Chapter 475: Jacquelin and Jill?

No matter how many times Dioh ruined the mood, some things still had to be said, but saying them in such an awkward atmosphere was counterproductive… thank the heavens that I had already said the most important parts.

Despite Dioh’s unintentional bungling, the women of Demoness Abode already knew that I was the master they were serving. That was an undeniable fact, even if they only had strange looks to give me right now!

And that was why I decided to have Dioh lynched right this instant!

I threw Dioh a glare before arrogantly asking, “Do you have some time to spare? I…”

“I’m sorry, but my little brother isn’t free right now.” A voice interrupted me. It was a man who looked like a grown up version of Dioh. He had the same red buzzcut as Dioh but he was burlier and wore a set of grey leather armor of varying condition.

“George?”

I knew this man. He was that man who did not take to me very much but still proved reliable in a pinch. Because of Dioh’s barely disguised courtship, George ended up disliking me as a result.

“So it’s you after all.” George narrowed his eyes as he said that. “I heard that the Demoness Abode was suddenly receiving some guests despite not doing so before. Even if you weren’t amongst these guests, they had to be connected to you in some way.”

“Big brother, what are you doing here?” The moment Dioh noticed his brother’s arrival, his face immediately paled. He subconsciously stepped back a little and even began to shake, most likely a trauma from his past encounters with his brother.

“Just in time. Can you please take your little brother away with you, and don’t let him cause more trouble in the future.”

“That’s exactly what I had in mind.” Said George, after which he promptly picked up the boy by his collar and carried him off. “Come on, stop embarrassing yourself any further.”

“Let go of me… Big brother… there’s still so much I have to say to lady Mo Ke…” Dioh flailed his arms about desperately but to no avail. In the end, he could do nothing but allow himself to be taken away.

Yet before they left the building, George abruptly stopped, back still faced towards me, and said something unexpected, “How long are you planning to stay?”

“A day, perhaps?” I paused for a good long while before answering. What… so he does care… but I think I will have to pass on a male tsundere hitting on me… a cute girl is one thing, but a grown man…

“Then you’d better be quick about it. I’ve heard that Moranthal and the others will be back in a couple day’s time.” Having said that, George dragged his still flailing brother back home.

While the two brothers were now removed from the scene, the damage Dioh did to the atmosphere was irreparable. Even if I wanted to say something now, it would just seem like a continuation of a comedy skit… Bah, they know who their master is anyway. My goals are met for now, the rest can be figured out along the way.

Having left the great hall not long after to head to Ancarin’s room, I returned to my human form, but not before plucking off a feather and handing it to Ancarin.

“Ancarin, what I’m about to tell you is of utmost importance. When you create a stature of me, remember to place this feather within it as well. From now, you all merely have to pray to the stature and I will bless you through it. Naturally, what you receive has to do with your own potential, but faith and sincerity has a large part to play as well.”

“Understood, master. I will personally oversee the construction of the stature.” Said Ancarin as she reverently received the feather from me.

“Little brother, don’t forget that you promised to hand the Faith Power over to me.”

Relax… I still want to return to my male form, and that requires my body to be rid of you. That’s why, before your soul is able to exist on its own independently, I won’t do anything to break this promise.

“That’s good then. On my end, I will do my best to return to my original power so that our little brother can become a man a day sooner.”

By the way, would you happen to have a way to return to Abaddon?

“Abaddon, huh…not for now.” She answered evasively. “It’s a real hassle to go there unless you have some special medium or teleportation array that can transport you there. I do not suggest it.”

Hmm. If I can make it to Abaddon and find Yi Yi, she can definitely help to separate Ferti’nier’s soul from my own. But based on how she answered, she doesn’t seem too happy about this prospect. Perhaps she has some ulterior motive for not wanting me to go there?

“You’re reading too much into this. Your big sis really has no way to send you there. If your big sis was still at her peak and had the Chaos Crystal, she would naturally be able to do so. However, your big sis is just a fragmented soul right now with no body of her own. She can’t open up a dimensional tunnel…” Having explained her own side of the story, she quickly reassured me. “But don’t worry! Once your big sis gets her body back, she will definitely help her little brother accomplish whatever wish he has. Even starting a harem won’t be a problem at that time!”

Alright then. I will take your word for it. When I want to start a harem in the future, I had better see you helping out.

“Of course, of course. Your big is a Devil of her own words.” At that, she smiled confidently. “She is your big sis, after all.”

Like what I said to George, I did not end up staying in the Demoness Abode for too long; Nicole was still waiting to be found in the Western Human Realms.

A day of rest later, I led Zurnalin, Reyage, Jezsere, Mo Ning and Regine onto the road towards Azure City.

So why was I in such a hurry to leave? Hmm… because Dioh was annoying? That was true, but there was also another very important reason called Moranthal, a man who equally had me at wit’s end. Now if I were to allow those two to meet in my presence… oh Jeebus, thank the heavens he was out when I visited the Demoness Abode. (Moranthal was another man who fell in love with Mo Ke and pursued him endlessly.)

Ancarin initially wanted to abandon everything and follow us, but the Demoness Abode was no longer just a one-woman show. Through three years of combined effort between Ancarin and Regine, the Demoness Abode had grown into a shelter for troubled women. There were now over four hundred poor souls taking refuge in the Abode, not to mention the members actively searching for those in need. These women needed a rallying figure. They needed Ancarin.

The reason why I chose to bring along Regine instead of Ancarin was because she often wandered the lands; she was perfect for locating Nicole.

Since the time I last met her, Regine had actually transferred from the Thieves’ Guild to the Assassin’s Guild. While both guilds lived in the dark underbelly of society, there were some very fundamental differences between the two.

The Thieves’ Guild mainly operated in the realm of information peddling, fencing stolen goods, and the procurement of said stolen goods. Members had to live by the guild’s tenet of not killing under any circumstances, not even by mistake. Should anyone be found breaking this tenet, a light punishment would be to cripple this member and then kick him out. A heavier punishment would be death.

Naturally, this only applied to when they were carrying out missions.

The Assassin’s Guild, on the other hand, did not have such a restriction. After all, their whole existence was to kill the target in exchange for a monetary reward. Anyone who got in the way of this mission was expandable. However, members weren’t allowed to steal on the job. While they were off the job, they weren’t allowed to kill without reason either.

As for the possessions of the killed target… that was called looting, not stealing.

Not too long ago, Regine met one of her juniors from her Thieves’ Guild days, a female Thief known as Jill. Apparently, Jill used to be a noble of Tarnia. Because her family was destroyed by a political rival, she ended up being the only survivor of her family.

Being her senior, Regine was highly respected by Jill. Because our objective, Nicole, was last seen in Azure City, a city of Tarnia, Regine decided after some deliberation that we should first make contact with Jill. After all, who knew what kind of repercussions my inadvertent encounter with the Demon Hunters had -it would be safer to find a familiar contact first, instead of rushing into the city unprepared.

By using a magical tool, Regine was able to inform Jill ahead of our arrival. She quickly replied with a location we could meet first. It was set in the wilderness. Our contact Jill was a blonde, short-haired young girl that wore a black, form-fitting leather armor. Whenever she spoke, she would always have a smirk on her face.

Upon our arrival at the meeting point, Jill made her entrance by leaping off a tree branch ahead of us. She landed nimbly and leaned back on the tree trunk like a dashing rogue. “Regine.” She waved as she greeted her senior. “It has been a while, what business do you have with me today?”

Regine did not answer her question directly however. “This here is my master.” She then stepped back a little to make space for me. “Master needs your help.”

“Oh? When did you gain a master? Why haven’t I been informed of that?” Said Jill as she folded both hands behind her back and peered intently at me. “Hello there, master of my senior, Regine.”

Now that’s a strange way to address me.

However, being a man of culture, I wasn’t about to be impolite after the courtesy she showed me. “Hello to you too. You may address me as just Mo Ke.”

“All right. Lady Mo Ke.” She happily grinned back at me. “Who would’ve thought that my senior’s master would be such a beautiful lady. I’m a little jealous right now.”

“Errr… about that… I’m actually a man.”

‘I’m a man’ is basically my catchphrase at this point…

“Pfft… you’re a man? Hahahahaha… no way… please, you’re killing me here, sister. How are you a man? What a joke… hahahaha…”

I… sigh… what can I even say to such a cute girl. It’s not like I never expected this. You know what, I give up.