An indescribable sense of connection emerged.
It was not a meeting of minds, but more like a sensitive, foreign membrane of perception tightly wrapping itself around the periphery of the Heroine’s soul.
She could vaguely sense that the other end of this membrane was tethered to a vast, profound, and overwhelmingly oppressive presence—Iris.
Immediately after, came the emotional “static.”
A faint trace of the Demon King’s pleasure and “inquisitive interest,” like blurred light filtering through frosted glass, seeped into Furenna’s awareness.
Demon King Iris had indeed succeeded.
The collar was forcibly establishing a one-sided, master-controlled “emotional connection.”
Furenna’s joys, sorrows, and fears would become clearly discernible scenery, or noise, for the other.
A genuinely pleased, unguarded smile appeared on Iris’s face.
That smile, reflected in Furenna’s suddenly heightened sensitivity, seemed especially glaring.
Simultaneously, Furenna clearly felt the “pleasure” signal from the collar, originating from the Demon King, intensify by a fraction.
“Excellent.”
Iris spoke softly, taking a step forward.
She reached out. She did not touch the collar. Instead, she ran the back of her fingers along Furenna’s cheek on the side where the new collar sat, with an appraising air.
The chill of skin contact layered over the cold sensation of connection from the collar.
Furenna’s body went rigid to the extreme. Every hair stood on end.
It wasn’t just disgust at the touch. Through the collar, she also felt a clearer pulse of “satisfaction” and “control” from Iris’s fingertips.
Her own resistance and the other’s satisfaction formed a stark, pitiful contrast within the channel the collar provided, doubling her humiliation.
“See how simple it is?”
Iris withdrew her hand, watching with satisfaction Furenna’s instantly paled face and the alarm she couldn’t fully suppress in her eyes.
“Now, I can feel your resistance, your coldness, and beneath it… a lingering spark of struggle?”
She tilted her head slightly, as if listening.
“And my pleasure… you feel it too, don’t you?”
“It’s faint, but it’s a start. In time, we’ll grow even closer.”
As she spoke, her gaze shifted to Xiao Ling behind the magical barrier.
The moment Furenna fastened the collar, Xiao Ling seemed to have all strength drained from her.
She stopped struggling. She simply fell to her knees, her eyes emptily staring ahead as if all hope of life had vanished.
She just stared, large, silent tears rolling down. Her expression held guilt, heartbreak, and profound powerlessness.
Iris took a moment to appreciate Xiao Ling’s despairing expression. Then, she casually waved a hand.
The shimmering energy chains binding Xiao Ling dissolved into faint light and vanished.
The little girl slumped forward, catching herself on her hands, her small frame wracked with silent sobs.
“See?”
Iris said to Furenna, her tone light.
“Your choice has produced an immediate effect.”
“I told you. Your obedience and another’s peace are directly linked.”
She did not explicitly say she would never touch Xiao Ling again.
But her action of lifting the punishment at this moment was an implicit “reward,” and a more insidious form of binding.
‘See? When you obey, those you care about fare better.’
“Well then, the first assignment in ‘consideration’ and ’empathy’… you have completed the foundational step.”
Iris restrained her displayed emotion, returning to that flat, instructive tone.
“Wearing it is only the beginning. Adapting will take time.”
“I will teach you, slowly, to learn to produce suitable responses.”
The Demon King walked to stand before Furenna, leaning down slightly.
Her crimson eyes stared closely into Furenna’s amber pupils, as if trying to see past them into the soul now half-connected by the collar.
“Remember this feeling, Furenna. Remember the result your choice brought.”
She straightened up.
“Today’s lesson is concluded. Return and adjust to your new… equipment.”
“We will meet again soon.”
The heavy cell door did not close immediately after Iris left.
“Oh, and take your little pitiful thing back with you.”
A few seconds later, the pale violet magical barrier that had divided the room
flickered silently like a burst bubble and dissipated completely into the air.
The previously blocked sights and sounds connected instantly.
Xiao Ling’s suppressed, faint sobbing became clearly audible.
She remained curled where the barrier had vanished, knees drawn tightly to her chest, thin shoulders shaking uncontrollably.
Furenna stood in place.
The cold weight of the new collar around her neck, the lingering, uncanny connection to that faint trace of the Demon King’s “pleasure”—none of it had fully faded.
She looked at the small, weeping figure. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath,
trying to suppress the metallic taste in her throat and the pain screaming from every part of her body.
Only then did she take a step, slowly walking over.
She moved slowly, her steps unsteady.
She stopped a few paces from Xiao Ling and was silent for a moment.
“Xiao Ling.”
Her voice was still hoarse, but she forced it to become calm.
The little girl flinched violently, as if startled. Timidly, she lifted her head bit by bit.
Her face was streaked with tears and grime, her eyes swollen like peaches.
Her lake-green eyes were filled with guilt so thick it could not be dissolved, fear, and sorrow.
She looked at Furenna. Her gaze lingered for an instant on the brand-new, coldly gleaming dark silver collar around Furenna’s neck.
Tears immediately welled up again.
“I’m… I’m so sorry… Heroine Sister… I’m sorry…”
Xiao Ling’s voice was utterly broken, full of self-blame.
“It’s all my fault… I’m so useless… And I… I said such stupid things… I made you… wear that…”
She couldn’t finish. She just shook her head desperately, large tears splashing onto the floor.
Furenna watched her begin to tremble again, curling tighter as if trying to disappear.
The young woman did not speak immediately. She slowly crouched down—
the motion made the old wound in her abdomen and every bone in her body protest.
She reached out. She did not touch Xiao Ling. She just placed her hand gently on the cold floor in front of her.
“It is not your fault.”
Furenna’s voice was very quiet, yet exceptionally clear, carrying a weary firmness.
“You did not say anything stupid. What you said… was right.”
Xiao Ling’s sobs hitched. She lifted tear-filled eyes in astonishment.
“But—”
Furenna continued, her gaze meeting the girl’s calmly,
“—here, what is right does not always lead to a ‘good’ outcome.”
“Sometimes, choosing correctly can make things worse.”
She paused, her eyes sweeping over the faint red marks on Xiao Ling’s wrists from the energy chains.
“I cannot… watch you suffer more because I chose correctly.”
“But… but that collar…”
Xiao Ling’s tears flowed anew. She raised a hand, trembling, wanting to touch but not daring to touch the restraint around Furenna’s neck.
“That must be horrible… I could tell…”
“Her Majesty… she was so pleased… when you put it on…”
“I know.”
Furenna cut her off. Her tone remained flat, as if discussing something unrelated to herself.
“But at least now, she is ‘pleased.’ You are temporarily safe.”
“I don’t want that kind of safety!”
Xiao Ling grew agitated suddenly. Though her voice was still small, it held a stubborn, tearful note.
“I don’t want safety… bought by you like this, Heroine Sister! I’d rather… I’d rather…”
“Xiao Ling.”
Furenna said her name, her voice slightly firmer, carrying unquestionable restraint.
She watched the girl freeze, fresh tears welling. She was silent for a few seconds before speaking again, her voice softening.
“Listen. This path… I chose it myself.”
She raised her hand again. This time, she placed it lightly on Xiao Ling’s messy, soft hair. She patted it twice—awkwardly, stiffly, like soothing a frightened animal.
“I need time.”
Furenna’s voice dropped even lower, almost to a whisper meant for herself, yet ensuring Xiao Ling could hear.
“And wearing this… might buy a little time. It might also let you stay safe, by my side.”
Xiao Ling stared at her dumbly. Tears still fell, but the chaos and collapse in her eyes seemed somewhat pressed down by something heavier in those words.
She could feel the stiffness and cold of the hand on her head. She could see the bottomless exhaustion in Furenna’s eyes, and beneath it, something hard and unyielding that she couldn’t fully understand, but that made her heart ache.
“But… what about later?”
Xiao Ling hiccuped, asking quietly.
Furenna did not answer directly.
She withdrew her hand, braced against her knees, and rose with some difficulty.
“Later… we will deal with it later.”
The young Heroine looked toward the still-open cell door.
“Right now, we leave this place. Can you stand?”
Xiao Ling nodded vigorously. She wiped her face roughly with the back of her hand and struggled to her feet.
Her body was still weak, her steps unsure, but she forced herself to stand straight.
Furenna waited until she was steady before turning and walking slowly toward the cell door. Her gait was still unsteady. The collar around her neck gleamed with a cold, faint light in the dim glow.
Xiao Ling followed closely behind, a step away, like a timid fledgling.
She watched Furenna’s straight but clearly burdened back. She remembered the stiff yet faintly warm hand that had rested on her head just moments before.
Tears blurred her vision again. But this time, besides sorrow and guilt, there seemed to be something else, something faint.
One behind the other, in silence, they walked out of the room filled with despair and choice, into the even deeper, longer dark corridor beyond.
The collar’s cold pressed against her pulse. The thorny path ahead remained unclear.