Sorcerer’s Handbook

The maid was taken aback, and Igor’s expression became quite intriguing.

“What do you mean?” the maid swallowed hard, “You and the patriarch…”

“Shh.” Ashe remained expressionless, “It’s not as intimate as you think. To Qenna, I’m just a nighttime accessory. She calls me when she needs me and dismisses me when she doesn’t… Do you know why I still wear this black robe? It’s because, unlike my colleague, I haven’t changed my appearance. If any of you saw me, you’d recognize me immediately—after all, I used to be around Qenna quite often.”

“This undercover mission was supposed to be mine alone, but Qenna didn’t trust me completely. She even sent her cross-dressing friend to watch over me.”

“Do you know what reward Qenna promised me for such an important task? The right to walk openly by her side! She truly believes that my flattery in bed is genuine. She thinks I still want to be her official partner… Hmph!”

Ashe let out a cold laugh, “I’m not doing this for her. I accepted this mission for Senhaeser and had to endure her daughter’s despicable oppression. This mother-daughter pair is just awful!”

In just a few sentences, Ashe painted himself as a long-suffering gigolo, full of resentment against his oppressive superior. His emotions were very real, but Igor was uneasy—speaking ill of the patriarch was a risky move. He hadn’t yet figured out the general attitude of Senhaeser’s clansmen towards the patriarch. If they genuinely respected her, Ashe would have exposed himself.

“The patriarch isn’t that bad; she’s just a bit domineering…” the maid weakly retorted.

Success!

Ashe and Igor exchanged glances. The maid had fully accepted their identities and entered their line of thinking!

“We can’t contact the patriarch directly right now, so we need some information from you,” Igor asked, “What’s your name?”

“Lucy,” the maid replied readily, “Why can’t you contact—”

“Annan has been monitoring us using the Gospel Book. Any slight movement from us would ruin everything. Directly contacting Qenna is the ultimate taboo. Do you know, yesterday, Qenna even shot at me a few times just to completely sever ties with me and ended up injuring my ear.” Ashe let out a cold snort, “I’ll remember this. After the Weaving Festival, I’ll make sure she uses her tongue to soothe my wounds.”

Lucy: “…”

“Lucy, I want to know where Annan has been today,” Igor said. “As a staff member, you should be able to check the historical entries and exits of all areas, right?”

Lucy hesitated for a moment, then opened the Gospel Book and reviewed it briefly before saying, “Miss Annan met with Miss Nona in the confinement layer at 10 AM; rested in her room at 12 PM; went to the maintenance layer for a two-hour skincare session at 3 PM.”

Ashe’s eyes widened. “We’ve been busy all day, and she’s taking naps and having beauty treatments? No way, I can’t let this go. Anyway, Qenna doesn’t care much for her daughter. After this is over, I’ll get Annan over and bully her for a few days. Qenna won’t mind-she might even join in.”

Lucy: “…”

Igor: “We haven’t been back for a few years. How is Senhaeser’s relationship with the other families?”

Lucy: “Relationship? It’s okay, I guess… I haven’t really seen people from other families, so I’m not sure.”

Igor: “How has Qenna’s relationship with Nona been these past few years?”

Lucy: “Pretty good, I think? Miss Nona is Lady Qenna’s younger sister and the deputy leader of the Red Hat. Although Nona is currently in confinement by Lady Qenna, she’ll be released soon. As far back as I can remember, Qenna has been our patriarch, and Nona the vice-patriarch.”

Crossing his arms, Ashe said, “Of course, their relationship is good. Especially since that time Nona accidentally walked in on us, they’ve been not just sisters in blood but also in bed. I was the fuel for their growing bond. Luckily, I was sent out on this undercover mission; otherwise, I’d have been squeezed dry by now.”

Lucy: “…”

Igor: “Have you seen the Weaving Festival’s Art Ranking? Any thoughts?”

Lucy responded, “Hmm? Not much to say, just that Miss Annan is really impressive, managing to take the top spot. It would be great if she had the Senhaeser surname instead of Dolan.”

Igor observed her for a moment, confirming that Lucy’s words were sincere and not hiding anything. He then said, “Alright, we’ve got the information we need. Thanks for your help. You should head back now. Remember, don’t tell anyone about this, or Annan might find out.”

“Then, I’ll be going?” Lucy glanced at Ashe, as if afraid that this patriarch’s wild man might silence her.

Ashe didn’t feel guilty at all. “What, do you also want to try the top-notch service that only the patriarch can experience?”

Lucy blushed and hurriedly fled.

“Igor…”

The Cult Leader gave a thumbs up to the Con Artist, winking. “You’re really a master at playing with people’s hearts.”

Not as good as you, Igor wanted to retort, but he knew that praising Ashe would only make him more arrogant, so he held back.

“How was my performance?”

“Over the top. I can only give you a 30,” Igor said. “But Vamora’s people are exactly at that level. They’ve been too well-protected by their family, so your overacting was just right. It caught her attention, leaving her no time to think about my intentions, and she fully accepted our story.”

“But why are you investigating the maid only now?” Ashe was puzzled. “Are you cramming because Annan’s about to check the homework?”

It’s already six o’clock, and there was a whole day before this.

Could Igor have wasted time playing games?

“Because no one else would talk to me,” the Con Artist gave a helpless look. “The people here are too xenophobic. I spent the whole day without finding any useful information. I needed a catalyst to get them to open up-and Annan was that catalyst. If this maid hadn’t just seen Annan, she probably wouldn’t have listened to me at all.”

“So, what did you find out?”

“Annan is completely confident,” Igor said. “She’s not nervous at all, which means she believes her plan will allow us to smoothly make it onto the second Future Ranking list.”

“Qenna has also honored the Pact and hasn’t leaked our information. Internally, Senhaeser only knows that Annan is here, but they don’t know that Ashe Heath is also in Vamora. Additionally, Qenna and Nona seem to be…”

“What about them?”

“I just have some thoughts. I need to investigate further.”

As they spoke, they arrived at Suite 24, where Lise and Harvey were already waiting for them.

Ashe couldn’t tell if it was just his imagination, but Annan indeed looked much better than she did in the morning. There were no visible signs of the beating from her mother, suggesting that the skincare and beauty treatments here were quite effective. However, Ashe was more interested in another part of her body, but he couldn’t tell if she was wearing anything or not.

“It seems everyone knows how to use the Gospel Book now. Since we’re all here, I’ll tell you about your task.”

It dawned on Ashe that Annan had deliberately not told them the meeting place, forcing them to find the answer themselves through the Gospel Book.

Annan clapped her hands lightly. “Today is May 13th. We have seven days until the second ranking list.”

“I need you all to fall in love at least once within these seven days.”

The setting sun outside shone through the white mist, casting a silent glow in the suite.

Ashe broke the silence. “At least?”

“Yes, at least. If possible, you should try to fall in love several times,” Annan said calmly. “If any of you can become romantically involved with Senhaeser’s patriarch—Qenna Senhaeser—even if it’s just for one night, it would be enough to secure our victory.”

Igor and Ashe simultaneously had a thought: Could Annan have overheard their nonsense with Lucy?

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