An Aura Farmer's Guide to Another World
Chapter 54: The Tragedy

Chapter 54: The Tragedy

In silence, we observed Joseph finalize the marriage contract with the ten brides. Afterward, he directed the nine unresisting grooms off the stage, shifting his focus to Lady Beatrice.

’Thud-thud.’

He approached Lady Beatrice, stopping short before Joséphine.

"Get out of the way, or I’ll turn you into a frog," Joseph commanded.

Joséphine thrust her double-edged sword at Joseph, the tip stopping just shy of his throat.

"I dare you to take another step," she challenged.

With a smile, Joseph placed a finger on the sword and pushed it away.

He looked at me, then swiftly turned his attention to Lady Beatrice. "Beatrice," he uttered.

Lady Beatrice recoiled deeper into our protective circle, averting her gaze.

"Don’t run away from me," Joseph said.

Joseph returned to the podium, a mere meter from where we stood. Leaning in, he held out his hand to the Bishop. "Father, hand over another contract scroll," he commanded.

The Bishop’s hands trembled as he passed over the white paper. "The Goddess will curse you for eternity," he stated.

Snatching the paper, Joseph stood on a platform in front of the podium. "I can curse those who disobey me, but the goddess can’t. If she could, every jerk in this nation would be gone."

With a creepy smile gracing his lips, Joseph held out the contract scroll to Lady Beatrice. "Come, my love," he urged, "let’s get married."

Lady Beatrice recoiled another step, her face utterly drained of color. "No... no."

Joseph moved from the podium in our direction, stopping just before Joséphine. "I know deep down you love me," he said, "no need to be shy, come out and let’s get married."

Why is he not turning Joséphine into a frog? Could it be that she has not met the conditions to activate his skill?

Lady Beatrice’s body stiffened, rigid as a rock. "I don’t love you," she responded, "and I will never marry you."

An eyebrow shot up on Joseph’s face. "You can’t be serious."

"Aaaaaah!"

For no apparent reason, he shrieked and slammed the base of his palm against his head.

"This makes no sense. I have all you could ever wish for, and I’ve declined countless proposals for your sake. How can you betray my trust now, after promising me your love?"

Joseph ran his palm over his entire face, and when his hand fell away, his features were smooth and unreadable, like carved stone.

"Here’s the game we’re going to play," Joseph said. "Every sixty seconds, one of the brides will die. I won’t stop until you surrender and agree to marry me."

He went back to the podium, put the contract scroll on the extension, and, knife in hand, pricked his thumb, letting the blood fall onto the paper.

Moving toward the line of ten brides on the podium’s east flank, Joseph called, "Hey, you."

He reached the last bride, lifted her chin, and she flinched back, her features twisting into a mask of dawning horror.

"In the next sixty seconds, unless Lady Beatrice marries me, you will die," he told her.

Joseph pulled back and glanced at Lady Beatrice. "What are you going to do?" he asked. "Are you going to let her die?"

Lady Beatrice stood frozen like a statue, tears streaming down her face as she met Joseph’s gaze. "I have sworn to the Goddess of Inevitability that I will never marry you," she responded, her voice shaky. "Nothing will break my vow."

"I wonder how long your composure will last before you break," Joseph chuckled.

Over my shoulder, I glanced at Lady Beatrice, then my eyes found Cupcake, her hand tight on her sword.

Behind us, Lucy and Evelyn were on high alert, ready to lunge at any moment.

My gaze flicked back to Joseph standing before the innocent bride. If he can command death, why isn’t he just snapping his fingers and snuffing out our lives? That would leave Lady Beatrice all to himself.

"60, 59, 58...0"

’Bam!’

The tenth bride fell to her death before our eyes. Joseph hadn’t touched her, nor did she react to any visible external force.

No one in the crowd dared to scream; they simply sat on the benches, mouths covered, terrified of becoming frogs.

Upon observing the dead bride’s corpse, I noted a bluish tint to her skin, particularly around her lips and fingernails. This wasn’t poisoning; we would have noticed that.

I found it hard to believe someone would have an instant death ability; that seemed like overkill, even for a final boss.

One of the things Lana told me was to be wary of Unique skill users, as their core level, beginner or advanced, often doesn’t matter.

Also, cores awaken when an individual experiences an intense emotion, regardless of whether that emotion is anger, love, hatred, or jealousy.

Lucy frequently exhibits anger, and I have observed her utilizing a fire-based skill. Cupcake, in contrast, is possessive and overly protective, preventing me from interacting with other women, and she employs a barrier skill. What could it be? What emotion could be associated with Joseph’s skill, and what conditions could trigger its activation?

Lady Beatrice stumbled back, tripping over her own feet. She covered her mouth and pointed toward the corpse. "She...she is dead."

Joseph crouched and lifted the hand of the dead bride. "She is indeed dead," he said, "and you could have saved her if you chose to marry me."

He stood and advanced to the next bride. Raising her chin, he locked his gaze with hers. "Sixty seconds from now, you will be dead."

A violent shudder ran through her frame, and the bride stumbled back, pressing a trembling hand to her mouth to stifle the scream that threatened to erupt, her eyes dilated with a dawning horror.

"Please save me," the ninth bride pleaded, her gaze sweeping toward us and settling on Lady Beatrice.

Lady Beatrice buried her face in her palms, tears seeping between her fingers. "I am sorry," she choked out, "I can’t get married to Joseph, not even if it cost me my own life."