Chapter 262: She’s Weighing the Pros and Cons

By the time Evangeline and Loras arrived, the stench of blood already hung in the air, along with the sound of a muffled sob.

Her brows furrowed as she looked at the enormous beastman corpse in the camp’s clearing.

It was a massive whale. However, all the flesh had been stripped from his body. Blood seeped from the nearly five-meter-tall skeleton as snowflakes fluttered down. The snow masked some of the stench, but it was still a nauseating scene.

Loras’s face turned deathly pale at the sight, and his grip on Evangeline’s hand tightened.

’He hated the stench of blood and abhorred violence. After becoming a beastman, the first person he’d truly gotten to know was Evangeline. She was no saint, but he’d never imagined that interactions between beastmen could be so brutal in extreme circumstances.’

Evangeline’s expression darkened. With a flick of her arm, a powerful gust of wind threw the beastmen surrounding the whale corpse into the air.

"AHHH—"

A series of pained screams echoed, putting the beastmen of the Norfell Tribe on high alert.

When they saw Evangeline and Loras emerge from the snow, the crowd first froze in surprise, then their expressions shifted to alarm.

Even those who had never seen Evangeline had heard of Norfell’s most beautiful female. A single glance at the female before them was enough to make one’s blood run hot, and the Nine-Marked Beastman at her side only served to confirm her identity.

"Evangeline! It’s Evangeline and her male—"

A shriek pierced the encampment, and soon, those in charge stepped out from the crowd. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

These tribes were a mishmash of groups. Although they were all heading to the Triangle Sea together, they hadn’t been able to agree on a single overall leader. Instead, the leaders of the different tribes—four males and one female—managed things collectively.

"My Lady Priestess! My Lady Priestess, save me—"

Amid the camp’s chaos, someone in the crowd screamed at the top of their lungs.

Evangeline followed the voice and saw a beastman from the Great Fish Clan bound tightly to a large boulder. His exposed skin was covered in lash marks. Having likely watched his own kin be devoured by others, he was on the verge of a complete breakdown.

Loras moved like a gale, freeing the bound beastman from the Great Fish Clan.

Evangeline stared coldly at the beastman leaders who had stepped forward, a flicker of killing intent flashing in her eyes.

"My Lady Priestess! They killed Phin Cetus!" the beastman shrieked, rushing to Evangeline’s side the moment he was free.

He was half-crazed, his hoarse wails spewing out with the stench of blood. He looked at the familiar yet mangled corpse of the beastman in the clearing, and his stomach churned. He stumbled to the side and began to vomit violently.

The beastman leaders tensed, their muscles tight as they stared warily at Evangeline.

The beastmen behind them flinched and took a few involuntary steps back, their faces filled with fear.

’That’s a Nine-Marked Beastman! The horrific tales of the great battle at Blackwater Swamp still circulated among the tribes. A mountain of corpses, right before their eyes... They didn’t even know how many beastmen had died, yet not a single one of those Nine-Marked Beastmen had been killed!’

Just then, a beastman leader built like an iron tower pushed his way out of the crowd, his rough voice thick with suppressed rage.

"Evangeline, there’s more than one path to the Triangle Sea. We may not be traveling together, but we should keep to ourselves! Barging in here and stealing our prey—are you trying to start another bloodbath?"

As he spoke, he clenched his scarred fist so tightly it creaked. His eyes were exceptionally vicious.

Loras stared at him, his purple eyes cold. "It’s him," he said in a low voice. "The Tyrannosaur Beastman."

Evangeline’s lips curved into a smirk. ’Well, speak of the devil.’

’Looks like I can settle the score from Blackwater Swamp today.’

She didn’t even deign to glance at the savage Tyrannosaur Beastman. With a flick of her wrist, her slender figure shot forward like a phantom.

A cold light flashed. The sharp blade, imbued with Spiritual Energy, glided effortlessly across his throat. The beastman’s incredibly tough skin tore like fragile silk.

"GURGLE..." The Tyrannosaur Beastman’s pupils constricted. Blood poured from the line across his throat. He only had time to raise a hand to the wound before his eyes widened in shock. A moment later, his massive body crashed into the snow, and his hot blood carved a long, winding trail.

"HISS—" A collective gasp of indrawn breaths echoed through the crowd. The other beastman leaders’ teeth were chattering.

’They couldn’t believe their eyes. They had all heard how formidable Evangeline was, but to see her personally kill Tyr, the strongest among them, with such ease... Their faces went ashen. A chill shot up their spines and straight to the crowns of their heads.’

’This meant Evangeline could kill any of them just as effortlessly.’

’The terrifying legends of Blackwater Swamp were no exaggeration.’

’Nine-Marked Beastmen were formidable, but could a female capable of commanding so many of them be anything less?’

’This was the female whose heart could withstand a bone knife. She was unkillable. What good could possibly come from opposing her?’

The four remaining beastman leaders trembled, not even daring to look up and meet Evangeline’s eyes.

Watching from the side, the beastman from the Great Fish Clan felt a savage glee.

"I won’t waste any more words. The matter of Blackwater Swamp ends here."

"However, if you dare to lay a hand on any of our beastmen again, don’t blame me when I kill every last one of you. I’ll skin you and pull your tendons. I’m sure with the pelts you provide, everyone will get through the Cold Season’s blizzards quite comfortably."

Evangeline’s narrow eyes swept over the crowd, carrying a faint chill.

Wherever her frigid gaze landed, the beastmen retreated half a step in unison.

With that, Evangeline turned toward the corpse in the clearing. "Bring him back," she said softly.

Loras nodded slightly. Vines snaked out, wrapping around the mangled body and dragging it across the snow, leaving a trail of blood in its wake.

*

Back at their camp, the beastmen of the Great Fish Clan descended into sorrowful chaos as they looked upon the shattered remains of their kinsman. Sobs and roars of fury mingled as one beastman fell to his knees, clawing at the frozen earth with his bare hands, trying to dig a grave.

Evangeline left Loras to handle the situation and returned to her tent alone.

When Danton entered, he brought a refreshing coolness with him, dispelling the faint stench of blood inside the tent.

He knelt on one knee before Evangeline, his long, azure hair cascading down. He covered her tense hand with his warm palm and said softly, "Your hands are trembling. Are you unwell?"

Evangeline shook her head and let out a soft breath. "I just think the law of survival for beastmen is too cruel."

’She didn’t know if letting the Norfell Tribe beastmen live was the right choice. The events at Blackwater Swamp gave her more than enough reason to slaughter them all, but would such a large-scale massacre trigger some kind of chain reaction?’

’After learning that the Beast God of the Beastman Continent was real, she felt a strong sense of repulsion at being driven by fate, and it left her feeling uneasy.’

’Such emotions were rare for her.’

’For the first time, she wasn’t thinking about her future retirement plans. Instead, she was afraid of creating an irreversible situation that would force her to leave this world prematurely. She was worried. She was weighing the pros and cons. She was... reluctant to leave.’