Dusk slowly settled over the city. The night butterflies drifted through the halls of Venus's Embrace, getting ready for another night of work. Meanwhile, Lily and Sheryl had locked themselves inside their room, checking the prepared ingredients one last time.
Sheryl read from the list.
"Night lily ash..."
"Got it."
"Three drops of blood from young girls..."
"Got it."
"Six ether candles..."
"Got it."
"One fresh four-leaf clover..."
"Ready."
"That's everything," Sheryl said, awkwardly scratching behind her ear as she watched her best friend carefully inspect the bag of ingredients.
"Are you sure?" Lily asked again.
"Yes! Lily has already checked everything three times. Lily doesn't need to worry so much. Sheryl is sure everything will be fine."
Even though Sheryl was scolding her friend for being overly meticulous, the bright, cheerful smile never left her face. It felt nice to know someone cared about her that much. If Lily didn't truly see her as a friend, she would never have been so thorough.
"You don't understand how dangerous any ritual can be," Lily argued. "One tiny mistake, and not only will we fail to raise your level of strength, we'll bring disaster upon ourselves and everyone else."
"Mmm..." Sheryl nodded. "Sheryl will be obedient. Sheryl doesn't want to be a burden anymore."
"Are you still blaming yourself because of the panther? How many more times do I have to tell you it wasn't your fault? That magical beast had already sensed our group. If it hadn't attacked you first and had gone after someone weaker instead, we wouldn't have been able to avoid casualties..."
"But Grey's arm..."
"Stop." Lily cut her off. "Quit thinking about it. He's fine. Focus on becoming stronger, and next time you'll be able to help us in battle. I'm sure Grey feels the same way. Otherwise, he never would have given us the money for the ritual..."
Determination returned to Sheryl's eyes.
She never wanted to feel that same panic and helplessness again. Back then, she had been so terrified that she hadn't even thought about the consequences. The moment she saw the beast's merciless jaws, all she wanted was to run without looking back. Only afterward did she realize that her weakness had caused her friends to suffer.
She couldn't accept it and constantly blamed herself for her own cowardice.
Seeing her reaction, Lily let out a quiet sigh of relief.
"Come on. It'll be dark soon. We'd better reach the old manor before sunset..."
"Maybe we should wait for Grey? He's there pretty often. Sheryl is afraid that just the two of us might get lost..."
"That makes sense..." Lily fell silent for a moment. "But Grey went upstairs to see Lady Veronika... Who knows how long he'll be there? We don't have time to wait. Maybe we should find Hope? I heard she trains there every day, so she should know the way."
Sheryl nodded.
To be honest, she didn't want to trouble Grey again. She really wanted to surprise him after the ritual, when her strength level had increased.
They quickly found Hope, who was already lying exhausted on her bed, ready to fall into a deep sleep.
She had gone through hellish training with the teenagers that day alone.
Even so, when the two girls asked her to lead them to the old manor, she couldn't refuse. Unlike everyone else, Sheryl and Lily were Grey's friends, not his subordinates. Because of that, Hope was not only grateful to them, but also considered them to hold a higher status than herself.
Thorn's Cloaca carried on with its usual rhythm.
Merchants hurried to pack up their stalls, housewives worked in their kitchens, and the local authorities collected taxes from the day's trade.
The three girls slowly made their way toward the city gates. They didn't rush, afraid of drawing unnecessary attention, but quietly exchanged the latest news.
Hope did most of the talking while Sheryl and Lily listened with curiosity. They were incredibly interested in how their neighbor, who had been crammed into the same cell with them not long ago and eaten the same bowl of stew, had managed to gather subordinates so quickly.
It felt as if he had more hours in a day than everyone else. In just twenty-four hours, he managed to handle the bookkeeping at Venus's Embrace, buy food and other supplies, keep track of his subordinates' schedules, and earn money.
He also never neglected his own training. Every morning, before sunrise, he practiced in the backyard.
That kind of dedication and work ethic couldn't help but impress them.
"...Then he told us to run all the way to the tallest sequoia... Anyone who fell behind had to carry me, Aileen, and Irene in their arms... I can't even imagine how hard it was for that boy named Josh. He's so skinny, nothing like Achilles or..."
Hope had been enthusiastically describing their latest training session, but suddenly stopped in the middle of a sentence. Terror froze in her eyes, and her body began to tremble helplessly.
Sheryl and Lily looked at their friend in confusion. What happened to her? What was she so afraid of? They hadn't even left the city yet. There shouldn't have been any danger here...
Lily gently shook her by the shoulder.
"Hey, Hope, are you alright? You look as pale as a ghost. Maybe we should go back?"
"Shhh." Pale-faced Hope pressed a finger to her lips in panic while pulling the two girls into the nearest alley with her other hand.
"What happened?" Lily asked again after they hid behind a fence. She was starting to panic herself, even though she had no idea where the danger was coming from.
"Ah? No..." Hope was completely flustered. She kept looking around and struggled to find the right words. "It's just..."
"Calm down. Nothing will happen here. Just tell me what scared you so much," Lily said, trying to reassure her.
At the same time, Sheryl took Hope's hand and gently comforted her, just as Grey had done countless times while they dug the tunnel.
"Take a deep breath... It's okay. Sheryl is here."
After calming down a little, Hope pointed toward a group of three men.
"There. Two adventurers following that third man... They saw us... They saw me and Mom when she was using magic. A wild boar attacked them, and Mom and I were nearby gathering mushrooms. She saved them and escorted them back to the city, while I ran to the market to sell the mushrooms.
But Mom never came back...
I kept waiting for her at our usual place. I even fell asleep there. Sniff... Sniff...
The next morning, everyone was talking about a witch being captured. And... Sniff, sniff... Then... the stake."
The more she spoke, the more chilling her words became.
All the color drained from Hope's face. Tears streamed endlessly from her eyes, as though she were reliving that horrifying scene all over again.
It didn't take a genius to understand what she was trying to say.
The two men her mother had saved had repaid her kindness with betrayal. That very same day, they had reported her to the authorities, and the authorities had acted...
Sheryl and Lily exchanged glances. Their fists clenched so tightly that their nails drew blood.
It was one thing to hear stories about betrayal, and something completely different to witness such ruthless cruelty and ingratitude firsthand. They couldn't even imagine the terror, rage, and hatred their friend was feeling right now.
A minute later, Hope spoke in a weak but determined voice.
"I... I want to follow them... find out where they live... and take revenge..."
"That's dangerous," Sheryl warned.
"I don't care. You shouldn't come with me. I'm sorry, but I can't take you to the manor anymore."
Lily grabbed Hope by the shoulder and looked her straight in the eyes.
"Who do you think we are? We're your friends. We'll help you. Those bastards deserve to die.
But we can't act on impulse. There's no way the three of us can handle three grown men. They don't look weak... Who knows what level they are."
She didn't give Hope a chance to argue and continued immediately.
"We'll follow them. We'll find where they live, then ask Grey or my mother for help. Do you hear me?! Pull yourself together. You won't accomplish anything by throwing your life away for nothing."
That's what they decided.
Moving from one alley to another, the girls followed the group of men. They never got too close, only making sure they didn't lose sight of them.
Half an hour later, the men left the city and headed into the forest.
Hope couldn't help noticing that they were moving toward the old manor, as if they were searching for something.
Lily signaled the others not to rush.
After growing tired of their fruitless search, the three men stopped to rest. They built a campfire, pulled a rabbit from one of their snares, and began butchering the meat...
At last, when the firewood began to crackle softly and the thick darkness of night concealed the depths of the forest from prying eyes, Lily, Sheryl, and Hope found a chance to get close enough to overhear their conversation.
Following Lily's instructions, Sheryl stayed behind at a safe distance.
Her hearing was the sharpest among them, so if anything dangerous happened to the others, she would be able to return to the city and tell Grey and the adults everything.
For about ten minutes, the men complained about the miserable weather. They spent another five cursing their superiors. Then they started talking about the women they had slept with at the brothel. Their conversation was so filthy that Lily and Hope wanted to cover their ears.
At least half an hour passed before they finally heard something worth listening to.
"Speaking of women, remember that witch who was worth a gold coin?" one of them said, smacking his lips.
"Of course I do. I swear to God, that was the best deal of my life," the second replied excitedly.
"What are you talking about?" the third man asked. He hadn't been involved and had no idea what they meant.
"We managed to turn in a witch. I swear, it was the best day of my life. The woman walked right up to the guard post herself. All we had to do was say a few words to the guards, and they paid us on the spot." The first man waved his hands excitedly, unable to contain himself.
"And that's not even the best part..." the second continued. "Well, we shared part of the reward with one of the guards. You know how these things work. Then he let us into her cell. Damn, that girl was smoking hot. Tits, ass... We got ourselves a good lay and filled our pockets at the same time. Hahaha."
Hope's shoulders trembled again and again. She bit her lip until it bled and kept wiping her eyes with her sleeve.
Lily said nothing. She simply patted Hope gently on the back.
Those bastards were truly vile and despicable. Not only had they betrayed the woman who had saved them, they had even dared to violate her after she had fallen into their hands.
They weren't wrong about one thing. They really had taken full advantage of the situation. They had turned treachery into an art.
"Alright, enough bragging," the third man snapped, unable to hide his jealousy. "Those brats aren't going to find themselves. We'll keep looking for another hour, then head back to our client."
"And why the hell do they want those kids?" the second man asked.
"Who knows? Your job is to search. Everything else is none of your damn business."
This time, Lily's pupils narrowed.
She realized those men hadn't come this deep into Thorn's Tabernacles by accident. Most likely, they had been hired by the same cursed cultists who were searching for the escaped children.
Patience truly was a virtue. Now all they had to do was return with the information they had gathered.
Grabbing Hope by the hand, Lily led her back to Sheryl.
"There's no point following them anymore. We've learned enough. Now we need to reach the manor as quickly as possible and warn Grey's subordinates. For the next few days, they need to cover their tracks and keep a lower profile."
"Mmm." Hope nodded expressionlessly.
Lily nudged her with an elbow.
"Cheer up. We got a lot out of this. We'll perform the ritual as planned, and tomorrow morning we'll tell Grey everything we found. I'm sure he'll help you get your revenge. He has to. I'm joining in too. My hands are itching to practice the family torture techniques my mother taught me on those traitors."
Hope's eyes flashed with a dangerous light. There was so much coldness in them that even the winters of the northern fjords would have seemed like a summer resort.
That was how deeply she hated those men.
She wanted to tear them apart, eat their flesh, use their bones as toothpicks, and drink from their skulls like a cup.
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