A light rain drifted from the sky.
Luo Li sat on the balcony, gazing at the unfamiliar surroundings.
An uneasy feeling settled in her heart.
It was the kind of reaction one had in an unfamiliar environment.
"So, how's the room? Not bad, right?"
Izzy walked in with some food from outside; it was already the second day.
Last night, Luo Li had clutched the corner of her blanket, nervously hoping to hear some inappropriate sounds.
Unfortunately, she was disappointed.
This room was clearly not set up for such activities.
So, no sounds reached her.
At night, it was very quiet here, with only faint, slightly noisy sounds drifting from the front.
But nothing was clear.
"It's alright."
What could she say?
Could she really say she was disappointed not to hear those sounds?
Tsk tsk~ She had finally arrived at a brothel in another world.
Yet she couldn't even go inside.
She looked down at herself. Unless she tightly bound her chest with bandages,
men's clothing was completely out of the question.
It was truly hard to imagine.
Women in those period dramas could just dress up a bit, without even binding their chests, and pass for men.
Were the men in those dramas blind?
But then she remembered the feeling of binding her chest... she had tried it with a bath towel last night.
It was too uncomfortable; she couldn't breathe normally at all.
Moreover, her shoulders weren't broad enough, lacking the width of a man's.
Even if she managed to bind her chest, she would be exposed the moment she walked out.
At most, she'd be seen as a flat-chested girl.
Thinking of this, Luo Li felt a pang of disappointment.
"It's alright?"
Izzy seemed to detect a strange nuance in Luo Li's tone, but after a moment's thought, he didn't dwell on it.
He casually put down a paper bag containing some grilled meat he had bought on the way.
Sitting down, Izzy glanced back at the girl before him.
To be honest, the girl before him was indeed a beauty unlike any he had ever seen.
Even though it wasn't their first meeting, she still captivated him.
In fact, after seeing her, other girls seemed to lose some of their vibrant charm.
The reason was that the girl before him was so beautiful that even a single glance
was enough to elevate Izzy's aesthetic standards by more than one level.
Phoenix eyes, willow-leaf brows, a slender face, delicate red lips, and an upturned nose—
No matter how he looked, the girl's features were perfectly harmonious, striking at first glance and growing more captivating the longer he looked.
Even her slightly bored expression was like a perfect work of art,
making it impossible to tear his gaze away.
Luo Li frowned slightly, feeling uncomfortable under his intense stare.
"What's wrong? Did something happen?"
"No, nothing... Oh, right."
Saying this, Izzy pulled a bottle from another bag.
"Use this for now. I haven't found a good solution for your eyes, but at least this hair color should help conceal you from many."
Luo Li took the glass bottle Izzy pulled from his bag.
It contained a pale golden liquid.
Luo Li paused.
"What is this?"
"Hair dye. It can change your hair color for a short time, but only lasts seven days."
"How do I use it?"
Luo Li looked curiously at the golden liquid in the bottle.
She had never encountered anything like it.
"Mix it with water when you wash your hair. Soak your hair in the water, and it will dye itself."
"It's that simple?"
"Yes."
As he spoke, Izzy took out two tickets.
"These are discount tickets for the civilian communication room. You can communicate remotely at a ten percent discount with these. I had to really beg for them, you know? Pretty impressive, right?"
Luo Li's mouth twitched, and she gave a reluctant nod.
Whether she had them or not made little difference; Luo Li didn't care about the discount.
But... a civilian communication room?
Luo Li was seeing one for the first time.
However, this presented a problem.
Once she connected to the Temple's communication room, the other side would inevitably know her location.
That wasn't the main issue; the main issue was that she currently had no one to guard her.
If certain interested parties learned of this and arrived here first,
it would be troublesome.
"Can I communicate secretly?"
"Secretly?"
Izzy thought for a moment, then shook his head.
"I'm afraid not. Civilian communication rooms can't be encrypted. To encrypt, you'd need to go to a noble-exclusive communication room, but... aren't you trying to avoid nobles? Besides, even those high-level communication rooms aren't necessarily completely secure."
It seemed that using a communication room would require taking a risk.
But could she afford to take that risk now?
It was so much trouble; she might as well have just returned to Brilliant City directly.
However... if she returned to Brilliant City directly, it would be easy for someone to spot a flaw and uncover clues.
After all, it was hard to say whether there were demons among the nobles now.
If her witch form were exposed, she would likely face the Holy Church's swift retribution.
Even with sufficient strength, Luo Li had no intention of revealing her witch form.
After all, it would be too great a shock to the public's faith.
Moreover, with the Kingdom of the Moon so desolate now, she was even less likely to expose her witch form.
"Izzy, how long does it take to send a letter from here to Brilliant City?"
"From here to Brilliant City?"
Izzy stroked his chin, pondering.
"Normally, it would take about a month and a half, but not now."
"Why?" Luo Li pressed.
"You don't know? This heavy rain has been too severe. The official roads are almost impassable for horses now."
"Especially around Brilliant City, even the Heavenly Punishment Knights' army is stuck halfway and can't return."
Izzy explained patiently, also looking at the girl before him with some confusion.
'What is she up to?'
'Avoiding nobles, yet wanting to contact Brilliant City?'
'While other major cities have noble presences, they don't contain all nobles.'
'But Brilliant City is different.'
'At the seat of power, all nobles have their own residences in Brilliant City.'
'Wait, she wouldn't be trying to contact the Temple, would she?'
'Who exactly is she?'
A faint unease began to stir in Izzy's heart.
'He vaguely felt as though he had fallen into a huge whirlpool.'
'Perhaps it wasn't too late to extricate himself now.'
'Ah! But I'm too soft-hearted. Leave her alone? I can't do that!'
"If you want to contact Brilliant City, I advise you to be cautious."
"While the Borgia family seems alright outwardly, there are always some strange rumors about them. Personally, I don't care for them."
"Strange rumors?"
Luo Li was curious; what kind of strange rumors would make this goofy guy say such a thing?
"Well, for instance, girls often go missing near the Borgia family estate, and there are other strange rumors too. Anyway... nothing good."
Izzy's words made Luo Li even more vigilant.
Could this Borgia family really be colluding with demons?
If so, then this operation truly required extreme caution.
She had previously thought of contacting Augus to have Brilliant City send troops.
But now, it seemed unlikely.
Even if she managed to contact Augus, the effects of this heavy rain would still hinder the knights' advance.
And if the Borgia family received news, they could act almost immediately.
Luo Li's fingers tapped gently on the table, making a rhythmic 'thump-thump' sound.
Though her fingertips hurt slightly, it helped her concentrate.
The current situation might seem safe, but danger lurked everywhere.
Just waiting around would likely not lead to a good outcome.
The only way was to take a risk and send word of her presence in Moonrise City back.
This time, the message couldn't go to Augus.
Then who should she send it to?
Lola?
No, her situation was the same as Augus's.
The recipient had to be able to dispatch troops quickly, unaffected by terrain.
Then the only option was the dragon cavalry regiment.
But she didn't have Ligeia's contact information.
While magic stones could be used for short distances, they were useless at this range.
Who to contact?
The Von family?
Old Audis?
No, although he was loyal to her, a large family like his might have a few rebellious sons.
Moreover, that old man had already essentially pledged allegiance to her.
Other nobles would surely be watching him, and any slight movement would draw attention.
Who else then?
Who else could move freely within Brilliant City, speak with Ligeia,
and not fear noble threats or have their personal freedom restricted by them?
A figure involuntarily appeared in Luo Li's mind.
A chilling, strange laugh seemed to echo faintly in her ears.
That's right, at this moment, she was probably the only one who could do it.
But once she contacted her, if she didn't pay a sufficient price, that woman would never give up.
Although she could use her monarch's authority to issue a mandatory order,
her personal relationship would be completely ruined.
This was not the outcome Luo Li wanted.
It seemed she would have to grit her teeth and bargain.
She just didn't know what she would demand this time.
She secretly gritted her teeth. 'No matter what, my virginity could not be lost!'
She would have to concede on other things.
"Izzy, can the civilian communication room contact the major associations?"
"It can, yes. Which one do you want to contact?"
"Brilliant City, the Alchemists' Association."
Izzy paused slightly, instinctively glancing up at the girl.
He saw her eyes were now filled with determination.
That expression, as if she were nobly going to her death, brought a rare look of seriousness to Izzy's face.
"Alright, I'll arrange it immediately."
"However, to avoid being discovered, you'll only have three minutes of communication time."
Having decided on the next plan, Izzy began to make preparations.
"We can't go during the day; it's too conspicuous. We'll go in the afternoon when there are more people, which will make it easier to shake off any tails."
"I'll leave these matters to you."
Luo Li stood up, facing Izzy.
"Izzy."
"Hmm?"
"If this goes smoothly, I'll give you a great gift in return."
"Oh? You're going to give yourself to me? How could I possibly accept~"
'Where's my knife? My knife! Where's my forty-meter long blade?!'
Looking at the girl's murderous expression, that contemptuous gaze as if she were looking at scum,
Izzy suddenly felt as if he had awakened some extraordinary interest.
He had opened a forbidden door to a new world.
A shiver ran through him, and he quickly stood up.
"Alright, alright, I'll go prepare first. You get ready too, okay~"
Without waiting for the girl to say anything more, Izzy fled from the room in a panic.
He ran all the way out the main door before leaning against the wall, panting heavily.
"Oh my goodness, what kind of temptation was that? I almost opened a new world!"
He glanced back at the room, still shaken.
'This woman... she was certainly no ordinary person.'
'With just that allure, she could pull off a honey trap and definitely make a fortune!'
Of course, this thought merely flashed through his mind.
He hadn't forgotten the girl's murderous gaze just now.
It was terrifying.
That feeling was as if she truly intended to kill.
'She wouldn't have actually killed someone, would she?'
Thinking about it, Izzy shook his head.
"Forget it, thinking about this is useless. I'm taking money to solve someone's problems; I need to get this done quickly. April is waiting for me to bring her medicine."
At the thought of his sister, April, a trace of pity involuntarily appeared in Izzy's eyes.
But within that pity, a hint of anger was hidden.
However, this flicker of anger ultimately turned into helplessness.
He took a deep breath, as if trying to suppress his rage, and exhaled.
But the nagging feeling in his heart lingered.
He was used to it by now; after all, five years had passed.
Besides, no matter how angry he was, it wouldn't help.
Although he had done fairly well among the commoners, having interacted with people from various trades,
these people ultimately held no real influence.
Against the formidable nobles, they couldn't even put up a futile resistance.
Under the prevailing circumstances, what impact could his small frustrations and anger have on those nobles?
If he truly stood up and rebelled, what would happen to his sister, April?
Who would take care of her for the rest of her life?
He couldn't.
Even with an immense hatred, for his sister's sake, he had to endure it.
He gathered his thoughts, slapped his cheeks, and felt much more energized.
Forgetting his recent troubles, he now had to focus entirely on this matter.
There could be no mishaps with this.
Although he didn't know the girl's identity, the tail she wanted to shake off had already revealed a clue.
Namely, the Borgia family.
Hmm~ He had to plan carefully, think more, and see if there were any other loopholes.
Thinking this, Izzy walked away.
Meanwhile, in the brothel's room.
Luo Li's mind was already in the throes of an internal struggle.
Her small head was now filled with all sorts of potential conversations.
After all, she was about to deal with the female pervert who lusted after her body.
Camilla, the head of the Alchemists' Association.
Rate on N.U.
