Red sighed. “What do you want to know?”
“What did you do with your blood?” Aurelia asked.
“I used it for the blood oath.”
The woman frowned. “I know that! Who did he swear the oath to?”
“I don’t really know for certain.” Red shook his head. “I just know that if I wish to, then I can kill him with just a thought.”
Aurelia stared at him in suspicion, but before they could continue the conversation, the sound of hurried steps came from the corridor. The old maid walked through the door, carrying a variety of cleaning supplies in her hands. She didn’t show the slightest reaction at seeing the dead body, getting to work at scrubbing the blood immediately.
Red observed her actions, examining her fluctuation. Strangely, he didn’t detect her strangeness through his crimson sense, as it seemed like the woman was still undergoing changes of emotions like any normal human being. Her actions and expression, though, didn’t match her fluctuation.
‘Is my crimson sense being tricked or could it be her mind is still alive somewhere?’
Before the youth could think any further, Emer entered the room.
“I have ordered her to clean the blood, my lord. There is another matter that needs your input, however…” he looked at his brother’s corpse. “W-What would you like to do with the body?”
Red also looked over. “Can you get rid of it without anyone noticing?”
“I-I could, my lord, but… My contacts are all part of the cult.”
The merchant’s meaning was clear. Red was potentially about to fall out with this cult, so how could the old man still make use of his contacts like nothing happened? Even if they arrived at an agreement, they would not allow Emer to benefit from their services at an outsider’s behest.
‘Besides, I don’t want them to get their hands on the body either way.’
It was possible they could figure out he used blood magic if they had the time to examine the corpse.
“Is there anyone else that can help?” Red asked.
“T-The Shadow, maybe…” The merchant hesitated. “I could certainly try to contact them, my lord… But they aren’t too keen on getting involved with our cult’s business and it will cost a lot.”
“How much money do you have?”
“A-A fair bit, my lord, but it’s hard to say if it will be enough to pay them.”
“What about your brother? Does he have a personal stash?”
“I-I wouldn’t know, my lord, but… It wouldn’t surprise me.”
‘So it’s hidden somewhere around here?’
The youth looked around the office. A cultivator’s stash was always very important to them, so it would be well hidden, such that it would require some thorough investigation if Red wanted to find it.
“See how much they want to get rid of a Lesser Ring Realm cultivator’s body.” Red said. “As long as they can keep their discretion, I can see about getting them their money.”
“I will try, my lord, but…” Emer hesitated. “That would require me to leave the house.”
The youth frowned. “You don’t have a direct line to them?”
He was under the impression communication talismans were common in the capital.
“N-No, my lord.” Emer shook his head. “The Shadow never provides direct contact to anyone. We can just show our interest and ask around certain places and hope they will respond.”
Aurelia, who was still keeping her image, snorted from the side. “It’s better if you just get rid of the body yourself, or do you trust this shadowy organization won’t be able to figure out you used blood magic?”
Red frowned. He wasn’t against disposing of the corpse himself, but this was an unfamiliar place to him. He didn’t know of any suitable spots and he also didn’t want to risk being seen doing this matter. Not to mention, what if someone found the corpse? Even burning it away wouldn’t be that easy and was still likely to leave behind traces.
That being said, Aurelia’s point still stood.
It would be hard, however, to keep a rotting body hidden for who knew how long until he was confident enough to dispose of it somewhere. Cultivators all had a sensitive sense of smell, and if any Lesser Ring Realm cultivator wandered by the front of his house, they would definitely notice it eventually.
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He looked back at the corpse with a sigh. “Stash the corpse away. I will deal with it later.”
He had some ideas, but it would depend on how his conversation with the cult went.
“I-I will, my lord.” Emer nodded.
He ordered the maid about as she cleaned the office.
It took them the better part of an hour to scrub the blood out of the floor and wrap the corpse. After that, Emer and the maid carried the dead body of their previous master away from the room, finally leaving Red alone once again.
He looked over at Aurelia, ready to resume his conversation.
“Tell me what you know about the Chaos Dragon cult.”
She frowned. “You’re just going to change topics?”
“I can’t say much more.” Red shook his head. “Unless you want to speak with it yourself.”
The woman hesitated. “Bah, nevermind then!”
She was clearly still afraid of the crimson mist inside his body.
Aurelia looked at the youth and shrugged. “There’s not much to tell about them. What you know isn’t too far from the truth.”
“They are savages, then?”
“More or less.” She nodded. “In fact, their cult has always had very few members, as most of the Chaos Dragon believers aren’t the kind to act in conjunction with others, even those who share the same faith.”
Red frowned. “So the cult isn’t that strong?”
“I didn’t say that! I just meant that they don’t have many members, but those they do have are always very strong and not right in the head.”
The youth fell silent. Aurelia’s knowledge was from a long time ago, but as far as he could tell, it was consistent with what he imagined these cultists to be.
The woman chuckled. “Are you worried you can’t fit the image of a mad cultist?”
She hit the nail on the head.
Red nodded. “I’m not a good actor, and my plans aren’t consistent with that of an insane person. Besides… That guard Loras also saw me earlier.”
If it was just Cassemir that knew his appearance, it wouldn’t be a problem, but the guard captain also saw him when he tried entering the city. It would be hard to put on an act to trick these people now, much more so if they were knowledgeable about the Chaos Dragon cult.
“I don’t think you should worry.” She shook her head. “Just act like your usual self, and it won’t be a problem.”
Red frowned. “What do you mean?”
Aurelia smiled. “Madness shows itself in many ways. Just because Chaos Dragon believers like to destroy things, it doesn’t mean they can’t keep their temper in check when it matters, or else they would have been hunted down a long time ago!”
“Still, I know very little about their traditions.” Her point made sense, but it didn’t assuage his worries.
“It’s not like these cults are friendly and know everything about each other either!” She shook her head. “What made these people wary of you isn’t just because of your claim of being a Chaos Dragon cultist, but also because you killed one of their own with a weaker cultivation. Even if they want to deal with you, how could they be reckless?”
“It still won’t stop them from scheming against me in the long run, and I can’t necessarily replicate this feat.”
If Red had an entire cult of influential people scheming against him, how would he be able to accomplish anything in the open within the city? It was why he was trying to pose as someone of greater importance in the first place, to avoid these schemes.
Aurelia scoffed. “If you want to convince them you’re a Chaos Dragon cultist, isn’t the best proof right in your face?”
Red had a realization. “You mean my corruption?”
The scales and lizard-like eye of his had become so commonplace the youth didn’t even realize to use them to his advantage.
“Of course! Think about it - you have lizard corruption spreading across your face, something that comes side by side with a deteriorating state of mind. Yet, you remain a composed and cold person, so what do you think that looks like from an outsider’s perspective?” she asked.
“Someone must be keeping the corruption from reaching my mind.”
“Indeed! In other words, you are either being protected by some sort of powerful warding technique, or you’re directly blessed by the Chaos Dragon herself.” Aurelia said. “In either case, it gives credence to your claim of being part of a cult.”
Red reflected upon her words in silence. “… I never thought to use my corruption this way.”
Not even demonic cultists welcomed physical signs of corruption, as that was often seen as a point of no return to a cultivator. Their state would only worsen from there unless they found a way to maintain their sanity.
Aurelia shrugged. “Since you’re determined to mingle with demons, you might as well use everything in your power to trick them.”
“Indeed.” he nodded.
It was a dangerous game he was playing, but the woman’s plan offered him a way out of it he hadn’t considered.
“What about this Nine-Star Cult?” Red asked. “What do you know about them?”
“It’s strange, but…” The woman furrowed her brown in thought. “I have never heard of this Infernal Emperor before.”
Red was surprised. “You mean there wasn’t an archdemon like that in your time?”
“That’s not what I said.” She shook her head. “It’s possible he existed the entire time I was alive, but his gaze might have only been drawn to this world recently.”
The youth frowned. “That doesn’t make sense. We had two demonic invasions, and you’re telling me that didn’t draw his attention the entire time?”
The Chaos Dragon.
The Architect.
The Myriad Desire.
The Endless Torment.
The Hungering Abyss.
The Mare.
The Greatblood River.
The Masked Reveller.
The Mother of Vermin.
The Infernal Emperor.
Those were the archdemons recorded in most history books, and even though information about them was made sparse on purpose, it was implied that their existence was revealed to this world during the demonic invasions. Yet, according to Aurelia, that wasn’t the case with the Infernal Emperor, whom she had never heard of while she was still alive, a time far after the last demonic invasion.
Aurelia nodded. “That’s indeed strange… But there’s another possibility: the Infernal Emperor was only born after my death.”
‘Born?’
Before Red could elaborate a question, he felt a stirring within the pit of his stomach that made him lurch forward in pain. He almost fell to the ground, but held himself up.
He reached towards the crimson mist in confusion, but he only saw its trembling form. It was giving him a warning, though not in an authoritative way, but out of fear and concern.
Do not pursue this. Only danger awaits.
At least, this was more or less the feeling Red got from it.
Aurelia saw this reaction of his and frowned. “Maybe it’s better to avoid talking about the individual when you’ve already drawn their attention.”
The youth was compelled to agree.