"Is this Kafka's Spirit Whisper... even a budget version is so powerful..."
Looking at the youth whose heart had stopped beating, Cipher murmured to herself.
"Better dispose of the corpse first."
Having said that, she directly opened a portal and pulled Cerydra through.
"Imperator, Imperator, help me deal with this corpse."
Seeing Cerydra appear, Cipher pointed directly at the dead youth.
Cerydra, who had been reading in her room, gave Cipher a speechless roll of her eyes before blue flames erupted from her hand. The moment the flames touched the youth's corpse, it was incinerated until not even ash remained.
"This is something you could achieve by spending a thousand or two Credits. Was it really necessary to pull me over? Aren't you tired of the hassle?"
"Oh, come on," Cipher didn't seem to care. "You are me, and I am you. You know whether I find it a hassle or not. Besides, a few thousand Credits is still money."
With that, she pushed Cerydra back into the portal.
Cerydra didn't resist and followed the momentum back into her room at the church.
However, just as she returned to her room, she saw a blue and black figure who had arrived at some unknown point, quietly waiting for her.
"Dux Gladiorum?"
Seeing Hysilens, Cerydra was startled for a moment before quickly assuming a serious expression.
"Do you have some business with me?"
"Imperator, your aura suddenly vanished." Hysilens paused at Cerydra's question. "I was... a bit worried, so I came to check."
Cerydra blinked. she had actually forgotten about that part.
"Did something happen?"
Hysilens glanced at the portal behind her and then looked back at Cerydra.
"Nothing happened," Cerydra shook her head. "I just had some business with the Dux Celeripes, so I had her open a portal."
"That Little Catfish..." Hysilens seemed to breathe a sigh of relief before bowing slightly. "Imperator, it is late. Please rest well. I shall take my leave."
With that, she turned and walked out of the room.
Seeing this, Cerydra stepped forward to close the door and let out a sigh of relief.
"I didn't expect that disappearing for just a dozen seconds would alarm Hysilens. I'll have to be more careful next time."
Cerydra then lay back down on the bed and resumed her reading.
"Now that the cleanup is done, I should go up and talk to them."
Stroking her chin while looking at the empty power-suppressing handcuffs, Cipher walked back to the living room.
Upon entering, she saw the three members of Ember Squad cleaning up the traces of the battle.
"Go and rest, I'll handle this," Cipher said immediately.
"No need, we didn't actually suffer any serious injuries," Lin Wei replied, shaking her head. "It's just cleaning the living room; it's no trouble."
After speaking, she poked Xiong Lei, who was mopping nearby.
Xiong Lei was startled for a moment, then looked at Lin Wei with some confusion, as if asking why she poked him.
Seeing Xiong Lei's dense behavior, Lin Wei covered her face.
"Sister Cipher thinks we're injured and doesn't want us doing housework. Do you feel so injured that you can't even mop?"
Xiong Lei finally caught on. He immediately dropped the mop and pulled off his shirt, revealing scars that were already mostly healed.
"Big Sis Cipher, look, my injuries are almost gone. It's no trouble at all."
He patted his chest and gave a somewhat goofy smile.
Seeing this series of actions, Cipher found it hard to say anything further. Eventually, she sighed.
"Fine. Just be careful not to let your wounds worsen."
She then turned her gaze to Luo Lin, who was silently sweeping with her head down. After a moment's hesitation, she said:
"Little Lin, come to the study with me. I have something to ask you."
Luo Lin's body trembled slightly. She set down the broom and silently followed behind Cipher.
'How is it that after not seeing them for only a few hours, the personalities of Little Lin and Little Wei have swapped...'
Lin Wei used to be the one who spoke the least, but since finding them, she had become the most talkative. Conversely, the once-lively Luo Lin had become withdrawn and silent.
What exactly happened during that time? Cipher wondered with confusion.
Upon reaching the study, she closed the door. Within the room, only Luo Lin and Cipher remained.
"Little Lin, did something happen in these past few hours?" Cipher sat across from her and asked.
"Sister Cipher..." Luo Lin's voice trembled at the question. "It's all my fault... I've harmed everyone..."
"Calm down first!" Seeing Luo Lin's unstable emotional state, Cipher spoke quickly. "What do you mean you harmed everyone? Lin Wei and Xiong Lei are right here, aren't they?"
"But... but..." Luo Lin paused, and only after saying "but" several times did she continue, "Sister Zhaoran... she, she fell into the Spirit Tide!"
"You know?" Cipher was surprised, but quickly realized the captors must have told her. "She fell in because of her own reasons; it has nothing to do with you—"
But before she could finish, Luo Lin interrupted her, her voice thick with sobs:
"But the Spirit Tide... only reappeared because of me..."
"Huh...?"
Hearing Luo Lin's words, Cipher felt like her brain had momentarily stalled. She had only intended to comfort Luo Lin; how did she end up hearing such explosive news?
What did she mean by... the Spirit Tide appeared because of Luo Lin?!
"The Spirit Tide appeared because of you? How is that possible?"
Cipher sized up Luo Lin from head to toe, speaking in disbelief.
She stood about 1.5 meters tall with a rather thin build. The energy Cipher sensed from her felt like nothing more than a C rank superpower.
Even though Lu Zhaoran had mentioned she might possess hidden power, wasn't this power a bit too ridiculous?!