Or what did you think? (Seeking recommendation votes)

Ten minutes later, the auction concluded.

The intelligence scrolls were snapped up.

Everyone had come to buy the news; the auctioned items themselves were largely ignored.

After all, "Monkel Ancient Language" was an undeciphered script, and whoever obtained it would simply have a historical artifact with no practical significance.

Rein glanced at it from afar, scanned the text with his "Smart Brain," but didn't bid.

As for the intelligence, he didn't have such a large appetite for it.

Something that a large merchant guild would give up was definitely not something an individual could consume.

Moreover, his interest in the ruins was solely to decipher the "Monkel Ancient Language."

If a large-scale Scavenger team explored them, there would surely be a large number of artifacts appearing on the market in the near future.

He could just buy them then.

Of course, the biggest gain from this auction was the ten pieces of "High-Combustion Coal."

There were too few of these High-Combustion Coal samples for major teams to be interested.

This allowed individual buyers like Rein to pick up a bargain.

He easily acquired the ten high-purity "High-Combustion Coal" at the starting bid of 300,000 Liso.

His mechanical arm and Steam Motorcycle both consumed this energy, which was his primary reason for attending the auction.

Rein returned to Room Three. Thinking there was still plenty of time before bed, he went to the bathroom to practice dissecting corpses as usual.

What he didn't expect was that at midnight, someone knocked on his door.

"Who is it?"

Hearing no response from the door for a long time, Rein's expression turned wary.

Logically, if it were the attendant Athena, she would have immediately stated her purpose after knocking.

But the person at the door, both in the frequency and the force of the knock, was completely different.

"It's me."

A soft, feminine voice responded from outside. She directly stated her identity, "Madam Vanessa."

Hearing the voice, even without seeing the person, one could immediately imagine her slender, beautiful legs and voluptuous figure.

"..."

Upon hearing the response, Rein's face twitched involuntarily.

This woman actually came?

She wasn't really here to watch him dissect a monkey, was she?

Rein: "Madam, what is it?"

At this moment, the charming female voice outside urged him again, "Doctor... I'm not feeling well. Can you help me get some medicine?"

Heh.

Rein snorted coldly in his heart. I don't believe you for a second.

After a long pause without a response, the voice outside urged him again.

"Doctor, what's wrong? Why aren't you speaking?"

"..."

"Oh no, did you fall? If you don't answer, I'll call the attendant to open the door~"

"..."

Rein had no intention of opening the door, but his brow furrowed.

Although he didn't know this woman's motive, his intuition told him that women who appeared harmless were actually the ones to be most careful of.

But he had observed this woman carefully before. Her muscle definition and breathing were ordinary. She didn't seem like an Extraordinary, but rather a pampered socialite from high society.

Before Rein could think further, a shout came from the door, "Attendant! Attendant!"

Rein's eyelids twitched violently: What does she want?

Even though he couldn't figure out her intentions, he knew that if he didn't open the door, the entire carriage would likely cause a commotion.

Besides, if she truly had ill intentions, she probably wouldn't have used such a silly way of knocking.

Click. The door opened.

He cautiously peered through the gap in the door. There was only one person.

Rein didn't let his guard down in the slightest, nor did he have any intention of inviting the woman inside. Hidden behind the door, he tightly gripped his scalpel.

With the door half-open, he asked coldly, "Excuse me, what is it? I'm very busy right now and don't have time to entertain guests. Moreover, it's very late, and your presence here is causing me great inconvenience."

With his opening words, he had already issued a dismissal.

Hearing this, the woman smiled slightly, unperturbed.

She didn't answer, but instead took off the wide-brimmed hat from her head.

Only then did Rein realize that she wasn't wearing a black veil over her face like before!

It was an incredibly beautiful face, like a mixed-race beauty from his previous life in Europe, possessing the delicate beauty of Western women and the gentle charm of Eastern beauties. Her eyes were like clear spring water, exuding boundless allure, yet maintaining a purity that was alluring without being vulgar.

With a graceful smile and rosy cheeks, she was a very beautiful woman.

But Rein couldn't understand her intentions. What did she mean by this?

Was she bringing him "warmth" at midnight?

"Well, Doctor, it took you this long to open the door. Do you have someone hidden inside?"

Canossa leaned lazily against the doorframe, peering into the room.

She had only meant to tease him casually, but to her surprise, her peripheral vision caught sight of a pair of bare feet by the bathroom door!

Huh? Is someone actually in the toilet?

She sniffed slightly, detecting a faint smell of decaying blood.

Not a living person, but a corpse?

Even with her extensive experience, Canossa's mind struggled to process this.

Then, seeing Rein wearing gloves and holding a scalpel, she understood. This guy was actually dissecting a corpse.

Ah. So everything he said before was true. He really is a necrophiliac pervert?

The woman's astonished expression was exactly as he had intended.

Rein sneered inwardly, like a cold butcher, and responded indifferently, "As you can see, I'm communicating with my 'great teacher'."

He had deliberately not hidden the corpse earlier.

The blood-stained gloves and scalpel in his hands, coupled with the dark mask, made him look like a midnight dismemberment killer.

"..."

Canossa pursed her lips, appearing merely bored rather than frightened.

After a moment of thought, she spoke softly, directly stating her purpose, "I originally wanted to bring you something, but I didn't expect you to be busy."

Hearing this, Rein looked suspicious. "Bring something?"

He thought the woman was about to reveal her true intentions, and the scalpel in his hand tightened slightly. If she made any move, he would slit her throat with a single stroke.

But to his surprise, she took out an exquisitely embroidered cloth bag.

"Yes."

Canossa pointed to the bag and, looking through the door crack, briefly explained, "I saw you were quite interested in those auction items earlier, so I bought them for you."

Looking closer, the items in the package were not dangerous.

There was a wax-sealed intelligence scroll, several ancient animal skin scrolls, and a bound classic. Judging by the name on the cover, it was the genetic power cultivation method that had appeared at the auction earlier – the Holy Shield Knight Breathing Method!

These items were indeed among the auction pieces that Rein had shown great interest in.

He hadn't expected this woman to have noticed his subtle reactions earlier.

Unsolicited favors often hide ulterior motives.

Rein dared not casually accept benefits from an unknown source. This woman's enthusiasm was far too abnormal.

They were not related by blood or acquaintance; why would she do this?

After a moment of thought, Rein coldly asked a crucial question, "How did you know my room number?"

He didn't believe that the crew would casually leak the identities of VIP cabin guests.

But what he never expected was that Canossa would say with a smile a fact that completely caught him off guard: "Because I arranged your room."

"What?!"

Hearing this, Rein's pupils contracted sharply.

Was this woman the "Count" who had arranged his room?

Could she be a friend of the powerful Ymir?

Unsure if she was bluffing, he decided to probe further, "Do you know the young lady who was with me earlier?"

"Are you referring to Miss Ymir?"

Canossa's beautiful eyes flickered with a hint of cunning. As if guessing Rein's intention to test her, she directly uttered the name and then nodded happily, saying, "Of course, I know her."

She really knew Ymir!

Rein was now even more confused.

No one else knew that he and Ymir had boarded the ship. Since she had spoken the name, this matter was worth considering.

Canossa naturally noticed the change in Rein's expression and added meaningfully, "Moreover, Ymir and I are very good friends~"

"Oh?"

Rein's mind raced. He felt he needed to be extremely cautious.

No matter how he thought about it, he couldn't find any flaws in the statement.

If he wasn't a friend of the big shot, why would they arrange a room for him and give him free gifts?

The timing, motive, and reason were all perfect. Anyone else would not have doubted it.

The other party showed no hostility, and might even be a friend of the big shot Ymir. Although Rein was still wary, he couldn't maintain a cold demeanor. He said, "Thank you for arranging the room for me, Madam Vanessa."

Canossa waved her hand as if the room was not worth mentioning.

She changed the topic and asked the question she was most curious about, blinking her eyes, "Do you... really like corpses?"

"As you can see, I'm a doctor. So, I'm practicing my dissection and suturing skills."

Rein felt a little awkward hearing this. He thought that whether or not she was a friend of the big shot Ymir, there was no need to hide this.

He added, "By the way, Madam. You can just call me Rein."

"Oh? Not Jesper anymore?"

Canossa smiled charmingly, not caring. She had already guessed it was an alias.

After thinking for a moment, she asked again, "Are you heading west? I see you're quite interested in the 'Monkell Civilization'. Are you planning to visit that ruin as well?"

Rein didn't commit, not revealing his destination immediately.

However, he was a little confused when he heard an interesting word, and asked, "Ruin?"

"Oh? You don't know yet..."

Canossa raised her eyebrows, slightly surprised, and then explained, "This ruin was discovered near the 'City of Radiance', but it's quite dangerous there."

She paused, then looked at Rein as if she had thought of something, and added, "It just so happens that I'm going there to handle some matters too. If it's on your way, may I invite you to travel together? My entourage is in need of a doctor."

"This..."

A noblewoman like her would surely not lack doctors. Rein's first reaction was that the big shot Ymir was worried about his safety on the journey and had made special arrangements. But he felt something was not quite right.

However, upon hearing this, his thoughts involuntarily began to churn.

The nobles in this world had extremely high status and were not subject to inspection in any territory. He, however, was an "illegal resident" without any identity and was wanted by the black market. Every step he took was like treading on thin ice.

He had been considering how to hide his identity and reach the "City of Radiance," tens of thousands of kilometers away, after getting off the train. Now, someone was willing to take him along. Wasn't this like getting a pillow when you were sleepy?

This "Countess" seemed to have a lot of influence. Following her might save him a lot of trouble, such as not easily encountering thugs checking rooms.

Besides, if she truly had ill intentions, this train would be the best opportunity. Why go through the trouble of inviting him along?

After thinking about it, he felt there was nothing to be suspicious of, so Rein agreed, "That would be perfect. I'll be troubling you then, Madam Vanessa."

"Mmm."

Canossa smiled slightly. "Alright, if you need anything, you can come find me directly. I'm in carriage number one."

After saying that, she turned and put on her wide-brimmed hat, leaving Rein with a graceful back.

After closing the door, a whisper like fine lines could be heard in the train corridor, "Where did that Grand Princess find such a young doctor? She's quite cautious. Tsk, interesting..."

Requesting recommendation tickets