Chapter 194: Ascension of the Demon Witch

A makeshift altar bore a simple magic circle, drawn with dark red pigments. At its center, Count Gina lay battered and bruised, bound and gagged, his muffled cries barely audible.

Alice stood by the altar, awaiting the Mad Hatter’s next command.

The Mad Hatter conjured a gray devil’s coin, flicking it with his thumb toward Count Gina before issuing a crisp command: “Burn him with Corrosive Flames!”

Alice summoned her Corrosive Flames and hurled them forward.

Fueled by the devil’s coin, the Corrosive Flames erupted instantly.

Alice instinctively recoiled. Though not harvested by her, soul crystals could still augment her Corrosive Flames. However, such amplified fire was beyond her complete control and posed a danger to herself.

To her surprise, the dark red magic circle suddenly glowed, suppressing the explosive force of the flames. Instead, it allowed the Corrosive Flames to burn steadily, completely engulfing Count Gina.

The materials for this circle had been concocted from Count Gina’s own blood, mixed with several low-grade demonic beast ingredients.

Locating demonic beast materials was hardly an issue. Previously, at Count Gina’s suburban villa and Duke Bedford’s apartment, they had unearthed a trove of black money, smuggled goods, heretical artifacts, and demonic beast parts, all prepared for sale.

These discoveries alone would have been enough for the Inquisition to convict both men and thoroughly investigate all their associates.

Indeed, the two targets of this assassination mission—from their lives to their souls, and even their illicit collections—had perfectly become stepping stones for Alice’s ascension to a “Demon.”

Initially, Count Gina thrashed violently within the Corrosive Flames. While the flames caused no physical harm, they unleashed a torrent of negative emotions upon his mind.

His spirit utterly eroded, he ceased struggling. He lay there, eyes vacant, allowing the flames to consume him.

Alice suddenly understood, at least a little, why the Church had branded the Abyss Cult as heretics. This ritual of live sacrifice felt undeniably cruel.

Fortunately, Count Gina was a heinous sinner. Using such an extralegal punishment not only brought her a sense of righteous vindication but also a hint of perverse pleasure.

As the flames continued to burn, the magic circle gradually shifted from dark red to black. A viscous, black substance began to emerge on Count Gina’s skin, like residue from the burning.

Under Alice’s astonished gaze, the black substance enveloped most of Count Gina’s body, slowly growing into the grotesque form of a demon.

The partially demonized Count Gina slowly began to rise. “Slay this fellow with your Demon Claw. You are forbidden from using your Witch abilities, as this is part of the ritual. Thus, I will not intervene,” the Mad Hatter stated calmly. “Be careful, don’t let him slay you instead.”

“What did you say!?” Alice whirled around, her eyes wide. “You never mentioned this part!”

“I never said there wasn’t such a part!” The Mad Hatter spread his hands innocently, employing his characteristic sophistry.

Alice cursed her mentor inwardly. She manifested the Executioner’s Demon Claw, realizing this ritual was clearly not without risk.

The demonized Count Gina was utterly devoid of reason. With a savage roar, he lunged at Alice, claws extended.

“If an ordinary person were sacrificed, this phenomenon wouldn’t occur. The ritual would simply be completed by harvesting the offering’s soul. Only with a Blessed One does the offering demonize,” the Mad Hatter chuckled. “However, if you complete the ritual by sacrificing a Blessed One, your ascension to—”

“Next time, tell me about these things sooner!” Alice roared, parrying Count Gina’s ferocious assault.

“Your stance is broken. Be careful.”

The Mad Hatter’s amused warning had barely left his lips when a demon’s claw grazed Alice, sending a wave of mental discomfort through her.

She quickly retreated, putting distance between herself and the demon. Fortunately, the demon did not pursue, instead bending over and gasping for breath.

‘Very weak,’ Alice immediately perceived the demon’s condition.

This was to be expected. Before its demonization, Count Gina had been bled profusely to create the pigments for the sacrificial array.

‘So that’s it. Every step of the ritual has a purpose!’

With this realization, Alice swiftly calmed down.

The demon recovered and attacked again. Alice adjusted her stance, constantly retreating and dodging, in no hurry to counterattack.

Just as she surmised, each of the weakened demon’s aggressive charges exhausted its stamina. Soon, the demon halted its movements once more.

Alice seized the opportunity, rushing forward and delivering a powerful blow to its flank, a spot not covered by its demonized carapace.

“Splendid!” the Mad Hatter praised with a laugh.

Her previous battles, particularly her recent victory over Duke Bedford, had significantly advanced Alice’s mindset. She was no longer the street urchin whose combat skills were limited to brawling.

She could now analyze her own and her enemy’s conditions, along with the environment, adeptly using her abilities to counter enemy moves. Where strength fell short, her intellect compensated.

After several rounds of fierce attacks, the demon succumbed to Alice’s heavy blows and collapsed completely.

“Extract the Duke’s soul and attach the soul harvested from the demon,” the Mad Hatter instructed further.

Alice complied, beginning to harvest the soul of the demonized Count Gina.

A dark grey soul was drawn from Count Gina’s body, and simultaneously, the demonic symptoms on his physique gradually receded. These souls attached themselves to the glowing soul crystal in Alice’s hand, causing its color to instantly deepen.

“Dinner is served,” the Mad Hatter laughed heartily.

With the ritual complete, Alice swallowed the soul crystal.

Immediately afterward, she felt a scorching power course through her body. Instinctively, she tried to control this force and release it.

The moment she successfully unleashed it, her eyes glowed with molten red light. Her entire body sprouted demonic carapaces, a pair of horns emerged from her head, and a set of wings unfurled from her back. A long, scorpion-like tail with a barbed tip grew from behind her.

This was the sixth-tier “Abyss” demonic beast form.

Her Witch’s gown transformed in time, adapting to her new physique.

Alice surveyed her new body, noticing that her self-induced demonization differed from the one granted by the Mad Hatter. Her horns were a size smaller, but her wings had grown slightly larger. The carapace no longer bore the same grotesque spikes, becoming more form-fitting and lithe, accentuating her figure. The most significant change, however, was the long, whip-like tail. Integrated with her carapace, it wasn’t a natural growth, possessing neither pain nor touch, yet it was entirely under her control, capable of being wielded as a weapon in combat.

She wondered if it was the influence of her simultaneously mastering Witch powers, but this demonic form bore a faint resemblance to a “Succubus,” though it was more adapted for battle.

“Do you like it?” the Mad Hatter asked with a smile.

“It’s not bad,” Alice replied.