X
Join our Discord server and get release updates for every novel you follow.
Join the ServerAlice Liddell was genuinely surprised.
She had been so careful, concealing her entire body with the witch’s gown and wearing a mask.
Every time she spoke, she deliberately lowered her voice, using a tone completely different from her usual one—a little spy trick she had diligently practiced with Duchess Liddell for quite some time.
Most crucially, she now had wings, horns, and a tail. How could Jeanne Decker still find her familiar?
Feeling a pang of guilt, she feigned a casual laugh, raising a hand to cover her mouth with the back of it.
“Hehehehe, that pick-up line is a bit outdated, Saintess,” she chuckled. “What about me makes you think you’ve seen me before?”
“I can’t quite put my finger on it,” Jeanne Decker replied candidly. “It’s just a gut feeling.”
‘You’re not even a witch, why trust your intuition so much!’ Alice Liddell silently screamed.
Yet, a moment later, she reconsidered. It wasn’t entirely impossible.
Habits ingrained over months, no matter how carefully hidden, might inadvertently surface in subtle details—perhaps a stance, a gait, or even an insignificant gesture.
If deep within someone’s memory a trace of her remained, it was certainly possible for it to be reawakened.
“I apologize, but we haven’t met, and I prefer not to show my face. Let’s conclude matters here today.” Alice Liddell raised both hands, preparing to end their encounter.
“Wait!” Jeanne Decker called out urgently. “I know this might be annoying, but I desperately need some information. Jack the Ripper must be brought to justice as soon as possible.”
“Since you want to catch him, and the Church also wants to catch him, can we truly not share information?”
“I truly cannot. I have my reasons, and I ask for your understanding,” Alice Liddell replied.
“If you’re worried about the Church finding out, then I can keep it a secret. I swear,” Jeanne Decker added.
Alice Liddell considered this, but then firmly shook her head. “No, I truly cannot.”
The information about Jack the Ripper was inextricably linked to the existence of the tea party. As a member of the tea party, she naturally couldn’t casually divulge organizational secrets, no matter how trustworthy Jeanne Decker might be.
Jeanne Decker had already seen Jack the Ripper’s appearance and witnessed their abilities; Alice Liddell had no further information to provide.
“I see…” Jeanne Decker sighed deeply.
‘Finally, she’s giving up.’ Alice Liddell breathed a sigh of relief inwardly.
However, in the very next moment, she realized she had made a grave mistake.
Jeanne Decker suddenly declared, “Then I can only… I apologize.”
“Huh?” Alice Liddell was momentarily stunned. ‘What are you going to do?’
Jeanne Decker said nothing, slowly advancing toward Alice Liddell.
“Wait, you’re not actually going to… try to force…?” Her demeanor sent a shiver down Alice Liddell’s spine, causing her to retreat. “Hey, is this how you treat someone who saved your life?”
“I am truly sorry. Afterward, I will atone and compensate you however you wish. I genuinely want to capture that demon, and now that a clue has appeared before me, I cannot abandon it under any circumstances.” Jeanne Decker stared intently at Alice Liddell, her eyes fixed, like a hungry wolf locking onto its prey.
Alarm bells immediately rang in Alice Liddell’s mind.
‘Recant! This woman is utterly stubborn! The most stubborn of the stubborn!’
‘What a joke! If Jeanne Decker sees my face here, everything will be over. I don’t have the Duchess Liddell’s or Queen Isola’s illusionary abilities.’
Although she currently carried a bottle of transformation potion, it required mixing with the target’s hair or blood to be effective. Moreover, she had already consumed a beastification potion, and Duchess Liddell had warned her that consuming too many witch’s potions in a short period could be dangerous.
‘It seems there’s no other way.’ Seeing that persuasion was futile, Alice Liddell steeled her resolve and directly used her charm ability on Jeanne Decker.
If she could temporarily immobilize Jeanne Decker, she could then seize the opportunity to escape.
However, at that precise moment, a wave of pain surged through her body.
Then, the wings and tail behind her, along with the horns on her head, began to retract into her body at a visible pace.
‘No way! The potion’s effect wore off at this exact moment?’
Alice Liddell, horrified, raised a hand to touch her forehead, now devoid of horns.
It seemed the excessive consumption of energy from using her succubus’s levitation ability to travel had caused the beastification potion’s effect to fade prematurely.
“…” After a few seconds of silence, Alice Liddell turned and fled without hesitation.
No sooner had she started moving than she felt a dull ache spread through all her muscles—a side effect of the beastification potion.
Then, after only a few steps, Jeanne Decker lunged from behind, tackling her onto the bridge.
“No!” Pinned to the ground by Jeanne Decker, Alice Liddell desperately covered her face.
But Jeanne Decker’s hand clamped down mercilessly on both her wrists, pressing them down with one hand, while her other hand reached for Alice Liddell’s veil.
There was already a disparity in their physiques, and Jeanne Decker had served in the Knights’ Order. Although Jeanne Decker had sustained some injuries in her battle with the Killer, she had largely recovered after her holy light healing, while Alice Liddell was unable to exert her full strength due to the potion’s side effects.
She struggled fiercely, like a live fish on a cutting board, but under Jeanne Decker, she was utterly helpless.
“Ow! That hurts! How can you… Is this how a Holy Knight behaves?” Alice Liddell was exasperated.
Upon hearing her voice, Jeanne Decker felt a sudden pang of reluctance, but she quickly composed herself. “I’m sorry, truly very sorry.”
‘If you’re sorry, then stop!’ Alice Liddell screamed internally.
Without the beastification potion’s power, she still had the “Sorceress’s” charm curse, but when she tried it just now, it had little effect. After all, Jeanne Decker possessed not only unwavering resolve but also a single-minded stubbornness.
“Alright! I get it! Can’t I just do it myself? You’re hurting me!” Alice Liddell yelled.
Jeanne Decker considered this, then paused her actions. “Alright.”
“Then move back a little so I can turn over,” Alice Liddell continued to demand.
Jeanne Decker complied, but only moved back slightly, not fully getting up. She worried it might be another trick for the witch to escape.
Alice Liddell turned over, with Jeanne Decker still above her, hands braced on either side of her face to prevent her escape.
‘Does she have to watch me so closely!’ Alice Liddell thought.
“Ugh, this is too much!” she complained, slowly reaching for her own veil.
Jeanne Decker watched her, unblinking.
Then, in the very next second, Alice Liddell’s hand sharply changed direction, reaching instead for Jeanne Decker!
She intended to extract the “Voodoo Doll” from within Jeanne Decker, thereby subduing her and making her escape.
However, Jeanne Decker had anticipated her trickery and swiftly grabbed her forearm.
“Ah!” Alice Liddell cried out.
When the Voodoo Doll ability was deployed, only her hand, not her arm, could penetrate solid objects to touch the threads of fate.
Jeanne Decker shrewdly sensed that Alice Liddell’s hand was imbued with a witch’s power and avoided direct contact with it.
Not only that, but she reacted quickly, grabbing Alice Liddell’s other arm directly.
She then moved both of Alice Liddell’s arms above her head, preparing to pin them down with her right hand, while her free left hand reached to pull off the veil.
‘It’s over!’ Despair washed over Alice Liddell.
In her desperation, a thought surfaced that she would never normally use, or even consider, under ordinary circumstances.
Driven by a profound sense of crisis, Alice Liddell immediately acted on this impulse.
Taking advantage of the moment when Jeanne Decker had both hands grasping her arms, she unexpectedly raised her face and leaned close to Jeanne Decker.
Simultaneously, the veil, which was integrated with her witch’s gown, deformed according to her will, becoming a style that only covered the upper half of her face.
Jeanne Decker had completely failed to anticipate such an action from her opponent. Startled, before she could even react, Alice Liddell’s lips pressed against hers.
The “Sorceress’s” charm curse: the Kiss of Death!
You think this chapter was thrilling? Wait until you read Crow's Golden Fragment! Click here to discover the next big twist!
Read : Crow's Golden Fragment
