Saintess? Not Anymore! I'd Rather be a Destroyer-Chapter 268 - 254: Saving slaves

Aurianna smirked, her gaze sharp. "I believe so too."

Avriel, standing nearby, shot Aurianna a sideways glance. "What’s with that look, Avriel?" Aurianna asked, catching her eye.

’You don’t want to save these slaves out of pity or compassion. You want to free them because you look down on them,’ Avriel’s voice echoed in Aurianna’s mind, her tone half-amused.

’Of course I do. They’re nothing but pathetic souls who’d rather live in misery than fight for freedom,’ Aurianna replied telepathically, her thoughts cold. ’I find their weakness disgusting.’

Yelina, looking concerned, interjected. "It would be... difficult to save all of them," she murmured.

"How so?" Batholem asked, frowning. "You’ve always managed to rescue slaves from organizations like this. Why not this time?" His gaze bore into his sister, disappointment clear in his eyes. Yelina’s heart sank.

"For the last two years, I’ve been investigating the Flokong Organization," Yelina began, her voice tense. "They aren’t just another slave group. They have connections with several influential churches."

"Which ones?" Aurianna asked, her eyes narrowing.

"The Church of Paige, the Church of War, the Church of Death... and even the Church of Lust," Yelina replied, each name adding weight to the gravity of the situation.

Peter raised a brow, glancing at Aurianna. "I believe I mentioned this before."

Jugi chuckled softly. "Our master’s a bit forgetful."

Yelina sighed. "Before now, I’ve targeted smaller, privately owned slave trades. But this one... it’s different."

"How so, Sister?" Batholem asked, worry lining his face.

Yelina’s gaze darkened, her fists clenching. "They warned me. I was told not to interfere, or my entire family would suffer the consequences. And it wasn’t an empty threat. Even my father was warned."

Elena looked at her, wide-eyed. "Who could have that much power to silence you?"

"Yes. They even approached my father directly. And I had to stop. Even we Royal Humans have those above us, people we’re obligated to obey. When an order comes from high enough, even we must fall in line" She stared down at the ground, fury in her eyes.

"But it’s your duty!" Elena pressed, her voice urgent.

Yelina shook her head, a hint of frustration creasing her brow. "They aren’t in our territory, so technically, they aren’t breaking any rules. Their operation is all ’legal’—licenses, documents, everything on paper checks out. Even if some of it’s a front, there’s little I can do without sparking a greater issue. That’s why I’m having second thoughts about freeing every single slave here. A few... yes. But on a larger scale? We might ignite something far worse."

"Let’s just move forward," Aurianna muttered, her expression unreadable as they descended the stairs into a large slave area.

The scene before them stopped Elena in her tracks. "So... horrible," she whispered, her gaze fixed on the mangled corpses sprawled across the floor, torn apart as if they’d exploded from within. Nearby, slaves with hollow eyes and cold expressions shoveled the remains, moving as though numb to the grisly task.

Batholem gripped his hands into fists. "How could anyone do this to other people?"

"And look at how they’ve packed them into those cages," Panz muttered, his voice thick with disgust. "Sick, injured, dying... do they not care about spreading infection? These slaves are lying with the dead!"

Demetrius’s face remained impassive. "If a slave is chosen for purchase, depending on the buyer’s rank, they might be healed... partially, at least. But only enough to be ’useful.’"

"People can be cruel," Christopher murmured bitterly, his gaze hardening.

"So, what are we gonna do?" Aurianna asked, her tone almost playful as she turned to the others.

"We have to save them!" Elena and Batholem replied, their voices filled with determination.

Aurianna arched a brow, her voice laced with skepticism. "And how, exactly, are you planning on doing that? There are hundreds of people here. Are you really going to save all of them?" Her lips curled into a dark, mocking smile.

"The cages, the collars on their necks—have you even considered that they might be rigged to explode? Your so-called justice could kill them before we even get the chance to act. How would you convince them to leave with us?" Autumn interjected coldly.

"And those diseases... the stench of rot." Aurianna’s gaze drifted over the caged masses. "You really think you can just ’heal’ that?"

Peter looked at her thoughtfully, a faint smile playing on his lips. "But Aurianna, aren’t you a healer?"

Her face tightened slightly, a reluctant pout forming as she huffed, "I... guess. But that doesn’t mean I want to."

"Then please, I’d like to make a formal request on behalf of the Diondraff family!" Peter declared, his voice resolute as he looked directly at Aurianna. "Help us save them all!"

"You guys give her way too much credit," Nae scoffed, crossing her arms.

Aurianna’s smile softened as she replied, "I don’t mind saving all of them...but on one condition. I get to take in the refugees who have no home," she offered.

"For what reason?" Yelina interrupted, her brow raised in suspicion.

Aurianna’s gaze turned innocent as she explained, "You see, my brother has a place for those with nowhere else to go."

Yelina’s tone softened slightly. "As in...?"

Aurianna said. "Families broken by the recent wars across our continent. A safe haven where they can live in peace, without discrimination."

Yelina’s expression hardened, her stance firm. "I understand, but I can’t allow that. I’ll be taking them back to Karo."

Aurianna’s smile faded, replaced by a steely coldness as she stepped forward, standing just inches from Yelina. Though shorter, she held her ground without a hint of hesitation. "Weren’t you warned not to interfere? So why not let me take the blame? That way, nothing happens to you or your family." Her voice was a low,a d she said with a smirk.

Yelina narrowed her eyes. "And do you honestly think you’re equipped to care for all these people in that supposed ’haven’ of yours? Can you handle the consequences when those above come knocking?"

Aurianna’s smile returned. "Trust me—the place we have would be safe for them. And if any of those powerful people come after me..." Her gaze flicked to Jade, standing nearby. "Well, it would take more than that to kill me, after all I’m kinda immortal. Isn’t that right, Jade?"

Jade gave a measured nod. "After our fight, it certainly seems that way. Though, how many times you can revive, I can’t say."

"So," Aurianna said, extending her hand to Yelina with a confident smile, "do we have a deal?"

Yelina hesitated, her eyes flickering with something unreadable. Finally, she clasped Aurianna’s hand, her grip firm. "Alright. But don’t expect me to bail you out."

Aurianna’s smile widened as their hands shook, sealing the agreement. "Wouldn’t dream of it."

’I think she’s bluffing about being immortal. No one is truly invincible... I don’t trust her,’ Yelina thought, her eyes narrowing as she released Aurianna’s hand.

"Good! Now then, time to get started!" Aurianna announced with a burst of excitement.

With a flick of her wrist, she summoned a battalion of shotguns, each hovering mid-air, surrounding the room. At her silent command, they opened fire on the guards bearing the Flonkong Organization’s emblem, shooting them down mercilessly.

"What the hell is happening?!" one soldier shouted, scrambling for his weapon, his eyes darting around in search of the unseen assailant.

"There’s an intruder!" another yelled, panic in his voice.

"Call for backup immediately!" a third soldier cried, attempting to flee.

Aurianna smirked, her voice carrying a dark amusement. "I can’t let you do that, you know." In seconds, she killed off the remaining soldiers, their dying screams fading as silence settled over the room. The slaves, huddled in their cages and the ones outside their cages, looked at what was happening in terror, confused about what was happening.

"Hey, did we really have to kill them? We could have just tied them up!" Christopher protested, his face contorted in anger. "The way you handled this was just... unnecessarily cruel."

"Don’t be naive, Christopher. If we left them alive, they’d find a way to alert the others," Peter replied calmly.

Elena’s voice wavered as she added, "But that was just too cruel. What if they had families too?"

Aurianna’s gaze turned icy, her lip curling in disdain as she shot a look at Elena. "And yet they enslaved others’ families without a second thought. They deserved this," she said coldly, her words piercing Elena, who looked away, unsettled.

Yelina observed the scene with a detached look. "This is just how I handle things in my line of duty. If you can’t stomach it, stay behind while the rest of us move forward."

Without another word, Yelina turned to Aurianna. "I trust you can handle things here. I’ll be heading further in."

"Yes, I can," Aurianna replied smoothly. "There’s no need for you to worry."

She turned to the rest of the group, her tone commanding. "Avriel, Jugi, Jade, and Yelina—you’ll check the other rooms in this underground maze. Clear out all the guards, leave none alive, understood?"

"Yeah, I guess," Jade replied, his voice dry.

Zeche stepped up beside Avriel. "I’m going with them."

"And me," Shuwi added, taking her place beside Jade.

Aurianna gave them all a quick nod before addressing the group. "Bring every single slave you find back to this room. We’re not leaving anyone behind. Same for you Demetrius."