Chapter 62: Your So-Called Yaoluo Lady Is Particularly Dependent on Me |
....
Giant Spirit City.
The weather was beautiful the next day.
The warm sunlight bathed the ground as the Destiny Army gradually took control of everything in Giant Spirit City.
With the second son Retifus keeping them occupied, the legitimate heir's faction dared not make any rash moves.
The Destiny Army was about to gain its first major city, and by gradually relocating their base here, they would firmly establish their foothold.
Thanks to the Empire's brutal rule, they could quickly recruit from local populations, gaining future capability to challenge both the legitimate heir and second son.
Deslar stood atop a high vantage point, observing the thriving scene below, yet his brow remained furrowed with anxiety.
He couldn't help but ask his trusted aide again: "Still no word from [Yaoluo]?"
"How could it take this long?"
"Commander, there's considerable distance between here and Thunderkeep—there might have been delays along the way.
Rest assured!
Lady [Yaoluo] has never failed a single mission!
Moreover, you even sent people to assist her!
To kill just one Jonas, we've already deployed overwhelming force.
How could a mere lord's young master be harder to eliminate than a governor?
And with Lady [Yaoluo]'s capabilities, even if she doesn't succeed immediately, no one could possibly capture her."
Hearing his aide's words, Deslar nodded slightly in relief.
"Perhaps I'm overthinking this.
Yaoluo has never let me down before."
....
Zzzzt—
"Mmm~ Ahh...!"
Thud—
Katdera collapsed weakly onto the bed, her body still twitching slightly, her fair toes curling involuntarily.
The purple silk robe failed to conceal her voluptuous figure.
The glimpses of exposed pale skin would likely make any onlooker's blood boil.
Had anyone from the Destiny Army witnessed this scene, they would scarcely believe this was their normally ice-cold, ruthless [Yaoluo] lady.
Now she lay gasping heavily, her chest heaving dramatically.
Haa— Haa—
Even the fine hairs on her forehead stood on end.
After a long moment, she glared resentfully at her thigh.
There sat an exquisite purple garter, biting deeply into her flesh—the source of those sudden electrical surges.
This magical item seemed almost sentient, delivering shocks whenever she contemplated escape.
It had gotten to the point where she dared not even leave the bed.
Katdera couldn't help but pound Jonas's bed in frustration.
"Damn it! Damn that bastard!"
....
Thunderkeep.
Dungeon.
As if sensing something, Jonas couldn't help but smile.
A Thunderkeep guard led Jonas into the dungeon, saying respectfully: "Lord Jonas, the Destiny Army assassins are all here.
Please inspect them."
This guard came from humble origins.
Due to racial discrimination, he had once wandered Thunderkeep with his younger siblings, barely surviving.
He'd assumed he'd die in some snowstorm someday, his life ending in obscurity.
Never had he imagined becoming a Thunderkeep guard, living in spacious quarters fit for nobility.
He'd tested the cement walls himself—even stone axes couldn't damage them significantly.
More than adequate against snowstorms.
Thanks to commercial reforms, his siblings now had proper jobs too. Under Jonas's leadership, everything flourished miraculously.
Thus his genuine gratitude toward Jonas.
Compared to the indigenous rebel Destiny Army or the Empire's cruel regime, he believed Lord Jonas would make the finest ruler.
Because he truly understood commoners' needs.
With this new life securing his siblings' future, he'd gladly face—and die fighting—armies ten times their size from either the Empire or Destiny...
Seeing the guard before him, Jonas smiled. "Thank you for your hard work."
Overwhelmed by Jonas's humility, the guard stammered: "N-no trouble at all, I..."
Unlike other nobles' contemptuous sneers, the lord's smile always felt like spring breeze.
Before he could finish, Jonas entered the dungeon, adding: "Close the door behind me."
"At once!!!"
....
Inside the dungeon.
The Destiny assassins had been thoroughly beaten.
Magic lamps shone directly into their faces, denying them rest—their eyes brimmed with unprecedented exhaustion.
Precisely when their mental defenses would be weakest.
Jonas casually picked up a bucket of water and doused them.
The sudden shock brought instant clarity.
The salt-and-pepper infused water made them howl in pain.
Bound to chairs, they glared at the golden-haired noble before them, teeth clenched:
"Damn noble mutt!!!
Just kill us if you dare! We Destiny warriors fear no death!"
"Yeah! We gladly sacrifice for Destiny!"
....
Jonas remained silent, leisurely pulling up a chair.
No brutal interrogator's demeanor.
Just that perpetual smile.
Yet that spring-like smile sent chills down their spines.
"Tell me," he mused, "you sacrifice for Destiny... but what does your commander sacrifice for you?
Expendable pawns?"
One prisoner sneered: "Hah! You nobles could never comprehend a Destiny warrior's loyalty."
"Loyalty?" Jonas chuckled.
"Then why did your commander send you?
When even your vaunted Yaoluo failed, he dispatched you to die?"
At "die," their lips tightened involuntarily.
"Lady [Yaoluo] needed covering fire!"
"Covering fire?
Tch... More like sending lambs to slaughter. Completely worthless."
One gritted his teeth: "Save your tricks! Like us, Lady Yaoluo would never submit to noble dogs like you!!!"
"Oh really?"
Jonas laughed, tossing a magically duplicated image card before them.
The image showed:
Katdera's dazed eyes, her limp form draped over Jonas's shoulder, arms wrapped around his back.
Her slightly flushed cheeks, damp hair clinging to her skin.
The pair appeared intimately close, like passionate lovers.
The sight stunned the assassins into trembling silence.
They'd recognize their Yaoluo lady anywhere—but this version looked utterly unlike her usual self.
How could their lady become... this?
Impossible!
The image reminded them disturbingly of tavern floozies.
"You... you..."
Jonas smiled wider: "Magic image replication can't be faked—even you know that imperial basic.
Is this your Destiny Army's celebrated loyalty?
Your so-called Yaoluo lady is particularly dependent on me."