Volume 2, Chapter 33-3 – Eat Me, Elder Sister

In the blink of an eye, the world turned upside down.

When the sensation of weightlessness disappeared, Stella found herself standing in a long corridor covered with a crimson carpet.

There was no end to it.

Dark red walls stretched along both sides all the way to the limits of her vision, covered with golden picture frames.

The images within them were not motionless portraits.

Inside each frame was a woman wearing a different expression. Some held wine glasses, while others wiped blood from long swords. The instant they noticed Stella, every one of them stopped what she was doing at the same time.

They were the successive Family Heads of the Valentine family.

They were witnesses.

And they were spectators.

Whispers surged in from every direction like a tide, carrying scrutiny, mockery, and bloodthirsty anticipation.

“This time it’s twins again… What a tedious cycle. Even a different way of dying would be better. It’s always the elder sister killing the younger sister, or the younger sister killing the elder sister. Do the Valentine family’s playwrights have no creativity at all?”

“Don’t bore us, little thing. The last duel ended far too quickly. I didn’t even get a good look at the shape of the blooming blood before the floor was wiped clean.”

“I bet her left hand breaks first. It looks perfect for tearing off.”

“Then I’ll reserve her heart. That rhythm is quite nice. It would make a good snack with tonight’s wine.”

Cheryl stood alone in the center of the corridor.

“…Welcome to the Corridor of Blood.”

“Once you enter this place, no one except the victor can leave alive.”

Cheryl raised one hand, and the thorn mark on her palm glowed crimson.

“Elder Sister, don’t blame me.”

The girl raised her chin slightly, her gaze savage.

“The Valentine family doesn’t need two heirs. As long as I drink your blood, I can complete a true ascension and become something that surpasses Mother.”

“So… prepare to die.”

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“…”

Stella stared at her expressionlessly.

‘Please.’

‘Her acting is way too bad.’

‘Her desire to be killed is overflowing.’

Luckily, Stella had already prepared for this.

There was no need whatsoever to play out some life-or-death drama.

All she had to do was let Dorothy pull her into the Mirror Realm through mirror interference, and she could directly seize the chance to escape.

Without changing her expression, Stella glanced around.

There were no mirrors nearby, but the pool of blood beneath her feet was as still as a mirror, perfectly capable of reflecting her face.

That was enough.

As long as there was a reflection, it was Dorothy’s domain.

“Dorothy, are you there?”

Stella lowered her eyes and asked softly.

And very soon, beneath her feet, she saw the faint shadow of the Girl in the Mirror silently hiding beneath the hem of her skirt.

It seemed Dorothy had successfully found her.

Only…

A familiar burning pain was now spreading through Stella’s palm.

Stella instinctively opened her right hand.

The thorn mark symbolizing the Laxia Ritual had not faded after entering another space. Instead, it looked as though it had taken root. It was so red it had turned purple, throbbing rhythmically along with the movement of the surrounding blood.

‘Wait… this thing is still here?’

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Not only had it failed to fade after entering the corridor, it had instead become even more vivid, sinking deeper into her bones.

That meant…

The ritual was still in progress.

And this mark was the chain bestowed by the Sacred Blood Grail.

Even if she used the mirror to jump outside, as long as the ritual had not ended, the Sacred Blood Grail would instantly yank her back into this damned place like reeling in a kite.

If she did not deal with this mark, or bring the ritual to an end, she would never be able to escape.

She had miscalculated.

Stella thought she had made a mistake she absolutely should not have made, but then she remembered that she had never been particularly smart to begin with and immediately felt relieved.

“So you’re Vivian’s spawn? How nostalgic.”

A languid voice rang out.

Stella raised her eyes.

The speaker was the enormous portrait closest to them.

The woman in the painting wore an elaborate court gown and reclined lazily upon a throne piled high with skulls.

She had the exact same wine-red hair as Cheryl, but her eyes held nothing except indifference and mockery. A smile played across her face, yet it inspired no warmth at all. Her voice was exceedingly elegant, and at a glance she looked like a shrewd and capable noblewoman, though her manner was somewhat affected and pretentious.

Mia, Lord of Blood.

The woman in the portrait leaned forward slightly.

“Welcome to my tea party, adorable little things.”

Mia laughed softly.

“I am the weaver of Valentine glory, the shepherd of countless blind and foolish departed souls.”

“Whether it was the arrogant Abyss Dragons of the northern lands, or the fallen saints of the eastern territories who fancied themselves holy, all once knelt beneath my skirts and begged to become so much as a single insignificant embellishment within the Grail.”

“This one is named Mia. Lord of Blood, creator of Laxia, the Corridor of Blood itself…”

“And also your… referee.”

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“The Laxia Ritual has begun. According to the ancient laws of blood, I am obligated to recite the rules to the challengers.”

She extended a hand from within the painting and raised three fingers.

“First, once you enter the corridor, any refusal or attempt to flee will be regarded as betrayal, and you will be swallowed directly by the blood pool. No one has the right to refuse the Laxia Ritual here.”

“Second, only one victor may walk through that door. If no life or death is decided, the exit will never open.”

“Third, there are no restrictions on methods and no time limit. Even if you slaughter each other here for a hundred years, until heaven and earth wither away… I will gladly keep you company. And the judgment of victory and defeat is absolute. No matter what you do, it cannot be changed. The thorn mark will bestow everything belonging to the loser upon the victor.”

With that, the woman in the portrait raised her wine glass and saluted the two of them.

“Then… let us begin.”

Boom!

The moment the rules were finished, every portrait lining both sides of the corridor erupted into piercing cheers and roars at once, like spectators in an arena impatiently urging the gladiators to spill blood.

The instant Mia’s words fell, terrifying waves of magical power erupted around Cheryl.

Four Tail Thorns formed from blood and bone burst out from beneath her skirt, blooming like red spider lilies.

“Did you hear that, Elder Sister?” Cheryl said very, very softly. “The ritual has already begun.”

She had decided long ago.

If one person had to die in here, that person could only be her.

But she could not say it.

If she showed even the slightest sign of yielding or sacrificing herself, with Elder Sister’s arrogant personality, she would absolutely never accept such a charity-like victory.

So she had to pretend.

Pretend to be a challenger who longed to kill and seize power, forcing Elder Sister to develop the intent to kill her.

Besides…

The prophecy Professor Shanoti had given during Divination surfaced in Cheryl’s mind.

—Your future is filled with danger, dear…

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—Blood that flows without end… a dragon from afar… the ashes of the old days…

Stella’s future was covered in thorns and abysses.

Without enough strength, without the blessing of the Valentine family’s purest bloodline, how was she supposed to face what awaited her?

Cheryl took a deep breath.

Her face held an indifferent expression, as though nothing mattered, yet that indifference carried a challenge within it. There was a trace of reckless resolve, the determination to accompany fate all the way to the bitter end.

Only devouring.

Only by devouring the legitimate her within the ritual could Elder Sister obtain the true means to resist the dangers ahead.

This was the only foundation she, as the younger sister, as the imitation, could offer to the inverted twin towers.

Hate her.

Resolve to become her enemy.

Do not give her even the slightest warmth.

‘Elder Sister… you don’t… need to do anything…’

‘After this boring fight is over, you only need to greet everyone with a smile again.’

‘So…’

‘Eat me, Elder Sister.’

Translator Note

Nooo, the mark is still there TvT

I knew it. There’s no way the plot will be so smooth TvT