Reincarnation to the Past

Chapter 43

Li Yǔ POV

It is her...

PERSEPHONE!!!

How did she end up like this? It's mid-summer so shouldn't she be with her mother? So how did she end up here in such a pitiful condition? On a closer look, I could tell that the chains were specially made to lock out a god's powers, which could be why she wasn't able to put up a fight. I could feel my blood boil in anger. I was never really close to her but Uncle Hades has helped me out more than I could ever repay, so whoever did this would regret it.

"I will take her!" I spoke out loud with conviction.

Lì nodded and was handed a paper, on which he wrote something before returning it to the man. "We can leave now..." He came up to me and took my hand to leave. I gently grabbed at the chain and tugged, to which she followed after me. Once we exited, I noticed that Lì had been staring at Persephone with a worried expression. "Don't worry... My uncle will love her and never harm her. I promise you!" I told him with a smile, to which he sighed and nodded.

I couldn't help but feel grateful to Lì; he never asked me 'why' or 'what' but seemed to trust me unconditionally and he willingly spent all that money for my sake, not to mention the money for the clothes too. I've honestly never met a person like him before. I said that I'd have to go and that I'd catch up with him later. "Thank you!!! For everything!!" I exclaimed while giving him a big hug.

"Mael, follow Lì without him noticing... Make sure he's safe, at least until he's back with Bai  Zou", I ordered in my mind once Lì had gone off, to which the little dragon turned invisible and flew off in his direction. I knew I could count on Mael to provide him with extra protection.

I glanced behind, my guard raised, before holding the trembling goddess by the hand and tugging for her to follow me. "Now listen to me..." I started in a rushed tone, "You can either come with me or get raped by a million men who have nothing else they'd want to do more of. Make your choice fast."

"I-I'll go with you!" she responded in a trembling voice as her eyes widened in terror.

I started walking at great speed and ensured that Persephone matched me without tripping, wanting to create distance between us and our pursuers. I couldn't freely act in a place like this with too many innocents around. Thirty minutes later, we had left the marketplace and ran past a path that seemed less used. Thankfully, the path led to an open area where it was possible to fight freely. "I am so grateful I bought these clothes!" I murmured in excitement.

I can finally use my sword!

"Please... I don't want to be sold to your uncle! I'm married, my husband," she started but was interrupted by me.

"If you have any aversion to blood, I advise you to close your eyes," I said with a smirk as my sword appeared in my hand, and I pushed her behind me. Persephone gasped in terror, just as five burly men surrounded us.

(A/N: The sword works two ways, one where she pulls out the hair stick from her hair and imagines it elongating into the sword. The other way is where she directly imagines the elongated version of the sword appearing in her hand.)

"Just listen to us, pretty girl... Leave the lady behind and disappear and maybe we will spare you. Our master has taken a fancy to her and will stop at nothing until he gets his hands on her...", one declared, licking his lips.

"By any chance, is this master of yours, 'Yun Huangpu'?" I inquired as my lips morphed into a smirk—a very dangerous smirk.

"Oh, so you know the trouble you're in... Run along, little kid, if you're scared." Another spoke as the five inched towards us.

"Nothing like that...", my smirk grew as I readied my sword. "It's just that if you had said 'no', I would have considered maybe letting you go."

Before they even had the time to comprehend what I said, I disappeared in a flash only to reappear behind one and run my sword through his neck in one clean strike, causing him to fall to the ground, lifeless.

The other four started to realize the danger they were in but it was a bit too late, unfortunately for them, because seconds later, all four of them were lying on the floor, limp, not even knowing what hit them. Sad, really. I had honestly planned to let them off if they had nothing to do with that stupid perverted fatty...

"My Lord!!! Save me!" Persephone sobbed, petrified, as I walked towards her. At some point, her leg must have given way because she was sitting on the ground, trembling like a leaf. It was surprising how different she seemed. I gently touched her shoulder, causing her to flinch, and shadow-traveled the two of us to the underworld entrance.

Her eyes were forced shut in fear, muttering over and over for Uncle Hades, "It's fine... You're safe now." I spoke in a calm voice as I took her hand and helped her up, using Hestia's powers to calm her down. She slowly opened her eyes and gasped in shock as she took in the surroundings.

"Come on... I did say I'd gift you to my uncle, didn't I?" I grinned, holding out my hand.