Chapter 54 I, Sticky Rice, Will Never Let Go

Cletina stood at the entrance to the prison level, one hand lightly pressed against her chest as she calmed her emotions. Only then did she reveal a captivating smile, walk to the cell, push open the door, and step inside.

“Hero Mino, now—”

The moment she opened the door, she saw the pale-faced hero writhing on the bed like a maggot, letting out strange cries.

“Uh... are you all right?”

The hem of Cletina’s formal dress swayed as she took several steps back, looking as though she had been startled.

Mino, enduring the pain, glanced up at Cletina. He instinctively wanted to explain, but if she mocked him with another “Oh, how cute,” as she had last time, he figured it would be better to say nothing.

Gritting his teeth, Mino forced himself to remain calm and said, “I’m fine.”

“I’m just kneading milk.”

“How old do you think you are?” Altor muttered under his breath.

“Enough with the nonsense. You came here today to interrogate me about Lena’s information, didn’t you?”

Fine beads of sweat still clung to his face, but Mino’s pale features held a resolute gaze.

“I advise you to give up early.”

“No matter how cruelly you torture Altor, I will never talk!”

“Hey! Why are you dragging the grudge onto me?!” Altor was utterly stunned. “That line isn’t just uncool—it’s shameless!”

Cletina covered her mouth and chuckled softly. “That Frost Saintess has caused our Demon Lord’s army no small amount of trouble these past few days. To be honest, if the Demon Lord’s Castle had recovered more of its strength, I would have liked to gather the demons and set out myself, just to see how wretched that cold saintess would look after suffering defeat...”

“Mm. I’d quite like to see that too.” Mino nodded in agreement.

He imagined Lena after a series of fierce battles, her saintess robes gradually torn, her hair disheveled, her figure thrown into disarray—the battle-worn version of the saintess—

Mino suddenly came to his senses. His heart jolted, and he turned toward Cletina with wary suspicion.

“As expected of the Rose Shadow Demon... You’re actually trying to interrogate me with such an alluring image? How despicable!”

“...I haven’t even begun the interrogation yet.”

Cletina’s face flushed slightly. She shook her head, somewhat embarrassed and annoyed, then directly immobilized Mino. Dense magical power spread abruptly through the air, accompanied by the scent of roses.

“Ah! It hurts, it hurts!”

Cletina froze.

She had not even started yet. Could it be that she had used too much force just now?

“Stop pretending, Mino!” Cletina quickly understood what was happening and smiled. “You are the most powerful hero in human history, a veteran of countless battles and the very embodiment of fearlessness in the face of pain. For such a tiny action to make you show an expression like that is rather exaggerated, don’t you think?”

The corner of Mino’s mouth twitched, and his teeth ached with frustration.

If you have the guts, try enduring a dragon’s curse in a mortal body!

“What information do you actually want?”

“I doubt that is difficult to guess.” Cletina raised one finger after another. “Human emotions are monotonously limited to a few categories. To make the Frost Saintess suffer a backlash through an emotional fluctuation strong enough to affect her...”

“Anger would be too difficult. Most of the holy priests in the Holy Church have gentle, placid temperaments, much like water—let alone Lena, whose heart is as cold as ice. Hatred is much the same, considering that hatred is precisely the reason Lena attacks demons.”

“As for sorrow, perhaps targeting someone close to her would be effective. Unfortunately... the only thing I can think of is informing Lena of your death. But she seems to possess the ability to see through lies.”

“Therefore, the best choices are fear or disgust. All you need to do is tell me what would most effectively awaken the shadows in Lena’s heart and make her feel an intense aversion.”

“As for joy...” Cletina gave a soft laugh. “That was the first possibility we eliminated.”

“A wise and composed Frost Saintess could never be coaxed so easily, like some little girl.”

Enduring the pain, Mino let out a cold laugh. “As expected of the shrewd and capable demon race. You have already formulated your plan down to the smallest detail... But since I know you intend to deal with Lena, do you really think I would hand over the information so easily?”

Though magic bound his hands and feet, Mino still held his head high and laughed boldly.

“Never forget! I am humanity’s strongest hero! The hope of the Kuhl Kingdom, the light of mankind! Even if the Demon Lord’s Castle has broken my wings, no one can bend my free will!”

“What’s more, the person you intend to deal with is one of the two great pillars of the human side—Lena, the Frost Saintess of the Holy Church, my close friend who grew up in the same village as me for more than a decade!”

“To make humanity’s hero betray information about a saintess? Ha! How utterly laughable!”

A transparent glass bottle containing a blazing red rose appeared in Cletina’s hand. Her pale pink fingertip gently stroked the mouth of the bottle.

“This rose was nourished by the deadly poison of fire and cultivated through my abilities over a long period of time. Every petal still contains enough nerve pollen to make a person suffer unbearable agony. Once it receives holy power as nourishment, it can multiply almost without limit, creating pain that cannot be dispelled.”

“Once a rose like this is ignited, the fire poison and pollen will seep into the body together... Even a fire dragon would be torn apart by the pain.”

Inside the bottle, the crimson rose was covered in dangerous thorn-like patterns and wreathed in black smoke. Merely looking at it made the nerves throb with sharp pain.

“That’s it? You seem to be underestimating me.” Disdain curled at the corners of Mino’s mouth. “I’ll say this plainly: if you can pry even a scrap of information out of me—”

“I’ll write the name Nuomi backward!”

“Why don’t you just call yourself a coward?!” Altor nearly fell apart. “Where did all that resolve from a moment ago go?!”

Thunder rumbled softly in the distance as raindrops tapped against the prison window.

Cletina finally made up her mind. She slowly opened the bottle, then snapped her fingers.

The crimson rose stem gradually became enveloped in pale flames. Terrifying fire poison and pollen swirled and mingled wildly inside the bottle, condensing into streams of blazing black vapor.

The next moment, she aimed the bottle at Mino’s exposed back and pressed its mouth down hard.

“Ahhh!”

Mino screamed loudly.

He clenched his teeth and painfully felt wave after wave of scorching heat spread from the bottle’s mouth, corroding its way across his entire back!

Ah... it hurts... It hurts—huh?

It didn’t hurt at all.

Mino suddenly opened his eyes, his face filled with confusion.

He carefully sensed the hot vapor seeping into his body and discovered that not only was it painless, it was actually neutralizing the pain of the corrosive curse brought on by the rainy weather.

As the effects continued, the wounds that had tormented him so terribly suddenly felt several times less painful.

Cletina heard only one scream from Mino before he fell silent. She frowned, surprised by his endurance.

“Fortunately, I prepared more than that.”

Several more glass bottles containing Fire Roses appeared in her hands. Without the slightest hesitation, she pulled out the stoppers one after another, ignited the roses inside, and inverted each bottle over Mino’s broad back.

Warm currents seeped into his skin, bringing an intense, comforting heat.

Mino suppressed the urge to moan from the sheer pleasure spreading through his body, his eyes filling with profound confusion.

Was she... giving him cupping therapy?