Chapter 392 Expelling the Darkness (End)
'Then, that is enough.'
My mind keeps repeating what Valeria said just a few moments ago. I look down at the woman sitting on my lap and find her calmly eating her food. I jokingly asked her to sit on my lap and she did it without hesitation. Valeria used to be reluctant to display her affection publicly, but she has come around. Maybe, though, it is because we don't have many people in the dining room.
Winerva sits across from us, eating her food silently while sneaking glances a few times. She seems to be quite baffled by Valeria's boldness. She has seen too much of Valeria's reserved side, so it must be quite hard to wrap her head around the fact that Valeria can also act like a clingy girlfriend. She has seen us together a couple of times, but not to this point.
'Now that I think about it, we bathed together a couple of times before. Compared to that, it should be nothing, no?'
I can never understand how a woman thinks. I have accepted that fact long ago, so I stop bothering myself to rationalize the situation. As soon as we finish our meal, we get up and walk to the Teleportation Gate. Winerva is taking the lead, looking giddy for what is to come. I wonder what she will do to Helia and Brianna but quickly forego it. I want to be surprised.
Some people bow at us upon noticing us. I am grateful for their modest way of greeting. Surprisingly, the Warriors who notice me also know my preferred way of greeting. They say nothing even though their curious gaze keeps following us. When we are in front of the Teleportation Gate, Winerva stops to collect herself. She breathes in and out a couple of times before passing through the Gate.
A few eyes land on us as soon as we are in Verniculos, but no one says a thing. They seem to be curious about why I am here again after leaving it a few hours ago, but they know not to be nosy. As soon as I inform Winerva of Helia and Brianna's whereabouts, Winerva strides in said direction. The onlookers also stop paying attention.
It doesn't take us long to reach the dungeon where the prisoners of Verniculos are held. The moment we enter it, a depressive mood coupled with an aura of utter despair hit us in the face. None of us is a stranger to the sensation, so we take it in a stride. After descending some stairs, we find two women standing before a cell. They were discussing something among themselves until they noticed us.
"Layland."
"Hi."
Aurelia smiles at me whereas Millonia looks away in guilt. She doesn't meet Winerva's gaze, still ashamed of the prior fiasco.
"Thank you for doing your best!"
"What…?"
Millonia is surprised by Winerva's heartfelt glomp. She doesn't know how to react to the pure gratitude at first but eventually returns the hug with an awkward smile on her face. When Winerva lets go of her, she meets Winerva's bright eyes with an apologetic look. Winerva pats her shoulder twice before turning to the door of the cell before us.
I step forward and put my hand on the door. The Array set on the door glows briefly, producing a series of clicks a moment later. Winerva pushes the door open before entering. I pull the door, leaving it ajar. I want to watch over Winerva, but I think I need to address the elephant in the room first. I turn to Millonia and approach her slowly.
I put my hand on her head when I am right in front of her. "I am sorry if I seemed angry at you for what happened. I am sorry if my treatment hurt you in any way. I was mad at the culprit. I hate it when someone messes with those I hold dear. I did my best to direct my unbridled rage to the bastard, but I am sorry if you still felt it."
Ruffling Millonia's hair, I watch as her lips quiver. Her eyes water up, but she does her best to hold her tears. Her pride doesn't allow her to cry, so I pull her into my embrace. Her body trembles as her tears wet my clothes. At a glance, no one will be able to tell she is crying. We know she is but don't say a thing about it.
"I thought you hated me for my blunder," she says in a muffled voice with evident frustration. "I hate it when you look at me like that. I feel worthless before those eyes."
"How can I make up with you?" I ask, hiding the amusement I feel.
"A full week vacation with me!"
I chuckle but stop myself from quipping as her hold tightens. I hum in acceptance after looking at Valeria for affirmation. She separates herself from me and then looks at me in irritation. It would have seemed genuine if she didn't have red puffy eyes. I scoff lightly, causing her to pout. She is about to say something when a resounding scream fills the dungeon.
"Well, someone is having fun," Millonia comments.
"Millonia," Valeria calls. "We have something to discuss."
"I happen to also have something to discuss, so why don't we move somewhere else?" Aurelia chimes in.
"I will be staying here," I input.
"Good," the three women say in unison.
The glint in their eyes tells me I shouldn't ask anything, so I don't. I watch their retreating backs before entering the cell. The pungent smell of blood mixed with fungi assaults my nose when I am inside. I ignore the unpleasant smell and lock the cell's door. My eyes quickly adjust to the darkness of the cell, allowing me to see the bound figure suspended in the air a few feet ahead.
The said figure is having her innards gut out by Winerva. Winerva pulls each one of her innards, letting them dangle out of her abdomen cavity before gravity causes them to touch the ground. If I hadn't closed the door, the dungeon would be filled with her anguished scream. Anyone would have died at this point, but she is not just anyone.
"You have to cut off that dangling intestine to let the new one form," I inform, waking Winerva from her reverie.
"I want to see how long she can survive in this state," Winerva says calmly.
"You won't get the fun if she suddenly dies on you. Have fun first; experiment later," I suggest.
Winerva nods her head and then cuts off the dangling intestine. We watch as new innards form, filling Helia's abdomen cavity. Her scream of terror is still ear-grating, but we ignore it. In under a minute, Helia is as good as new. Winerva swiftly stabs all of the major arteries and watches as blood pours out of the wound. Helia doesn't scream as loud but thrashes violently.
"Do we need her blood?" Winerva asks curiously. "She collected buckets of my blood to feed to her pet Hellhound."
"We don't have any pet Hellhounds, but you can feed her blood to her if you want to," I suggest.
Winerva's eyes light up. She takes out a bucket from her Spatial Storage and then puts it under Helia to collect her pouring blood. Taking a step back from Helia, she turns to the cowering figure in the corner of the cell. As if noticing her gaze, the white-clad girl shrieked in horror. I watch as Winerva slowly approaches the girl. The girl futilely retreats to the wall.
Winerva wraps her two hands around the girl's neck and lifts her. The girl gargles as saliva comes out of her mouth. Her face is red and her eyes almost roll to the back of her head. Her dangling feet frantically flail around before tensing. A liquid trickles down the girl's legs as the smell of ammonia hits my nose. Her hands are limply hanging on her side.
Just as the life is about to flicker, Winerva drops her to the ground. The girl is responsive at first before frantically gasping for air and violently coughing. Anyone in my shoes would feel pity if they looked at her pitiful state, but I can hardly feel even a sliver of sympathy. When the girl regains her coherence, Winerva kicks her head. She is slammed into the wall, knocking her unconscious.
"Now, let's get back to this Demon whore. Ah, look at that! The wounds have closed up!" Winerva cheerfully exclaims.
"Y- You sick fuck!" Helia spits angrily.
"The pot has just called the kettle black. Hilarious!"
Taking a scissor out of her Spatial Storage, Winerva roughly shoves one of the blades into Helia's genitalia before cutting upwardly. The anguished scream returns in full force. The sheer brutality slightly astounds me. I didn't know Winerva had it in her. 'She may have learned it from experience.' The thought dampens my mood, making me think that Winerva hasn't done enough.
My attention is taken away from the scene when I feel a hand on my leg. I look down and meet Brianna's ugly crying visage.
"L- Layland, please, kill me. I can't bear this lifestyle any longer," she says while sobbing intensely. "I want to meet my mom. I want to be a good daughter. Please, kill me and end this suffering. I don't have the strength anymore."
I can only feel one emotion from Brianna: despair. Her pain and fear are ignored because of her despair. She only wants one thing which is to die. She is in a deeper despair than she was under the Curse of The Bitter Nymph. I have had my share, so I no longer have any right to decide her fate. I eye Winerva and wait for her answer.
"She only hit me so this Demon whore didn't hurt her. I still hate her, but you may grant her a quick death. She is not the cause of this darkness covering my heart."
Given Winerva's confirmation, I lift Brianna by her head. Her eyes brighten up and I can feel hope radiating off her. A snort escapes me before I crush her head. I stare at the blood seeping out of my fist before dropping her lifeless body. Another snort escapes me as I recall the peaceful look she had before I crushed her head.
Brianna Johnson is dead. This world is officially bereft of Heroes.
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