his life."
"Most of the effort to capture him came from me, yet in the end, he is handed over to you? This doesn’t feel very fair to me," Aiden said.
"Then, how about I owe you a favor? If you have any requests later on, as long as it’s not too risky, I’ll do my best to fulfill them."
"Your favor..." Aiden eyed Qiqimora, hesitating.
"We have that much trust between us, don’t we?" Qiqimora smiled.
"No," Aiden replied straightforwardly.
"I’m that untrustworthy!?" Qiqimora’s eyes widened in shock.
"In our partnership, you’ve acted on your own twice. Why would you think you deserve this respect? Hm?" Aiden posed the question.
"Ah... well..." Qiqimora displayed an embarrassed yet polite smile, "It won’t happen again, I promise."
Aiden pondered the situation. Joey Lawson’s current official identity was that of a Heretic Inquisitor from Netherland, and through official channels, they could only hold him accountable for his attempted murder of Sophie Carter, as well as stalking, surveillance, and threatening behavior. The man’s actions all along were more akin to a male witch than a Heretic Inquisitor, and perhaps handing him over to the Witch Assembly was the more suitable choice...
"Fine then, I’ll leave him to you," Aiden decided, then spoke in a lowered voice, "but I have one more condition."
"Please tell me."
"His fate is on your hands, not connected to me in any way, understand?" Aiden spoke in a voice that only Qiqimora could hear clearly.
Letting the Balance of Smiles or any other forces know that he dealt with Joey Lawson would be of no benefit to him. Aiden only needed to ensure that Sophie would pay for this matter.
"Rest assured, I definitely won’t leak any information about you," Qiqimora nodded in understanding and then turned her gaze to Joey, "Your fate has fallen into the hands of the Assembly, Mr. Lawson."
"Heh, I accept my defeat," Joey expressed a wretched smile, "You’ve found quite a formidable ally indeed. Such power, unreasonably strong, is it on par with Abigail’s now, huh? Who is this person, exactly?"
"I’m afraid that’s confidential. But if I may say, rather than my ally being too strong, it’s more accurate to say you’ve become weak. I’ve visited your room; you’re so obsessed with a woman, I had no idea you were such a lecher. If it were the you from before, how could you have been so readily lured out?" Qiqimora stared at Joey as she spoke, "You’ve even let all your Divine Words be completely figured out by others. Since being expelled from the Assembly, you’ve made quite a few enemies. Your carelessness allowing you to survive until now is truly a miracle."
Aiden agreed with this. His easy defeat of the male witch was not solely due to the suppression by the Wordless Code against Joey. Ultimately, without the information provided by Sophie, the Wordless Code would have struggled to exploit its advantages effectively. Joey’s abnormal fixation on Sophie was the key to their victory.
Joey paused, his eyes drooping as he reminisced, finally shaking his head, "I also... can’t explain it. The first time I saw her, I didn’t think much of it. But when she approached me, the desire to possess her was ignited in my heart, unstoppable. Logic told me wasting time on such a woman was meaningless, but... I just couldn’t control myself..."
Desire—hearing Joey’s confession, Aiden keenly sensed something.
The abnormal shift in Joey Lawson’s emotional state, and the mental backlash insurance that appeared on the butler... the likelihood of a connection seemed significant.
"If I ignore what’s happened since then, this sounds like quite a charming love story... Hmm? What is it, Your Excellency?"
Qiqimora interjected with a jest, then Aiden raised his hand, cutting her off.
"Have you considered the possibility that you were hypnotized?" Aiden asked.
Before Joey could reply, Qiqimora spoke up, "That’s unlikely. The witch he killed back then was Presia’s teacher. Though not as skilled as Presia is now, she was quite accomplished in the art of hypnosis. Not only did he kill her, he also plundered all of her research. Ordinary hypnosis spells probably wouldn’t so easily affect him."
"Then how about the possibility of being influenced by an authority?" Aiden pursued.
"The authority of Spirit," Qiqimora frowned.
"Do you... know something?" Joey suddenly looked up.
"I’ll leave him to you. Help me check if his spirit has been influenced by external forces," Aiden turned to Qiqimora, "You can do that, right?"
Even a succubus’s ability to infiltrate dreams could analyze a person’s mental state, high-level Mental Spells should be no different.
"Maybe, but our best mental analyst is with you," Qiqimora reminded.
"Then, after you’re done dealing with him, I’ll find a way to check," Aiden replied, "but before that, make sure to keep him alive."
