Lin Gui raised an eyebrow and glanced at the document.
He took it and flipped to the first page.
The first line that met his eyes was:
"The male party (Lin Gui) shall pay the female party (Elvia) ten thousand gold coins per week as living expenses."
Lin Gui continued reading.
There were several more lines below:
"The male party shall be responsible for the female party's three daily meals and shall not use any excuse to shirk this duty."
"The male party shall purchase any luxury goods within a reasonable range for the female party, including but not limited to clothing, jewelry, and cosmetics."
"The male party shall guarantee the female party's personal safety and shall not place the female party in a dangerous situation."
Lin Gui's mouth twitched slightly.
He continued flipping through the pages.
The next page read:
"The female party (Elvia) voluntarily joins the male party (Lin Gui) in his revolutionary revenge plan."
"The female party must unconditionally obey the male party's strategic arrangements and must not act without authorization."
"The female party shall utilize the political experience accumulated in the Carter Royal Capital to provide strategic support for the male party in opposing the nobles and the powerful."
"The female party shall..."
Lin Gui didn't finish reading.
He closed the document and looked up at Elvia.
Elvia was looking at him with half-lidded eyes.
"What do you think?"
Her voice was lazy, like a cat basking in the sun.
"I spent a very long time writing that seriously."
Lin Gui placed the document on the nightstand expressionlessly.
"You call this serious?"
Elvia nodded righteously.
"Of course."
She shrank back into the blanket, leaving only her face exposed.
"Ten thousand gold coins a week is already very little."
"Back in the Carter Royal Capital, I used to spend a hundred thousand gold coins a month just on clothes."
Lin Gui looked at her speechlessly.
"That was then."
"Now, you don't even have a single copper coin."
Elvia curled her lip.
"That's why I'm looking for you."
Her voice softened slightly.
"As a princess of a kingdom, and moreover, one without any foundation, I fought against the Third Prince and the Eldest Princess for so long."
She paused, her gaze turning serious.
"I might not amount to much in battle."
"But when it comes to dealing with the nobility and the powerful, no one knows them better than I do."
Lin Gui said nothing.
Elvia looked at him, a faint smile curling her lips.
"You poisoned me back then."
"Didn't you have considerations in that regard as well?"
Lin Gui remained silent for a moment.
"Indeed."
He didn't deny it.
Giving Elvia the Demon's Poisonous Kiss back then was truly not just to control her.
He wanted to tie her to his ship.
It wasn't for her combat prowess.
It was for the things inside her head.
She had survived the power struggles of the Carter Royal Capital for many years.
Without the support of a maternal clan and without a powerful knight order.
She had relied on herself.
This ability was worth more than any High Rank magic.
It was impossible for Lin Gui to fight the Alliance alone.
He had pulled in the entire Caran City, but that was only the foundation.
There wasn't a single person who could truly assist him in his core operations.
Even though many post offices had been opened, the permanent staff was still only himself.
He needed people.
He needed people who could help him handle those noble relationships that were complex enough to cause headaches.
He needed people who could find the cracks within the rules of the City-State Alliance.
Elvia was the most suitable candidate.
But the prerequisite was that if he died, she had to die as well.
Only being truly on the same boat could put his mind at ease.
And now.
Lin Gui still didn't speak.
Yet Elvia had already guessed what he was thinking.
She looked at him.
"If I were you,"
Her voice was very light.
"I wouldn't simply let go of someone who could provide such great help."
"Especially since the enemy is so powerful."
She paused.
"If you truly want to overthrow that behemoth,"
"You shouldn't harbor so-called sympathy or morality."
"You shouldn't let me go just because I haven't done many of the things a noble usually does."
Her gaze met his directly.
"And now."
Elvia threw back the blanket, revealing her shapely body.
Moonlight shone on her, and her face held a strange sort of composure.
"You still have a chance to make amends."
Her voice was very soft.
Lin Gui knew what that was.
Engaging in physical relations to establish a marriage.
The Demon's Poisonous Kiss had been the prerequisite for his trust in her back then.
But that was fake.
And now, what Elvia was doing was establishing another kind of Shared-Death Contract.
Physical union followed by the fusion of souls.
A physical relationship did not inherently mean a shared death.
In these high-pressure apocalyptic city-states, there were plenty of ladies of the night who sold their bodies.
You didn't see many of them dying just for doing that.
Unless it touched upon the Alliance's greatest taboo.
And the Spark Revolution was the Alliance's greatest taboo.
Faced with Elvia's blood-pumping request, Lin Gui did not act.
Instead, he asked strangely:
"You didn't succeed in Dragonbone City."
"Why do you suddenly want to join me now?"
Elvia tilted her head.
A faint smile appeared on her face, but her eyes were somewhat vacant.
"Because of love."
Her voice was very light.
"You have no idea how desperate I felt when I learned that the Dark Tide was about to break out near the Carter Royal Capital."
She paused.
"So, when I saw you disregarding the danger to rescue me from there, my heart beat so fast."
Her finger pressed against her chest, as if she were feeling something.
"And afterward, when you stuffed me into that Gold Rank adventure group to leave, my heart ached terribly."
Her voice grew lower and lower.
"The moment I thought about your bleak future, I realized..."
"I might have already fallen hopelessly in love with you."
Lin Gui's face was lined with black streaks.
He gave her a dead fish stare and interrupted:
"Do you think I'll believe that?"
Elvia's words got caught in her throat.
Lin Gui looked at her and asked seriously:
"What is the actual reason that made you change your mind?"
Elvia fell silent.
She let out a sigh.
Then, an extremely resentful expression appeared on her exquisite face.
"Because it's just so fucking agonizing!"
Her voice carried the sound of gnashing teeth.
"Do you know how that woman treated me?"
"That tough woman, she worked me to the bone."
"The cargo that weighed a hundred jin just got heavier by the day."
"And it never fucking left my side!"
She grew more agitated as she spoke, sitting up in bed, not even caring that the blanket slid down.
"I am the grand Seventh Princess of the Carter Kingdom, a High-tier High Rank knight!"
"I carried a package bigger than myself and walked through the mud for a whole week!"
"My feet were covered in blisters; when the blisters popped, new ones grew."
"My shoulders were rubbed raw with bloody gashes; when the blood scabbed over, the scabs were rubbed off again!"
She reached out, showing Lin Gui the palms of her hands.
There were still calluses there that hadn't quite faded.
"Look at this!"
"These are my hands!"
"Before, these hands only touched silk, jewelry, and perfume bottles!"
"And now?"
"Now they touch mud, rotten leaves, and those goddamned package ropes!"
Lin Gui looked at her expressionlessly.
Elvia continued her complaint.
"Even when I went to the bathroom, several women had to keep their eyes on me!"
"Saying they were afraid I'd get lost, or that I'd be carried off by demons."
"I'm a princess, and yet I didn't even have privacy to use the toilet!"
Her voice grew louder.
"When we slept at night, a piece of ragged cloth on the ground counted as a bed!"
"Right next to me were that tough woman's stinky feet!"
"That smell was even stronger than the stables I used to keep!"
Lin Gui's mouth twitched slightly.
Elvia took a deep breath, as if she were suppressing something.
"Don't even get me started on the food."
"The black bread was hard enough to kill a dog."
"After soaking it in water for ages, it softened into something that tasted like slime."
"Occasionally there was a bit of jerky, but it was so salty it was deadly, and it took forever to chew and swallow."
Her eyes turned a bit red.
"Do you fucking know how desperate I felt when I asked that woman when we'd arrive at the City of a Thousand Towers, and she said it would take another six months?"
She almost roared it out.
"Six months!!!"
"This is going to take fucking six months!!!"
"Never mind six months, I'd die on the road in one!!!"
After shouting, she gasped for breath.
Then, as if giving up on herself, she said:
"I might as well fucking rebel with you; at least I can live flavorfully for a few years."
"If I follow them, I'd probably have to consider how to commit suicide painlessly before we even reached the City of a Thousand Towers."
...
Lin Gui stood by the bed, looking at her.
The expression on his face changed from speechless to a strange sort of calm.
He didn't feel much about Elvia's painful experiences.
A Gold Rank adventure group with the minimum configuration, trying to ensure safety while crossing the wilderness—this was basically how it went.
His own journey to the Magic City back then had been far more agonizing than this.
Gnawing on grass roots was a common occurrence.
When he was extremely hungry, he had even chewed on tree bark.
Once, he had walked through the wilderness for five whole days without eating anything.
In the end, he had survived by eating the putrid meat of demons.
Even now, the memory of that taste made him feel nauseous.
But it was much better than the pain in his heart.
He looked at the shivering blonde princess before him with a strange expression.
"Just because you couldn't endure the hardships of crossing the wilderness, you intend to oppose the Alliance with me?"
This reason was clearly absurd.
But when applied to Elvia, Lin Gui felt it was inexplicably convincing.
He was silent for a long time.
Elvia looked at him as well, her eyes filled with resentment and grievance.
"Is that not allowed?"
"I came here from Dragonbone City in such a pathetic state, suffering through so much grievance and pain."
"The most fucking annoying thing is that you, you bastard, obviously started so much later, and yet you fucking arrived a day earlier than me."
"When I entered Whitecliff City and heard the news that the 7-Copper Post Office had opened, I almost wanted to rush over and bite you to death, you know that?"
"Since the first stop was on the way, why the fuck didn't you just take me with you?!"
"Leaving me to suffer that week of tortured living, were you fucking doing it on purpose?!"
Mentioning this made Elvia grit her teeth in anger.
The more she thought about it along the way, the more she fucking felt that this bastard had simply treated her as baggage to be dumped.
The thought that while she was suffering in the wilderness, Lin Gui was already enjoying himself in the city-state—a warm bed, alluring wine, and delicious food—made Elvia extremely disgruntled.
She stared at Lin Gui, her eyes full of unwillingness.
"I don't care anymore."
Her voice carried a tone of throwing caution to the wind.
"Anyway, I'm sticking to you."
"Wherever you go, I'll follow."
"If you dare stuff me into another adventure group, I'll..."
She thought for a moment but couldn't think of anything threatening to say.
So she simply flopped back onto the bed, limbs splayed out.
"I'm just going to lie here and not leave."
Lin Gui looked at her behaving like a rogue, his mouth twitching.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Elvia was righteous.
"Being your parasite for life."
"Since you've played the hero saving the beauty, then save me to the end! Take responsibility for me!"
Lin Gui let out a speechless sigh.
His eyes held disdain, yet also an indescribable helplessness.
"You're a princess of a kingdom, and this is all the ambition you have?"
Elvia closed her eyes, refusing to look at him.
"Princess? From which kingdom?"
"The Carter Kingdom is gone."
"I'm just a poor, homeless woman now."
Her voice was muffled.
"Just treat it as if you're keeping me."
Lin Gui was silent for a while.
He pulled up a chair and sat down by the bedside.
"Are you sure you want to join me?"
Elvia opened her eyes and turned her head to look at him.
Lin Gui's expression was calm, but there was something in his eyes she had never seen before.
"My future plans aren't as simple as just delivering letters or opening post offices."
Her voice was very light.
"I am going to destroy the Black Dragon Army."
Elvia's eyelid flickered.
"Kill the Pope of the Holy Church of Light."
Her fingers gripped the blanket tightly.
"Dismantle the City-State Alliance."
Her breathing grew somewhat rapid.
"Kill everyone who was involved in the massacre of the three Spark cities back then."
"Regardless of whether they are a clan leader or a Title Rank expert."
"I will single them all out and kill them."
Horrifying goals after another were tossed out of that mouth as light as air.
Elvia's eyelids jumped wildly.
She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but swallowed it back down.
Lin Gui looked at her.
"This is your last chance to go back on your word."
His tone was very calm.
"Whitecliff City is a transport node. There are transport teams here connected to the transport network."
"Ones going to the Magic City as well."
"After all, the biggest buyer of Whitecliff stone is the Magic City."
He paused.
"If you follow a transport team, you won't experience a torturous journey like the one with a Gold Rank adventure group."
"The transport teams are very powerful and are led by Legendaries."
"Moreover, the member configurations of the transport teams are very complete."
"Unlike the Red Iron adventure group, where the most important mage for crossing the wilderness didn't even have a higher rank than mine."
"And the skill level of a team's mage is almost directly linked to how comfortable it is to cross the wilderness."
He looked at her.
Elvia said nothing.
Something flashed across her face and quickly vanished.
Lin Gui noticed that her eyes darkened for an instant.
It was as if something had been suppressed.
"I'm not going."
Her voice was decisive.
"I've had enough of that life."
"I don't want to struggle anymore."
"I only want to immediately return to the life of a princess."
She paused and added a sentence:
"You don't need to persuade me."
"I've already thought it through."
Her tone was firm, but Lin Gui noticed that her fingers were gripping the corner of the blanket, her knuckles turning white.
The room fell silent.
Moonlight spilled from the window, illuminating both of them.
Elvia lay on the bed, her eyes fixed on the ceiling.
She didn't know what Lin Gui was thinking.
She didn't know if he would agree.
She only knew that her heart was beating very fast.
Thump, thump.
It was as if it were about to leap out of her chest.
She waited for a while.
And waited some more.
Just when she thought Lin Gui was going to open his mouth to refuse.
"Fine."
A single word.
Very light, very short.
Elvia's body stiffened for a moment.
Her fingers slowly relaxed.
Several deep creases were left on the corner of the blanket.
She let out a long breath.
It was as if she had set down a very heavy burden.
Then, her heartbeat began to accelerate.
Because she realized what would happen after Lin Gui agreed.
Thump, thump, thump.
Faster and faster.
She subconsciously gripped the blanket tight.
Her fingers bunched the fabric into a mass of wrinkles.
"Since you agree,"
She cleared her throat, pretending to be calm.
"Then let's hurry up and get this over with."
Her gaze drifted to the side, not daring to look at Lin Gui.
"By the way, remember to treat me well in the future."
"Treat me like it says in the agreement."
After finishing, she held her head high, her face slightly red.
The moonlight shone on her face, making that thin blush clearly visible.
She felt Lin Gui move.
His shadow moved from the window, blocking the moonlight.
She felt him approaching.
She felt the faint smell of herbs on him.
And the warm breath that belonged to a man.
Her heart raced wildly.
Her mind went blank.
Then, she began to mull over her future life.
Waking up naturally every day.
Having steaming hot meals.
Having beautiful clothes.
Having a soft bed.
No longer having to carry that goddamned package.
No longer having to gnaw on that black bread that was hard enough to kill a dog.
No longer having to smell that tough woman's stinky feet.
No longer being stared at by a group of women while going to the toilet.
The corners of her mouth curved up involuntarily.
Rate on N.U.
