The Handbook for Completing Demi-Human Girls

Chapter 549: Inquiry

Just as Fisher even thought that an illusion corresponding to his use of the Soul Completion Handbook's power had appeared, Eimhart in his chest had already sensed something. His body suddenly trembled, squeezing out from Fisher's robe and flying toward the rear of the shipyard.

The surrounding darkness instantly became viscous, but for some unknown reason, Fisher surprisingly felt a sense of familiarity towards this daunting atmosphere.

He looked at Lilim beside him, only to find that her originally terrifying half-face had completely transformed into an exquisitely beautiful, smiling face hidden in the darkness.

At this moment, the originally damp and chilly abandoned shipyard seemed to be wreathed in a layer of hellfire. A sea of flames seemingly covered by endless Chaos presented itself before Fisher's eyes, but in an instant, it was covered by tide-like darkness. From within, only Helaire's blurry figure carrying a faint, subtle fragrance remained.

He couldn't distinguish whether this was an illusion or reality, nor could he tell if the Demon before him was an illusion or Lilim disguised as Helaire...

In the darkness, Fisher couldn't clearly see her figure or neck; even her exquisitely beautiful face could only be vaguely outlined.

But at this moment, feeling nothing but disbelief, he mumbled,

"Helaire?"

"You're not being a good boy, darling."

In response, Helaire's smile in the darkness deepened. Breathing lightly like an orchid, she spoke softly,"If you wanted to see me, you could have just told me directly. Why ask someone else? As long as you speak, I will listen. That little guy should have told you this."

"Ahhhhh, Fisher! Run! Ahhhhh! That goddamn Baimon!! She's here!!"

Behind them, Eimhart, struck with panic like a headless fly, was scurrying around the shipyard, terrified and trying to find a gap to escape.

But he had completely lost his wits; how could he escape in such panic?

Helaire didn't even glance toward Eimhart's direction, but Fisher felt something shoot out from the darkness beside him, rushing toward Eimhart with the sound of breaking wind.

It seemed to be a slap.

"Smack!"

"Ouch!"

Following that invisible slap, Eimhart's exclamation and the sound of him falling and rolling on the ground echoed from the distant shipyard.

"Thud! Thud! Thud!"

The area plunged into silence once more. Helaire smilingly cast a glance back at Eimhart, withdrawing her gaze before a chill could run down his spine, and looked back at Fisher who was staring straight at her.

Fisher also looked at her. After a second of silence, he still pursued the question,

"Helaire, the game you mentioned, what exactly does it refer to?"

"Don't you already know, darling?"

Helaire drew closer to Fisher, lightly kissing the corner of his lips, bringing wisps of singing that felt like a dream or illusion.

"You mean the World-Ending Prophecy?"

"Is it, though?"

Fisher frowned slightly, seemingly dissatisfied with her ambiguous attitude. He stepped forward and proactively reached out, forcefully pinching her chin, making her rosy face tilt up slightly,

"Ah~"

"Helaire, what exactly are you? And what do you want to accomplish?"

Looking at her feigned, delicate gasp while her expression remained smiling, Fisher gathered she was still teasing him at this moment.

However, her casualness did not dispel Fisher's doubts; rather, he wanted to probe the secrets she hid in the darkness even more.

"Why were you able to trigger the sigil at my waist back then? That sigil contains the power of a True God. Why could you accomplish this so effortlessly?"

"Back then, beneath the Ideal State, what exactly happened between you and Pandora and Remiel? Is the birth of the Demons tied to you? How did you release them, and what is your purpose in doing so..."

Fisher pressed closer to the Helaire before him step by step. Whether that increasingly aggressive attitude originated from himself was unknown, because right now, for whatever reason, illusory ravings began to appear by his ears again, hastening the fading of his rationality.

Her beautiful face was pinched into barely noticeable indentations by him. Her expression also instantly became pitiful as she looked at Fisher, begging for mercy in a delicate voice,

"It hurts~"

Fisher froze slightly, his palm stiffening in tandem. However, he then heard her continue in a trembling voice,

"What's going on with you... The current you is so frightening..."

"I..."

Fisher suddenly looked at his excessively extended palm, took a deep breath, already realizing his loss of control,

"Sorry..."

Just as he was apologetically preparing to withdraw his hand and his excessive questioning, in the next instant, a piercing pain shot from his fingertip,

"Hiss..."

He cast his gaze over, only to see her mischievous little mouth had already left his index finger that pinched her chin. A bloody bite mark was so conspicuous, serving to remind Fisher like a coquettish act or a form of revenge.

"You..."

Just as Fisher was about to say something, Helaire, as if predicting his actions, gently took his bitten finger into her mouth. Following a soft licking, his wound vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed.

Yes, only in front of Helaire would Fisher feel that whatever he planned to do would be anticipated by her, and the countermeasures she produced always left Fisher unable to respond and unable to pursue her occasionally excessive actions.

"Has your anger subsided, darling~"

"..."

Fisher gritted his teeth and pulled his finger back from her mouth. Guided by inertia, she moved backward involuntarily. As her body shifted, the surrounding darkness surged and rippled outward like a tide. She tilted her head up; her delicate frame, clad in a white robe hidden in the darkness, revealed a bit of its silhouette, as relaxed as swimming in the sea, smilingly regarding the Fisher before her.

"You still haven't answered my question."

Helaire looked at Fisher but didn't answer his question; instead, she asked back,

"What, afraid I'll harm those women you know?"

"You actually found me a long time ago, didn't you?"

"That's right. Logically speaking, I met you ten thousand years ago, earlier than anyone else you know, didn't I? Although due to some reasons, I didn't seek you out from the start, but indeed, I paid attention to you from a very, very long time ago."

"Then why..."

Fisher was somewhat puzzled. What he wanted to ask was, if Helaire had paid attention to him a very, very long time ago, why hadn't她 prevented him from meeting other ladies, remaining hidden all the way until the present after his return from the Sanctuary...

The smile on Helaire's face gradually faded. She clearly already knew what Fisher wanted to ask, but she didn't seem to want to dwell on this topic. Instead, returning to her smiling expression, she looked at Fisher and continued asking,

"Fisher, what if I told you that this time, I came precisely for those women you know? If those Demons were released by me, and I intend to strike at them and all they possess—for instance, your Dragon Queen, leaving her with the fate of country destroyed and self deceased—what will you do?"

Fisher stared straight at the Helaire before him. After a momentary pause, he replied decisively,

"I won't let you have your way."

"Even if by doing so you'll have to face three Demons at the Eighteenth Tier or above, possibly including myself, or even more Demons with Ranks higher than yours? Even if you're isolated and without help, even if the ladies you wish to protect will become enemies with each other, hurt each other, and hurt you..."

"The answer remains the same, Helaire."

As they spoke, Fisher suddenly felt as if someone had touched his shoulder. The darkness sealed his normally keen perception, so he could only use the primitive method of turning his head to observe his surroundings.

Upon turning her head, the Helaire who was supposed to be in front of him looking at him had bizarrely leaned on his shoulder again, as lightly pressing against Fisher's cheek as a wisp of silken veil,

"Even if, you have to break my heart?"

"..."

Fisher merely looked at her, silently offering no further reply.

And Helaire, nestled against Fisher's shoulder, naturally understood his meaning, sighing as she spoke,

"Truly heartless... Despite ten thousand years passing for me, I remained unchanged; yet for you, it was but an instant, and you changed so fast."

"It's not the same, Helaire..."

"...You really ought to thank that damn fish that escaped the net, Fisher."

When she brought up that term, Helaire's expression on his shoulder had turned completely icy. She scoffed coldly, then gently pushed Fisher's shoulder, floating up in the darkness like this again.

"Fish that escaped the net?"

"Ah, a very, very annoying person. The main culprit behind all of this currently..."

Helaire shook her head, seemingly loathing to mention a single thing regarding this so-called "fish that escaped the net". She merely floated outward, interrupting her previous words.

Main culprit?

Fisher chewed over this term, distinctly catching the unusual implication in Helaire's voice. Thinking carefully, this seemed to be the first time she had shown such intense headache and disgust towards this "fish that escaped the net".

As she slowly floated outward, her figure once again hid in the darkness, only to appear ghost-like behind Fisher, behind his ear, by his hand, at his heartbeat.

Once again, Fisher felt her kiss his cheek, as if a current of electricity passed through, bringing a numb, tingling sensation.

Returning from the darkness once more, the frostiness on her expression had entirely cleared up, reverting to her original smiling expression. It was just that the smile lacked its original teasing layer; instead, it held a bit more seriousness,

"I greatly dislike the other women you've encountered. They are like nails embedded in your flesh, pinning you to the vortex of destruction, preventing you from running towards me. And you are like an idiot who, egged on by a villain, feels no pain as you raise a hammer to drive those nails into yourself one by one, even finding it unspeakably sweet..."

"The World-Ending Prophecy is impending. If you don't extricate yourself now, you will be buried within it. Fisher, you don't know what I went through during these ten thousand years. Previously, just the prelude to the destruction swallowed up my home, the Sanctuary, the Elfs' Tree Continent, and Fafnir's Dragon Court—all of which were countless times stronger than the current Naris and Dragon Court. How could I bear to place you within it?"

"Aren't you curious what I am, or why I could trigger the sigil on you? I will tell you now: I am the sole surviving Angel-kin. Before you left, I encountered Elf Gui, the one who could see the future..."

"She found me, revealed the future of inevitable destruction, and the method to break free from the destined doom. She imparted knowledge on Chaos and the prophecy related to the destruction of the world... She sacrificed herself, desiring to forge a bright, broad road for this world. She told me you are the key to resolving this World-Ending Prophecy, hoping I would secretly assist you. However, she had no way of granting me power capable of overturning everything..."

"She wanted me and you to help this world, but... this path requires sacrificing too much. Sacrifices I cannot accept."

"You don't know this, but even a True God is powerless before such a prophecy. I am only at the Nineteenth-Tier, and you have only just entered the Mythic Rank; our power is extremely weak. But I also understand the principle of dodging disasters; don't forget, you were the one who taught me to do so. So now, even if you are unwilling to detach from this world-ending vortex 'named sweetness, but truly an abyss', I must pull these nails on your body out one by one and take you to escape. Do you understand?"

Helaire bit Fisher's earlobe, persuading him earnestly,

"Therefore, the intention of those two Demons is my intention. Fisher, listen to me, stay in the Dragon Court and do nothing; you couldn't accomplish anything anyway. Leave everything to me, okay? That Dragon Queen holds the crucial property to initiate the World-Ending Prophecy. Once I kill her, even if it merely delays the arrival of destruction for a moment, we can take the opportunity to go far away, disregarding everything else..."

Fisher's expression gradually grew solemn. Listening to Helaire's words, he finally realized that his obtaining the Demi-Human Completion Handbook and learning of the World-Ending Prophecy didn't seem to be a mere coincidence. Gui had set her sights on him very, very early on, pushed him into the Mythic Rank, and even sought out Helaire, allowing her to survive the calamity of the Sanctuary's collapse and the demise of the Mythicals, all so she could help him resolve the World-Ending Prophecy.

But ultimately, Helaire worried for him. She didn't want him braving danger, which was why she went back on the agreement halfway, intending to pre-emptively kill the people connected to the World-Ending Prophecy, and then rescue him who was deeply entrenched within.

"So, the game you mentioned, what you said to me after meeting Gui... referred to making me abandon everything I possess in exchange for three boons or benefits, right?"

Helaire merely looked at Fisher and said,

"No, long before I met you, I met Gui. Long before I met you, Gui revealed my destiny, revealed the true meaning of Chaos, and showed me the secrets of Transferred Persons from another world. That's why the first time I met you, I... But as you know, I do not believe in destiny; I believe in myself more. Though I must say, teasing you is genuinely very interesting."

No wonder. No wonder she'd use "Cupid", something non-existent in the Sanctuary, to poke fun at him. So that was a concept from another world?

However, Fisher didn't have the intention to joke around with Helaire. He finally knew why Helaire and Gui initially held an inexplicable friendliness toward him in the past. Although this might not be the direct reason Helaire formed a relationship with him, it at least provided the catalyst...

The problem was, was he truly the key to resolving the World-Ending Prophecy, as Gui claimed?

Just because he had found these ladies symbolizing destructive power under the guidance of the Demi-Human Completion Handbook and formed bonds with them?

But Fisher always felt they themselves weren't the key to destruction. He then thought of what Helaire had just said. She mentioned Raphaela possessed the "crucial property to initiate the World-Ending Prophecy", which was why Helaire wanted to kill Raphaela...

"Helaire, what you just mentioned, the crucial property to initiate the World-Ending Prophecy, what does it refer to?"

Hearing this, Helaire froze slightly. She didn't answer him, only furrowed her brows and said to Fisher,

"Could it be that even after I told you the stakes involved, you are still unwilling to let go?"

"If I could truly let go, I wouldn't have jumped down to save you in the chaotic sea of the Ideal State back then."

Helaire retreated slightly in the darkness until the darkness obscured half her face, leaving only a partial outline,

"...You're right, you are exactly this kind of person, which is why you grasp them so tightly... Heh, Gui believes in you, but I do not trust her. Raphaela will definitely die, but not by my hands. Those two Demons won't obey my orders; thousands of years of imprisonment have left them coveting freedom like never before. You were present during the Ideal State incident; you know the relationship between the Demons and Chaos. The World-Ending Prophecy stems from Chaos, and the mystery of initiating the World-Ending Prophecy on Raphaela's body is the key to their freedom..."

Within the outline, her smiling expression cast in shadow emerged once more.

Immediately after, she spoke to Fisher again,

"I've said it before, even if something happens to this world, you won't be harmed... After Raphaela dies, I will come back for you."

"Raphaela won't die."

Fisher looked at her with certainty, but she had no intention of continuing this topic any further. She simply yawned and said nonchalantly,

"Heh heh, go ahead and try... But I'm leaving now. Do you want to take the initiative to kiss me before I go?"

Fisher's imminent words were choked back by this one sentence from her, and he helplessly cast a sideways glance at her. Even knowing this, even with an obvious divergence between them, there was still no tension akin to arrows on strings visible between them. Just as Eimhart had warned Fisher countless times before, when they met again, he still couldn't raise questions against her.

The impression she left him in the Sanctuary was too profound. And just as she said, Fisher was willing to believe she meant well for him, but absolutely not for the women he knew.

Therefore, their safety had to be guaranteed by himself.

He sighed, stepped forward, and slowly approached her partly hidden face in the darkness. Before kissing her, Fisher suddenly asked,

"Wait, are you using that Demon Attendant's body?"

"Are you a germaphobe?"

Helaire smiled slightly, then shook her head and said,

"No I'm not~"

"If you've been watching me all along, wouldn't that mean all the things I did previously, especially at night, you saw everything..."

Helaire gave him a fake smile, her body slowly submerging into the darkness bit by bit,

"I'm leaving, darling."

"Smooch..."

But right before that, Fisher finally kissed her, bringing her sinking motion to an abrupt end.

He closed his eyes and kissed her slightly chilly lips, only separating after a long, long time. Helaire showed no intention of refusing, generously accepting his demands.

It wasn't until they separated again that Helaire, knowing and craving the taste, licked her own lips,

"Not bad, not bad, the exact same feeling as ten thousand years ago... But even so, what I said earlier won't change one bit."

"I know."

"Gui thought you could resolve the World-Ending Prophecy brought by Chaos, yet the result is you sinking deeper and deeper into Chaos. Having been corrupted by Chaos for ten thousand years, falling from Angel to Demon, do you think I wouldn't know what that thing is? The process is simply adding fuel to the fire, seeking one's own destruction."

"But perhaps, only Chaos can contend against Chaos?"

"You think so?"

"I think so."

Helaire glanced at him sideways. Her expression then slowly blossomed into a smile once again as she laughed,

"Fine then, go ahead and try. I will wait for you at the end of your failure, and then take you away..."

"If that day comes."

Helaire didn't reply to him. Unknown whether she was angered by him, she merely sank into the darkness without looking back, preventing Fisher from seeing the disappointed expression she wore at this moment.

Looking at her retreating figure, Fisher couldn't help but ask,

"If I wanted to contact you, what should I do?"

"Try calling out 'darling'."

"Really, just like that?"

"Fake. I won't meet you before you fail, and I'm not always watching you either; I have other things to do."

"..."

In the next instant, the surrounding tide-like darkness instantly vanished, revealing the two Demon Attendants lying completely unconscious on the ground of the gloomy shipyard.

The shipyard was frighteningly quiet. Only Fisher kept staring at the spot where Helaire disappeared, unknown what he was thinking about.