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Chapter 8: The Visitor

"No. It wasn't me. I didn't mean to."

Terrified, Covai felt a genuine killing intent for the first time.

He tried to use his sharp wit to justify his actions, but the young lady before him showed no inclination to listen. She simply walked towards him, holding the dinner knife straight, leaving bloody footprints on the carpet with each step. She was like Satan, wielding the scythe of death, come to harvest the impure souls of humanity.

"Demon! You're a demon!" Covai roared, his voice hoarse and broken. "Lord of Blooming Flowers, please save me! A demon has descended!!"

Alas, though the gods may pity mortals, they do not sympathize with evil spirits destined for their adversary's domain.

However, while Covai's shouts didn't summon any deities, they did draw out the only other living person in the manor besides himself and Iris.

"What's wrong? What happened!"

Hailan, her face wet, stumbled down the stairs.

She had heard the sounds of a struggle earlier. But in her mind, if Covai and Hom were fighting, the one gaining the upper hand could never be that useless fellow, so she had remained indifferent.

But hearing Covai's desperate cries now, Hailan could no longer sit idly by.

The scene was not what she had imagined.

Her husband lay in a pool of blood, her lover's handsome face was almost unrecognizable, and her daughter, a reserve knight of the righteous Knights Order, was holding a blood-stained weapon, slowly approaching her current beloved.

"Iris!!"

Hailan screamed as she ran downstairs, so flustered that she practically tumbled down the stairs.

But she had abandoned all her former elegance. She charged at Iris like a madwoman, pushing her away with all her might.

"You lunatic, you bastard, what kind of evil spirit are you! Do you know what you're doing!!"

Iris steadied herself, her eyes filled with disbelief and rage.

"You're scolding me? You're asking what I'm doing?"

She pointed to her father, lying on the crimson carpet. "He murdered my father, your husband, and now you're protecting this murderer?"

Seeing Iris pause, Covai rushed to the lifeline, shouting urgently, "Hailan, don't believe her, she's lying to you! She's possessed by an Abyssal Demon! She killed her own father! And now, she wants to kill us too!!"

"You!!"

Iris found it hard to believe someone could be so shamelessly brazen.

Even when challenged by members of the Knights Order and losing a duel, they never reneged. They always stood by their actions.

It could be said that Covai was the first person she had ever met who could twist the truth without even changing his expression.

But what made it even harder for Iris to comprehend was yet to come.

Hailan believed Covai's words.

As a mother, Hailan was far from responsible. She had even forgotten that it was her daughter's birthday today.

Compared to Iris, who had barely spoken two words to her since childhood, she preferred to believe Covai, whom she saw as elegant, honest, and debonair.

"He wouldn't kill anyone! Never!" Hailan glared at Iris, repeating herself.

Iris suddenly felt as if her home were trembling.

The light distorted, the ceiling gradually blurred, and the people before her transformed from kind to hideous.

She touched her forehead, her voice trembling as she asked, "I am your daughter, and you don't believe me, but you choose to believe a murderer?"

"You are not my daughter!" Hailan's shrill voice seemed to tear Iris apart. "You are not Iris, you are a monster possessed by an evil spirit! I'm telling you, I've made a large contribution to the church, and the gods protect us. You damned monster will return to your abyssal hell immediately!"

"Heh."

Iris wanted to sneer derisively, but she couldn't. It was as if she had lost all expression.

She had given up her glory for her, yet her mother had never loved her.

"Since I am an evil spirit, let's go to hell together."

She re-gripped the dinner knife and walked step by step towards the embracing pair.

"Hailan, don't let her come near!"

Covai shrieked. Hailan looked at her lover, who was filled with extreme fear in her arms, and an unparalleled courage surged within her.

She lunged forward, attempting to stop Iris's advance, but the young lady simply raised her arm and easily pushed her to the ground.

Seeing that Hailan couldn't stop the young lady, Covai was filled with despair.

He suppressed his fear, gathered the little strength he had left, picked up the candlestick that Hom had used as a weapon earlier, and with all his might, smashed it fiercely at Iris.

Iris watched the attack, which posed no threat to her whatsoever. She casually raised her hand, preparing to dodge and then deliver a fatal blow.

She would pierce his heart through the left rib.

Iris thought this, but as soon as she moved, she found herself seemingly bound by something.

"I've got her! Quickly! Quickly kill her!!"

Hailan clung to Iris with her hands and feet, shouting loudly while trying to immobilize her daughter.

Iris turned her head and looked at her mother.

She could have broken free with just a slight exertion of her own strength, escaping the lock that lacked any real skill.

—But suddenly, she didn't want to struggle anymore.

"I never imagined that the person who brought me into this world, my closest kin, would be the one to personally end my life."

The candlestick smashed down, but before it did, Iris's beautiful sea-blue eyes had already dimmed and lost their light.

Her resentment, anger, and sorrow all vanished in an instant. At the moment she was about to leave this world, her soul was almost as pure as it was at the moment of her birth.

Perhaps it was because the person who brought her to the human world was now personally sending her away.

"CRASH—"

The human brain is the most miraculous and precious organ, issuing commands for every movement and action the body takes. Yet, it is also one of the most vulnerable parts of a person. It lacks the protection of strong muscles and any space for cushioning. The skull, the only thing guarding it, appears exceptionally fragile against the intrusion of foreign objects.

Under the heavy blow, Iris's brainstem, having completely abandoned its defenses, instantly ruptured. Blood flooded every inch of her brain tissue, and from that moment on, she was no longer alive.

As Iris fell, Hailan also lost all strength and collapsed onto the ground.

Suddenly, her tears poured out like a bursting dam, and sobs tumbled from her throat at the same time.

"I'm a bad person. I'm the evil spirit."

"It's okay now, it's okay, Hailan."

After confirming Iris was completely dead, Covai sat down on the ground and comforted the woman in a weak voice.

"You're not the evil spirit. Iris, who killed Hom, was. But we dealt with her, and the Lord of Blooming Flowers is protecting us. Everything is fine now."

However, Hailan's mind was on the verge of collapse, and she had no intention of listening to her lover, whom she usually cherished so dearly she feared he might melt if she held him too tightly.

Covai comforted her for a few more sentences, but seeing that it had no effect, a hint of annoyance rose in his heart, and he stopped trying to communicate with Hailan.

He slowly stood up, first tending to his wounds. Feeling that the pain was bearable for the moment, he dragged his broken body, intending to clean up the scene.

But just as he had dragged the two lifeless bodies a few steps, a sudden knocking sound echoed from the doorway.

"Knock, knock, knock—"

Covai's heart leaped. He instinctively let go of his grip and looked up.

The person who arrived was clad in a black robe, their appearance obscured, making them seem somewhat mysterious under the pale silver moonlight.

"Excuse me, I think I've interrupted you." The newcomer's voice sounded very calm, showing no reaction to the bloody scene in the hall.

"May I ask if Mr. Lizer is here?"

Covai's mind raced, recalling Hom's words.

"Tonight, I am expecting a guest, a very important guest."

Could this be him?

Thanks to "I am Sha Bi" for the 1500 Qidian coins reward, thank you very much orz!!