"Knock, knock, knock—"
The knocking was uneven, sometimes heavy, sometimes light, as if the person at the door was already exhausted.
Your heart skipped a beat.
Cipher?
You practically sprinted out of the room.
At the same time, Aglaea had already reached the door.
The moment she opened it, her expression changed.
A small, frail figure stood outside, her hood pulled low enough to hide almost her entire face.
She looked utterly miserable.
She was covered head to toe in mud, and her once-clean clothes were torn to shreds, their original color nearly unrecognizable.
A foul stench hit them head-on—the distinctive rot of the sewers.
Fresh scrapes and bruises covered her face and arms, with some spots still oozing blood.
Her once-lively cat ears drooped weakly, devoid of their former spirit.
Aglaea stared in shock. "Sephalia, what happened to you...?"
Cipher's hoarse voice cut her off.
"I need clothes. Anything will do, as long as it covers my wounds..."
She tried to straighten herself, but swayed as though she might collapse at any moment.
Without another word, Aglaea hurried inside to fetch some clothes.
Just then, a deeper wound on Cipher's arm suddenly split open.
Golden blood seeped out like a thin stream, dripping onto the clean white stone steps before Aglaea's door.
That streak of gold was especially glaring against the white stone.
Aglaea happened to come back out carrying a set of clothes. Seeing this, she froze. In her haste earlier, she had not noticed it, but only now did she realize that Cipher bled golden blood too.
Following her gaze, Cipher saw the beads of golden blood on her arm and gave a self-mocking smile.
"Yeah, I'm a Chrysos Heir too. Didn't expect that, did you?"
An indescribable bitterness filled her smile.
"Too bad I'm a thief,