“T-take me?” Alysia cried out, clearly distressed over this sudden turn of events.

I tightened my hand on her hilt and straightened my back, trying to give a feeling of strength and security for Alysia.

“That sword had been created using a powerful soul and several other rare materials. I’m quite interested in such a rare item.”

“The sword is bonded to me. We can’t be separated.” I declared, deciding rather than risk offending him, I’d use reason.

He put his hand on his chin, although I still couldn’t get a clear look at his face. “Soul bindings are hardly perfect. Your souls are indeed intertwined, but pulling them apart wouldn’t be too difficult. Of course, I could also just cut them apart.”

I took a step back and Alysia shook. “Hey! Wouldn’t that be painful?”

For someone like me who had experienced a soul refinement, I probably could handle that kind of pain, but since I didn’t want to let go of Alysia in the first place, I wasn’t going to let up on any excuse I could find.

“Are you saying you won’t give me this?” He asked, his voice taking on a slightly dangerous tone.

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I was deep inside his dungeon. This was his terrain. We were quite literally halfway through the dungeon, a day’s journey in either direction. On top of that, I hadn’t seen a single safe room, so there was no easy path back. I didn’t know if they were hidden or if he had done something special to avoid using them. Either way, if he turned on me now, things would be rather difficult. I could create a portal out, but that involved time. I was confident I could escape, but as for Pait and the rest, I couldn’t guarantee their safety at all.

Still, there were some lines I absolutely wouldn’t cross. Giving up someone close to me was one such line. There was a time where I would give up on them if they wanted me to, such as when Faeyna no longer wanted to be my slave. I was no longer that same kind of guy. Nowadays, I was much less tolerant. I would fight to keep everyone and give nothing up.

“Are you trying to bully me? Do you need to speak to the dungeon council about this?” I asked.

Once again, I tried to use another method to get him to stand back. After hearing Matty talk about the council with reverence, he seemed to suggest that they protected smaller dungeons from being bullied by bigger dungeons. What did he call it? The dungeon master pact? A stronger dungeon couldn’t attack a weaker dungeon. I had a feeling that this rule didn’t apply if I was the one entering, but I still had to try.

The man seemed taken aback, and then he let out a laugh. “You’re part of the council?”

“I am…” I responded, getting a feeling like something was off.

“Then, I should take even more from you!” He lunged at me.