Late at night, in Silvertown, Rose Iron Prison.

A hundred meters outside the prison, in a small thicket, a slender, pale hand suddenly broke through the soil and reached out from underground.

"I've made it through! Hahaha I've finally made it through, I've escaped!" The pallid-faced woman clawed her way out of the ground, utterly disregarding the prison uniform that was covered in dirt, "Aiden, you dimwit, you think you could keep me locked up? This is MY escape route, in a battle of wits you're no match for me, Ophelia!"

The Vampire Duchess Ophelia, one of the top criminals closely monitored by the Rose Iron Prison, had secretly dug for two full years while her powers were sealed, and at last, she re-emerged into the night... Oh no, into the moonlight!

Ah, this is the moonlight outside the prison, this is the air of freedom outside the prison…

Free from the Rose Iron Prison's sealing barriers, the powers of the nocturnal clan once again filled her entirely.

Standing under the night sky, Ophelia took a deep breath, joyfully spread her arms, threw back her head, and let out an exultant cheer at the full moon: "Wryyyyyyyyy!!"

"You're making such a racket before you've even gotten far in your escape, as if you're afraid I won't find you?" A languid male voice suddenly came from behind her, "You prison breakers are getting worse with each generation."

Ophelia was startled, her whole body shuddering, as she quickly turned around.

Click, a blinding flash of white light made Ophelia's eyes sting.

She instinctively closed her eyes, and when she reopened them, she saw a young man in uniform kneeling on the ground, pointing a camera at her in the moonlight.

"You're quite slow coming out, I've waited for you a long time," said the young man calmly, as he greeted her.

"You! You, you, you, you... Aiden!?" Ophelia screamed in shock.

"Call me Warden, I've been transferred here from the Heretical Judgment Office for two years now, and you still can't remember the rules?" The young man got up unhurriedly, dusting off his trousers.

"What are you doing here, you scoundrel!?"

"Of course I'm here to catch you and take you back, that's my job. Ophelia, you still have ninety-eight years of your sentence left," Aiden replied as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Why... How did you find out I escaped?" Ophelia's eyes widened in disbelief.

Aiden laughed, "Well, actually, we've known about your escape plan since two years ago, when you first started secretly digging that tunnel from under the toilet in your room. We've been monitoring your progress ever since."

"That's impossible!!"

"Come on, use your head. You're a vampire, you don't need to go to the toilet, yet you spend over two hours every day in there. What were you doing if not digging a tunnel, having a midnight snack? How could we not be suspicious?" Aiden shrugged, "Every day, when you were out in the yard throwing away the dug-up stones, we would go to your room to check how far your tunnel had reached."

"So why did you wait until now to catch me?" Realizing that her efforts over the past two years had been in vain, Ophelia felt like she was on the verge of collapse.

"First, it was to teach you a lesson. Second, for my own amusement," Aiden said, a mischievously spiteful smile spreading across his face as he wagged the camera at Ophelia, "Look, the mighty Vampire Duchess digging holes like a mole underground and then emerging covered in dirt—it's a rare sight!"

"Damn you, I'll kill you!" Ophelia, infuriated and humiliated, exuded a tremendous murderous intent from her crimson eyes.

"Oh? Your escape plan has already been exposed, and now you still want to breach your way out by force?" Aiden narrowed his eyes, "Don't forget who it was that captured you."

In an instant, the fear rooted deep in Ophelia's memory was awakened. It was this very man who had single-handedly captured her and thrown her into this formidable and dreadful Rose Iron Prison.

Just as she faltered, a large-caliber handgun silently pressed against the back of Ophelia's head.

Only then did Ophelia realize that someone was standing behind her. She turned her head slightly and saw a petite girl standing there, her slender left hand firmly holding a deadly firearm that was completely disproportionate to her size and a curved knife in the other hand. Her eyes were still as death, reflecting no hint of emotion.

"You're not... Avansa?"

Ophelia was shocked, she recognized this girl—"Tainted Avansa," prisoner number 3201, just like her, a red-level top criminal marked by the degree of danger, once the number one genius assassin in the underworld, imprisoned for murder.

"What are you doing here? Why are you helping this man?" Ophelia felt a bit confused.

"..."

Avansa didn't speak; instead, Aiden answered for her, "I selected some capable individuals from the criminals, negotiated a certain degree of clemency for them, and in exchange, they work for me as my hands, helping me maintain order in this prison."

More figures appeared in the woods, Ophelia looked around and suddenly felt a chill down her spine—

The witch Daili, the necromancer Asenna, including Avansa, a total of three female prisoners, all of them notorious red-alert-level dangerous criminals in Rose Iron Prison.

"Damn it, why are you dogs for this man? Are you content to stay in this prison for life?" Ophelia shouted, "If you have even a shred of pride as powerhouses, help me kill this man and regain our freedom together!"

However, no one responded to her, ultimately it was Aiden who spoke again, "Don't waste your effort. Each one of them signed a demon contract with me voluntarily. If anyone attempts to escape, I can execute them with a flick of my finger. On the contrary, if they work for me, I can ensure their treatment in prison."

Ophelia was dumbfounded.

"So, what's your choice, vampire, to go back to your own cell obediently..." Aiden stared at Ophelia and asked, "Or are you preparing to make a move against us?"

"I, I…" Ophelia suddenly panicked.

The chance of breaking through the encirclement of three criminals, each no less powerful than herself, while also dealing with this man in front of her who had once beaten her at her prime, was slim to none.

But to submit to this man's tyranny, was like tossing her dignity as a vampire aristocrat into a gutter. To give up the liberty that was so close within reach, to bend her knee in the human prison as a subdued captive, how could she swallow such an affront?

Liberty or death! Damn these humans, don't underestimate the backbone of a vampire aristocrat!!

After an internal struggle, she lifted her face and looked directly into Aiden's eyes, her energy concentrated in her abdomen, gathering force at the tip of her tongue, ready to deliver a resounding statement—

"If you dare to make a move, after I catch you this time, I'll tie you to a cross, stuff your mouth full of garlic, and then throw you under the sun to scorch for a day," Aiden suddenly added.

"I was just out to enjoy the moon before returning, why do you have to threaten me like that!" Ophelia instantly changed her expression, putting on a pitiable look.

Forcing a breakout was indeed too much of a stretch; better to play it safe first and then weigh her long-term strategy, as long as she had the will to survive, she wouldn't be worried about lacking opportunities. This was solely for strategic consideration, not at all because she was frightened...

Aiden watched her for a good while, eventually rolling his eyes and letting out a sigh, raising his hand to point toward the hole she had dug: "Get in there yourself and stop wasting time."

"Oh…" Ophelia shrank her neck, slowly moving to the entrance of the hole, reluctantly starting to crawl in.

"Move faster, or I'll start pouring holy water in there!" Aiden frowned and urged her, simultaneously gesturing to Avansa.

Avansa nodded in understanding, stepped forward, and kicked Ophelia right in the buttocks, sending her tumbling into the hole.

Once Ophelia disappeared from the entrance, Aiden turned his head and instructed Daili who was standing aside, "Fill this tunnel and add a seal to it."

"As you command, warden." The glamorous witch wearing a wide-brimmed wizard's hat bowed elegantly, then began to wave her wand and cast her spell.

"Warden, this was the last prisoner who attempted to escape today." The intellectual-looking necromancer pushed up her glasses and calmly reported to Aiden.

"Very well, then let's make one last round of the cells and call it a day."

Aiden, methodically putting on the military cap that matched his uniform, led the female prisoners towards the direction of the prison.