On the small mountain path, a chienthrope girl clutched a package, her face filled with fear and regret.
With a pale face and an anxious expression, she revealed her extremely dire situation.
"What should I do? I'm going to die, definitely going to die. Why did I have to encounter something like this?"
Thinking about it, tears couldn't help but stream down her cheeks. She couldn't understand, it was just accepting a task, why did she have to face this?
Running in fear, shedding tears, and feeling terrified, this was her current situation.
Bang!
Suddenly, she bumped into something, then fell to the ground.
Subconsciously, fear welled up in her heart.
But when she looked up, she saw a man in front of her, with a golden-haired girl standing beside him.
"Chienthrope girl, it seems there's something wrong with what you're holding."
"I-I don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh? You don't know? There was just a murder on the 18th floor, and they are currently investigating the murderer. You, on the other hand, ran away in such a panic. I have enough reason to suspect that you're either the murderer or an accomplice."
"It's not me, I didn't kill anyone."
"Then why did you run?"
"If I didn't run, I would definitely be dead."
"Ah, it seems like we're hearing something valuable. Going to die? Why would you die?"
August smiled and said, Ais, on the other hand, frowned and subconsciously drew her Desperate sword from its sheath.
"Wait a minute, you're Sword Princess, and Collector from Loki Familia."
"Stop diverting the topic and answer my question."
August was never satisfied with the title 'collector.'
"I am Lulune Louie, from Hermes Familia. I absolutely didn't kill anyone."
"Then why did you run? Or rather, what are you afraid of?"
"I..."
Lulune hesitated for a moment. She didn't know if she should say because it involved her mission.
"Not saying? Judging by your panicked look, could it be that the thing you're holding was stolen from the deceased? And this thing is what the murderer wanted, so you're terrified."
"No, this is the package I received a mission to transport. It's not stolen."
"Package, huh? So your mission was to transport package. Then, the guy who died must have been the one receiving the cargo. The murderer thought he had received the item, so she killed him, but unexpectedly, he hadn't received it yet."
These words made Lulune widen her eyes. Was this guy's brain really so effective?
"Just a normal transport mission. Who could have expected to encounter such a thing? If I knew, I wouldn't have been greedy for this opportunity. Who could have thought we'd run into such a situation?"
Lulune also felt like crying. She thought it was a lucrative job, but it turned out to be a death sentence.
"Serves you right for being greedy."
Lulune lowered her head. She couldn't argue, it was indeed because of her greed.
"Alright, chienthrope girl, give me the package, and you can go."
"But..."
"But nothing. If you're not afraid of death, you can pretend I didn't say anything."
"Fine, here."
Without hesitation, Lulune handed the package to August. Money or life, she would definitely choose life.
On the side, Ais also looked at August in surprise. She hadn't expected August to be so formidable, unraveling everything at once and obtaining this crucial item.
This murder case was likely revolving around this package.
August looked at the package in his hand and a cold smile appeared on his face.
Inside must be the jewel fetus mentioned in the original work, a kind of seed similar to the corrupted spirit.
Behind all this was the robe sage from Ouranos side.
Subconsciously, August glanced at Ais. In the original work, Ais received a mission from that sage in the dungeon.
This was a scheme involving Ais and the Loki Familia.
Entrust the unfortunate child who died to receive a certain item, then let Lulune transport the item, and finally give Ais a mission. All interconnected.
Truly a clever scheme by the centuries-old sage. Age does not dull his cunning.
August didn't care who the antagonist was, who the protagonist was, or what would happen to Orario and the dungeon.
The reborn August only cared about the well-being of those he cherished. But now, Ais was entangled in this, making August very displeased.
Given the chance, August would definitely twist off the skull of that sage and use it as a football.
Looking at the package in his hand, August could clearly feel a pure malevolence and the filthy magic power emanating from it.
This was August's ability as the Lord of Sin. He could distinctly sense the breath of malice
The corrupted spirit was filled with pure malice toward this world and the entire dungeon, desiring to break free from its prison.
A horrified expression appeared on Lulune's face as she watched silently, but August's cold gaze made her take several steps back, filled with fear.
"August, what's inside? Should we take a look?"
Ais, for some reason, wanted to uncover the truth about this package.
Seeing this, August squinted his eyes. Although it was a corrupted spirit's seed, it was still an spirit. Was there a faint resonance between it and Ais due to their shared spirit lineage?
"No..."
Before he could finish, the package's cloth suddenly unraveled.
Then, a green jewel appeared in front of the three, like a crystal ball. Inside it was a fetus that made people shudder at first glance.
As soon as Ais saw the jewel fetus, she froze.
*Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *Thump*
Ais's heart pounded loudly, a strange feeling arose, making her feel both unfamiliar and familiar.
Originating from the resonance of their bloodline, it began at this moment.
Boom!
Suddenly, the fetus in the jewel opened its eyes.
This eerie scene startled Lulune, who took several steps back in fear.
Coincidentally, Ais and the fetus' eyes met, and in that moment, the atmosphere changed.
In an instant, Ais felt her head spin, followed by nausea, dizziness, numbness, and the loss of control over her limbs.
The girl known as the Sword Princess collapsed.
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