Vertok attempts to heal Annie and Katie's psychic damage. However, the two old adventurers thought that he had some special affection for Annie and Katie, so they did not hesitate to rescue them from the hands of the Bone Collector gang. After all, they are young and beautiful, have outstanding appearance, and are college-graduated professionals, so they are very attractive to the young men in Braun Town.
However, they should not use common sense to speculate on Wiltok's thoughts. In fact, Vertok's purpose was very pure. The case of the hobgoblin enslaving the half-elves aroused his strong interest. He was eager to intervene. The focus was on full observation and participation. The final result was not actually important.
So, Wiltok never thought about what to do with Anne and Katie after they returned to normal?
Max bluntly warned him that Anne and Katie, who had returned to normal, might reveal their details, and the consequences would be unpredictable. It is a good choice for Vertok to use his own extraordinary charm to turn them into personal maids, but it is not the safest way. Because they are not ordinary female professionals. They have backgrounds in city-state academies and famous Golden Sunflower families. Taking them back to the alliance city-state may cause trouble.
Max asked Wiltok to consider whether to take Annie and Katie with him first, and then leave them behind after finding the half-elf settlement.
Wiltok decisively rejected the other party's proposal. How could he let go of rare and special cases like Anne and Katie? He did not set a time limit for the treatment and observation of the two people. As for the subsequent troubles, he would figure out a solution at that time.
Seeing Wiltok's resolute attitude, Max said nothing more. He only said that it was inconvenient for him and Huck to take care of the two young women. Things like undressing and bathing them had to be done by Wiltok himself. Otherwise, it would be very embarrassing for them to become Wiltok's personal maids from now on.
Wiltok must admit that many of Max's suggestions have reference value compared to Huck, who is obedient to him. Although he and Max think about things in different ways, he is trying to learn from Max's life experience.
For example, Max's suggestion to first recruit his subordinates, cultivate his power, and then carefully investigate the clues of Wiltok's persecution is a very reasonable suggestion.
Wiltok fully agreed with his point of view and was in no hurry to rush to the town of Carwen in Rapids. But they still have to find a half-elf settlement as soon as possible and return to civilization.
The wild jungle is full of dangers and dangers, and deadly poisonous insects and beasts are just the tip of the iceberg. Most victims often die of hunger, thirst, hypothermia, heatstroke, and energy exhaustion, all of which are collectively referred to as getting lost. The forest is full of deadly traps that are difficult to detect, just like the hiding spot Max chose for himself is covered with poisonous thorns and has no stable water source. There are no birds and animals here, so it is certainly safe to hide inside, but if Wiltok doesn't find Max, he won't be able to hold on for long.
In fact, most of the plants in the forest are inedible, and most areas are not suitable for survival. Otherwise, it would not be called a virgin forest, but a prosperous and rich city-state.
In a sense, the wild forest is a natural barrier that protects the city-state from invasion by foreign enemies. Just imagine how difficult it would be for a large number of invaders to traverse a forest where food and water are extremely scarce. Vertok has only a few companions, and they have few restrictions on their movements.
The most urgent task is to find a water source.
This is not difficult for Wiltok, who has absorbed the memory of the hobgoblin. Anne and Katie's problem is a bit more difficult. They basically lost the ability to communicate with others and had no desire to communicate. They showed strong resistance to their partners who had fought side by side to resist the orcs. Although they retain some of the living habits of civilized countries, it only shows that there is still a chance to return to normal. Before that, they refused to cooperate with Wiltok's actions and even waited for an opportunity to escape.
Max, who has been cursed by the cold heart, needs the care of his companions. Wiltok and Huck can no longer carry two women on their shoulders.
In order to make them more obedient and less troublesome for everyone, Wiltok decided to correct some of their bad habits first. His method was to beat them until they were scared.
Wiltok untied the ropes from their bodies, took off the damaged armor and armor, picked a vine whip, and indiscriminately aimed at the two half-elf women and whipped them violently.
Katie, who was petite in stature, was doing relatively well. After being beaten, she huddled up in a ball, trembling and crying, and did not dare to continue to resist. The agile Annie is more vicious than Katie, and she also tries to fight back against Vertok.
Although Anne had forgotten the fighting skills of the archer, the physical fitness of the second-level professional was still there. She could grab with her hands, kick with her feet, butt her head, bite with her teeth, and stubbornly resisted Wiltok's whipping. Realizing that her resistance was ineffective, she actually started running away again.
Wiltok let Annie run for a while, then he grabbed her back and threw her to the ground, and hit her with two whips on her round and upturned buttocks. His attack was very measured, leaving behind a series of hot whip marks, but it did not leave Annie's skin and flesh torn and unable to move.
The tolerance of professionals is far beyond that of ordinary half-elves. Despite Annie's usual delicate appearance, she can fully withstand such a level of beating and whipping. She can take a short break before jumping up and running away.
Anne's endless escapes, Vertok caught her back every time to thwart her attempts.
Huck and Max were hiding on the other side, stealing glances from time to time. Later, they found that the scene where Wiltok trained Annie was really eye-catching. The two old guys thought they couldn't watch anymore, so they turned their backs and pretended to be deaf and dumb.
Wiltok carried Anne back with long legs and slender waist. Anne even took the initiative to raise her butt and let him spank her twice. Then she ran away and was caught again, and so on. On the surface, they seem to be enjoying it a bit, but if you put aside the general understanding of half-elves, you will find that there is a meaning closer to the essence of life.
Wiltok has noticed that the mental bodies of Anne and Katie have been distorted by the secret rituals held by the hobgoblins, and the human part of the soul's will has been destroyed. The other ebbs and flows, and the animalistic part of the will begins to gain the upper hand. The changes in the mental body are fed back to their bodies, and their reaction speed, ability to resist blows, wound recovery, pain tolerance, physical fitness and other characteristics are slightly improved.
This is especially evident in Anne. She is not a beast, but the wild nature within her is growing and growing. To describe it in one word, it is - becoming violent.
Yes, if this trend continues, Annie may become violent.
As for Katie, she is an intelligent animal trainer, and intelligent species with smart minds are particularly difficult to become violent.
Unfortunately, the transformation of their minds and bodies does not occur naturally. When it comes to human factors such as the hobgoblin's secret rituals and special potions, there must be major purposeful flaws.
To put it simply, Vertok has killed the hobgoblin leader of the Bone Collector gang, but Annie and Katie still want to run back to the hobgoblin master, even if they have turned into two dead bodies and been eaten by scavengers. Into the stomach.
There are artificial flaws in their cognition - it is difficult to escape the effective control of the hobgoblin.
Max and Huck only saw Wiltok using torture and teasing methods to train Annie, but if Wiltok left her alone and Annie found a chance to successfully escape, she would definitely die!
It's a matter of life and death, who cares about shame or shame?
Vertok was not training a beautiful young half-elf woman, he was taming a beast. Apart from that, he had no better way, and his attempt to suppress Annie's wild instincts had not yet succeeded.
Vertok captured Annie again and again, but she still had to escape in the direction of the Bone Collector's camp.
...There is no other way but to endure.
Let’s see who can’t stand it first!
Annie pulled Vertok into a cat-and-mouse game, and it was already annoying enough for him to catch her. Katie, who was ready to take action, would join in the fun from time to time, but was suppressed by Vertok. The three of them worked hard all night. It wasn't until the next morning that the exhausted Anne finally became honest.
Wiltok also felt tired, mainly mentally, but he still fed Anne and Katie food and water, and then tied them up with a rope. From now on, Wiltok and Huck no longer have to carry them on their backs, they can walk on their own.
This can be regarded as the result of Wiltok's busy afternoon and whole night's work.
Max suppressed his laughter and ran over to ask Wiltok: "Sir, what are we doing now?"
Wiltok held the two wild half-elves and said, "Find the water source first. If you find the water source, you will know the approximate direction of the nearest settlement."
"Okay, let's go!" Huck picked up a rattan basket full of supplies and shouted happily.
Wait until they climbed over the slope of the valley and gradually walked away. A dark-skinned figure stood up from the bushes on the other side of the valley. He was Captain Rhodes, who had completed symbiosis with the "Eternal Sleeper" child.
Rod has been quietly following Max. He witnessed the Iron Cross members and Max parting ways, but it didn't matter whether his former fellow slave traders were dead or alive. His goal is to capture Vertok, and then take Vertok to a place designated by the Eternal Sleeper to complete the final sacrifice.
Therefore, Rhodes followed Max to this barren valley of thorns, lurking nearby, patiently waiting for Vertok's arrival.
However, Rhodes was just afraid that he would lose track of Max and thus miss Wiltok's whereabouts. He had no intention of attacking Vertok here.
Although the body of the Eversleeper gave him great strength and a nearly immortal body, he did not forget that there was a god sleeping in Vertok's body. After spending so many days together with Vertok, Rhodes didn't even see his true identity. He only felt that Vertok was becoming more and more unfathomable.
What's more, Vertok also has Hack, who controls the heart of the realm, beside him.
The fighting skills of the strong Jingxin can only be described as miraculous. As a third-level shield guard, Huck also has the ability of vigilance. Every ten seconds, he can predict a fatal attack. Rhodes was unable to sneak attack Huck and kill him with one blow. He wasn't even sure of defeating Huck.
The offspring of the Eternal Sleeper still have room to grow, and they need to absorb more flesh and blood rich in wisdom and spirituality to gain full strength. But the special form of sub-body symbiosis allows Rhodes to release his spiritual power. The symbiosis helps him control his body. He can strengthen his thinking and his mind becomes smarter.
Rhodes knows very well that his ability has not yet reached the upper limit of the symbiosis, and he may not be able to solve Huck. However, he had to get rid of Huck first before he could have a chance to capture Wiltok alive.
In this case, he could only wait patiently for the opportunity for Wiltok to be alone.
Rhodes lurked in the bushes next to the valley, stopped breathing and heartbeat, and was maintained in a state of suspended animation by the symbiote, thus avoiding the keen perception of the dark hunter Max. During the period of incubation, Rhodes' mental power was only used for monitoring and thinking. He thought about many questions and eavesdropped on some of Wiltok's secrets.
First of all, if Wiltok can be directly captured by violence, why does the "Eternal Sleeper" need to retain Rhodes' self-will?
The "Eternal Sleeper" actually borrowed from Rhodes' wisdom. He wanted to complete the sacrifice task designated by the "Eternal Sleeper", but faced many difficulties. It was obviously impossible to rely solely on strong personal force.
Secondly, symbiosis with the sub-body is a road of no return. Sooner or later, the "Eternal Sleeper" sub-body will completely assimilate Rhodes. If he completes the sacrifice mission, will his death come?
For Rhodes, whether to complete the sacrifice mission is no longer the primary goal. He needs to weigh the gains and losses, buy time, and find ways to solve his own problems.
He is not a fanatical believer in the "Eternal Sleeper", and betraying the "Eternal Sleeper" to Wiltok is also an option!
This is exactly in line with the cunning qualities of the Abyss Demon.
Rhodes was glad that he did not act rashly. He overheard the conversation between Wiltok and Max. It turned out that Wiltok had an unknown powerful enemy in the Disa Alliance. Their power is so huge that they even collude with the Goblin Kingdom to do shady things.
There are precious opportunities hidden under the curtain of conspiracy. As long as he keeps a close eye on Wiltok, Rhodes has the opportunity to profit from it and become the final winner.
He jumped down into the valley, picked up the vine whip that Wiltok used to whip Annie and Katie, and stretched out his scarlet tongue to lick the remaining blood on the vine whip.
The faint sweetness of the blood stimulated the symbiote, and Rhodes's eyes were as dark as ink; two canine teeth protruded from his lips; the muscles of his hands squirmed and quickly turned into a pair of terrifying claws.
He whispered with a strange smile: "The blood of pure girls is so sweet...the blood of professionals is full of vitality...I remember, you can't run away, I can always find you."
Rhodes dropped the vine whip and cast his dark gaze to the east. That was the direction in which the Iron Cross survivors evacuated.
He is unwilling to give up his identity, and also needs to use the leader of the Iron Cross to accumulate wealth and connections. As Huck said, Leeson and others cannot stay to prevent them from betraying their secrets.
The demonized half-elf struggled for a long time, and finally lowered his head and murmured to himself: "I'm sorry, old friends... The arrogant Mr. Wiltok disdains the business of killing people and silencing them, so I will do it for him." Let him serve...your family will be taken care of."
