"Since there’s no problem here anymore, I’m ready to leave."
Annan looked at Jiu’er, whose body was still trembling slightly, and gently supported her arm with concern, "Can you make it back by yourself?"
"Also, about those two people... do you need to help you deal with them?"
Annan said this and looked up at the alley’s end, where two bodies lay soulless but intact.
——They must be Jiu’er’s watchers.
If the two of them died here silently, it might cause so trouble for the job that Jiu’er had found... or rather, her personal quest line. If needed, Annan could help her address the issues that followed.
The thod was simple — he could just notify the Crow family and have soone sent to intimidate as needed. To these Underground Gangs of Noah, Earl Geraint’s deterrence was far stronger than the police’s...
Having the leader of her own faction handle the aftermath for free was quite a benefit; she even had the opportunity to take a shortcut in her personal quest line, advancing sooner to the higher levels... or simply use this minor power as a stepping stone to jump to an even higher-ranking faction, if she wished.
From a player’s perspective, that was the best choice.
The ultimate goal of all a player’s actions was to gain benefits.
And Annan was very aware of the player’s nature.
So although Jiu’er was asking for his help, Annan still prepared so compensation for her, to offset any benefits she might lose.
...But Jiu’er didn’t take this path.
A strange and strong sense of competitiveness, which originally should not belong to a player, welled up in her heart —
It was the intense feeling of not wanting Annan to look down on her, not wanting Annan to see her as a burden, a lackey... or an immature, underage person who needed special care.
"Thank you very much, Lord Annan..."
Jiu’er glanced at Annan, then lowered her head and continued in a smooth, low voice, "But I can handle this myself."
"Do you have a plan? Why don’t you share it, and I’ll help you with so advice?"
"Yes, my lord — my idea is to report Bernadino’s na. Whether they send Ritualists or other Transcendents, they won’t be able to conclusively determine the real cause of these two n’s deaths; or if they indeed find out they were killed by Bernadino, they can only choose to believe my word."
"Compared to the possibility that I colluded with Bernadino to target and suppress their power, the likelihood that ’I have a special ability or enough influence to escape from Bernadino’s hands or at least make him hesitate to harm ’ is much higher."
"As long as they have one smart person, they would value even more. Because no matter how I survived the attack, it proves that I’m indeed not an ordinary bronze-ranked Transcendent. And there’s a high chance that it involves higher powers... They can’t just take action against , instead, they should find ways to win over."
Jiu’er smoothly laid out her plan.
"Good, it’s very comndable that you’ve thought this far," Annan agreed with her idea.
Then he offered corrections and optimizations, "But you need to be careful here, you can describe Bernadino’s abilities in detail, but it’s best not to ntion this na directly."
"...Is it because they might doubt ? Even if they value now, they would still harbor doubts about deep down?"
"Exactly, this would plant seeds of doubt — that’s one aspect. Another issue is that with your status, you shouldn’t explicitly know about the existence of ’Bernadino’."
Annan pointed out the flaw in Jiu’er’s plan, "After all, you are a Berserker, not a Wizard. Even though they now think you have so special profession, you are still just a Berserker... and sooner or later they will realize this.
"If you don’t want to deepen their suspicions, don’t ntion information you shouldn’t know."
...Annan is so impressive!
Jiu’er’s eyes widened in disbelief as she looked at Annan.
In her bright, pure eyes was an unmistakable admiration.
Annan noticed Jiu’er’s gaze and couldn’t help but laugh, "It’s completely normal that you don’t know this, as you’re still young, a child, and you’ve never had such an experience before... right?"
...But you’re actually much younger than !
I did turn adult not too long ago, just that I look rather young... and sowhat short...
The baby-faced Jiu’er was grumbling in her heart.
But she did not voice these complaints.
...Perhaps it was due to timidity or so kind of indescribable modesty—at least until Annan faced her directly, Jiu’er did not plan on revealing her true age to him.
For the ti being, she decided to close the distance with Annan under the identity of a "peer."
As if he had said enough, Annan let out a light sigh.
"I respect your wishes, since you don’t want to interfere, I won’t ntion it anymore," he said gently.
"Does your abdon still hurt?" Annan asked in a gentle tone.
"...It still hurts."
After a mont of hesitation, Jiu’er answered softly.
The pain in that location made her sowhat embarrassed to speak of it—but the intense, almost nstrual cramp-like pain was sothing she had to take seriously.
If she did not ask while Annan was here, the pain might beco even more severe after he left...
By that ti, asking a stranger would be even more embarrassing—not to ntion it might expose her weaknesses or injuries.
Only Annan could be trusted...
But before Annan could reply,
the Paper Princess behind Annan began to explain, "This is because your soul has been injured. The curse eroded you too much in an instant, so your vessel is sowhat unable to bear it. The location of your pain is where your Curse Binding is located, after the release.
"Rember to change your vessel when you go back, and rest for a while... It’s best not to enter nightmares these next few days.
"And it’s not necessarily a bad thing. Although the erosion level has gone up a lot, you will gain so of the purified curse power when you wake up in the following period. This will make you stronger."
...In simple terms, does this an she can get a little experience every day when signing in?
Jiu’er bit her lip.
But she still felt that a sudden increase in erosion level wasn’t a good thing...
As if he could see right through her heart,
Annan spoke up to comfort her, "You were involved because of . Later on, I will find a way to remove your erosion level—not just the new part but the old part as well. Consider it your compensation."
"...You have troubled yourself, Lord Annan."
Jiu’er opened her mouth, really wanting to say "You really don’t have to do this," but she eventually yielded and said softly, "Thank you very much."
—Because to say she did not want it was one thing, but deep down she kind of did.
But having agreed, she didn’t know why she felt like she owed Annan more and more...
"If you need anything later on, or encounter any crisis, just call my na,"
Annan instructed in the end, "As long as I can make it, I will be there."
"...Yes."
Jiu’er was silent for a mont, then responded in a low voice.
But after hearing this, she beca completely determined in her heart.
As a player, dying once wasn’t a big deal.
If she truly encountered an enemy she couldn’t fight against... she absolutely must not involve Annan.
So she would never ask for help—
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