Dressing the Ink Soldiers

Chapter 41 – Dressing the Ink Soldiers

Inside Lucy's stone house.

Jhin put Aria on the bed before he turned around and faced the expressionless Lucy.

At this moment, the rage burning inside him had already calmed down. He had also sorted out his thoughts and realized his shortcomings!

It could be said that his previous actions had harmed not only Aria, but also to himself. He shouldn't have divulged Aria's incident without thinking of the consequences. And if he did know, he must at least have the strength to protect her.

If Lucy didn't arrive on time and saved them, something terrible would surely happen. Not only would he be beaten for opposing a captain, but the existence of the ink soldiers would also be known to the public.

The repercussions of such action would greatly damage his plans.

"Thank you!" Jhin said as he met Lucy's eyes.

"En," Lucy calmly nodded. "Step aside, I'll read her memories."

"Go ahead." He replied while moving to the side. Then he softly asked, "Can you make her suffer less?"

Jhin know that it was pointless to stop her. Not only did he owe her a favor, but he also doesn't have the strength to stop her. Much less him, even the silver-haired caption who easily suppressed him was beaten by her.

He can only wish that she won't hurt Aria like the silver-haired man did.

"Don't disturb me." Lucy shot him a glance. Then, she took an orb from her pocket and started chanting.

A silver gray magic circle appeared above Aria's head. Slowly, transparent gases came out from her temples. The moment these gases appeared; the orb would absorb them.

Whenever a gas exited Aria, pained expression would appear on her face. However, she didn't scream in pain unlike when the silver-haired captain read her memory.

Jhin watched it for a while. After seeing that Aria wasn't suffering, he heaved sigh of relief.

Instead of staying nearby, he decided to look around the house. If he wanted to join the raid, he must prepare himself.

Time passed by.

After almost half an hour, the magic circle above Aria's head finally disappeared. The orb on Lucy's hand shimmered.

"Is it done?" Jhin asked as he looked at the pale-faced Lucy.

Sweat had formed on her forehead while her vision was unfocused. She put the orb inside her pocket as she herself lay on the bed. Exhaustion could be seen from her face.

"Hmm. Don't disturb me, I need to rest." She said with her eyes closed.

"Okay!"

It didn't take long for Lucy's soft breathing to fill the room.

Jhin touched his chin and pondered. What Lucy did wasn't as simple as it seems.

Despite her overwhelming strength, able to beat a captain easily, she was still so exhausted.

'Is it normal or did she do something more?' Jhin thought. Unlike the silver-haired captain who wanted to soul search Aria, Lucy's method was peaceful. Aria didn't cry nor let out a groan. Aside from occasional knitting of her brows, Aria wasn't harmed at all.

In the end, Jhin shook his head and decided to do something else.

"Might as well dress them while she's asleep."

He started walking towards the table. Then, he waved his hand.

"Summon all ink soldiers."

Four runes flew out from his wrist. They landed next to the table before transforming into four ink soldiers.

"Wear them!" Jhin pointed at the set of clothes on the table.

Earlier, while Lucy was reading Aria's memories, Jhin had searched the room and managed to find a few sets of cloaks. There were even masks, gloves, and boots.

Jhin didn't where it came from but since it's his wife's property, he had no qualms on using them.

The four ink soldiers quickly wore the clothes.

At this moment, all of them were wrapped in black cloaks while their hands were covered by a pair of black gloves. They were also equipped with black boots.

Looking at his summons, Jhin couldn't help but nod his head in satisfaction. "With this, they would be able to hide their unique features."

He took out the archery set from his inventory and distributed it to the four.

Then, he inspected them one by one.

After confirming that their features were perfectly concealed, he finally let out a smile. His eyes gleaming in determination. He had enough of being weak! Of being powerless!

"This time! I will pursue strength even if I have to sacrifice some of my morals!" Jhin murmured.

The events earlier and last night were deeply imprinted in his mind. He realized that without power, there's no use talking about morals and principles at all. Even Aria, a child had tasted the cruelty of this world.

This is a world where the strong preys the weak.

Without power, you won't even get the chance to discuss! To speak of your principles at all! Just like how, before he could speak to the silver-haired captain, he was suppressed by his gravitational spell! He wanted to discuss him the morals but, would he listen?

Of course, the answer is NO!

Unless he has the power, no one would pay attention to him.

With power, you can have everything in this world!

Just like how Lucy beat the other captain without severe repercussions! She had the strength to look down others, to beat others! It was because she has the strength!

Jhin looked at his ink soldiers before a thought entered his mind. He waved his hand and keep them back into his wrist. That was then, a notification rang.

[Do you want to maintain the equipment of the ink soldiers even in their rune form?]

"Yes"

[To keep the equipment, the host must pay one ink drop per hour.]

"Hmm," Jhin nodded, he still has a single ink drop left after his spending earlier. "Hey system, how many ink soldiers is the limit of the one ink drop per hour?"

[Ten equipped ink soldiers.]

"I see," Jhin was relieved. He was just experimenting earlier whether the ink soldiers would be able to retain their clothes after turning into a rune. He didn't expect the system to be so understanding.

Time passed slowly. While Jhin was busy reflecting and experimenting, Lucy finally woke up.

She stood up from the bed and started walking towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Jhin asked.

"To join the raid," Lucy replied, "Why?"

Jhin looked at her sleepy eyes. "I want to join the raid."