Leveling Up by Executing Monsters

Chapter 211: Chapter 211: Here We Go Again

Compared to Lloyd’s hearty dinner, what Elolo had to eat in the evening was quite spartan.

She sat in a dining hall vast enough to hold dozens, even hundreds of people. Before her was a long table that stretched for dozens of meters, surrounded by neatly arranged high-backed chairs. But aside from Miss Xiebeileida standing behind her, there was no one else here.

The setting sun streamed in through the window. Its last rays cast Elolo’s long, stretched-out silhouette on the wall. The shadow’s movements looked distorted; though she was supposed to be dining, it looked more like she was hiding her face and sobbing.

Miss Xiebeileida’s expression remained as harsh and cold as ever, as if she weren’t accompanying the young lady to dinner, but supervising a death row inmate’s last meal.

The dinner menu was not lavish: a fried egg, a vegetable salad, and a bowl of corn soup. That was all.

This was the "Lady’s Diet" prescribed for her by Lady Haima. It was said to be effective for maintaining one’s figure, keeping her waist slender enough to be encircled by a single hand.

Elolo had no right to refuse or choose. She could only force the food into her mouth, bit by bit, and chew slowly like a lady. Even though the dishes, which lacked even a hint of salt, were so difficult to swallow, she had to maintain a perfect ladylike composure.

Should she show the slightest lapse in etiquette, Miss Xiebeileida would express her displeasure and issue a warning in a way that made Elolo feel as if she were slowly suffocating.

So Elolo could only be cautious and fearful.

But she felt she should have gotten used to it. After all, she had been eating this way for the past sixteen years.

She didn’t know what a dessert like a cupcake would taste like. She had only ever seen the word in books, and knew it was some kind of food that girls loved.

’In the past sixteen years, I’ve never eaten anything like that...’

’If I get the chance someday, I’d love to try one.’

But it was just a thought, nothing more.

If she were to make even the slightest request that deviated from her established schedule—be it for her itinerary or her food—it would incur Miss Xiebeileida’s displeasure, and she would be locked in her room for an entire day.

So Elolo could only be cautious and fearful, hiding that audacious whim deep in her heart.

’After all, I’ve always been this way for the past sixteen years.’

Within the allotted time, Elolo swallowed her last bite of food. She picked up a napkin and dabbed at her lips, which weren’t the least bit greasy, then turned to look at Miss Xiebeileida.

The woman produced a mirror, holding it up to Elolo’s face so she could tidy her appearance and ensure the meal hadn’t ruined her ladylike beauty.

Elolo glanced in the mirror. Her heterochromatic eyes, one light blue and one dark blue, constricted slightly. She raised a delicate hand, clad in a half-glove, and touched her own cheek.

To Miss Xiebeileida, this was a perfectly normal and permitted gesture.

She had no idea what Elolo truly saw in the mirror...

She saw herself crying. Two streams of clear tears flowed endlessly from her eyes, carving slender tracks down her pretty cheeks before gathering at her pointed chin.

Every time she looked in the mirror, Elolo saw this version of herself.

She would always instinctively reach up to touch her face, only to find it completely dry.

But she didn’t know why this was happening, or why she was crying.

’It hasn’t been like this for the past sixteen years, has it?’

...

After dinner, Elolo silently followed Miss Xiebeileida to a bathroom on the second floor.

There, she allowed the woman to strip her of her clothes and push her into a pool of pale blue water.

The water was bone-chillingly cold, feeling like knives slicing across Elolo’s delicate skin. Only after she was shivering uncontrollably, her tender lips had turned blue, and her thoughts seemed to have frozen over, did Miss Xiebeileida permit her to get out.

Her body was quickly dried and a plain, simple white nightgown was put on her. Then, Miss Xiebeileida led Elolo back to her bedroom door.

HISS... HISS...

With a spray of steam, the grinding of gears sounded from around the door. It opened slowly, with a heavy, steady rhythm, revealing a fairytale-like bedroom within.

Just before she went inside, Elolo’s nearly frozen consciousness seemed to thaw a bit, and she subconsciously asked a question.

"When is Daddy coming back?"

Miss Xiebeileida froze for a second. Her pupils contracted to the size of a pinprick, then just as quickly returned to normal.

Then, without warning, she suddenly struck, grabbing Elolo’s slender neck, slamming her against the wall, and lifting her high into the air.

"Cough... cough..."

Elolo coughed in agony, her pretty face instantly flushing crimson. Her hands instinctively tried to pry away the woman’s grip, but it was as unmoving as an iron clamp. Her small, bare feet thrashed wildly, kicking at nothing.

Only when Elolo’s face had gone from red to a deathly white did Miss Xiebeileida’s pupils contract as they had before. She released her grip, letting Elolo fall to the floor, where she knelt, gasping for breath.

"Remember, ’Daddy’ is a forbidden word."

Miss Xiebeileida reminded her coldly, then added,

"Remember this: your father will return to have breakfast with you in one year’s time."

"Cough... cough... O... okay... I’ll remember..."

Elolo replied, her voice weak and powerless.

She didn’t remember there being such a "house rule" in the past sixteen years.

’But since Miss Xiebeileida says so, it must be true, right?’

After this little episode, Miss Xiebeileida grabbed Elolo by her slender arm and threw her into the room.

Then, with the grinding of gears and three distinct clicks of a lock, her world was reduced to the fairytale bedroom.

But the sky had already darkened. The cartoon-style decorations in the bedroom were completely swallowed by the shadows, leaving only pitch-blackness.

It was as if the fairytale had ended, and it was now time for sleep.

Elolo slowly climbed into her bed and curled into a tight ball, wrapping her arms around her legs, trying to drive out the damp chill that clung to her.

But then she seemed to remember something. She glanced around warily, and after confirming no one was peeking, she hopped off the bed, crawled underneath it, and pulled out a dusty, cartoonish octopus plushie.

Elolo believed that for the past sixteen years, she was supposed to hate and despise this plushie, to not like it at all.

That was why Miss Xiebeileida stuffed it under the bed every time she cleaned the room.

But for some unknown reason, Elolo would always take it out again, hugging it tightly despite the dust, even willing to endure Miss Xiebeileida’s punishments for doing so.

Eventually, she learned to be smarter. She would secretly take it out before bed, give it a hug, and then secretly hide it away again so Miss Xiebeileida wouldn’t find it.

She had planned to do the same tonight, but after hugging it for a while, she found she couldn’t bear to let it go.

"Will you come be with me tonight, too?"

Elolo murmured for no apparent reason, shrinking back against the headboard, clutching the plushie tightly.

Then she continued to murmur unconsciously,

"Venerable One... save me..."

...

’Here we go, here we go!’

’Just as I thought! The call came right on schedule, as soon as night fell!’

Lloyd scratched his ear, set down the old book he’d just bought, and dove into his bed. He wrapped himself up in his blankets like a burrito to make sure he wouldn’t fall asleep without them on.

Next, he returned to the Thought Realm and walked straight to the new sprout that represented Elolo.

The pitiful, faint crying he could hear in his ears grew a little clearer.

Lloyd hadn’t made any more preparations than he did last night. He simply stared intently at the pattern on the floor that resembled the Spiral Tower.

Soon, his vision began to blur, and the light started to Twist and spin. He quickly entered the Infiltration state and found himself once again in Elolo’s room.

"Yo, good evening. How was your day?"

Lloyd offered a perfunctory greeting.

’It’s not like I have a physical body, so no one can hear me anyway,’ he thought. ’Besides, in the pitiful state she’s in, Elolo couldn’t respond even if she could.’

However, upon closer inspection, Lloyd noticed a clear handprint and bruises on Elolo’s slender, white neck.

Fortunately, the rest of her body was unharmed, and for the time being, she was still breathing and had a heartbeat.

’Damn it! Did that monster of a father fly into a rage and try to strangle his own daughter?’

’But then he regained his Rationality and spared her?’

"The situation is getting more and more urgent," he said. "But my plan will take several days to put into motion. You have to be careful for the next few days. Don’t provoke him again!"

Lloyd didn’t know if Elolo could hear him, but he had to give her the warning.

Then, he released his inspiration, letting it invade Elolo’s body and begin absorbing the Spiritual Contamination from her.

[Ding! Madness Value +50]

[Ding! Madness Value +19]

[Ding! Madness Value +3]

’This... How is it even stronger than yesterday?’

Lloyd clearly remembered that he had been gradually adapting to her Spiritual Contamination yesterday. The frequency and amount of Madness Value he gained had already been on a downward trend.

’So how did it come back today? And it’s even stronger?’

For a moment, he wasn’t sure whether to be happy for himself or sad for Elolo...

’This can’t go on. If I can’t absorb all the Spiritual Contamination, it’s a serious waste for me and a heavy burden for her. Isn’t that just a lose-lose situation for both of us?’

’Looks like I’ll have to get into much closer contact with her...’

Lloyd recalled his previous close contact with Weiya, and a bold idea suddenly formed in his mind. He whispered,

"I’m sorry..."

It was unclear who those words were for.

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