Bishop Ronis was assassinated, the Duke led the Magic Academy and the Holy Knights to join forces to kill the Death Mage, a reward was offered for the capture of the killer, the Duke arrested the Minister of Finance and announced nationwide that he would destroy his own family... This series of explosive events spread out from the capital in all directions.

  Wanted posters and the duke's proclamation spread like wildfire, causing a stir in every town they reached. Not only adventurers, thieves, and mercenaries were excited about these events, but ordinary people were also stirred up. Many devout believers wept at the murder of Bishop Ronis and hung his portrait on their doors, hoping to one day avenge their revered bishop. As rumors spread from mouth to ear, dozens of different versions emerged, with heated discussions and debates in taverns.

  Tian Shui Town was a small, out-of-the-way town in the eastern part of the empire. When the news shockwave swept through, it was almost turned upside down like other places, with the tavern becoming the most lively place and the town hall being extremely busy. Not only did they have to deal with adventurers coming to ask if there were any new messages or announcements, but also because this wanted poster was official, according to regulations, a thorough search had to be conducted within the town. By the end of the day, the town mayor's bones were almost scattered.

  After searching, he sat back in his own chair, and the town mayor finally let out a sigh of relief. He turned to the head of public security and complained: "I don't know why we still need to search for them. These heretic criminals are so stupid that they would just walk right into our hands?"

  However, the bailiff did not respond and seemed to have not heard at all. The muscles on his face seemed to be completely out of control, his mouth was open wide enough to fit his own fist in, and his eyes were staring so widely that they looked like they would pop out of their sockets.

  The town mayor looked past his line of sight in surprise and found that someone was walking into the entrance of the town hall. Then his own facial expression also lost control immediately.

  This man didn't just walk with a swagger, he was downright arrogant. He charged forward, pushing and shoving the people in front of him who were stunned into a daze, until he reached the local official's presence. Glaring at him, he asked in a deep voice: "Are you the local official here?"

  His eyes were completely bloodshot, and his facial features were all distorted due to emotional agitation. Fury, anxiety, and ferocity were all on display on his face. However, the reason he was being stared at wasn't because of his expression, but because of his appearance.

  Even if his face was distorted by emotion, it could still be recognized at a glance. Because this is the face that they had just gone out to search for on the street, and now everyone knows, everyone is familiar with, and everyone is thinking about all the time - the face worth five thousand gold coins.

  "Are you the biggest official here?" The now publicly recognized most evil and sinister fugitive slapped the local official's desk, his voice already in a rage, as if he were the controller of the situation and justice.

  The reaction came too late and the constable had already drawn his sword, originally shouting loudly but due to over-excitement it became a woman-like shriek: "Come on, quickly catch him."

  "Are you the mayor?" Ten minutes later, the fugitive, covered in blood, kicked the office desk to pieces and roared at the official cowering in the corner.

  "The... town mayor has already wet his pants. The wounded have almost filled the entire floor of the town hall. The moans of over a hundred people at the same time are like some kind of strange chorus."

  The fugitive grabbed the town mayor with one hand. The mayor realized that the extremely evil guy in front of him was a member of the Death Spirit Association, thinking that he would become a skull or zombie the next moment. He immediately lost control of his bowels and bladder.

  But the man merely bellowed at him, "Go to Kraljevac and deliver a message for me. Deliver it to Duke Mlakar." The outlaw's voice was hoarse with rage, like the growl of a beast. "Tell him to be careful. As he wishes, I will return."

  As he stepped out of the town hall, amidst a sea of wounded people, Asa felt his gallbladder bursting and his blood boiling. Three figures kept floating in his mind: Bishop Ronis, Sandru, and Xiao Yi. The backdrop was the Duke's smiling face, and blood.

  Today he passed through this small town and saw his own wanted poster in the tavern at the same time as he learned of Bishop Ronis's death, suddenly feeling like he had been struck by lightning.

  Bishop Ronis. Although Asa didn't agree with his methods and even found them annoying, he also knew that the most respected elder in the entire empire was actually very concerned about him and cared for him, and could even say that many of his efforts were for himself. And such an old man, died so inexplicably.

  At the same time, he also heard that the Holy Knights and the Mages' Association had joined forces to annihilate a necromancer. From those vivid descriptions, he could tell it was Sandro. When he heard this news, he almost vomited. Sandro. This strange necromancer occupied an important position in his heart, although it was also very strange.

  No need to think too much about what's going on. The duke's announcement has already explained everything.

  The meaning of the duke's notice is also clear: come back quickly. Either you die or she dies.

  Asa looked westward. That was the direction of the imperial capital. The sunset was a deep red, like the Duke's smile, so warm and gentle, yet with a hint of bloody cruelty. It seemed to be smiling at him, saying: Come quickly.

  The duke has already announced it nationwide, so if he doesn't show up at that time, he will definitely burn Xiao Yi to death. He must go back.

  Just outside the town hall, a sea of dark figures had already gathered, almost the entire town's population had begun to surround the area. From the moment he removed his mask and walked into the town hall, someone had recognized him, and the news immediately spread like wildfire throughout the town at an incredible speed. Adventurers and mercenaries arrived in droves, but initially only a few members of the mercenary groups that rushed into the town hall managed to crawl out with broken limbs, forcing those behind them to stop in their tracks. However, as more people gathered, their courage grew. Eventually, even the townspeople arrived, armed with hoes and kitchen knives.

  As he emerged from the town hall, thousands of people who had gathered early let out a thunderous shout and rushed towards him. Asa jumped onto the rooftop at the edge of the street and sprinted westward.

  The king, when he heard Asa's message, was pleased and laughed.

  The duke inquired carefully about the time, place and situation of this person's appearance, even asking about the person's expression and actions in great detail. Then he nodded satisfactorily. He knew that his trap had indeed taken effect.

  What is the most effective trap? It's a trap that the other party knows it's a trap but still can't help falling into. The Duke has always been a master of setting traps, because he is very good at using human nature.

  However, he seems to have failed to realize that the more deeply he delves into this kind of thing and the more skillfully he applies it, the less of it there will be in himself. This has reached a new height after he decided to continue climbing towards the pinnacle of power, using his own daughter as bait, and possibly silencing her for good in the end.

  After making this decision, he was still heartbroken for a while, but only for a while. Rational judgment of the situation and relationships easily covered up this weak emotion. However, because such weakness is becoming less and less, he can consider problems more rationally, more reasonably, and without any scruples. Like an extremely precise machine. A machine that operates and acts for power. Even he himself had to admit that in terms of using means to manipulate power, he has indeed reached a very high level.

  This is a height that has already lost its way back.

  The duke used his precise thinking to consider it briefly, and immediately determined that the tedious message deliberately passed on was just a cry of despair and anger from a beast in an absolute predicament. It expressed a bit of desperation and anger in his heart, but objectively, it would not have any effect.

  The messenger has already delivered the message, but this person hasn't shown up yet. There are only two possibilities: one is that he went to find reinforcements.

  The possibility is extremely slim. To know that this kid is now a wanted man by both the Church and the Empire, no matter who has great abilities, absolutely dare not help him with this. That would undoubtedly be equivalent to declaring oneself involved in the assassination of Bishop Ronis.

  The second possibility is that the person is already in the capital, but is hiding and not daring to come out, waiting for an opportunity to act. Thinking of this, the Duke immediately ordered the Capital Guard to be on high alert at all times. Also, please ask the Holy Knights to send someone to strengthen the guard of that prison threefold.

  That kid will definitely fall into his own trap. The Duke is very confident. People who are bound by emotions and driven by their impulses are completely synonymous with stupidity, and they absolutely cannot escape the intricate web of plots that they have carefully arranged for themselves.

  The prison of the Imperial Guard is a special prison ordered by the Duke. Now, outside, there are nearly a thousand elite soldiers stationed at all times. In between, there are also many people from the Holy Knights and wizards from the Magic Academy. And as soon as the wanted criminal's shadow is discovered, the Holy Knights led by Roland can arrive within ten minutes.

  The Duke was also asked by Roland about the case of Klaus and Little Ai, many ministers in the court even the Emperor himself advised him to investigate further. However, the Duke presented several convincing pieces of evidence, and during his discussion with the Emperor, he revealed his true feelings, crying and telling the story of his relationship with his daughter and his love for his assistant, but the situation was such that he had no choice but to prioritize justice over family ties to comfort the spirit of Bishop Ronis in heaven and bring out the real culprit. The Emperor, moved to tears, also stopped interfering with the Duke's actions from then on. And as long as the Emperor did not interfere, the Duke could do as he pleased.

  To be honest, this kind of sensational approach is not in line with the Duke's usual style. But he can't afford to care about that now. He has to get rid of that little brat as soon as possible. Because there are other things next.

  The duke imprisoned Klauvius and Xiao Yi together. Both were extremely important hostages. It was natural to concentrate them together in case of any accidents. The reason for doing so was also the Duke's respect for that escaped father.

  To be honest, the duke couldn't help but feel a little admiration for that good-for-nothing Marquis Elmer Ham. He was able to run away immediately after finishing his business, which was truly ingenious.

  Once things are done, his utility value is gone. Assassinating Archbishop, Duke will definitely silence him. And after silencing him, his son will definitely not escape either.

  It was only after he ran away that the Duke would not take action against Klaus in order to have leverage over him. So it was a wise decision for him to escape at the first opportunity. He is a clever man, so we must be on guard against his unexpected moves to take himself and his son away.

  However, the duke was not particularly concerned about the marquis either. At least for now, he was too busy dealing with the Asa incident to bother asking about him. After all, those things of the marquis were just some petty cleverness. Looking at that prodigal son's wretched appearance, although he had a clever mind that could see his own intentions, he wasted such a good brain and talent on sensual pleasures and those so-called artistic pursuits, ending up in a state of disarray and being blackmailed by himself.

  It is stupid to be dominated by one's emotions, and those petty cleverness are even more hopeless than stupidity.

  The greatest wisdom is to use it to make decisions, to give up all the things that hinder, to concentrate all one's energy on one's goal, and to utilize everything that can be utilized to reach the pinnacle of success. Just like oneself.

  As he thought of this, the duke felt as if a long-forgotten sense of grandeur was stirring in his chest. He stood at the window.

  The magnificent lights of the capital's buildings, towers and pavilions can all be taken in at a glance. The Duke stretched out his hand to grasp this scene, those hands full of blue veins, scars, marks of hard work and effort were grasped so strongly, so steadily. As if all this splendor he could hold in the palm of his hand. Of course, including those countless fools.

  On the other side of Wangdu, in a heavily guarded dungeon, two people who were once closest to the Duke now had feelings that were completely opposite to his. They couldn't see any prosperity or vitality, nor did they have the right to hope.

  The conditions in the dungeon were not bad, and were even better than those of an ordinary inn. These two, although prisoners, still had special identities. Moreover, the duke absolutely did not intend to mistreat them. He hoped that both of them would live well, at least until they were useful.

  There were no guards inside the dungeon. The words spoken by these two people were likely to be highly confidential, and the duke did not want any unnecessary trouble, even the ones who brought in food were deaf people specially found for this purpose.

  Klauz's life was saved thanks to the efforts of the priests at the Magic Academy, but his spirit had almost completely collapsed. As soon as he felt a little better physically, he would run to the steel fence every day and shout for Duke Mlak, shouting until his voice was completely hoarse, throwing all the food that was brought to him everywhere. Unfortunately, the duke had already issued an order regarding how to treat these two prisoners, so no matter how loudly Klauz shouted, there was no response.

  After no longer shouting, Klaus stared at his own completely ruined hand and cried and laughed. Sometimes he used his teeth to bite that hand until it was bloody, smashing everything in his cell into pieces. Sometimes he would smash himself against the wall until his head was bleeding, but he never committed suicide. For a while, Xiao Yi suspected that he had already gone completely mad.

  At last, after a hysterical and frantic outburst, Klaus suddenly calmed down. He only muttered in a crying tone: "It turns out that my only use value to him now is this life." Then he shrank into the corner of the wall and fell asleep.

  Xiao Yi's days in prison were much quieter and more stable. Of course, such quietness and stability are only relative to Klaus's situation. After all, she was imprisoned by her own father as bait to lure and kill the one she loved.

  No matter what kind of woman is in this situation, it's already very good if she doesn't become hysterical like Clavis. However, Xiao Yi calmed down after only one or two days of wandering and anxiety, eating the food sent over every day, resting well, and even starting to meditate, exercising her limbs in the narrow cell, just like a gladiator accumulating energy for an upcoming match. As for Clavis next to her, no matter how much she made a fuss, Xiao Yi completely ignored her.

  "Hey, can you hear me?" Suddenly one day, Klaus spoke up. Although it was a weak and toneless voice, it was no longer the mad howling, but rather speaking to someone else. And there was no third person in this dungeon.

  Xiao Yi was slightly surprised, but still replied calmly: "I can hear it."

  The two cells were diagonally opposite each other. As long as they didn't deliberately look at each other, they could only hear each other's voices.

  "Why are you so calm? Do you think he's going to come and rescue you?" Claudius asked.

  Xiao Yi was even more surprised, Klaudius should not have participated in the Duke's action this time, and most of the time he was in a daze. She couldn't help but ask: "Do you know why I was locked up?"

  "I overheard some conversations from the soldiers on my way here from the Duke's mansion, Bishop Ronis was assassinated, and they're after that bastard... I can pretty much guess what happened. I've always known about the Duke."

  "Oh, then you must know why he caught you too." Xiao Yi replied indifferently. She had never had a good impression of this person.

  "I think I can guess what happened even if I didn't know. My father went to see the Duke, and then Bishop was stabbed." Klaus's voice always had a hint of tears in it. "Do you know that we're probably doomed? If the Duke is willing to lock us up together knowing how much we know, he'll never let us out alive to talk."

  "Probably."

  "Why are you still so calm? Every day, making preparations. Fantasizing that he'll come to rescue you, and then the two of you will join forces like the male and female leads in a story and break through the siege to escape and fly away? Heh... Haha..." Klaus should be laughing, but the sound coming out is actually crying. It turns out that he's been paying attention to Xiao Yi's movements these past few days. "Do you think he'll come to rescue you? Knowing it's a death sentence, he'd still come? Is he that stupid?"

  Xiao Yi fell silent for a moment, muttering to himself: "I hope he's not that stupid. But... if he really comes, at least I'll try my best to let him leave safely."

  "Hahahaha….." Klaus burst into tears again. "Since the Duke has arranged it this way, there's absolutely no chance for you to struggle free. As soon as that bastard comes to rescue you and gets caught, you two will truly be a pair of mandarin ducks in the same fate."

  "It seems you really understand him." Xiao Yi's voice was always so calm.

  "I understand... of course I do. I've been following him for so long... haha... and I even know that he's actually being very kind to me. He didn't blind my eyes, cut off my tongue or sever the tendons in my hands and feet, and instead let me wait here to die a good death... haha."

  Xiao Yi didn't answer again. Klaus also stopped asking and after crying for a while, fell silent again.

  After passing a few more days in silence, Klauw suddenly asked: "Do you know how many days are left until the deadline given by the Duke to that bastard?"

  "Thirteen days." Xiao Yi replied. She remembered it very clearly every day.

  "Thirteen days. Hehe. You wait slowly then. See if he is a fool or you are the fool who believes he will come."

  Xiao Yi didn't respond and continued doing what she was supposed to do. Klaudius also fell silent.

  On the second day, Klaus spoke up again: "There are still twelve days left. The fool hasn't appeared yet... or maybe he has, but was already taken out by the soldiers outside. Hahahahaha... what a fool..."

  Xiao Yi ignored him.

  "There are only eleven days left... That fool must have been caught by the Duke. Haha. This hateful Duke won't kill him off so easily with just one knife. He'll definitely torture him slowly, one cut at a time. It's going to be such a delightful thing. Originally, I was supposed to be the one to take care of this... Hehehe... But now it's no longer possible. Looks like that fool had the foresight to cripple me first, haha... Hey, are you listening?... Hey, respond! Are you dead?"

  "There are only ten days left oh. You don't say anything anymore? Don't express your current thoughts at all? Haha..."

  "There are only nine days left. This number is not auspicious at all. Did you hear that? You stupid woman who believes in stupid things... Did, you, hear, me?" Haha...

  "There are only eight days left......" Klause would report the date every day, and then often talk nonsense that Xiao Yi didn't care about. And Xiao Yi indeed didn't pay attention to him either.

  "It's been seven days... Maybe soon someone will come to take you away, and the Duke himself will kill you? Haha... The Duke is so decisive, he can even kill his own daughter without hesitation. All of his actions are so rational and efficient. He's really my idol. Hahaha..."

  "Six days...."

  "Five days...."

  "Four days....."

  "Hey, stupid woman. Only three days left....."

  "Didn't you remind me today? There's only one more day left tomorrow." Xiaoyi suddenly spoke up on her own. Maybe it was because she had already gotten used to his nagging over the past few days, or maybe there was something in her heart that made her feel uneasy and wanted someone to talk to.

  "I'm tired, I don't want to say anything else." Klause's tone was already very calm and no longer as frantic as before. In fact, he seemed to be getting calmer and calmer, even not saying a word all day yesterday. "And these past few days, I've been thinking about things."

  "What's on your mind?" Xiaoyi now feels like there's something stuck in her heart. She really wants to talk to someone, even if it's this person who can be considered the most annoying person in the world.

  "Ah, I finally understand. I'm far inferior to you. We both know we're going to die, but you remain calm, preparing for a one-in-a-million chance. Meanwhile, I've almost lost my mind, clinging to the hope of a miracle... Now I comprehend my father's words: 'The higher you climb, the harder you fall, and the more painful it is.' I'm completely awake now. It's ironic that I despise my father the most, yet he's the one I miss the most right now..." He spoke non-stop, pouring out everything he'd been holding inside for days. "In reality, I was recognized as the greatest genius of our generation within the family. However, due to my father's influence, I've always been looked down upon and ostracized by others. I may not even have the right to be a member of this household in the future. I refused to accept it, so I worked even harder, making a vow to myself that I would stand out, possess the greatest power, and become the strongest person in the world. Finally, I was taken under Roland's wing as his disciple, with the chance to succeed him as the leader of the Holy Knights. I was overjoyed. And then, I met Duke Mlarak..."

  "The Duke is so strong, so intelligent, and so skilled at seizing power. His methods are so ingenious. He's the kind of person who can stand at the pinnacle of the world. He's my complete idol, my life goal. So I've made up my mind to follow the Duke no matter what. I have to become someone like the Duke."

  "When I became the Duke's subordinate, I was so happy. I felt like I had already reached the top of the world. I revered him as a god, and his orders were even greater than my own will. Alas... It's strange to say, but I admired him precisely because he knew how to use people, including myself. When I was no longer useful, he would discard me like a rag... What's wrong? Do you still find me detestable? Don't make a sound."

  "No. I'm just surprised, that's all." Xiaoyi's voice indeed carried a hint of unexpectedness in it.

  "What's surprising?"

  "Surprisingly, you're also a human being." Xiao Yi's tone returned to its usual calmness.

  "It's probably because I'm going to die soon. But it seems you'll be faster than me. You're going to die tomorrow." Klavius' voice was even calmer than Xiao Yi's, with emotions but no anger, as if a dead person was speaking.

  "...... Alright. I guess so."

  "Do you really think he will come to save you? Unfortunately, even if he wants to come, the earlier the better. The later it gets, the more heavily guarded the outside is. If it's a trial, then even if he comes, it's just to die with you together. So he hasn't come until now, which can only mean that he won't be coming."

  "It's better if you don't come." After saying this, Xiao Yi felt a mix of relief and sadness. The corners of her eyes were already moist.

  "He's not an idiot, you are."

  "Hum, aren't you also an idiot?"

  "Haha. Yeah, I'm an idiot." Klause said with self-mockery for the first time in his life. "But you, this idiot, will die before me. Just tomorrow."

  "Tomorrow..." Xiaoyi let out a long sigh, his low voice echoing in the dungeon.