"You want me to go up there and trade blows with her? That's your plan?"
Ch'en listened intently, even taking notes out of habit, yet she was still stunned by the absurdity in the shrine maiden's words. She set down her pen and clenched her right hand, blood seeping through the freshly bandaged gauze.
"Are you kidding me?!"
This was too much. Even though she thought highly of the shrine maiden, this was still far too much.
"Do you want me to be a disposable pawn?"
This style of [discarding someone once they had outlived their usefulness] was deeply unpleasant, carrying the stench of schemers from a bygone era—rotten and festering. Ch'en had seen it with her own eyes, which was why she despised such disgusting behavior.
She hated it so much that it even affected her objective judgment.
"Don't worry."
Hoshino had more or less guessed Ch'en's reaction and had expected it all along. "Our shrine has a Saintess healer. Did you forget?"
Ch'en sank into her memories.
It had not happened long ago. A girl named Kiana Kaslana had once visited the Lungmen Guard Department. Wearing the robes of a Saintess from some unknown faith, she had used an exceedingly strange time-stop technique. In that frozen time, every wound she had suffered was healed.
"Your stamina will be restored, and your wounds will vanish. The only thing you need to endure is the pain of being shattered and healed over and over again. What it tests is your mental fortitude." Hoshino's voice was intensely seductive.
Her eyes shone.
They were filled with utter trust. Ch'en could feel it.
With righteous conviction, Hoshino said, "I have truly felt the strength of your character. It is precisely because I acknowledge both your resolve and your power that I can confidently