Su Cheng fell silent for a few seconds.
Perhaps Kai wouldn't want her to do this—taking risks for what he wanted, cooperating with the Imperial Princess using this fake identity, and most likely not for a good cause.
But she really wanted to repay him.
Even if he might say that finding out the whereabouts of the dragon bone was repayment enough.
But that was a mission established back when they first met; now, she was no longer satisfied with just that.
"Your Highness, do you know me?" Su Cheng asked.
The Princess laughed. "Miss Kahn, before tonight's banquet, I knew nothing about you. But I had someone look into you just now, and I found that you can indeed help me."
Su Cheng put on an expression that showed she was willing to listen.
"You have Elven blood, and on the surface, you are a wind mage. But in reality, you have also mastered some unknown forbidden arts—"
The red-haired woman curled her lips into a smile. "Your residence wasn't cleaned up properly, so I can roughly guess what those are."
Su Cheng said nothing.
She had asked Camus to find out Vanessa's address and left some traces inside on purpose to create this exact misleading impression.
Moreover, Vanessa herself was definitely not simple.
After all, if she were purely researching wind magic, getting injured would be normal, but the probability of accidentally killing herself was not high.
It might be possible for a high-tier mage, but Vanessa was only at the third tier.
So the forbidden curse that killed her was highly likely not ordinary elemental magic, or it was mixed with something else.
Aquila acted very quickly; she must have sent someone to search Vanessa's house not too long ago.
"Your Highness—" Su Cheng started.
The Princess raised a hand to interrupt her. "I won't look into it. After all, I am not from the Church. I merely found that your skills are exactly what I need for a certain task."
Su Cheng took a deep breath. "Your Highness must have many hidden talents among your subordinates—"
"Oh, I can certainly find such people," Aquila said, pausing for a moment. "But they aren't as... obscure as you. At least relatively speaking. Not many people would suspect you. And you don't need to worry; I won't give you a task you cannot complete."
"Your Highness," Su Cheng sighed, "the auction has only just begun."
She turned her head to look at the auction floor outside. The host's loud voice echoed through the hall as he introduced the first item.
"...The Offenmoor Crystal! One of the most excellent meditation aids! It can help you focus your spiritual energy, making it easier for you to establish a connection with elemental spirits!"
In the display cabinet right in the center of the high platform hovered a fist-sized crystal ball. It was translucent, with faint silver mist flowing inside.
The host reached out and touched the crystal ball. The mist inside suddenly condensed, and a faint glow of fire permeated the surrounding air.
"...Starting price: five hundred gold coins!"
"Meaning," Su Cheng turned back, "for the dragon bone, you'll probably have to bid against Princess Cassiopeia? And there might be others joining your battle?"
She didn't want to show her desperation for the dragon bone. She paused for a moment and deliberately revealed a hint of greed.
"Forgive my presumption, but if the dragon bone doesn't fall into your hands, are there any other items of equal value... that can be used for our deal?"
"Hmm?" The Princess raised an eyebrow, looking a bit displeased. "If I want something, it will definitely be mine, because I am wealthier. Moreover, Cassiopeia has more than one target. To be precise, she just wants to buy something to please His Eminence the Archbishop, so she isn't limited to a specific auction item. As long as she can achieve her goal, substituting it with another item is fine. Do you understand now?"
Su Cheng nodded slowly.
For the Princesses, the total budget allocated for this auction definitely had an upper limit.
If Aquila was determined to buy the dragon bone, Cassiopeia would likely change her target, unless she got too emotional and insisted on competing with her sister.
Su Cheng tried hard to recall the original plot.
But this character was just a cuckolded fool in the original book, and her screen time was truly minimal.
"The Coin of Destiny!"
The host shouted at the top of his lungs, "When it lands heads up, you might win a gamble or avoid a disaster—in short, all sorts of good things. But when it lands tails up... Hehe, after winning seven consecutive rounds of dice, the previous owner was struck by lightning three times, his house was crushed by an injured griffon, and his two children were severely injured, forcing him to sell it! Starting price: one thousand gold coins! Attention: once you win the bid, you must take it away!"
In his hand was an antique silver coin, with a smiling face engraved on one side and a skull on the other.
Suddenly, the host tossed it into the air. The coin spun eerily in midair for over ten seconds before falling.
Heads up.
The host let out a long sigh of relief. "Looks like I'm going to have some good luck!"
Su Cheng frowned as she watched the scene.
"...Miss Kahn?"
The Princess called out to her in confusion.
Su Cheng turned her head as if waking from a dream. "I was just thinking that the gold coin seems pretty good too. If the dragon bone would cost you too much—"
Aquila looked at her in surprise. "Are you still interested in causal magic? Or are you actually an arcane mage as well?"
Su Cheng shook her head. "Just curious, that's all. Never mind, it seems the dragon bone is still more valuable and of more use to me. If it weren't for you, it would be very difficult for me to come into contact with materials of that caliber."
The Princess gave a soft snort and waved to a guard standing a short distance away. The man quickly brought over a few parchment scrolls and then turned to leave the room.
Su Cheng looked down.
It was a dossier on the Empire's Director of Armaments, Marquis Melina Varius.
She was a figure of real power in the military department, reporting directly to the Minister of War, and had immense autonomy within her jurisdiction.
In the imperial army, the research and development, procurement, manufacturing, and storage of weapons, armor, and equipment all fell under her authority.
This meant she controlled a massive budget, countless craftsmen and alchemists, and several vital military fortresses.
Although this person was not an official member of the Privy Council, she was often summoned to attend its meetings and wielded enormous influence.
Su Cheng deliberately feigned confusion. "Your Highness?"
The Princess, however, misunderstood her expression. "You might also know, Miss Kahn, that Marquis Varius has recently fallen ill. Of course, the official story is that she failed her advancement to the eighth tier—"
"And the truth?"
"The real reason isn't important," the Princess said flatly. "Keep reading."
Su Cheng turned the page and found various pieces of evidence attached.
They proved that the Marquis had used her authority to secretly transport many undocumented weapons and equipment to the mercenary groups kept by Cassiopeia.
Furthermore, she had promoted several loyalists of Princess Cassiopeia within the military factories, armories, and logistics units.
She had also embezzled large amounts of funds by falsely reporting research and development costs and exaggerating material wear and tear.
But in the imperial government, such things were probably nothing new.
"What does Your Highness mean by this?"
"I want you to infiltrate Marquis Varius's mansion and find the ceremonial saber hanging in her study. It was a birthday gift from Cassiopeia."
Aquila interlaced her fingers. "Then, leave a Soul Eclipse mark on it. Don't refuse; I know you can do it. I don't need you to actually affect Varius. You just need to cast the spell on the saber. I will make sure His Majesty's people notice it. By then, Father will also know that the reason the Marquis fell ill was because she had been controlled by heretical dark magic for too long, causing irreversible erosion to her body."
She said with a smile, "You know, Varius is somewhat of my father's cousin, and their relationship has always been quite good. If my father weren't the Emperor, they might have even gotten married. Father doesn't actually like Cassiopeia very much, but Varius has praised Cassiopeia multiple times during the imperial council meetings, which Father found a bit strange."
Su Cheng suddenly understood.
The Emperor didn't understand why the Marquis admired Cassiopeia, and Aquila intended to give him a reason.
Because the Marquis was controlled by Cassiopeia's dark magic!
Su Cheng slowly nodded.
This barely matched the plot of the original novel in her memory.
Although she didn't know how to cast a Soul Eclipse mark at all, Aquila most likely wouldn't ask her to demonstrate it on the spot, as those magic spells were usually very troublesome to cast.
Everything was still going according to plan for now.
Su Cheng seriously read through the documents again.
Aquila didn't rush her.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the next collectible is not a magical item, but a pure musical instrument," the host suddenly said in a sing-song tone.
"The body is made of premium pine-crystal wood, and the strings are woven from the mane of a silver-spotted dragon lion, boasting exquisite craftsmanship. However, its value does not lie in its materials, otherwise it would only sell for a few dozen gold coins at most."
He paused deliberately. "Its preciousness lies in the long passage of time it carries. This lyre has existed for at least a thousand years. It has no magical structure, has never been engraved with runes, nor has it been modified by alchemists. The reason it has survived a millennium without decaying is due to the influence of some kind of time magic. Therefore, the wood has not cracked, the paint has not peeled, ah, I can even smell the lingering scent of rosin inside the soundbox!"
The host held a transparent box in his arms, which contained a silver-white seven-stringed lyre.
The body of the lyre had smooth lines and spiral wood grains. Under the illumination of the lights, a hazy luster radiated around the ancient instrument, as if it were wrapped in a barrier like thin frost.
"Starting price is one thousand five hundred gold coins!"
Su Cheng was stunned for a few seconds, then turned her head thoughtfully. "The document says that Marquis Varius's husband used to be the principal lyrist of the Royal Theater, and he still goes to watch operas from time to time."
Aquila scoffed. "What, you like that type? His battle aura is mediocre, not enough to maintain his youth. Even though he has spent a lot of effort on maintenance, the results aren't very good."
Su Cheng: "...No, I plan to make contact with this person. I will use a Shadow-Stealing Mark to leave a brand on him. This way, within the following day, I can find a time to teleport within a certain distance of him. But to leave the mark, I need to have skin-to-skin contact with him, and it can't be for too short a time. So I want to give him a gift to get close to him."
She spouted this nonsense with a straight face, trying hard to not look like a liar.
"Oh," Aquila nodded in understanding. "I get it."
After speaking, she turned to the only remaining guard. "Go buy that lyre."
The guard nodded silently and went out.
Su Cheng watched the man leave, thinking that Aquila probably wanted to distance herself from the purchase, which was why she didn't bid directly from the VIP box but instead sent the guard out to buy it.
"Do you have any other questions?" the red-haired woman raised her chin. "Or do you need anything else?"
"Your Highness," Su Cheng deliberately showed a bit of hesitation. "If the people from the Church find out that Her Highness Cassiopeia is using heretical dark magic..."
Aquila curled the corners of her mouth, her eyes somewhat sarcastic. "What? Are you worried about her?"
Su Cheng sighed. "She is a Prince, and the Emperor's daughter. I'm worried that they will consider this a matter of grave importance and send specialists to investigate. Once they trace it back to me, I'm doomed. They will eliminate someone who can use 'heretical' powers, you know that, right?"
"Then why do you think I sought you out to do this?" The Prince glanced at her. "Don't worry, I have a way to ensure they won't trace it back to either of us."
Su Cheng wasn't relieved at all, nor did she believe her in the slightest.
"...Alright," Su Cheng thought for a moment. "So what about Marquis Varius? There's a reason she 'fell ill', right? Will she ever recover?"
"Young one," the Prince gave a light chuckle. "You are also of noble birth. Don't you know that in the royal court, there is no victory or defeat, only life and death."
The red-haired woman stood up. "Partisanship and eliminating dissidents is the only rule. If you hesitate and are soft-hearted, the sharp blade originally prepared for others will eventually pierce your own throat."
"Furthermore," Aquila scoffed. "Actually, even outside the royal court, it's the same. Not to mention that kind of beast in human clothing is simply not someone worthy of your sympathy."
Su Cheng put on a thoughtful look and slowly nodded after a few seconds. "I understand. Now I'm starting to get curious about how dragon bone feels to the touch."
The Prince smiled with satisfaction.
As they spoke, the guard from earlier returned, holding the transparent crystal box in his arms, which contained that exact ancient lyre.
Su Cheng only glanced at it before nonchalantly turning around, ready to continue watching the auction.
"Before that—"
Aquila suddenly spoke up, waving for the guard to come over. "You still need to sign a confidentiality contract, Miss Kahn."
The guard pulled out a scroll. Su Cheng took it and took a look, finding that it was full of various clauses.
Primarily, it restricted her from disclosing today's conversation.
Even if the mission was unsuccessful, or if she changed her mind and didn't want to do it, she could not speak of this matter.
If she ever tried to leave related information in any form, to anyone, or even just on an object, she would die instantly.
The specific provisions were written in great detail, leaving almost no loopholes to exploit.
...Almost.
She couldn't sign it.
Because the signature at the bottom required a name, and she was not Vanessa Kahn.
If it were someone else, it might have been fine, but as a blessed of the God of Contracts, once she signed it, the consequences would be hard to say.
If the God of Contracts believed that she was not qualified to complete a contract using someone else's identity and judged her as an oathbreaker in some sense, then she would be doomed.
She didn't dare to take that gamble.
"Your Highness," Su Cheng raised her head. "Forgive my presumption, but is this paper blessed by a blessed of the God of Contracts?"
"No, that kind of thing might lose its effectiveness over time," Aquila raised an eyebrow. "But the person standing in front of you is a blessed of the God of Contracts, and he will authenticate our agreement."
As she spoke, she pointed at the guard.
Su Cheng: "..."
The guard's clothes were of exceptional quality. Su Cheng had initially thought it was just the Prince flaunting her wealth, but now she realized the man was clearly no ordinary guard.
A God's Chosen wouldn't be reduced to a mere guard; he was most likely a collaborator, though she couldn't rule out the possibility that this was the price of losing some bet.
In principle, the God's Chosen could sense one another.
But this usually only applied to situations where they used their divine powers and caused certain consequences.
Su Cheng said, "...I cannot sign this. Some of these clauses are too unfair. Take Article 20, for example: if a fourth person learns of this matter, I will pay with my life. You've already stipulated earlier that I cannot transmit information to the outside world in any form, which eliminates the possibility of me betraying you. What is the point of Article 20? What if someone else leaks it? Do I have to die then too?"
Aquila sighed. "First of all, I know you people have many methods to circumvent the scope of these textual restrictions. Secondly, only the three of us know about this matter. Look, it's impossible for me to say anything. I can swear to Mr. Leo right now that I have never let anyone other than you and him know about this plan. In fact, I can add this sentence to the scroll. As for after you complete the mission, I will need to employ some people to do the follow-up work, but I can also swear that they will not know the specific agreement between you and me."
The man beside them raised his hand, a scale mark faintly visible on his palm.
Su Cheng frowned at the symbol, showing a look of confusion, unease, and curiosity.
In her heart, however, a storm was brewing.
Even though she didn't consider herself an expert at drafting contracts, she could still spot some loopholes in the scroll that could be exploited.
Or, to be more precise—
Loopholes that the Prince could use to kill her.
The Ring of the Silent was undoubtedly a faction of its own. Aquila might not want to kill her openly to silence her, but she could use the power of a God's Chosen to make Su Cheng an oathbreaker.
That would allow her to die a very clean death.
Su Cheng said, "...Of course I believe Your Highness won't set me up, but what about him?"
"Lord Leo?" Aquila looked at the God's Chosen beside her. "He has also sworn an oath to me."
"Ha," Su Cheng let out a sarcastic laugh. "I never trust the Chosen of the God of Contracts. They are all liars. They have ten thousand ways to play with clauses and oaths, and then betray them, only making others pay the price."
As she spoke, she also looked at Mr. Leo.
Su Cheng's eyes met his.
In that instant, the look Leo gave her was exactly like looking at a dead person.
Su Cheng: "..."
Now she was absolutely certain that Aquila would silence her sooner or later.
Mr. Leo made no attempt to hide the malice and sarcasm in his eyes, along with a deep sense of mockery and disdain.
If she hadn't been a God's Chosen herself, if she hadn't used this power to take lives before, she might not have understood the meaning behind it.
"Miss Kahn," Leo sneered. "I suppose you've never interacted with a God's Chosen before? I advise you not to jump to conclusions about a field you don't understand—"
Su Cheng frowned at him. "Then do you dare to swear another oath?"
Leo cast a disdainful glance at her. "What are you, to be worthy of me swearing an oath to you?"
"Who asked you to swear to me? Shouldn't it be to Her Highness the Prince?"
Su Cheng said in amusement, "Before you went out to buy that lute just now, you already knew about the plan between Her Highness and me. And you probably saw a lot of people on your way, didn't you? What if you've already told someone else about this? Wouldn't I die the moment I sign this scroll?"
"?"
Leo looked at her as if she were a lunatic, then turned to the Prince.
The red-haired woman was watching him thoughtfully.
Leo's face darkened, realizing that she was also getting suspicious. "I didn't do that. I haven't told anyone—"
"Told?" Su Cheng waved the scroll in her hand. "The methods of leaking information mentioned on this are far more than just telling."
"You!"
"I've been sitting in this room the whole time and haven't gone out. I haven't had the chance to communicate with anyone."
Su Cheng spread her hands. "If you have a clear conscience, you can make a verbal oath. Other than yourself, Prince Aquila, and Vanessa Kahn, no one else knows about the plan regarding Marquis Varius. Otherwise, you will die right now."
"Ha!" Leo laughed. "Of course I can! I—"
Before he could finish his sentence.
His eyes suddenly bulged outward, the whites filled with bloodshot veins, and his pupils shrank to the size of pinpricks.
A faint cracking sound came from beneath his skull.
Immediately after, like a watermelon smashed by a heavy hammer, the top of the man's head exploded first.
Bone fragments, blood, and brain matter shot into the air, splattering a bizarre pattern of intertwined scarlet and milky white across the walls and ceiling.
Half of his face was torn apart by the impact, landing on the floor with a wet smack.
