Chapter 682: Soulless Maidens

Marcus was in the middle of explaining when Jade, the little devil, slipped her arms around his and interrupted him with a sweet smile that made it difficult to tell whether she was being genuinely affectionate or simply enjoying the opportunity to put him on the spot.

“Marcus, why don’t you decide? Which of us do you think would be best suited for the Sword-Warlock class?”

“Mm.” Lily nodded in agreement, looking at him expectantly. “You’re more familiar with the different classes and their abilities than we are, so just pick whoever you think would benefit from it the most.”

Marcus nearly sighed. Here they went again, leaving the final decision entirely in his hands. He was the one who hadn’t been able to decide which of the beauties should receive the class in the first place, which was why he’d suggested discussing it together.

Now, after all that deliberation, they had somehow managed to return the responsibility to him without resolving anything. He glanced around at the women, hoping inspiration would strike, but his gaze eventually settled on Professor Tina. Her beauty was the sort that could captivate an entire city, with a delicate, otherworldly elegance that made her stand out even among the other stunning women around him. As he studied her, an idea suddenly came to mind.

“I think Professor Tina would be a good choice,” he said, his expression brightening.

“The Sword-Warlock class combines melee combat with summoning and weakening magic, so she’d have a lot more options in battle. She could fight at close range when necessary and summon minions to support her from behind. Besides, we already have quite a few archers, so giving her a different role would make our overall lineup more balanced.”

He paused for a moment before adding, “With the right equipment and skills, the Warlock class can be incredibly powerful, and I know how to make the most of it.

“More importantly, I remember what Alana told us about the Lady of Beasts. She’s a summoner, isn’t she? Just imagine if Professor Tina could eventually summon divine dragons or other powerful monsters of her own. That would be something worth looking forward to.”

“The Lady of Beasts!”

The moment Marcus mentioned that name, the women’s attention shifted to Professor Tina. They couldn’t help looking at her with a mixture of admiration and envy. Tina was already breathtakingly beautiful, with a gentle, delicate appearance and an elegant bearing that made her seem almost untouchable.

If the Lady of Beasts possessed the same kind of extraordinary beauty, then the two women would undoubtedly be in the same league.

“Mm, I think that’s a good choice,” one of them agreed, and the others quickly voiced their approval. The more they considered it, the more sensible the decision seemed.

After all, Professor Tina had only taken up the archer class casually alongside Talia, and while she could certainly make use of it, it had never seemed particularly well suited to her natural strengths. The Sword-Warlock class offered her a chance to explore an entirely different style of combat, and if Marcus’s judgment was correct, she might even become one of their most versatile fighters.

Marcus turned to her with an encouraging smile. “Professor Tina, what do you think? There’s no need to accept just because I’ve suggested it. If you’d rather keep your current class, we can consider the other options.”

Tina’s cheeks flushed faintly at his consideration. She lowered her eyes for a moment, her gentle expression taking on an almost bashful quality that made Marcus’s heart skip a beat. Before she could answer, Jade leaned closer to him and exclaimed with undisguised admiration, “Marcus, Professor Tina is so pretty! How can someone be that beautiful?”

Marcus couldn’t help laughing at the little devil’s remark, though he had to admit that Jade wasn’t exaggerating. Tina really was stunning.

Still blushing, Tina accepted the Sword-Warlock Class-Change Scroll he offered her. Once they had finished allocating her attribute points to maximize her overall stats, the level-50 Professor Tina took a steadying breath and activated the scroll.

A moment later, she began chanting the incantation, her gentle voice carrying a surprising clarity as the words echoed around them.

“Swift and agile swordsman, reveal the radiance of the brave. Mysterious and mighty warlock spirit, grant me your wondrous power. Lend me your strength and transform my path. I hereby change my class to Sword-Warlock!”

As the final words left her lips, the scroll rose from her hands and began spinning in midair. A brilliant white light spread from its surface, quickly enveloping her from head to toe.

The glow intensified with every passing second, and the scroll crumbled into countless tiny fragments that dissolved into the light before they could reach the ground.

Bathed in the radiance, Tina seemed even more extraordinary than before, her already breathtaking beauty taking on an almost ethereal quality that left everyone watching her in awe.

“Whoa!” The collective exclamation barely escaped their lips before a system notification rang out.

Ding!

[Congratulations, player WindShadow, on successfully changing your class to the hidden class Sword-Warlock! All attribute points gained through leveling have been reset and may now be redistributed.]

Upon changing to the Sword-Warlock class, Strength, Constitution, Agility, and Focus each increase by 50 points. You gain the melee combat abilities of a swordsman, along with an additional 30 points to Strength and Agility.

You comprehend a selection of swordsman skills and acquire the combat abilities of a warlock, along with an additional 50 points to Focus. You also comprehend warlock summoning and weakening skills.

When the notification finally ended, Tina let out a small breath of relief and turned toward Marcus and the others with a pleased smile. “Marcus, the class change was successful.”

“Excellent!” Marcus replied, his face lighting up with genuine satisfaction. “Let’s get you equipped properly and see what you can do.”

With the class change complete, they selected a set of light-blue swordsman equipment for her. The moment Tina put it on, her appearance changed noticeably.

The outfit complemented her gentle, mature elegance without making her look overly imposing, and the combination of her graceful bearing and the new equipment gave her an air of quiet confidence.

She looked every bit the refined swordswoman, with the added mystery of a warlock lurking beneath that elegant exterior.

Marcus couldn’t help admiring the result. ‘She really was beautiful.’

“Come on,” he said, recovering from his brief distraction. “Let’s put the new class to the test. There’s no point in sitting around admiring the equipment when we can find out what it actually does.”

After Tina learned the skill book Minions, Heed My Call and equipped the Black-Robed Warlock Staff and Black-Robed Longsword, Marcus was eager to see the results.

He had a good feeling about this class, but theory and practice were two different things, and he wanted to know exactly how much it could contribute to their team.

His expectations were quickly exceeded.

Tina had no trouble summoning more than thirty minions, each of which possessed a respectable level of combat ability and responded to her commands.

Rather than being a collection of useless creatures that merely looked impressive in numbers, they could actually fight, making them a valuable addition to her arsenal.

Even better, the strength of the minions she could summon would increase as both her own level and the skill level rose.

Marcus watched the summoned creatures move under her direction, already thinking about the possibilities.

If she could command more powerful minions with higher-level skills, the class’s potential would be enormous.

He would have to keep an eye out for better skill books, especially ones that could expand her summoning options or improve the strength of her creatures. For now, though, the results were more than satisfactory.

At midnight, Marcus logged off as usual, returned to the real world, and settled down to rest with his beautiful ‘wife’ in his arms. The next morning, after completing his training in the immortal realm inside the Langhuan Immortal Ring, he returned to the game, ready to continue where he’d left off.

He remembered that the vixen Lydia had mentioned wanting to discuss something with him, but whatever she had in mind would have to wait a little longer. He still had the Roaring Tiger Squad quest to complete, and he preferred to finish what he had already started before allowing himself to be distracted by something else.

Activating his Wanderlust skill, he appeared in a flash of light at a teleportation array he had previously established some distance from the Ruined Temple.

Once he arrived, he summoned Blackie, equipped the Face of Nameless Fear, and changed into his full set of combat gear. After checking that everything was in place, he patted Blackie on the head.

The horse responded with an eager neigh before launching itself into the sky.

Marcus settled comfortably into the saddle as Blackie accelerated toward the distant ruins, the wind rushing past them as the temple gradually grew larger on the horizon.

It didn’t take long for them to reach the outskirts of the Ruined Temple. From above, Marcus could already make out several strange figures wandering around the surrounding area.

They had disheveled hair that hung messily over their faces, concealing most of their features, while their slender bodies and graceful, alluring figures gave them the appearance of female ghosts drifting aimlessly through the ruins.

At first glance, they almost looked like beautiful women who had wandered into the wrong place, but something about their movements struck him as deeply unnatural.

Curious about what he was dealing with, Marcus immediately used Insight to examine one of them.

—

Soulless Maiden

Level: 50

HP: 30,000

Description: Once innocent women, these unfortunate souls had their lives and souls drained by the Lustful Demon Lord. Their bodies were reduced to lifeless husks, while the lingering essence of the Lustful Demon Lord corrupted what remained of them, twisting them into bloodthirsty, depraved creatures.

Talent: Blood Drain

Passive. Restores HP equal to 15% of the damage dealt with each attack.

Skills:

Soulless Combo: Launches two or three consecutive attacks against an opponent in an uncontrolled frenzy.

Lustful Miasma: Passive. Releases an unsettling aura while attacking, with a chance to randomly reduce the target’s Attack and Defense.

Ghost Hair Dance: Active. Attacks distant enemies by whipping its hair at them.

—

Marcus looked over the information and quickly came to a conclusion. ‘Level-50 trash mobs. Nothing particularly threatening, at least not on the surface.’

Still, the description caught his attention. These creatures hadn’t simply spawned as ordinary monsters. They had once been innocent women before the Lustful Demon Lord drained their lives and souls, leaving behind twisted remnants of what they had once been.

Whatever power had transformed them, it was clearly more sinister than the average monster’s abilities.

Unfortunately, Insight hadn’t revealed anything beyond their basic information and skills. He couldn’t tell whether the Soulless Maidens possessed any hidden abilities, nor could he determine whether their connection to the Lustful Demon Lord had any significance beyond their creation.

Marcus studied the wandering figures for another moment, his expression growing thoughtful. They might be nothing more than ordinary level-50 monsters, but their unusual origins made him reluctant to dismiss them entirely. Before proceeding with the Roaring Tiger Squad quest, he would need to find out whether there was anything else worth knowing about these creatures.