roccoschili Chapter 146 Hermes, the Land of Deception, Part 8
Chapter 146 Hermes, the Land of Deception, Part 8
As the saying goes, don’t hit someone with a smiling face.
But for the zither, it cannot be said in layman's terms.
“Hayrna—have you had enough?” Jean said calmly.
Irene and Constantine both looked at Qin with astonishment at the same time.
"Huh? Where's Hailna?" Constantine looked around. "Did she come to rescue me?"
“Stop pouring magic into the Eye of Achilles, or I can’t guarantee I won’t break your hand, Hailna,” Jean said, tightening her grip on Constantine’s wrist. “Not bad disguise. If it weren’t for some special reason, I might have actually been fooled by your charade.”
“Sigh—” Constantine sighed, his gaze towards Jean no longer filled with fear, but with a kind of fervor. “So brilliant—absolutely brilliant—”
Then his whole body began to be shrouded in a cloud of black smoke.
Just for a moment.
Constantine escaped the clutches of the harp, and when he reappeared from the smoke, he was already Hailna.
Hermes' only witch, the sophist Hailna—she has always disguised herself as Constantine and accompanied Tsiqiharna, while the real Constantine has long been knocked unconscious and thrown into some small place to sleep.
Even her daughter was kept in the dark about all of this.
And she was preparing for the final move, to strike unexpectedly when everyone had let their guard down.
She believed that these two might be wary of Constantine, but they would definitely not treat her as a witch. As long as Jean loosened her grip, she could use a secret spell to instantly take down the two who had already relaxed their guard.
She exerted a special influence on the area long before she arrived.
Compared to the seeds her daughter had, this influence was more subtle, natural, and left no trace.
This is fraud.
They launch a last-minute counterattack to turn the tide, snatching victory away just when everyone thinks they're about to win.
“I’m really curious, when did I get exposed?” Hailna showed no awareness that she had been caught, and instead chatted with Qin in a calm tone, “Even my daughter didn’t notice.”
“If you can answer well, I can offer some collectibles in exchange,” Hailna said.
"Your promises are worthless to a witch like you who doesn't keep her word." Before Qin could say anything, Elena interrupted Hailna.
“Then shall I swear in the name of Hermes?” Hailna laughed.
“What’s the point of swearing an oath to yourself?” Elena retorted.
“That’s going to be difficult…” Hailna seemed to know that no matter what she said, no one would believe her. This was probably the price she paid for doing whatever she wanted in this kingdom.
At this moment, she really wanted to satisfy her curiosity in exchange for something of equal value.
After all, she has never been short of money. As a veteran witch who is even close to relinquishing her title, giving away one or two of her messy magical artifacts would be of no consequence to her.
“You can tell me where the Eye of Achilles came from as an equivalent exchange,” Jean said.
“You know quite a lot.” Hailna was very interested in Qin’s suggestion. “But to be honest, I don’t know much myself. I got this from a tomb raider.”
Tomb raiders...
“As your spoils of war, I certainly won’t take them back,” Hailna said. “But as a friendly reminder, this magical artifact seems to possess a living will.”
A living magic tool?
She's easy to coax.
But it's not entirely impossible. Magical artifacts in the world can indeed gain living attributes for all sorts of random reasons. Some will run away on their own, and some can even talk.
However, these magical tools are extremely rare.
Elena had once heard a rumor about a magical artifact shaped like a teddy bear that could grant anyone's wish, but would demand a price for each wish.
It is said that the cursed bear doll is related to demons.
What about the Eye of Achilles?
What's going on with it?
“It seems to amplify its power during the full moon and utters strange babbling. I certainly can’t understand it,” Hailna laughed. “Of course, you can take it as a lie. Well, that’s all I have to say. Now it’s your turn to answer: when did you first discover that I was Hailna?”
“Based on some kind of intuition, I guessed,” Qin said. “When you brought your hand close to me, I didn’t sense any fear in you. Of course, you can also think I’m lying.”
Hearing this answer, Hailna seemed somewhat dissatisfied; she knew the statement was half true and half false. But anyway, she hadn't paid anything; her only loss was the Eye of Achilles, which her daughter had bet on.
It's worth using these things to teach my daughter a little lesson.
"Do you two want to fight? If not, I'll take my daughter and leave." Hailna said with a smile, taking out her wand. Even when facing two somewhat troublesome individuals, she was still confident that she could escape unscathed with her daughter.
Neither Qin nor Elena reacted.
This can be considered tacit approval for her to leave.
It is unwise to fight a witch unless there is a necessary conflict of interest.
Even when you have a significant advantage, you will often choose to avoid fighting a witch, because you can never imagine what kind of counterattack a witch will launch when she is driven to the brink.
This can be considered a tacit understanding.
Moreover, this is Hailna's home turf—unless the two of them had already harbored murderous intentions towards Hailna and made arrangements on the field in advance, it would be almost impossible to leave the witch alive in an away game.
Therefore, there is no need for either side to fight at this time.
"Then thank you both for your kindness." Hailna smiled and summoned a thick black fog. After the fog dissipated, the mother and daughter disappeared without a trace.
After confirming that the turmoil has completely subsided.
Elena began to examine the dazzling blue gem again. A living magical artifact?
It was the first time she had ever encountered a living magical artifact.
"Jin, is this really a living magical artifact?" Elena asked.
“If I were her, I would say what I already know, half-truths and half-lies,” Qin said. “I usually keep this thing with me.”
Elena had no objections, after all, this thing was quite dangerous.
“It’s true that she has the attribute of being alive, but she may not be unaware of what those delirious words represent,” Qin said. “It probably isn’t anything good, otherwise she wouldn’t have given it away so readily.”
"By the way, how did you find out she was Hailna?" Elena asked.
“Because I know this guy isn’t Constantine; that guy’s stench is truly unforgettable,” Jean said.
Based on smell?
Why can't I smell it?
Well, his five senses are probably all at a monstrous level.
However, the absolute acquisition of the five senses comes at the cost of emotional loss; it truly is a trade-off.
After resting for a while, the two left Hermes. Heaven knows if the mother and daughter will come back to bother him again; perhaps next time they will find a more sophisticated way to "retaliate."
Even if they are not afraid of so-called retaliation, they are always afraid of trouble.
Moreover, staying in this dishonest country for too long makes me feel like I'm going to break down.
Although this country is still quite peculiar, I'll leave it in my diary for now, as I probably won't be returning.