Chapter 413


Chapter 120: The Snake Yearning for Warmth

Watching the young boy’s figure in the quiet darkness, Leanna felt her heartbeat echoing loudly in her chest.

Instinctively, she reached out a hand, drifting like a greedy snake, but ultimately forced herself to pull it back, pressing it against her chest.

I must abide by the agreement. I can’t cross the distance he laid out until I’m given permission.

Leanna leaned a bit closer, but didn’t fully press against him.

Intimate yet cautious.

Just feeling his warm breath was enough.

“Junior, can I tell you something?”

“Something from the past.”

Roy didn’t respond.

Leanna let out a bitter smile and softly murmured to herself.

“Back then, Diabolus killed my father, and when he was about to strike me, it was my mother who fought with all her might to give me a chance to escape.”

“At our parting, she told me to do whatever it takes to reclaim the Cassandra family and come to save her, to take revenge on my father.”

“Thinking back, it’s just laughable. What could a mere child like me possibly do? I even knew how slim the hope of defeating Diabolus was, so I was already prepared to risk everything and perish along with him.”

“But now, things are different.” Leanna gazed at Roy’s figure and sighed softly.

“Back then, I had nothing and no choice, so I wasn’t afraid. But now, I have someone I cherish.”

“So promise me, if you ever encounter an insurmountable danger, you don’t have to worry about me; just go on your own.”

After murmuring this, the boy in the darkness remained silent and still.

Leanna let out a bitter smile.

Maybe he fell asleep? I suppose after a long day, listening to these boring subjects would only add to his troubles.

We should really be chatting about something lighter.

I seem to be relying more and more on Roy.

But just as she was about to close her eyes, a low voice suddenly emerged.

“I refuse.”

“Honestly, your assumption is too pessimistic. What insurmountable danger? If everything goes smoothly tomorrow, what will all this mean?”

“And don’t forget, you still owe me a cup of coffee. You really have it easy.”

“Stop spreading negative energy, hurry up and sleep.”

Hearing the boy’s brusque words, Leanna couldn’t help but slightly lift the corners of her mouth, gently closing her eyes.

Once again, the girl was convinced that he wouldn’t give up on her.

Leanna wasn’t lying. The dark sorceress, who accompanied the shadows, never feared death; what she feared was loneliness.

It was only at this moment that she truly felt fearless, having the courage to envision a life where everything came to an end.

Reclaiming her family, rescuing her mother, avenging her father, and afterwards, wanting to be with him—

The sound of steady breathing came from beside her.

Roy gently turned over and caught sight of the brown-haired senior curled up beside him, hugging her knees, revealing a serene sleeping face that wouldn’t be there under normal circumstances, his expression softening.

At a glance, she looked like a small snake curled up, seeking warmth for its winter slumber.

Knowing that an extraordinary being of Sequence 6 couldn’t possibly be afraid of the cold, Roy instinctively pulled his blanket over her. She seemingly sensed the warmth and instinctively nudged closer to him.

The disheveled brown hair and soft breathing were close enough to bring with them a hint of the fragrance of bellflowers.

One thing in Leanna’s earlier words caught Roy’s attention.

Would a mother really expect her child to risk everything to come save her?

It’s not that such an idea isn’t right, but in such a dire situation where one’s life wasn’t guaranteed, is that something a mother would say before parting?

It’s as if she knew Leanna would definitely be safe and strong enough, urging her to come to her rescue…

Is this fate’s cruel irony?

Regardless, Leanna’s fate was far from smooth sailing.

【Warning! Detected progress in Counter-Task. Every choice you make will alter fate; choose wisely!】

【Current Counter-Task Node: Queen Snake】

【Queen Snake Counter-Progress】: 35%

【Reward】: Counter Points +2

Even after a fierce battle and gaining more Counter Points than usual, the Counter Node remained unresolved, and both he and Leanna were still far from escaping danger.

Leanna’s fate seemed heavier than that of Charlotte and the others, not so easily altered.

However, Roy had long been aware of this.

To change fate, merely pretty words wouldn’t cut it; he needed real strength.

The victory against Diabolus had successfully advanced him to Sequence 7, boosting his physical attributes while also granting him new abilities.

【Iron Will】: Sequence 7

【Weapon Projection: Advanced】: Speeds up weapon projection and allows projection of Mithril-crafted weapons.

【Steel Body: Advanced】: Further enhances physical defense.

【Vitality Concentration: Intermediate】: Greatly improves the power of vital energy concentration; can be used for both attacks and boosting defense for an instant.

For someone who could project dragon-tooth weapons, the original trump card of 【Weapon Projection: Advanced】 felt somewhat redundant.

But the latter two were immensely useful.

Now, with 【Steel Body】 plus dragon scales, it was more than enough to withstand most Sequence 6 attacks; even Sequence 5 Diabolus wouldn’t find it easy to break through his defenses.

As for 【Vitality Concentration】, it had become both offensive and defensive, wielding even greater power. This attack would originally trigger the potential of 【Iron Will】 for a peak strike within the same level, but enhanced by his unique bloodline, it had transformed into a magical attack capable of hurting even enemies of a higher rank.

Most importantly, after reaching Sequence 7, combined with the short-term enhancement from the 【Evil Dragon Blood Armor】, his basic abilities were no longer much inferior to Sequence 6.

In their next encounter, even without Leanna’s support, Roy was confident he could tangle with Diabolus for quite a while.

Sequence 7 was already a paragon among peers; plus, with the bloodline ability of the False King, he was fully equipped to match any golden-blood peer, enough to bring him a sense of pride.

But to defeat the Sequence 5 demon Diabolus and fully turn the tide on the Counter Node, that was still insufficient.

He could not confine himself to Sequence 7; he must make further progress on the extraordinary path.

【Do you wish to consume 1 Counter Point to project the Path of Kings?】

After one last glance at the girl by his side, Roy gently tousled her slightly curled brown hair before shifting his gaze to the panel.

【Consumed 1 Counter Point, starting projection of Path of Kings!】

Waves surged, bubbles appeared.

After going with the flow for a while, Roy found himself once again before the isolated coral throne.

What greeted his eyes was the blindingly blue sky and the tranquil figure of the mermaid princess, who sat motionless on the throne like a beautiful sculpture—according to her words, specifically the 【Sea Empress】, Leviathan.

In the days without Dorothy, Leviathan seemed frozen in time, allowing the white clouds to drift by, the sunlight to rise and fall without moving a muscle.

Only upon hearing that familiar footstep would her long fish tail slightly lift, and she would raise her head, pretending to be indifferent, turning her back to the direction of the cave, coldly saying: “You’re here again.”

“Just so you know, this time you can’t…!”

However, this time her welcome wasn’t a lighthearted tussle but a massive magic hand radiating dark energy.

Fortunately, Leviathan still retained the power of a sea ruler, and with a flick of her tail, she summoned a great wave to disperse the seemingly ferocious attack.

Leviathan turned around, only to find Dorothy disheveled and bloodied, most importantly, her aura was highly agitated, and her once diamond-like shining black eyes were devoid of humanity, replaced only with darkness deeper than the night sky and a bloodthirsty killing intent.

Roy furrowed his brow along with Leviathan.

Dorothy had been corrupted.