A Villain's Way of Taming Heroines

Chapter 696: The Returning Her - II

While coordinating with other extraordinary beings, he had instructed Crow and Rhine to provide whatever assistance possible to Seraphina and Ravenna. Faced with a force that even Ansel himself had to temporarily retreat from, their rescue efforts would undoubtedly prove arduous.

This concern flashed briefly through Ansel’s mind before he swiftly refocused on the task at hand. Outwardly, he barely paused before continuing, "This is what Evora is capable of now. Imagine, if you will, should she gain the acceptance of the Source Flames and truly master that power..."

"The day the Empire burns to ashes would surely be upon us."

First and foremost, Ansel had to extinguish any notion the Dukes and other extraordinary beings might harbor of aligning themselves with Evora.

He had already made considerable preparations for this task, but fate had presented him with an even more opportune moment—though he wondered when the price for such fortune would come due.

Leveraging their fear and the reality of Evora’s current madness, Ansel sought to imprint upon their minds the idea that "Evora must be eliminated, or all is lost." While not a simple task, it was far from insurmountable.

After all, it was likely that every individual present fervently wished for the lineage of the Flamefeast to be severed.

And then...

"Lord Hydral," interjected a mysterious figure shrouded entirely in a black robe, seated midway around the circular table. His voice was harsh and grating.@@@@

This extraordinary being hailed from the Terminus Hall, an organization whose members all traversed the Abyss. They viewed the Path of Heaven as one for the weak, believing true transcendence could only be attained within the depths of the abyss. Consequently, they held great reverence for the Hydral clan... who were practically embodiments of the abyss itself.

"Evora... must perish. But how are we to accomplish her demise?"

Or rather, what were their odds of victory against an Evora now imbued with unfathomable power?

The question was crucial. While all desired Evora’s death, among these extraordinary beings with their disparate interests, none wished to be the first sacrifice.

Much like after the Empress’s "death," when logic dictated that the most advantageous move for the extraordinary beings would have been to immediately band together and eliminate Ansel, yet ultimately, no one had taken action.

In this moment, Ansel’s task was clear.

He needed to instill... confidence in them.

"I comprehend the hesitation that may arise among you due to the formidable power Evora now displays. Rest assured, I’m acutely aware that none present harbors a death wish," declared the young Hydral as he rose to his feet.

His handsome visage, shedding the last vestiges of boyish innocence, exuded an inherently persuasive confidence and conviction.

"However, a crucial point must first be grasped. If Evora truly possessed an overwhelmingly insurmountable power, would she not refrain from sequestering herself behind labyrinthine spatial barriers?"

Ansel gently tapped the table, prompting the projection to shift to a frontal view of the rift in the enigma realm. The jagged fissure, ceaselessly spewing blood-hued flames, undulated like a living entity, contracting and dilating subtly. The projection offered no glimpse beyond the threshold.

"Danger, horror, uncontrollability, and—"

Clement wracked his brain for appropriate terms, but before he could continue, Ansel interjected with a smile, "Precisely. Uncontrollability. You maintained remarkable composure, Duke of Wyvern, to discern Evora’s instability in such a brief instant."

The young Hydral faced the assemblage of extraordinary beings, his tone gradually rising: "Let us engage in a simple deduction."

"If Evora indeed acquired the legacy of a bygone dynasty within the realm of enigmas, attaining the zenith of power below the sixth stage, why did she not return directly? Instead, she inexplicably rent numerous rifts in the realms, maniacally unleashing the feasting flames while sequestering herself within a labyrinth."

"If she lacks sufficient strength, such catastrophic destruction would be beyond her means. Conversely, if she truly possesses such might, why would she conceal herself within a maze that even I struggle to penetrate? This presents an evident contradiction."

"But let us not forget, esteemed all," Ansel intoned, a staff materializing in his hand, its gentle tap on the ground resonating with a deep, muffled sound.

"Let us not forget that Evora has descended into madness."

"We know not how long she was immolated by Ephesande’s flames in the realms, nor what power she employed to survive such an inevitably fatal predicament. Even so, her psyche has undoubtedly been incinerated to mere cinders—a fact both the Duke of Wyvern and I have confirmed."

"Consider, then, a person on the brink of death, their very essence depleted and shattered, their will entirely collapsed. Even if granted that one-in-a-million miracle, stumbling upon a power that could salvage them from the abyss of oblivion—"

The young Hydral tilted his head slightly. "Would they truly possess the capacity to harness such power?" Find adventures at novelhall.Côm

Under his meticulous guidance, the apex extraordinary beings once again glimpsed hope amidst their despair.

"Your implication is... heh," chuckled the enigmatic extraordinary being from the Chronos Guild. "As the Duke of Wyvern suggested—she’s lost control."

Indeed, Evora had lost control.

This singular explanation perfectly reconciled the previous contradictions.

— Her madness and loss of control explained her frenzied unleashing of calamity upon the Western Lands; Unable to properly harness her newfound power, she was compelled to sequester herself within the labyrinth, preserving her existence while striving to assimilate this overwhelming force.

This deduction brought clarity to the extraordinary beings. Though some harbored doubts about the simplicity of Ansel’s reasoning and the speculative nature of his supporting information, no other conclusion carried the same persuasive weight.

Evora, driven to insanity by Ephesande’s flames during her drift through the realms, miraculously encountered a relic of the Sky-Conquering Dynasty. There, she received the blessings and power of the ancient Flamefeast clan. However, unable to control this power, she went berserk.

Her final recourse... was to employ her mastery over spatial elements to seal off all paths, desperately attempting to assimilate and control this overwhelming force.

— Of course, this narrative was entirely Ansel’s fabrication.

-->