Before leaving, Freyna was escorted by several Evil Demon guards to another room.
The moment the door locked, Freyna felt a twinge in her heart. She increasingly felt that she had been too impulsive and truly was the naive type.
Freyna glanced out the window, where a few small crows flew by. They were much quieter than the crows on the human side.
Suddenly, she understood.
Though it seemed on the surface like she was throwing herself into the arms of the Demon Race, in reality, the initiative was still in her own hands.
So, Freyna figured it didn’t matter even if she regretted it. As the saying went, the initiative was only in the hands of the strong. The War Emperor was strong, and so was she. As long as the Demon Race didn’t resort to foul play to force her to stay, of course, they wouldn’t dare.
“Interesting. Do they plan to brainwash me?”
Freyna muttered.
Freyna had heard from Catherine that if her acting was convincing enough, the Demon Race could even treat her like a true friend. The Demon Race seemed to become cunning in specific scenarios but naive in strange ways.
Freyna immediately formulated a complete plan in her mind. First, the Demon Race would likely send someone to extract intelligence from her. She just needed to reveal information from the Holy Church that seemed important but was harmless—this was her specialty.
Afterward, she would be released and maintain contact with the Demon Race.
The Demon Race weren’t fools. A simple verbal promise wouldn’t suffice if they wanted to force her to stay.
Unless they wanted war with the Holy Church.
Freyna felt she had calculated everything.
She sat gracefully on the sofa, sipping the tea on the table while elegantly smoothing her prized long hair.
Sure enough, three minutes later, the door opened.
But the visitor was Catherine!
“Why is it you again?”
“The Demon King asked me to convince you,” Catherine said, recalling Ophitia’s words to her. She skipped the pleasantries and got straight to the point.
“Convince me?” Freyna’s eyes flickered. “What do you mean? Have you actually sided with the Demon Race? It seems my hunch wasn’t wrong. I heard that brainwashing changes one’s personality.”
“…”
Catherine smiled. “No, actually, Lady Avira has been secretly building her strength. Not just you—the entire Hero Squad… no, most of them are still alive.”
“They didn’t die. They’ve all joined Lady Avira and are now part of her faction.”
Hearing this, Freyna felt a bit annoyed.
If what Catherine said was true, then Catherine and Avira had been deceiving her from the start!
They hadn’t told her about this. Even if they feared eavesdropping, it wasn’t necessary.
It felt more like, “We’re testing you.”
But the more this happened, the more interested Freyna became.
More importantly…
“So Avira hasn’t been controlled? Are her wings fake too?”
Freyna smiled. “You’re not lying to me, are you?”
Catherine seemed to have anticipated this.
She glanced toward the door behind her and said, “Come in.”
The door opened, and two young girls entered.
They wore maid outfits, with horns and wings, apparently Catherine’s colleagues.
But Freyna suddenly realized they were members of the Hero Squad!
Oka and Elisa.
During the Great Sage Molly’s counterattack on Tilves, she had crossed paths with them once.
Oka was the lively type, memorable, while the little loli Elisa seemed like an introverted one.
The two held hands, their relationship apparently close.
“Long time no see, Miss Freyna~”
Oka’s horns were far more exaggerated than those of ordinary Evil Demons, like a pair of sheep horns. Freyna had never seen such ostentatious ones.
This made her even more certain that Oka had disguised herself as a Demon Race member.
“Mm, long time no see… This is surprising. Have you both joined Saintess Avira now?”
“Of course~”
Oka smiled faintly. “If not for Avira, we wouldn’t have this wonderful life. Will you join us, Lady Freyna?”
Elisa glanced at Oka, and they exchanged some silent communication.
Elisa said, “Freyna, you actually have no choice anymore. Now that you know this, joining us is your only option.”
Oka added, “Avira has no intention of siding with the Holy Church.”
“Indeed, at this point, any promises hold no persuasive power.”
Rather than pitying Avira, Freyna felt a sense of admiration. She didn’t even need Freyna’s help—captured by the Demon Race, she had built her own organization right under the Demon King’s nose. Now, Freyna wanted to figure out exactly what had happened here.
“I’ll join.”
“Saying it isn’t enough.” Catherine took out a crystal core.
It was a Demonization Crystal Core produced by Molly, containing a massive amount of Demon Essence from the Soul Devouring Demon. A normal person swallowing it would instantly turn into a mindless monster, but only a few powerhouses could adapt and be reborn through the flames.
“What is this? I can sense a strange aura from it.”
“As long as you swallow it, you can act with us,” Catherine said with a smile.
“What?”
Freyna’s eyes widened. She could hardly believe this was a prerequisite to joining Avira. She glanced at the three of them and immediately sensed something was wrong!
Was this a Demonization Crystal?
Unfortunately, the next second, Catherine seized her. Her relaxed nerves didn’t even give Freyna time to react before she was pinned to the sofa.
Her battle-hardened body and exquisite combat skills could easily break ordinary chains, but she couldn’t escape Catherine’s embrace at all!
Catherine remained unhurried, parting her lips slightly and capturing Freyna’s vigilant ones, aiming right at her mouth…
“Mmph—!”
Freyna’s lips grew wet. Already ambushed and now treated this way, the virgin’s first kiss was thus taken by Catherine.
In her panic, she felt a scalding, hard object pushed into her mouth, sliding down her throat like a magnet, and she swallowed it.
In an instant, the Demon Essence from the crystal core began eroding her body from the inside out.
Freyna’s body went limp. The magic power she had prepared for resistance was churned into chaos by the Demon Race’s Demon Essence. She twitched while trying to push away Catherine’s deep kiss, but she could only struggle powerlessly like captured prey until she could no longer resist.
With her peripheral vision, she saw Oka watching her with a teasing smile. At that moment, Freyna also clearly saw that everyone, including Elisa, had the same evil pupils as the Demon Race. Right now, they no longer hid their auras.
Yes, Catherine had never given her a choice from the beginning.
She was destined to complete Avira’s task~
