bookpub Chapter 351 - Malika's Confession
Chapter 351 - Malika's Confession
Though the cloaked figure instinctively crossed his arms to shield himself from the strike, the force of the blow propelled him backward, causing his body to crash against a nearby rock.
Remarkably, he managed to regain his footing, tracing a path along the rough surface of the rock, absorbing the impact with surprising grace.
SCREECH
"Wh—L-Liege?!"
Clearly feeling the tremor in his hand, the man was poised to retaliate, but he abruptly halted when he saw the familiar figure before him.
His eyes narrowed as he took in the sight: a man in a black suit stood ominously, one hand clamped tightly around the neck of the woman, her legs flailing in desperation as he lifted her off the ground.
Although the man himself was almost hard to sense even with the naked eye, given his presence seemed to dilute in the atmosphere, the woman's cries made his presence disturbingly palpable.
"Kurgh!—L-Leave me!?" Malika pleaded, her body thrashing as she succumbed to a force far beyond her strength.
She felt her energy drain away in an instant, rendering her powerless to fight back as she looked up at the man gripping her neck.
"How are you alive?" Ryuk demanded, his voice laced with disbelief.
Although he had killed her himself, he now found himself doubting his own certainty.
She was undeniably the same woman he had encountered that day in Heindal Continent, and confirmation that her energy signature matched the data from his system only deepened his assurance.
The real questions swirled in his mind: How had she returned from the dead?
"Ugh—Wh-who are y-you?" Malika gasped, her neck strained as the very bones felt as though they might crack under the pressure.
The energy that had once surrounded her like a shield dissipated, her peak EPIC body crumbling like sand under a relentless storm.
His grip—no, his whole body—appeared like a solid object that didn't even budge no matter how much she tried.
Despite her situation, she fought back against the suffocating grip as her breath turned shallow.
'....' A deep silence filled the space as Ryuk narrowed his gaze, his senses scanning miles around him for any threat.
He was keenly aware of this woman's plight, and despite her outward appearance of recognition, it was as if she struggled to recall anything of their past encounters.
He pressed on, "Heindal Continent—do you remember anything?"
His voice was strong and authoritative, an attempt to ignite any flicker of memory that lay buried within her.
Prompted by his emerging curiosity, he inquired, 'Is it possible to influence her neurons?'
Considering that she was not a real human but artificially prepared, given how anything that is made has definitely some flaws and considering the artificial factor here, most probably there would be many flaws which could be used to his advantage.
This prompted Ryuk to command the system.
[It is possible to take over her nervous system, but there is a defense mechanism that will trigger and destruct her.]
'In how much time exactly?' Hearing the system's information regarding how there was the possibility of controlling her brain and also the restriction prohibiting any outside intrusion, he wanted to know how much time it would take for her to self-destruct.
Naturally, he was confident that if it was a self-destruction based on a physical type, then his body would easily withstand it.
Unlike how it was the case for a matriarch to have a different kind of self-destruction, this time being physical, his body was far stronger to withstand it.
But before that, he wanted to know a few questions.
[It will trigger at exactly 8 minutes.]
'Take over her mind.' Without hesitation, he ordered the system to do the thing, as he understood that the time was enough for him to inquire.
[Initiating forced overwrite on nervous system.]
"AaaaRrrrGGgggHhhhh!!" Malika's body visibly trembled as she screamed her lungs out, the pain penetrating directly through her, every cell screaming as her eyes widened with her body trembling, legs flailing, and hands twisting in a clearly abnormal way. Find exclusive stories on empire
The whole body was losing control of itself.
"Tell me, why are you here?" Ryuk inquired, holding her neck in one place.
"Urgh—I was sent by Lady Angelica to meet Idolse Rhea....Khuchk!" she replied.
It was as if her mouth was uttering words on its own accord without her being able to control it.
Considering there was a burning sensation igniting from her heart, seemingly as if her body was trying to retaliate against the control that was overwhelming her body.
Yet, everything was futile.
'One of mother's sisters?' Ryuk, who had heard about his mother having two sisters in particular, was able to remember the name which was told to him by Wang; it was just a fleeting mention.
However, now hearing this name from Malika, it appeared that it was Angelica who had sent Malika and that man to the Heindal continent with malicious intent that day.
"Idolse Rhea? Who is she?" Ryuk inquired, hearing a foreign name that didn't typically appear among the natives of this place.