Chapter 2: Ten Times the Physical Strength Returned!

"Wife?"

Carol's parents almost fainted on the spot. Everyone in Gorn Village knew that Carol had actively confessed her feelings to Ashu. If Ashu refused to marry Carol, no man in the entire village would be willing to pick up the leftovers.

"Ashu, how could you do this? We were just trying to test you, and yet you hired such a woman to insult Carol? You planned this in advance, didn't you? Did you want to escape the marriage all along?" Carol's mother quickly changed her tone from demanding to testing.

At the same time, the priest who had been following the saintess re-entered the room.

Upon seeing the priest, Carol's mother immediately spoke up, "Priest? Lord Priest, you just declared Ashu guilty, right? He abandoned his fiancée! He deserves severe punishment!"

In Carol's mother's view, condemning others was a way to elevate herself. This kind of thing was common in their small village.

As long as they could frame Ashu as guilty, Carol would be able to wear the victim label, gain sympathy from others, and even make a profit from it.

However...

Upon hearing Carol's mother's accusation, the priest displayed an expression of difficulty.

The priest, who was usually warm and gentle to others, now looked at Carol's parents with eyes full of disdain, disgust, and even hostility.

"Enough. You two," the priest said sternly. "God has delivered his edict. Your greed is laid bare for all to see. If you truly repent, God may still forgive your sins. Otherwise, His divine punishment will fall upon you!"

The cold, merciless declaration struck them like a hammer in the middle of a cold winter.

They immediately felt as though the sky had collapsed upon them!

The priest, whom they had spent years trying to please, had now bitten back at them at this critical moment!

Why?

Because of this woman?

"Priest, we... we can offer you more..." Carol's father said, his face turning yellow.

"Silence!" the priest snapped, quickly interrupting him with a sharp glare. "Do not deepen your sins further, or even repentance will not cleanse you. This is the saintess who will be giving the lesson today. Show respect!"

Upon hearing this, Carol's parents' arrogance instantly deflated.

Their highest connection was the priest, but seeing how the priest treated the saintess with such respect, they knew things had taken a turn for the worse.

"Then... what about my daughter..."

"Go and repent," the priest commanded, not allowing for any objections.

Carol's mother still wanted to argue, but the priest decisively ordered them to leave.

The couple could only lower their heads and step out carefully, fearing that even the sound of their footsteps might deepen their sins.

Ashu, watching the priest, couldn't help but sneer. The priest's ability to change his attitude was truly remarkable.

For years, he had been the one praying for blessings over Gorn Village, always maintaining the demeanor of a high-ranking individual, treating everyone warmly. But today, he had completely turned.

It was clearly because of Anna.

It seemed Anna's status had risen so high over the years that even the priest had to look up to her.

Moreover, she hadn't aged poorly at all; in fact, she had become even more graceful and elegant than before.

Such a high-ranking, extraordinarily beautiful woman—was she truly here to fulfill a childhood promise of marriage?

Ashu couldn't help but question it.

Wait a minute.

Didn't something activate just now?

Just as Ashu thought about this, the system automatically appeared in his mind.

[Critical Return System: By binding to a being with a talent score of 90 or higher, the host can receive multiplied rewards through the progress of the bound entity.]

[Detected a being with a talent score above 90 nearby. Would you like to bind?]

Ashu looked at the priest, but the priest was not qualified.

His gaze then shifted to Anna Kagreia, and immediately, a panel appeared.

[Anna Kagreia]

[95 points]

[Description: Once a gifted girl, she was taken in by the Witch's Guild and trained as a future operative. However, during testing, she was accidentally parasitized by the Evil God's mark. In order for the Evil God to descend into the mortal world, it continuously absorbs her magical essence and soul power, preventing her from progressing. After the Witch's Guild expelled her, she followed the memory she never forgot and returned to fulfill the promise made back then.]

So, she's sincere?

Bind!

"Ashu, what does 'fiancée' mean?" Anna Kagreia asked, her face sulking, "Does this mean I can only be your mistress?"

Anna would not accept this.

From a young age, she had always aimed high. While others were still fighting over trivial matters, she had directly entered into a marriage contract. No matter how they argued, others could only be mistresses—she was the legitimate one.

Before Ashu could explain, the perceptive priest quickly said, "Lady Saintess, that family's daughter confessed her love to Mr. Ashu. They also plan to use marriage to extort Mr. Ashu's land, but Mr. Ashu did not agree. And then, you arrived. That's the situation."

It was true that Carol confessed her feelings.

It was also true that Ashu refused to split the land.

But when put together like this, it didn't seem quite right.

However, the priest's words weren't lies; he had simply skillfully manipulated the order of events.

"I see now," Anna sighed in relief. "After all these years, the village girls are still the same."

"Then, I'll go help others with their blessings." The priest excused himself.

"Go ahead."

After the priest left, Anna pulled out a wooden chair from the dining table and sat down.

"When I was younger, I needed so much strength to move this chair. Now, I can do it so easily."

"Well, it's been over a decade," Ashu replied.

Anna placed her hands on the table and rested her chin on her hands, reminiscing. "Yeah, it's been over ten years. Ever since I was taken by the teacher, I've been missing this place. Over there, it's so exhausting—endless witchcraft lessons, trial after trial... When I left, I actually felt like I was finally freed."

She finished speaking and immediately asked, "Ashu, what about you? How have you been?"

Anna noticed the portrait in the master bedroom. Without the protection of elders, life must have been difficult.

Ashu walked over to the kitchen, grabbed a set of utensils, and said, "I don't have much talent. So, I've just been living in the village. Every time there's a good harvest of vegetables, I take some to the city to sell, making a bit of living money. Over the years, I've become quite skilled as a farmer. Try the vegetables I grew."

He handed the utensils to Anna.

Anna seemed to return to her younger days and happily began eating.

As she opened her soft little mouth, her fragrant tongue and white teeth mixed as she chewed, then swallowed. Immediately, Ashu's system issued a prompt.

[Anna Kagreia: Stamina +1]

[Critical Return! Host's stamina +10!]

"What's this?"

Ashu was shocked. It turned out this was also a function of the Critical Return System. Whenever Anna ate, she could restore her stamina, and Ashu would receive a multiplied return!

It seemed that Anna's return multiplier was ten times!

However, stamina was not the same as strength. Strength was an attribute, while stamina was a consumption value. The stamina Ashu had used up from farming in the morning was instantly restored and even overflowed in an instant.

There was no way around it—he didn't know what Anna's stamina cap was, but after only a small portion of her meal, Ashu's stamina was already overflowing.

Not only did he feel full of energy, but he also felt a bit exhilarated.

"What's wrong, Ashu?" Anna noticed the change in him.

"It's nothing." Ashu paused for a moment, then lied, "It's just been so long since I had breakfast with someone. I'm... a bit excited."

Anna gave a small smile and said, "Well then, how about I join you for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day?"

"Sounds good." As a farmer, Ashu might not have money, but he had plenty of fresh vegetables and grain, "By the way, Anna, how long are you planning to stay this time? Where will you stay? Unfortunately, your house has been abandoned for a long time, and it's rotting and falling apart."

"Of course, I'll stay with you." Anna said seriously, "This time, I'm not going anywhere. I want to live with you for the rest of my life. Aren't you planning to marry me?"

When the topic finally came up, Ashu felt a bit like he was dreaming. In his past life, if a childhood sweetheart he hadn't seen in years suddenly returned and wanted to marry him, he would have thought it was because of some bad mushrooms, or that the childhood sweetheart had ulterior motives.

But in this life, with the system in place, he had already confirmed Anna's situation.

What was more important was that Anna was beautiful—more beautiful than any girl in the village. When the two of them were placed side by side, it was as if they didn't belong to the same world.

Since he had already severed ties with Carol's family, and given that he wasn't exactly young anymore, why not marry someone beautiful?