Eve

Fortunately, the Soren Family's Provoker knew time was short. Unlike the Warlock who had come before him, he did not try to memorize the file. Instead, he took out a small camera, snapped several photographs of the documents, returned the file to its place, and hurried away.

Abner followed him out of the "core" room, then quietly returned to the abandoned underground prison.

He had no intention of visiting the third "altar." For one thing, it was in Corton Sali's study, and tampering with that ritual core would inevitably leave traces. Those traces were unlikely to escape the eyes of a Sequence 5 Astronomer. For another, establishing a "link" to two cores was enough for his plan. It would let him interfere with and partially control the entire Protection Ritual for a short time. His goal was to assassinate the ambassador, not actually occupy the embassy. This was enough.

That night, in the lounge of a bar on Rute Street in Bridge Borough, Bianca the Warlock handed a handwritten copy of the file to a middle-aged man with distinctly Southern Continent features. Her face was expressionless. "This is what you wanted. We're even now... Don't come looking for me again."

The man read the information carefully, then set it alight and burned it. Only then did he nod. "You should trust our organization's word. We always honor our promises."

"Hah. If you hadn't sworn an oath to that existence, do you think I'd believe the promises of some secret organization?" Bianca sneered. She rose to leave.

The man hesitated, then offered a warning. "Bianca, Beckland can't give you a marriage. He'll never marry you."

Bianca stopped and half turned toward him. "I know... I never expected him to. But staying with him will at least give me a stable