Chapter 29: Let Death Bloom Like a Flower

A flash of cold light.
The short knife fell straight down, cutting the last rope holding the ship.
The reddish-brown-haired fox woman looked around.

Nadiesse was not in a good state.
Not only did she have several sword wounds on her body, but her left shoulder was unfortunately shot.
Brownish bloodstains dyed her sleeve.
She stood on the deck, clutching her wound with one hand.

No more inquisitors were charging up.
Her ship was some distance from the port, but the price was the sacrifice of an incalculable number of crew members.
Nadiesse couldn’t even retrieve their bodies.
And…

Why haven’t Verona and Elvira retreated yet?

Her amber eyes shone brightly in the night.
She scanned the port platform without blinking, but her view was completely blocked by patches of black and red thorns.

Strange? Were these thorns so lush just now?

Nadiesse thought to herself.

Rumble, rumble—

For some reason, the thorns suddenly became restless, constantly intertwining and swirling, like a whirlpool at the bottom of the sea or a storm sweeping through the mortal world.
Even the ground trembled.

Then, Nadiesse saw a scene she would never forget for the rest of her life…

Red, more vibrant than blood, as deep as the night, began to spread.
In a few seconds, it had covered the entire platform.
With her superhuman eyesight, Nadiesse saw the deep red substance clearly.

Unknown, vibrant red flowers bloomed in unison, paving a tide of death.
The inquisitors who were covered by the flowers instantly fell to the ground.
Before they could even get up, they were covered by the crimson tide and lost their lives.

The trembling of the ground grew more and more intense until it reached its peak.
Several huge, crimson vines shot up from the ground, reaching for the sky.
In the centermost and largest vine, Nadiesse saw that there seemed to be… someone?

Perhaps because of the enchanting red flowers, the silvery moonlight showed signs of changing.
The pure, silvery veil that was cast down gradually turned into a crimson curtain, hanging from the sky.

The winds and clouds shifted; the omen of death was imminent.

At the top of the towering vine, a huge red flower quietly bloomed.
A figure with long, snow-white hair knelt in the center of the stamen, her hands clasped at her chest.
A short knife was plunged into the young woman’s body.

Immediately, the young woman moved.
The short knife was slowly withdrawn from her chest, yet no blood flowed out.
After the knife was completely withdrawn, not even a wound remained.

She stood up and looked down at the mortals below with great interest, like a god in charge of everything, watching a mortal farce.

“Will your lives bring me pleasure?”

Her slender, jade-like hand was held flat in front of her.
The pads of her middle finger and thumb touched, and with a press—snap!

A crisp snap of her fingers, the beginning of a grand feast.

Half a second later, wherever the ground was covered by the red flowers, crimson thorns burst forth.
Spikes from hell pierced the bodies of every inquisitor.
Those who were lucky enough to survive, those with a faint breath left, and even the inquisitors who had long been dead were all impaled by the thorns without exception, deader than dead.

In an instant, the entire team of several hundred inquisitors was wiped out, with no survivors.
The corpses instantly became withered.
Thin, fine threads floated out from the corpses, extending to the hands of the young woman on the giant flower.

Countless vibrant red threads glowed with a red light, like a spider web with prey called “inquisitors” hanging on it.
Their blood turned into red light and flowed up the threads and vines, offering nourishment to the young woman.

Her figure was enchanting, like a splendid, beautiful, alluring, and deadly poppy.
As the energy entered her body, she hugged herself, her eyes gradually becoming intoxicated.
She tilted her head back and panted, her face slightly flushed, and a smile on her lips.
She seemed to be enjoying the great feast she had created.

But above the sea of flowers, a gleam of golden light very inappropriately intruded into this magnificent painting, which greatly displeased someone.

Several golden spears, shining with a brilliant luster, shot out with a roar that cut through the air.
The tips of the spears were aimed straight at the god-like young woman.

The thorny vines intertwined, accurately intercepting the golden spears and easily crushing them.
The moment the golden spears shattered, they rapidly heated up, and a series of explosions followed one after another.

When the firelight of the explosions dissipated, the young woman looked down at the two Grand Inquisitors who were still struggling on their last legs.

They’re not dead?
Always throwing golden spears, as annoying as a mosquito.
Where’s that lump of iron?
Oh~ his situation doesn’t seem to be good.

The giant, armed to the teeth in armor, was kneeling on one knee, supporting himself with his giant hammer.
Looking closely, there were thorns that had pierced his armor.
The golden-haired girl had climbed onto his shoulder and was unharmed.

“Are you there? Elvira…” I asked haltingly.
After a moment, a response came in my mind.

“I’ve always been here.”

A shadow enveloped me.
The wind from the flap of her dragon wings made my skirt and hair dance.
Looking back, it was Elvira in her dragon form.

“Come on, it’s time to end this farce.”

I controlled the giant vines to break down into hundreds of thousands of fine thorns.
I gently leaped backward and landed on Elvira’s body.
Then, with a wave of my arm, thousands of threads rained down on the earth, covering the two Grand Inquisitors.
Petals danced, forming a crimson curtain.
I couldn’t see the situation inside, but I didn’t stop the bombardment.

I want to see how long that lump of iron can last.

Suddenly, a point of eerie green light quietly emerged from the crimson tide, growing brighter and brighter.
This meaningless resistance made me feel annoyed.

That eye is a hidden danger if left with the church.

My fingers danced like fluttering butterflies.
The vines gathered again and struck at the location of the green light like a straight punch.
With a “boom,” dust and smoke rose.
The eerie green light disappeared.
I didn’t continue to attack, just quietly waited for the dust and smoke to dissipate.

As if feeling that the smoke was dissipating a bit slowly, Elvira flapped her wings fiercely, creating a strong wind that blew away the dancing petals and dust in the air.
A crimson snow fell on Port Otas.
The figures of the lump of iron and the golden-haired girl were also revealed.

The giant’s armor had been pierced by the thorns and was in tatters.
His helmet had also been knocked off, and I got a glimpse of his inhuman face.

On his bald head, brown and yellow spots were haphazardly pieced together to form skin.
His eye sockets were deep-set, and he had no nose.
His teeth were all exposed, like a fleshless skeleton.

Behind him was the young girl, holding two long spears.
The girl’s clothes were torn, and she had a lot of blood on her, but her eyes were still fixed on me with a fiery gaze.

It’s just the useless protest of a dying person.
In comparison, I’m more interested in that eye…
Hmm? Where’s the eye?
Did I hit it too hard and send it flying??

As I was thinking with suspicion, a maniacal laugh interrupted my thoughts.

“Hahahahaha, ‘The Ancient Gaze’ is in my hands!
Witch! Go to hell!!”

It was that scumbag from before.
He was standing not far behind the giant, holding that eye in his hand, laughing and about to do something.

I don’t care what he’s going to do.
My impression of him is bad enough.
Greasy and kidney-deficient.
It’s better for this guy to be dead.

With a slight flick of my index finger, thorns grew and spread to the man’s feet, effortlessly piercing his body.
The maniacal laughter of a moment ago instantly turned into a scream.

So melodious.

“Ahhh! Damn it, you damn witch!
How dare you do this to me!
I have a divine artifact, ‘The Ancient GAGE’, you’re dead—”

The thorns grew rapidly, piercing the man’s face and stopping his ridiculous and arrogant words.

I have no interest in listening to this kind of self-righteous speech.

But I’m still quite interested in that eye.

A few vines held up the eyeball and brought it before me.
I took the eyeball and held it in my hand.
I found that it was staring straight at me, and it would even blink from time to time.

For a basketball-sized eye to do such a thing is really quite disgusting…
Eww~ no, no, it’s too disgusting.
I can even hear the sound of mucus when it blinks.

Suddenly, the ground shone with a brilliant golden light.
The golden-haired girl gritted her teeth and summoned hundreds of golden spears, arranging them in a regular circular matrix, ready to strike.

“Oh? You still have the thought of resisting?”
Looking at the faint light emitted by the ant, a smile suddenly appeared in my heart.
“Elvira, it’s time to wrap things up.”

I spread my arms, and the overwhelming black and red thorns formed a tidal wave, rushing straight towards the girl.
But I didn’t kill her directly.
Instead, I bound her together with the giant, turning them into targets.

At the same time, I leaned down, bit my finger, and smeared my blood on Elvira’s scales.
Crimson patterns began to spread on the black dragon’s scales, like some kind of armor.
A red light suddenly flashed on her chest, as if she were accumulating some kind of energy…