The Emerald Spire didn't just overlook Sisiphon City, it choked it. As the wooden carriage ground to a halt, the heavy iron gates groaned open, revealing the true heart of Oksana's drug empire. This wasn't a corporate headquarters, it was a vertical fortress guarded by a ruthless army of bandits, rogue mages, and cutthroat criminals who answered only to the Queen.
Dorin escorted me through the massive green-glass entrance. The moment we stepped into the atrium, the atmosphere turned oppressive.
The interior was a chaotic hive of criminal activity. Mercenaries were counting stacks of coin, enforcers were sharpening heavy blades, and the air itself was thick and hazy, shimmering with a faint violet tint. Lotus Dust was scattered carelessly through the air like toxic glitter, its sweet, sickly scent invading my lungs. Normal people would have hallucinated within seconds, but I kept my breathing shallow, my constitution filtering out the poison while I walked through the crowd wearing my pristine, standard ivory and gold academy uniform. I stuck out like a sore thumb, a lone lamb walking into a slaughterhouse.
We ascended the winding, jade-stone staircase until we reached the highest floor, stopping before a set of heavily reinforced obsidian doors. Dorin nodded to the guards, and the doors swung open to reveal Oksana's private office.
Sitting behind a massive desk of polished black stone was the Lotus Dust Queen herself.
My eyes narrowed as I looked at her. She was a striking elf with vibrant, strawberry-pink hair that fell in sharp waves past her shoulders, perfectly matching the detailed description I had memorized from the Registry of the Condemned. Her piercing eyes scanned me with cold calculation, an elegant pipe resting between her fingers as a stream of purple smoke curled toward the ceiling.
Every hunter instinct in my body screamed at me to strike. Oksana's is in a open space, I can sever her head easily.
"She's right there, I could create a blood blade, sever her head, and claim the massive bounty on her life right now. I could end the Lotus Dust epidemic in a single second." I thought, my fingers twitching beneath my sleeves.
But as I subtly expanded my mana perception, a cold sweat broke out across my back.
Flanking her desk were four hooded figures, standing as still as statues. They didn't move, but their hidden mana signatures were suffocating. The air around them vibrated with a terrifying, crushing density. My appraisal skill practically short-circuited, each one of them possessed power equal to an S-rank or a diamond ranked adventurer.
I instantly suppressed my killing intent, forcing my heart rate to remain perfectly steady. If I made even a single aggressive movement, I wouldn't just fail, I would be vaporized on the spot. Even with my true power, fighting four S-rank entities simultaneously in an enclosed room filled with poison gas was a suicide mission. I had to play the part of Zenni, the desperate slum boy, and bide my time.
Oksana blew a thin ring of purple smoke into the air, her sharp elven eyes locking onto my ivory uniform.
"So, this is the little ghost Dorin keeps bragging about. The one who thinks he can run my dust and play student at the same time."
I walked nervously toward the massive black stone desk, deliberately slouching my shoulders and letting my gaze drop to the floor to perfectly mimic Zenni's timid, lower-class demeanor. I pulled out the chair directly across from her and sat down, fidgeting slightly with the gold cuffs of my academy uniform.
"M-my name is Zenni Roy, a first-year student at the Sisiphon Magic Academy."
I stammered, keeping my voice quiet and shaky as I introduced myself. Oksana stared at me for a beat, and then she threw her head back, bursting into a loud, mocking laugh that echoed off the green-glass walls.
"Student? Hahaha!" she scoffed, her tone turning incredibly rude and condescending as she leaned over the desk, blowing a cloud of purple smoke directly into my face. The she continued.
"You think wearing that pretty little uniform makes you special, kid? Look around you. This is a drug empire, and to me, you're just another narcotic. A disposable asset. Tell me, what is your pathetic little skill anyway?"
I allowed a flash of irritation to cross my face, perfectly shifting Zenni's persona from timid to the boastful, defensive attitude of a slum kid trying to prove his worth. I brushed off the smoke with an arrogant flick of my wrist and leaned forward, speaking in a cocky, prideful tone.
"Blood manipulation and I'm a master at it."
Before Oksana could scoff again, Dorin quickly stepped forward from the shadows, bowing his head respectfully.
"It's true, Lady Oksana, I saw him with my own eyes. He single-handedly defended our products down in the meth lab this morning when the rogue scum tried to ambush us. The kid's a natural."
Oksana rolled her eyes, her rude behavior unyielding as she tapped her pipe against a crystal ashtray. she hissed, leaning back into her plush chair with a bored expression.
"Prove it, little child, this academy you run around in is not a playground, and my Spire is no place for babies like you. Show me what you've got, or I'll have my guards toss you out of the window."
"You want a show? Fine," I thought.
I didn't need to draw deep from my reservoir of power. I simply bit the inside of my lip, drawing a fraction of a drop of blood. With effortless grace, I extended my right hand. The blood seeped smoothly through my pores, instantly expanding into a flawless, perfectly spherical liquid blade that began to spin at a terrifying speed just an inch above my palm. The sheer kinetic pressure of the spinning blood created a sharp, whistling wind that cut right through the heavy haze of Lotus Dust in the room. I manipulated it casually, splitting the sphere into three smaller rings that danced around my fingers like living ribbons before drawing them effortlessly back into my skin, leaving my hand completely spotless.
The suffocating tension in the room shifted instantly.
Oksana's rude, mocking smirk completely vanished. Her eyes widened, her jaw slackening slightly as she stared at my hand. The four S-rank guards flanking her didn't attack, but I felt their mana signatures twitch in surprise.
In a matter of seconds, the cruel, dismissive drug lord underwent a complete transformation. Her harsh demeanor melted away, replaced by the calculating, deeply intrigued smile of a surprisingly kind and welcoming elf. She leaned in close, her eyes scanning me with an intense, appraising gaze.
"My, my… I stand corrected. To handle a notoriously dangerous, suicidal skill like Blood Manipulation with that much ease and stability... you really are a prodigy, aren't you, Zenni? A rare gem hiding right under the academy's nose."
Oksana purred, her voice suddenly sweet and dripping with newfound admiration. Oksana set her crystal pipe down on the black stone desk, her fingers interlaced as she leaned forward, her strawberry-pink hair cascading over her shoulders. The sweet, welcoming smile on her elven face didn't fool me for a second; she was a predator who had just spotted an invaluable tool.
"Well, Zenni, you will be working in my drug empire from now on. Don't worry, we won't dismiss your studies. In fact, I want you to use that knowledge at the academy to grow even stronger. You will be working the night shift for us, and in return, we will cover your tuition, your housing, or whatever fees that the academy would find. I take care of my investments. Do you care to work with me?"
I looked down at the desk, deliberately letting a heavy hesitation hang in the air. I tapped my fingers on my knees, letting her think I was a conflicted slum kid weighing the morality of selling his soul to a drug cartel against the financial freedom of a full scholarship.
In reality, my mind was screaming in triumph. This is it. The master plan is falling perfectly into place. By embedding myself into her inner circle as a trusted asset, I would gain unfettered access to her operations, map out the Spire's defenses, and figure out how to isolate her from those four terrifying S-rank bodyguards. Once her guard was completely down, I would strike, sever her head, and claim the massive bounty of 4 gold on the Lotus Dust Queen.
I took a deep breath, looked up, and locked my Zenni's eyes onto hers, putting on a determined, slightly desperate expression.
"I'll do it, I accept your offer, Lady Oksana."
Oksana's eyes flashed with delight, a triumphant, almost motherly warmth spreading across her face. She stood up from her desk, her long elven ears twitching as she gestured toward me.
"Excellent choice, little ghost, from this moment on, you will be my personal apprentice, Zenni. Perform well, and the entire city of Sisiphon will be resting in the palm of your hand."
Oksana said, her voice dripping with a dangerous, possessive kindness. As Dorin offered a respectful nod from the background, the weight of my new double life settled over me. I was a student, a harem leader, a grieving hunter, and now, the apprentice to the most dangerous drug lord in the sector.