Escape

A surging wave of battle qi erupted in the office. The Vampire Hand Axe was blasted away by the qi, spinning through the air as it followed Charlotte out.

Anyone capable of becoming the warden of Kilmainham Prison might have questionable character, but they could never be worthless. Charlotte understood this perfectly. His previous strike had only been meant to delay his opponent; he had never imagined he could injure the new warden.

Facing the Vampire Hand Axe that had been knocked flying back at him, he casually caught it and brought it back under his control. Rather than fleeing the prison, he turned and charged into his own office, repeatedly shouting at the top of his lungs, "Warden Magru, don't even think about forcing me to slander Miss Menilman!"

Magru was mildly surprised. He knew this First-Rank Chief Clerk had some skill. He had assumed that the hand axe blasted away by his level-seven battle qi would be enough to cleave the man in two, but Charlotte had calmly brought the weapon back under his control.

What he did not know was that Charlotte had awakened Blood Flame Qi, one of the Thirteen Wonders. It allowed him to manipulate Vampiric Weapons from a distance; he had not retrieved it through mere technique.

Magru roared furiously, shouting, "Seize this traitor!"

Charlotte's Bloody Glory was only at the second tier. Even with the two great abilities, Insight and Blood Flame Qi, there was no chance he could force his way out of heavily guarded Kilmainham Prison. But his office had a large window, and beyond it lay the streets of Marne District.

As one of the Outer Fifteen Districts, Marne District was extremely complicated. As long as he could blend into the residential neighborhoods, he had some chance of escaping alive.

He rushed into his office without the slightest hesitation, threw himself forward with all his strength, and leaped through the window. While in midair, he rolled several times to bleed off the momentum. He landed in a rather miserable heap, but he was uninjured.

Charlotte quickly scrambled to his feet, activated Blood Flame Qi, and ran for his life. It took several minutes before a group from the Prison Guard Corps emerged in pursuit, but the former First-Rank Chief Clerk had long since vanished.

Magru's expression turned incomparably ugly. He had never expected such a trivial matter to go so badly wrong!

Quite a few people must have heard what Charlotte shouted while escaping. Magru had only recently become warden and had yet to seize all authority or completely control every member of the Prison Guard Corps at Kilmainham Prison. Someone would certainly leak the news.

He had received instructions from some force lurking in the shadows to investigate Menilman. If he quietly caused trouble in private, the other party would have no evidence and could do nothing to him. But he did not have the nerve to openly tear things apart with the Sumei Family.

Once this news got out, he would be utterly finished. Even the force behind him might not protect him.

Magru slammed his palm down on the desk in his office. No matter how he thought about it, he could not understand why Charlotte had refused to compromise so completely, without even a moment's hesitation, and had instantly devised such a vicious counterattack.

He had put Magru directly over the flames!

Clinging to a shred of hope, he roared, "No one is allowed to speak of what happened today! If I find out that anyone has spread those words, I'll make every one of you taste what it's like to rot in prison."

Almost everyone near the office who had heard him silently thought, The new warden really is trying to frame Miss Menilman.

After escaping Kilmainham Prison, Charlotte hired a public carriage and rushed back to Champs-Élysées Avenue Number 58 as fast as he could.

There were no telephones or networks in this era. The Prison Guard Corps and City Patrol could not mobilize that quickly. He still had a sliver of opportunity.

Panting heavily, Charlotte burst into Champs-Élysées Avenue Number 58 and dug out the several Savings Union deposit slips hidden in his bedroom. He had offended the new warden, and the man would absolutely not let him go. The money he had deposited with the Savings Union would certainly be confiscated.

He had already made up his mind to flee for a while, and he could not do that without money.

Given the investigative efficiency of the Prison Guard Corps and City Patrol in this era, Charlotte still had a chance to withdraw all his savings and disappear without a trace, provided he moved fast enough.

After taking the deposit slips, Charlotte felt faintly relieved. He had not been particularly extravagant lately. Aside from commissioning that new cane inlaid all over with dozens of silver stars, he had bought no valuable items.

Since he was preparing to flee, Charlotte naturally traveled light. Besides the Savings Union deposit slips, the Vampire Hand Axe, his diary, the newly purchased cane, and a few changes of clothes, he also took the secondhand Magnum Hand Shuttle. After all, it was quite reliable for self-defense.

Having packed his things, he was about to leave through the front door when he heard a commotion outside.

Charlotte decisively abandoned the front entrance, rushed into the courtyard, then leaped over the wall with all his strength and plunged into the Lucavaro River.

The moment he entered the river, a squad from the Prison Guard Corps burst into Champs-Élysées Avenue Number 58. Heavy leather boots pounded across the floor as they began their search.

Half an hour later, Charlotte climbed ashore somewhere else.

The first thing he did was inspect the Savings Union deposit slips. Though they had been soaked by river water, they were still largely intact.

Charlotte did not dare waste any time. He stripped off his clothes, wrung them out a little, then raced toward the nearest Savings Union office.

When Charlotte finished the procedures, withdrew all his savings, and exchanged them for Flor banknotes, he let out a great sigh of relief.

With money in hand—an enormous sum of 593 Écu—he did not feel quite so panicked about fleeing.

Although he knew that spending fifty-Flor notes would attract plenty of attention, he still exchanged for 110 fifty-Flor notes. Converting more than five hundred Écu entirely into smaller denominations would have been too inconvenient to carry.

For the remaining forty-three Écu, he exchanged them for forty ten-Flor notes and thirty one-Flor notes.

Fortunately, he still had some loose change on him, so ordinary purchases would not draw too much attention.

After withdrawing the money, Charlotte felt somewhat lost. He had only been transported here for less than a month, even counting every day, and he was not familiar with the Old Continent as a whole. As for the distant New Continent, even the previous owner's memories contained little information about it.

I definitely can't return to my hometown. Too many people there know me; it'd be the easiest place for my identity to be exposed.

Should I... leave the Empire of Fars?

Damn it. I thought that after being transported here, I'd have a cushy job, a beautiful rich girl chasing after me, and a peaceful, fulfilling life!

How did it end up like this?

After pondering for a long while, Charlotte decided to first buy a set of clothes suitable for fleeing. He was still wearing thin-soled leather shoes, comfortable and light for the city but unsuitable for the wilderness or long journeys. As for his clothes, he needed to change into a set of hunting attire, the most fashionable style on the Old Continent.

Charlotte took a deep breath. Just as he was about to find an unfamiliar tailor's shop, he saw two young men in black overcoats, their faces grim and cold, each leaning on a sheathed rapier. They stood at opposite ends of the long street, blocking his path.

Both young men in black coats carried the sharp, lethal aura of those tempered by life-and-death struggles.