“Priestess, are you really… not going to eat?”
Molly’s question had barely left her lips before the two Priestesses looked up and realized that the bowl of plain noodle soup in front of her was already empty.
The whole process was lightning fast.
They only saw a blur, heard a flurry of hurried “slurp slurp” sounds, and when they looked again, Molly’s bowl was left with just a little clear broth—every last noodle was gone.
She was even staring hungrily at the two untouched bowls of noodles in front of the Priestesses.
The older Priestess swallowed with difficulty.
Seeing Molly’s unsatisfied expression—even licking her lips—she couldn’t help but ask, “You ate that fast… are you really alright?”
He couldn’t imagine how anyone could wolf down those utterly tasteless noodles like a tornado.
“Of course I’m fine!”
Molly wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth at the Priestess’s words, put her hands on her hips, and said proudly, “As long as I eat all the noodles before my taste buds catch up, my mouth won’t feel how bland it is!”
The two Priestesses were left speechless.
They looked at the triumphant Molly, then down at the two oil-less, flavorless bowls of noodles in front of them, and finally, without a word, pushed the two bowls toward her.
“Go ahead, eat. We’ve already eaten, really.”
“Thank you, Priestess!”
Molly took the noodles and, in just a few bites, polished off both bowls.
“Wow~ I never get to eat anything this tasty on normal days.”
Seeing Molly’s face full of happiness, the two Priestesses felt pangs of guilt gnawing at their hearts.
After collecting himself, the Priestess who’d saved Molly earlier spoke up again.
“Molly… no, you’re not Molly anymore. You’re Satania now. The organization has a very important mission for you.”
Hearing the solemn “a great task bestowed upon you” tone, Satania immediately sat up straighter.
After downing the last sip of broth in her bowl, she looked at the two Priestesses and said, “Priestess, please tell me.
As long as it’s a mission I can do, no matter if I have to climb mountains of blades or plunge into seas of fire, I won’t shirk from it!”
Looking at this fired-up, loyal member who looked just about ready to shout “Long live the organization!”, the Priestess’s lips twitched ever so slightly.
He forcefully suppressed the complicated emotions rising inside, cleared his throat, and kept his tone grave.
“According to the organization’s investigation, that mysterious Sister Litt you mentioned always has someone close by her. That’s none other than the former Dawnblade member—the Great Magician of Creation, Red.”
The Priestess’s mind flashed back to the explosion on Open Day.
That should have been a fatal blow, but he could all but confirm that it was this damned Great Magician of Creation who, using some unknown method, forcibly neutralized the core impact of the spell formation, which was why Litt only suffered superficial injuries.
“The Great Magician of Creation, Red…”
Satania repeated the name quietly, frowning as she tried to process the information the Priestess had given her.
Suddenly, her eyes lit up, as if she had instantly grasped the organization’s true intent, and an “I got this!” look of excitement appeared on her face.
“You want me… to use my feminine wiles to get close to Red? Then seduce him, make him betray Litt, and personally… do her in?”
As she spoke, she made a slicing motion across her neck.
“Priestess? Why aren’t you saying anything?”
The two Priestesses really wanted to question where on earth Satania got that confidence.
Never mind anything else, but with that silly face of hers, there was no way she could compare to Litt in any way.
But although both of them wanted to complain, they were so in sync they didn’t say it out loud.
Instead, they gave Satania the most sympathetic, caring look imaginable.
“Satania! The organization will never, ever allow its members to sell their bodies or souls to achieve any goal! That is the baseline, and our principle!”
His voice was resolute and powerful, as if proclaiming to the whole world the organization’s lofty morals.
The Priestess’s righteous declaration moved Satania to tears.
“Priestess… sniff… then… what exactly am I supposed to do?”
At that, the Priestess paused to think, as if plotting a new scheme.
He quickly organized his thoughts and said to Satania, “Red left Dawnblade and doesn’t get along with those Hero Party people. Maybe you could try to win them over. Our Black Church may not be big, but we do have some things to offer.”
Saying that, the Priestess rummaged through his robes for a bit, then slowly pulled out two slender glass bottles.
Inside, a thick liquid, red as blood, filled the bottles.
Under the dim light, it seemed to pulse with a life of its own, exuding a baleful, chilling scarlet glow.
“One of these is for you, and the other is for Dawnblade. I believe, once they see the power contained in this Potion, they’ll know exactly what we’re offering…”
The Priestess paused, then sneered, “Who says the only way to Divinity Ascension is to go get yourself killed in a dungeon?”
But Satania didn’t hear the Priestess’s muttered comment.
She held the two bottles, eyes fixed intently.
She had to admit, just the evil luster of this Potion was enough to make one shudder, but not only was Satania unafraid, she was actually quite excited as she held it, saying with a chilling tone, “Hehehe… so this is the legendary Forbidden Power?”
The Priestess froze for a second at that, then nodded in agreement, “In a way, yes, this is Forbidden Power, but it’s mainly for boosting your own strength.”
“I definitely won’t let the organization down. I promise to complete my mission!”
Satania snapped off a somewhat awkward salute, and after watching the two Priestesses leave, picked up her own bottle of Potion and gazed at it for a long time.
“If I drink this, I’ll probably gain incredible power. Maybe I should try it now?”
With that thought, Satania pulled out the stopper, about to pour it into her mouth—when she suddenly stopped.
She looked at the red Potion in her hand, then at the potato flour not far away.
After a long moment’s thought—
“Huh? This stuff… smells kind of… salty and spicy?”
Satania’s little nose twitched as she seriously analyzed it.
“Drinking it straight would be a waste. But if I mix it into the dough for flavor, wouldn’t that make the best use of it? Such a rare seasoning!”
Her stomach began to rumble hungrily again.
“Ah… come to think of it, I’ve only had those three bowls of noodles in the past two days, right? A little more won’t hurt.”
No sooner said than done! Initiative was one of Satania’s best traits.
Without hesitation, she poured the entire bottle of dark red, ominously glowing blood-red Potion into the bowl of pale potato flour with a “whoosh.”
Then, after adding the right amount of water, she rolled up her sleeves and began kneading.
Mix, squeeze, knead, punch, pound…
After about half an hour, the plain potato flour had turned into a ball of blood-red dough.
“Wow~ This actually looks super appetizing.”
She divided the dough into small balls the size of dumplings, and put them into a pot to boil.
When they were cooked, she fished them out, blew on one impatiently, and popped it into her mouth.
“Mm…!”
Satania’s eyes narrowed instantly, cheeks puffed out as she chewed quickly, her face lighting up in delight and satisfaction.
“Tasty! Really! A little salty, a little spicy, and there’s… hmm, something I can’t quite describe.”
She gulped them down, barely pausing to praise in between mouthfuls.
“It fills my belly and boosts my strength—this is… awesome!”
Like a whirlwind, she finished off the entire pot of blood-red dumplings, not even leaving the soup behind.
She patted her slightly rounded belly with satisfaction and even let out a little burp.
“Burp~ Power… is surging… gurgle gurgle—!!!”
Before she could even finish the word “surging,” the girl dashed for the toilet.
“Whew.”
Satania let out a long breath, then habitually reached for some paper, but—
Empty.
“Huh?! There’s no paper?!”
***
Elsewhere, Letia was walking down the street.
To find out exactly where the people who attacked her—no, who attacked Litt—were hiding, she decided to return to the scene for another look.
But just as she passed the White Church, a weak voice sounded in her ear.
Letia looked around, but saw no one.
It sounded like the voice was coming from a small house nearby.
She turned to look, but still couldn’t spot anyone.
“Kind passerby, could you pick a couple of leaves for me?”
At that moment, Letia finally noticed: inside a palm-sized air vent, someone was talking to her.
“Yes… just those big leaves next to you, could you pick me a couple… There’s no paper left in the toilet.”
Somehow, this felt like a rather sad story, and why did the voice make her ears feel oddly hot?
“Here you go.”
Letia plucked several leaves and passed them in, and just then, through the palm-sized vent, she finally got a good look at who was inside.
Wasn’t this the nun who tried to kidnap Litt before?
Wasn’t her name Molly?
Had she been released?
As Letia was thinking, Molly also dashed out of the house, grabbed Letia’s hand, and tearfully said, “Thank you so much! Boohoo… If it weren’t for you, I don’t know how long I would’ve been stuck in there!”
Letia was left speechless for a moment.
She hadn’t noticed it before, but now she was sure—this girl was definitely an idiot.
“Nice to meet you! My name is Satania. What’s yours?”
Confirmed—just by the name, she’s an idiot.
“I’m Letia.”
But she’s with the Black Church.
Shouldn’t I make use of this chance while I can?
Oh, just leave the poor thing alone.
Remind me of certain Satanichia