Chapter 19 Coin Guessing Game

Blood trickled down from the bodies of the executed prisoners, slowly pooling on the grass.

The stark contrast between crimson and emerald green became strikingly distinct at this moment.

Ivyst couldn't help but recall the night she arrived in Blin Village in the northern part of Orn City, witnessing the horrific aftermath of the Creationist School's sacrificial ritual that had claimed the entire village.

Religion is the greatest hoax in this world.

As she gazed at the despair etched onto the prisoners' faces, her mood grew increasingly elated.

*Every time she saw these vile creatures reduced to helplessness and terror when faced with something even more powerful and sinister, she felt an undeniable sense of pleasure.*

*Ivyst wasn't sure whether this was a sign of her own psychological aberration or something else entirely.*

*She supposed it could merely be an unusual fetish.*

However, her childhood taught her that she never needed others to understand this quirk—and she certainly never cared for their opinions.

The remaining five cult members shivered like leaves in a storm as yet another of their comrades met a gruesome fate.

At this point, they had no choice left but to follow the orders of this female demon and play along with her hopelessly despairing coin-flipping game.

If they guessed wrong, their fate would be to nourish that thorny rose.

All the present prisoners bowed their heads like frightened quails, none daring to break the suffocating silence.

Just then, a sudden, rapid series of claps echoed through the air, jolting the prisoners out of their dread.

"Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!"

Ivyst frowned slightly and turned to look.

There, Lynn, who had been half-kneeling to the side, suddenly straightened his back and solemnly began clapping fervently.

His rhythm was so frenzied that even his palms turned red.

"What's the matter?"

Her voice was still cold, threaded with a hint of displeasure.

"Your Highness, you truly are incredible." Lynn ceased his applause, his expression devoid of fear, filled instead with pure admiration. "Honestly, as a nobleman, I used to think that killing was a crude and bloody act—a disrespect to life."

"But today, Your Highness showed me that executions and killing can actually be an art form."

"That raw, visceral intensity of balancing life and death, the heart-pounding thrill, the primal beauty of pure bloodied destruction—my God, you might just be the greatest artist this world has ever seen!"

At this moment, Lynn seemed like Ivyst's star-struck devotee, ready to throw himself into the flames for her at any second.

Listening to this long-winded rant, Ivyst couldn't help but press her temples in exasperation, as though her perception of human degradation had once again been recalibrated by this man's limitless audacity.

After a long pause, she slowly turned her head: "Shut up."

Lynn immediately fell silent.

But as he glanced at Ivyst's dainty ankle swaying ever so slightly, he thought that perhaps his wave of unsolicited compliments hadn't been entirely in vain.

*To be honest, the grotesque scene before him had left him somewhat physically uncomfortable as well.*

*After all, it wasn't like he was some psychopath.*

Yet, outwardly, he maintained a facade of being entirely unperturbed and sophisticated.

*All of this was part of his strategy—to eliminate Ivyst's suspicions of him and make her believe he'd sincerely pledged his allegiance.*

*After all, Lynn had already undergone the hypnosis experiment and managed to deceive everyone.*

From Ivyst's perspective, it appeared she could hypnotize this fallen noble of the Bartleion family at will, issue any command, and hold him captive entirely within her grasp.

*But from start to finish, Lynn's determination had never wavered.*

*His goal was to survive—to live.*

He was utterly desperate to sever ties with this villainous Imperial Princess to avoid being labeled one of her lackeys by the protagonist's faction and meeting his doom in their inevitable reckoning. Lynn had practically driven himself mad devising his escape plan.

*He had to flee—and flee far enough never to see her again.*

*Perhaps that was the only way he might endure to the bitter end.*

What's that?

You're saying this is an S-level plot character?

Come on, why insist on hanging from one tree when the world is brimming with greener pastures? Surely, not all major characters have perished?

Not far away, the coin-flipping game continued.

"Next."

Ivyst's icy voice cut through the air like death's summoning call.

"H-Head."

"Splat—!!!"

"Next."

"...Tail?"

"Splat—!!!"

...

Perhaps due to Lynn's arrival, Ivyst seemed to expedite the pace of her executions.

With the coin flipping through the air, the remaining cultists met their fates one by one in despair, stepping closer to death.

Maybe when they had recklessly sacrificed the Saint Laurent Empire's innocents, they should've anticipated a day like this in the future.

And as more thorny brambles gathered together, the blood-red rose at the center bloomed even more vibrantly, glistening with an eerie beauty.

In the end, all eight prisoners were buried in a sea of thorns, kneeling on the ground as though offering repentance to their innocent victims until their final moments.

Having completed the task, Ivyst's expression remained unchanged. Calmly, she picked up her bone china teacup and took another sip.

"Next."

"?"

Lynn looked around anxiously, realizing that there were no living prisoners left.

At that moment, an ominous feeling surged through his chest.

He turned his eyes toward the silent lady butler.

When he noticed her once again producing that ancient coin, his face turned pale.

Dammit! Out of the three people present, it had to be him, of course! Why had all that flattery gone to waste?

Noticing the look on his face, Ivyst broke into a soft chuckle: "As expected, I really do enjoy seeing you frightened. So adorable."

"..."

Inwardly, Lynn cursed this venomous woman a hundred times over.

*The encounter only solidified his determination to escape.*

"But I'm still curious." Her eyes narrowed slightly. "If you were one of the prisoners, facing the exact situation just now, what choice would you have made?"

"Uh… Guess a side randomly and leave the rest to fate?"

Seeing him dodge the question, Ivyst shook her head lightly: "Actually, I know you're still scheming to escape in your heart."

"Your Highness, I…"

Lynn began to explain but was interrupted by her.

"After all, I've been forcing you from the start, never considering your feelings," Ivyst suddenly acknowledged, reflecting briefly. "If you think about it, that really is inappropriate."

"So, let's do this. Since you seem to dislike me so much, I'll give you an opportunity."

"If you can win against me in this coin-flipping game, I'll allow you to leave Augusta Manor and promise not to stop you."

Lynn instinctively lifted his head.

Lie Swallowing had granted him the ability to discern lies.

At this moment, he could tell Ivyst's words were truthful.

But why would she be so generous all of a sudden?

Suspicion gleamed in his eyes.

Seeing this, Ivyst spoke in an even tone: "Don't look at me like that. Even I won't tolerate keeping someone with ulterior motives in my team—that's like holding onto a ticking time bomb. Surely you understand."

Hearing this, Lynn forced a smile.

The next moment, he saw Ivyst flip her palm, revealing a delicate collar marked with ominous runes.

"If it's a game, there should be both rewards and punishments to make it interesting." She flashed a meaningful smile. "What I mentioned earlier is the reward for beating me, while this collar is the punishment if you lose."

"If you fail to guess the coin's side correctly within three tries, you will wear this collar from this day forward."

*Just as he suspected—this was the true motive behind this sadistic woman's kindness!*

Lynn's expression turned grim.

"So, what's it going to be? Will you play?"

"… I'll bet."