Chapter 239. Two (5)
The moment Shersha’s forehead touched Chi-Woo’s, memories flowed into his mind; not his, but Shersha’s. Sometime later, Chi-Woo opened his eyes. Shersha did the same and pulled away, taking a couple steps back. Chi-Woo looked at the white-haired girl in front of him a bit differently from before. Though it was only a small piece of memory rather than the information he wanted, he now understood why Shersha had pursed her lips whenever he asked for information.
In martial arts novels, a skill called dongjagong came up from time to time. It was the martial arts skill where one ama.s.sed power by abstaining from contact with the other s.e.x. Those who mastered this art were able to quickly ama.s.s strong and pure energy, but there was one crucial rule that pract.i.tioners had to always keep. If they lost their virginity to the opposite s.e.x, they would lose all the energy they had ama.s.sed through this art. The prophecy ability that Shersha had was similar to dongjagong in this sense, or perhaps even stricter.
In the first place, prophecies were indefinite since the future was always changing. No matter how menial one’s choice was in the present, there was the possibility of the future splitting into many different paths continuously. Of course, there were things like the ‘definite future’ that Chi-Hyun spoke about, which were destined to happen and almost impossible to change. And among such futures, there were ones that a human shouldn’t rashly bring up—‘secrets from the heavens’.
Thus, Shersha needed to uphold two conditions every time she prophesied. First, she must only inform those she was prophesying about the general direction they should take and conform to the rules of the secrets of the heavens. Second, all the goals and actions directly linked to the prophecies mustn’t harm the Demon Empire in any way.
This current time was Shersha’s present, but Chi-Woo’s future. Thus, telling Chi-Woo everything that had happened until now would be her prophesying to him in a way; and with it, she would be revealing the secrets of the heavens to him and cause great harm to the Demon Empire. In other words, she would be breaking both conditions connected to her prophesying ability, and if she did so, what awaited her wasn’t merely the loss of her power, but a painful death. It was for the very reason that she was in great pain when she tried to force her mouth open.
Still, Shersha wanted to tell Chi-Woo the truth. Despite the risk of death, she wanted to tell Chi-Woo information that he would never learn from a member of the Ca.s.siubia League or the humans. However, she had only one chance. The moment she broke the conditions, she would disintegrate while puking out blood. Thus, Shersha would only open her mouth at the very end since the information she told him as the prophet wouldn’t be enough. Chi-Woo needed to gather other pieces of information by himself to change the future.
After reading Shersha’s memories, Chi-Woo realized what a difficult predicament he was in. If he had continued alone, he would’ve had to roll his die without gaining proper information. But with the help of one of the highest-ranking great demons, he saw a glimmer of hope. This made Chi-Woo wonder why a great demon in the top seven ranks was trying to help him with the risk of getting extinguished, yet he knew now that Shersha couldn’t answer this question either.
‘It must also be a part of prophesying,’ Chi-Woo thought. Shersha could tell him, but he wouldn’t be able to hear the actually important information then.
“Wait. Then the memories just now…”
“I…shortened it…as much as possible…” Shersha murmured. She was able to say as much since it didn’t relate to prophesying about the future, but there was the danger of breaking the second condition. “Very close…”
Now understanding Shersha’s position, Chi-Wo cleared his throat and asked, “Uh…is there a way you could write everything down and give it to me?” His voice softened and became more relaxed. “It won’t be prophesying while you are writing as long as I don’t look. Or you could give me back my left hand where the Celestial device is…” Chi-Woo asked hopefully.
“All the devices…had been destroyed…” Shersha shook her head. “And…I can’t do that…” It was as expected.
“No matter how fast I write…I will die…before I finish writing…” Writing the prophecy down would be an action directly linked to prophesying and would break one of the conditions. Prophesying covered not only her speech, but a considerably wide range of actions. If she had recorded what happened before Chi-Woo came to the future, she would’ve been decimated into nothing before she even met him.
“Then…”
“I’ve arranged some things…just in case…” Shersha heaved with great difficulty, “But…I hoped…to not use that…as much as possible…”
“…”
“I beg you… I will help you…to the best of my abilities…but you should find information with…your own powers…” Shersha looked afraid. Chi-Woo didn’t know why, but it appeared the arrangement she had made was something that should be prevented at all costs. Perhaps it was because he was talking to a prophet, but the more he talked to her, the more his curiosity grew, but Chi-Woo didn’t ask more questions.
In the end, Shersha collapsed into her bed. She heaved with great difficulty, seemingly in great suffering from everything she had done. Though she didn’t cross the line, she was probably undertaking great dangers, and Chi-Woo decided to wait patiently for now. He was still dealing with a great demon after all. It could be a trap.
‘Still…’ If she had wanted to inflict harm onto him, she could’ve done so when she stole his die. But she gave back the World’s Milestone to him and even told him her weakness while knowing that he was going back to the present. Though he still had his suspicions about her, he couldn’t help but trust her a bit now.
‘But why…?’ Chi-Woo glanced at Shersha, who was lying in the bed completely soaked in cold sweat.
***
The time had come for the meeting to commence. The only partic.i.p.ants were a few members of the great demons. Shersha told Chi-Woo beforehand that a few of them would bring their toys to show off to the others. It was a type of behavior that Chi-Woo couldn’t wrap his head around at all. Their cultures were vastly different, and Chi-Woo didn’t forget that he was in no position to argue about the unrighteousness of it all. Right now, he needed to focus on making the best of the opportunity Shersha provided him.
Shersha took Chi-Woo to what had once been a square built for guild meetings. Chi-Woo felt heartbroken that a place that used to bustle with members of the Ca.s.siubia League and humans was now the great demons’ playgrounds, but he tried his best to not let his emotions show.
“You have…to do well…from now on…they may notice…” Shersha said, and Chi-Woo leaned against the wall and sprawled down on the floor. He lowered his head and kept his limbs limp with drool dripping from his face. He needed to act like he was heavily medicated to not attract any suspicions.
“Soon…” Not long after Shersha spoke, they heard a few sets of footsteps approaching.
“Shersha?” Chi-Woo heard a calm man’s voice over his head. “You are already here?”
Chi-Woo wanted to lift his head to see who it was, but he suppressed the urge.
“I’m…waiting…”
“Why aren’t you waiting inside?”
“I…have…something to say…before I go in…”
“Hm? What is it?”
“Not…to only you…”
The great demon with the calm voice shrugged, but stopped when he saw Chi-Woo.
“Who is this guy?”
“I…brought…him…”
“Hm. I’m sure if it’s you, you must have your reasons. Anyways, I will wait with you then.” The great demon sounded a bit surprised, but didn’t press further. It appeared that he had a very deep trust in Shersha.
“What are you two doing?” After a moment, a woman’s singsong and smooth voice spoke up from the end of the corridor.
“Here you are,” the calm voice said. “I’m waiting here because Shersha needed to say something before we went in.”
“Huh? Shersha? Say what?” As the sing-song voice got closer, it sounded as if some people were crawling on the ground. “I didn’t hear it yet either. But…” The calm voice made a low sigh and continued, “You aren’t planning to go inside the room in that state, right?”
“Why? What’s wrong with it?” The sing-song voice laughed. “Isn’t this just the minimum for a proper queen’s march?”
Wondering what in the world this great demon was doing that others were making such a fuss, Chi-Woo looked up while keeping his head down. It was a quick glance, but his heart skipped a beat. There were at least a dozen males from the Ca.s.siubia League and humans, all nude and crouching on all fours—just like dogs. And as they orderly gathered like a palanquin, someone was lying above them with her legs crossed.
“You seem to be enjoying yourself.”
“Of course! This one is the joy of my life these days.” The great demon with a sing-song voice stretched out her legs, putting her feet on top of the head of the man crouching at the center of the human palanquin. Chi-Woo glanced once more and noticed that he looked familiar.
“I think they said he was a Celestial Light or something?” the great demon with the sing-song voice said. Oh, that was right. He was the handsome man whose beauty was comparable to even Ru Amuh’s. Who was it again? ‘I think he was from the Eust.i.tia family.’
“He acted so n.o.ble and uppity in the beginning only to surrender in the end. You all should’ve seen him heave like a male dog in heat at me!” The great demon burst into a fit of giggles and ruffled the man’s hair with the back of her feet.
“Besides that, isn’t he…?” It was then Chi-Woo suddenly felt a gaze on him.
“What? Was that always your preference?” the sing-song voice asked.
“Stop your unpleasant insinuation,” the calm voice answered. “He isn’t my slave. Shersha brought him.”
“What? Shersha did?” the sing-song voice asked in surprise. “But…wait…isn’t he that guy?” Her voice and gaze turned sharper.
“Who?”
“You know, the one we were talking about killing instead of turning into a slave?”
“…He seems to be the one.”
Chi-Woo felt another gaze on him and instinctively stopped glancing around.
“Isn’t he…a bit dangerous? Perhaps…?”
“It’s probably fine now,” the calm voice responded.
“Well, I suppose. He was given loads more drugs than the others…”
“Hey!” It was then a new voice entered. It sounded mean and cunning. “What are you all doing here…oh wow…” The great demon stopped when he saw the queen’s march.
“Fufu, are you jealous?”
“Not at all. Don’t you know it’s quality over quant.i.ty?”
“I do have one Celestial Light though.”
“Did you forget? I have two Celestial Lights,” the cunning voice snarked. With a click of her tongue, the sing-song voice asked curiously, “Didn’t you have another one besides that?”
“Yes, what happened to her?” the calm voice also asked.
“Ah, you mean the saintess of Babylon?”
Chi-Woo’s eyes widened. ‘The saintess of Babylon?’ He snuck another glance, but didn’t see Evelyn. Though the two women weren’t being used as a mount like the men, they were crawling on their hands and feet with leashes on, like dogs on a walk with their master.
“Hm, how should I describe it,” the cunning voice stopped getting closer, and Chi-Woo caught sight of one of the two women. It was a face he knew very well. The one with faded platinum hair, Apoline.
“But she used to be the Abyss’ witch at one point.”
Though Chi-Woo was shocked to see Apoline, all his focus s.h.i.+fted to the cunning voice.
“Yeah, that’s probably why her will was so strong.” It seemed the great demon had tried to also make Evelyn his plaything but failed to crush her mind.
“Nothing worked no matter what I did, so….” Chi-Woo was thinking he might be able to contact Evelyn with Shersha’s help, but—
“I killed her in my fit of rage.”
Chi-Woo halted. What did he say…?
“You killed her?” the calm voice asked.
“What else could I do? She didn’t succ.u.mb to me no matter what I did, and appeasing her didn’t work, either,” the cunning voice continued, “Furthermore, she dared to injure my face when I wasn’t paying attention.”
“Hey, but that wench still had her uses,” the sing-song voice said in disbelief.
“Stop,” the calm voice intervened. “She was already acknowledged as Amon’s spoils. Though I agree that she still had her uses, it was entirely up to Amon what he did with her.”
In Demon Empire society, spoils of war were a very important matter since it was the symbol of authority and victory. It held such gravity that battles sometimes erupted when distributing spoils, and considering that, there was an unwritten rule that demons shouldn’t meddle in others’ spoils once the owners.h.i.+p was decided. Whatever one did to their spoils, no one else could intervene; doing so would be the same as asking for a fight.
“Haha. I like how by the book you are about these matters,” the cunning voice said happily after the calm-sounding demon stepped in to prevent a conflict.
“But it’s a surprise you killed her. I thought you liked her the best among the three.”
“Yeah, I’m already regretting what I did. I should’ve played around with her a bit more…who knew she would die when I split her stomach?”
“They are all toys in the end. Don’t get too riled up about them.”
“Well, that’s true. And I’m fine actually,” the cunning voice turned slightly shriller, “Since these two are comforting me~ They were very, very ferocious in the beginning, but after some education, they all bark obediently.” The sneaky voice chuckled and patted Apoline’s b.u.t.t. “By the way, what are you all doing? Not going in?”
“Let’s…go in now…” Shersha responded to the cunning voice while warily glancing at Chi-Woo. It was because of the way Chi-Woo’s body was trembling slightly. It appeared he was going to lose control at any moment now, so she quickly added, “Leave…all your toys…and go in…”
“Huh? Why?”
“I didn’t…come to this place…to hear you…show off your toys…” Shersha said in an uncharacteristically firm voice. “I…have to say…something very…important.”
Silence followed and stretched for a moment.
“Is it perhaps…”
“About that issue, Shersha?” the calm voice asked.
The cunning voice said awkwardly, “Hey Shersha. I understand how you feel, but that is over. Bael is already—”
“Stop,” the calm voice cut him off again. “This isn’t something we should talk about here.” His voice was much lower than before. “Anyways, if that’s what you want…it really isn’t a topic to discuss with toys around.” The demon seemed to be looking around. “Everyone go in without your toys.”
The cunning one dropped his leashes with great reluctance, while the one with the singsong voice stepped on the man from the Eust.i.tia family and hopped off.
“But anyways, don’t we still have to wait for one more person?”
“Who…ah, her. Just leave her be. She usually doesn’t come anyways, and when she does, she likes to boast the hardest out of any of us. It’s better if she isn’t here.”
“Well, that’s true…”
The great demon’s voices grew more and more distant. Some time afterward, Chi-Woo let out the sigh he had been holding in.
‘Amon…’ He raised his head and repeated the name several times in his head. ‘Amon, Amon…’ He gritted his teeth and swore to kill that guy for sure when he returned to the present. And to do so, he needed to take the opportunity Shersha gave him. After finally calming down, Chi-Woo saw dozens of people lying limply on the ground. It was a truly heart-wrenching sight. They didn’t look too different from those locked in the barn, but just in case, Chi-Woo approached the face he knew first.
“Ms. Apoline? Ms. Apoline?” Chi-Woo called out and poured a bit of exorcism mana in.
***
Sometime later, the door opened. Shersha left the room first while moving quickly. As the demon with a calm voice said before, the meeting was about a heavy topic. But like always, they didn’t reach a definite conclusion. In short, it was a waste of time. Shersha knew that was going to happen from the beginning and hadn’t expected anything from the meeting. She only organized this meeting to change the Demon Empire’s present for a better future. To do that, they needed to change the present and the past along with it, and Chi-Woo’s strength was essential. Thus, Shersha didn’t back down from her opinions and dragged on the meeting as long as possible. Her plan was successful, and she used up a lot of time. However, she still wondered if there was anyone whose mind was intact enough to pa.s.s along useful information to Chi-Woo.
‘Should I…have moved more quickly…?’ Shersha blamed herself. Holy City Shalyh fell because of the great price and efforts the Demon Empire had paid. Their enemies had resisted until the end, and the Demon Empire suffered great casualties in the process, pus.h.i.+ng their rage to the maximum. Thus, the moment the Demon Empire succeeded in invading the city, they poured out their wrath onto Shalyh city, leaving no one safe. But who knew all that would lead to this?
‘Still…I have to find him…’ There were two main factors that would have allowed the Demon Empire to invade Shalyh. The first was destroyed, so the Demon Empire progressed with a new plan. What Shersha wanted to tell Chi-Woo was the latter, and Chi-Woo needed to figure out the first by himself. That one had shaken up the Ca.s.siubia League members and humanity tremendously when revealed, so there were probably many who remembered it. Chi-Woo only needed to find someone with the knowledge with the capacity to tell him.
‘Somehow…’ Shersha went to the corridor while pondering. She quickly glanced around, and her face stiffened. ‘…Where…’
Among the many slaves belonging to the great demons, only Chi-Woo was missing.