"Sorry, I just see you as a friend, and I will only be a passerby in your life, so I am very sorry…"
Chloe's trembling suddenly stopped. She opened her eyes wide, suppressing the disappointment and sadness in her heart, her eyes firm and resolute.
Then, she suddenly wrapped her arms around Ryou's neck and kissed him!
After a long while, their lips parted.
"But this is my answer!"
Chloe then pushed him away and fell onto the bed, turning her back to him and speaking quietly.
"I'm tired. I want to rest."
Ryou sighed, walked out the door, and gently closed it.
Hearing the sound of the door closing, Chloe could no longer hold back her tears, which flowed down and soaked the pillow.
"What do you mean we can't even be lovers anymore? Isn't it already impossible to be lovers? You idiot, Anya!"
Tears continued to stream down Chloe's face, but she complained with a smile.
Outside the door, hearing the faint sound of crying from inside, Ryou instinctively wanted to open the door and go back in.
However, when his hand touched the wooden door, it was as if he were electrocuted, and he quickly retracted it.
He sighed again and turned to leave.
It wasn't that he was heartless; it was that he couldn't take responsibility for Chloe.
With his growth rate, only powerful heroic spirits or someone with great potential like his kouhai Ais could keep up with him.
Even for Syr, he didn't agree carelessly.
Don't look at Syr having no combat power now; as part of goddess Freya, she naturally has terrifying potential like Ais, only lacking a key to unlock it.
By then, if Chloe couldn't keep up with him and the others, how could she cope? Would she become the harem palace manager?
If he couldn't promise to walk alongside her, then he shouldn't accept her love.
The anger that had been temporarily suppressed flared up even more intensely after rejecting Chloe as if a barrel of fuel had been added to the fire.
Those familiar with him would see the blazing fire in his eyes, capable of destroying everything.
Now, Ryou only wanted to do one thing—kill!
'Come to the meeting room.'
He messaged everyone in his mental communication, then headed straight to the meeting room.
Everyone he encountered along the way was so frightened by his negative emotions that they didn't try to move, as if any disturbance would lead to being torn apart by this terrifying beast.
It was only after he passed that they patted their chests in relief.
When Ryou walked into the meeting room, Scathach was already there.
Seeing his unusual emotional state, she frowned slightly and spoke sternly.
"As a warrior, you can have emotions, but you must never be controlled by them."
Ryou took a deep breath, regaining his composure.
However, his aura became even colder and more terrifying.
An irrational beast is less frightening than someone who can control their inner rage.
Scathach nodded in satisfaction.
"Good. Anger can make you stronger, but you must not be consumed by it. Mastering your emotions completely will make you even stronger in battle."
At this moment, Ryou's contracted heroic spirits also began arriving in the meeting room.
Even the benevolent Holy Saint did not try to stop Ryou from seeking revenge.
As for the enemy, Ryou already knew the whole story from Anya and the others.
The target was clear!
"I have decided to attack the Ishtar Familia now!"
This declaration, though anticipated, did not surprise anyone.
Ryou then addressed his master and Ishtar Rin.
"Shishou, Ishtar, I leave that copycat to you. If she shows any signs of unsealing and releasing her divine power, kill her immediately!"
"Such a weak opponent is hardly exciting. But she's too difficult for you right now, so I'll reluctantly take over."
Ishtar Rin, however, had a different suggestion.
"Hey~ can I make her lose her combat ability and then hand her over to me?"
Ryou looked at her questioningly.
Ishtar Rin thought for a moment and said, "She's an alternate version of me from another world. I can directly absorb her essence to strengthen myself…"
"How much can you strengthen?"
Originally unmotivated, Scathach suddenly sat up straight, eyes shining brightly.
Ishtar Rin couldn't help but tremble in her heart, but thinking about significantly strengthening herself, she still forced herself to say:
"About two to three times stronger~"
After all, she'd never encountered something like traversing different dimensions before, so she could only estimate roughly.
"Good, I will beat her half to death, and after you absorb her essence, you will fight me."
Scathach said with great enthusiasm.
"Uh~"
Ishtar Rin immediately showed a troubled expression, feeling like she had shot herself in the foot.
But using the essence to strengthen herself not only provided a large boost but also had no side effects, which was very important to her.
In the end, Ishtar Rin gritted her teeth and nodded in agreement.
However, Ishtar Rin did not see the fleeting pity inRyou's eyes.
Ishtar Rin's request gave him another plan, and he suddenly asked:
"After absorbing the essence, what will happen to that copycat?"
Ishtar Rin gave him a strange look but still answered:
"She probably won't die but will lose all her power and become an ordinary person."
"Then don't let her die, even if you have to use a major healing potion to keep her barely alive," Ryou said with a cold smile.
Hearing his words, the women present couldn't help but look at each other, and Jeanne showed a hint of reluctance on her face.
They understood his intention. For someone high and mighty, what could be more devastating than losing everything? He intended to make her life worse than death.
"Uh~ okay, you're the master, you decide," Ishtar Rin shrugged; after all, she didn't know this world's Ishtar, so whether she lived or died had nothing to do with her.
"As for the remaining members of the Ishtar Familia... I want them all eliminated," Ryou said with an irrefutable tone.
This time, he was genuinely angry.
Others were fine, but Jeanne frowned and hesitated before speaking gently.
"Wouldn't this harm the innocent? Not all of them participated in the siege..."
But he waved his hand, stopping Jeanne's words.
"I suddenly realized I was too naive. Some people won't be grateful no matter how much you tolerate them. So what we need to do now is simple: if they reach out, we cut off their heads."
His tone was calm, but his words were extremely cold.
"By the way, Jeanne, you stay this time," he said unarguably.
"Eh!!!"
"Why!"
Jeanne stood up in surprise, her hands on the table, leaning forward as if questioning him.
"Because you are my conscience, but this time I don't need a conscience."
Ryou's tone was as resolute as iron.
Bang!
Jeanne slammed the table.
"You! What are you talking about!"
Her face showed obvious anger.
Everyone couldn't help but show surprised expressions. It was rare to see such a gentle person lose her temper.
But he had no intention of changing his mind.
"This is my order as the Master!"
"Please forgive me, but I cannot accept it!"
Ryou ignored Jeanne and directly instructed the others.
"Let's start now. Just the thought of those maggots still breathing makes me uncomfortable!"
At this moment, it was clear that he would not listen to any persuasion, so everyone wisely filed out.
Jeanne wanted to say something more, but Scathach grabbed her shoulder.
"Let it go, Saint of France. Can't you see? He needs to vent his anger, using the heads and blood of his enemies, or he'll drive himself mad."
"But Lady Scathach..."
Jeanne opened her mouth but ultimately sighed helplessly and chose to compromise.
"Understood, Ryou."
As the last chain broke, the bloodthirsty beast was unleashed!
...
Ishtar Familia's Residence
By some coincidence, tonight's moonlight was completely covered by a thick layer of clouds, making the entire Orario darker than usual.
A night of murder under a moonless sky.
This phrase was fitting for the occasion.
Bang!
Ishtar angrily threw the wine bottle in her hand at Phryne.
Whether it was because Phryne's head was too hard or her durability stats were too high, the glass bottle shattered on her head, but Phryne herself was completely unscathed.
She nonchalantly wiped off the glass shards from her face.
Ishtar, enraged, pointed at her nose and cursed.
"You idiot! I told you to capture them alive, but you let them escape just for the sake of tormenting them! Now the Gudako Hotel will retaliate against us!"
Faced with the goddess's scolding, Phryne showed an unhappy expression.
"Ribbit ribbit ribbit! Goddess, you can't blame me for this. It was Aisha's group who were too weak; they couldn't even stop two injured kittens. Ribbit ribbit ribbit!"
Aisha could only smile bitterly in response to Phryne's accusations.
What could she do when faced with a leader who liked to sell out her teammates? She was helpless!
Ishtar wasn't a fool and naturally didn't believe her excuse.
Ishtar had seen Phryne's behavior too many times and waved her hand impatiently.
"Enough! Let's discuss how to deal with the Gudako Hotel. Aisha, have you contacted the Athena Familia? What did they say?"
"Lady Ishtar, I was just about to report to you."
Aisha showed a hint of hesitation on her face as she spoke.
"The Athena Familia said this is a mess we made ourselves, and we should take responsibility for it."
"Damn it! Athena, you despicable bitch!"
Ishtar slammed the armrest of her throne. To have dealt with Freya for so many years, she was certainly not a fool. Given Athena's drastically different attitude, Ishtar instantly realized she was being used as cannon fodder by Athena.
A wave of shame and anger at being ruthlessly manipulated by Athena surged in her heart.
Ishtar gritted her teeth, her beautiful face twisted like a demon's.
"Lady Ishtar, just in case, I've already sent someone to notify the guild. Although we might be punished by the guild, I think given the Gudako Hotel's' antagonistic stance towards the guild, the guild will probably only give us a symbolic punishment."
Finally hearing some good news, Ishtar's expression softened a bit.
She nodded appreciatively.
"You did well..."
"Ah!!!"
Suddenly, the sound of piercing screams, the whistling of arrows, and the clash of weapons came from outside the door.
...
Ten minutes earlier, Ryou had led his contracted heroic spirits to the front of the Ishtar Familia's residence under the cover of night.
Without his reminder, Atalanta, who was skilled in long-range attacks, immediately drew her bow and nocked an arrow.
A sentry hiding among the dense branches and leaves of a large tree was wide-eyed, observing the surroundings. Aisha had already given strict orders beforehand: Strong enemies could attack at any moment, so no Sentry will be careless.
A barely audible sound was heard, and the sentry suddenly felt a pain in her throat. To her horror, she found an arrow had somehow lodged in her throat, and blood was gushing from the wound.
In an instant, she felt all her strength leave her body, and she fell.
Almost simultaneously, three sentries hiding in the shadows fell as well, in intervals of less than a second, so quickly that they had no time to raise an alarm.
Atalanta lightly licked her lips, a bloodthirsty expression appearing on her face.
In the weak firelight, her green hunter's attire was gone. Instead, she wore a dark fur tube top and leather pants exuding endless dark magic. A grim wild boar's head covered in purple magical patterns hung on her right shoulder.
This leather outfit barely covered Atalanta's vital parts. Her golden-green hair had also turned to a demonic silver-white.
In the pitch-black night, she exuded an unusual wildness, like a female black panther hunting.
Yes, this was Atalanta's Noble Phantasm Agrius Metamorphose.
After using this Noble Phantasm, Atalanta's attributes, aside from luck, increased by a level, and she gained A-rank Mad Enhancement, Transformation, and a skill similar to attack-based healing.
Whitening weakens by 30%, blackening strengthens by five times.
Though not that exaggerated, with the boost from the Noble Phantasm, Atalanta's combat power increased by at least two to three times, making her comparable to some top-tier heroes.
Of course, there were drawbacks. Once this Noble Phantasm was unleashed, Atalanta's mind would be influenced by the Calydonian Boar. Although as a heroic spirit, she wouldn't completely lose her sanity, she would become more bloodthirsty and cruel.
It was as if her class had changed to Avenger.
"Is this alright? She's already somewhat disobedient."
In the night, Scathach, holding the magical spear, stood elegantly, her scarlet pupils staring at Ryou.
"It doesn't matter, as long as she kills."
He replied indifferently.
He adjusted his equipment and then walked towards the gate of the Ishtar Familia's residence.
"Remember, don't be controlled by your emotions; control them," Scathach reminded him.
"Don't worry, I just want to kill."
He didn't look back, just waved his hand. A black-light shone from the ring on his finger, and he immediately blended into the night.
"Alright, let me stretch my muscles too."
Scathach lazily stretched, her long, taut curves beautifully outlined under her provocative battle attire, but no one was there to admire them.
In the distance, the Ishtar Familia's residence was already ablaze.