"Can’t bring yourself to do it?"
Wayne stood beside Odette, sensing her complicated emotions, and patted her on the shoulder, "If you don’t want to, then forget it. Regina will take care of everything."
"Wayne, can we let her go?"
After struggling for a while, Odette lowered her head and said, "No matter what, she has been kind to me by raising me. I’ll consider this life, as what I owe her, and I have nothing to do with her anymore."
Upon hearing this, Wayne fell silent. The artistic girl was too kind; she could even let go of the hate for the one who tried to kill her...
It might have been because of her complex feelings for Flora, or it might have been because, when she signed the contract, she nearly dissipated from satisfying her self and had already let go of her hatred then.
From one perspective, this was a good thing; from another perspective, Flora wasn’t worthy of Odette’s kindness.
"Wayne, say something!"
"Sorry, I can’t promise you that."
Wayne shook his head: "Flora’s enemies are not just you, there’s Regina too..."
"What if I convince Regina?"
"It won’t work either, Flora and I have a grudge. She once tried to kill my teacher and almost succeeded." Wayne continued to shake his head.
Odette pursed her lips, whispered softly, "Since you hate her so much, death is too easy for her. You should let her live and torment her severely, humiliate her, trample her dignity, shatter her pride, make her..."
Odette glanced around, tugged on Wayne’s collar, and whispered in his ear: "She is the former Holy Maiden, for whom purity is more important than anything. You could do this and that, and then that and this; trust me, for her, that would be worse than death."
What on earth have you been reading, and where is that bookstore?
Wayne listened with eyes shining; indeed, he was somewhat tempted.
Especially that one aspect, to condition Flora until she was covered in mathematical formulas, to be publicly executed in shackles, so her former fans could clearly see what kind of wanton woman she truly was inside.
"Wayne, what do you think?"
"I think you might have gone bad."
Wayne retorted, "She is the former Holy Maiden, she can die, but it must be done quietly. Her status dictates that she can’t be humiliated by men, otherwise it would bring shame upon The Church and I would be in trouble too."
"Then don’t let her appear in public, you can lock her up in the basement. She has a grudge against your teacher; you can take your teacher to appreciate the masterpiece." Odette came up with another idea, racking her brains to save her own teacher.
Every move hit Wayne right where it hurt.
This was the former Holy Maiden, from the highest purity to the lowest depravity. You, a lecher, really have no thoughts about it?
Wayne looked at her oddly, and Odette blushed under his gaze, stomping her foot: "Is it okay or not, just give me an answer?"
"Isn’t she beautiful?"
"A beautiful exterior hiding an ugly soul, not even close to you."
Odette opened her mouth, struggling with her feelings as she looked at the assassin who had been passively taking hits, caught in a battle of wits with the air.
She resented Flora, but still felt grateful. If possible, she wished Flora could live on.
At the same time, she didn’t want to let Flora off easily. Even if just in principle, she needed to seek justice for her own death.
Complex emotions interwove within her; Odette hoped Wayne would spare Flora’s life, leaving her to live in pain and regret.
Not to kill, but to torture the soul.
In the scene, Flora sweated profusely, realizing she was being manipulated by the Legendary Mage, and that any resistance was in vain, her hatred for The Church deepened once more.
She was the former Holy Maiden who had once conveyed Divine Decrees and held a transcendent status. It was unthinkable and unacceptable to be discarded so casually.
Ten minutes later, Regina withdrew and returned to Wayne’s side, having only reduced Flora’s health by one-tenth, clearly unsettled.
"What, you’re stopping now?"
"I am not her match now, and continuing to fight is meaningless. Moreover, she’s just a tool; my enemy is not her." Regina declared haughtily, then fiercely glared at Odette.
Odette responded with a look of gratitude, "Good sister, I’ll listen to you from now on, whatever you say goes."
The two exchanged glances, and Odette once again pitched the basement torture plan to Wayne, pointing at Flora and going on about her figure and looks with high praise.
This was the Holy Maiden, the pure Holy Maiden!
Wayne dug at his ear: "Now that you’ve had your revenge, it’s my turn. I haven’t been happy with her for more than a day or two."
"I’ll help you hold down her hands." Regina offered readily.
Wayne looked at her speechlessly, with an honest gaze that made Regina feel utterly ashamed. She didn’t want to, Odette had begged for a long time before she agreed to help.
"What about you, Odette, are you going to help too?"
"Uh, I’ll cover Regina’s eyes."
"Thanks for the offer, but I have plenty of hands; I don’t need your help to hold her down."
Wayne curled his lips. Odette had too many misunderstandings about him. Having many girlfriends didn’t mean he was a lecher; he was just universally loved, and didn’t know how to refuse, that’s all.
The fog cleared to make a path, and Wayne stepped forward to stand before Flora.
Flora was on high alert, her complexion pale as she clenched her teeth. Her senses completely fell apart, unable to distinguish whether Wayne was real or an illusion.
All she knew was that, in the conversation between Ludwig and Saina, Wayne had passed the God-chosen Knight examination and was the next Naturalist Knight.
The Goddess really has a poor choice in men!
"Priestess Flora, we meet again."
Flora was direct: "I know many of The Pope’s secrets. I will pledge my loyalty to you. Give me a chance; it wasn’t my choice before."