The noise of the conference hall had not yet completely faded.
Scattered footsteps and conversations still echoed through the corridor.
Metallic lights spilled cold and hard across the floor, reflecting a sheen without the slightest warmth.
Ella had still been turning over the tangled interest negotiations from the earlier meeting, calculating how to use Sereya’s identity to dig deeper into the Alliance’s internal affairs, when her wrist was suddenly seized.
“Ella, come with me somewhere.”
Sereya’s voice remained as calm as ever, devoid of any emotion.
Golden hair fell over her shoulders, the lines of her profile sharp and coldly beautiful.
She looked exactly as usual, as if she were simply taking her somewhere unimportant.
“Eh?”
Ella froze for a moment, instinctively trying to pull free.
“Now? We just finished the meeting. There are still things I haven’t—”
The rest of the sentence was cut off.
Her feet were already being pulled forward whether she wanted them to or not.
A faint unease stirred in her chest.
Sereya’s attitude toward her these past days had been strange from the start—no hitting, no scolding, no ordering her around, just feeding her well as though raising an insignificant pet.
Despite her reluctance, Ella could only match Sereya’s pace.
They turned several corners and finally stopped before a tightly shut metal door.
Sereya raised her hand and swiped a card.
The lock gave a soft beep and opened at once.
As the door behind them closed completely, every sound from outside was shut away.
Oppressive silence filled the small room in an instant.
Ella looked up, and her heart sank hard.
The room was not empty.
On the sofa facing the door sat a merfolk official in Alliance uniform—the same man who had occupied the main seat earlier.
…Have I been discovered?
Ella’s heartbeat suddenly raced.
Blood rushed to her head in a single surge.
She instinctively tensed every muscle, fingertips curling slightly as she fought to steady her breathing and keep her expression calm.
It seemed she had overthought it.
From the moment she entered until now, the merfolk official had not glanced at her even once.
His gaze never lingered on her for so much as a fraction of a second, as though she were nothing more than a patch of irrelevant air.
The tension in Ella’s chest eased a little.
Since her identity had not been exposed, what exactly had Sereya brought her here for?
Just as she was turning the question over without answer, Sereya stepped forward, bowed slightly toward the merfolk official, and spoke in a tone so respectful it bordered on fawning—completely different from her usual cold hardness.
“Sir, this is the gift I prepared for you.”
Hmm? Gift?
Ella snapped her gaze toward Sereya and looked her up and down.
The woman’s hands were empty.
She carried no package, no gift box, nothing that could possibly be called a gift.
The unease in her heart grew sharper.
An absurd and terrifying premonition took root.
Before she could think further, a heavy pressure suddenly settled on her shoulders.
Sereya’s palm pressed firmly down and, with a slight push, forced her two steps forward until she stood directly in front of the merfolk official.
“Huh?”
Ella staggered, steadied herself, and looked up in astonishment.
What? I’m the gift?!
She whipped her head around to stare at Sereya.
Those golden eyes that usually looked indifferent now clearly reflected the smug satisfaction of a scheme that had succeeded.
The corners of her mouth even curved into a barely visible arc.
That expression left no doubt—she had planned everything long ago.
Only then did the merfolk official finally let his gaze fall on Ella.
He looked her up and down with open scrutiny and pickiness, as though evaluating the quality of merchandise.
A moment later he nodded in satisfaction, his tone light and casual.
“Mm. A fine gift. There are a few big shots in the Alliance who go for this sort of thing. Looks and temperament both top-tier. You must have spent quite a bit to get her. No matter—I’ll keep my word and put in a good word for you when I claim the credit.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Sereya lowered her head.
Her voice held not the slightest guilt, as though treating a living person as a gift to be handed over was the most ordinary thing in the world.
At that moment Ella finally understood everything.
All her earlier doubts now had answers.
Sereya had taken her in and treated her with unusual “leniency,” never letting her do rough or heavy work—not out of kindness, and not because of any special interest.
It was simply because she was a top-grade commodity meant to curry favor with the Alliance’s important figures.
If she were injured, exhausted, or ruined, the gift would lose its value and could no longer be used to trade for benefits.
Damn…
No wonder. No wonder everything felt so strange.
Unpleasant… extremely unpleasant.
This feeling of being treated as merchandise, as an object, casually gifted and traded…
It pisses me off. Really pisses me off!
“Alright, you can leave. She stays.”
The merfolk official waved his hand impatiently.
His gaze stuck to Ella again, filled with undisguised possessiveness.
Sereya answered at once.
She showed not the slightest reluctance as she turned to go.
At the doorway she paused, looked back at Ella, and spoke with a trace of mockery.
“Work hard, Ella. If you serve that lord well, we might meet again someday. When that time comes, you’ll definitely thank me.”
The door closed softly behind her, cutting off her figure completely.
Only Ella and the merfolk official remained in the room.
The air instantly turned thick and oppressive.
His gaze sent a wave of revulsion crawling over her skin.
“Come on. Take off your clothes. I need to inspect the goods for the lord.”
The merfolk official stood and walked toward her step by step, his tone carrying the force of a command.
“Hey. You heard me, right? Don’t play dumb.”
“Tch…”
The Pathstrider has only just begun to develop. Flipping the table and going head-to-head right now would be too early…
Or maybe… maybe…
A clear, rational thought rose in her mind.
Sacrifice a little of yourself… Offering a bit of your body is a small price for absolute, one-hundred-percent safe survival. That’s not a bad trade.
This is the most reliable choice. She always makes the most reliable choices.
As a member of the swarm, everything about her should exist for the sake of survival. She has to live. She must live.
Expansion, devouring, evolution—in the end, it is all for the sake of living on.
Every time in the past she had been able to make the most rational choice without hesitation. No matter how humiliating or degrading the price, as long as she could survive, everything was worth it.
So now she has to do the same.
It is only taking off her clothes. Maybe she will even be pinned down by some fat-faced man and endure every humiliation.
But compared to possible death and the future destruction of the swarm, this barely counts as anything. There is no need to hesitate.
Once the thought settled, the action became simple.
It was nothing more than removing her clothes.
Ella slowly raised her hand and gripped the hem of her clothes.
Her crimson eyes gradually turned hollow.
All emotion drained away, leaving only cold rationality.
Yes. She is rational. She will forever only make rational choices, just like now.
She thought silently, Would Shuang Ling stop me?
No. She definitely would not.
In Shuang Ling’s eyes, as long as she does not die, as long as her life is preserved, this bit of humiliation does not even count as a price. She will not stop her. She will only silently guard nearby to ensure she does not truly face mortal danger.
Just as her fingertips were about to pull the fabric open, a irritable, sharp voice suddenly exploded deep inside her mind.
“Little one, I heard what you said. Hurry up and exit the nest network! And! Don’t you fucking sell yourself! Are you gay?! You think getting topped by a man is no big deal, is that it?! Or do you actually like it?!”
Dieyi?!
Ella’s entire body jolted.
The cognition she had just solidified shattered at once.
The defenses of her rationality collapsed.
She snapped back to herself and realized with shock that under the extreme agitation and suppression just now, she had subconsciously connected to the nest network and laid every thought bare to Dieyi.
Wait! Does this guy stay connected to the network every single day?!
And wait another second! I’m not gay! This daddy likes beautiful girls, got it?! Otherwise why would I have spent ten years creating you top-tier insect maidens with looks like yours?!
She retorted furiously in her heart.
Humiliation and rage reclaimed her rationality.
That humble thought of compromising for survival vanished in an instant.
Why?
Why should she endure this kind of humiliation just to live?
No way!
“Shuang Ling! I know you’re here!”
Ella snapped her eyes upward.
Fury burned in her crimson pupils.
Her voice was icy and absolute.
“Kill this merfolk!”
Almost the instant the words left her mouth, a clear, respectful reply came from directly behind her.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Ella whipped her head around.
Her pupils contracted sharply.
The space that had seemed completely fused with the surrounding walls and air suddenly rippled in faint circles, like water disturbed by a stone.
In the next second a slender yet upright figure slowly emerged from the void.
Shuang Ling! She has been invisible and following right beside me the whole time!
Ella’s heart shook violently.
She had never known Shuang Ling possessed such an ability.
Had she incorporated chameleon DNA, or did she have some other special evolutionary talent?
“You are—?!”
The merfolk official’s face drained of color the moment he saw her.
Arrogance was instantly replaced by terror.
Sensing danger, he subconsciously raised a hand, intending to mobilize the water around him for a preemptive strike.
He was still too slow.
Shuang Ling’s movements were fast to the extreme—so fast that even Ella’s own eyes could not catch them.
In her vision she only saw a blurry black shadow flash past, leaving afterimages, while her ears caught nothing but the rush of wind.
When the scene finally solidified again, Ella’s breath hitched.
Shuang Ling stood in front of the merfolk official.
Her right arm had fully transformed, covered in a layer of hard, sharp ice-blue carapace.
The tip, sharp as a blade, had already pierced clean through the man’s chest.
Red blood sprayed out at once and splattered across the floor.
Her left hand had cleanly crushed his windpipe.
Knuckles tightened, preventing even a single scream.
He could only stare wide-eyed, face filled with disbelief and despair, as his body went limp and collapsed.
The familiar scent of blood rushed at her face, drilling into her nostrils and stimulating her nerves.
Ella hurriedly covered her nose, turned her head slightly aside, and frowned in discomfort.
She could not smell blood.
Preferably not at all.
“Get me out of here! Immediately!”
Ella did not linger for even a second.
The Alliance would eventually notice the anomaly here.
Once they were surrounded, escape would become extremely difficult.
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
Shuang Ling stepped forward and once again performed that classic princess carry, lifting Ella steadily into her arms.
She did not choose the main door.
Instead she charged straight to the window, smashed the glass with her shoulder, and leapt down from the height of the third floor.
There was none of the expected violent falling sensation.
Shuang Ling’s posture was as light as a swallow’s.
Upon landing she only bent her knees slightly to disperse the entire impact, then carried Ella and sprinted toward the distance.
They crossed the empty plaza, avoided the patrolling guards, and plunged into the maze of dark, damp alleys.
After several twists and turns their figures completely disappeared into the depths of the streets near the Alliance garrison.
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