Volume 1 Chapter 462

Chapter 462: More Like Despair Than Fear

On Qiong’s side, what she saw was a similar scene from about the same time.

However, the timeline was a little later than Julie’s scene.

Even though the prison door was locked, it would be no challenge for a legendary level assassin.

With a quick flick of her dagger… the lock clicked open.

Stepping out of the prison room, Qiong found herself in a dungeon.

As she looked at the structure of the dungeon, she realized whose memory this was.

This was the day she officially joined the Royal Agency.

To be honest, her initial reason for joining the Royal Agency was for revenge.

To take revenge for her mother and her people.

This is what she carries.

The rebellious Orc tribes, the Eastern Seven Kingdoms involved, and the powerful members of the Golden Peacock, along with the mastermind of the United Kingdom of South Sotua…

She wants to find out who was behind it all back then and use her extraordinary skills and assassination techniques to kill them all.

In fact, over the years, she has already completed part of this through her mercenary work.

Other Orc tribes from that time, some officials from the Golden Peacock, and many nobles from South Sotua who were involved have already had their throats cut by her.

But who the main mastermind was remains a mystery.

It seems someone is covering it all up.

Therefore, Qiong decided to join the royal institution of the United Kingdom of South Sotua as a legend-level mercenary.

Her goal is to find the mastermind.

With the help of the royal institution, find the source of it all.

On the very first day she joined the royal institution, she learned the "answer."

At the end of the dungeon, Qiong saw the scene from that day.

She stood with other members of "The Eye of Satua," next to a gentle old man with a white beard.

The people of South Sotua all recognize him.

This is the Chancellor of South Sotua, "Chancellor Duke Osmeda."

In the memory, the old man was speaking about the royal intelligence agency "The Eye of Satua."

"Welcome, everyone, to be a part of South Sotua."

"Many people think that South Sotua is a dangerous and chaotic land."

"But I don’t think so… This is a fair kingdom."

"Or perhaps, danger and chaos are the necessary costs of fairness."

"Here, everyone has a chance to become a noble, and everyone also has a chance to kill a noble."

"Humans can be slaves, and Orcs can be ministers."

"Fairness is not equality; it simply makes the upper and lower positions more flexible."

"Joining the royal institution is the first step towards the top in this fair kingdom."

"I don’t care about anything else; I only care about what you can bring, what you can bring to the king, to me, to the kingdom."

"As for your background… even if you are the descendant of my enemy, I don’t care."

"You can even try to kill me…"

"After all, maybe I killed your kindred and hurt your mother like this back then."

"Right, Miss Qiong? Or should I say…"

"Miss Qiong Thorn."

When Qiong heard that voice, even knowing it was fake and from her own memories, she still couldn’t help but shiver a little.

Like a frightened cat.

This was the process she went through to learn who was behind it all.

No investigation, no surprises…

It was the other party who admitted it willingly.

However, to this day, Qiong has not been able to achieve her revenge!

She had been working for the other person until not long ago!

Although Qiong kept telling herself that she was looking for a better opportunity…

Deep down, she also knew…

It was just because she was too afraid.

Even when chosen as a scapegoat, she had no thought of fighting for her life against the other person.

Because the fear that was stamped in her heart that day was a hundred times more straightforward and harsh than Julie and Lalea’s.

She was afraid of dying.

She felt that the old man was so powerful that she couldn’t possibly stand against him.

It was a fear that came from instinct.

Simple and rough, yet incredibly intense.

Even in countless nights, Qiong had blamed herself a thousand times and cursed her weakness a hundred thousand times…

But when facing the old man again, she still… could not feel the spirit to resist.

Especially after witnessing more and more of his "methods" beyond his own strength.

Qiong’s fear grew deeper.

She watched this scene and lowered her head.

This was something she had anticipated.

What could frighten her to the extreme…

What else could it be?

Yi also also had an idea of what she would see.

She just didn’t move at that moment.

Sitting on the altar, Yi also, who Lolth thought should be fearless and easily pass the first trial, sat completely still.

She admitted that she had underestimated the ruins of ancient civilization.

This "Courage Trial" was also much harder than the "Chopping Delusion" stage.

Some fears are invisible and cannot be cut with a sword.

She realized what scene was waiting for her outside the door of this eerie room.

But she didn’t have the courage to look at that moment.

It was only after a while that Yi also slowly stood up.

"I still have to face it… this kind of thing…"

She tightly held the sword in her arms and walked towards the large door covered in twisted symbols.

Then…

She pushed open the large door.

Before her eyes, there was a strange and colorful scene.

Wooden sticks stuck in meat were screaming, horses with tentacles were running, colorful flames constantly turned into feathers and bones, a right hand without arms was making strange gestures in the sky, a shark with a rabbit’s head was swimming in a sea filled with giant pineapples, and a huge tongue formed islands above the sea…

In this broken world, on the island formed by the tongue, Yi also saw herself.

She carried her long sword on her back, with white cloth wrapped around her forearm, and her eyes showed a look of despair.

In her arms, she held a girl whose body was soaked in blood.

"Sister…"

The girl whispered.

Beneath her skin, magic and her soul stirred restlessly, as if about to merge with this world.

The blood that dripped to the ground took on shapes that were hard to understand, as both body and soul slowly fell apart.

And through all of this, Yi was powerless.

"Sister is here… Sister is here, we will go home soon… Everything will be alright when we return to Clean Spring Palace."

She could only comfort the girl in her arms with pale words, again and again.

This was the most terrifying experience of her life.

Even if she killed all the cultists, she could not stop her beloved from being pulled into an alternate plane, slowly "falling apart."

However, perhaps Lolth was right; Yi really had no fear.

Because compared to fear…

There was more, it was despair.