Footsteps echoed through the silent space. The deeper they went, the more terrifyingly quiet everything became. The slaves here grew increasingly calm, no longer resembling the howling beasts outside. Smiley and the others stopped before a special cell, its iron bars engraved with strange symbols, as if meant to prevent whatever was inside from escaping.

  Shelley glanced toward a small cell illuminated by the flickering glow of a magic stone. The unstable light made her heart pound, a vague but lingering sense of fear brushing across her mind.

  Inside sat a long haired girl curled up in a dark corner. She was painfully thin, her fingers tipped with long, twisted, razor sharp nails. Around her lay the gnawed remains of some beast, torn apart and half devoured. She wore a long white dress stained with blood and dirt, and she raised her milky white eyes to stare toward the three of them.

  “Lost her sight and sense of smell. Successfully fused with the heart of an Orbis possessing enhancement and acceleration abilities. She can track her prey, close in, and tear it apart before it even realizes what is happening. She is fairly strong. Her mind has some issues, but nothing too serious. Just do not let her starve and she will stay curled up in a corner like this. Obedient and easy to manage. Hey. Tris. Come here. Daddy is calling you.”

  Smiley rattled the iron bars and shouted, as if signaling Tris. The girl slowly crawled out of the darkness, her sharp nails retracting, revealing a pitiful and haggard face.

  “She is just a little girl,” Shelley covered her mouth in shock.

  “Like so many other miserable children, miss. The problem is there are far too many of them. A war sweeps through and leaves behind countless ruined lives.”

  Smiley clicked his tongue. This was nothing compared to what he had seen before. If not for the successful fusion, Tris would have been no different from any other nameless corpse rotting away in some forgotten corner.

  “Dad... Dad... Hug. Hug me,” Tris raised her frail arms, her blood smeared smile carrying a disturbing edge.

  “See. She is adorable, is she not. Cheap too. Just ten gold,” Smiley rubbed his hands together as he negotiated, ignoring Tris as she tried to reach for him through the bars.

  “One gold,” Mulock raised a single finger, his expression cold.

  “Deal,” Smiley burst into laughter.

  Standing beside them, Shelley was stunned. What kind of negotiation was that. She looked at Mulock with admiration. If he ever bargained like this, even her perfume would not be worth much.

  Tris was released from the cell, her mouth locked shut and her hands shackled. She stood quietly like a doll, barely reaching half of Shelley’s height. Seeing such a pitiful child, a motherly compassion welled up inside Shelley, and she gently stroked the girl’s head.

  The moment Shelley’s hand touched Tris’s filthy hair, the girl seemed to sense something strange. A feeling of satisfaction spread throughout her body, sending shivers across her skin. A sensation she had not experienced for a very, very long time. Tris suddenly clung to Shelley, startling her, burying her face against Shelley’s stomach and rubbing her head against her.

  “Looks like she likes you, miss,” Smiley laughed loudly. His laughter was sickening and deeply unpleasant, yet he seemed to enjoy it immensely.

  Deep down, Smiley felt puzzled. What had Shelley done. Aside from whips and starvation, he could not think of any other way to tame this feral beast.

  Shelley lifted the girl into her arms. Tris curled up like a small cat. She was lighter than Shelley had expected. After squirming for a while, Tris fell asleep, her face filled with contentment.

  Mulock frowned as he watched the scene. He had not spent even one gold to buy a pet for Shelley. He needed a killing tool, something that would ensure his survival on Fallen Island.

  “Do not tell me you are getting attached to it. It is just a tool. It will be discarded and left to die when necessary,” Mulock said calmly. There was a reason the mortality rate of Mulock’s companions was so high. Quite simply, he would not help anyone who fell behind.

  Shelley remained silent. She did not answer, only tightened her embrace around Tris. She seemed to realize something, a sense of completeness in her own creation, something her Frankenstein had lacked.

  They did not linger. There was still work to be done. Once again, the corridor drowned in darkness echoed with the footsteps of buyers. Each time they stopped, and the sound of iron bars opening rang out, it marked another life being bought out of the Freak Show, another soul granted redemption. Mulock, at the very least, gave them the freedom they desired. No longer beasts confined behind iron bars, they were allowed to live as humans, at least until the moment they faced death.

  A beggar cloaked from head to toe appeared within the frozen Crystal Valley. The howling cold winds failed to halt the figure’s steps, as if the chill meant nothing at all. Within the hollow of the eyes burned a strange black flame as the figure stared down at the town of MoonLight below. According to the intelligence gathered from the black market and Exitus, this was where Lady Lust resided.

  MoonLight was currently hosting the Crystal Moon Festival, famous throughout all of Greaton. Tourists and adventurers from every corner gathered here simply to witness the beautiful and romantic sight, when the full white moon illuminated the glittering crystal spires scattered across the valley.

  Eldan StormBlade and his companions wandered through the town, enjoying their respite before setting sail once more and returning to Noland. Eldan was the young generation’s hero of Greaton, the son of the great Hestor. He inherited his family’s flame controlling power, peerless swordsmanship, and the legendary fire blade Fearless. Yet even so, there was one person he could never conquer.

  Eldan took a gloomy sip of IceMeli, a chilled variant of Meli, gentler for beginners. Ever since Saphira returned to the academy from Evergreen, she had seemed strangely melancholic. Others claimed that the incident where her team was attacked and captured by Red Orcs still haunted her, but Eldan knew that was not the case. More than once, he had seen her gazing tenderly at the portrait of the wanted criminal Exitus.

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  Eldan felt deeply jealous. She had rejected his pursuit, a heroic warrior of Greaton, only to pine after a wanted fugitive, the successor of the DarkGod Madenes. Eldan never believed himself inferior to that brat in any way. He had better origins, better looks. Even if he was currently weaker, that was only because Exitus relied on nightmare power. Eldan believed that given enough time, he would stand equal to his father Hestor and become a powerful Emperor.

  Accompanying Eldan were naturally his three teammates, Max StrongHold, Hera SpellSpeaker, and Merian Divilight. When Hera noticed Eldan staring blankly while fiddling with his cup, she bit her lip in frustration. She knew exactly what he was thinking about, that Elf woman. Hera admitted she was not as beautiful as her. The first time she saw Saphira, even she had felt envy at that sacred and noble beauty. But Hera could not accept it. She had always cared for Eldan, fought alongside him through life and death across countless battles. Could that really amount to less than some distant stranger?

  Max and Merian were far more carefree. They wandered between street stalls in search of tasty snacks, even as their mouths were already stuffed with food they had not finished chewing.

  “Hey… munch munch… maybe we could… munch munch…” Max spoke while eating, his massive arms cradling piles of roasted meat and fruit.

  “Finish eating before you talk,” Hera snapped irritably, letting out a sigh as if she had long grown used to their behavior.

  “Let’s visit the Frozen Coffin. That’s where Hrothgar Frostbane, the leader of the Ice Giants, fell,” Merian bounced excitedly as she spoke, her mouth smeared with grease. She had read countless books. Though Hrothgar had been a savage giant, he was still a hero who opposed Madenes. That was why Greaton preserved his corpse as a mark of respect.

  After some thought, Eldan nodded. He too wished to witness the image of a hero from the past. Although the place lay deep within the IceMount range, where temperatures were brutally cold, Eldan felt no concern. In his hand was the legendary fire blade Fearless. The fire element within the sword was more than enough to shield them from the merciless chill of IceMount.

  Suddenly, a cloaked figure brushed past them, startling the group. A chill ran straight down Eldan’s spine, making him tremble. He was certain the one who had just passed by was extraordinarily powerful. That presence was something he had only ever sensed from his father. In other words, an Emperor had just walked past them. What was an Emperor doing in this desolate frozen land? Eldan wondered.

  Valen glanced back at the youngsters who were quickly moving away. As a being who had existed since the era of the DarkGod, she had sensed the presence of Fearless, that cursed thing which had ended her former master’s life. A mad impulse slowly flickered in Valen’s mind, only to be extinguished just as quickly. She sighed. She now served a new master. It was far too risky to provoke hostility with Greaton at this moment. She should focus on the task at hand. Tracking down the whereabouts of Lady Lust.

  At this moment, at the famed Full Moon Lake, moonlight poured down and illuminated the entire surface of the water. The reflection of the full moon shimmered upon the lake like a radiant pearl. It was an exceedingly romantic place, perfectly suited for young lovers. Couples embraced one another, exchanged passionate kisses, and whispered sweet promises under the flawless witness of the unblemished moon.

  In a secluded area nearby, where the moonlight was blocked by dense shrubs, a solitary and out of place figure stood alone. She wore an elegant white evening gown, her arms covered by silk gloves, and upon her face rested a noble masquerade mask adorned with a refined white rose. She was strikingly conspicuous, yet no one seemed aware of her existence. She stood silently, her gaze fixed upon the full moon in the sky, her eyes steeped in profound sorrow.

  “It was truly difficult to find you, Lady Lust.”

  From behind, a soft voice broke the stillness. Valen appeared, standing beside Lady Lust. She removed her hood, revealing a skull with hollow eye sockets in which pitch black flames flickered. Valen smiled cheerfully. She could sense nightmare energy swirling around the woman beside her. There was no doubt about it. This was a bearer of a Wish.

  “How could an unknown Lich find me at precisely this moment?”

  Lady Lust spoke. Her voice was gentle like an orchid, pure and serene like the still surface of the lake. She was cold like ice that had endured for ten thousand years, colder even than the climate of the IceStorm lands. Though Valen stood close, she could not see Lady Lust’s face. It seemed veiled by a layer of hazy mist, yet one thing was clear. She was beautiful. Valen frowned. Even as a Lich, she found herself instinctively acknowledging the other’s beauty. As a practitioner of spiritual magic, Valen understood exactly what this represented.

  Valen immediately leapt backward to create distance, then activated her Will, cloaking her body in a pale white barrier, yet it was useless. The longer it went on, the more infatuated she became with Lady Lust’s presence. The black flames in her eye sockets gradually shrank and weakened. At that moment, a sheet of paper flew out from within Valen’s body and hovered before her. Upon it was written a single word. Medusa.

  “Wake up. Do not look at her.” Exitus’s voice echoed within her mind.

  The flames in her eyes flared back to life. Valen shuddered in fear and hastily covered her eyes with her hood. Lady Lust glanced lightly at the floating page and gently blew a soft breath toward it. Moments later, the page froze solid, fell to the ground, and shattered into pitch black smoke.

  “So he truly is the final possessor of a Wish. He is already capable of bestowing his power upon his own followers,” Lady Lust chuckled softly.

  The page was merely a fragment formed from nightmare energy, not the true body itself. Still, it was enough to pull Valen out of her trance.

  “I am not here to start a conflict this time. I am here to make a deal,” Valen said hurriedly. She feared Lady Lust might do something dangerous. After all, in theory, they were enemies.

  Lady Lust had indeed intended to destroy Valen. A frigid current swirled around her fingertips, then dissipated. She did not want her location to become known.

  “A deal?” Lady Lust felt intrigued.

  Valen produced another page from her person. At its top was the title Soul Taker.

  “This page can store and preserve a soul permanently. My master believes you may have need of it.”

  Lady Lust stared at the page with fervent intensity. As expected, that boy had some way of extracting information about the other Wish bearers. Her expression darkened, she truly needed this page.

  “What do you want in exchange?” Lady Lust asked slowly.

  “A body,” Valen replied softly.

  “Only that?” Lady Lust was surprised. If that was all, then it was exceedingly simple. After all, this was her specialty.

  Lady Lust snapped her fingers. The surface of the lake shattered like a broken mirror. Strangely, everyone around them remained completely unaware. A passage appeared, spiraling like a whirlpool in the heart of the lake. Lady Lust leapt in, with Valen following close behind. Valen traveled alongside Lady Lust through a strange space filled with shattered mirror fragments. Each fragment reflected a different location. Some showed Hesmor, some the BloodClaw Plains, others Break Island.

  Lady Lust pulled down one fragment, revealing the scene within. An ice tower stood inside, housing countless frozen corpses sealed within a massive crystal block. The mirror expanded into a doorway. Lady Lust stepped through and gestured for Valen to follow.

  Valen was overwhelmed by the towering crystal mass that pierced the sky. It contained an immeasurable number of bodies, each preserved in perfect condition. Aside from their pale whiteness, they looked no different from people peacefully asleep.

  Lady Lust snapped her fingers, causing a frozen throne to rise from the ground. She sat upon it leisurely like a queen, her cold gaze looking down upon Valen as she asked slowly.

  “Welcome to the World of Mirrors. Now tell me, unknown Lich. What exactly is your request.”