Free Web NovelChapter 122: Chapter 122 Ambush Move_1
While analyzing Presia’s intention to transfer to the Rose Iron Prison, Aiden had already considered the possibility that after repeated setbacks, Presia had set her sights on him, especially since he had now confirmed that she possessed a deadly weapon capable of "possessing" others.
Putting himself in her shoes, Presia’s situation was actually quite difficult. She had lost the "credential of the Great Witch," and was also unable to break away from the Heretic Judgment Bureau to rescue Daili from the Rose Iron Prison.
If Aiden were in her position, holding the weapon of possession, there were two methods he could think of.
One was to find a random person to switch bodies with again, and then directly flee Silvertown to disappear without a trace—two consecutive body swaps would almost certainly mean a leak of her magical information.
The other was to take a gamble and find an opportunity to take over the body of the warden of the Rose Iron Prison, rescue Daili, and then flee.
From a profit standpoint, the latter was clearly the better option.
If Presia’s thinking were even more sophisticated, and she realized the possibility that he had discovered the truth, an attack on him would become an even more necessary choice.
Not to mention, the former Aiden was already one of Presia’s targets to eliminate.
Of course, even if Presia had resolved to kill him, she didn’t necessarily have to choose this very night, just as he was about to leave the prison, to act. Honestly, although Aiden had considered this possibility before leaving the prison, deep down he still thought it wasn’t very likely.
Fortunately, he hadn’t entirely dismissed the idea and had chosen to add a layer of protection for himself... no, to be precise, two layers.
Just like when he dealt with the gangs last time, he had Daili’s shadow demon and Asenna’s guardian spirits attach to him in advance—since it didn’t cost much, it was better to have this buff than not, and it was prudent to take extra precautions on life-threatening matters.
The reason he was able to notice someone trailing him was precisely because of the shadow demon in his shadow that sensed the rapidly approaching shadow, which squirmed beside his foot as a reminder.
With these two layers of protection, Aiden estimated that his current combat ability could perhaps surpass Presia’s, so when he noticed someone was following him, he wasn’t very panicked.
Handing Presia over to the Heretic Judgment Bureau was the safest approach, but if the situation escalated to a point where he had to confront her in a magical battle, he would definitely have no choice but to fight back.
The shadow demon hadn’t noticed the tracker before, which should mean they hadn’t entered the range. But now they had fully entered this range... which indicated that the tracker was closing the distance with him.
If the tracker really was Presia, by now she should have realized that he wasn’t planning to go home after work, but was heading to the Heretic Judgment Bureau late at night—what this implied was self-evident.
Thus, this closing distance was likely a precursor to an attack, as dark magic was generally more potent the closer the distance.
If Presia was the target approximately thirty meters away, she had already entered the range of the shadow demon. Now he could use it to subdue her with action...
No, he couldn’t be completely certain Presia would counterattack at this distance. Presia hadn’t made a move, perhaps only out of caution.
Presia was surely wary of him; he remembered vividly her nervous appearance when he suddenly visited her the day before.
The physical assault of Daili’s shadow demon was an absolute physical attack method. But Presia was a caster, completely different from the gang gunmen he had faced in the past.
An armed thug wasn’t scary because they could only use guns; once physically subdued, he posed no threat.
But casters were different. Skilled casters could cast spells through silent incantations, even when being choked—the physical constraints did not eliminate their threat... unless you killed them outright.
However, Aiden couldn’t do that. If the tracker was truly Presia, then that body belonged to Rebecca.
He must capture Presia alive in order to have her lift the memory seal and switch the bodies back.
He had to strike first, and to do so in a way that would render the opponent completely unconscious.
As for the investigator that Harold sent to monitor Rebecca, it’s unlikely that person could offer any help. Harold wasn’t aware that the current Rebecca was Presia and it was difficult to imagine he would assign an elite Judge capable of handling a Great Witch to such mundane surveillance duties.
He could handle it on his own; just ahead, there was a corner where he could make his move.
Having made up his mind, Aiden immediately quickened his pace.
As he expected, he immediately felt the person following him pick up their pace as well.
Then, Aiden passed around the corner, temporarily disappearing from the follower’s sight, and after taking a few steps, he pressed himself against the wall, drew his pistol, and summoned Asenna’s guardian spirit.
The shadow demon could clearly sense the closer of the followers accelerating towards him, while the one a bit further away, though a step slower, also began to speed up.
Here they come!
Aiden fixed his gaze on the corner, watching as a figure suddenly flashed into view.
The streetlight on the corner illuminated the face of the person... "Rebecca"!
Presia!
Upon seeing the gun Aiden was pointing at her, and the huge ghost that appeared before her, Presia’s eyes widened in shock.
She reflexively reached behind her back, but Aiden, prepared for this, was much faster.
Suddenly, a large skull ghost face appeared underneath the cloak of the shadow demon, and it let out a soul-shattering roar towards Presia.
The "Wraith’s Roar" from such a close range instantly blanked Presia’s eyes, and she lost consciousness on the spot. freewebnσvel.cѳm
Aiden quickly summoned a claw of the shadow demon under her shadow to catch her, preventing her from falling directly to the ground.
Aiden looked at Rebecca in front of him, breathing a sigh of relief in his heart.
Good, that’s settled.
It was quite a surprise that this person suddenly started following him, but he was well prepared.
"Ugh!" A somewhat pained female voice came from the direction Aiden had come from.
Aiden stepped out from the corner and looked towards the sound, where he saw an unfamiliar woman standing not far away, holding her head as if dizzy from drunkenness, with one hand bracing against the streetlight.
She must be the second follower, one of Harold’s watchers, and seemingly one Aiden didn’t recognize.
Although they were still a bit far apart, she was likely affected by the Wraith’s Roar as well.
"Are you alright?" Aiden called out to her, confirming their identity right away, "I’m Aiden Galahad, warden of the Rose Iron Prison, former senior Judge of the Inquisition Bureau. You’re the watcher assigned by the bureau chief to monitor Rebecca, aren’t you?"
"I’m fine..." The woman seemed to have recovered slightly, carefully sizing up the situation, "What exactly was that just now?"
"Don’t be anxious, my action was meant to apprehend a suspect..." Aiden explained while glancing at Presia bound by the shadow demon.
But that glance suddenly made him freeze.
A moment ago, he was facing Presia’s front, now his perspective had shifted to behind the unconscious Presia.
On Presia’s lower back... there seemed to be a gun holstered.
