At this moment, Sauron finally understood Lady Nilan's true intentions.
The so-called maid, it seems, is not merely working in the castle.
"What is your name?"
Sauron scrutinized the young girl. She was only a few years younger than him, her body just beginning to develop, and her chest, though soft, had already taken shape.
"I am called Nora." The girl lowered her head.
"Lady Nilan asked you to be my maid. I believe you understand what that represents, right?"
Sauron said lightly.
"Yes... yes," Nora's face showed a shy and nervous expression.
"Alright, let's begin then."
Sauron's lips curled upwards, showing no politeness as he slowly approached Nora.
Nora bit her lip lightly, slowly closing her eyes.
The next day, in the early morning, when Sauron arrived at the hall, breakfast was already prepared. The members of the Swain family were waiting for her in an orderly manner, and Lady Nilan couldn't hide her smile.
"Damn little slut."
Beside her, Lady Raphie's expression was unpleasant.
Now, Sauron was the master of the entire Night Raven City, possessing absolute power. This meant that whoever could please him could have a better life.
Within the Raven Castle, Oren had three ladies.
On the surface, the three ladies seemed harmonious, but in reality, there was always open strife and veiled struggle. In the past, in order to gain Oren's favor, they went to great lengths.
Lady Raphie didn't expect Nilan to act so quickly, placing her niece in Sauron's room. This time, she was preempted.
Sauron sat in his seat, paying no attention to the conflict between Lady Raphie and Lady Nilan.
For him, the disputes among women in the castle had little meaning. The reason he accepted Nora was simply to amuse himself.
"Sauron, Young Master, Frost Scholar has prepared five Night Raven potions. Shall they all be delivered to your room later?"
After breakfast, Lady Raphie reported.
"So soon?"
Sauron raised an eyebrow, not expecting Frost to act so quickly. The Ghost Pattern Flower obtained yesterday was already turned into five Night Raven potions today.
"Frost Scholar has been preparing Night Raven potions for many years. Now, with an assistant, as long as the materials are sufficient, preparing magical potions is not a problem," Lady Raphie said with a slight smile.
Sauron nodded.
Night Raven potions were crucial for his advancement to a high-level Knight. Now that the problem was solved, Sauron only needed to focus on cultivation to quickly break through.
In the following days, Sauron's life became calm.
Apart from cultivating the Night Raven Breathing Technique, most of Sauron's time was spent meditating, and his spiritual strength gradually increased.
In the New Year of 826, during the Flame Fire Season, in May, in the Taal Duchy, in Night Raven City.
In the second layer of the castle's room, Sauron sat cross-legged on the bed. When a meditation session ended, he slowly opened his eyes.
"I finally succeeded!"
Sauron's eyes flickered, a smile appearing on his face.
After such a long period of meditation, he finally condensed the first rune in his Sea of Consciousness.
Dark Soul Wave!
According to the Necromancer Codex, this was a dark-element attack rune. When used, it could condense a mass of dark-element energy for an attack.
"There's a chance to give it a try!"
Sauron thought to himself, then opened the data panel.
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Name: [Sauron]
Occupation: [Intermediate-level Knight], [Level 1 Apprentice]
Strength: [3.9], Physique: [3.8], Agility: [4.1], Spirit: [1.9]
Passive: [Bow Arrow Technique Lv10 (100/100)], [Armybreak Swordsmanship Lv7 (5/100)], [Night Raven Breathing Technique Lv8 (95/100)], [Brute Bull Breathing Technique Lv9 (5/100)], [Darkness Ritual Lv1 (85/100)]
Skills: [Three Arrow Techniques], [Seven Swords of Armybreak]
Rune: [Dark Soul Wave]
Status: [Normal]
——————————
After this period of cultivation, the Night Raven Breathing Technique was approaching its limit. With the help of Frost's specially refined magical potions, the improvement speed of the Brute Bull Breathing Technique was also evident.
However, Darkness Ritual had not upgraded all this time.
Even so, Sauron had condensed a rune and smoothly become a Level 1 Apprentice. According to the Necromancer Codex, it would take at least three to five years for an ordinary person with innate talent to reach this level.
"It's great to have advantages!"
Sauron was very pleased. With the proficiency panel, there was no bottleneck in his cultivation. As long as he followed the plan, he could continuously improve.
Dong dong!
A knocking sound came from outside the door, and Frost Scholar walked in.
"Is there something, Grandfather Frost?"
Sauron was in a good mood, smiling as he asked.
"Three things."
Frost extended three fingers, saying, "First, the Ghost Pattern Flowers in the castle have been used up, and we no longer have the materials to prepare Night Raven potions."
Sauron nodded slightly.
The Ghost Pattern Flowers collected from the Mist Forest should have been used up long ago. Frost had prepared over a hundred Night Raven potions, which were enough for Sauron's advancement to a high-level Knight.
Therefore, Sauron did not have much need for Night Raven potions now.
"The second thing is that a letter has arrived from the capital for you!"
Frost said, taking out a letter from his pocket.
Sauron's heart moved, taking the letter and finding it was sent by Princess Hestoria herself. It briefly inquired about the current situation in Night Raven City and warned Sauron to be more careful recently.
"Snake Shadow?"
Sauron squinted. This letter seemed to be personally written by Princess Hestoria. According to Hestoria's information, it seemed that someone had issued an assassination reward to Snake Shadow for Sauron.
Now, the assassins of Snake Shadow might have infiltrated Night Raven City.
"White Valley City?"
Sauron stroked his chin, his face showing a thoughtful expression. Many people wanted to kill him, but the most likely suspect was White Valley City.
In the war two months ago, Sauron not only killed Molun, one of the three swordsmen of White Valley City, but also sent his head back to White Valley City.
Such an act was a humiliation to White Valley City.
Sauron thought that after that, White Valley City would provoke another war, but two months had passed, and there was no movement.
Now it seemed that Lord Dov of White Valley City was quite calm.
He knew that initiating a war would bring him many hidden dangers. Therefore, he chose a better way to deal with Sauron.
The reason why the Swain family could still rule Night Raven City was mainly because of Sauron.
And Sauron could regain Night Raven City because
of the support of Princess Hestoria.
This also meant that if Sauron died, the connection between Night Raven City and Princess Hestoria would be completely severed.
By then, how the lords in the Western Border would deal with Night Raven City would be an internal matter of the Western Border. Even Princess Hestoria would not be able to interfere.