Chapter 115: The Price of Despair

Jeanne Decker accepted Martha, a flicker of surprise crossing her face, then cast a glance at the witch who was striding purposefully towards the Killer.

After a brief hesitation, she chose to follow the witch’s instructions, immediately focusing her attention on healing Martha.

She hadn’t forgotten her primary mission was rescue. Since the witch seemed utterly confident, Jeanne Decker decided to trust her to handle the Killer for now.

The Killer’s breathing grew ragged, partly due to the agony of the poison, and partly from sheer tension. Alice, ignoring the Demon’s Claws, approached him unhurriedly, seemingly without much caution. However, the Killer was acutely aware of the immense threat she posed.

He raised a hand, summoning a fireball of Corrosive Flame in his palm, and launched it at her.

Alice reacted swiftly, drawing her wings around her body to shield herself and block the fireball.

The green fireball exploded against her demonic wings, dissipating into sparks. Alice unfurled her wings once more, both her wings and body completely unharmed. She hadn’t even slowed her pace.

The Killer gritted his teeth. He had wasted a Corrosive Flame ability as a test, and the result of that test was despair.

Corrosive Flame had an extra corrosive effect on entities summoned by abilities. However, Alice’s demonic form and the Corrosive Flame both originated from abyssal power, granting her higher resistance to it. The strength of a Sixth-Tier Demon’s carapace could withstand far more attacks than he could summon.

He still possessed the Devil’s Currency, his ultimate trump card. He could significantly enhance the Corrosive Flame with Soul Crystals, but this witch, covered entirely in demonic carapace, needed only a slight defense to effortlessly neutralize his assault.

The tier suppression, a chasm between their ranks, was almost absolute.

The Killer raised his Demon’s Claws. Engaging her in close combat was his only option now. He had to find a way to injure her eyes, or perhaps, with a readiness for mutual destruction, use his own armored claws to tear at her.

The distance between them quickly closed to about five paces. The Killer charged first, lunging forward with both claws aimed at her eyes.

Alice was prepared, calmly raising her claws to block the attack directly in front of her face. This was a simple combat technique she had honed from countless brawls in the slums: first, guard the face and chin with raised fists, then seek an opportunity to counterattack.

She was in no hurry to attack; compared to her opponent, she had far more opportunities.

The two began to duel, swinging their Demon’s Claws. The demonic carapaces clashed, emitting sounds like metal striking metal.

The Killer, with his greater combat experience, moved far more agilely than Alice, quickly seizing the initiative in the offense. Yet, this held little significance.

Each time he bypassed Alice’s claws and struck a part of her body, his claws would tear her dress but fail to make contact with her skin, let alone wound her. They merely scraped against the even harder carapace, producing a grating, teeth-aching sound.

The torn dress quickly repaired itself with its inherent shapeshifting ability. The witch’s dress was, in essence, the hide of a shapeshifting monster.

Alice was not merely defending. She consistently counterattacked in the gaps of the Killer’s offense. Her demon transformation amplified her entire body’s strength, giving her a distinct advantage in power over the Killer, whose changes were limited to his arms.

The Killer dodged Alice’s counterattacks again and again with his agility, but there was a limit to how long he could sustain it.

He once again futilely thrust his claws towards Alice’s face; her eyes, unprotected by carapace, were his primary target. But after several exchanges, Alice had gradually adapted to his attack patterns.

She seized his wrist, overpowering his offense with sheer strength. Simultaneously, her other claw lashed out, aiming directly for his heart.

He dodged. Alice’s claw did not pierce his chest but grazed his side. The claw tips still tore through his chest, leaving several deep, bone-visible wounds.

The pain nearly boiled over the Killer’s consciousness. The `Executioner`’s mental damage ability activated, and a cold despair immediately gripped his mind. If not for the `Executioner`’s inherent resistance to negative mental states, he would have almost given up resistance and succumbed to his fate.

Alice was about to deliver another blow when she saw the Killer raise his other hand, summoning Corrosive Flame in his palm. Before the flames could even fully form, he lunged, smearing it directly onto her face with his claws.

Alice gasped in surprise, immediately releasing the Killer’s wrist. At the same time, she delivered a forceful kick to his abdomen, forcing him back.

The Killer reeled backward, feeling as though his internal organs had shifted. The intense pain made him curl up, clutching his chest and abdomen, desperately suppressing the despair that surged within him.

He was severely wounded, but at least he had barely avoided instant death. If he were hit again by the witch’s claws, even if not in a vital spot, his spirit would likely break, and she would then directly harvest his soul.

****

Meanwhile, Jeanne Decker was treating Martha, who lay flat on the ground. Martha had several wounds, but fortunately, none were deep, and Jeanne Decker’s Holy Light could easily handle them. However, upon examining Martha’s hand, Jeanne Decker was shocked to find that the nail on her right index finger had been brutally torn off.

Jeanne Decker gritted her teeth, wishing to tear the Killer into a thousand pieces—this scumbag had subjected an innocent girl to such torture!

She carefully wrapped the finger where the nail had been ripped off, summoning the healing Holy Light once more. She couldn’t make the nail grow back instantly, but she could at least stop the bleeding and alleviate some of the pain.

The treatment took effect. The warmth flowing into her body caused Martha, who had fainted from pain, to slowly open her eyes.

With the aid of the Holy Light Jeanne Decker had summoned, she barely recognized the person before her. “Jeanne… Miss?” she whispered, her voice barely audible.

“It’s me,” Jeanne Decker responded as calmly as possible. “You’re safe now, and Leah is fine. Don’t worry!”

Martha’s gaze shifted, then her eyes suddenly widened. “Please, run!” she urged Jeanne Decker in a weak voice, beginning to gasp for breath.

“Don’t worry, it’s really okay now. I’ll protect you!” Jeanne Decker squeezed Martha’s hand, trying to reassure her.

“No, it’s not…” Martha shook her head, her breathing growing more frantic. “I…”

At this point, her body suddenly convulsed.

“Miss Martha!?” Jeanne Decker noticed that Martha’s condition seemed amiss.

“I’ve reached… my limit…” Martha mumbled, her teeth clenched and her words slurred. Simultaneously, her eyes rolled back, revealing only the whites.

Jeanne Decker was startled. Despite healing the external wounds, Martha’s condition seemed even more critical. Just as she pondered whether this was poisoning or the onset of an acute illness, Martha suddenly took a deep breath, and her tensed body instantly relaxed.

“Miss Martha?” The unexpected improvement left Jeanne Decker bewildered again. She looked at Martha’s face.

Suddenly, Martha’s rolled-back eyes snapped back into place. Her eyes were bloodshot and glazed, and her stare was chilling. The moment her gaze met Jeanne Decker’s, she raised her hand and lunged for Jeanne Decker’s face.