CHAPTER 51: 51 SINCERELY EXCHANGE TRUE HEART? (PLEASE FOLLOW!)

From the beginning, Herbert and the prisoners were never on equal footing.

The Monster Girls might be powerful, might hold noble positions outside, or might be extremely wealthy...

But when facing him, their only identity was that of a prisoner.

And he was the Prison Warden, in charge of everything within the prison.

The Alien Race Prison had been calm for far too long, and although these prisoners didn’t express it outwardly, they internally longed for change.

Even if the change was good or bad, it didn’t matter.

They just wanted change.

And Herbert dared to approach and interact with them in that flirty, slightly overconfident manner because he understood this.

Ah.

Pure exploitation of authority.

Moreover, often, rather than flirting with them, he was testing boundaries.

Through joking and teasing, he repeatedly tested where their patience lay.

And regarding this, he believed that besides Valentina, who was truly unaware, the others had a vague understanding.

"Everyone is just putting on an act."

Everyone had a tacit understanding and chose not to expose the truth.

"Heart for heart? No, more like dark heart for dark heart."

Herbert chuckled, not feeling too optimistic or too desperate about the current situation.

["Then..."]

"We can only take it slowly."

"I don’t want to harm them, nor do I have any reason to; they will understand this eventually."

"I treat them with genuine affection, but how much genuine affection I can receive in return depends on our future interactions."

"I’m quite confident in myself, what about you?"

["I..."]

The Evil God was silent for a moment, then gently chuckled.

["I’ve always believed in you~"]

"Ha, liar."

["Yes, I’m lying~"]

.

.

Treehouse.

After Herbert left, Svanni remained in the same posture as he was before leaving, quietly watching the glowing forest.

After a long while, she shook her head ruefully, unable to help but sigh, "What a strange guy..."

"Completely unlike a Holy Professional."

Then, another voice picked up after her, continuing, "This time, did he see through it again?"

With the same tone and uninflected voice.

Inside the treehouse, a second Svanni appeared!

The newly appeared Svanni was not a mere phantom but seemed indistinguishable from the previous "body."

She picked up the skull that Herbert hadn’t taken, looked at it with disdain, and shook her head.

"Worthless, and it’s already tainted by Him."

When she let go, the skull crumbled into dust, swallowed by the ground.

This was also a physical entity!

A master of manipulating flesh couldn’t just create a flesh avatar casually, could they?

The two Svannis moved simultaneously, multitasking to continue the research they had previously paused.

"A confident, bold, and Scripture-unbound Paladin..."

"Should we cooperate with him?"

They questioned and answered each other, like two people having a conversation.

"Indeed, the hidden experimental materials are almost used up."

"And some fresh flesh from other races is needed."

"But there’s no rush, let’s wait a bit longer."

"Wait until he comes to me proactively next time..."

While the two Svannis were conversing, the meat graveyard at the top of the treehouse also slowly began changing.

The wooden walls squirmed, opening mouths, swallowing and absorbing all the flesh.

Before long, the originally eerie space turned immaculate, showing no trace of flesh left behind.

After everything had returned to calm.

A third Svanni appeared, standing where Herbert had been, gently sniffing the air.

"But what I really want..."

"Is actually his flesh."

Svanni frowned slightly, tilting her head in puzzlement, inhaling the lingering scent again.

"Ha..."

"What on earth about him attracts me?"

She licked her lips, her eyes glinting with dangerous intent.

"Is it his bloodline? Or is it..."

.

.

"After all this time and effort, the path to the Fourth Region still hasn’t been opened."

On the way back, Herbert pursed his lips in frustration and cursed to himself.

Forgot!

Too many twists happened when facing Svanni; he got so caught up discussing her betrayal that he forgot this matter.

Go back and talk about it now?

Eh, it would be a bit weird too...

But since the biggest crisis with Brother Grassfish has been resolved, and no one’s eyeing his hook anymore, there’s no rush.

When he passed the Black Iron Coffin, a muffled voice came from inside: "Hey! Paladin!"

"You still owe me ten drops of blood! We agreed before, no flaking!"

Through the coffin’s cracks peered a pair of scarlet eyes, filled with longing, staring intently at Herbert, occasionally glancing at his hand, contemplating something.

Herbert: ?

He didn’t reply, casting a sideways glance at the Vampire crammed into the coffin, forced to live in crevices, he couldn’t help but recall his experiences in the treehouse.

The residence of the Dark Elf Grand Mage, while not opulent, was certainly quite comfortable—excluding the flesh nest on the top floor.

And then there’s you.

Both inhabitants of the Prison of Darkness, yet one lives in a big villa, while you only have a coffin room?

What a mess!

Truly disgraceful!

He looked at Eliza, couldn’t help but shake his head, and sighed, "Sigh..."

Eliza: ?

She was perplexed by his sudden reaction, not knowing what he meant.

"Huh? What’s with the sudden sigh? Don’t tell me... you’re going to renege on the deal!?"

Eliza panicked.

Hey!

I already gave you the item; you can’t refuse to acknowledge the deal, can you!?

Hearing this, Herbert raised an eyebrow, his words swallowed before they even reached his lips.

He gave Eliza a slight smile, nodded politely, then walked away in silence.

Leaving her with a dashing view of his back.

???

"You! You can’t do this!"

The poor Vampire was completely flustered, shouting at his retreating figure:

"Hey! Paladin! Aren’t you a Paladin!!?"

"You’re a disgrace to the Paladin title—"

Listening to the Vampire’s unrestrained invectives behind him, Herbert, already far off, inhaled deeply, remarking, "Her reaction is really interesting!"

She’s just too easy to tease, getting flustered so quickly.

["Are you sure you’re being sincere with them?"]

"Of course."

Herbert chuckled, answering naturally, "I genuinely tease her, she genuinely gets mad; how’s that not a heart-for-heart exchange?"

My friends.

It’s genuinely true.

.

.

And at this moment, happily teasing the simple-minded, Herbert was unaware...

that soon enough, it would be his turn to stop smiling.

At this moment, the Rusted Nail Bishop was standing in front of the Alien Race Prison, frowning at the remaining slime on the ground.

"Did that Fallen hide here in the end?"