"Who are you? Even if you are stunningly beautiful, that doesn't give you the right to accuse someone without reason," Ryan frowned, his tone full of grievance and confusion."And… where exactly is this place?"

  He propped himself up and tried to climb off the bed, pretending to walk toward the door to gauge Evelyn's reaction.

  In his view, Evelyn had spared him several times already, so there must be some emotional foundation between them. She would not really harm him.

  A flash of ice-blue magic swept through the room. The ultimate ice sword instantly drew, its blade pressed tightly against Ryan's neck, and the chilling touch spread across his body in an instant.

  Ryan's expression froze. This time he was genuinely startled. He had not expected Evelyn to strike so suddenly.

  "Don't get excited! Let's talk this through!" Ryan quickly raised his hands.

  With the sword pressing against his neck, he did not dare take a single breath, fearing that any slight movement would slice his throat.

  He thought to himself that since he was pretending to have amnesia, he could retain some of his original behavior, but under no circumstances could he reveal anything related to Evelyn. Otherwise, all his previous acting would have been in vain.

  "Master, kill him now! This guy is definitely faking amnesia. You can't trust him!"

  "Master, he's lying to you…"

  A young, angry voice came from the ultimate ice sword, but halfway through the words, it turned into a whimper. Evelyn had clearly sealed the sword spirit's ability to speak with her magic.

  "Lie back down," Evelyn said.

  Ryan dared not resist in the slightest. He stiffly moved back onto the bed and obediently lay down.

  "Tell me, who are you?" Evelyn looked down at him, her eyes full of scrutiny.

  She wanted to see what tricks he was trying to play, whether he truly had amnesia or was pretending. Today, she would find out.

  "Me?" Ryan hesitated for a moment, then displayed a completely confused expression."Who am I?"

  At that moment, he feigned genuine shock, acting as if he had forgotten even his own name, panic making his hands and feet flail about. Of course, all of this was an act.

  "And where is this place?" he asked tremblingly, fear and confusion nearly overflowing from his eyes.

  Evelyn's brows knitted tighter. For a moment, she could not tell if his words were real.

  She paused, then deliberately tested him:"This is the Shadow Demon Palace."

  "Shadow Demon Palace? You're the Demon Queen!" Ryan shrank into the corner of the bed, trembling uncontrollably.

  The realism of his reaction caused a faint, inexplicable smile to appear in Evelyn's mind, though she forced it down, her face remaining cold and indifferent.

  Instantly, bone-chilling cold enveloped Evelyn, her magical pressure layering and pressing toward Ryan.

  "If you have amnesia, why do you know the Demon Queen? Stop pretending. This is your last chance."

  Seeing this, Ryan immediately pretended to panic even more, leaping past Evelyn in a flurry and stumbling toward the door.

  Evelyn did not stop him. She stood quietly in place, her gaze indifferent.

  She had already set up a magical barrier; this guy was essentially trapped, and she did not fear him escaping in the slightest.

  What she wanted was to watch him panic and flee, to confirm whether he was truly pretending to have amnesia.

  "Help! There's a Demon Queen! Someone save me!" Ryan ran outside, staggering and shouting at the top of his lungs.

  Yet in his heart, he was elated. Evelyn's performance as the Demon Queen was surprisingly convincing, and in a way, it reminded him of his own acting style.

  Ryan did not use a shred of magic, nor did he employ any footwork throughout the entire ordeal.

  Love what you're reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

  Since he was pretending to have amnesia, he had to appear completely oblivious to his magical abilities, leaving no cracks for Evelyn to detect.

  "Grimoire, seal my physical magic and leave only the constitution of a normal mortal," Ryan urgently instructed in his mind.

  【Physical magic sealed. Can be lifted at any time. A fee of one thousand Origin Value has been deducted for this service.】

  Ryan cursed at Grimoire in his mind. In the past, performing this kind of operation never required a fee. Now, every action came with an extra charge, forcibly deducted without even asking him. It was utterly overbearing.

  A sharp gust of wind suddenly blew through the room, and Evelyn instantly teleported in front of him, blocking his path.

  Startled by the sudden turn of events, Ryan stepped back abruptly. Deliberately tripping himself, he fell awkwardly into the snow.

  With his physical magic sealed, he was now no different from an ordinary mortal. His arm slammed heavily against the icy ground, instantly cutting a long gash.

  Bright red blood gushed out, quickly soaking the white snow beneath him. The contrast of red and white was jarring.

  A flicker of emotion crossed Evelyn's eyes, a barely perceptible hint of pity, but she quickly suppressed it.

  She had to stay calm and see clearly whether he was truly amnesiac or just pretending.

  "No matter how much you scream, no one will come to save you," Evelyn's voice was icy and emotionless.

  "No one will come to save you!" Ryan immediately echoed her words, shouting in the same serious tone. The sincerity in his act forced Evelyn to halt mid-step.

  His character remained just as irreverent, just as unpredictable.

  Yet it was this familiar irreverence that puzzled Evelyn even more: Was he truly amnesiac, or was he pretending, with his nature unchanged?

  "Don't kill me! I'll do anything! Laundry, cooking, cleaning, anything!" Ryan sat in the snow, using his bleeding hands to support himself as he slowly backed away, his face full of fear and desolation.

  "Then I want you dead." Evelyn's expression remained cold, her surrounding magical pressure intensifying. The decisiveness in her voice caused Ryan's pupils to contract sharply.

  "Don't kill me! I'll obey everything you say, I swear I won't disobey!" Ryan continued moving backward in the snow. His voice trembled and choked up, tears glistening in his eyes.

  Evelyn stepped slowly through the snow, advancing toward him. Each step felt like it pressed directly onto his heart.

  Seeing Ryan's bleeding arm, the wound coated with icy snow, along with his unmasked panic and the despair deep in his eyes, Evelyn's doubt began to waver.

  Was he truly amnesiac?

  If he were pretending, he would not have refrained from using even a bit of magic or footwork.

  Back in the Sanctum of the Sacred Sword, his speed alone had been enough to maneuver around her or even escape.

  Moreover, his physical magic was incredibly strong. How could he fall and bleed so easily?

  "Eat this." Evelyn took a small black pill from her storage ring, its surface faintly radiating healing magic, and offered it to Ryan.

  Ryan's eyes widened in alarm. This was a high-tier restorative pill!

  This pill was meant specifically for rapidly healing physical injuries. Why was Evelyn treating it like she was feeding him poison?

  Since you love acting so much, I'll play along to the end. Let's put on a good show! Ryan chuckled inwardly, but his face instantly switched to one of extreme fear.

  "No, I won't eat it." He trembled all over, his voice choked with sobs, eyes darting away, unwilling to look at Evelyn.

  "Hm?" Evelyn's brow arched slightly, her tone even colder.

  "I'll eat it! I'll eat it!" Ryan immediately changed his mind. Struggling, he climbed up from the snow, trembling as he carefully reached out and took the restorative pill as if it were a scalding poison.

  His eyes were red-rimmed. He glanced up briefly at Evelyn's icy face, then quickly looked down again. His long lashes shivered, and the tiny snowflakes clinging to the corners of his eyes looked, at a glance, like tears.

  "Hurry up and eat it." Evelyn's cold voice urged again.

  The pressure in her words made Ryan shiver violently. His hand holding the pill shook even more as he slowly brought it toward his lips.

  But just as it was about to touch them, he froze, fingers curling, pretending to hesitate as if he absolutely refused to eat it.

  "What is this?" Ryan feigned complete ignorance, his voice full of fear, asking cautiously.

  "Poison," Evelyn replied.

  Ryan's legs immediately went weak, and he slumped into the snow, his hands holding the pill convulsing uncontrollably.

  "Can I not eat it?" he pleaded, his eyes full of despair.

  Evelyn remained silent and instead began counting. Her clear, icy voice pressed into his mind like magic, step by step breaking down Ryan's psychological defenses.

  "I'll eat it!" Ryan then acted as if he had nothing to lose. He lifted the blood-stained pill and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing and swallowing hastily, as if swallowing poison.

  Not long after swallowing, his body went limp, as if all his strength had left him. He collapsed straight into the snow, eyes slowly closing, perfectly mimicking someone overwhelmed and fainted.

  Evelyn watched his exaggerated performance and could not help but let out a soft laugh.

  She had to admit, the sight of him scared was strangely cute.

  She stepped forward, noting that the wound on his arm was already beginning to heal thanks to the restorative pill. She bent down, scooped him up horizontally, and carried him back inside.

  The room next door, which Ryan had previously caused to collapse, still hadn't been tidied up.

  Outside, snow swirled wildly in the late night, and the wind howled, yet inside, the room was exceptionally warm.

  Evelyn sat in the chair meditating, magic swirling around her. She drew waves of ambient magic into her body, steadily increasing her magical power.

  On the bed, Ryan's mind was already fully awake. In fact, he had never truly fainted at all.

  "Ah!" To make his act more convincing, Ryan suddenly sat up on the bed, eyes wide open, yelling loudly. He flailed his arms and legs wildly, as if waking from a terrifying nightmare.

  After shouting, he paused, staring at his palms. The blood on his arms had already been wiped clean by Evelyn with a towel.

  The once gruesome wound had completely healed under the potent restorative effect of the high-tier pill, leaving no scar at all.

  Ryan turned his head, cautiously scanning the room. The fear in his eyes gradually resurfaced, as if he had completely forgotten where he was and all that had happened before.