The villain's way to tame the protagonist

If the Western Kingdom wants to be reborn now, it has to destroy and then rebuild. If it wants to destroy and then rebuild... the only way is to kill people and let rivers of blood flow.

"Number nine."

Anser was no longer surprised that No. 9 could express his thoughts so accurately. He asked No. 9 a question that he had already been answered many times, but he still had some thoughts in his mind:

"Regarding this proposal, do you have any consideration for the civilians of the Western Country?"

At that time, Anser believed that Number Nine would, out of empathy as a fellow mortal, have the greatest degree of empathy for the suffering of mortals in this distorted world, and would then think, learn, and seek possibilities to correct this distortion.

Anser originally hoped that she could go further on this path, and hoped that she could have lofty beliefs and ideals while pursuing herself.

But now it seems that his move was the beginning of Number Nine's downfall.

Anser had thought about it many times, but still couldn't understand... Why would Number Nine, who was clearly feeling pain and despair because of this distortion, give up this hatred as a mortal?

In response to Anser's question, No. 9 responded calmly: "No."

"Not at all?"

"No." Number Nine smiled. "If you want to give a reason, there is another reason besides the previous one."

She paused, and her voice, which had become more mature and slightly hoarse, was no longer unpleasant to the ear, but became more moving and pleasant.

"Because you are thinking about the civilians in the West Country."

"..."

“Even if we still cannot find a way for them to live with dignity and value, at the very least, they should no longer be subjected to endless oppression and bullying.”

Number Nine gazed into those ocean-blue eyes and whispered, "You must have thought so. Even at this moment, you still have such tenderness to care about the civilians who are not your responsibility."

Anser could only remain silent.

He obviously did the right thing. Out of caution against fate, he abandoned Number Nine in the most meaningless place to him. No matter how useful she was, he could not have any feelings for her.

And this is indeed the case. Whenever he sees Number Nine, and thinks of her humility in being a tool, Anser cannot even muster the emotion of treating her tenderly.

But he tried again and again to make No. 9 deny it.

"Mr. Anser," Number Nine suddenly said, "From now on, you don't have to ask me questions like this anymore."

She tilted her head slightly, smiling gently and beautifully: "You obviously already know the answer."

——She knew what I was thinking again.

"...I understand." Anser responded calmly, "Do you have anything else to say?"

"Well... I have some suggestions. For example, instead of using various schemes to win over the extraordinary people who can be won over, it is better to directly use your preaching to cleanse them-"

Number Nine's words were interrupted because she felt Anther's eyes suddenly turned cold.

"I'm sorry, I spoke out of turn, Mr. Anser." The girl bowed her head slightly, "Please forgive my overstepping of authority."

Anser did not say whether he would do so or not, but after looking at No. 9 for a few seconds, he brought up another topic.

"Besides that, you probably want to get something else, right?"

He leaned back and raised his chin slightly: "You want to carry out the West Country's plan yourself."

The corners of No. 9's mouth slowly rose: "Will you let Miss Xitana or Miss Ming Fuluo carry out this plan?"

Hydra raised her eyebrows slightly. "Do you think they are too weak to take action against those scum?"

"Yes."

Number Nine gave an unexpectedly arrogant answer: "Miss Xitana and Miss Ming Fuluo are indeed weak, but it's not because they can't take action against the adventurers, but because they... can't afford the risk and cost of executing the adventurers."

If there was no Anser, how long would Xitana be tied up by Mibaita using the civilians in the lower city? Even though she has reached the fourth level now, Xitana is still far from the "absolute power" she mentioned, and the same is true for Ming Fuluo.

The hyenas are willing to use any means they can to restrain them.

"I will do better than them, better than anyone else, Mr. Anser."

——Number Nine, who was able to borrow strength from Ansher, was indeed qualified to say such words.

Anther had originally intended to assign this task to Shadow Marsh, but no one in Shadow Marsh would take the initiative to propose this plan to Anther, let alone declare to Anther so confidently and arrogantly that they could do it better than anyone else.

If this goes on for a long time, Anser may not have to worry about certain things anymore, because someone can handle it for him, because someone knows what he wants and why he hasn't turned his thoughts into reality.

"it is good."

Anser nodded gently: "Then I'll leave this matter to you, No. 9. I will give you 20% of my power. Is that enough?"

"Ten percent is enough, Mr. Anser."

"...Are you sure?" Anser frowned slightly, "They are not that easy to deal with."

There are still many fifth-level adventurers in the Western Country. Although their fifth-level is much weaker than those thirty people, they are still fifth-level after all and cannot be killed casually.

"I am not fighting alone, Mr. Anser." Number Nine said with a smile, "The people of Shadow Marsh will provide me with help, right?"

To Anser, these words had another very distinct meaning.

Anser narrowed his eyes slightly. When it comes to loyalty, although the loyalty of his subordinates is extremely high, No. 9 must be the highest among them.

In terms of ability, No. 9 has been reborn.

As for strength...for Number Nine who could borrow strength from him, strength was no longer the biggest problem for her. Instead, it was the most insignificant part.

"If you can get the crow to recognize you."

After a brief thought, Hydra said calmly: "Then you can take it."

——Take Shadow Swamp away from Crow’s hands.

"Thank you for your recognition, Mr. Anser."

The extremely weak girl supported herself on the armrests of the wheelchair and barely stood up. She knelt down to salute Ansel, and then slowly sat back in the wheelchair.

"Just, before I leave, can I ask you a question, Mr. Anser?"

"A question that has troubled me for a long time."

"Ask," Anser replied.

Then, Number Nine suddenly stopped smiling.

Her charming face was filled with a stern and cold expression, and her dark eyes were filled with boundless ferocity and madness.

The slightly hoarse voice seemed to be a whisper from Hades:

"Your enemy, where is it?"

"That unknown force that has been pressing you step by step, forcing you to make so many choices, and making you... become the enemy you are today. Where is it? Is it the force you mentioned when you talked to Ivora in the maze?"

...She found out? How could she have found out?

Ming Fuluo was able to discover Anser's secret because Anser was indeed revealing his feelings to her at that time, and also because of fate, she realized that Anser might be suppressed by some powerful being.

But what about Number Nine? She was facing a grown-up, more perfect, and impeccable Anser, and she had no helpers. How could she have noticed such an "enemy" and when did she discover it?

Could it be... the hand of fate again?

After staring at No. 9 who seemed to be losing control for a long time, Anser shook his head gently:

"That's not something you can know right now, Nine."

He didn't intend to avoid the question, but he also didn't intend to let Number Nine know the secret.

"…You are right, Mr. Anser."

Number Nine quickly calmed down and bowed his head slightly: "Thank you for answering my questions. I will take my leave now."

After No. 9 left the study, Anser, leaning back in his chair, began to mutter to himself in confusion.

"Is such an ordinary girl... worth all your energy and effort?"

Fate went to so much trouble to elevate Marina's status. Did it think that the influence she brought to him would be greater than that brought to him by Sitana and Ming Furo?

Should I be glad that she was willing to become a tool?

*

The wheelchair slowly moved forward, and Number Nine, with her hands folded, looked more gentle than any noble lady - if you ignored her creepy black eyes and the black lines covering the left side of her face.

It was not difficult for her to persuade Crow. To No. 9 now, seizing the rights to Shadow Swamp was a simple matter.

There is an unbridgeable gap between her and their awareness.

…It’s just like my previous self was just like them, with a fundamental gap between them.

Next, there is only one thing left.

Number Nine put on a mask to cover up the strange, crazy smile that appeared on his face.

Judge the disobedient and hunt the rebellious.

Chapter 78: Endless Disaster

In a space that seemed to be constructed entirely of shadows, a mature, hoarse and pleasant female voice was heard.

"So, I will lead you all to cleanse the adventurers from the West."

"…You seem to be jumping around a bit too much, Number Nine."

In the darkness, Naylan's face gradually emerged: "You have secured this important mission for us, which is good, but this does not mean that you are qualified to command us."

"is it?"

The girl sitting in the wheelchair tilted her head slightly and looked forward with a smile: "What do you think, Lord Raven?"

"Your blazing ambition is too obvious, Number Nine." Crow's indifferent voice came from the center of the shadow space, "You have qualifications and talents recognized by everyone, but now, you are not qualified."

Hearing Crow's answer, Number Nine sighed in disappointment.

"This is really regrettable. I thought that after our last conversation, you should have realized the gap between you and me."

These absurd words caused the other Shadow Swamp members in the shadow space to fall silent, and they didn't know how to react for a moment.

The difference between Crow... and No. 9? Was No. 9 confused by the abyss and said the opposite?

"Lord Raven, do you remember what you said when you brought me to Shadow Marsh and made me determined to join this place?"

The faint voice echoed in the endless darkness.

"It is not enough to just obey."

For some things, better results can be achieved by using more cruel means, but Anser often does not choose to do so.

Unless necessary, he would always take a slightly milder approach. It has nothing to do with interests, it's just his personality.

As for the degree of this "necessity", Anser would never and could not tell others. At this time, his men had only two choices.

The first is to follow Anser's instructions honestly and do things meticulously; the second is, of course, to try to find a better solution on the basis of completing Anser's orders, which Anser does not force but does exist.

And this is the difference between Shadow Swamp and the Garden.

In the test in the clock tower, the solution proposed by Garden was not to harm the traitor's family, and let him die with dignity after declaring his crimes. At that time, Number Nine thought that this was Anther's style, so she chose to join Garden with this style while chasing Anther.

What about Shadow Swamp? Shadow Swamp's plan is to execute the traitor's entire family. Not only that, but he will also have to suffer before his death, making him pay a heavy price for his crimes.

Is this a better solution? Of course, no noble is as "merciful" as Anser when facing a betrayer. The punishment suffered by the betrayer should be cruel and deterrent enough to make all those who attempt to betray remember the price of betrayal.

However, this matter was just a trivial matter in Anser's eyes, and he did not need to use this method to prevent betrayal, but for Yingmarsh, this was his responsibility.

They are a group of dangerous elements who have gathered for Anser. What they need to do is not blind obedience, nor compromise, but cold-blooded... perfection.

Not everything has to be like this, but there are always some things that need to be like this.

Because of this, Shadow Swamp is not just a tool, their core concept is "Sir Anser also has shortcomings." To make up for this shortcoming, you must have a full understanding of Anser and a strong subjective understanding of the world. Only in this way can you judge what details Anser did not think of doing, but can indeed make the results better.

Every member of Shadow Swamp is assisting Anser with their own understanding and realization of the world, and based on the decisions he makes, they use their own will to make certain changes and corrections.

This is a very difficult thing to do. If you are too cautious, you will probably not be able to make any changes in the end. If you speculate too much and make self-righteous decisions, you will be disobeying Anser's orders without authorization, and the consequences will be even more serious.

It’s just that Anser’s control over Shadow Swamp members is even stricter than that of the Garden. So far, no Shadow Swamp member has thought, “I think it’s better to do this,” and ended up making things worse.

The Shadow Marsh of Raven Commander has never made any mistakes and has faithfully performed the difficult and glorious duties in their eyes. Therefore, its prestige cannot be shaken by No. 9 who has just joined Shadow Marsh.

But No. 9 didn't think about convincing the other members of Shadow Swamp. The only one she wanted to defeat was Crow.

"Lord Raven, do you really think you can do better than me?"

The girl's smile was obscured by the shadow, and the hazy outline exuded a creepy aura.

"Facts speak louder than words." Crow said indifferently, "When you have done enough merits for Lord Anser, come and talk to me about this matter."