Your Wife and Children? I'll Take Care of Them (1)

Norma blushed slightly. "He was my ex... ex-boyfriend, fiancé... but we broke up for some reasons."

"I see." Qin Chu remained noncommittal. "Then, Miss Norma should also be well aware of what Karthus did to me, right?"

Norma's pretty face paled for a moment.

"I don't know why, but Karthus seemed to hate me very much. He attacked me twice... and once his spear was only centimeters away from my heart."

"If it weren't for Miss Violet's narrow escape, I would be dead by now."

"I hope Miss Norma can give me a reason why I should save someone who has tried to kill me twice. What good would it do me? Would I just save him only to let him kill me again?"

"Sorry, I'm not that stupid!"

"Moreover, it was my suggestion to publicly execute Karthus; they originally planned to do it secretly! Now they want me to save him? This is a slap in my face!"

Norma's face turned even paler. Just as Qin Chu had said, he indeed had no reason to help save Karthus. Anyone with a sound mind would never do such a thing.

On the way here, she had tried to come up with many reasons, such as that Karthus was very strong and could help fight against the Magic Creature, but now she realized that these reasons were useless to Qin Chu.

The stronger Karthus becomes, the less likely Qin Chu is to save Karthus, as this would be even more dangerous for Qin Chu.

She bit her lip tightly, and in the end, she could only say in a trembling voice:

"Mr. Qin, if... if you are willing to save Karthus, Norma is willing to do anything."

However, once she said it, she felt she had been too arrogant.

The two women who had just appeared in the hall were quite different. One was dressed as a maid, charming and gentle, while the other was alluring, noble, and elegant.

Compared to those two girls, he wasn't attractive at all.

Even if you say something like that, you're just asking for humiliation.

Qin Chu wasn't surprised that Norma made such a decision; this girl's personality was stronger than her delicate appearance suggested. He sighed softly.

"Miss Norma, girls should learn to cherish themselves."

"Do you know that for a gentle and beautiful lady like yourself to say such things is easily misunderstood? If you hadn't met a gentleman like me today, you might have paid a very heavy price."

Qin Chu's attitude was clearly different from when he was facing Ekaterina and Athena.

He harbored no resentment towards Norma.

There was even a touch of pity; this girl clearly had many better options, yet she chose to hang herself in Karthus.

"Karthus is incredibly lucky to have a fiancée like you," Qin Chu added. "Oh, no, his ex-fiancée, she was such a shameless jerk."

Norma was taken aback by the unexpected response and was momentarily at a loss for words.

"By the way, Miss Norma, can you tell me something about Jello? You've met him, haven't you?" Qin Chu tilted his head and suddenly changed the subject.

"Jello? The First-Generation Hero?" Norma thought for a moment, not understanding why Qin Chu suddenly shifted the topic to Jello, but she still answered honestly, "I've only met him three times."

"He's a very charming person."

This is Norma's assessment of Jello, which seems no different from others.

Very charming?

This charm, which even seems somewhat eerie, can greatly increase others' goodwill towards you without affecting their mind.

Unlike seductive charm, or hypnosis, or even soul control...

Qin Chu assumed that Norma's assessment would be just like that, but to his surprise, Norma then frowned, seemingly hesitating whether to speak.

After a few seconds, Norma whispered, "But he scares me a little."

This was the first time Qin Chu had heard such an evaluation from someone who had contact with Jello.

Even Augustus and Wadsworth didn't have it.

Fear?

Is Norma afraid of Jello?

"Why?"

"I... I don't know either. He's clearly a very charismatic person, popular wherever he goes, and even Karthus's dark power can be suppressed by Jello. But I instinctively want to stay away from him. It's like there's a voice in my ear telling me not to get close to him, that it will become dangerous."

Norma carefully chose her words, saying that it was entirely her own subjective and pure feeling.

Interesting.

This timid girl seemed a little more mysterious than I had imagined.

She's the only one who can resist Jello's charm; perhaps we should observe her more closely!

Qin Chu became a little curious.

After a pause, Norma spoke, "Your Hero, regarding Karthus..."

"Phew, that guy tried to kill me twice without any grudge against me. I didn't want to help him, but seeing how devoted you are, I'll give you a hand." Qin Chu added in his mind, "Yeah, I'll help him suffer an even more miserable death."

"However, please don't have too high expectations. My words may not be effective. After all, although I am Hero, my strength has not yet grown. Most importantly, the Evil God calamity caused by the First Prince recently has led people to have an instinctive fear of dark and evil forces. Augustus and the others may very well stick to their original opinions."

Qin Chu did not agree immediately.

But this was enough to make Norma ecstatic. It was an answer Norma expected. Unlike the one Rosweisse was pretending to be, this truly innocent girl blushed and nodded repeatedly.

"Then let's set off now to the Holy Church. Karthus is being held in the Holy Church's dungeon." Qin Chu stood up, put on a black silk top hat and a black suit, and said to Norma.

Night has fallen, and the bright moon hangs in the sky.

Qin Chu did not hire carriages, not because they did not want to, but because they could not.

Because the roads in the Nobles' District have been severely damaged, carriages can no longer travel and are currently being repaired.

When the two arrived at the entrance of the Holy Church, they saw Augustus holding his staff, preparing to leave.

Upon seeing Qin Chu, a glint of shrewdness flashed in his cloudy eyes, and then a kind smile spread across his wrinkled face as he walked towards Qin Chu.

Qin Chu gestured for Norma to wait there, and went to greet them alone.

"Your Majesty Augustus, it's a beautiful moonlit day. Are you going out?" Qin Chu removed his top hat and smiled.

"I have some business to attend to. Hero didn't come to the Holy Church to see me, did you? Perhaps you've taken a fancy to one of the nuns Holy Church?" Augustus said with a chuckle. "I think no woman would refuse Hero. Your strength and talent have already won over many..."

This doesn't seem like something a pope should say.

However, the world is very open-minded, and even the Pope isn't that rigid.

Qin Chu chuckled, "Your Holiness, you know I'm not that kind of person."

"I just wanted to ask about Karthus's situation."

"Karthus? He's in the dungeon right now. You know, it's a bit stuffy in the dungeon, so we added some water to cool him down and give him a bath."

"Furthermore, the dungeon was too dark, so twelve priests took turns giving him the warmth of Holy Light."

"Because it was so boring inside, they even arranged for him to have some rats, cockroaches, maggots, and other such companions."

"They even arranged for six wicked executioners to keep him company 24/7, and he's living the life he wants now."

Augustus rambling on and on, and Qin Chu imagined that kind of environment. Hmm, Karthus must be having a very pleasant time right now.

As expected of the Holy Church, they treat prisoners with such mercy.

Augustus suddenly realized something. "You don't mean you want to protect Karthus, do you?"

"Hero Excellency, it was your persuasive speech that convinced us to publicly execute Karthus."

"Besides, I only found out last time because of the information you gave me..."

"Hush, Your Holiness, don't speak carelessly. The fact that Karthus was the true culprit in the massacre of the Knight was discovered by your own wisdom and unparalleled insight. It has absolutely nothing to do with me. How could I steal your credit?" Qin Chu interrupted Augustus with a smile.

"Besides, although I am a magnanimous person who never holds grudges, I am not a saint. Why should I save someone who tried to kill me twice?"

After a pause, Qin Chu continued, "However, as you saw, Karthus's fiancée came to see me, and I really had no choice..."

Augustus's expression was somewhat strange. He seemed to speak subconsciously, saying, "Hero Excellency, why do you always seem to be interested in other people's fiancées?"

"Take my advice, this is not a good habit."

"No matter how beautiful someone else's fiancée is, she belongs to someone else. To lay a hand on someone else's fiancée is utterly immoral; such behavior will lead to hell."

That makes it sound like I'm some kind of traitor...

Am I that kind of person?

Qin Chu shrugged. "There's nothing I can do, it's just that I don't have it."

"However, Your Holiness, could you please take me to see Karthus? Don't misunderstand, I don't intend to rescue him."

"You know, Karthus loves his fiancée deeply, and he's probably very worried about her while he's in the dungeon, so I'm going in to let him know she's safe!"

"Tell him, your wife is in my hands, you don't need to worry?"

Chapter Four is presented here.

Chapter 164 Your wife, I will take care of her (1)

That Hero is truly ruthless.

Looking at the Second-Generation Hero before him, Augustus exclaimed in sincere admiration, "Hero, your heart is so broad, your inner darkness so profound... I mean, like the blazing sun dispelling the darkness, your kindness has deeply moved me."

"Therefore, I am willing to make an exception for you and grant your request."

"However, only you can accompany me; Karthus' fiancée cannot go," Augustus said with a smile.

Qin Chu smiled as well, "Thank you for your leniency, Your Majesty. I think Norma will be very grateful to you."

After ending his conversation with Augustus, Qin Chu returned to Norma's side, looking somewhat melancholy.

Norma asked cautiously, "Mr. Qin, how is it?"

Qin Chu sighed softly, a sight that chilled Norma to the bone.

"This is a very important matter. Even Augustus couldn't make the decision alone. The Pope's meaning is very clear: news of the public trial of Karthus has already spread. If we back out now, it will make him lose face," Qin Chu said, shrugging.

Norma understood that the obstacles to this matter were simply too great.

She was already somewhat prepared that the Hero's words had no effect, but hearing them now still made her a little sad.

"Augustus still needs to discuss this with Wadsworth and the others, but before that, he can visit Karthus first," Qin Chu said.

Norma's eyes suddenly lit up, but before she could speak, Qin Chu interrupted her, "Of course, only I can go in. You can't, after all, you're his ex-fiancée, that status..."

Although somewhat disappointed, Norma understood the decision.

"Please, Mr. Qin, tell Karthus that I've been trying to save him and that he shouldn't give up." Norma hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "Also, his teammates in the Hero's Party are also working hard to find a way to save him."

"Okay, I've got it." Qin Chu nodded readily.

Under Norma's expectant gaze, Qin Chu and Augustus entered the Holy Church together.

As soon as Qin Chu arrived at the entrance, he could smell a strong stench.

Torches were placed on both sides of the passage leading underground, but the flickering flames did little to brighten the place; instead, they made it seem even more eerie.

As they descended the spiraling staircase, the sound of Qin Chu and Augustus's footsteps echoed in the air.

"The people guarding this place are Douglas's men... Although I don't have a very good relationship with him, I have to admit that Douglas's men are indeed very good at handling these things," Augustus said casually as he walked.

"Coincidentally, those Knight killed by Karthus were showing signs of aligning themselves with Douglas. He had originally intended to recruit them, but Karthus eliminated them all, which angered Douglas greatly."

"These days I'm frantically fabricating... well, gathering all sorts of charges against Karthus, determined to nail Karthus firmly to the pillar of shame."

Augustus made no secret of his discord with Douglas... after all, anyone in the Imperial City who wasn't a fool could see it.

Qin Chu nodded slightly; no wonder Augustus so pleased.

Since it wasn't his people who died, he could not only gain fame within the Church but also weaken his rivals.

Karthus's actions directly resulted in a win-win situation for Augustus.

Finally, the stairs ended, and they arrived at a relatively flat ground. Some Knight and priests were guarding the entrance, and they immediately bowed when they saw Qin Chu and Augustus.

Augustus simply waved his hand casually and led Qin Chu inside.

Karthus was imprisoned in the deepest part of the dungeon. The further he went in, the worse the environment became. Under the flickering flames, he could see the filthy dust in the air, and the ground was muddy.

The nauseating stench rolled in like dark clouds.

The deeper you go, the less air circulation there is, and the stronger the stench becomes.

Even before Qin Chu and Augustus arrived in front of Karthus's cage, they could hear muffled groans and screams of pain coming from inside.