Chapter 21 — Sacrifice [11] - Aftermath

Watching Eshara collapse to the ground, Liora withdrew her hand, her expression unmoved.

She felt no guilt for ending her life. The thought of sparing her had never even crossed her mind, much less been given consideration.

Although she knew that Eshara’s betrayal was a result of the Soul Devil’s orders, she had no intention of showing mercy.

"It’s impossible for me to forgive someone who’s threatened me.", Liora whispered.

She stared at what remained of her former companion, letting the wound on her shoulder heal.

Her Low-Level Regeneration showed its function for the first time, and coupled with the Myriad Devils Armor and its new effect, it didn’t take long for her injury to heal completely.

Then, she turned to the side.

"Aren’t you going to show yourself? I know you’re here.", Liora spoke, her gaze shifting toward a certain corner of the room.

But no one responded to her words, as if she had gone insane and was talking to herself.

"Then don’t blame me.", Liora exhaled softly, stepping toward the corner.

Her steps were slow yet steady, and before long, she stood in front of the seemingly empty corner.

Staring down, she calmly raised her hand and reached down.

Soon, something surprising occurred.

After her hand traveled halfway down, it vanished completely, as if erased from existence. Yet, she could still feel it there.

Without a trace of panic, Liora kept reaching deeper.

It was only when her arm was buried up to the shoulder that she pulled her hand back.

But unlike mere moments ago, she was no longer empty-handed.

In her palm floated a tiny transparent figure with a human body and a horse face, clasped in between her fingers.

Liora looked down at it, and the figure did the same, observing her intently.

"I didn’t expect that you’d be the one to emerge victorious. Both the Soul Devil and I have been planning for so long, but in the end, we both failed.", the figure broke the silence.

Its words, coupled with its appearance, revealed its identity—it was the Horse-Faced Devil.

Despite being in Liora’s hands, the Horse-Faced Devil didn’t panic, but remained composed.

"How did you find me?", she asked, her translucent eyes flashing with curiosity.

In response, Liora shook her head.

"I’ve already seen you inscribe a hidden formation without the Soul Devil or anyone else noticing. If you can do it once, nothing is stopping you from doing it twice.", she paused before adding:

"If it were not for having witnessed your formation achievements, even I might have been fooled."

Her words were clearly praise, but the Horse-Faced Devil couldn’t feel any joy.

She let out a dry laugh, her face filled with disappointment.

"Is that so? So, is it my fault that I got discovered?", she joked, seemingly finding the irony within the situation.

It took her a few moments to recover.

Then, as if she had made a tough decision, she took a deep look at Liora and spoke:

"Unlike the others, my purpose was never to kill the Soul Devil. I only wanted her Devil Rune Legacy. As long as I obtained it, and given enough time, I’d be sure to enter the Crucible Ranking."

"Unfortunately, I didn’t expect that the Soul Devil was so powerful and that everything was guided by her."

Saying this, the Horse-Faced Devil’s voice rose higher, and her tone lost its original calmness.

"If it were not for the Demon World, how could I end up like this?! It’s because the Demon World is unfair! You’ve all obtained such fancy and powerful abilities, but I got nothing!"

"Do you know what ability my bloodline granted me?", the Horse-Faced Devil cried out. She didn’t wait for Liora to reply and answered on her own.

"Extraordinary hearing! That’s my only bloodline ability!"

Looking at the Horse-Faced Devil venting her anger during the last moments of her life, Liora didn’t interrupt her.

She could understand her. Awakening Extraordinary Hearing—an ability that merely improved hearing— was perhaps the weakest and most embarrassing ability that a Devil could possibly awaken.

If anything, the fact that the Horse-Faced Devil had been able to reach this point was a testament to her talent and high intelligence.

Perhaps just like she said, if she were given enough time, she’d be able to enter the Crucible Ranking.

Unfortunately, she met her.

"Any last words?", Liora asked when she noticed that she was finished venting.

Her words jolted the Horse-Faced Devil awake, and she immediately nodded her head.

"Yes. I can tell you where the Soul Devil placed the Devil Rune Legacy. I only ask you to do one thing for me.", the Horse-Faced Devil said, and under Liora’s puzzled expression, she continued.

She didn’t ask Liora to swear that she would keep her word, nor did she try to bargain, but she straight up said the location of the Devil Rune Legacy.

The moment she was finished speaking, the Horse-Faced Devil’s expression twisted.

Her translucent figure flickered, like a candle that was about to go out.

Suddenly, she slipped free from Liora’s grasp, teleporting before her and diving into her body.

"All I need you to do is to give me your body!", the Horse-Faced Devil’s terrifying whisper echoed in Liora’s ears.

The next moment, Liora sensed a newborn consciousness within her, which was attempting to wipe out her soul.

But before that consciousness could do any damage, the crimson veins of the Myriad Devils Armor pulsed.

Instantly, the last trace of the Horse-Faced Devil was erased, becoming nourishment for the armor and Evolution Points for the System.

Throughout this whole time, Liora showed no change of expression, as if she had expected it.

"Sure enough, you had another plan.", she muttered.

Her voice didn’t contain emotions such as fear, relief, or even hatred, but admiration.

That’s right. Liora admired the Horse-Faced Devil.

She had seen the Soul Devil and Eshara beg for their lives at their final moments, humiliating themselves in the process.

Compared to them, this kind of person, who was willing to risk their life for a slight chance of surviving, was worthy of admiration.

After all, the Horse-Faced Devil knew that Liora had killed the Soul Devil and must have guessed that she had some kind of resistance to soul attacks.

Yet, she still chose to attempt to possess her body.

"A worthy opponent.", Liora commented, casting one last glance around the underground chamber.

With the Horse-Faced Devil gone, she stood alone—the only survivor left in both the room and the underground maze.

At last, everything was over.