Chapter 115 Return - Stop Hypnotizing Me, Villainous Princess!

Augusta Manor, inside the reception room. With Evester's sudden announcement, the room fell into a brief silence. It seemed that everyone was stunned by her words, somewhat at a loss. In their previous impressions, although Her Highness had stumbled on her path, she had never given up on her dream of becoming the new ruler of the Holy Roland Empire. No one knew where this obsession came from, but it was fearsome in its intensity. Anyone else, having lived a life like hers, would have probably broken down long ago and become a shell of a person. Because of this, many people, while fearful of Evester, also harbored a certain respect for her. Outsiders might not know, but as subordinates, they understood just how challenging things were for Her Highness. Thus, along the way, everyone was prepared to dedicate their lives to her dream. But now, something seemed to have changed. The princess who would not be defeated by any setback was actually speaking of giving up on the throne in front of the Sacred Oak Tree emissary? What on earth happened?! Not only Morris and Greya, but even Duke Tyrus's expression changed. “Your Highness, watch your words!” He looked at Evester with a stern expression. But after locking eyes with her cold, blood-red gaze for just a second, an unsettling feeling crept over him. What on earth is she planning?! On the other side, with Duke Tyrus taking the lead in advising her, the surrounding subordinates began to urge her as well. “Have you forgotten your past ideals?” “Yes, Your Highness, the throne contest has just entered the first phase. Even though several princes have accumulated points from previous years, it doesn’t mean you don’t stand a chance.” “It’s just over five hundred points. We can figure out a way to help you gather them!” Their words mingled together. However, they were all acutely aware. Without Lynn, it was almost impossible to achieve the feat of garnering over five hundred points in less than two weeks with their abilities. Yet no one wanted to give up just like that. Unfortunately, Evester seemed unfazed by their words. After her announcement, she returned to her usual calm and indifferent demeanor, as if nothing could interest her. At that moment, the brown-haired boy from the Sacred Oak Tree institution bowed slightly. “Apologies, Lady Evester.” “You must understand, the Sacred Oak Tree institution is only responsible for ensuring the normal operation of the throne contest, ranking sequences, and scoring. Your wish to withdraw is beyond our jurisdiction.” “Unless eliminated by the rules or in the event of your death, we have no right to strip you of your contest qualification.” “Moreover, the decision doesn’t really lie with you,” the Sacred Oak Tree emissary said with a tranquil voice. “Participation in the contest is a duty that every royal must fulfill, not something to be treated capriciously.” “So, please strive to achieve results within the remaining time and bring your score out of the negatives.” “If you fail to meet the target in two weeks, there will be no need for you to withdraw voluntarily; I would personally come to announce your elimination.” The brown-haired boy logically explained. Clearly, he rejected Evester's request. Yet, it seemed to make little difference. Evester herself was entirely void of any intent to participate in the contest, solely focused on withdrawing. Under such circumstances, no amount of urging could change her resolve. Evester remained silent as the atmosphere around her turned increasingly frigid. Seeing this, Afia, her eyes slightly reddened, nodded to the others with a complex expression, then helped to escort the princess out of the reception room. It was indeed them. Feeling the cold blade edge against his neck, Lynn's expression remained unruffled. There might be other forces at work behind the scenes, but the leading contenders were the Mosgra and the Doctrine of Providence Church. There was no need to expound on the Mosgra family; he personally slew their heir Darrion at the banquet, and coupled with past enmities, reconciliation was out of the question. The Doctrine of Providence Church was much the same. He had personally dismantled their faith in Orne City and later, using the power of the Creation Demon, instantaneously killed over a hundred transcendents. That was undeniably a considerable force. For a common first-tier transcendent, especially those who believed in "Providence," their supernatural abilities often possessed considerable destructive power, many related to gravity, airflow, and magnetic fields. Facing dozens of well-trained soldiers simultaneously would hardly place them at a disadvantage. At least in these border cities, the involvement of over a hundred low-tier transcendents would be comparable to a military force nearly ten thousand strong. But Lynn eradicated them entirely. Which equated to thoroughly antagonizing the Doctrine of Providence Church. Thus, they urgently dispatched people to the Sorren Mountain Range to hunt for his whereabouts. Naturally, to confirm his death. “You don’t seem afraid at all?” Noticing Lynn’s calm demeanor, the burly leader of the mercenaries showed a hint of surprise. His skin glowed with a pale blue tint of the God-given Factor, leaving his faith momentarily unclear. A second-tier and two first-tiers. Given this, there was no point in wasting time. Gazing at the corpse of the loyal guard lying in a pool of blood, Lynn’s face was utterly indifferent. “Of course I'm not afraid.” He gently pinched the blade poised at his neck. “Because dead men can’t kill.” “Dead men?” “That’s right.” As he spoke, scarlet light gleamed from Lynn’s eyes. “You all are already dead.” “And dead men cannot kill.” He uttered his lie deliberately. With the Surrogate Liar’s power wavering, the invisible influence of his lie imprinted itself like a curse in the trio’s minds. The first to falter were the two first-tier transcendents behind. In an instant, they couldn’t resist the Liar’s effect, accepting the reality that they were already dead, eyes wide with disbelief etched on their faces. Subsequently, their rigid bodies collapsed heavily to the ground. In a past life, Lynn had seen similar cases. Some people dreamt of their death, and subconsciously believed the signal, truly slipping into a state of brain death. And that was exactly what Lynn accomplished here. Am I... already dead? As the sole second-tier transcendent, the burly mercenary’s gaze suddenly turned hollow as he loosened his grip on the sword. In the next second, his massive bear-like body crashed to the ground, raising a cloud of dust. In just five seconds, with merely a few words, he killed three not-so-weak transcendents. Such was Lynn’s current strength. With the system’s presence, he tapped into his full God-given Factor and, with the witch's assistance, underwent a secondary enhancement. He was now not merely several times stronger than the second-tier transcendent. In the realm of transcendence, those with superior abilities wield such terrifying power over those below them. And the quantity and quality of a God-given Factor determined everything. Of course, the way Lynn wielded the Surrogate Liar’s power worked only on weak-minded opponents, causing those with frail mental resilience some anguish. Against a more formidable second-tier transcendent, or someone with psychic sealing artifacts, it would be impossible to kill through lies. Lynn crouched, stripping clothing from the corpses to fit his needs. Then he wielded the long sword as a trowel, dug a pit, and buried the manor guard who died searching for him. After finishing, he set a brisk pace, leaving the mountains behind. In the carriage, Duke Tyrus pinched the bridge of his nose, overwhelmed. After Evester exited the reception room, he had caught up with her, attempting to dissuade her from choosing to give up so quickly. Although earning 576 points in two weeks was quite challenging, with his assistance, there was still some hope. But ultimately, this required Evester’s complete cooperation. Augusta Manor, a reception room. Lynn had spent over ten days dismantling the Doctrine of Providence Church's faith and collecting two million gold coins from various churches. Even so, it amounted to only 500 points. To achieve something greater than he had back then, everyone would have to exert their fullest effort. Currently, Orne City had just emerged from disaster and was in chaos, prompting Duke Tyrus to turn his attention to the demonic battlefield. For the empire, the demonic forces were undoubtedly the most troublesome foes. Although a ceasefire agreement had just been signed not long ago, Duke Tyrus knew that was mere façade, the conflict could easily reignite at any moment. In fact, he had previously come to the border city to reclaim taxes in order to gather military funds. Now, perhaps it was the perfect time to initiate an attack. After all, he hardly expected the demonic forces to abide by any agreement. Since that was the case, why couldn’t they launch the offensive first? Gaining military merit would undoubtedly be an excellent way to quickly accumulate points for the throne contest. Evester’s starting foundation was indeed too weak. Compared to the second prince's daunting score of over ten thousand points, it was despairingly out of reach. Aside from Evester, the other princes and princesses had the backing of their maternal families, with many influential nobles and churches betting on them. They had been accumulating points in secret for the throne contest for many years, hence the terrifying results. From the perspective of Duke Tyrus, obtaining 1,500 points by resolving a Class 0 seal incident was an extraordinarily generous reward—so much so that even he found it hard to imagine. After all, in the view of those in the imperial capital, the incident only affected a border town and caused the deaths of thousands of low-value individuals, essentially amounting to no loss. Consider further. Within a mere month of arriving at Augusta Manor, Lynn helped Evester gather 3,000 throne contest points, nearly a third of what the second prince, Ferit, had achieved. If Evester’s foundation hadn’t been so poor, she might have already reached sixth or seventh place by now. In just one month! That was merely one month! Accomplishing this in such a short time would have shocked even Ferit himself. It was akin to holding him and the nobles and churches supporting him down, smacking them hard in the face. Ferit achieved an overwhelming lead in the rankings and amassed over ten thousand points over the years by utilizing various resources, both visible and hidden. If these were converted into gold coins, they would amount to more than twenty million. Yet Lynn did it with just his mouth and hands. No wonder the second prince was so eager to meet him, willing to spend three hundred thousand gold for an encounter. Alas, this unconventional talent was now lost to the world. And Evester had shut herself off entirely. Thinking of this, Duke Tyrus sighed. He had considered severing ties with Evester since their alliance was orchestrated by Lynn. Now that he was gone, there seemed no reason to uphold the alliance. But recalling the look in the young man's eyes at their farewell—there seemed to be some deeper meaning there—Duke Tyrus felt a strange premonition arise. Could there still be a turning point? He couldn't quite pinpoint why. Everyone was certain of that person's death, but Duke Tyrus felt oddly frustrated. Would such a cunning survivor really act recklessly and give his life for a woman? A sudden thought made Duke Tyrus feel an impulsive urge. “Turn around,” he instructed his guards. “Let’s take a look at Bartleon’s estate.” At dusk, Lynn finally made his way back to Orne City, guided by his memories. Covered in dust, he looked like a handsome beggar, standing pensively at the entrance of the Bartleon estate. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss. In the twilight, the entire estate appeared somewhat eerie, devoid of light, and with its gates firmly shut. It was as if no one was inside. Lynn stopped a passerby and asked, “Excuse me.” Before he could finish, the passerby cast a glance at the estate and his expression changed. He pulled Lynn into a nearby alley and spoke in a low voice, “That estate involves many significant figures, I suggest staying away. Don’t get too close.” “Explain.” Lynn drew a few silver coins from his pocket and placed them in the man’s palm. Seeing this, the man's eyes brightened, and he glanced cautiously around before whispering, “About a month ago, the third princess Evester went mad and came here. She arrested all the servants in the estate, sentencing them to death without exception.” “Rumor has it she did this because the servants bullied that ‘noble disgrace’ when he had just been exiled there.” Lynn pondered this. It seemed that after the news of his death reached Augusta Manor, there was great sorrow. What puzzled him was why the princess, whom he had never met, had such a strong reaction. Perhaps rumors had twisted through the gossip chain, altering the story? After some thought, he waved the passerby off, “Alright, you can go now.” “Hey, I wasn’t done talking,” the passerby, seemingly a gossip enthusiast, eagerly continued as Lynn pushed him away. “They say after executing all the servants, she moved everything out of the estate related to that young master from the Bartleon family, even his clothes. Now the place is empty.” How absurd. The princess doesn't even know me, why would she take my clothes? Finally rid of the nosy busybody, Lynn returned to the estate’s entrance, feeling a bit helpless. It seemed that returning home for now would be impossible. Yet he hadn’t planned to stay, only intending to look for a few items. Namely, letters from the imperial capital. The household servants had previously confiscated those letters, and he hadn’t read a single one. Lynn was concerned about the welfare of his sister and the whereabouts of his missing sister-in-law. They, along with the child his sister-in-law carried, the last bloodline of his deceased brother, and his father, who was still comatose, were the remaining members of the Bartleon family. As he was lost in thought, an abrupt screech of brakes pierced the air. Vote for me!!!