The Adventurer's Mission Log

Chapter 15 Heart-Stealing

A clear and melodious sound rang in Tenor's ears, like a lover's whisper or a close friend's murmur.

The beautiful silver-haired prophet stood beside Tenor, raising her head to reveal her fair and delicate neck, and earnestly admonished her.

"...Tenoel...look around you, the demons have already infiltrated, why aren't you making a move?"

Look at him, your 'friend' Reginald...

An uncontrollable, numbing, and terrifying persuasiveness permeates the words.

"No..." Tenor tried his best to resist the voice, but it seemed to have infinite magic, just like a person who is hungry wants to eat or thirsty wants to drink, forcing him to obey.

Tenor stiffly turned his head to look at Reginald.

A huge shadow fell over Reginald, and time seemed to stand still. He saw the flowing, leaping, and changing purple flames behind Reginald.

"Isn't he suspicious? Clever Tenor, shrewd Tenor, have you never doubted this mage?" the prophet coaxed.

As she whispered sweetly, the shadows around Reginald faded, and the terrifying presence within the purple flames became clearer.

He couldn't help but tremble. This wasn't out of cowardice, because Thoreau's body was devoid of fear; rather, it was a kind of apprehension stemming from biological instinct.

A terrible demon resides within Reginald—no! Reginald is the great demon from the realm of chaos!

"What are you waiting for?" the trustworthy prophet scolded coquettishly, her cherry lips pouting in dissatisfaction.

She patted her heaving chest and made a sincere promise, "Quickly! Kill him! Before He fully descends, kill this evil god's minions! I will help you, and our god will reward you handsomely!"

You will become a hero of this city, for you single-handedly banished the shadow that threatened to destroy it!

"No...who are you? Why should I believe you..." Tenor struggled to break free from the anesthesia. A force directly attacked his mind, constantly invading his memories and attempting to alter his mind.

He seemed to remember that a precious memory of his encounter with Reginald had been erased.

This prophetess was his benefactor who helped him escape from the Pleasure Society's stronghold, and also the kind person who had given him the Awakening Potion earlier, helping him get out of his debt crisis.

Even... she came from the same place as him.

He painfully struggled with the blurred lines between truth and falsehood in his memory, crying out, "I cannot betray my friends!"

"How can you be sure he's your friend? He's just using you. If you kill him, kill this devil who's deceiving you, you'll become a legendary hero!"

When the truth is revealed, you will gain fame that will make countless young women swoon, the emperor will receive you, you will be ennobled, your family will rise to prominence from your very beginning—and this is merely the reward of a mortal...

My love... our God will not only give me to you, but will also grant you one wish... a wish that can grant any miracle...

In the past, even when he had just awakened, he would have been affected.

Because humans always have desires, and when those desires are magnified a thousandfold, even a human has no choice but to submit.

But fortunately yet tragically, he drank the sublimation reagent, thus taking a step further away from humanity.

Cold-blooded rage sustained his crumbling rationality, while primal impulses clashed with a desire to tear the voice apart.

But reason told him—even if the woman's voice was suspicious, wasn't it reasonable? Reginald did indeed have a strange identity and was hiding a secret.

Perhaps the woman was using him, revealing to him the truth that was in her favor—Reginald was indeed a devil!

Unbeknownst to him, Tenor had already walked to the side of the bewildered Reginald and slowly raised his burning sword.

"Cover me!" Reginald hid behind Tenor to prevent the berserk diners from interfering with the spellcasting again. He continued to try to activate the spell, but the magical winds here were unusually restless and difficult to tame.

No, it wasn't the winds of magic that were restless, but rather his heart that was too agitated to cast spells!

He was aware of the existence of the devil, but his troubled mind made it difficult for him to do anything.

"Kill him quickly!" the prophet urged, her brows furrowed.

Tenor's memory was already hazy, and he fearfully discovered the abnormality in the torn parts.

It's fake... He tried to anchor his perception, then suddenly realized, completely abandoning rationality and embracing his body's instincts.

His rationality is no longer reliable.

A return to a cold, pure state of mind, devoid of desire, worries, and weak emotions, leaving only a command originating from the depths of one's genes—

"Extinction of species not on the agenda!"

The cruel, beastly gaze shifted away from Reginald; he was merely a reckless, hot-blooded individual, and this land had not forbidden his existence.

Thoreau stared intently at the prophet in the form of a young girl, not being misled by appearances.

The lizardman easily pushed aside the surging riotous diners, completely ignoring the dark enemy clamoring in his mind.

Memories riddled with holes were reshaped, restored to their original form, and uninvited guests were banished from the cold mind.

The "Young Prophet" then disappeared.

The voice screamed and cursed, "What bad luck! A boring stone without any desires!"

Thoros remained unaffected by the hot-blooded creatures in the shop, focusing solely on his hunting instincts.

The will of the ancient sage Huang Qi is now crystal clear!

Tear this chaotic brat to shreds!

He strode towards the unfamiliar merchant who was trying to restrain his companion, and decisively swung his bat before the adventure team members and others could react.

"Stop!" The doctor tried to stop Tenor, but he was too far away, and the nearby hot-blooded creatures couldn't react because Tenor's originally sluggish movements suddenly became as fast as lightning.

The victim's piercing screams echoed throughout the hotel as the burning sword, imbued with the power of flames, smashed the "human" into a mushy pile of flesh on the ground.

The succubus's perfect yet deformed body was exposed on the mud. It shrieked at Tenor, and everyone in the shop was shaken. Even the most rational mind was briefly plunged into a decadent fantasy.

Thoreau had no desires.

The burning sword was swung again, and even though the lust demon was incredibly fast, it couldn't escape unscathed. Before it could leap into the shadows, it was slammed against the wall with the sword.

But it was still alive. After giving Tenor a look, it decisively abandoned its physical body and fled in spirit form.

The piercing curse echoed incessantly in his ears. Tenor gradually regained control of his body and discovered that the remaining conscious people in the shop were looking at him with fear and awe.

He looked down and saw that he had torn the demon's tender body into pieces.

The crisis was over, and he reverted to his human form, his mouth still containing blood and suspicious bits of flesh... probably from what he had just eaten.

He felt so nauseous that he vomited, and his companions were also shocked by the sudden situation, so no one bothered him for a moment.

Just then, the faint sound of metal scraping and a series of low, muffled thuds could be heard in the distance, but the clamor of the local crowd could not drown out the gradually clearing commands.

A small army is marching through the streets!

Ternor vaguely heard the repeated words, "...fugitive...capture...adventure team...attack...Crystal Wine House..."

A bad feeling crept into my mind—could it be that Anthony struck first, framed the Nordroa team, and launched a city-wide manhunt?

This place has just been disturbed by demons, the army will definitely stop to investigate when they pass by... Damn demons! They're probably using someone else to do their dirty work!

After a lightning-fast thought, Tenor shouted, "Run! The army is coming!"

A single demon is within his capabilities, but an army is a completely different matter!