Darling, Time to Take Your Medicine!

Elsewhere.

Noon!

Mmm...

A peculiar moan came from Ekaterina's throat.

Her head hurt so much!

Had she really drunk too much yesterday?

She was already awake, but her eyelids felt so heavy she could barely open them. Her entire body felt as though she had just gone through a fierce battle, sore and exhausted—she was even more tired than when fighting a Rampaging Giant Ape.

Her throat felt as if something were blocking it, sticky and clammy enough to make Ekaterina exceptionally uncomfortable.

Her mouth was full of a foul odor. She really had drunk too much yesterday.

Drinking had felt exhilarating, but the aftermath of a hangover was truly unbearable.

Still, Ekaterina was somewhat puzzled. Her alcohol tolerance was absolutely not a problem. Forget drinking against humans—even Demonic Beasts could not outdrink her.

In her fragmented memories, she did not seem to have drunk that much yesterday. She had only emptied three or four five-liter barrels... mmm, or had it been five or six?

In any case, it was roughly that number. It was not much, anyway.

Ekaterina had once cleared out every last drop of stock in an entire tavern. This much alcohol was nothing to her.

After all, she was a Goddess of War. The Battle Qi within her had long since reached the stage where it circulated on its own. Any alcohol poured into her stomach would soon be almost entirely evaporated, and the drunkenness would not last long at all.

Her head hurt so badly. In a daze, Ekaterina raised an arm and rubbed her forehead, then hazily opened her eyes.

Then she saw an unfamiliar ceiling. From the corner of her eye, she could also make out a messy room, while a strange scent drifted through the air...

Beside her hand lay a nature-themed hat...

A hat?

She never wore hats!

The first update is here. Many thanks to Sharp Godbreaker, Black-and-White 2000, and One Thousand Five for their rewards of Qidian coins; thanks as well to Longing, Cute Egg, and Dawn Embers for their rewards. Thank you for your support.

Thank you all for the monthly votes!

A Hat? She Did Not Wear Hats!

A hat? She did not wear one!

She casually tossed the hat aside and looked around. Judging from the room's furnishings, this seemed to be Qin Chu's room?

How had she ended up in Qin Chu's room? And why was she lying on the hard floor?

Her mind was far too muddled, so Ekaterina did not dwell on the question. She needed to rinse her mouth, then wash her face and wake herself up.

But the moment she climbed to her feet, Ekaterina sucked in a cold breath.

Hiss...

Her body was pierced by pain as if it were about to fall apart.

Her legs were limp and powerless as well. Not bothering to put on shoes, she stepped barefoot onto the icy floor and staggered toward the bathroom.

She scooped up a handful of cold water and splashed it over her face, then thoroughly rinsed her mouth. She seemed to feel a little fresher.

But the churning in her lower belly and the writhing in her throat finally became too much for Ekaterina to endure. With a retch, she vomited, filling the entire bathroom with a foul stench.

Another fit of dry heaving followed, lasting for a long time. Only then did Ekaterina finally recover somewhat.

Her chaotic mind was slowly beginning to think normally again!

She lifted her head and looked at herself in the mirror. Though her eyes were filled with haggard exhaustion, the skin beaded with water droplets appeared crystalline and translucent, seemingly even smoother than before.

But Ekaterina soon noticed something unusual. She lifted her chin, revealing her slender neck. Several distinct marks were reflected on that delicate neck in the mirror...

As her fingers brushed over them, Ekaterina's expression became very strange. What were these marks? Why did they look a little like...

Hickeys?

Which bastard had taken advantage of her being drunk and asleep yesterday to cop a feel?

Ekaterina's fiery temper flared up at once. Someone had actually dared to secretly kiss her? Did he not want to live?

This was Qin Chu's room. Could it have been that bastard Qin Chu?

Well, well. When she first met him, she had thought he was just some spineless fool. Who knew he actually had such nerve?

Though she could not truly kill him because they still needed to revive Jello, giving him a proper lesson should not be a problem, right?

Furious, Ekaterina wanted to rush over and teach Qin Chu a lesson. But as soon as she took a step, her legs went weak, and the stabbing pain nearly made her collapse. Only then did she carefully inspect her entire body.

She was not wearing a single thread, and marks remained everywhere on her body.

In an instant, the face reflected in the mirror turned deathly pale.

Her body trembled without stop as fragmented memories surfaced in her mind. Those scenes filled Ekaterina with extreme terror, and she rushed toward the bed like a madwoman.

Her armor from yesterday was still on the floor.

Ekaterina's toned body seemed to lose all strength in that instant. Trembling, she collapsed onto the floor.

Stimulated by that sight, more and more memories surged into her mind.

She remembered it. She had drunkenly embraced Qin Chu.

She remembered...

She remembered...

Everything she had, the most precious thing she possessed, had all been taken by that man Qin Chu.

She only remembered how Qin Chu had humiliated and tormented her, but could not remember that she herself had dragged Qin Chu into the room.

She deeply loved Jello. In her heart, aside from Jello, there was no room for any other man. Even the other members of the Hero's Party were no more than brothers to her, without the slightest trace of romantic feeling.

She had wanted to give all her finest things to Jello, but now only a broken body remained.

Even if Jello were truly revived in the future, how could she ever face him? What right would she have to remain by his side?

She was no longer clean!

Ekaterina's mind suffered a violent shock.

Her entire being had nearly fallen into Ruin.

Her vacant eyes were wide open, the light gone from her pupils, leaving only a hollow despair, as if all color had drained from the entire world.

For her, nothing remained but hellish darkness.

Her body trembled spasmodically, her stomach cramped painfully, and her heart felt as if a piece had been gouged out. Yet the pain in her flesh was far less than the despair deep in her heart. Two crystalline trails of tears rolled down her fair cheeks.

She felt that her soul had already scattered away. At this moment, all that remained was an empty shell.

She hated.

She hated herself for lacking the courage to reveal her feelings while Jello was still alive.

She hated.

Why was she so fond of drink? If she had not gotten drunk, Qin Chu that bastard would never have been able to take advantage of her vulnerability.

Like a stiff puppet, she sat motionless on the floor. Who knew how much time passed before Ekaterina, like a madwoman, grabbed and tore at her long hair with both hands.

"Aaaaaah..."

The sound spilling from her mouth was the most miserable wail.

Her flame-red hair snapped strand by strand, carpeting the floor.

She was tormenting herself, seemingly trying to use this pain to cover up those memories that had driven her into despair.

But it was not enough. Far from enough.

Ekaterina had completely lost her usual valiant bearing. At this moment, the Goddess of War seemed only to be a madwoman. With her hair in disarray, she climbed up from the floor, braced her hands against both sides of the wall, and slammed her forehead directly into it with a bang.

Bang... bang... bang...

The entire room trembled. Cracks rapidly spread across the walls, and plaster rained down in showers. The whole house seemed about to collapse under the Goddess of War's impacts.

If anyone could see Ekaterina now, they would surely wonder whether this madwoman truly was that Goddess of War.

After an unknown length of time, Ekaterina finally stopped smashing her head against the wall. She wanted to knock herself unconscious, then wake up and discover that everything had only been a nightmare.

But she could not pass out. Every impact only made her more lucid, making her understand even more clearly just how filthy she now was.

It hurt so much. Why did it hurt this much?

Sobbing, wailing, trembling... she wrapped her arms tightly around herself, yet could only feel a bone-piercing cold.

After an unknown amount of time, Ekaterina silently walked into the bathroom and scrubbed her body with all her strength.

Then she picked up the armor and underwear scattered across the floor and put them on piece by piece.

Her hands, clad in metal gauntlets, tightly gripped Flamebreaker Greatsword, the symbol of the Scarlet Valkyrie's glory. Its tip dragged at her side along the ground, scraping out a harsh screech.

A spray of sparks flashed, and the floor was neatly split in two.

Her eyes remained hollow. Her once-brilliant scarlet irises had become a dull red devoid of all light.

She... was already filthy.

The stains on her body could be washed away, but the filth of being defiled would remain forever.

No matter how desperately Ekaterina scrubbed her body, she could never return to what she once was.

Her dream of marrying Jello and becoming Jello's bride had been completely shattered. To let this filthy body become Jello's wife, to let Jello touch her impure self, would be a desecration of Jello.

Ekaterina even felt that continuing to live in this world was a kind of shame. Every breath she took and every beat of her heart subjected her to unbearable torment.

She thought of death.

She had wanted to use Flame Severance to pierce her own abdomen and end her life.

But before killing herself, there was still one thing she had to do:

Kill Qin Chu!

It was that damned bastard who had pushed her into the abyss of despair while she was drunk. She would make Qin Chu pay with his life.

Amidst extreme agony and despair, she had even forgotten that Qin Chu was the most important tool in their plan. They still needed Qin Chu's power to fight the terrifying Demonic Beasts. Otherwise, even if Jello were revived, he still would not be a match for Nag, the Eternal Monarch. The reborn Jello would still be torn apart by Nag, just as before.

She had forgotten even more thoroughly how shameless her plan with Rosweisse had been—to use Qin Chu, then kill him from behind and drain all his blood once he was no longer useful.

Hatred had already filled her chest.

Bang.

The door to Qin Chu's bedroom was blasted directly into fragments.

The room's interior walls had become battered and riddled with cracks beneath Ekaterina's headbutts. The door had been shattered, and the floor split apart by Flamebreaker Greatsword. It had nearly become a condemned building.

Ekaterina searched for Qin Chu, but there was no one else in the palace.

Qin Chu had vanished without a trace. Even the guards who had originally protected Qin Chu had disappeared completely.

Had he fled because he knew she would retaliate?

But where could he possibly run to?

Even if you flee to the ends of the earth, I will tear you into ten thousand pieces!

The second update is here. Please vote monthly and keep reading!

Was Augustus the Mastermind Behind It All?

Please vote monthly.

Qin Chu had not fled.

He and Angelica leisurely enjoyed breakfast before heading to the Holy Church.

This time, Qin Chu had not sneaked in. He had walked in openly. After having the Holy Knights at the Holy Church's entrance announce him, Augustus immediately hurried over and personally welcomed him.

It had been the same in the first cycle.