You've Been Kidnapped by Us

Iver was carried by Bayard to No. 1 Suite.

Miss Bayard was quite tall— Iver quickly estimated her height to be close to 1.8 meters. And even so, she was wearing high heels.

She wore sharp-looking, half-rimmed metal glasses, and her long black hair reached her waist. Her emerald green eyes, like those of a noble and arrogant she-wolf, concealed a cold, aggressive aura.

She easily embraced No. 14's frail, almost weightless body. Because of her youth and malnutrition, No. 14's body was so thin that she resembled a shadow. Even before becoming a superhuman, Iver's true form could easily lift her up with just one hand, let alone Beard, the Child of the Moon.

Iver, meanwhile, nestled in her arms, displaying his vulnerability and innocence.

She gently grasped Miss Bayard's collar with one hand, while her other hand awkwardly curled up to her abdomen. Bayard's high breasts pressed against it, creating a very noticeable sense of movement and pressure as she walked.

Iver had her eyes closed, as if she had fallen asleep. But her eyelashes trembled slightly, and her breathing, which she tried to suppress as silently as possible, revealed her tension.

This is called "pretending to be asleep".

Meanwhile, Iver was having a mental conversation with Shadow Fiend: "If I remember correctly... one of the conditions for Shadow Fiend's creation is that he is a disillusioned person who has fallen from a great height, right?"

She teased the Shadow Demon in her mind, "You wouldn't happen to be Miss Bayard, would you?"

As soon as she uttered these words in her heart, a long silence followed from the other end.

"No way, I guessed right?"

Iver was somewhat taken aback.

At this moment, Shadow Fiend responded in an extremely serious and low voice, "I am not her. She is not me either."

"--Feel sorry."

Iver keenly sensed that Shadow Fiend seemed to be in a bad mood, so he immediately apologized and tried to appease him.

But another thought immediately popped into his mind, "Could it be... that you are No. 14?"

"... What nonsense are you making, my lovely little master?"

Shadow Fiend sighed helplessly, "How could I be so weak?"

"So you're Bayard's friend?"

"Stop guessing, my master. Close your eyes and get some rest."

Shadow Fiend sighed, but his tone softened.

This was completely different from its usual arrogant and domineering tone; instead, it sounded somewhat weak.

"You're quite adorable today," Iver thought to himself.

"...Oh."

Shadow Fiend sneered and said nothing.

So the more it tried to prevent Iver from guessing, the more interested Iver became.

But after that, no matter what Iver said, Shadow Fiend stopped responding.

The distance from the lobby to the suite is not far.

Iver was quickly led to the bed—unlike the gentle treatment she received along the way, she was practically thrown onto it. Fortunately, the bed was soft enough to allow her to continue pretending to be asleep with her eyes closed. Or rather, pretending to be dead.

She had just lain down when she could hear voices coming from the next room. Bayard also clearly heard the voices, so she stood by the wall and listened for a while, somewhat nervously.

Perhaps for the sake of fun, or perhaps for a sentimental atmosphere, the soundproofing in the suites here is poor. In fact, it's almost amplified – just lying in bed, you can hear the sounds from next door with crystal clarity through some kind of resonance. It's like pressing a paper cup telephone against the wall.

Considering that the entire Crescent Moon Manor has been reinforced by a conservator, this design was clearly intentional.

The Path of Love is like this: It's all about having a blast... The better you are at having fun, the easier it is to get promoted.

From this perspective, this strange design can actually be considered a reasonable design to enhance the resonance of the path.

To Iver and Bayard's surprise, the sounds from next door weren't just casual chatter during a break in a special game—they seemed to be discussing something serious...

Iver clearly heard words like "gargoyle," "self-disciplined action," and "anti-purification."

This made her hold her breath slightly, wanting to hear more clearly.

But at that moment, Miss Bayard suddenly ripped off a row of buttons from the front of her dress.

She tossed her buttons, studded with tiny black pearls, into the four corners of the room, while softly chanting:

"Button forger, master of claws, Mother of Secrets, give me a silent cage to imprison cats and pigs."

"—This is a ritual?!" Iver was stunned for a moment.

He actually knew about this ritual—his Ritual Studies teacher had explained it to him before.

"Button" carries the connotation of claws and fangs, while the Mother of Secrets refers to Shadow Domain Shadow Angel. The cat and pig are ritual allusions... the cat represents a woman who is drunk or drugged and unable to resist, while the pig represents a bound sacrifice or a kidnapped person.

Through this ritual, one can use "Secret Art." This is an extended application of the silence spell; it does not dissolve the internal sound, but rather prevents the exchange of sound between the inside and outside of the barrier.

Miss Bayard is actually a ritual master? As the ritual was initiated, a thin, gray mist-like barrier enveloped the room.

It wasn't particularly noticeable... It was more like if someone had been smoking for half an hour in a room of about 20 square meters, you could feel a slight haze when you opened the door. But it wasn't as intense as "a fairyland."

At that time, the sounds from next door were completely blocked out.

Bayard slapped Iver hard across the buttocks.

Smack! "... Ugh!"

Iver stopped pretending to be asleep and just got up, grimacing and clutching his buttocks.

She opened her eyes and looked at Bayard, her gaze gentle yet calm. "What do you want to do?"

"So you do know this ritual."

Bayard crossed his arms and asked calmly, "What did you just do to me?"

She was still uneasy about the frenzied state she had previously fallen into.

An ordinary Child of the Moon would not care about such a thing at all. They would simply assume it is a treasure they have found—but Bayard is an exception.

She was quite confident in her strong rationality.

That was the excellent self she cultivated during her human years by overcoming various difficulties. She was able to face all kinds of temptations, be happy without falling into depravity, enjoy life without becoming addicted, and maintain her humanity.

Even the instincts of the Child of the Moon couldn't affect her.

—That is why, when her rationality was broken for the first time, when her cognition was different... she felt a strong sense of unease.

This was her first time in a private room, so she had no idea it was designed this way. Fortunately, she had been a ritual master in her human days, and thus inherited some of her professional rank. At least this simple ritual could still be performed normally.

This child... is just too tempting.

It was so tempting that she even bit her tongue on the way there, using the pain to bring herself back to rationality and calm.

—Because she suspected that this was a trap carefully set for her by her enemies.

Perhaps it was a piece of flesh that tempted her to fall, or perhaps it was meant to create a weakness for her. It's also possible that her blood was a slow-acting poison, or mixed with an addictive agent.

Countless possibilities swirled in her mind.

We are now in an era of unprecedented chaos.

Alchemists and artists clashed, but also began rapidly seizing various resources. By the time Demon Scholar and necromancers realized it, they had become marginalized.

At this time, the powerful Child of the Moon settled in the Imperial Capital.

Those are truly immortal beings—even if killed, they can be reborn, only to be sealed or assimilated. Their most terrifying aspect is their ability to manipulate the minds and desires of others at will. They don't even know if their own thoughts are their own, or if they are illusions created by suggestion or enchantment.

These Child of the Moon have forged partnerships with alchemists and artists.

They generously bestowed their friendships, inviting renowned alchemists and great artists to their decadent feasts. In the end, those high-ranking figures either became their own people or became food for them.

In this situation, they had no choice.

The power of the Child of the Moon expanded like a snowball, and even Bayard himself was one of those crushed by this wildly expanding snowball.

—But now, she is already part of the Child of the Moon.

Even so, she was still unwilling to completely fall into depravity. Perhaps it was her inner pride, or perhaps it was a hidden unease... After she took over and calmed the chaos in the group caused by her "long-term disappearance" as if nothing had happened, she rarely communicated with the other Child of the Moon.

Until she met "No. 14".

She was like a piece of honey, drawing my attention.

Looking at No. 14, she seemed to see her past self—the one who hadn't been forced by her parents to undergo rigorous ritual training, and was still naive and innocent.

At that time, she was neither Ritual Mage nor a witch. She was not the head of a conglomerate, nor was she an orphan.

She was just an ordinary noblewoman... a fragile human being.

... And as he looked at her, an increasingly intense and irrepressible evil desire arose in Bayard's heart.

She wanted to defile the other person—to attack her, to tear her apart, just as she would tear apart her own past. Evil thoughts don't arise from nothing on the Path of Love; therefore, this must be a manifestation of a thought within her own mind. Bayard wanted to pinpoint exactly what that thought was causing her to lose her composure, which is why she repeatedly chose No. 14 to accompany her.

But today, I still lost control.

He was so close—if he accidentally sucked her to death, he would fall into the true form of the Child of the Moon.

—A bloodthirsty Magic Creature, a corrupted creature.

Bayard's mind raced as he looked at the girl on the bed and pondered deeply.

From this perspective, No. 14 might not know anything at all. After all, this conspiracy requires her own life, and she clearly hopes that she can take her away with her.

... Perhaps she was just a stepping stone? A key that made him waver and become less resolute? After all, even the strongest fortress has weaknesses, and perhaps they just wanted to create one.

Perhaps the owner of the Crescent Moon Manor was trying to win her favor, and thus chose a girl who suited his tastes.

Oh yes... they still owe me some money. They borrowed money from me last year to build the Crescent Moon Manor, and they still owe me over 300,000 gold coins. 300,000 shouldn't be enough to harm me... is it because they're having cash flow problems and want to postpone things a bit?

At that moment, No. 14 suddenly unbuttoned his clothes.

Bayard frowned, grabbed her hand, and knelt between her legs. "What are you doing, No. 14?"

"You unbuttoned your clothes... I just wanted to be like you..."

No. 14 spoke with a wronged tone, which softened Bayard's heart, as if he had said something wrong.

...etc.

"—No! You clearly know this is part of the ritual—"

Bayard suddenly realized what was happening.

She was immediately embarrassed and annoyed—but because of her suspicion, murderous intent, and ferocity, she felt that her own desires were also being stirred.

never mind.

If you can't stand it, then you shouldn't.

With her other hand, she grabbed Iver by the neck, her thumb pointing upwards to force him to lift Iver head from the bed. "Just tell me what you want to do and what you want—and then pay the price."

Her pupils were gradually tinged with Vermillion halo, and her canine teeth began to sharpen.

Iver, however, simply stared intently at her without uttering a word.

But just then, a third person's sigh suddenly came from inside the room.

"She's trying to force me out so I can explain myself."

Bayard suddenly felt an extremely strong sense of crisis.

Her body instantly disintegrated into numerous bats, but she was too close to Iver —she lay directly on Iver, bringing Iver into complete contact.

At this distance, no bat can escape the prison of shadow.

Countless thin Shadow Thread pierced out from the shadows beneath Iver, weaving through the room, piercing through the bats and pinning them in mid-air.

Iver's flushed face broke into a satisfied smile as she casually lay down on the bed.

The shadows beneath her and in the gap between the bed spread out like liquid, or like snakes spreading across the bed.

Like a girl lying on the grass looking at the stars, or perhaps just wanting a hug—she stretched her arms out to the sky, grasping at something in the distance.

"You've been kidnapped by us, Miss Bayard."

No. 14 smiled sweetly.

Update complete. It was a bit slow because it was a long chapter of nearly 4,000 words!

Requesting votes at the beginning of the month!

This month, Guanguan is hosting several events, so be sure to check them out in the book review section! There are great prizes, including limited-edition merchandise and autographed items—

Next up is a book recommendation. This one was written by a fellow reader, also by a beautiful young woman, so I'm giving it a shout-out!