Chapter 217: Return
Faced with the powerful and domineering Billy, Angela had no room to bargain.
She had originally intended to agree verbally, then destroy the evidence once Billy left. That way, at least there’d be no leverage in his hands, giving her some room to maneuver.
But the moment she agreed, Billy suddenly moved—fast. So fast that even Saul, hanging from the ceiling, didn’t react in time. Angela only saw a blur, and the next moment, she felt a sharp pain in her abdomen—something had pierced in through her navel.
Startled, she instinctively looked down and pressed her hand to her belly, but found nothing sharp.
“What did you do to me?!” the girl shrieked, her voice nearly cracking.
“No need to panic,” Billy said coldly, showing no hint of pity. “I just implanted a toxin inside your body.”
He stepped back slowly. “If you try anything funny in our future cooperation… I’ll turn you into a flower.”
Billy nodded slightly at Angela. “Clear your lab schedule within three days, then come to 1701.”
With that, he didn’t give her a chance to respond and walked out of the lab.
Once Billy was gone, Angela trembled all over. She bit down on her lip so hard it bled, but still didn’t let up.From the ceiling, a few tentacles silently uncoiled and slowly approached Angela’s delicate face.
“This is all your fault,” Angela said darkly, her expression twisted.
Saul hesitated. The tentacles froze mid-air.
“If I die, don’t think you’ll live either!” Angela added, voice full of malice.
Suddenly, her left hand swung up and slapped herself hard across the face.
Then, her expression shifted—the resentful, stunned girl curled her lips into a chilling smile.
“Don’t forget, I know the prayer technique, and you’re the one who’s poisoned.”
Angela’s face twisted again—anger now mixed with fear. “Aren’t you afraid I’ll report you to Mentor Kaz and have you thrown out?”
But then she smirked proudly. “Poor little girl, after merging for so long, do you still think you can get rid of me so easily?”
Still in control of Angela’s body, the wraith walked to a glass cabinet, swaying her head side to side, admiring the body’s beauty.
Suddenly, she reached up and grabbed a handful of the soft flesh on her chest.
“Mmm… I can’t even remember if I was male or female in life, but I’m quite satisfied with this body. Guess I’ll reluctantly keep sharing it with you.”
Angela’s face instantly flushed red, but the expression remained one of perverse enjoyment.
Saul, watching from the side, saw it all clearly. The wraith inside Angela was already threatening her soul’s dominance.
If this continued, the balance between them would collapse—there would be no more "sharing," no matter what the wraith claimed.
Still, though Saul had figured it out, he had no intention of interfering. He was interested in the flavor of the wraith’s soul, but peeling her out of the body just seemed like too much trouble.
No one knew how much time passed before Angela finally regained control of her body. She quickly released her grip and winced in pain.
But that pain was soon replaced by hatred. She turned to the two boys lying on the cart, her expression grim as she approached.
With no escape left, she no longer intended to leave anyone else alive.
She took out a small golden knife and, without hesitation, stabbed it into the chest of the younger boy.
Schlick!
The intense pain jolted the boy awake with a bloodcurdling scream.
The moment he opened his eyes, he saw a beautiful but terrifyingly twisted young woman standing before him.
“Waaaah—Brother!”
The nine-year-old David had no means to resist. His only hope was the brother who always worked cleaning the corridors with him—George.
George was also awakened by his little brother’s cry. But even with his eyes open, all he could do was watch helplessly as David’s heart was cut out.
“David…” George’s eyes filled with tears instantly. He struggled to get up, but he couldn’t move at all—his voice barely more than a faint whisper.
“No need to rush,” Angela said coldly. “You’re next.”
Dragging the now weakly twitching David, she pulled him onto a bright red circular rug.
Angela crouched down, the golden blade reaching for David’s skull.
Lying flat on the cart, George couldn’t see what she was doing.
But he could hear it.
“Ughhh…” George could only sob.
Because he heard the sound of flesh being sliced by a sharp blade. The same sound he’d heard when carving beef in the kitchen.
Because he heard the scraping of a knife against bone. A sound he’d only heard before while feeding wild beasts.
But he had never imagined… he’d hear these sounds coming from his little brother.
After completing the sacrifice preparation, Angela was drenched in sweat, her face flushed with a disturbing sense of release. She stood up, took out several magic crystals from her pocket, and embedded them around the increasingly crimson rug.
The next moment, black markings began to appear across the rug, as if drawn by an invisible hand. Starting from the points where the magic crystals were inserted, the lines extended, twisted, and interlocked—forming a complete spell formation.
Saul, who had been watching indifferently the entire time, suddenly narrowed his eyes as he recognized the formation.
He’d seen it before, or at least a simplified version of it.
His thoughts began to race, his rationality returning. He dropped from the ceiling, octopus tentacles retreating to his sides obediently.
“If I replace the amplification and condensation runes in this formation… isn't it the same one I found back in Grind Sail Town?”
Saul slowly approached, watching as a milky-white soul emerged from the boy’s opened skull.
Perhaps due to his young age, even with the formation’s enhancement, the soul hadn’t fully formed.
The boy’s head was intact, but his body looked pixelated—unclear and blurred.
Angela frowned. Clearly, the soul didn’t meet her standards.
She kicked the corpse out of the formation in frustration, then stormed over to the cart and yanked George off.
George’s face was covered in tears. When Angela dragged him down, he even felt a slight relief.
Losing his brother was agonizing, but even worse was waiting, not knowing when his own turn would come.
Waiting to die—that was the hardest part.
Angela dragged him by the leg, and when he hit the floor, the back of his head slammed against the ground.
Already mentally fragile, George passed out immediately.
Angela didn’t care whether her sacrifice was alive or not. She dragged him across the floor, leaving a trail of blood until they reached the crimson rug.
“George?” Saul finally recognized the boy—it was the only friend, or rather fellow sufferer, he had during his time as a servant.
Having spent most of his time hiding in the morgue and storage rooms, Saul had rarely ventured into the public areas used by other servants, so he hadn’t seen George in a long time.
Memories came flooding back.
The panic of arriving in this world. The fury of being bullied. The helplessness before the bloody corridor. The joy of finding the diary. The terror of meeting Kongsha. The excitement of becoming an apprentice. The despair of being besieged by monsters. The satisfaction of killing his enemies…
Saul stood on the floor, octopus tentacles retracting into his body. His human limbs returned.
Rationality first. Then came the emotions.
Saul: Not insane for now, thanks.
(End of Chapter)
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