Chapter 57: Little Girl and Superweapon
Their conversation didn’t last long. Bai simply wanted to understand Rolof’s situation.
According to Isabelle’s plan, during the Imperial Festival, Rolof would create a breach in the capital’s defenses, similar to the earlier assassination attempt on Bai, allowing Isabelle direct access to the festival’s center.
Rolof had approached Isabelle because he had been corrupted by demonic power during a battle, alongside Princess Lilia.
He now relied on Isabelle’s potions to maintain his human form. Without them, he would lose control.
As for Princess Lilia, Isabelle didn’t know the details, but Bai, seeing her weakened state, deduced that she was also using some method to suppress the demonic corruption.
“No wonder… all those strange symptoms,” Bai nodded thoughtfully.
Learning about Rolof’s situation, Bai felt it was no longer necessary to intervene.
He had outlived his usefulness to Isabelle; she wouldn’t provide him with any more potions. Without them, he would inevitably succumb to the demonic corruption, becoming a Fallen Demonspawn.
Then, someone else would deal with him.
“Phew…”
Finally, some clarity amidst the confusion. Although many questions remained, the situation was less muddled.
“So, where will you go now?” Bai asked Isabelle.
Even the timid Isabelle was still a demon commander. Her presence in the capital was a major threat.
And what if her crazed personality resurfaced, and she tried to kill Bai again?
“I… I want to stay with Princess Bai…” Isabelle said, her head down, fidgeting with her clothes.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Bai shook her head. “You should return to the Abyssal Demon Realm. With the current situation in the capital, it’s not safe for you here.”
“I’ll be good, Princess Bai,” Isabelle said, her voice trembling slightly, as if on the verge of tears. “I promise, the other me won’t try to hurt you again. It was… a misunderstanding…”
Bai’s lips twitched. A misunderstanding that had almost cost her her life…
Well, even if she hadn’t plunged the dagger into her own heart, she probably would have entered her full form anyway, though it would have been less controlled, and she wouldn’t have been able to wait for Ara’s arrival.
And then, the entire capital would have been destroyed…
Thinking about it, she realized she was probably more dangerous than Isabelle.
And Ara, who had brutally slaughtered Sugg’s men simply because they had offended her, was equally, if not more, dangerous.
Without Bai’s influence, Ara had no moral compass, no understanding of right and wrong, and she possessed immense power. The consequences could be disastrous.
They weren’t three little girls; they were three superweapons, each more unstable than the last.
Bai sighed, speechless.
“Alright, you can stay. But don’t wander off.”
She finally relented.
Isabelle’s face lit up, but then she saw Ara, who had opened her eyes and was glaring at her, and she shrank back.
“Th-thank you, Princess Bai…”
…
“Nothing.”
Kweil’s expression was grim. They had been searching for three hours, and there was no trace of the Shadow Demon.
The capital’s detectors were also silent. Kweil had even released a captive Fallen Demonspawn to test them; the ancient empire’s technology was still functional.
Prince Kruse sat nearby, his legs crossed, deep in thought.
Rolof’s face was ashen. He replayed the events in his mind, a growing sense of dread creeping over him. What if Isabelle wasn’t seriously injured? What if she was watching him now, a cold smile on her face?
And if she disappeared, he would be left to his fate, to become a mindless monster.
“R-report!” A Crown Guard ran towards them, his voice breathless. “We found traces of a Shadow Demon… in an ordinary building, six hundred meters from here!”
The three of them instantly tensed. Prince Kruse stood up. “Take us there.”
“This way, Your Excellencies.”
They followed the Crown Guard to the building Bai had hidden in earlier, to the crevice behind the cabinet. The guard placed a detector inside.
“It’s here, but it’s very faint. We have to get the detector right up against it to get a reading.”
Sure enough, a faint light emanated from the detector only when it was pressed against the cabinet.
“If Arman hadn’t dropped his detector here, we would have never found it,” the captain said.
“She escaped from here? But how did she evade the capital’s detectors…?” Kweil wondered, touching the crevice. “It’s small, only large enough for a seven or eight-year-old child. Was Isabelle’s avatar a child this time?”
Hearing this, Rolof suddenly thought of Bai.
“A seven or eight-year-old child? Isn’t that the same age as Bai, the girl Isabelle was targeting?”
“Could it be… Isabelle wanted to kill Bai to take her body?”
The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed. And perhaps, by possessing Bai’s body, Isabelle had been able to escape.
Although the poison would still affect her soul, even in a different body, its effects would be diminished.
But how had she evaded the detectors? He couldn’t figure it out.
“Damn it. It seems she escaped,” Kweil said, frustrated, but there was nothing they could do. “Cease the search. Raise the city’s alert level to one. Whatever Isabelle is planning, we can’t let her succeed!”
