Thor climbed onward with slime all over his head, clutching the box in his arms.
Perhaps he had broken some kind of illusion. He realized he had already made it safely to the sixth floor of the East Tower. To his left was the Rune wall that had once left all the new recruits dizzy.
Even with his current Mental Power, Thor didn't dare look at it for long.
He didn't know why, but the blurry world had become clear again. Only then did he notice a dull ache in his forehead.
He had probably bowed too hard while facing the wall just now and scraped his forehead a little.
"Hit the enemy for a hundred, hurt myself for 0.1. Worth it."
Then he thought of something serious. "I need to hurry back and take a shower. What if I get an infection?"
But first, he had to take what he was holding to Senior Sister Kongsha. Thor didn't want to sleep with a dead man's head in his arms.
He passed through the corridor back into the West Tower and continued up the Ramp.
The sixth through ninth floors were the Level 1 Apprentices' activity area.
It was just past eight. Though the East Tower was as quiet as a graveyard, the West Tower was still fairly lively.
Some people spotted Thor climbing at an unhurried pace and began whispering among themselves.
Others noticed the yellow leather in his arms and eyed it curiously, but they didn't dare approach because of Thor's reputation.
Thor ignored the looks around him and walked on steadily, one step at a time.
After leaving the Level 1 Apprentices' area, he reached the tenth floor, where the Level 2 Apprentices lived. Quiet descended once again.
No one wandered the halls, chatted, or shared what they had learned that day.
The dormitory doors seemed to stay shut at all times, day and night.
Thor tilted his head slightly.
He still remembered what he had seen when he was a servant, cleaning the hallway.
The crying behind the doors, the scattered trash, and that pool of blood...
That pool of blood had truly changed his fate.
But before Thor could dwell on it any longer, a faint sound came from ahead.
He immediately snapped back to attention and looked up the Ramp.
At the turn leading to the twelfth floor, a pair of black leather boots emerged from the shadows.
Who knew how long they had been standing there?
Thor didn't stop. He simply raised his guard and approached at an unhurried pace, his gaze slowly traveling up from the boots.
The man standing at the turn gradually came into view.
It was Sid, who had been away from the tower for over a month.
He watched Thor in silence, his expression dark and unreadable.
But when Thor drew closer, the corners of Sid's mouth suddenly lifted into an exaggerated, icy smile. "You see your Senior and don't know to greet him?"
"Good evening, Senior." Thor greeted him obediently, even giving a slight bow.
"..."
Sid hadn't expected Thor to be so compliant. He seemed nothing like the boy who had been so frightened by him a month ago that he had nearly killed someone.
After greeting him, Thor remained calm and continued up the stairs.
He wore a polite smile, but inside, he was on high alert.
They drew closer, walked side by side, and were about to pass each other...
"Do you really think the Mentor cares whether some new Level 1 Apprentice lives or dies? The moment someone more valuable comes along, you're just trash he can throw away whenever he likes."
Thor turned his head. He only came up to Sid's chest, so he had to lift his chin to look at him from that angle.
Thor put on a sweet smile. He had no idea how bizarre it looked with slime coating his head, but he kept his tone respectful.
"Thank you for the advice, Senior. I'll work hard to keep increasing my value."
Sid sneered, scornful of Thor's clueless remark.
"If talent could be made up for with hard work, there wouldn't be so many desperate bones beneath our feet."
Thor didn't argue. He simply watched Sid in silence.
Will he attack me outright? It's not that late, but there's no one around. This is a good opportunity.
But the Hardcover Book didn't appear.
Sid doesn't dare make a move. Thor grew calmer by the second.
His opponent didn't pay Thor any further attention. With his hands in his jacket pockets, he sauntered down the stairs, swaying with every step.
He seemed to be in a good mood.
Thor waited until Sid disappeared from view before turning and continuing on.
He doesn't dare—or perhaps he can't—attack me. As he walked, Thor considered the matter. I should have realized sooner. He couldn't kill me in the Library, so he later sent Brown to hurt me. Sid has wanted me dead all along!
But he's never tried to kill me himself. Thor's eyes grew brighter. It can't be because of the Mentor. When I was still a servant, he could have killed me at almost no cost, but he still didn't do it!
Could it be that Sid can't kill people?
Thor immediately dismissed the idea.
Sid had killed the chubby boy who'd bribed his way through the test, right in front of all the new recruits.
Could it be that he... can't kill me?
The more Thor thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
He glanced at the Hardcover Book. Sid is looking for a Diary, and that Diary is just like the Hardcover Book on my shoulder. Maybe he doesn't want to kill me to silence me. Maybe he wants to kill me so he can get the Hardcover Book!
The idea was incredible, wild, and unsupported by evidence, but it explained Sid's strange behavior.
He wanted Thor dead, but refused to kill him himself.
Thor stopped and stared blankly at the little bundle in his hands, his thoughts already far away.
Tonight had actually been a perfect opportunity for Sid.
Thor was carrying the head of a strange creature that wasn't allowed outside, and an unknown slime dripped from his head.
If Sid had killed him, he could easily have blamed Thor's death on the strange incident he had encountered.
But Sid hadn't acted. He had only mocked him a few times without doing any real harm.
If you kill the Hardcover Book's owner, you can't get the Hardcover Book!
The words suddenly appeared in Thor's mind.
"If I'm right, Sid knows a lot about this Hardcover Book. No, that doesn't add up... If he knew that much, why would he have thrown it at my head?" Thor was troubled. The Hardcover Book was too mysterious, and it had never introduced itself. He had to figure everything out on his own.
Forget it. Whether Sid knows the Hardcover Book can foresee death or not, he and I are already locked in a fight to the death. I'm not strong enough yet, so all I can do is deal with things as they come—and hope someone powerful will protect me.
Thor started up the stairs again.
"Sid will definitely make another move." After only a couple of steps, Thor stopped again. "No, something's off. Sid's attitude was strange today."
Sid had seemed grim when he first saw Thor, but later, his mood had lifted.
He must already have something else planned.
Thor thought back to what Sid had just said.
"Do you really think the Mentor cares whether some new Level 1 Apprentice lives or dies? The moment someone more valuable comes along, you're just trash he can throw away whenever he likes."
The Mentor, a new recruit, someone more valuable...
Thor narrowed his eyes. "Sid went out this time to find a new recruit... Did he find someone who can replace me in the Corpse Room?"
If Mentor Kazi hadn't protected Thor, Thor wouldn't have had a month to catch his breath.
But the reason Thor had been protected was likely that he was working for Mentor Kazi.
Mentor Kazi didn't want the new hire he'd just taken on to die so soon.
But what if someone more suited to working in the Corpse Room than Thor came along?
Mentor Kazi might not insist on keeping the job for Thor.
Thor didn't think Kazi felt much affection for him as a student.
Especially once Thor became more and more skilled at handling corpses, the Mentor had barely come to the Corpse Room to teach him anymore.
It wasn't realistic to count on the Mentor protecting him out of some lingering attachment.
Thor looked down at the bundle in his hands and decided to hurry. He needed to find the person he had just begged to back him up.
I'm doing all the work for you. You can't just stand by and let me die, can you?
What, do you want to lose your mind too?
Kongsha wasn't pleased that Thor had come straight to her door and knocked.
She yanked Thor inside. As she watched the boy stumble to the floor, the eyeballs inside the glass case pressed tightly against its walls, growing bloodshot and veined, as if they might explode at any moment.
"Why did you come straight up here?"
Before you continue