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Chapter 762: Hurry Up and Bring It Out for Appraisal
One of the Guards beside him, after confirming that Moth Wing had killed his opponent, glanced at Aknadin, and Aknadin understood his meaning.
"He's already won nine matches? Then the entertainment ends here. It's time to bring out the main course that's worth appraising." Aknadin nodded, ordering his Subordinates, "Send that woman in!"
"That woman?" Seto looked at the direction the Soldiers went after receiving the order. It was the cage where he had previously seen Kisara imprisoned. Aknadin was going to bring Kisara to the Deep Pit to battle as well? How could this be!
Seto immediately became anxious and quickly said to Aknadin, "Lord Aknadin, you can't possibly be sending that woman to participate in a death match, can you! That woman is not a Criminal, she shouldn't be—"
"Whether that woman has committed a crime, you should know better than I do, Seto." Aknadin interrupted Seto. "Not a single Guard can identify the entrance through which this woman entered the City under their responsibility. You should have known this from your Subordinates, and an unidentified person who has trespassed into the Royal City is undoubtedly a Sinner."
Seto was speechless for a moment, unable to refute Aknadin's words. Of course, he knew this, especially now that the kingdom was facing the threat of Thief Bakura and his Subordinates. Any unidentified person could even be killed directly without anyone raising an objection. To protect the Pharaoh and guard the kingdom, this was a necessary sacrifice.
However, because it was Kisara, Seto, who had always adhered to the law in comparison to Mahad, for the first time violated the teachings of Priest Aknadin and committed his first act of favoritism and perversion of justice in his life, even bringing Kisara back to his Residence.
"But, but..." Even though he knew he had done something wrong, just thinking about Kisara being sent to slaughter those Criminals filled Seto with resistance. He opened his mouth, wanting to persuade Aknadin, but couldn't find a suitable reason.
Seeing Seto lose his composure like this because of a woman, Aknadin also frowned. Could it be that Seto liked this woman? Although I had thought about having Seto marry and have an heir early, the object should be a Noble Children, not a Commoner Woman like this?
Moreover, the usually cold and arrogant Seto is actually arguing with me for the sake of a woman he's known for less than a day. This person's influence on Seto is too great!
Seto is going to become the Pharaoh, and women are too troublesome.
"Watch closely, Seto, I confirmed it with the power of the Millennium Eye before." Previously, Aknadin only had the idea of utilizing Kisara, but after figuring something out, Aknadin subtly developed killing intent towards Kisara. However, he still maintained a perfect facade. "The magic contained within that woman's heart is difficult to estimate even with the Millennium Eye."
"With such a premise, the power of the monster that can be awakened within that woman's heart will absolutely not be weak. It's a magic so vast that even the Millennium Eye, one of the Millennium Items, cannot see through it."
"Even the purpose of this Dungeon's existence is to nurture the nourishment that allows the monster within her heart to grow as much as possible. Now, the first portion of nourishment is about to be absorbed by that woman!"
As Aknadin spoke, his gaze fell upon Moth Wing, who was standing on the platform above the Deep Pit and had already won nine consecutive matches. The implication was that he was the "nourishment" that would allow the monster within Kisara's heart to grow.
From the very beginning, the condition he offered to Moth Wing and the other Criminals was impossible to fulfill. The Criminals had to win ten consecutive matches under the threat of death and the temptation of freedom. Throughout this process, all their desire and potential within their body and heart would be fully developed and squeezed out, allowing their monsters to achieve maximum growth.
Then, after they had won nine matches, Aknadin would arrange for them to battle Kisara, crushing all their hope when they were just a hair's breadth away from freedom.
Kisara's cage was opened by the Guards. Two Soldiers grabbed her arms and brought her out of the cage, dragging her by the arms to a protrusion by the edge of the Deep Pit. The mechanism activated, and several wooden boards unfolded to form a bridge leading to a newly vacated platform above the Deep Pit. It was clear they were going to force Kisara onto it.
Seto's fists were clenched tightly. When Kisara looked back at him, casting a helpless gaze, Seto ultimately couldn't control the emotion in his heart and said sharply, "Please, please wait, I cannot stand by and do nothing about your actions!"
"Even if it's Lord Aknadin, I cannot remain silent!"
Hearing Seto repeatedly resist his will for the sake of this woman, the gentle expression on Aknadin's face couldn't be maintained, becoming somewhat serious. "Stop making trouble, Seto, how long are you going to be so naive! If you cannot possess the resolve to counter a god, you will never obtain power that surpasses a god!"
"You are unwilling to dirty your hands, so this guilt will be borne by me. Open your eyes and see clearly, that woman is afraid, trembling and screaming because of terror! Then, the power that surpasses a god will fall into your hands!"
Seto was stunned, because Aknadin's words completely touched upon something that had been troubling him deep within his heart.
Power and glory. He had always believed that the two were intertwined, that power could increase glory, and glory would also bring power. But it wasn't until he encountered Bakura that he realized he had been unable to make a choice between the two, neither gaining great strength nor being able to protect the glory he already possessed.
Aknadin's actions were essentially making the choice for Seto, giving up the glory of a Priest, using power against the citizens he should have been protecting, in order to obtain great strength. If it were someone else who didn't deeply pursue power, they might still firmly maintain their stance and refute Aknadin's actions as completely lacking in glory.
However, Seto hesitated for a moment because of that desire for power.
Looking back at Seto, who was stunned by Aknadin's words, Kisara softly murmured his name: "Seto."
And Aknadin, seeing that Seto finally didn't continue to refute him, waved his hand. Seeing this, the two Guards pushed Kisara from behind, causing her to stumble onto the wooden bridge. And because the mechanism of the wooden boards forming the bridge began to recycle, she was forced onto the platform covered in spikes!
"Woman, summon your monster and let me see its power!" Aknadin said from his seat.
He wasn't worried at all about whether Kisara could win. The monsters controlled by every Prisoner participating in the death match were awakened by the power of his Millennium Eye. He knew their power very well. Even Moth Wing, who had already won nine consecutive matches, his inner darkness had only become four or five times stronger than before.
But Kisara, if he looked at her not with his naked eye but with the Millennium Eye, Aknadin's eyes would be filled with pure white light. The vast magic contained within her heart would inevitably nurture a powerful Spirit. Even though Aknadin hadn't seen the Spirit's true form with his own eyes until now, Aknadin still believed that it would absolutely not disappoint him.
After briefly confirming with the Millennium Eye that the light around Kisara was as dazzling as ever, Aknadin raised his left hand to cover his eyes. But even he didn't notice that when he raised his hand, his palm, exposed to the line of sight of the Millennium Eye, was wrapped in dark aura.
"Hehehehehe, my opponent this time is actually this woman? I haven't seen you battle before, you must be a beginner. Lord Moth Wing is really lucky, as long as I kill you, freedom will be within reach, a beautiful tomorrow awaits me!"
Moth Wing watched Kisara walk onto the platform. Although he was very dismissive of her, he immediately summoned his monster. "Come out, my beloved Insect Queen!"
The spider monster that had killed many strong enemies appeared before Moth Wing. Due to the continuous victories and the constantly swelling desire and arrogance within the User's heart, Insect Queen's size was already twice as large as when Seto first saw it.
However, facing the appearance of Insect Queen, Kisara, who had been forced onto the High Platform, still stood there alone, trembling, and showed no sign of summoning her Spirit.
Seeing this, Seto was extremely anxious. To comfort himself, he chose to believe Aknadin's previous statement, believing that an extremely powerful Spirit, one that might even surpass the power of a god, resided within Kisara. In that case, even if Kisara was forced onto the platform by Aknadin to battle, she could still protect her life and be safe.
But what was happening now? Why wasn't Kisara summoning her Spirit? If this continued, she would be in danger!
What are you doing, Kisara? Hurry and summon your Spirit, or you'll die!
In Seto's clenched hand, his fingernails had dug into his flesh, almost piercing the skin. In his anxiety, he couldn't help but move closer and closer towards the direction of the Deep Pit.
Seeing that Kisara was slow to summon her monster, Moth Wing had no idea of waiting leisurely for her. He wanted victory, he wanted to live. For this, neither honor nor face were necessary existences for him. Since the opponent wasn't making a move, he would strike while she was weak and take her life!
"Hiss—!"
Insect Queen raised its abdomen and aimed its spinneret at Kisara's location, suddenly spraying out a massive amount of silk thread, completely binding Kisara in place, unable to move!
"Ugh!" Her body completely wrapped in silk thread, Kisara couldn't even move on the platform now, leaving herself to be slaughtered by Moth Wing's Insect Queen.
"Kisara!" Seeing this, Seto shouted out urgently.
And Aknadin also frowned tightly, urging, "Woman, aren't you going to summon your Spirit quickly? Do you want to be killed!"
It wasn't that Aknadin cared about Kisara's life and death like Seto did. Aknadin was just thinking that if Kisara died like this, wouldn't that magic on her be completely wasted? That would be too great a loss.
"Hehehehehe, caution is the parent of safety. Although I don't know why this woman isn't summoning her monster, just in case, I'll grab you with silk thread first." Moth Wing said, grinning strangely. "Then comes the last—"
"You wish!"
Just as Moth Wing was about to have his Insect Queen deliver the final blow to the bound Kisara, Seto, having reached his limit of patience, completely overcame the desire for power in his heart and called out his stone tablet monster. He raised the Duel Arena high, and the Winged Warrior Duos, holding a long sword, was summoned by Seto. With a sword slash, it repelled Insect Queen's attack.
And Seto himself, with Winged Warrior Duos's help, leaped onto the platform. He drew a small knife from the bottom of the Millennium Rod in his hand, cut open the silk thread wrapped around Kisara, and said to her with a serious face, "Don't leave my side from now on, do you hear me, Kisara."
Seto's tone when speaking carried a kind of arrogant order, as always, but Kisara heard Seto's concern for her in it. She nodded shyly and softly "Mm"ed, hiding behind Seto.
And Aknadin's eyes widened, looking at Seto with disbelief. "Seto! What are you doing, Seto!"
Facing Aknadin's question, Seto took a deep breath and said calmly, "I failed to protect my mother. Until now, I still regret my lack of strength at that time."
"But I swear, this time will be absolutely different!"
Looking at Insect Queen confronting his Winged Warrior Duos, Seto reached out his palm. "I, Seto, have spent the past twenty-plus years of my life in pursuit of power, but even I have my own pride and persistence. If the stakes for power are the sacrifice of others, then I would rather not have it!"
"I give up the pursuit of power, Priest Aknadin!" Seto firmly swung the Millennium Rod. "I will absolutely not let Kisara die!"
Following Seto's words, the Winged Warrior Duos before him received a magic boost from the Millennium Rod. Its wings behind it suddenly spread, and the dazzling seven-colored magic transformed into light wings, propelling it towards Insect Queen!
"I didn't expect a Priest to also break into this death match, it really excites me! You made me suffer so much, now you also come and feel my pain, Lord Priest!" Facing the attack of Winged Warrior Duos under Seto's command, Moth Wing was not flustered at all, grinning fiercely, he similarly ordered, "If it were at the very beginning, my Insect Queen would indeed not be a match for Lord Priest, but after experiencing so many battles—"
"My pain is above yours!"
Insect Queen flew towards Winged Warrior Duos. The result was unexpected. The sword slash swung by Winged Warrior Duos was easily accepted by Insect Queen for the vast majority, not posing any threat to Moth Wing behind it. And after the two collided, it was actually his Insect Queen that gained the upper hand, just as Moth Wing had said!?
But Seto gave a cold snort. "Idiot, my puzzle of victory is much more perfect than you imagined! Look closely, my true attack target!"
Moth Wing was also startled upon hearing this. He suddenly looked up, only to see the remaining sword slash that wasn't completely accepted by Insect Queen flying directly towards the chains linking the ceiling to the platform above the Deep Pit, cutting them all off.
In an instant, all the platforms above the Deep Pit lost their fixation, and along with the prisoners fighting on them, they all fell into the Deep Pit!
One of the Guards beside him, after confirming that Moth Wing had killed his opponent, glanced at Aknadin, and Aknadin understood his meaning.
"He's already won nine matches? Then the entertainment ends here. It's time to bring out the main course that's worth appraising." Aknadin nodded, ordering his Subordinates, "Send that woman in!"
"That woman?" Seto looked at the direction the Soldiers went after receiving the order. It was the cage where he had previously seen Kisara imprisoned. Aknadin was going to bring Kisara to the Deep Pit to battle as well? How could this be!
Seto immediately became anxious and quickly said to Aknadin, "Lord Aknadin, you can't possibly be sending that woman to participate in a death match, can you! That woman is not a Criminal, she shouldn't be—"
"Whether that woman has committed a crime, you should know better than I do, Seto." Aknadin interrupted Seto. "Not a single Guard can identify the entrance through which this woman entered the City under their responsibility. You should have known this from your Subordinates, and an unidentified person who has trespassed into the Royal City is undoubtedly a Sinner."
Seto was speechless for a moment, unable to refute Aknadin's words. Of course, he knew this, especially now that the kingdom was facing the threat of Thief Bakura and his Subordinates. Any unidentified person could even be killed directly without anyone raising an objection. To protect the Pharaoh and guard the kingdom, this was a necessary sacrifice.
However, because it was Kisara, Seto, who had always adhered to the law in comparison to Mahad, for the first time violated the teachings of Priest Aknadin and committed his first act of favoritism and perversion of justice in his life, even bringing Kisara back to his Residence.
"But, but..." Even though he knew he had done something wrong, just thinking about Kisara being sent to slaughter those Criminals filled Seto with resistance. He opened his mouth, wanting to persuade Aknadin, but couldn't find a suitable reason.
Seeing Seto lose his composure like this because of a woman, Aknadin also frowned. Could it be that Seto liked this woman? Although I had thought about having Seto marry and have an heir early, the object should be a Noble Children, not a Commoner Woman like this?
Moreover, the usually cold and arrogant Seto is actually arguing with me for the sake of a woman he's known for less than a day. This person's influence on Seto is too great!
Seto is going to become the Pharaoh, and women are too troublesome.
"Watch closely, Seto, I confirmed it with the power of the Millennium Eye before." Previously, Aknadin only had the idea of utilizing Kisara, but after figuring something out, Aknadin subtly developed killing intent towards Kisara. However, he still maintained a perfect facade. "The magic contained within that woman's heart is difficult to estimate even with the Millennium Eye."
"With such a premise, the power of the monster that can be awakened within that woman's heart will absolutely not be weak. It's a magic so vast that even the Millennium Eye, one of the Millennium Items, cannot see through it."
"Even the purpose of this Dungeon's existence is to nurture the nourishment that allows the monster within her heart to grow as much as possible. Now, the first portion of nourishment is about to be absorbed by that woman!"
As Aknadin spoke, his gaze fell upon Moth Wing, who was standing on the platform above the Deep Pit and had already won nine consecutive matches. The implication was that he was the "nourishment" that would allow the monster within Kisara's heart to grow.
From the very beginning, the condition he offered to Moth Wing and the other Criminals was impossible to fulfill. The Criminals had to win ten consecutive matches under the threat of death and the temptation of freedom. Throughout this process, all their desire and potential within their body and heart would be fully developed and squeezed out, allowing their monsters to achieve maximum growth.
Then, after they had won nine matches, Aknadin would arrange for them to battle Kisara, crushing all their hope when they were just a hair's breadth away from freedom.
Kisara's cage was opened by the Guards. Two Soldiers grabbed her arms and brought her out of the cage, dragging her by the arms to a protrusion by the edge of the Deep Pit. The mechanism activated, and several wooden boards unfolded to form a bridge leading to a newly vacated platform above the Deep Pit. It was clear they were going to force Kisara onto it.
Seto's fists were clenched tightly. When Kisara looked back at him, casting a helpless gaze, Seto ultimately couldn't control the emotion in his heart and said sharply, "Please, please wait, I cannot stand by and do nothing about your actions!"
"Even if it's Lord Aknadin, I cannot remain silent!"
Hearing Seto repeatedly resist his will for the sake of this woman, the gentle expression on Aknadin's face couldn't be maintained, becoming somewhat serious. "Stop making trouble, Seto, how long are you going to be so naive! If you cannot possess the resolve to counter a god, you will never obtain power that surpasses a god!"
"You are unwilling to dirty your hands, so this guilt will be borne by me. Open your eyes and see clearly, that woman is afraid, trembling and screaming because of terror! Then, the power that surpasses a god will fall into your hands!"
Seto was stunned, because Aknadin's words completely touched upon something that had been troubling him deep within his heart.
Power and glory. He had always believed that the two were intertwined, that power could increase glory, and glory would also bring power. But it wasn't until he encountered Bakura that he realized he had been unable to make a choice between the two, neither gaining great strength nor being able to protect the glory he already possessed.
Aknadin's actions were essentially making the choice for Seto, giving up the glory of a Priest, using power against the citizens he should have been protecting, in order to obtain great strength. If it were someone else who didn't deeply pursue power, they might still firmly maintain their stance and refute Aknadin's actions as completely lacking in glory.
However, Seto hesitated for a moment because of that desire for power.
Looking back at Seto, who was stunned by Aknadin's words, Kisara softly murmured his name: "Seto."
And Aknadin, seeing that Seto finally didn't continue to refute him, waved his hand. Seeing this, the two Guards pushed Kisara from behind, causing her to stumble onto the wooden bridge. And because the mechanism of the wooden boards forming the bridge began to recycle, she was forced onto the platform covered in spikes!
"Woman, summon your monster and let me see its power!" Aknadin said from his seat.
He wasn't worried at all about whether Kisara could win. The monsters controlled by every Prisoner participating in the death match were awakened by the power of his Millennium Eye. He knew their power very well. Even Moth Wing, who had already won nine consecutive matches, his inner darkness had only become four or five times stronger than before.
But Kisara, if he looked at her not with his naked eye but with the Millennium Eye, Aknadin's eyes would be filled with pure white light. The vast magic contained within her heart would inevitably nurture a powerful Spirit. Even though Aknadin hadn't seen the Spirit's true form with his own eyes until now, Aknadin still believed that it would absolutely not disappoint him.
After briefly confirming with the Millennium Eye that the light around Kisara was as dazzling as ever, Aknadin raised his left hand to cover his eyes. But even he didn't notice that when he raised his hand, his palm, exposed to the line of sight of the Millennium Eye, was wrapped in dark aura.
"Hehehehehe, my opponent this time is actually this woman? I haven't seen you battle before, you must be a beginner. Lord Moth Wing is really lucky, as long as I kill you, freedom will be within reach, a beautiful tomorrow awaits me!"
Moth Wing watched Kisara walk onto the platform. Although he was very dismissive of her, he immediately summoned his monster. "Come out, my beloved Insect Queen!"
The spider monster that had killed many strong enemies appeared before Moth Wing. Due to the continuous victories and the constantly swelling desire and arrogance within the User's heart, Insect Queen's size was already twice as large as when Seto first saw it.
However, facing the appearance of Insect Queen, Kisara, who had been forced onto the High Platform, still stood there alone, trembling, and showed no sign of summoning her Spirit.
Seeing this, Seto was extremely anxious. To comfort himself, he chose to believe Aknadin's previous statement, believing that an extremely powerful Spirit, one that might even surpass the power of a god, resided within Kisara. In that case, even if Kisara was forced onto the platform by Aknadin to battle, she could still protect her life and be safe.
But what was happening now? Why wasn't Kisara summoning her Spirit? If this continued, she would be in danger!
What are you doing, Kisara? Hurry and summon your Spirit, or you'll die!
In Seto's clenched hand, his fingernails had dug into his flesh, almost piercing the skin. In his anxiety, he couldn't help but move closer and closer towards the direction of the Deep Pit.
Seeing that Kisara was slow to summon her monster, Moth Wing had no idea of waiting leisurely for her. He wanted victory, he wanted to live. For this, neither honor nor face were necessary existences for him. Since the opponent wasn't making a move, he would strike while she was weak and take her life!
"Hiss—!"
Insect Queen raised its abdomen and aimed its spinneret at Kisara's location, suddenly spraying out a massive amount of silk thread, completely binding Kisara in place, unable to move!
"Ugh!" Her body completely wrapped in silk thread, Kisara couldn't even move on the platform now, leaving herself to be slaughtered by Moth Wing's Insect Queen.
"Kisara!" Seeing this, Seto shouted out urgently.
And Aknadin also frowned tightly, urging, "Woman, aren't you going to summon your Spirit quickly? Do you want to be killed!"
It wasn't that Aknadin cared about Kisara's life and death like Seto did. Aknadin was just thinking that if Kisara died like this, wouldn't that magic on her be completely wasted? That would be too great a loss.
"Hehehehehe, caution is the parent of safety. Although I don't know why this woman isn't summoning her monster, just in case, I'll grab you with silk thread first." Moth Wing said, grinning strangely. "Then comes the last—"
"You wish!"
Just as Moth Wing was about to have his Insect Queen deliver the final blow to the bound Kisara, Seto, having reached his limit of patience, completely overcame the desire for power in his heart and called out his stone tablet monster. He raised the Duel Arena high, and the Winged Warrior Duos, holding a long sword, was summoned by Seto. With a sword slash, it repelled Insect Queen's attack.
And Seto himself, with Winged Warrior Duos's help, leaped onto the platform. He drew a small knife from the bottom of the Millennium Rod in his hand, cut open the silk thread wrapped around Kisara, and said to her with a serious face, "Don't leave my side from now on, do you hear me, Kisara."
Seto's tone when speaking carried a kind of arrogant order, as always, but Kisara heard Seto's concern for her in it. She nodded shyly and softly "Mm"ed, hiding behind Seto.
And Aknadin's eyes widened, looking at Seto with disbelief. "Seto! What are you doing, Seto!"
Facing Aknadin's question, Seto took a deep breath and said calmly, "I failed to protect my mother. Until now, I still regret my lack of strength at that time."
"But I swear, this time will be absolutely different!"
Looking at Insect Queen confronting his Winged Warrior Duos, Seto reached out his palm. "I, Seto, have spent the past twenty-plus years of my life in pursuit of power, but even I have my own pride and persistence. If the stakes for power are the sacrifice of others, then I would rather not have it!"
"I give up the pursuit of power, Priest Aknadin!" Seto firmly swung the Millennium Rod. "I will absolutely not let Kisara die!"
Following Seto's words, the Winged Warrior Duos before him received a magic boost from the Millennium Rod. Its wings behind it suddenly spread, and the dazzling seven-colored magic transformed into light wings, propelling it towards Insect Queen!
"I didn't expect a Priest to also break into this death match, it really excites me! You made me suffer so much, now you also come and feel my pain, Lord Priest!" Facing the attack of Winged Warrior Duos under Seto's command, Moth Wing was not flustered at all, grinning fiercely, he similarly ordered, "If it were at the very beginning, my Insect Queen would indeed not be a match for Lord Priest, but after experiencing so many battles—"
"My pain is above yours!"
Insect Queen flew towards Winged Warrior Duos. The result was unexpected. The sword slash swung by Winged Warrior Duos was easily accepted by Insect Queen for the vast majority, not posing any threat to Moth Wing behind it. And after the two collided, it was actually his Insect Queen that gained the upper hand, just as Moth Wing had said!?
But Seto gave a cold snort. "Idiot, my puzzle of victory is much more perfect than you imagined! Look closely, my true attack target!"
Moth Wing was also startled upon hearing this. He suddenly looked up, only to see the remaining sword slash that wasn't completely accepted by Insect Queen flying directly towards the chains linking the ceiling to the platform above the Deep Pit, cutting them all off.
In an instant, all the platforms above the Deep Pit lost their fixation, and along with the prisoners fighting on them, they all fell into the Deep Pit!
