Chapter 176: Exciting, Isn't It? (36)

In the prison cell, the Holy Knight extended an invitation to the demon.

Come!

Take my hand!

Join me in a grand gamble against the will of the world!

I wager my purity against whether you are truly evil.

"..."

In Flora's eyes, Herbert had clearly gone mad.

This was a gamble.

And one where the stakes and the reward were wildly disproportionate.

If she belonged to evil, then Herbert would fall into corruption after receiving her blessing.

And then, his entire life would be ruined.

He would never be able to serve as Warden again, and might even be sent to the stake by the monastery's friars.

But if, just as Herbert said, she did not belong to evil... that alone would merely prove that one point.

Beyond that, Herbert gained nothing at all.

Why would you take such a risk?

Flora said nothing, but her eyes and expression had already betrayed every thought in her mind.

Why?

Why would you do this?

Why would you go this far for me?

Is it worth it?

Is all of this really worth it?

And Herbert, seeing that look on her face, grew even more certain of the thought in his heart. He laughed with delight, raised an eyebrow, and asked:

"You don't find this exciting?"

"Don't you want to take a gamble with me?"

The demon fell silent.

At this moment, she even felt a certain... fear.

Gamblers.

Flora had seen far too many gamblers during her travels in the mortal world, and knew their way of thinking well.

Those people would give up anything for the chance of greater wealth.

Family, friends, property, health, fate...

Everything could be used as a stake.

Like madmen, they kept selling off their possessions, pouring everything in, all for that single instant of greater fortune.

And she had seen the final fates of those people far too many times.

Ninety-nine-point-nine percent of them, in the end, got exactly what they deserved.

After failing to repay their gambling debts, their families were torn apart, they were beaten and crippled and thrown into a mass grave, or they became the Sacrifice for some evil ritual...

And the young man before her...

No, he was no gambler.

He was more mad than the greediest gambler of them all.

Because he gained no proper profit from it at all.

He was simply savoring that instant of madness, tasting the thrill between victory and defeat.

Either life, or death.

One step to heaven, one step into the abyss.

But this madness of his was not quite the same as that of his kin.

Demons thirsted for slaughter and death.

Whether that slaughter and death fell upon others, or upon themselves, it brought those mad creatures joy.

But Herbert was different.

He did not thirst for death, whether dealt to others or received by himself.

From Herbert, Flora sensed no fear whatsoever—only excitement and delight.

Perhaps, everything truly was just as he had said.

Exciting, isn't it?

"You..."

Flora raised her head, her smile somewhat strained and dry.

"Aren't you afraid?"

Though all she felt from Herbert was confidence, she still hesitated.

"Afraid?"

Herbert blinked, and laughed:

"I'm human too, of course I'm afraid, but what I fear isn't the possibility of failure."

"I believe in you."

"What I fear is that you don't even have the courage to try."

He looked at the petite demon, his smile bright and sunny, and asked: "Will you choose to be a coward for the rest of your life? Or a hero for a single moment?"

"The choice has been left to you."

He extended his palm before the demon and said softly:

"There is only one chance — the only one."

"If you give up this time, I will not give you a second chance."

This was neither a threat, nor an attempt to pressure Flora deliberately.

This was Herbert's choice.

If she could not make a decision, then there was no need to give her another chance in the future.

The thing he hated most in a person was indecisiveness.

After saying this, Herbert did not continue to press her, but quietly watched Flora.

The demon faintly furrowed her brow, closed her eyes, and thought.

She thought of many things.

She thought of waking in the Abyss, of the sense of loss when she realized her kin were no longer there.

She also thought of how she had crawled out of the Abyss step by step, of everything she had encountered in the mortal world.

In her long life, had she ever met a person like this?

Could any single one of them compare with the youth before her eyes?

……No.

She had indeed seen quite a few legendary figures, whose strength and fortunes were all astonishing.

Some of them possessed tremendous power, some possessed extraordinary charisma, some possessed enviable wealth…

But not a single one of them had a bearing that could compare with the youth before her at this very moment.

Outwardly he seemed as calm as the moon, but on closer look he burned like the blazing sun.

Fervent as fire.

So much so that even she, a demon who never felt heat, found it somewhat hard to withstand.

Actually Herbert himself had not expected that he, who had instinctively avoided people like Valentina who burned like the sun, would, in the eyes of others, shine as dazzling and brilliant as a blazing sun.

Or perhaps, this was what he had learned from Valentina.

Finally, after a moment of contemplation, Flora slowly opened her eyes.

She gazed into Herbert's pale grey, smiling eyes, drew a deep breath, and said: "Don't you regret it."

Upon hearing these words, Herbert broke into a brilliant smile.

"Haha, I won't regret it."

He knew that Flora had finally made her decision.

She had gambled together with him!

Herbert reached out to take Flora's hand, but grasped only air.

Hm?

Just as Herbert was about to wonder whether she had changed her mind, the small hand that had dodged away suddenly seized his wrist.

And yanked him forward with force!

Hm!!?

Herbert had never been a match in raw strength for a legendary demon whose physical body was so powerful; before, he had only held a slight edge because the other party did not resist.

And now, caught off guard by her sudden move, he had no power to resist at all and was sent stumbling headlong.

He lurched forward and tumbled into Flora's embrace.

His vision went dark as he crashed into her full on.

But unexpectedly, Herbert did not feel as though he had slammed into a wall of iron.

Instead, he felt as though he had fallen into a remarkably soft embrace.

What is this?

Herbert heard a bewitching voice that he could tell was Flora's, yet somehow different.

"Son of the Proud, your madness makes even demons tremble."

Flora shook her head with emotion, then stroked the hair of the youth in her arms and whispered:

"Then let my madness do its utmost to catch up with yours."

"My master, please allow me to bestow my blessing upon you."

She said:

"Please accept this…"

"A kiss from the Abyss."

(End of this chapter)