“I’m not fond of adorning my speech with words like ‘revenge,’ ‘grudges,’ or ‘hatred.’ Cowards use literary embellishments to mask their incompetence, linguistically deconstructing their own fury… But now, as a Necromancer in the Exotic Lands, I have neither past nor future. Corpses are not just my medium; they are also my destiny.”
The Necromancer spoke with a chill in his voice, “I care nothing for long-term benefits. My mood is the sole standard for my actions.”
“It’s quite clear, considering your daily indulgence in Moon Sugar, that you’re intent on living a short life,” Igor raised an eyebrow. “Are you plotting revenge against Annan?”
“Perhaps,” Harvey smacked his lips, biting on his knuckle. “It mostly depends on how I feel at the moment. If I run out of sugar, just a touch of resentment might be enough to ignite my icy stream of fire… By the way, the night I left Shattered Lake Prison, I vowed to turn all those who aspired to be my superiors into adorable subordinates of my liking.”
“I’m not telling you this to invite you to join my plans for vengeance a hundred days in advance, just hoping that when the time comes, you’ll at least stand aside. I don’t want to engage with you. You’re not only troublesome but… I genuinely don’t want to.”
Ashe blinked, “Honestly, I’m a bit touched. After all, the first time we met, you discussed how my livor mortis could be made to look prettier…”
At this, Harvey was no longer sleepy. “If you let me prepare, I promise that no matter when you die, your body will bloom with beautiful black roses…”
“Worry not, Necromancer,” Igor replied coldly. “I won’t oppose you, nor will I join your foolish quest for revenge. I won’t deny that I still harbor resentment, but if Annan can make amends in the coming days, I might be able to let go of this ‘minor discord’.”
“After all, emotions are the least reliable thing. Even sworn enemies can turn into…” Igor paused, then abruptly changed the subject, “Speaking of which, Harvey, aren’t you worried that this room might be bugged? Your declaration of revenge could have already been overheard by Annan.”
“Ah, that’s right, I’m done for,” Harvey smacked his head, “It seems I really have had too much Moon Sugar…”
“What about you?” Igor turned to Ashe, “Do you want revenge on Annan?”
“You’re asking me to speak ill of someone behind their back, fully aware we could be listened in on?” Ashe retorted, but then tilted his head, pondering, “To be honest, I’m more curious than vengeful.”
“Curious?”
“Curious about how she will use us,” Ashe said. “Being a chess player allows one to control their own Destiny, but even as a mere pawn, can’t one still admire the grandeur of the player’s strategies up close?”
“But she first sold you to the Four Pillars Cult and then used trickery to force you into a Slave Contract. Do you not hold any resentment?”
“There might be some resentment, but it dissipated quite a bit when the Butler bought me boxers,” Ashe sighed, “I admit I’m a man of weak will, easily swayed by small kindnesses. Frankly, I’m now worried that Annan might try to seduce me with beauty tricks…”
Igor snickered at that, “If Fernand Snow heard you calling yourself an honest man, he’d be livid enough to crawl out of the sixth layer of hell.”
“So, you’re not planning on taking revenge?” Harvey asked.
“If I were to seek revenge, it wouldn’t be for the grievances of the first day,” Ashe said, looking out at the neon-lit night scene, “but for the disappointments accumulated over the following 101 days.”
“As for that Contract, I never cared much about it.”
Ashe turned his head to look at them, “Do you really think a mere Contract can bind me?”
Hearing such a brazen statement, Igor instinctively wanted to scoff, but as he looked at Ashe’s face, somehow bright, somehow shadowed, he found himself at a loss for words, as if overpowered.
Was it because of the persuasive power that came with the Cult Leader’s notorious past?
Was it because this Prison Escapee possessed a power that couldn’t be ignored?
Or was it because… he had come to deeply understand that this man named Ashe Heath was the most terrifying among them?
The malice wrapped under that human skin could become a wind that sweeps everything before it, turning the windmill of calamity—
“I am indeed a national-level master of backing out, a professional touch fish, an annual subscriber to the company Restroom, a platinum salary thief. I’m no good at working, but I’m the best at taking a break,” Ashe said languidly. “To think a mere Contract would make me work, you’re really underestimating me.”
“…” Igor lightly slapped himself.
“But Ashe, besides the 101-day Contract, you also have a lifetime Contract with that little girl,” Harvey reminded. “Are you ready to be a dad?”
At this, Ashe’s face darkened—by now he knew all too well why the little girl Lise had sought him out; she had targeted him because of his soft heart, boldly making those two outrageous vows.
Someone like Annan or Igor, who grew up eating the bread of sorrows, would never Sign such an absurdly tyrannical Contract with her. It was only Ashe, already accustomed to being squeezed by unscrupulous corporate Contracts, who was taken in by her cuteness and didn’t react in time, ending up thoroughly trapped.
Annan was willing to let Ashe Sign a Contract with Lise because she didn’t want to shoulder two extra burdens. Although she could have Lise not make excessive demands, naturally, the fewer Contract promises, the better.
Igor looked at Harvey strangely, “You still don’t know the meaning of being a dad?”
“I do,” Harvey shrugged. “But isn’t it fun to tease Ashe about it?”
Watching Ashe’s frustrated expression, Igor coughed and said nonchalantly, “The Contract system here is different from the one under the Blood Moon, but Annan wouldn’t use any particularly grand Ritual for it. At most, it might bind a Two Wings Sorcerer. If you give me some time to study, perhaps I could—”
Knock knock.
The Butler boy opened the door and said politely, “Miss invites you to discuss in the hall. If you’d like to Rest for the evening, it can be postponed until tomorrow.”
“I don’t know if I have to sell my body or my Soul next, but I certainly can’t sleep,” Igor said coldly. “Lead the way.”
He thought for a moment and decided not to make any light promises to Ashe just yet—Rule Six for a Con Artist: don’t reveal your hand before the deal is done.
Unless it’s a client you want to deceive, don’t give away hope too lightly.
Following the Butler, Ashe wasn’t thinking about the Destiny that lay ahead.
The reason he so quickly accepted his new identity and was willing to accept Annan’s temporary leadership was not just because of the traditional adaptation skill of ‘in for a penny, in for a pound,’ but also because he suddenly acquired a strange new Occupational Trait—
“Occupation: Calamity Walker/Social Idler”
“Occupational Traits: Normal state Luck Check +5, critical moments Luck Check -50, more likely to trigger mysterious events, more likely to encounter complications, more likely to be observed by Destiny, more likely to trigger major failures. The appetite of the spirit is reduced, feeding requirements decreased by 50%.”
“I’m not fond of adorning my speech with words like ‘revenge,’ ‘grudges,’ or ‘hatred.’ Cowards use literary embellishments to mask their incompetence, linguistically deconstructing their own fury… But now, as a Necromancer in the Exotic Lands, I have neither past nor future. Corpses are not just my medium; they are also my destiny.”
The Necromancer spoke with a chill in his voice, “I care nothing for long-term benefits. My mood is the sole standard for my actions.”
“It’s quite clear, considering your daily indulgence in Moon Sugar, that you’re intent on living a short life,” Igor raised an eyebrow. “Are you plotting revenge against Annan?”
“Perhaps,” Harvey smacked his lips, biting on his knuckle. “It mostly depends on how I feel at the moment. If I run out of sugar, just a touch of resentment might be enough to ignite my icy stream of fire… By the way, the night I left Shattered Lake Prison, I vowed to turn all those who aspired to be my superiors into adorable subordinates of my liking.”
“I’m not telling you this to invite you to join my plans for vengeance a hundred days in advance, just hoping that when the time comes, you’ll at least stand aside. I don’t want to engage with you. You’re not only troublesome but… I genuinely don’t want to.”
Ashe blinked, “Honestly, I’m a bit touched. After all, the first time we met, you discussed how my livor mortis could be made to look prettier…”
At this, Harvey was no longer sleepy. “If you let me prepare, I promise that no matter when you die, your body will bloom with beautiful black roses…”
“Worry not, Necromancer,” Igor replied coldly. “I won’t oppose you, nor will I join your foolish quest for revenge. I won’t deny that I still harbor resentment, but if Annan can make amends in the coming days, I might be able to let go of this ‘minor discord’.”
“After all, emotions are the least reliable thing. Even sworn enemies can turn into…” Igor paused, then abruptly changed the subject, “Speaking of which, Harvey, aren’t you worried that this room might be bugged? Your declaration of revenge could have already been overheard by Annan.”
“Ah, that’s right, I’m done for,” Harvey smacked his head, “It seems I really have had too much Moon Sugar…”
“What about you?” Igor turned to Ashe, “Do you want revenge on Annan?”
“You’re asking me to speak ill of someone behind their back, fully aware we could be listened in on?” Ashe retorted, but then tilted his head, pondering, “To be honest, I’m more curious than vengeful.”
“Curious?”
“Curious about how she will use us,” Ashe said. “Being a chess player allows one to control their own Destiny, but even as a mere pawn, can’t one still admire the grandeur of the player’s strategies up close?”
“But she first sold you to the Four Pillars Cult and then used trickery to force you into a Slave Contract. Do you not hold any resentment?”
“There might be some resentment, but it dissipated quite a bit when the Butler bought me boxers,” Ashe sighed, “I admit I’m a man of weak will, easily swayed by small kindnesses. Frankly, I’m now worried that Annan might try to seduce me with beauty tricks…”
Igor snickered at that, “If Fernand Snow heard you calling yourself an honest man, he’d be livid enough to crawl out of the sixth layer of hell.”
“So, you’re not planning on taking revenge?” Harvey asked.
“If I were to seek revenge, it wouldn’t be for the grievances of the first day,” Ashe said, looking out at the neon-lit night scene, “but for the disappointments accumulated over the following 101 days.”
“As for that Contract, I never cared much about it.”
Ashe turned his head to look at them, “Do you really think a mere Contract can bind me?”
Hearing such a brazen statement, Igor instinctively wanted to scoff, but as he looked at Ashe’s face, somehow bright, somehow shadowed, he found himself at a loss for words, as if overpowered.
Was it because of the persuasive power that came with the Cult Leader’s notorious past?
Was it because this Prison Escapee possessed a power that couldn’t be ignored?
Or was it because… he had come to deeply understand that this man named Ashe Heath was the most terrifying among them?
The malice wrapped under that human skin could become a wind that sweeps everything before it, turning the windmill of calamity—
“I am indeed a national-level master of backing out, a professional touch fish, an annual subscriber to the company Restroom, a platinum salary thief. I’m no good at working, but I’m the best at taking a break,” Ashe said languidly. “To think a mere Contract would make me work, you’re really underestimating me.”
“…” Igor lightly slapped himself.
“But Ashe, besides the 101-day Contract, you also have a lifetime Contract with that little girl,” Harvey reminded. “Are you ready to be a dad?”
At this, Ashe’s face darkened—by now he knew all too well why the little girl Lise had sought him out; she had targeted him because of his soft heart, boldly making those two outrageous vows.
Someone like Annan or Igor, who grew up eating the bread of sorrows, would never Sign such an absurdly tyrannical Contract with her. It was only Ashe, already accustomed to being squeezed by unscrupulous corporate Contracts, who was taken in by her cuteness and didn’t react in time, ending up thoroughly trapped.
Annan was willing to let Ashe Sign a Contract with Lise because she didn’t want to shoulder two extra burdens. Although she could have Lise not make excessive demands, naturally, the fewer Contract promises, the better.
Igor looked at Harvey strangely, “You still don’t know the meaning of being a dad?”
“I do,” Harvey shrugged. “But isn’t it fun to tease Ashe about it?”
Watching Ashe’s frustrated expression, Igor coughed and said nonchalantly, “The Contract system here is different from the one under the Blood Moon, but Annan wouldn’t use any particularly grand Ritual for it. At most, it might bind a Two Wings Sorcerer. If you give me some time to study, perhaps I could—”
Knock knock.
The Butler boy opened the door and said politely, “Miss invites you to discuss in the hall. If you’d like to Rest for the evening, it can be postponed until tomorrow.”
“I don’t know if I have to sell my body or my Soul next, but I certainly can’t sleep,” Igor said coldly. “Lead the way.”
He thought for a moment and decided not to make any light promises to Ashe just yet—Rule Six for a Con Artist: don’t reveal your hand before the deal is done.
Unless it’s a client you want to deceive, don’t give away hope too lightly.
Following the Butler, Ashe wasn’t thinking about the Destiny that lay ahead.
The reason he so quickly accepted his new identity and was willing to accept Annan’s temporary leadership was not just because of the traditional adaptation skill of ‘in for a penny, in for a pound,’ but also because he suddenly acquired a strange new Occupational Trait—
“Occupation: Calamity Walker/Social Idler”
“Occupational Traits: Normal state Luck Check +5, critical moments Luck Check -50, more likely to trigger mysterious events, more likely to encounter complications, more likely to be observed by Destiny, more likely to trigger major failures. The appetite of the spirit is reduced, feeding requirements decreased by 50%.”
