Yarra’s Adventure Notes -
Chapter 657 - 21 Survive or Die_1
Chapter 657: Chapter 21 Survive or Die_1
"We meet again, little girl." Lina, with her arms crossed across her chest and leaning against the wall engraved with arrays, looked indifferently at the miserable Betty. "In theory, I came to save you. But the one who wanted to rescue you just now, after a few words with you, ran away crying, leaving her body to me. So now it’s up to me to decide whether to save you or not.""You’re different from when you were above just now. Strange. Is this what they mean when they say someone suddenly changed? Despite seeing the pitiful Betty, Ava maintained a calm expression and her voice remained steady, as if she were an emotionless machine: "Now, instead of Lina, is there another soul inside you? Have the humans of the Fourth Epoch already mastered the technique of directly replacing souls?"
"We are special, not exactly souls." Lina hummed coldly, neither denying nor affirming her earlier deception. "That coward is just an idiot. She can’t stand a sight like this? Ridiculous. She should be thrown into the battlefield of the Third Epoch. Then she’ll find out what horrifying things intelligent beings are capable of when driven mad. A coward like her wouldn’t survive a day on the battlefield. Hmph, I shouldn’t have helped her control the body, should have just left her there, forcing her to face reality."
"But you’re still concerned about her, so even with all your talk, you would still help her." Ava stated straightforwardly, "And what you want to do, forcing her to face it herself, is also because you care about her."
"Who cares if she’s okay or not." Lina huffed, and turned her head away, "Whether she lives or dies in the future is none of my business. I’m not dependent on her for existence. I just want to see the result of her idiocy of continuing to do these foolish things with Catherine. By not intervening now, I may miss witnessing that outcome, that’s why I took control over her body."
"Is that so?" Ava blinked in confusion, not quite grasping what Lina was thinking. Eventually, she set aside her doubts and pressed on with her questioning, "So what are you planning now? To help this injured woman?"
"Hmph," Lina snorted heavily, pushing off the wall to stand upright. She walked over to the altar, arms still crossed, and coolly surveyed the girl in front of her- an unsteady mass of twitching muscle. She removed the iron hoop securing the child’s head and took off the metal ring in her mouth, freeing her head, then effortlessly released a pale green divine spell. Under the aid of this spell, originating from the Life Deity System and nature, the blood seeping out from the girl’s muscles coagulated again. Only after doing all this did Lina speak in a low voice, "It hurts, doesn’t it, little girl? I can imagine how you’re feeling. Pain and desperation, anger and hatred... this is just what the ritual aims for. Despite being half-Undead, they perform the ritual quite well."
Betty’s head was free, and the pain from her body caused it to shake uncontrollably. But the swaying neck tugged at her damaged muscles, causing her greater pain, twisting the relatively intact side of her face. Lina stood by, merely watching her coldly. It was only when Betty began to violently knock the back of her head against the altar in her agony, did Lina lift her hand to release another pale green divine spell, temporarily alleviating Betty’s pain. Seeing Betty instantly quiet down, too scared to move again, Lina continued, "Now you know what pain is. Lie still, don’t move about. From now on, when I speak, you listen. When I ask a question, if you agree, open and close your mouth three times. If you disagree, keep your mouth shut. If you’re unsure, simply keep your mouth open and don’t move. Now, do you understand?"
Betty slowly opened and closed her mouth, showing that she understood. Lina nodded approvingly, asking, "I don’t know when that beast gouged out your eyes. It must have been quite early on, he probably wasn’t completely insane yet, so he was somewhat afraid of your gaze. But none of that matters anymore. My question is, do you know how badly you’re hurt?"
Betty moved her mouth to indicate her understanding. Though the movement still brought pain, the presence of the divine spell lightened the sensation significantly. Lina revealed a smirk, her eyes filled with disdain as she scoffed, "Such perfection, amplifying the fear and despair of the sacrifice by describing in detail the inflicted wounds. I bet it was those half-Undead that taught him, I don’t think that brute could devise such an effective way of torment himself. Oh, this isn’t a question, so you don’t need to answer. You can close your mouth. I know you don’t have the answers. Now for the second question, I can assure you, Lina can save you, the one who was crying and speaking with you a while ago, no no no, that wasn’t me. No need for any explanations anyway, just know she can save you. So, do you want her to save you?"
Betty’s mouth opened and closed several times, her eagerness to be saved was evident. However, Lina calmly interjected, "Don’t rush to answer, listen to me first then decide. I mainly want to prepare you for what comes next. You’re well aware, your injuries are severe; complete recovery is near impossible, and even if you recover, some symptoms will linger. I think it’s best to clear this up beforehand. First, we found your leg, you are lucky that the outdoor temperature froze it before any significant damage occurred. But the wound wasn’t treated in time and has been severed for a long period. So even if reattached, the leg will be relatively weak, and you would limp when walking. Second, the bones in your arm have been thoroughly shattered. Lina would need ten hours of surgery to barely restore it, during which you will experience excruciating pain. Even after recovery, your arm would ache in cold and damp environments. Third, your tongue can regenerate, but the cartilage within can’t recover. Unless I use Limb Regeneration, that divine spell is usable by Lina, but it would leave her in a weakened state for years, a fatal risk for an adventurer, hence it can’t be used on you. Meaning, your speech will be permanently slurred."
"Alright, after the permanent consequences, let’s discuss the temporary ones. I have checked your eyes. Due to the short period, and the automatic magic accessory administered the treatment in time, it is possible to recover. However, since your original eyes were completely damaged, newly regenerated eyes would need three years to mature. Therefore, for the next three years, you must keep your eyes covered, avoiding all light. Otherwise, the new eyes could get burned, beyond any chance of salvation. You will effectively be blind for three years, even more careful than a born-blind person."
"Then there are the muscles in the front of your body, that’s another big problem. Many muscles were entirely cut out. Lina’s divine spell can regrow your muscles, but the regrown muscles will be frail and in their initial form. Thus, the front of your body will be uneven with dents and bumps, including your face. This could last a few years, or several decades, no fixed time frame. Meaning, you are no longer the beautiful Betty of the town, instead, you would be the monstrous, grotesque Betty. Although you will recover eventually, the time it will take is uncertain."
"I believe, these are things you need to know beforehand. Then you can make your choice." Lina, still clutching her chest in folded arms, snorted and said, "Don’t misunderstand. I just don’t want someone I’ve worked hard to save to commit suicide because they couldn’t handle the mental pressure of the trauma. That would be a waste of time."
Betty was stunned. When she saw hope for salvation, she never ventured to think whether she could be healed or what she would look like afterward. Her mind had been consumed by the will to survive. But Lina’s words shook her, clearing her frantic thoughts. The pandemonium of grief, disability, disfigurement, lifelong pain, all these thoughts smashed her heart, one by one, like a hammer. It would take little effort to close her open mouth, but the simple movement proved too hard for her. The desire for death, which had arisen during her gruesome torture, surfaced once more. Maybe death was the best outcome.
"What now, are you wavering?" Lina asked, a barely visible smile gracing her lips. She spoke coldly, "Maybe death is the better option. No more nightmares every night, no suffering from undeserved torment, no more insecurity over your disfigurement. Just one death and you could escape it all, right? Honestly, I think so too. If you choose death, Lina wouldn’t have to expend a large amount of mana to save you. It would be better for everyone, wouldn’t it?"
"Ka ka, ka ka," Betty uttered weakly from her throat. The sound was not from her vocal cords but was wrung out by her tense muscles due to her desperate attempt to speak. Lina, ignoring this, casually spoke again, "However, the brute tortured you to death’s door, and if you simply die now, wouldn’t it fulfill his wishes? That would be a bit regrettable. And then there’s another thing, an old man, upon hearing his only daughter might have met with a tragedy has almost lost the will to live, aging decades in just a half-day. I wonder, if he heard his daughter could survive but still chose death, would he be sad? Or would he even have the chance to feel sadness then?"
"I couldn’t care less. After all, your life and death isn’t my concern," Lina giggled, following up with, "Hence, the choice of your destiny is in your hands. Ha ha, do as you please..."(To be continued. If you like this work, feel free to support, recommend, or even subscribe. Your support is my utmost drive. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
If you find any errors (non-standard content, ads redirect, broken links, etc..), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report