"phit’s gaze grew dim, and she asked softly, ’You guessed it?’"
Rod responded with a smile, ’I guessed it.’"
’When did you realize?’"
’Hmm, yesterday, when I heard that Demon Dragon Ash could be used to make Black Fire Fuel.’"
phit asked softly, ’Just because of that sentence?’"
’No, I had my suspicions before, but I didn’t think about it in that direction.’"
’But when Atos said that Demon Dragon Ash could be used to make Black Fire Fuel, I suddenly rembered that during our last mission together, you demanded Puppet Stone from that foreman.’"
’Afterward, I did so research, and the main use of Puppet Stone is to make Puppet Wood, and at that ti, it just so happened I was buying Puppet Wood from the dicine Woman.’"
Rod smiled cheerfully.
’And this ti, it just so happened I was buying Black Fire Fuel from the dicine Woman.’"
’If coincidences keep happening, there must be facts hidden behind them.’"
phit remained silent.
Rod reached out his hand again, smiling, ’I’ve said before, I hope you can beco my companion because your characteristics are very suitable for .’"
’Do you know? I am about to beco the King’s Hand, taking charge of Star Town, igniting the fire of human civilization in the Dark World, and opening up new living spaces for humankind. I value your abilities, which is why I invited you to join my team.’"
’As for sleeping together and all that, it’s not the main point. You have too extre a concept of n; not everyone is a lecher, not everyone’s brain is filled with those kinds of thoughts all day long. And as for , with my handso and suave deanor, my noble and elegant character, my charisma that shakes the universe, being such a high-quality male human, even more so.’"
After a lengthy silence, phit said, ’You can use Spiritual Vision to see for yourself; this is not a disguise, I haven’t deceived you with an illusion.’"
Rod activated Spiritual Vision.
In the sight of the Eye of the Soul, her spirit was grey and murky, like countless restless strings, very strange, with dozens of white silvery rings looped around her spiritual body like collars, several huge scars penetrating her soul body from top to bottom."
But there indeed were no signs of disguise.
Curiously, Rod asked, ’What’s going on with that?’"
’Withering Curse, it has turned my body, from inside out, into this.’"
’Can the curse be lifted?’"
phit answered softly, ’No, like the ill-oned Calamity Curse, the Withering Curse, and the other eleven curses, are all but restraints that exist to bind .’"
’I can only suppress them, not remove them. But the imprint of the curses in my soul is getting deeper, and I will eventually be devoured by them, turning into a complete monster.’"
She extended her hands, displaying her withered and distorted body.
’Just like this.’"
But Rod wasn’t afraid; instead, he stepped forward and opened his arms to embrace her.
’Please believe , I am willing to help you, and I will respect your choices, treat you fairly, regard you as a partner, rather than a tool.’"
The body in his arms was cold and stiff, like a piece of deadwood.
Ti passed in silence.
After what seed like a long ti, a cold light rose from her body, and phit put on her necklace, returning to her original form.
’Alright, I agree to it.’"
’Great, I knew you’d agree.’"
’But I have a few conditions... Can you let go of first? And, can your hands not wander downward?’"
’Sorry, sorry, I was worried that so parts inside hadn’t changed back...’"
phit looked at him speechlessly, suddenly regretting her agreent.
But if he was an experienced hunter, he wouldn’t have acted so childishly.
It seed more like a sincere and spontaneous reaction."
’I knew it.’"
phit sighed lightly and continued.
’I’m a Taboo being, belonging to the monitoring and containnt departnt of the Silver Oath, subordinate to the Taboo Armant. My authority to mobilize is very high; I don’t know if you’re able to arrange that given your status and position.’"
Rod said with a smile, ’Don’t worry, as long as I pass the combat evaluation, I can beco the King’s Hand.’"
phit looked at him and said, ’The King’s Hand is just a rank; its actual power depends on the specific duties it carries. I’m one of the strongest Taboo beings; you must get permission from His Excellency, the Defense Chief.’"
’No problem.’"
Rod agreed readily, not surprised by the word ’strongest.
phit’s Cold Ice powers were excessively strong; even the mighty Corrupted Demon Dragon was immobilized by her ice."
’And during the campaign to reclaim Laisuo City, Royal City sent only her as reinforcent.’"
’This indirectly proves that phit’s strength is far beyond what she has shown.’"
’That’s why I’ve always persistently invited her to join forces.’"
’I am entrusted by the King to shoulder the mission of rekindling the fire of civilization and restoring the glory of humankind; I’m also well-acquainted with Master Dalin, a minor matter such as this will be settled with a word from .’"
phit looked at him skeptically.
Rod maintained a confident smile.
After a mont of silence, phit continued, ’I don’t participate in the distribution of spoils, wages, and resources generated from pioneering, but I demand that the items I require should be given priority to .’"
Rod wasn’t quite familiar with the procedures in this area, but that didn’t prevent him from readily agreeing.
’Okay.’"
’Lastly, my salary is high; I require a weekly pay of 8000 silver coins.’"
’Okay... What?’"
Rod nearly bit his tongue.
His own weekly salary was only 600, and though he didn’t live off a fixed inco, that amount seed excessively high. "
’My entire inco isn’t as high as yours.’
’What... do you need so much money for?’"
phit looked at him calmly and said softly, ’My family needs the money; this is the lowest price. If you can’t afford it, please forgive for not being able to agree.’"
Rod hesitated for a few seconds, then exclaid with a sigh, ’Alright... I agree, but I have a request too.’"
’Speak.’"
’Call big brother and let hear it.’"
phit tightly pressed her lips together, showing no intention of speaking, her silvery eyes emitting a warning chill.
"Fine, fine, let it be."
Rod raised his hands in surrender.
"Now that we’re partners, you know it’s not right to charge a partner for making things."
phit said indifferently, "You have to pay for the materials, and besides, I’m not returning the money from the day before yesterday."
"That’s a bit unreasonable. You hid your identity and tricked , making say so many shaful things. You should at least compensate for ntal distress."
phit said expressionlessly, "I did not conceal my identity."
"Then why didn’t you tell you were phit?"
"You didn’t ask."
"..."
Rod glared at her, "The day before yesterday I gave you a thousand silver coins, asking you to speak well of in your presence. Did you do it?"
"Yes."
"When did you say it?"
"Now."
phit said to herself, "Rod is a good person."
Damn!
That was a rip-off.
"Alright."
Rod sighed.
"phit, now that we’re partners, could you tell why you received such treatnt? And, why exactly are you bound by the Silver Oath?"
phit’s expression beca cold, but deep in her eyes, there was a touch of sadness.
"Do you know about the White Tower?"
Rod nodded.
The White Tower was an institution that predicted disasters, also responsible for observing star phases and devising calendars.
"The Great Prophet of the White Tower, Iyeta, possesses the rare strong prophetic characteristic, his spirit connected to the Spirit Realm. His perception is unparalleled, able to obtain revelations of the future from the Void."
"His prophecies had never been wrong, and the Royal City had avoided nurous catastrophes because of them."
"During one Sun Festival, when the sun high up in the sky was suddenly obscured by shadows, turning into the Black Sun, leaving behind only a burning golden ring, Iyeta was inspired, making a prediction of unprecedented clarity."
"I am the Son of Destruction, and I will bring about the end of the Royal City, extinguish the Holy Fire, and terminate this world."
A chill spread up Rod’s back, sending shivers down his spine.
Yet, phit remained expressionless, speaking as if she talked about soone else’s story.
"Iyeta’s past prophecies were vague and uncertain; this prediction was too clear, which was extrely abnormal. After the Black Sun ended, Iyeta denied making this prophecy, considering it was his attendant’s hallucination from drinking too much."
"This led to so divisions within the Royal City, but many called for my execution to prevent future risks."
"Only the King firmly opposed it, saying that unless there was direct evidence I posed an uncontrollable danger, it would be wrong to kill an innocent person. If one ambiguous sentence could justify killing, then the Royal City would no longer be a haven for humanity but a city of terror."
"Iyeta thought it was necessary to thoroughly investigate his attendant’s soul to exclude any unknown influences."
"However, the attendant died under mysterious circumstances in an accident, and the case went cold."
Rod asked, "What happened after that?"
phit spoke softly, "At first, I was under strict surveillance, but as ti passed without incident, the vigilance around gradually relaxed. So believed it might have been a conspiracy by Doomsday believers to create a panic."
"That changed when I underwent the Fire Trial."
"I am part of the Spirit Fire Series and should only have one Soul Trait, but I possess three."
"Cold Ice Attribute, Spiritual Interference, Dark Soul."
"All are forbidden Soul Traits."
"This was an unprecedented event, so once again voices clamored for my execution."
"But the King still opposed, arguing that this didn’t prove the prophecy was true, there had been precedents with just three traits."
"His end was nothing more than losing control to madness, becoming a frenzied Living Corpse, now constrained by the Silver Oath."
"Based on this precedent, I could beco a tabooed one, as long as bound by the Silver Oath, the monster’s strength could be wielded for humanity."
"But they underestimated my ability."
phit’s eyes dimd further.
She skipped a significant part of the story, clearly not willing to bring it up again.
"I caused a huge disaster, killing many, many people. Many of them were kind to , spoke up for , and saw as family, friends, partners."
"But they all died. The closer they were to , the more tragic their deaths beca."
"At the King’s command, Iyeta gathered all the soul and Curse Masters to inscribe twelve Soul Curses on , to seal away my two other dangerous traits, and to bind the Cold Ice Attribute, to reduce the likelihood of a loss of Spiritual Energy control."
"As long as the Silver Oath periodically activates the curses, I can maintain the state of a normal person."
"But it’s not without side effects, the curse will continue to erode my soul, ultimately turning into an ominous monster."
"That date is not too far off."
"This is my fate."
phit looked at Rod, her silver eyes twinkling in the faint light.
She said softly, "So, I don’t have any long-term value, and the side effects of the curse may even bring danger to you. If you have regrets, now is the ti to back out."
But Rod simply took her hand, smiling as he spoke.
"Sorry, I’ve never believed in a predetermined destiny."
"Your future is now in my hands. I will break your chains and personally create a new path of fate for you."
"Eventually, this world will be ours. I want this fire to light up the land, I want this fog to clear, I want all monsters turned to ash, I want humanity to walk proudly between heaven and earth, I want to see everyone’s smile."
"Including yours."
Silence lingered for a long ti.
Until phit spoke up.
"Stop touching ."
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