Hearing Orson’s words, Lodi’s mind was immediately thrown into turmoil.
His pupils dilated slightly, and his body trembled faintly.
He wanted to speak, to deny Orson’s claim, but it felt as if a massive boulder was pressing down on him, making it hard to breathe, let alone speak.
“Why aren’t you speaking? Did I guess wrong?” Orson maintained his smile.
“Mr. Lodi, this is the Imperial Capital. Given our respective statuses, I certainly won’t do anything to you. However, others might not be so restrained.”
“For example, certain people who no longer need to care about their reputation.”
Lodi certainly knew Orson was threatening him with these words.
At this moment, Lodi’s back was drenched in fine beads of sweat, almost soaking his clothes.
“What... do you want? Just, just say it,” he managed, looking up at Orson.
“Come with me, and I will guarantee your safety.” Orson presented his condition.
“Can I refuse?”
“Do you have the means to refuse?”
“...” Lodi lowered his head, seeming resigned. “I understand. But I will not betray my master.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Orson gestured for the assassin to act.
The assassin nodded, then stepped forward.
“Mr. Lodi, apologies for my rudeness.”
Saying this, he chopped Lodi on the neck with the side of his hand, knocking him unconscious instantly.
“Take him away,” Orson ordered. “The money has already been paid.”
Although Orson and the assassin had established a cooperative relationship, verbal agreements alone couldn’t guarantee anything.
Ultimately, their connection still relied on mutual benefit.
The assassin said nothing, simply shouldered Lodi and carried him away.
Based on the progress of the royal investigation, it probably wouldn’t take more than a few days for them to track down Lodi. Orson’s move was to secure this crucial pawn before the royal family did.
...
Meanwhile, evening came, and the Doctor returned to the entrance of Baron Trist’s mansion.
The soldier guarding the gate was the same one from earlier that day. When the Doctor arrived, the guard greeted him.
“Mr. Guard, you’ve been standing guard all day, haven’t you? Thank you for your hard work,” the Doctor said.
“Not at all. Compared to Lord Trist who toils day and night for the people, my efforts are nothing.”
“Has the City Lord woken up?”
“Not yet.” Hearing the Doctor’s question, the guard quickly shook his head. “Lord Trist hasn’t woken up yet. Perhaps Doctor, you could wait inside? His Lordship should be waking up soon.”
“Alright.” The Doctor didn’t say much upon hearing this, just nodded.
“Thank you.”
Saying this, he walked into the mansion.
He didn’t go straight upstairs but returned to the kitchen area from the afternoon. Glancing outside the kitchen to confirm the guard hadn’t followed, he entered the kitchen.
Touching that specific wall tile, he could clearly feel a faint springiness.
This wall tile could be pressed.
Subsequently, the Doctor pressed the tile. Then, within the kitchen, a hidden door leading underground appeared before him.
The Doctor glanced at the hidden door, confirmed no one was behind him, and descended through it.
Following the stairs, the Doctor felt he walked for about half a minute before his feet touched the floor. Then, a chilling sensation came over him.
This seemed to be a cellar used for storing food, but it must have been unused for a long time. Apart from a damp smell, the Doctor didn’t detect any other odors.
The space here seemed small; even the sound of the Doctor’s footsteps echoed.
The Doctor explored the small space further, confirming it was just a cellar.
What, so I was just overthinking it... or was I?
Just as the Doctor was thinking this, his ears caught an almost imperceptible sound. Through the darkness, he could see a door, made extremely similar to the wall, appear before him.
If not for the faint sound coming from behind the door, he probably wouldn’t have heard it at all.
Gently pushing the door open, the Doctor saw another narrow passage, only wide enough for one person to pass. Larger creatures wouldn’t be able to get through.
Passing through the passage, this time, he arrived in a space roughly the same size as the previous cellar.
After lighting up the room, he froze.
The sound he heard earlier was the clinking of iron chains.
And at this moment, inside the room, a girl with a fair face, one foot bound by an iron chain, sat dazedly on the ground.
The girl wore gorgeous clothes, but it seemed the person who dressed her was unfamiliar with the proper techniques; the originally beautiful clothes merely served to cover her body.
And her long brown hair was tangled into a mess, clearly from her own frantic pulling.
She looked at the Doctor, her gaze vacant for a moment. Then, her expression suddenly turned fierce. She snarled at the Doctor, her hands flailing wildly, resembling a madwoman, or perhaps, a wild beast.
She no longer looked human.
The Doctor stood there, silently watching her.
Although the girl desperately tried to lunge at the Doctor, with one foot chained, she could only fall to the ground.
Realizing she couldn’t reach the Doctor, the girl began frantically pounding at the iron chain on her foot, seemingly feeling no pain even as her fair hands were cut and scraped.
Watching the girl’s behavior, the Doctor, for some reason, was reminded of someone. Then, he sat cross-legged in front of the girl.
“Susie?” the Doctor asked tentatively.
Upon hearing the name, the girl seemed to react to something, fearfully shrinking into a corner, covering her face with her arms.
Seeing her reaction, the Doctor understood.
“Poor child.” The Doctor sighed, completely unaware that he and the girl were the same age.
He reached out, attempting to touch her head, but she slapped his hand away, looking at him fiercely, yet with a hint of despair.
“I’m here to rescue you.”
The Doctor said this.
Yes, from the very beginning, the Doctor had come to Constan City with a purpose.
While reviewing the Iron Wolf Mercenary Group’s contracts earlier, the Doctor had seen one particular contract.
A young nobleman commissioned the Iron Wolf Mercenary Group to kidnap a wealthy merchant’s daughter and lock her in a basement.
That young nobleman was Trist.
And the kidnapped person was Susie.
The sister of the guard at the gate, Trist’s guard.
He didn’t know what Susie had endured over the years, but it was evident that this once beautiful, good girl had become so deranged, and Trist was undoubtedly involved.