Naya dragged the unconscious Blood Parrot towards the small tavern, as casually as carrying a sack of goods.

  The night deepened, the fringe district growing quieter. Even the usual wanderers who favored late-night activity were nowhere to be seen. After the Enforcement Mage corps' grand appearance earlier, the doors and windows of all nearby alleys remained tightly shut, without even a crack for peeking outside. Under the heavy pressure of survival, people had completely lost their curiosity.

  Richard followed silently behind Naya. Apart from a slight pallor, he showed no outward signs of distress, but his hands, hidden in his sleeves, were clenched tightly, forearm muscles twitching continuously. Drops of blood slowly seeped from between his fingers. Richard's hands were already injured; the iron bar hadn't been polished, its surface covered in burrs and even leftover sand from the mold, which had scraped his palm when he gripped it. They were only superficial wounds, but Richard now relied on the stinging pain from pressing them to barely suppress the wild throbbing of his heart. His innermost being was already in turmoil. If no one were around, he truly wanted to shout, scream, kick, and smash things—only then could he vent some of the delayed, extreme tension.

  Tonight, Richard had killed for the first time, taking four lives at once. The last warrior had even had his abdomen sliced open by Richard's hand, most organs damaged, dying slowly and painfully before his eyes, filled with terror. At that moment of life and death, Richard had entered a state of absolute calm, all consciousness and actions transformed into cold numbers. The various techniques learned from Naya emerged naturally, without any awkwardness. The four assassins, however, had all assumed Richard was just a rookie magic apprentice. This assumption immediately cost them their lives. Apart from the Fireball, the other three assassins died due to Richard's unexpectedly refined assassination skills. And the result of the Fireball, strictly speaking, was also closely linked to assassination techniques.

  In duels within the dark world, life and death are often decided in the instant of passing each other.

  During the decisive moment, everything felt like a dream to Richard—a real, cold dream filled with numbers. Only after the Gray Dwarf left did he begin to wake from the dreamscape. Then, negative feelings—tension, weakness, nausea, and trembling—began to wash over his heart in waves.

  Besides the distress of his first kill, Richard felt an indescribable tension about Blood Parrot's impending fate. For some reason, the more relaxed Naya appeared, the more nervous Richard became. His observation was always meticulous. When Naya mentioned Blood Parrot, he caught a slight unnaturalness on the faces of Naya's two companions in his peripheral vision. Blood Parrot herself, in the instant before losing consciousness, revealed unconcealable fear and despair.

  Judging from Naya's words, Richard knew Blood Parrot had been somewhat famous in the dark world over a decade ago. If such a person, and Naya's long-time companions, unconsciously showed nervousness and fear, what would Naya show him later? Moreover, Naya had specifically reminded Richard to bring a bucket. Now, just thinking of the bucket made Richard's stomach cramp uncontrollably, giving him the urge to find a corner immediately and vomit everything out.

  Naya, Helen Su, and the Archmages shared one similarity: they never joked about serious matters.

  Despite desperately wanting to throw up immediately, Richard gritted his teeth and followed Naya, managing to hold on until they reached the small tavern. Even Richard himself felt it was a miracle.

  After Naya and Richard left, the two men lounging at the scene suddenly transformed. With incredible speed, they collected the bodies and cleaned the area. Minutes later, almost all traces were wiped clean, leaving only large scorch marks deep in the alley from the magical flames.

  When the residents of the fringe district emerged from their homes the next morning, it would seem as if nothing had happened last night. In the chaotic fringe district, similar incidents—including tremors, explosions, and various strange noises—occurred frequently. People were long accustomed to them. As long as doors and windows were shut tight, the inside and outside became different worlds; whatever happened outside had nothing to do with those within. Buildings were protected by Deepblue's rules; breaking down doors or damaging exterior walls were absolutely forbidden malicious acts. Perpetrators would be judged as invaders, becoming enemies of Deepblue. Of course, outside events could become relevant if the people inside possessed excessive curiosity.

  Naya dragged Blood Parrot through the small main hall and entered the back kitchen via the area beside the bar. Richard discovered the tavern's back kitchen was unusually large, even bigger than the front hall. Besides the usual stoves, wine cabinets, and food cupboards, the kitchen walls were studded with iron rings of various sizes. Several pulleys even hung from the ceiling, with iron hooks of different sizes dangling down.

  The back kitchen reeked heavily of grease fumes and cheap, strong liquor, yet even these potent smells couldn't suppress the ubiquitous mustiness. The walls and floor were stone, washed clean, but still bore large, irregular, faint stains.

  "Go shut the door," Naya instructed, dragging Blood Parrot to the center of the kitchen.

  Richard did as told, closing the door. He then saw that behind the door, there truly was a moderately sized wooden bucket. It was quite old. Although washed clean and odorless, the moment he saw it, Richard could no longer suppress his body's violent reaction. He lunged towards the bucket and vomited violently.

  He hadn't eaten dinner yet, so the little in his stomach came up quickly, followed by clear, acidic bile. The strong sour smell hit Richard's nose, momentarily overpowering almost all other scents in the kitchen. But another, previously inconspicuous smell, became remarkably clear because of it. Richard instantly identified the source—the smell of accumulated bloodstains over many years!

  Richard barely registered the danger before his body's instinctive reaction took over. His stomach spasmed violently again, almost knotting itself. The last bit of bile practically sprayed from his mouth!

  Naya seemed to have expected this reaction from Richard. He merely glanced at him nonchalantly at first, then started his own work. He noisily pulled down the iron hooks hanging from the ceiling, threaded Blood Parrot's hands and feet onto them, then pulled the chains. Blood Parrot was suspended in mid-air, limbs stretched to their absolute limit in different directions.

  The intense pain woke her from unconsciousness. Then, the sharp agony of instruments piercing several meridians forced another shrill scream from her. However, upon regaining consciousness, Blood Parrot immediately stopped screaming. She relaxed her tensed body and began observing her surroundings. But the first thing she saw was Naya. Despair instantly flashed in her eyes, and she couldn't help but let out a groan.

  Naya reached out and randomly kneaded and caressed her body a few times. Combined with his lewd expression, it was indescribably vulgar. Yet Blood Parrot completely ceased struggling. Her body's strength drained away continuously under Naya's touch, the despair in her eyes thickening until it was utterly impenetrable.

  Humming an off-key tune, Naya began removing her clothes piece by piece, until the very last scrap of fabric was flicked away. Blood Parrot hung naked in the center of the kitchen. Due to damage to some muscles and meridians, her body twitched slightly from time to time. The places pierced by the iron hooks strangely didn't bleed profusely immediately but slowly oozed blood, dripping onto the floor drop by drop.

  Richard finally stood up, his face a deathly pallor, needing to lean against the wall for support. He wiped the stains splattered on his chest, mustered his courage, lifted his head, and fixed his gaze on Blood Parrot's naked body. He knew the real test was about to begin.

  Blood Parrot's true age should have been past middle age, but her potent strength kept her appearance and body in a very youthful state. From any angle, she looked no older than thirty. Her firm, powerful legs, and the somewhat exaggerated curves of her chest and buttocks, were even more alluring to men. Often, her looks and body were her most potent weapons. But now, her body held no allure for Richard. Instead, due to his focus, Richard noticed data anomalies in many parts of her body.

  Tears welled up uncontrollably in Richard's eyes, blurring his vision. But in his daze, he seemed to see his father's arrogant, domineering face. And on that face, seemingly cast from steel, were a pair of eyes so calm they chilled the heart. Father... the word held no warmth or intimacy for Richard, only hatred, coldness, and suffocating pressure. Richard didn't even know what kind of power his father possessed; whenever he thought of him, only the word 'unfathomable' came to mind. If Gordon were here, would he be unable to watch?

  So, whenever his body's reactions could be slightly controlled, Richard would raise his head, force his eyes open, and watch what Naya was doing.

  Tears blurred his vision—wipe them away. Ears filled with buzzing, unable to hear Naya's words clearly—shake his head forcefully. Finally, his weakened body wanted to collapse—grip an iron ring on the wall with one hand, prop himself up with the other on the nearby bucket, at least keeping his upper body straight.

  Richard vaguely saw Naya muttering like an old man while carefully stroking Blood Parrot's body with his hands, not missing an inch. And wherever his hands passed, large sprays of blood often erupted. Richard's body instinctively resisted these scenes, preventing him from understanding what Naya was doing. But his "Precision" and "Wisdom" talents came into play here, coldly restoring the full truth for Richard to see.

  Another wave of cramping pain, almost making him faint, seized his abdomen. Richard even wondered if his stomach was still intact. His body was already splattered with stains, but he could no longer feel them. The kitchen filled with the sweet smell of blood, completely overpowering the stale, decaying odor.

  There were no extraneous sounds in the space. Since that steel wire, Blood Parrot hadn't made another sound. Besides Richard's occasional uncontrollable retching, there was only the faint, dense rustling of Naya's hands moving, like the tip of a Highland Peacock quill pen writing fluidly across parchment.

  Naya quickened his movements, his hands instantly weaving hundreds of gestures, yet each motion remained incredibly clear. Then, before Richard's eyes, a brilliant and magnificent rose of blood bloomed in mid-air!

  It truly was a rose, blooming upon Blood Parrot's torso, even the trembling of its delicate petals visible!

  Richard's vision was instantly filled by the rose. When his sight returned, he only saw Naya holding a thin object, presenting it before his eyes. Richard didn't know what it was, but the magic patterns soaked in blood were exceptionally familiar; he could draw them with his eyes closed.

  It was an attribute-type Rune Construct: Basic Agility.

  Clang! The overflowing bucket tipped over, its contents splashing all over Richard.

  Richard had no idea how he cleaned the stains from his clothes, nor how he left Naya's tavern. When his body's reactions finally subsided, the image of that Rune Construct, along with a pile of various strange and peculiar weapons, still flickered before his eyes. But Blood Parrot's body and face had vanished from Richard's memory; all he could recall now was her voice.

  And from beginning to end, Naya failed to extract anything from Blood Parrot's lips. It was unknown whether Blood Parrot truly held out until the end, or if Naya simply never gave her the chance to speak.

  Ahead of Richard, the deep alley stretched into the darkness, seemingly endless. The dim magic lamplight could only add a little brightness within. The alley was too long, the magic lamps too few, and the brightness of each lamp far inferior to its counterparts in Deepblue's main tower. As he walked past a magic lamp, Richard's shadow projected ahead, stretching longer and longer.

  He suddenly felt cold. Simultaneously, fatigue and hunger struck. His mouth and throat burned painfully as if scorched by fire. Richard had long since vomited everything he could. Depleted from repeatedly using his bloodline ability "Burst," his tightly wound nerves finally relaxed slightly, and all the effects hit him at once. The next moment, he felt unwilling to move even a single small step. Just then, a somewhat familiar door suddenly appeared before him.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  It was where Eileen lived.

  Richard didn't know why he had returned here. But upon seeing this door, all the events of the night suddenly connected like lightning. The truths behind the various scenes emerged like hidden reefs beneath a whirlpool, flickering in Richard's mind. Perhaps it was just baseless speculation, but Richard knew the truth was likely so, because reality rarely contained so many coincidences.

  Blood Parrot and those assassins had been waiting for Richard at the predetermined location, and Eileen was the bait used to lure him into the trap.

  Bang, bang, bang! Richard knocked on the door.

  A nearby window suddenly opened, and a head full of menacing flesh poked out. Eyes not fully open already revealed fierce hostility. Something unintelligible mumbled from his mouth, clearly quite displeased at having his sleep disturbed. But when he saw the style and quality of Richard's clothes clearly, he retracted his head at a hundred times the speed, simultaneously closing the window like lightning without making much noise, displaying skill that bordered on miraculous.

  Richard was now wearing the inner clothes beneath his robe, embroidered with large, complex, gorgeous magic patterns. This wasn't decoration but genuine magic circles. The first assassin had pierced Richard's robe but failed to cut through his inner clothes. Only those detestable individuals in Deepblue's main tower—possessing talent, bloodline, background, and luck in equal measure—could afford such inner wear.

  Bang, bang, bang! Richard pounded on the door again, much louder this time. No nearby windows dared to open again.

  A small window on the door, just large enough for a fist and normally used for mail, opened a crack, revealing Eileen's vigilant face. Seeing it was Richard, she immediately gasped in surprise and quickly pulled the door open.

  Only after the door was fully open did Richard see Eileen tightly gripping a magic wand in her right hand. Judging by the material, it was just the most common type of wand, the embedded gem capable of storing at most two first-tier spells. However, the advantage of a wand was instant casting, and two first-tier spells already held considerable deterrence in the fringe district. Although Eileen herself was already a third-level mage, casting second-tier spells was still strenuous for her, and instant-casting first-tier spells was impossible. So in a real fight, while she struggled to chant the incantation, her opponent could charge over and slap her to the ground with a few direct blows.

  Low-level mages lacked combat capability; only with the help of wands, mana-storing rings, or scrolls could they fight independently.

  Seeing the wand clutched tightly in Eileen's hand, Richard's heart stirred slightly. He immediately gained a rough understanding of her usual living conditions. Only an environment fraught with danger would foster such a strong sense of self-preservation. And this lowest-grade wand itself spoke volumes. Even the worst wand was an expensive item. The one before him was worth about four or five hundred gold coins—an insignificant sum in Deepblue, but a huge amount for Eileen, who couldn't repay a debt of sixteen hundred gold. Her willingness to carry debt just to keep such a wand by her side clearly indicated that without it, she had no safety whatsoever.

  In just an instant, Richard had discerned many things. Eileen, however, rushed out, stood before Richard, looking like she wanted to throw herself into his arms but restrained herself forcefully. She reached out, pulled Richard into the room, glanced outside, then slammed the door shut with a bang and locked it.

  Eileen leaned back against the door, staring at Richard, her chest heaving rapidly, face flushed, looking very agitated.

  Richard, however, surveyed the room. It was a very small apartment, consisting of an inner and outer room and a tiny bathroom. Functional, yet pitifully small. Standing by the door, one could already see every corner clearly. Only the bedroom had a window opening onto the lightwell; the other spaces were enclosed by four walls. The room was equipped with magic lamps, but they weren't lit; a single candle served instead.

  The small room was already filled with candle smoke, yet it couldn't completely mask the sweet fragrance of the young woman's body. The room was tiny: the bedroom held only a single bed and a cabinet; the bathroom allowed only standing showers. The outer room wasn't much larger than the bedroom. The room contained many items, yet they were arranged very neatly, cleverly utilizing the space, surprisingly not feeling overly crowded.

  As Richard observed the room, Eileen suddenly noticed blood seeping from between Richard's fingers, and her own hand felt sticky. She held her hand up before her face. By the flickering candlelight, she saw it was covered in blood!

  Realizing she had just pulled Richard into the room by that hand, Eileen couldn't help but cry out in alarm, "Richard! Are you hurt?"

  Richard waved his hand casually, saying somewhat distractedly, "Just a small scratch, it's nothing." To him, it truly was a minor injury, not worth mentioning at all, especially after witnessing Naya's entire process with Blood Parrot.

  Eileen, however, clearly saw the wound on his palm. The rough surface of the iron bar had already scraped almost all the skin from his fingers to his palm. Richard had pressed down on it himself several times, making the wound look ghastly, as if his entire palm had split open.

  She couldn't help raising her voice, crying out, "How did you get hurt! They promised me they wouldn't really hurt you..."

  The moment the words left her mouth, Eileen instantly covered her mouth, her face turning deathly pale. Richard looked up, his expression showing little surprise. His sharp, arrow-like gaze swept across Eileen's face, taking in her every reaction. Then his gaze turned calm and profound. He said calmly, "You really did participate. Then tell me, who were they?"

  The calmer Richard became, the colder Eileen felt. She subconsciously clutched her collar, bowing her head deeply, and said in a voice almost too quiet to hear, "It was Minnie. She came to find me, asked... asked me to lure you here. She said she had some private matters to discuss with you. I... I couldn't refuse, so I had to agree."

  "But Minnie promised me she absolutely wouldn't hurt you! Besides, she said you are Her Highness's favorite student. How could she dare harm you?" Eileen's voice grew louder, sounding more like she was desperately trying to convince herself.

  Richard remained very calm. "Minnie? How much money did she give you? And what reason made it impossible for you to refuse?"

  Eileen gradually calmed down as well, smiled bitterly, and said, "Five hundred gold coins in total. Plus, she promised not to trouble my father."

  "Five hundred gold coins? So I'm only worth that much. But adding your father, the weight is about right." Richard smiled self-deprecatingly, then looked at Eileen, the smile slowly fading from his face. "Your first time was sold too, wasn't it? Can you tell me how much it sold for?"

  Eileen's face instantly paled slightly, her head bowing even lower. But after a moment, she still said, "Two thousand gold coins."

  "Four bottles of ordinary mana recovery potions." Richard commented on the number with near cruelty, then continued pressing, "Who was it? Why were you willing to take his money, but not mine?"

  This was an old question, one that had been raised before. This time, Eileen didn't choose to evade. As if throwing caution to the wind, she answered quickly, "It was Stevenson, also Her Highness's student. I desperately needed money at that time, and he happened to make the request then. I... I'm just an ordinary person living in the fringe district, barely touching the edge of nobility. With his power and status, I had no way to refuse."

  "Stevenson..." Richard murmured the name several times. A crucial piece clicked into place. Everything fell together like a puzzle, piece by piece, the outline of the conspiracy gradually becoming clear. Yet, there were still some knots in his heart he couldn't untie, and the violent bloodline deep within his body began to stir restlessly.

  "What's your price now?"

  Richard's words made Eileen tremble involuntarily. She hugged herself as if unable to bear the cold and said in a low voice, "Besides Stevenson, no one else for now. He comes to find me occasionally, gives me two or three hundred gold coins each time. Sometimes when I... really need money, I go find him too..."

  "What is your price now?" Richard asked again.

  Eileen finally gritted her teeth and said, "I owe you sixteen hundred gold coins. If it's you, then a hundred per time!"

  Richard slowly reached out, grabbing the front of her bodice. The raging violence churning in his chest grew stronger, almost uncontrollable. He suddenly craved the sight of blood, and the one fact Eileen deliberately avoided echoed repeatedly in his mind.

  "Just for five hundred gold coins, you betrayed me, almost got me killed?!"

  Richard forced the words through clenched teeth, his eyes unknowingly filled with bloodshot veins. With a sudden exertion of both hands, rip! Eileen's nightgown was torn in half! Richard grabbed Eileen, walked into the bedroom, threw her onto the bed, and then pressed down on her forcefully!

  Heavy panting, beast-like low growls, and the girl's moans welling up from deep within her throat intertwined, filling every corner of the room. Eileen was like a small boat tossed about in a raging storm, rising and falling involuntarily. Her hands gripped Richard's back muscles tightly. At the peak of unbearable intensity, rip! Ten deep, bloody scratches were left on Richard's back! Sharp pain made Richard cry out, but pain, to him at this moment, was like dry wood thrown onto a fire, only making the flames within his body burn even more fiercely. Eileen's cries also rose an octave.

  The storm raged for an unknown duration.

  All they knew was that when they finally separated, neither had the strength to move much.

  The bed was extremely narrow, requiring them to cling tightly together just to accommodate both. Eileen and Richard lay side-by-side, gazing together at the grey ceiling. Unsure how it started, the girl began to recount her story softly, while Richard listened silently.

  Like the protagonists of many stories, Eileen came from a minor noble family. Her father was a hereditary knight, possessing a small fiefdom including two villages, located on the border of the Sacred Tree Dynasty, adjacent to Marquis Neo's territory, and not too far from Duke Solam's domain. If one strictly traced the lines of vassalage, Eileen's father was a vassal of Marquis Neo's vassal. Thus, for her, both Minnie and Solam were figures impossible to refuse.

  Eileen's father had a passion for the arts and enjoyed socializing in high society, but lacked talent in managing his domain. So, over time, his debts gradually snowballed into an unpayable astronomical sum. Eileen had been sent to Deepblue to study magic since the age of ten. She did possess decent magical talent, but only by the standards of her father's fiefdom. In Deepblue, she was nothing. Soon, Eileen exhausted her savings, and the support from home dwindled. She could only rely on herself to sustain her life and studies in Deepblue. Without money, her progress in magic also slowed.

  The old knight simply couldn't afford to support a mage developing in Deepblue, nor did he intend to cultivate a Great Mage. The knight's real intention was that after acquiring the halo of Deepblue, Eileen could fetch a good price. In the common parlance of nobility, this meant Eileen could marry a Viscount as his wife, or become the mistress of some Earl, or even a Marquis of lesser influence. Without the Deepblue experience, Eileen could only become a Baroness, and the quality of that Baron would depend on Eileen's dowry.

  So Eileen desperately earned money just to stay in Deepblue. Once she returned to her family, she would become a bargaining chip in a political marriage. On the other hand, another reason the old knight hadn't forced her immediate return was that his debts had reached a critical point; his fiefdom could be confiscated at any moment. The reason the creditors hadn't applied to the circuit court to force the knight into bankruptcy was that they seriously considered the future prospects of a young female mage studying in Deepblue. They were unwilling to offend a future Archmage just to collect debts. As long as Eileen remained in Deepblue for one more day, the creditors wouldn't push too hard. Of course, if she were willing to return, the debt problem would also be solved easily. An elderly but wealthy widowed Viscount had already expressed willingness to cover the knight's debts, provided Eileen agreed to marry him.

  Minnie had clearly investigated Eileen's background and understood her father's current predicament. If Eileen refused to cooperate, Minnie would use her family's power to immediately confiscate the knight's fiefdom. The knight was already deeply insolvent; the income from his fiefdom, after paying interest on debts, was insufficient even to maintain a minimum standard of decent living. Losing the fiefdom meant being stripped of the noble title, a significant drop in social status for both the knight and Eileen.

  Moreover, Minnie had hinted to Eileen that her desire to approach Richard privately was partly due to reasons between man and woman, and promised absolutely not to harm Richard. Besides, wasn't Her Highness Helen Su's authority still present?

  "So, I simply had no way to refuse," the girl concluded finally. She reached out, took Richard's hand, caressed the fresh wound on his palm, and asked, "They didn't do anything too terrible to you, did they? Are you badly hurt?"

  "It's fine. The trouble has all been resolved," Richard said lightly.

  He didn't explain how the trouble was "resolved," nor did he want to detail the entire process. There was undeniable concern in Eileen's words, genuine in his True Sight, yet she didn't know what had actually happened, and this concern wasn't strong enough to make her refuse Minnie. For Eileen, Neo and Solam were two towering mountains before her, large enough to block out everything else. As for the recent war in Neo territory, it was currently just a secret circulating among the great nobles. It would take a long time for the news to reach Eileen.

  No matter how many reasons Eileen had, ultimately, she still betrayed Richard for five hundred gold coins. In retrospect, her decision was foolish, as she wasn't fully aware of Richard's background, let alone the special relationship between Helen Su and Richard. But most ordinary people, when making decisions, lack sufficient information for judgment. So whether a decision is wise or foolish often depends somewhat on luck.

  Eileen's journey from initial, somewhat naive persistence to finally yielding to Stevenson stemmed ostensibly from her inability to repay debts, which arose because neither her family nor she herself could afford life in Deepblue.

  "Then why not go back? You could return to a proper noble life, and not live so hard," Richard asked.

  "No! I don't want to go back! It's just a small place in the countryside; you can't imagine how boring and tedious life is. Even if I marry a Viscount, it's just moving from one small village to a slightly larger one! Living day after day in a gloomy castle or town villa, dealing with tenant farmers, slaves, and servants, having a child every other year, finding a few lovers among the nobles of nearby territories—that's the entirety of life! Maybe I'd only see an Earl a few times in my entire life. But Deepblue is different! Every inch of this place is filled with dreams! You might see great figures with status across the entire continent at any moment! This is the place that can change my destiny!"

  The girl's voice was filled with passion and eagerness, leaving Richard speechless for a long time.

  "Is staying in Deepblue really that important?"

  "Extremely important!"

  In nearly three years at Deepblue, Richard had seen too many people struggling desperately day after day, just to stay. They were willing to pay any price, just to remain. Before today, Richard had been indifferent, holding neither prejudice nor sympathy for these people. But now, seeing the same thing happen to Eileen, his heart felt a faint ache again.

  After an unknown amount of time, Richard finally said lightly, "Hm, I understand."