Chapter 492: Chapter 493: Owed a Favor_1
Listened to Lamia beginning to chant the divine words, Aiden didnât panic; he simply looked up at Lamia without stopping his writing.
"Corporal punishment," he said nonchalantly.
The instant Lamiaâs chanting of divine words was replaced by screams of pain, she instinctively let out the same "Dragonâs Roar" as beforeâexcept Aiden couldnât hear it.
Thorn-like black stripes rapidly grew on her pale upper body and mottled snake tail, these stripes caused her no injury, only extreme agony.
She thrashed and collided against the cage with several times more ferocity than before, her snake tail becoming entwined in spasms.
After capturing Lamia, Aiden didnât immediately distance himself from the cage, so he could always inflict corporal punishment on her if necessary. Among the various punitive measures, corporal punishment was the one with the shortest attack range.
Then, Aiden confidently finished writing the rule: "Within the domain, all individuals shall not fall into a state of mental abnormality, the so-called abnormality to be judged against the individualâs most common mental state."
Aiden put down his pen, two seconds passed, and no abnormal reaction appeared on The Codexâthe rule had been accepted by The Codex.
An indescribable force spread from The Codex to every corner of the domain, Aiden looked toward Lamia and found that she was still painfully thrashing within the cage.
He hesitated, then lifted the punishment of corporal punishment while vigilantly watching Lamia, ready to strike again at any moment.
After the cessation of pain, Lamia collapsed on the ground, gasping heavily, looking extremely weak.
After a while, she gave a few light snorts, her body shrank a bit, and the extra pairs of hands also slowly retracted back into her bodyâthis was a good sign.
But Aiden did not let his guard down, uncertain whether the divine words on The Codex would achieve the desired effect.
"Lamia," he tried calling her name, "Can you hear me?"
Lamia slowly lifted her face, looking at Aiden with her eyes glowing a faint green luminescence.
She reacted to her nameâAiden felt a bit more relieved.
"How are you feeling now? Do you recognize me?" Aiden asked.
Then he saw Lamiaâs lips move, but he couldnât hear any soundâthe cage still blocked sounds emanating from within.
"If so, nod your head," Aiden said.
Lamia weakly nodded, understanding the language and giving an affirmative response; clearly, she had regained her normal cognitive abilities.
It workedârealizing this, Aiden retracted his powers, lifting the imprisonment.
"Well done, kid," the Goddess of Vengeance rarely praised him.
"High five?" Aiden glanced at the illusion beside him.
"Forget it, Iâd get goosebumps," the Goddess of Vengeance disappeared after her response.
Only then did Aiden speak to the Great Witchâs Credential: "Lamia has returned to normal, mission accomplished."
"On behalf of the Witchesâ Congregation, I extend our gratitude to you," came Abigailâs even reply from inside the credential.
No sooner had the voice faded, the mist from within the Great Witchâs Credential surged out, summoning the three present back to Abigailâs study.
"Lamia, your brain is finally fixed, huh?" Qiqimora, sitting on the ground, let out a weary sigh upon seeing Lamia sprawled on the floor.
"It feels like Iâve had a nightmare, with my brain being stirred by a spoon... Damn it, Iâll kill that masked bastard someday," Lamia cursed faintly.
"Iâm very happy that we now have the same enemy," Aiden chuckled.
"Iâve got a taste of blood in my mouth. What did I eat? It doesnât taste like human flesh," Lamia said, spitting out her forked tongue.
"You ate the horse I rode in on, though you might have also swallowed a few fish underwater... who knows," Aiden said with a shrug, choosing to ignore her latter comment.
"Disgusting," Lamia judged.
She seemed to be feeling a bit better, coiling her serpentine tail and propping herself up.
"You shouldnât complain about its taste; that was my only means of transportation. I hope you can find a way to take me back to the city in one piece," Aiden said.
"Once Iâve regained my strength, I could carry you back. I wonât be slower than a horse," Lamia said with a hoarse laugh, then slowly moved closer to Aiden.
"Then Iâd rather walk until dawn," Aiden declined without hesitation, waving his hand.
"No need to be so polite."
"Iâm not being polite!" Aiden blurted out the truth without any reservation.
"Afraid of my beast form? I can transform into a human," Lamia said as her lower half began to shift shape; her serpentine tail quickly shrank and split into two, eventually becoming human legs.
Even in human form, her upright height was still close to two meters, and Aiden still had to look up to see her face.
"So you can take human form," Aiden marveled, "but youâd better find some clothes first. Going back to the city with you like this, the police would be questioning me."
Now, both the upper and lower halves of Lamiaâs body had become curvaceous, and she was completely nude, with the grey mist released by the Great Witchâs Credential covering the most sensitive details, still suggestive.
"I have to admit, kid, I owe you a favor this time," Lamia leaned in, her face close to Aidenâs, "A huge favor."
"Then I should remind you that a favor is only meaningful if itâs repaid," Aiden replied.
"Of course, I still have that bit of Honor," Lamia said with a smile.
"It may be a bit rude to say this..." Aiden spoke calmly, "can you talk to me from a bit further away? I can smell the blood from your mouth."
Just thinking about the liquid Lamia had spat out made Aiden feel nauseous.
"Sorry, Iâve never really thought about manners before," Lamia straightened up, "This must be the first time we are truly face-to-face, heh, itâs a pleasure to finally see you with my own eyes."
"To be honest, I didnât really enjoy our first meeting, your entrance could be the plot of a horror story," Aiden nodded, "But thank God, youâre back to normal."
"Itâs good that Lamia has recovered, but let me remind you..." Qiqimora suddenly interjected, "Our situation has only gotten worse. That cult leader has entrenched himself in that base, and Lamia and I have been excluded from the infiltration operation."
"About that, I actually have more bad news to share with you," Aiden continued along the same lines, "Iâve found that Professor Dodge seems to have a connection with that military base. He isnât plotting to steal their research findings but is in fact collaborating with themâthey are probably in cahoots."
"Sounds like we can pack up and head home right away," Lamia said.
"The situation is quite serious, so weâll have to deepen our collaboration," Aiden looked back and forth between Lamia and Qiqimora, "Letâs regroup. We need to discuss our next course of action."