"I absolutely cannot leave this sword behind!" Li Fei muttered.
It was a silver-white one-handed sword. The blade shimmered with a soft glow and looked slightly longer, narrower and straighter than the Blade of Joy. There wasn't much engraving or ornamentation on the whole thing. It was plain yet dazzling, giving off an austere, righteous aura and an impression of keen sharpness.
[Justice Sanction]
Equipment Grade: Full Moon / Dawn / Blazing Sun
Attributes: ?
Enchantment: Justice Retribution
Justice Retribution: When attacking, deals extra damage to the target equal to (wielder's Morality Value − target's Morality Value) × 1%.
Note: If the wielder's Morality Value is below 30, this sword grants no bonuses. At Morality Value 30 or higher, the sword awakens to Full Moon grade. At 50 or higher, it awakens to Dawn grade. At 80 or higher, it awakens to Blazing Sun grade.
Li Fei fell silent for a moment as her eyes swept back and forth over the heart-stopping description.
This wasn't [Justice Sanction] at all. It was clearly [Li Fei Must Die]!
If someone swung this at her, wouldn't every single strike be a crit?
"Justice Sanction really is a famed blade. The smith behind the series was nothing short of a genius, able to make Transcendent materials perform far beyond their proper tier. The knights who wielded Justice Sanction weapons were all true heroes too… Though the smith and the forging method were destroyed by the wicked witches through vicious schemes, and only a handful of Justice Sanctions remain in the world, their fame is every bit the equal of the Guardian Mage Robe and Blade of Joy series."
Nicole said meaningfully, "I placed this sword here on purpose as an 'Easter egg.' It's also the only chance of getting Blazing Sun-grade equipment in the Bronze Treasury."
"Interested in giving it a try, Miss Philanthropist?"
"This sword suits me perfectly." Li Fei kept her eyes wide open and spoke with great sincerity.
She had every standing bounty from the Witches' Coven memorized, and one of them was to collect [Justice Sanction] and promise never to let word of it spread. The reward was a whopping 20,000 Witch Points, enough to buy an extra Dawn-grade piece of equipment.
Worth noting: that bounty wasn't a personal commission. It was a "public-welfare quest" funded and sponsored by the Witches' Coven, so for other witches the payoff wasn't great. After all, you first had to give up a famed sword to get a lump of scrap iron.
Li Fei was different. Besides the Witch Points and "witch faction reputation," she'd also get two rounds of Wealth Points, one for the sword itself and one for the bounty… With a deal that let her eat one fish several ways, of course she wouldn't pass it up.
Besides, with the forging method lost, one fewer [Justice Sanction] in the world meant one fewer weapon that could utterly counter her and her sisters.
"Very good."
Nicole nodded approvingly and gently stroked her good daughter's hair. "The woman most alluring to witches, wielding the weapon witches hate most… If there really are witches in Loxibrook, they'll definitely set their sights on you."
"Be careful and look after yourself, and that sword too. If anything unusual happens, you can notify me… Of course, since your choice of this sword satisfies my selfish desires to a certain extent, I'll give you a little reward."
One fish, many meals. Yay!
"What kind of reward?" Li Fei asked, nearly bouncing.
"A secret."
Nicole winked her right eye, and that touch of playful allure gave the starry-sky-elegant woman a married-woman charm that landed right in Li Fei's sweet spot.
"Eeeh—"
Li Fei drew out the syllable in feigned dissatisfaction, suppressed the urge to snuggle up to her, and went on picking items.
She was fast. In no time she'd gone through the details of all the equipment.
After a moment's thought, Li Fei stuffed the key into a bubble. As mana poured in, the bubble and the key turned into streaks of light and vanished.
A piece of cloth as thin as cicada wings drifted down slowly and landed in her outstretched palm.
It was a delicate pair of black openwork hand stockings, light and seductive, even more bewitching than the lace garters on garter-belt stockings. They looked a lot like the ones the white-haired twins wore in Lily Fragrance and Soaked Sheets, only longer, reaching up to the wrist.
[Succubus's Kiss]
Equipment Grade: Dawn
Attributes: Strength +10, Constitution +10, Agility +20, Charm +20. Hand Strength, Stamina, Agility and Charm +25. Additionally increases hand dexterity, flexibility, sweating speed, attack speed and nerve reflex speed… Reduces hand stamina consumption while in motion. Sensitivity of the hands and of any target touched by the hands +50%. Provides one hundred Charm Marks (succubi only).
Enchantment: Charm Female Creature
Charm Female Creature: Bewitches a female creature, throwing the target into states such as confusion, impulsiveness and heightened sensitivity, and may even make her obey the caster's commands. Effect depends on the caster's Intelligence, Charm, the target's resistance and so on. Can be cast on groups. Charge time: 180 hours.
Note: With succubus bloodline, attribute boosts +50%, and the lips, horns, hooves and tail also enjoy the hand bonuses. With Succubus Empress bloodline, attribute boosts +100%, the lips, horns, hooves and tail also enjoy the hand bonuses, and after taking a female's "life" with a boosted part, there is a certain chance of gaining Charm Marks as well.
Once again, it was the sort of lewd and powerful equipment Miss Top Courtesan adored.
A 60-point attribute boost wasn't outstanding for Dawn-grade equipment, but doubled by the Succubus Empress bloodline, it was a whole different story. Hand gear was usually inferior to armor and weapons, yet a 120-point boost was absolutely top-tier among Dawn-grade gloves.
Never mind the extra bonuses for the five parts (hands, feet, lips, tail and horns), the new way to earn Charm Marks outside of snuggling, and a control skill she could use with just her hands.
Most equipment-granted skills were instant-cast, which was their upside. The downside was slightly weaker effects and a charge time far longer than the cooldown of a normal spell model. And at this stage it was clearly hard to find a control spell better suited to Li Fei than [Charm Female Creature]. Between her sky-high Charm and Intelligence and the combined use of [Charm Humanoid Creature], [Bliss] and her other abilities, it would work even better in her hands.
As for the consequences of "using [Charm Female Creature] and still losing," Li Fei had stopped caring entirely.
With the Charm she had now, did she really think she'd keep her innocence after a defeat just by not using charm skills?
Not a chance. The powerful female Transcendents would definitely ruthlessly… When a certain ending was already guaranteed after a defeat, there was actually nothing left to fear.
Besides, with the Witch's Blessing on her, even Tingbao couldn't stop her from offing herself! And if she lost to a non-female enemy, she could always delete the account and start over, hehe.
Li Fei pulled on the hand stockings without hesitation and flexed her slender fingers. They felt reasonably comfortable, and her snow-soft skin showing through the openwork pattern looked enchanting too. It made her, who hadn't treated herself in ages, want to dig out her stash of candid photos of Tingbao for a long-overdue trip down memory lane.
Only… when she went out to fight in the future, everyone else would be in long boots, knee guards and gloves, while she'd be in hand stockings, a tail ring and high heels… Wouldn't that be a little weird?
"I think you should consider classes tied to succubi, bloodkin and warlocks, and from now on focus your spell research on Chaos school spells, so your [Charm] can deliver more combat value."
The Dean suddenly sighed. "Honestly, I regret not recommending Order school magic to you back then. Compared to the Chaos school, Order school spells are better at bewitching and mind control…"
"Oh, right. When you have time, you can ask Lady Gwona how to make good use of charm in battle."
Nicole's words brought to Li Fei's mind that woman who was as elegant and dazzling as a rose, yet carried a cold, cutting edge.
The blood-red, tattered hem of her dress and the black stockings full of gashes when she returned from her campaign in Viranean were still fresh in Li Fei's memory.
She'd heard from Tingbao before that this daughter of the Mercenary Guild's guildmaster possessed the [Spirit of Chaos] Legacy, with combat power tied to her charm… Li Fei couldn't inherit her Legacy, but she might still learn something from her.
Between the goodwill of having gifted her a Secret Garden, Lady Zhihua's friendship with her, and above all Miss Top Courtesan's own personal charm, surely Lady Gwona would be willing to hold nothing back if she came knocking for advice?
"Understood. When I have time, I'll visit Lady Gwona, and I'll explore Order school magic a bit too."
Li Fei took the advice gracefully.
"Very good."
Nicole led the reluctant Li Fei out of the treasury.
…
"Grace, I'm sorry."
The handsome young man, his golden hair gelled neatly back with not a strand out of place and a noble bearing about him, spoke in a low voice. "That woman's star is far too bright right now. For the sake of the family, I have to make some compromises."
"Let's shelve the plan to assassinate her in Folded Space for now. If a Gold-rank student dies, the Magic Academy headquarters will certainly send strong investigators. Even if you perished together with her, your soul would find no rest… Besides, her relationship with that she-devil is murky, so the risk of killing her is too great."
Kenneth wore an apologetic look, but every word came out through gritted teeth, leaving him dejected and unwilling to let go.
Too fast. Li Fei had risen far too fast. His plan had changed again and again, from the original "the moment you step out of the city, I'll kill you, and what can the Enforcement Squad do to me?" to "wait until you enter Folded Space and kill you there, no witnesses, and would the Magic Academy really pursue the matter of a corpse over a living genius?" Now it had run aground and been shelved indefinitely.
In truth, the moment Li Fei earned the title "Spell Encyclopedia Lady," Kenneth had understood that even if he killed her with a flawless plan, he probably wouldn't escape the reckoning in the end. The methods of high-Sequence beings were simply too inconceivable, and Li Fei must already have caught their eye.
Only his inner pride kept him from accepting reality and left him clinging to a sliver of wishful thinking. That sliver came from Grace: with the enemy right beside her and none the wiser, Kenneth could easily get intelligence on Li Fei, and even create a chance for the two of them to die together in another plane… If even their souls were scattered, then even a high-Sequence Transcendent might not be able to trace it back to him, right?
But when the Dean he thought of day and night pinned the golden brooch on Li Fei with her own hands, the last remnant of his wishful thinking was utterly shattered.
The risk of harming a Gold-rank student was too great. The slightest slip, and his entire family might never be able to set foot outside Loxibrook for generations.
"Mm."
Grace's voice was perfectly flat. Her delicate, pretty, world-weary face was ice-cold too, betraying not a trace of emotion.
"But Alman Bellicley will always be my best friend and subordinate, and I will never forget your brother's death."
Kenneth promised, "So please keep lying low at her side…"
"…"
Even with Grace's temperament, that nearly made her laugh. Mockery surfaced in her sky-blue eyes.
Kenneth clearly failed to grasp where the mockery came from, and hurriedly added, "One day, I'll avenge you!"
"Don't let her arrogance right now fool you. The Transcendent path is rugged and long, and too many geniuses have fallen along it… A hypocrite who fishes for fame with false benevolence, with that phony heart of hers, is doomed not to get far! I'm different. I have patience, perseverance and resolve… Give me fifty years, no, thirty at most, and I'm confident I can break into the high Sequences!"
"Once I set foot in the high Sequences ahead of her, her days are numbered. When that time comes, I'll need your help…"
As he spoke, Kenneth reached for Grace's shoulder and said tenderly, "We will surely succeed."
Grace turned and walked away, leaving Kenneth's hand hanging awkwardly in the air. His brows knitted and anger and gloom crossed his face, though he quickly suppressed them.
Before long, Miss Poker Face found the person she'd been longing for waiting at the school gate.
"I've been back two days already. Why haven't you come to play with me?"
Li Fei planted her hands on her hips and struck first.
The faint, happy expression on Grace's face vanished, replaced by a layer of gloom.
The day before yesterday she'd rushed over to Li Fei's home, only to find the young madam cuddling with Lady Zhihua.
Yesterday morning she'd gotten up bright and early and gone over, and heard from outside the door that the commotion inside wasn't over yet.
Last night she'd gone again and been told Li Fei had gone to visit Lady Annie…
"Good afternoon, Lady Li Fei."
Before she could say anything, a perfectly polite voice sounded beside her ear.
"Well, if it isn't Senior Kenneth? Promoted to Sequence 6, I hear. Congratulations."
The corner of Li Fei's mouth curled. "Coming to me now, are you? Too impatient to wait for the duel, so you want to move it up? Sure, I'm game."
At the auction in late September where she'd bought the [Moon Pillow], Li Fei had issued Kenneth a challenge to a duel half a year later.
Three months had passed, and one of them was a low Sequence and the other a mid Sequence, but Li Fei was confident she could take him down.
"I think you've misunderstood my purpose."
Kenneth seemed to have forgotten the fact that they'd already torn up the pretense, and kept up his gentlemanly charm. "I'd like to cancel the duel agreement and, on behalf of the Medis family, reach a long-term cooperation agreement with you… The pay will satisfy you."
"Hm?"
Li Fei urged him on with a nasal hum.
"My proposal is…"
The terms Kenneth laid out were very, very, very generous.
The Medis family was willing to hire Li Fei as a private tutor to teach several young noble ladies of the collateral branches, once a month, with leave available at any time, and she wouldn't even have to sign a spell contract.
The payment was one Sacrificial Gem, a high-Sequence-tier currency that ranked above gold coins and Mana Crystals. Real hard currency. A single one was worth no less than many Dawn-grade pieces of equipment.
The only catch was that their cooperation and a joint photo would have to run in the newspapers.
Clearly the Medis family had fired a cannonball at Li Fei wrapped in two layers of tempting sugar coating. The Sacrificial Gem was the outer layer, and the inner layer was naturally the young noble ladies.
Not forcing her to sign any non-harm agreement was a clever touch too. It spared Li Fei's sense of resistance and defused her hostility as much as possible. Of course, the deal's binding force was also well guaranteed.
Those with nothing to lose fear nothing, but Li Fei was no longer barefoot. She was a renowned, outstanding young entrepreneur, a beloved Philanthropist, an honorary citizen decorated by Loxibrook, the spokeswoman for the city hall's aquarium, and a model student worthy of being printed on the Magic Academy's admissions brochure… Guarding her reputation was a must. She had to be graceful and mind her table manners.
So once their cooperation hit the papers, Li Fei could no longer take the benefits and then turn on them the way she could back when she was a nobody.
"Well…"
Li Fei feigned a struggle, then looked at Miss Poker Face beside her and asked softly, "Grace, what do you think?"
"It's time to settle the grudge." Grace spoke calmly.
She's on my side after all, Miss Grace, Kenneth thought, elated.
"True enough. Old grudges like that should be put to rest."
Li Fei sighed.
"So you accept our proposal?" Kenneth asked, a smile spreading across his face.
"Of course not."
Li Fei kept a perfectly straight face. "I need to see more sincerity from you."
So she wants more money after all…
Inwardly Kenneth cursed her as a greedy bitch, but the smile on his face never wavered. "Then what would satisfy you?"
"I'm not some insatiable bandit. It's just that lately I've been missing a dish from my hometown, mao xue wang, that spicy blood stew."
Li Fei waved a hand breezily. "Have half a ton of Sequence 4 Transcendent essence blood prepared for me."
"…"
Under extreme fury, Kenneth entered into amicable negotiations with Li Fei and whittled the outrageous demand down to "one Sacrificial Gem plus two standard units of Sequence 4 Transcendent essence blood."
"The day after tomorrow I'm visiting Miss Grace's home. Bring your 'sincerity' and come find me."
Li Fei broke into a bright smile.
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