Free Web NovelHypnosis was, in truth, a very simple technique, one that anyone could learn.
But mastering it was far more difficult.
Even someone as strong as Vieya had, back in her Hero days years ago, already reached the beginner’s level in the art of hypnosis. Making her target relax their guard and leading them into shallow suggestion for questioning was a trick she could pull off easily.
But true mastery was far too difficult, far too troublesome. It required massive amounts of reading and practice.
And in the eyes of the masses, those who had mastered hypnosis were never considered good people. Each and every one of them was seen as calculating, scheming, killers who left no trace of blood.
Vieya’s reason for dabbling in such a crooked path back then had been mainly to cooperate with Flaviel.
Unfortunately, it had been far, far too long since she had used such things.
She was rusty.
So much so that Xiao Lü by her side even wondered whether this group of night watchmen had been subdued by her intimidation, or whether they had been hypnotized.
“I ask, you answer.”
As the rain weakened, the impatience in Vieya’s heart gradually faded. She truly felt rather calm now.
Counting the time from her past life as well, she, Vieya, was already a mature woman in her thirties!
What sort of storms and waves had she not already weathered?
Why bother to argue with these little brats, who were younger than her?
The nighttime street lay silent and empty. A group of night watchmen, in a posture of humiliation, knelt on the ground, paying respects to the white-haired little girl standing in their midst.
That little girl, hands on her hips, scolded them. Her face was tender and cute, yet she had the commanding air of a superior inspecting subordinates on duty.
“What exactly are you night watchmen doing? A squad on the same mission lost contact, and you failed to notice?!”
“S-sorry!”
The small leader of the kneeling night watchmen whispered. He himself did not know why he feared this cocky little brat before him, why he apologized even after being beaten. He only felt that her strength was unfathomable, that she must have some great background, and the pressure smothered even the thought of resistance.
Whimper, whimper.
The seniors had said it, and sure enough it was true.
These days, anyone daring to walk alone at night was no simple lamp to be wasted.
The little leader stammered with terror, “Every squad has its own task. Without orders from above, what can a mere sub-captain like me possibly do?”
This was not something she should have to care about, but Vieya had once had some dealings with the night watchmen organization, so she asked anyway:
“When your comrades went missing, you could not even make a report? The once-disciplined organization has decayed so badly within? Truly disappointing...”
“And not only that—your bodies are already tainted...” freeωebnovēl.c૦m
“Yes yes yes, my lady, you are right! We shall strip off our clothes and wash ourselves in the rain to cleanse the filth from the evil god’s taint!”
“Spit! Who told you to strip naked in the street?! Do you want to ruin the cityscape?!”
“Yes yes yes, my lady, you are right! We are trash, we are garbage of the city, unrecyclable wet waste. So, my lady, can you please not make us kneel anymore?” the little leader said with a face full of fawning smiles.
That cocky brat before them, though high and mighty, though invincible, was doing good deeds. Not only did she remind them of the unclean taint on their bodies, she even kindly helped them to get rid of it. That was true benevolence!
But the pity was this:
After the loss of faith in the Night Hero, the once disciplined and strict night watchmen had long since ceased to exist. The Black Night Knights, once their strongest fighting force, had all left, roaming the four borders. The senior administrators who maintained operations had jumped ship as well. Those left behind were forming factions and gangs, plunging the whole into chaos.
What remained now was nothing but a decayed husk.
“My lady!”
The night watchmen’s little leader, still smiling, suddenly felt a surge of sorrow. As though in Vieya’s figure he saw the silhouette of the strongest Hero of old, he choked up.
“What... what will become of our night watchmen, who once were loyal to humanity...”
Sadness was contagious. The other watchmen did not know why their leader had suddenly choked up, overcome with grief. But the best choice at the moment was to follow him and kneel honestly in the rain as a clan of water-logged kneelers.
Thud!
Thud!
“What, did I tell you to kneel...?”
Just now you were fighting ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) and cursing me with contempt in every word, and now you change your tune?
Do you not lose points for changing faces this fast when playing games?
Vieya stepped back a pace, lest they suddenly collapse against her legs sobbing.
What nonsense, people might think I’m the one bullying you here...
Facing what was once her fan club, Vieya’s cold face grew stern.
She snapped her black umbrella shut, and the tip struck the ground.
Thump!
“Stand up, you are not—”
Suddenly!
Just as she was lecturing the night watchmen, alarm bells rang in Vieya’s heart!
In the empty alley, rainwater rushed noisily into the drains. If one listened closely, one could hear the fearful panting of the night watchmen.
From the road Vieya had come along, a black dot appeared.
That dot grew larger, moving faster and faster.
Vieya swallowed the words on her lips and slowly turned. ƒгeewebnovёl.com
The dot gradually sharpened, clearly showing the outline of a human.
The figure did not walk. Its toes hovered five or six centimeters above the ground.
It simply glided toward them, unhurried yet inexorable.
“Yeye-sis! Run!” Xiao Lü suddenly screamed, her tone trembling in a way rarely heard. “She’s coming for you!”
Vieya’s heart also grew heavy.
Why was Xiao Lü urging her so desperately to leave?
Was there truly someone in this world who could threaten her head-on?
Hm? Coming for me...
Vieya froze. Could the pursuers from the Tribunal have come so quickly? No, impossible!
The rain of light from that high-tier magic had already ceased.
The vague figure became clearer and clearer.
It was a girl.
A girl in a black dress, smiling as she approached.
