Book 7: Chapter 22: Taking the Bride |
“Sigh…” Lilith let out a soft breath, the sound faint yet heavy with weariness. Whether it was compromise or naivete, she had truly heard enough. It stirred up far too many unpleasant memories. So she stepped forward, intending to push through the crowd.
Old Huang suddenly grabbed her arm. “You, what are you doing?”
“What am I doing? Isn’t it obvious?” Lilith turned back, her gaze cold and distant as it settled on him. There’s a girl crying in sorrow right in front of me. How could I possibly ignore that?”
“This isn’t a place for you to fool around.”
“Fool around?” In that instant, a deep darkness surged within Lilith’s azure eyes.
Old Huang, a man who had taken countless lives, looked into those eyes and abruptly felt as though he had been cast onto the frozen wastelands of the far north. A bone-piercing chill gripped him, locking his body in place, unable to move.
“Don’t misunderstand. This isn’t fooling around.” Lilith shook off his hand and forced her way through the crowd. “This is justice. A justice that belongs to that girl alone.”
……
“Since everything’s already been agreed upon, then it’s settled.” Bianca didn’t care in the slightest whether Liana was willing. Now that every obstacle had been cleared away, all that remained was to force things into a done deal.
“Eh? So soon? I still—”
“What do you mean soon?” Bianca shot Liana a mildly reproachful glance and said, “Liana, haven’t you already come of age? In other families, girls your age would already have children calling them mother.”
“But I…” Sweat beaded across Liana’s forehead as panic set in. She wanted to resist, yet how could she possibly do so? Her eyes darted left and right. In the vast front hall, there were dozens of people, even counting those merely watching the spectacle. But who among them would stand on her side? None. This was her fate.
She was alone, so alone that not a single person would speak for her. And so, she could only resign herself to it. A fate already set in stone, one that no one could cha—
“I object.” A familiar voice suddenly rang out, sharp as a beam of light piercing through darkness, illuminating the space before Liana.
She lifted her head in astonishment and immediately spotted the source. That petite, black-haired girl pushed her way through the crowd, raising her hand high as if to disperse the oppressive clouds, and declared loudly, “I object to this marriage.”
The once noisy lobby fell into instant silence. All eyes turned toward the girl, whose appearance was otherwise unremarkable, yet who now stood as if under a spotlight. No one could make sense of what kind of disruption this was.
“Who are you?” Bianca frowned at the girl who had suddenly interfered, her expression turning hostile. “This is not a place where some wild brat like you can run amok!”
“I am Jasmine.” Lilith gave a brief introduction. “I am the personal physician hired by the head of the Ye family for Liana.”
“The head of the Ye family? A doctor?” Bianca abruptly turned her head, assuming this was yet another ploy Landon had come up with to avoid marrying off his daughter. But Landon himself wore a look of confusion as he stared at the suddenly appeared Lilith.
“Rest assured, this has nothing to do with the head of the Ye family, nor does it have anything to do with my profession as a doctor. I am here for only one reason.”
Lilith first fixed her gaze on Bianca, then glanced at Julius, who had already given up resisting, before sweeping her eyes across the entire lobby. Her expression grew solemn, as though making a declaration of utmost importance.
“That is, I do not agree with this marriage arrangement.”
“Who do you think you are?!” Seeing that what had already been set in stone was now being obstructed again, Bianca immediately flew into a rage and shouted, “This is between the Song and Ye families—since when was it your place, a mere little girl, to interfere?!”
“That’s why I never intended to interfere.” Lilith let out a cold laugh, planting her hands on her hips as she declared boldly, “I’m simply going to take her.”
“Take her?” Bianca froze for a moment, unable to grasp what Lilith meant.
By then, Lilith had already extended her hand toward Liana. “Will you come with me, Liana?”
“Mountain Ghost… I…” Liana was just as stunned, her mind unable to process this sudden turn of events. Yet some mysterious force, or perhaps the deepest wish buried within her heart, made her reach out involuntarily, her answer slipping out before she could stop it. “I… will.”
“Good.” Lilith clasped her hand firmly, pulled Liana into her arms, then glanced up at Landon, who sat at the head seat looking utterly dumbfounded. She gave him a playful wink and said, “Master Ye, I’ll be taking your daughter for a while.”
With that, she took Liana by the hand and started walking toward the exit.
“Wait!” Unexpectedly, the first person to block her path was Julius. “You can’t take her!”
“Why not?” Lilith frowned. “Isn’t this exactly what you wanted? If Liana leaves with me, you can spend your life with your true love. Isn’t that better?”
“Hmph, that may be true, but…” Julius tapped his palm with his folding fan, letting out a cold laugh. “What belongs to me, even if I don’t want it, should be discarded by my own hand. Since when does anyone else get to take it?”
…What an idiot. How someone like this managed to live this long was beyond her.
“Move.” Lilith’s voice turned icy. “Or don’t blame me for what happens next.”
“Heh, so fierce, so fierce.” Julius looked her up and down, a frivolous grin spreading across his face. “But you’re just a girl without a trace of spiritual energy. What could you possibly do to me? Though your looks are average, your figure suits my taste quite well. How about—”
“Shut up.” Lilith couldn’t be bothered to waste another word. In one smooth motion, she pulled a handgun from beneath her skirt and pointed it straight at him.
**Bang, bang, bang—**three rapid shots tore through the air as she fired directly at his chest. The situation shifted so abruptly that no one had time to react.
Julius let out a howl and collapsed to the ground. “It hurts, it hurts…!” He writhed and rolled across the floor in agony, yet after a short while, he pushed himself back up as if nothing had happened.
“You didn’t seriously think I’ve never seen a gun before, did you?” Julius sneered as he pulled open his outer garment, revealing the black lining underneath— and the flattened bullets embedded within it.
“Since I know something like a gun could threaten me at any time, do you think I’d go out without wearing a bulletproof vest?”
Lilith: “…”
‘Makes perfect sense, damn it. I was almost impressed by this idiot’s so-called brilliance.’
“Hahaha! Out of options now, aren’t you?” Julius threw his hands on his hips and laughed arrogantly. “I’ve done my research. This vest can stop even more powerful rounds. A tiny handgun like yours is nothing. Let’s see what other tricks you have left, hahaha—”
Lilith glanced at Julius, who was still showing off his vest with smug laughter, seemingly oblivious to the fact that as a fifth-stage martial artist, he could have easily withstood bullets even without it.
Then she looked down at the handgun in her hand, falling briefly silent before calmly shifting the muzzle.
She aimed lower.
**Bang. Bang.**
Blood burst outward. Julius’s arrogant expression froze instantly. He lowered his head, staring at the two fresh holes in his thigh, blood still spurting out.
“Ah! It hurts, it hurts, it hurts! My leg!” After a brief two-second delay, the pain finally registered. He clutched his thigh and screamed, rolling on the ground in agony.
Lilith nodded in satisfaction.
‘Mm. That looked like it actually hurt this time.’