Upon hearing Jeanne's words, Talulah's expression turned solemn. She understood Jeanne's implication: the opposing forces would not let them off so easily. Next time, it might be an even more terrifying army.
"What plan have you thought of? I've never been able to come up with a good way to deal with those nobles. They are far more troublesome than the armies or Inspection Teams on the tundra. Even if you face them person-to-person, you can never fully grasp the schemes in their hearts."
Talulah scratched her head, a look of annoyance crossing her face. She recalled the days she spent dealing with nobles in Kashchey's territory; their calculations were something she would never forget for the rest of her life.
Those weren't the self-important nouveau riche types; those were easy to deal with because their foundations were thin—one only needed to investigate a little to find a way to handle them. The truly difficult ones were the old-money nobles who had received rigorous educations. If you weren't careful, you might even find yourself led into a ditch by them.
"Of course I have a plan, but it requires one person's help to solve it smoothly."
"Who?"
"Kashchey."
Hearing that name, Talulah froze instantly. She truly hadn't expected Jeanne to set her sights on Kashchey, and she instinctively opposed Jeanne's suggestion.
"That's impossible. Although Kashchey is currently locked within my mental world, he has no reason at all to help us."
"Who knows? Perhaps there will be a turn of events in this operation," Jeanne replied with a mysterious smile, as if she already knew how things would turn out. She then led Talulah into the mental space.
They arrived outside that mansion once again. Seeing the scene, Talulah obediently followed behind Jeanne as they entered.
The mansion had changed slightly since last time. A tall tower had been erected in the middle of it, a visual attempt to make the "Sword of Damocles" hanging in the sky appear further away from Kashchey. That towering spire, reaching into the clouds, was like the legendary Tower of Babel. Under the holy and pure light of the divine sword high above, it appeared tiny and ridiculous.
A wonder like this was useless against the divine sword; it wasn't something that could be resisted with such structures. All of this was merely a placebo created by Kashchey to make himself feel a bit safer.
This evil god was still very afraid of death. All his composure was built on the fact that humans could not kill him—which was exactly why he was now staying here so obediently.
"I didn't expect you to come here again tonight. I thought you'd be so worried about those fellows that you'd be unable to sleep... Ah, right, you've brought a guest!"
After Jeanne and Talulah entered the study, Kashchey stood up with a mock display of welcome. But Jeanne's senses told her that Kashchey's mood was currently not as good as his expression suggested.
Kashchey was practically grinding his teeth to dust. He had finally enjoyed a short period of peace because he lived separately and couldn't hear those terrible prayers... and now, everything was back to the way it was! In fact, the environment was even worse than before! That Elafia actually possessed such power now, which meant the prayers would be doubled in the future! Were these three trying to torture him to death?!
"Have you come to seek my help in dealing with those nobles? Surely you don't think I'd be so kind-hearted as to help you through the greatest crisis you've faced to date?"
Kashchey took the initiative, speaking to the two with a trace of arrogance. This scene made Talulah think to herself that it was just as she expected; the old man had no intention of helping them.
However, Jeanne heard a different meaning. Kashchey was bargaining. He hoped they would agree to more of his demands later, so he was trying to seize control of the conversation now.
"Can't we discuss what requirements you have, Mr. Kashchey? Besides, if you help us, the impact on you when Alina and I pray might just... weaken a bit..."
Jeanne immediately threw out a condition Kashchey couldn't refuse. She knew exactly how much influence her and Alina's prayers had on him; it was his literal nightmare.
But now, the nightmare had doubled! Now there were two people praying near him. If this continued for a while, Kashchey's soul might not be able to hold out and could completely collapse.
"..."
Kashchey didn't speak. He just looked at the person who had stabbed him right in the heart. He felt as though she had caught him by his "seven-inch" weak spot, yet he still stubbornly bluffed:
"How could I possibly care about such things? There is nothing for us to talk about. If you give me my dear daughter's body, I might consider helping you a little..."
Just as Kashchey was deliberately pretending he was doing just fine and hoping to see them frustrated, he noticed Jeanne looked as if she were about to cry, pulling Talulah along as she backed out the door.
"I am so sorry, Mr. Kashchey. Talulah is my best friend and my most beloved relative; I cannot give her up for such a thing. We'll just go back and pray for a miracle to happen..."
"Come back! Good grief, you still want to pray?! Do you think I'm not dying fast enough? I just wanted you to add a little more to the price! Can't you people even haggle a bit?"
Kashchey was screaming internally. But now he was stuck; his inner pride wouldn't let him back down, so he could only remain in this stalemate.
"Are you... not going to say anything to keep us here? I think we can still try to talk about this matter."
In the end, it was Talulah who spoke up to alleviate the awkwardness for both sides. To be honest, seeing Kashchey so frustrated brought her immense pleasure, but Jeanne's acting was just too awkward! It was so awkward that she could have used her tail to draw a map on the floor.
Wait, I really should break the habit of drawing on the floor with my tail. If this keeps up, my tail will lose its scales and go bald. I'll have to buy health products to regrow scales...
No, wait, how did I let that old man Kashchey lead me into a ditch? Why would I buy health products for no reason? I don't need that kind of stuff... at worst, when I bathe with Jeanne, I'll just soak a bit longer in the Holy Water.
Talulah couldn't help but rub her forehead. She felt she was being corrupted by both Kashchey and Jeanne. How pure a person she used to be, and yet these two had turned her into this.
"Alright, let's all sit down and have a proper talk. You can't escape anyway. If you left Talulah's body, you might just get snatched away by my 'Boss.' You should know, my Boss doesn't much like gods like you... Or should I try to call the Old Man here so you two gods can have a face-to-face chat?"
Jeanne dropped her clumsy acting and sat in a chair, smiling at Kashchey. Her tone was gentle, but the veiled threat in her words made Kashchey break into a cold sweat.
"Let's talk things out nicely. Why call parents for no reason? You see, I didn't call mine, did I?"
Kashchey waved his hands in front of his chest. Whether he was truly afraid or just playing along with Jeanne was unclear, but they finally began to talk seriously.
Talulah: Can you two finally get to the point? Watching you two play mind games every day—do you know how many scales I lose?