Saintess? Not Anymore! I'd Rather be a Destroyer

Chapter 393 - 330: Desire

Once everyone had finished receiving their marks, they followed Alfred down the corridor until they reached a chamber filled with glowing teleportation runes and circles.

"Aurianna," Kiana called out softly.

"Yes?" Aurianna replied.

"Do we really need the second life pact? With your magic, I’ll never die. And with your curse, you’ll never die either," Kiana said telepathically.

"That’s true," Aurianna answered in her mind, "but it’s better to take it anyway. No need to draw unnecessary attention."

"Alright then!" Kiana beamed as they entered a larger room filled with about twenty other students, all busily chatting.

"Aurianna!" a familiar voice called.

She turned to see Vlad, the vampire boy, hurrying toward her.

"I see you’re here too," Aurianna said, glancing at Andre, the demon boy who had once been part of her entrance exam team at the Mystical Academy.

"It’s just coincidence!" Vlad huffed, then grinned. "Haven’t seen you in a while. How’ve you been?"

"As you can see, I’m fine," Aurianna replied dryly.

"No need to be so sarcastic," Vlad chuckled. "Are they your friends?" he asked, nodding toward those beside her.

"Yes," Aurianna replied with a small smile.

"I’m... surprised you have friends," Vlad admitted nervously.

"What do you take me for?!" Aurianna snapped.

"Well, you have a... unique personality," Vlad said, scratching his head. "I understand why he’d say that, because some of the school rumors make people wonder. But it’s good to see you’re doing well," Andre added politely.

Alfred’s voice cut through the chatter. "Alright, kids, are you all ready? As you know, we’re heading to the Aphrot Ruins in the Holy Land Desire. It’s a mutual territory between the God of Peace and the God of Light with the goddess of lust."

He crossed his arms. "To be blunt, most of you probably won’t make it past the first five trials, except for Aurianna and Kiana. After all, they survived one of the most dangerous ruins containing the third strongest hero to ever exist, Jade Havensworth."

His gaze lingered on Aurianna. "I still wonder how you made it out alive. Many Grand Humans went there and never got past the third trial."

"Now why would I reveal my secret skill, sir?" Aurianna said with a sly smile.

"And what about Kiana?" Alfred pressed.

’Alfred, what are you doing? This isn’t the time for an interrogation,’ Luera thought nervously.

"As you know, I’m a Saintess," Aurianna said smoothly. "I used a revival spell on her."

’After eating me,’ Kiana thought inwardly, slightly tearing up from that memory.

"And sir, I barely fought. Aurianna did 99.9% of the work," Kiana admitted aloud.

"Well, you were pretty useless. But at least it wasn’t boring," Aurianna said, smirking.

’I can’t tell if that’s supposed to be a compliment or not,’ Kiana thought with a puzzled look.

"Hmm. Alright," Alfred said at last. "I’ll save my questions for another time. Maybe in the ruins, I’ll finally see your true skills." He chuckled, and then the runes beneath their feet flared with light. A moment later, the entire group vanished.

They reappeared in a new room. Draek pounded his chest and shouted, "We’re currently in Karo! There’s no direct teleportation route to the Holy Land Desire due to recent restrictions, their teleportation towers are down because of a certain group sabotaging it. So stay alert on the way!"

"Yes, sir!" everyone replied.

"Now then, let’s head out," Alfred said. "We’ll walk to the harbor and take a ship to Desire. And remember, this isn’t a sightseeing trip, so no unnecessary stops!"

"Tch. Old men always ruin the fun," Aurianna muttered inwardly.

They trekked on until they reached the massive lake dividing Karo and the Holy Land Desire.

"I’m... suddenly getting chills," Aurianna thought, staring at the rippling water.

"Hey, what’s Holy Land Desire like?" she asked Batholem.

"Well," he began, "it’s... a unique place. They’re very sexually open as a society, but they don’t expose that side to children, which is good. Most of their more, ah, adult areas are restricted to those above a certain age."

"I see," Aurianna replied, blinking.

She glanced around at everyone waiting idly while Alfred and Draek looked for a suitable ship. "So... what do we do now?"

"Master!" a familiar voice rang out before Aurianna was swept into a tight hug by Hadina.

"You’re squishing me," Aurianna said flatly.

"Do you no longer love your wife, Master?!" Hadina cried dramatically, spinning her around until Aurianna jumped out of her arms.

"Can you not do that?" Aurianna sighed.

"Of course, Master! I’ve missed you so much!" Hadina said happily, only to freeze when Alfred approached.

"If she’s a family member, you know the rules. You’re not allowed to talk to her," Alfred said evenly.

"Knowing my history, do you really think I’d associate with my family?" Aurianna asked.

"So... she’s not?" Alfred raised a brow.

"No," Aurianna replied simply, then turned to Hadina. "Anyway, what are you doing here?"

"Oh! We’re expanding business to Holy Land Desire. I came with Saem today," Hadina said cheerfully.

"Oh? Saem’s here too?" Aurianna asked.

"Yes!" Hadina beamed.

"Sir, is it alright if we use their ship?" Aurianna asked, glancing at Alfred.

"Is that okay?" Draek asked, scratching his head.

"It’s fine," Aurianna assured.

"Alright then, lead the way!" Draek said with a grin.

They followed her until they reached a massive ship, easily the largest in the harbor.

"Saem!" Hadina called, and moments later Saem descended the gangway. His eyes widened. "Yo, it’s been a while," he said with a grin.

"Yeah. We need to use the ship," Aurianna said bluntly, gesturing to her group.

"Not even a ’please’?" Saem teased.

"Shall I crush this mortal’s neck, Master?" Hadina hissed.

"It’s fine," Aurianna said coolly. "And Saem, it’s my ship. The one I lent you, remember?"

"Ha! You mean the ship you hijacked and remodeled into this beauty," Saem laughed.

"Yeah, yeah, hilarious. Are you letting us on or not?" Aurianna said, irritated.

"Chill, alright! Come aboard," Saem said, waving them in. The group followed him, awed by the ship’s interior.

"How long will the trip take?" one student asked as a lot of them were on the deck staring at the sea.

"Normally three days," Alfred replied.

"With this ship?" Saem smirked. "Five hours."

"That fast?!" Luera gasped.

"Yep," Saem said proudly.

"Sir, who are these people?" Idina asked when she saw the group, then stiffened as her eyes landed on Aurianna.

"They’re heading to Desire. Pause our plans for now," Saem said.

"Understood," Idina nodded. "I’ll activate the engines. What about the others?"

"Tell them to stay at the inn. We’ll come back for them," Saem replied. Moments later, the ship began to move.

"So, what brings you to Desire?" Saem asked casually.

"Ruin mission," Aurianna said.

"Master, since you’re going to a ruin, should I call Jade, Jugi, and Avriel?" Hadina asked.

"That’s a good idea. But tell them there’ll be people around," Aurianna said calmly. Hadina nodded, opening a portal before stepping through it.

"Aurianna!" Elena called, coming up beside her near the deck’s edge.

"What’s up?" Aurianna asked.

"Could you introduce us?"

"His name’s Saem. A pirate," Aurianna said casually.

"Former...pirate, that was in the past," Saem corrected with a cough. "I’m an honest businessman now."

"Past my ass. That was only a years ago, and only because Jugi decided to hire you," Aurianna scoffed.

"Sometimes I wonder if you even care about me," Gixo muttered, materializing and perching on Aurianna’s shoulder.

"Not my fault you sleep through everything until I need you," Aurianna shot back.

"Wow, Aurianna, you sure know a lot of people," Elena giggled.