Mage Manual
Chapter 509 - 415 Mischievous Qinna

Chapter 509: Chapter 415 Mischievous Qinna

"Please... don’t..."

"I’ll do anything you ask, just not this..."

"No!!"

With a heart-wrenching wail, Holy Sanctuary Mage Rein Mercury was thrown into the mire. But this was no ordinary mire—it was a counterfeit of the ’Soul Cleansing Pond’ from the special regions of the Time Continent. The original Soul Cleansing Pond dissolved impurities of the soul, manifesting as an improvement in a mage’s learning ability, concentration, and mental state, with positive effects lasting a week. It was considered a quite remarkable adventure mechanism.

However, the knock-off mire of Belladett didn’t have such positive effects. It could dissolve impurities, but not those of the soul. Instead, it dissolved physical impurities—including clothes and hair.

Although it was unclear why Belladett would construct such a senseless facility—it might have been a mere attempt to replicate one of the adventures in the Time Continent or maybe they simply had too much money to spend—there was no doubt that it aided Ash and his companions immensely—it was like having a mop smeared with shit right next to you in a fight.

Because after they’d given these pursuers a thorough beating as a pre-processing step, the main cooking process was up next: they needed to keep them temporarily at Belladett Manor to ensure they had no capacity to pursue for the Funeral Ceremony.

The most drastic measure would be to cause them serious disabilities or even malicious disfigurements, or even killing the other Holy Sanctuary mages. In that case, they would be absolutely unable to pursue, and even after recovery, they would certainly direct their full vengeance towards Belladett, with the infighting consuming these corporate families’ energies.

But in the end, Ash and his team dispensed with this plan.

First off, negative reputation also has its grades; ’dislike’ and ’sworn enemy’ are completely different concepts. If these corporate families initially put only 20% of their energy into dealing with the Funeral Ceremony, then after Ash and his team had tormented their members, it could rise to 70%. They would only face an even more dire situation.

Secondly, there was Liss to consider.

Among the adults, Hanna and Banjee, the two office members, not to mention them having a ’by any means necessary’ approach would be an understatement; Harvey didn’t need to be mentioned either, since no moral laws could confine him in this backward world; Ash, having been through so much and even becoming rheumatic arthritis buddies with the Death God, was well-prepared mentally, and wouldn’t fuss when it came to dirty work.

But as long as Liss was there, Ash couldn’t just stand by and watch the tone turn to deep black brutality.

However...

Ash looked at the people in the mire, who had lost all hope; their hair and clothes had dissolved, and they were stark naked in the shit-yellow mire. The scene was so repulsive that not only Liss, but even Ash felt the need for a sanity check.

The effects, however, were quite significant. Not spending a few hours bathing and growing back their hair, Rein and other mages like Zuvendas would definitely not dare to show their faces.

"Don’t look anymore, Liss. Let’s go see the pretty sister."

"Eh?" Liss was still somewhat reluctant. "I think this is quite interesting..."

"Harvey!" Ash called out to Alice. "Is it you who’s been a bad influence on Liss!?"

"Don’t you know there’s an intestine between a corpse and shit? Don’t blame everything on me," Alice replied. "Besides, it’s normal for kids to like filthy things. Only adults prefer the pretense of cleanliness."

"Who on earth would understand that!"

After dealing with the male mages, it was time for the female mages—they were spared the fate of bathing in the mire and running around naked.

It wasn’t that Ash and the rest were being chivalrous, but rather they needed a pretext to let the Six Emblems family off the hook. Conveniently, most of the people who came with Qinna were female mages, so letting them go wasn’t too conspicuous.

Although fundamentally Qinna was here to capture them, faced with the pressure from Rein and other Holy Sanctuary mages, Qinna still chose to fight other powers in order to protect them. Even if it was out of self-interest, Ash and Hanna still had to acknowledge this favor.

Harvey was the only one present who had the right to object, but just like he didn’t care that Qinna didn’t defend him earlier, he also didn’t care that Ash and the others were defending Qinna now.

But it was still necessary to give Qinna and others a bit of trouble. Fortunately, besides the mire, there was also a pond of alcohol. Though it was called a pond of alcohol, it was filled with sweet alcoholic beverages, which Ash would sometimes drink directly from when passing by.

Throwing all the female mages into it, getting their clothes wet was one thing, but more importantly, the sticky sweetness of the drink would ensure that these pampered mages of Evangelism couldn’t wait to take a bath after regaining their mobility.

Liss and little Banjee, the two kids, efficiently tossed a female mage into the alcohol pond. Taking inspiration, Ash commanded the Substitute to do the same and release the female mages.

But soon, Ash was faced with a difficult target—Qinna. Throwing a mother into the sea was something her daughter should do, yet at this moment, Hanna was chatting intimately with Nona by the alcohol pond, clearly not daring to face Qinna.

Humans really are strange. When Qinna showed strength, Hanna dared to retort defiantly; but now, when Qinna was weak and vulnerable, Hanna hid a thousand miles away. Maybe the only way Hanna interacted with Qinna was through ’resistance’ and ’suppression’. Once Qinna couldn’t suppress her, the young lady didn’t know how to deal with her mother.

But since Hanna dared not handle it, someone else had to. Scratching his head, Ash signaled the Substitute to move Qinna there; a direct offense like this against a Holy Sanctuary mage was better suited for the Substitute.

However, as soon as the Substitute reached out, Qinna bit viciously at his hand, frightening the Substitute into an immediate retreat.

The Substitute looked at Ash, pondering what to do with those who strongly resisted, as was the case with the male mages; the usual procedure was grabbing the legs of the mage, spinning them around in the air, and then flinging them into the mire. So, was it necessary to throw Hanna’s mom as well?

But they had intended to let Qinna go from the beginning, so such humiliation was definitely out of the question. With a grimace, Ash went over and extended his arms to lift her up, "Be good, don’t squirm, I’ll be quick—ugh!"

She was so heavy.

Qinna was already taller than Ash, with a robust figure and a regular fitness routine. Now that she wasn’t putting any effort into helping, naturally, she was very difficult to hold. Anyone who has ever carried a drunk person knows that the same person weighing in with willingness versus without is a starkly different burden.

"You need to use your weak Technique Spirit to work on your strength," Qinna said as if to mock him. "If holding me is this much of a struggle in the future, it’s going to kill the mood."

When would there ever be a situation again where I need to pick you up?... Ash wondered to himself.

"You holding me like this is uncomfortable for both of us, hold me tighter, let me reach out my hands," Qinna directed without any niceties, and Ash complied with her orders. Then the Elf Clan Leader slightly shifted her graceful body, pushing her center of gravity onto Ash’s torso, cunningly reducing the burden on Ash’s arms.

However, with this, Qinna’s head was nearly resting on Ash’s shoulder, making it look as if the two were whispering sweet nothings into each other’s ears.

And indeed, that was exactly what they were doing.

"Come back to Vatican Mura with me," she whispered. "You have no escape."

"That’s something you’ll have to discuss with your daughter."

"The more I tell Hanna to do something, the more she does the opposite," Qinna chuckled. "But you can persuade her, can’t you? After all, you are my daughter’s... fiancé."

Because they were so close, Qinna’s breath tickled Ash’s ear as she spoke, causing him to feel a bit itch, "Sorry, I lied to you about that, I have no relation to Hanna at all."

"Hmm," Qinna didn’t seem to care, "But she will care about your opinion, I can tell. Do you really want to keep living a life on the run with her? Don’t you want a stable life?"

"The Six Emblems can’t protect us anymore—"

"They can keep us safe." Qinna grinded her teeth demonstratively, "If I say they can keep us safe, they will."

"But I don’t want to go to Vatican Mura." Ash turned to look at her, their faces so close, their noses nearly touching, each reflecting the other’s expression, "I hate Vatican Mura."

This seemed to be an answer Qinna hadn’t expected, "Why?"

"The white mist of Vatican Mura, the mermaid scent farms of Vatican Mura, the hedonistic lifestyle of Vatican Mura—I dislike them all."

"Then what do you like? The monetary control of Belladett? Or some other city’s model?" Qinna seemed to find it amusing, "Vatican Mura’s model takes care of everyone, ensuring a happy life for all clan members, something even Mongfera couldn’t achieve... Is there really a better city than Vatican Mura?"

"There may not be a better city than Vatican Mura," said Ash. "And perhaps I won’t find a city I like in the Kingdom of Gospel either."

"Then you—"

"But that doesn’t mean I have to choose the least objectionable option." Ash crouched down and slowly lowered Qinna into the wine pool, "You know, Qinna, I’m a person who easily settles for less, and if I were to settle in Vatican Mura, there’s a good chance I’d become one of your clanspeople. So, I can’t help you persuade Hanna, because I need her to keep pushing forward recklessly until I find a place to retire... or until we obtain the Divine Lord’s wish."

"But I will convey your concern to Hanna," said Ash with a smile. "The next time I visit Vatican Mura, I hope you can still welcome me."

"No need for such trouble; I’m sure I’d capture you first, and then we’ll see each other every day and every night."

"Then I’ll just wait without expectation."

By now, Qinna’s waist was already submerged in the wine pool, and she said, "Oh, and there’s one more thing I need to tell you, come closer..."

The Cult Leader, not knowing what to expect, leaned in, and the Elf Clan Leader suddenly twisted her body, using inertia and a tilted center of gravity to drag Ash also into the wine bath, both of them bobbing in the alcoholic drink.

"Cough cough!" Ash propped up Qinna’s shoulders, half laughing and half crying, "Is this your way of retaliating against me? Can’t you see that we deliberately spared the Six Emblems?"

With her drenched hair draped over her shoulders, Qinna looked at him wistfully, smiling, "Your face is covered in liquor."

"It’s your doing..." Ash hadn’t finished speaking when he saw Qinna lean over, her smooth tongue licked across his face covered in the liquor, her warm breath igniting the alcohol’s fumes, making Ash’s entire body heat up.

"Hanna is a very stubborn child," she said seriously into Ash’s ear. "When necessary, you have to hold her back."

What else could Ash do? He could only nod agreeably, eager to get away, but before he left, he adjusted Qinna’s position to lay on her back, to prevent the liquid from blocking her nose and mouth.

Yet, this left behind a dazzling sight floating on the wine pool: an Elf beauty, drenched clothes, undulating curves, a flushed face... Ash dared not linger, lest he get swept away with Qinna back to Vatican Mura.