Does the Butterfly Effect Really Exist? (17)

"Cure"

After being pulled from unconsciousness by Healing Magic for the nth time, the Old Friend lazily said, "What? Has Prince Sordil thought of some new weapon for interrogation?"

After an hour together, Sordil and his Old Friend had developed a certain immunity to each other (the Old Friend had become accustomed to Old Suo's torture devices, and Old Suo had become accustomed to his Old Friend's sarcastic remarks). Therefore, his Old Friend's words not only failed to provoke Old Suo's anger, but also gave him a strange sense of familiarity.

"Old Friend, you've been mocking me for an hour, aren't you tired?"

"Hehe! Prince Sordil, you've been keeping me occupied for an hour, aren't you tired?"

After the score was tied again, Old Suo decided to change the subject to avoid killing the conversation.

"Old Friend, is this the first time we've met?"

"Hmph! Prince Sordil, I know you have the ability to read people's minds, but you're wasting your time trying to trick me into revealing information this way!"

"Alright! Since you've brought this up, Old Friend, let's talk about it!"

"Hmph! Let's chat then, but I'll say it again: trying to trick me into revealing anything... dream on!"

After wiping the drool off his hands, Old Suo leaned against the rock wall and sat down.

"Old Friend, as far as I can remember, we've never met before, so why do you hate me so much?"

"Hmph! Do you need a reason to hate someone?"

Although his Old Friend's tone was calm, Sordil noticed a slight ripple of emotion within him as he spoke. This realization calmed Sordil's pounding heart considerably, as it indicated that the plan Tingmei had devised for him was indeed effective and might very well break down his Old Friend's defenses, allowing him to obtain the information he sought. So, Old Suo pressed his advantage and continued the conversation.

"Hehe! In this world, loving someone doesn't need a reason, but hating someone like you does need a reason, and a very important one at that! For example, the hatred of killing one's father, the hatred of having one's wife stolen, or a conflict of interest."

When discussing the reasons for hatred, Old Suo deliberately slowed his speech and listened carefully to the other person's inner turmoil. Unfortunately, none of the reasons Old Suo listed elicited any response from the other person. Moreover, as time went on, the other person's initially stirred emotions gradually returned to calm.

After hesitating for two seconds, Old Suo decisively abandoned the topic of the reasons for hatred and switched to another angle.

"You're so calm! If anyone else were in this situation, they would probably be begging for mercy on their knees by now. You're still able to talk and laugh like this, it's like you've died once!"

Sordil had only intended to change the subject with this remark, but he did not expect that this unintentional prelude would stir up a storm in his Old Friend's calm heart.

Why is your mind so confused? Could it be that you really have died once?

Upon hearing Old Suo's words, the Old Friend remembered Old Suo's abilities and hurriedly calmed his restless heart.

"Heh! Prince Sordil, you don't actually believe in such absurd talk as someone being able to come back from the dead to seek revenge against their former enemies, do you?"

Faced with the other party's attempt to cover up their misunderstanding, Sordil revealed a playful smile and said, "It's just bringing the dead back to life. What's so impossible about that? Perhaps in the near future, such things will happen frequently?"

Upon seeing Sordil, he not only did not avoid the topic of the dead committing crimes, but also firmly believed in the resurrection of the dead, which made the Old Friend's heart unable to calm down.

"Prince Sordil, you really... you really have a vivid imagination!"

The other person's mind was no longer at peace, which excited Old Suo greatly, because it meant he would soon be able to pry open their mouth. However, along with his excitement, Old Suo also fell into confusion, because since he had transmigrated here, far too many people had died directly or indirectly at his hands.

Faced with this massive amount of data, unless you have a computer and a top-notch hacker, it would take at least one or two months to figure out who this guy really is.

Fortunately, he still had the relevant data on Tingmei. Although he couldn't immediately find out his Old Friend's background, it could narrow down his search and save him some time. After all, his time was really tight right now, and he couldn't afford to waste too much time on one thing. With that in mind, Old Suo immediately contacted Tingmei through the contract.

"Tingmei, when did this Old Friend friend of yours show up? And who does he usually associate with?"

"Reporting to the master, the 'master' appeared a year ago. He usually stays in this cave and rarely goes out, so I don't know who he associates with."

"Does he have any regional characteristics in terms of diet or language?"

"'Master' always spoke the Continent Common Tongue, without any regional characteristics. As for his diet... he seemed to have a preference for food from the western part of the mainland, but I don't know which country it was from."

"Prefers the tastes of the western part of the continent? That's a very wide range!"

Just as Old Suo was getting a headache over this vague clue in the western part of the continent, Tingmei discovered something new.

"Oh, right! Master, just a few hours ago, when I came here to deliver a message, I encountered a Golden-Haired Noblewoman in a cloak in the passageway. But I was in a hurry to see 'Master' at the time, and she was running away very fast, so I didn't get a good look at her face."

"Didn't you just say she was very fast? How do you know she's a woman, and a wealthy lady at that?"

Hearing Old Suo's question, Tingmei chuckled awkwardly, then said with a slightly embarrassed tone, "Hehe! When I reached out to help her up, I touched her breasts. They were big and soft, the kind that had been developed. And the perfumes she used were very expensive, not something an ordinary person could afford, so I concluded that she was not only a woman but also a noblewoman."

"Hmph! I didn't expect Tingmei to be so familiar with the female anatomy. You must have ravaged this delicate flower quite a bit in the past, right?"

"Well... I just can't control myself when I see pretty women, so... hehe!"

"Understood! Understood! We're all in the same boat, no need for explanations! Oh, by the way! When are you free the other day? How about we have a friendly spar?"

"Hehe! So Master is also a practitioner of this art, that's wonderful!"

"Um... Sister Ting, have we veered off-topic?"

"It seems so!"

A sudden skidding at the intersection near the high-society area caused Sordil and his companion to completely forget their true purpose. Fortunately, they noticed in time and braked swiftly enough to steer the conversation back on track before completely veering off course.

"Tingmei, do you remember what that noblewoman looked like?"

"It's been a long time, so I don't remember it very clearly."

"It's alright, even just remembering a silhouette is enough! Now I'll teach you how to use magic to draw in the air, and you can draw the noblewoman's appearance later."

"Yes, I understand!"

For the next half hour, Old Suo focused intently on teaching Tingmei painting techniques, completely ignoring his Old Friend. Fortunately, Old Suo's right hand behaved itself during this time, otherwise the situation would have been much more complicated. (So we have to thank Lady Luck for being on both Old Suo's and his Old Friend's side; otherwise, it would have ended before it even began.)

As time went on, Tingmei's control over magic improved, and the portraits she drew became more and more lifelike. Seeing the results of his training (everyone, is using the word "training" here okay?), Old Suo was overjoyed, but looking at the increasingly realistic portraits in the air, the person being controlled was anything but happy.