Contract

Though a Sword Affinity transcendent had gotten close to him, Sart showed no fear whatsoever. Instead, he said solemnly, "Miss Alice, are you representing House of Iris?"

At the mention of House of Iris, Alice restrained her anger slightly, but she could not help retorting, "Master Sart, you may not necessarily represent the Star Tower either."

When she was calm, she would never have spoken to Sart like this. Even if she had been dissatisfied, she would have expressed it in a more tactful manner.

"Yes, of course, I cannot represent the Star Tower," Sart admitted without hesitation. "But does House of Iris dare bear the burden of a possible inquiry from my teacher?"

No matter how much his teacher disapproved of his talent, he was still the apprentice of Julian, the master of the Star Tower!

Unless absolutely necessary, House of Iris would not dare casually risk an inquiry from his teacher, nor would they dare incur the dislike of a transcendent above Platinum Rank, even if it was only a possibility.

"Master Sart, I have no intention of offending the Star Tower, but you should also understand that he is insulting a noble's dignity." Alice took a deep breath, shot Aaron a vicious glare, and spoke again.

"I still don't understand the situation..." Aaron forced himself to offer a defense.

The one marrying you is Aaron. What does that have to do with me, Qin Ming?

Wait!

She's a noble young lady...?

It does matter. It absolutely matters!

Thinking this, Aaron wanted to salvage the situation, but Alice cut him off directly.

"Then, Sir Albert Aaron, listen carefully. More than ten years ago, Albert Rick—your father—entered into a marriage contract with House of Iris. I will fulfill this contract and become your wife. Do you have any questions?"

"A contract?" Aaron instinctively caught the most crucial point.

Alice fell silent for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, a contract."

Hearing this, Sart narrowed his eyes.

A contract was, in fact, merely an agreement imbued with transcendent aura.

It could exist in any form, whether on parchment, papyrus, or a stone tablet. Even a conversation carried away by the wind could become a contract.

As long as the corresponding ritual was performed and the appropriate transcendent aura added, anything could become a contract.

Breaking a contract would bring immensely painful losses. The transcendent aura used as ritual material would erupt at the moment of breach; even the lowest-level contract could cause considerable trouble for the violator.

But here was the question: why would House of Iris enter into such a marriage arrangement with the Albert Family?

They had even used a contract?

Aaron, however, was not thinking about that. Mulling over Alice's words, he suddenly blurted out, "So I became the Lin Family... no, House of Iris's live-in son-in-law?"

So the useless fiancé rejected in marriage story had turned into a useless live-in son-in-law story?

"...Live-in son-in-law?" Alice was somewhat bewildered by the unfamiliar term.

"You mean our future children won't have the Albert surname?"

At the mention of "children," an unnatural look flashed across Alice's face. The anger that had only just subsided rose again. "Of course the children will still be named Albert."

Just as Aaron wanted to continue questioning her, a burst of chaotic footsteps came from afar. Then, a slightly plump and clumsy figure ran in from outside, panting. "What happened here?"

"Nothing happened, Captain Colin." Alice glared at Aaron, then instantly changed expression and responded to Captain Colin with a smile.

"Someone sensed the aura of a Heretical Cult here. I don't know whether..." Colin casually swept his gaze over Aaron and Sart, then unconsciously fixed his eyes on Sart—or rather, on Sart's crystal ball.

Alice smiled as she introduced him to Colin. "This is Master Sart, a prophet from the Star Tower who happened to be passing through Leyden City."

Colin wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, bowed respectfully to Sart, and said half-jokingly, "Miss Alice, you never told me you had found Master Sart."

"My apologies. That was my oversight." Alice gave a perfunctory reply.

"Then what spices does Master Sart require? I can have someone purchase some," Colin said, looking at Sart.

Sart raised an eyebrow. "Spices? Why would I need spices?"

Colin scratched his somewhat thinning head. "Don't you need spices to perform rituals? Master Tein used to need several different kinds every time he performed a ritual."

Sart gave Alice a discreet glance, pondered for a moment, and said, "In that case, I need some Sleepless Grass, branches from a Dragonhorn Tree, and completely dried Redblood Moss. Prepare one ounce of each."

Rituals did indeed require spices, but spices were merely supplementary materials. They were only used to stabilize a ritual and ensure it proceeded smoothly.

The simpler the ritual, the less it actually needed spices. An appraisal ritual, for example.

The materials truly required for an appraisal ritual were light and transcendent aura. The ritual could not be performed in an absolutely lightless environment.

Put simply, this appraisal ritual drew upon the power of light to observe and analyze the item being appraised, ultimately allowing one to roughly sense relevant information.

Such a simple ritual required almost no spices.

Sart had only used Spirit Powder back then because he had wanted more precise results.

Yet according to Colin, Tein not only needed spices for appraisal rituals, but needed different spices every single time?

Rather than using spices to perform rituals, it sounded more like he had been secretly stockpiling spices.

Sart's thoughts raced, but he did not expose it directly. Going along with it, he asked for several spices as reserves.

Although he had brought quite a bit of Spirit Powder on this trip, he had already used a considerable amount. He needed to conserve it.

Incidentally, Spirit Powder was also a specialty of the Star Tower.

Every year, the Star Tower could draw power from starlight. This elusive starlight could ultimately be materialized by mixing several special spices, becoming Spirit Powder.

In a sense, Spirit Powder was a universal spice, suitable for the vast majority of rituals.

For Gold Coin Path transcendents, especially prophets, possessing a universal spice undoubtedly saved a great deal of trouble, even if its versatility came at the cost of some effectiveness.

It was like the difference between a pile of bottles and jars and a packet of Thirteen Spices seasoning.

"Also, Miss Alice, since you're here, I don't need to go looking for you anymore." Colin spoke while glancing at the doorway, where the door had already vanished without a trace.

"Oh? What is it?"

"The city lord wishes to see you. It concerns Master Tein. There seem to be new clues."

Alice glanced outside.

By then, evening was approaching. Blood-red sunlight poured down, dyeing everything around them crimson.

"I will pay the city lord a visit as soon as possible," she told Colin.

She had come to Leyden City this time partly to fulfill her family's contract and marry Aaron, and partly because of Master Tein's death.

Yes, Tein, a Bronze Tier transcendent of the Gold Coin Path, had had his artery slit and died silently in his own bed.

His deathly appearance was peaceful, as though he were asleep.