Sanjouno Haruhime possesses a rare and exceptional magic called Uchide no Kozuchi, which can directly increase a person's level without any side effects for a limited time. Although there is a long cooldown period between uses, its terrifying effect cannot be underestimated, and it can be directly fixed onto an item.
No wonder Ishtar considers her a crucial tool to overturn the Freya Familia. Imagine if the Ishtar Familia accumulated enough Uchide no Kozuchi and suddenly used them all during a battle with the Freya Familia, causing their entire familia to level up simultaneously. This would undoubtedly deal significant damage to the Freya Familia.
Ishtar's plan was very meticulous, but she made one mistake. She foolishly angered Ryou, that's all.
When Ryou followed Aisha into the room, he immediately saw the fox girl in the cage. Everything about her slowly surfaced in his mind. It was just another cheat the original author gave to the protagonist Bell, his beloved son. This was Ryou's evaluation of Sanjouno Haruhime.
Apart from the Uchide no Kozuchi magic, Haruhime exuded the aura of a decorative character.
While Ryou was contemplating, Aisha had already found the key and opened the iron cage.
"Run, Haruhime! Don't come back!"
Aisha panted as she warned.
"But, but Sister Aisha, you are seriously injured..."
Haruhime, who was sleeping in the cage, was awakened by the sounds of shouting and killing outside. She was already frightened, and now she saw her big sister who usually took care of her rushing in with serious injuries, which scared her to tears.
At this moment, Haruhime saw Ryou at the door, and her eyes lit up as she timidly spoke.
"Big brother, can you please help Sister Aisha?"
However, Haruhime's unintentional words made Aisha's hands and feet go cold. She turned her head in horror, only to see him looking at them with a strange smile on his face. When he heard Haruhime's words, he immediately smiled and nodded, walking slowly towards them.
"No problem, I am here to 'help' her."
Haruhime smiled innocently.
"Great, big brother, you are such a good person!"
Aisha suddenly exerted all her strength, dragging her injured leg, and blocking in front of Haruhime.
"Stop! This child is innocent. She is not a member of the Ishtar Familia; she was just bought as a slave! The one you want to kill is me!"
Aisha posed as if she were a hero sacrificing herself. However, this only ignited his anger further.
"Don't act like you're so innocent!"
Bang!
Ryou rushed in front of Aisha, grabbed her throat, lifted her, and then slammed her hard against the iron bars of the cage. He was full of rage, and with his immense strength, the iron bars bent into an arc.
"Cough!"
Aisha's internal organs were severely hit, causing her to spit out blood, which splattered on his face. The blood dyed the right half of his face red, making him look like a demon from hell in the dim firelight.
At this moment, the innocent and kind Haruhime also felt something was wrong. She grabbed Ryou's wrist and tried to pry his fingers open while pleading.
"Big brother, please let go of Sister Aisha. Haruhime will do anything!"
Ryou found her a nuisance and threw her aside, causing her to fall to the ground. He grabbed Aisha's neck, bringing her face close to his.
"You people are bold. If I don't come after you, you dare to harm my family! Isn't living good enough for you? You idiots want to die! Fine, I will grant your wish, but don't think you'll die easily!"
In the dim firelight, shadows cast on half of Ryou's face, forming a hideous nightmare-like shadow. Coupled with his bloodshot eyes, he looked more terrifying than ever. He was truly furious this time.
Although he had rejected Chloe's confession, he genuinely treated Chloe and Anya as his sisters, protecting them. Otherwise, why would he, a mere visitor to this world, go through the trouble of building a Gudako Hotel? He wanted them to live better after he left this world.
But all of this was nearly destroyed by the Ishtar Familia. If he hadn't summoned Medea Lily, Chloe might have been a cripple for a long time.
How could Ryou not be angry?
Indeed, to deal with these foolish and greedy people, they should be killed thoroughly and made to fear death!
As long as he reached out, he would directly decapitate them!
Kill until rivers of blood flowed! Kill until heads roll! Kill until they trembled at the mere mention of his name!
Facing the furious Ryou, Aisha endured the excruciating pain, taking all the blame upon herself.
"That's right! I led the team! I harmed your companion! All of this is my deserved retribution! But this child is innocent! She, like you, was sold to Orario, so take out your anger on me and let this child go! I beg you!" Aisha pleaded.
"Rest assured, my target is only your Ishtar Familia. I have no interest in others. So, you should worry about yourself," Ryou scoffed.
"Also, don't think you can lie. Apart from you, another ugly fat pig was leading the team. Where is she?"
Unexpectedly, Aisha showed an unnatural expression, pressing her lips together without speaking. Ryou's heart stirred, and he scoffed.
"She is probably protecting that whore Ishtar closely right now, right.?"
"Shut up! The mistress is a noble goddess, don't insult her!"
Aisha glared at him angrily.
Seeing her loyalty seemed genuine, Ryou's mind turned, and he suddenly had an idea.
"I will give you two choices now..."
Ryou said, suddenly grabbing Haruhime's neck and slowly tightening his grip. Haruhime instinctively grabbed his hand, trying to pry it open, but as a LVL1, she was no match for him. In no time, Haruhime's eyes rolled back, her tongue slightly protruded, and she looked on the verge of suffocation.
"Stop! Didn't you promise not to harm this child!?"
Aisha was shocked and horrified.
"I did say that, but it all depends on your choice. If you honestly tell me your goddess's whereabouts, I will spare this little fox's life. If you insist on being a loyal subject, I will fulfill your wish and send this little fox to the underworld to reunite with you..."
Ryou's face lit up with a devilish smile.
"Come on~ make your choice. Will you choose your mistress or this poor little fox? Faith or duty?"
"You devil!"
Aisha cursed angrily.
"Thank you for the compliment. I feel I haven't done well enough, so people keep foolishly prodding me. I will continue to strive," Ryou replied indifferently. Then, as if remembering something, he added another sentence.
"By the way, I forgot to remind you, there's a time limit, so don't waste too much time. Otherwise, even if you make a choice, you might end up with a dead fox."
As he spoke, to emphasize his point, Ryou slowly tightened his grip on Haruhime's neck again. Haruhime's delicate neck was visibly compressed, creating a deep indentation. Foam began to appear at the corners of her mouth, clearly indicating that time was running out and that Haruhime could be strangled to death by him at any moment.
[Ding!]
At this moment, Ryou's body suddenly jolted. When the foam from Haruhime's mouth touched his wrist, the system unexpectedly displayed a rare message.
Ryou glanced at the system message, his pupils slightly contracting, and his expression turned serious. His grip on Haruhime's neck unconsciously relaxed. Aisha did not notice these subtle changes in him.
"Enough! I'll tell you! So let her go immediately!"
After an intense internal struggle, Aisha ultimately chooses to save the kind and innocent fox girl in front of her. Ryou feigned a disappointed expression and released his grip on Haruhime's neck.
Cough, cough, cough!
As soon as he let go, Haruhime immediately fell to the ground, curled up like a shrimp, and started coughing loudly. Seeing him release Haruhime as promised, Aisha hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"The mistress is currently..."
Aisha whispered a location. With Haruhime as the hostage, Ryou was confident she wouldn't lie, and he didn't seem worried about Ishtar escaping. He forcefully poured a healing potion down Haruhime's throat, then, with a peculiar smile, released Aisha's neck.
"I suddenly feel that letting you die so easily would be too lenient. How about we play a game? This game is called—'You Live, She Lives; You Die, She Dies.'"
"What are you up to now?"
Aisha asked warily, rubbing her bruised neck while keeping a close eye on him.
"The game is very simple..."
Ryou's face twisted into a villainous grin. Before Aisha could react, he took out a purple potion and forcibly poured it into her mouth.
"Mmm!!!"
Aisha choked on the potion. She felt a warm current spread from her abdomen throughout her body, quickly healing her wounds and even regenerating her severed leg amidst a deep, bone-aching itch. Just as she wondered why he was healing her, he flipped his wrist, producing a dagger. Swiftly, he slashed at Aisha's tendons on her hands and feet. Then, he took out a low-grade healing potion and smeared it on her wounds.
Aisha instinctively tried to move her limbs but immediately felt them become as weak and powerless as an infant's.
"What have you done to me?!"
She screamed in horror.
"Nothing much, just turned you into a crippled person with all four limbs intact."
Ryou's face bore a devilish smile.
His words made Aisha's heart instantly sink into despair. After restoring her leg, he severed her tendons and immediately used a healing potion with severe side effects that only healed surface wounds. Now, Aisha could barely walk, and her hands were weaker than a child's, turning a once mighty Amazon warrior into a helpless baby.
Ryou then retrieved a magic-restraining collar from the system, forcibly putting it around Aisha's neck despite her struggles. Aisha now had less combat capability than a five-year-old child, easily overpowered by even a seven or eight-year-old.
This realization left Aisha utterly despondent. She wasn't afraid of death but feared living as a crippled, a fate worse than death. The thought of dying made Aisha contemplate suicide, but Ryou's devilish voice interrupted her thoughts.
"Don't even think about suicide~ If you die, this little fox won't survive either."
He then smiled and pulled Haruhime close, speaking gently to her.
"The same goes for you. If you die, your sister Aisha won't survive either, understand?"
Haruhime's eyes filled with tears as she frantically nodded her head.
"Good girl~ As long as you both behave, we can play this game indefinitely."
Ryou affectionately patted Haruhime's small head, and Haruhime could only hold back her tears, fearing she might anger him.
"You will go to hell!"
Aisha mustered all her strength to stand up, her body swaying as if she might collapse at any moment. But her eyes no longer held the dullness of despair; instead, they were filled with a stubborn will to survive. Haruhime wiped her tears and hurriedly supported her.
As if suddenly remembering something, Ryou said to Aisha:
"Oh, I forgot to tell you. Your goddess was captured a long time ago. I just wanted to see you destroy your faith with your own hands."
Perhaps becoming numb to his cruelty, Aisha merely glared at him resentfully without saying anything further.
When the three of them walked out of the Ishtar Familia's stronghold:
Behind them, the Ishtar Familia's base had turned into a sea of flames, with many Amazonian corpses strewn haphazardly at the entrance. Standing idly at the gate were Scathach and Ishtar Rin. At Scathach's feet lay a filthy woman—it was the goddess Ishtar, the head deity of the Ishtar Familia.
"How did you catch her?"
Ryou asked curiously.
Ishtar Rin puffed out her chest, her face brimming with pride as she began to explain. Only then did he realize, to his shock, that Ishtar Rin looked as if she had undergone a complete makeover. She appeared radiant, and even her previously unimpressive bust had swelled several sizes, reaching a level that could only be described as "formidable."
...
Ten minutes earlier:
Ishtar was cautiously following behind Phryne as they made their way toward a secret passage.
"Why should I flee when I'm so strong?"
Phryne muttered as she fled.
"Shut up, you fool! If it weren't for you, how could the Familia have been destroyed by the Gudako Hotel? Now I, a goddess, have to suffer such humiliation!"
Ishtar erupted in anger. Phryne fell silent and hurried forward with her head down.
At that moment, a slender figure stood before them, blocking the entrance to the escape route.
"Where did this little bitch come from? Get out of my way!"
Phryne's large, ugly face twisted as she raised a massive hammer and charged forward. The figure didn't move, only slightly raised a hand, pointing a branch at Phryne.
A flash of red light. Phryne, who was charging forward, suddenly froze, and her massive body collapsed with a loud crash. Upon closer inspection, a small round hole had appeared in her forehead, with red and white matter oozing out.