Underneath the noisy and obscene atmosphere of the brothel, Raven, Kieran and the courtesan could be seen walking in an underground hallway. Fire torches affixed to the wall, lighted each step taken in the silent pathway.

Unlike the courtesan and Kieran who faced forward without giving a side-glance, Raven, on the other hand, was very much different. She satisfied her curiosity by visibly turning her head to have a look at her surroundings.

Raven couldn't be blamed as she was very much still new to this world. It wouldn't be strange for her to be looking around in curiosity.

'I wonder how they did this...Perfect place for secrecy and to train assassins...' she mused to herself. No one could ever suspect an underground place in a brothel like this. Whoever came up with the idea, Raven had to give a little respect to the smart person.

However.....

'It wasn't mentioned in the novel though...' Her thoughts linked to the information from the novel. A place like this was never mentioned in the novel that she had read. Apart from the main characters of the plot and their backgrounds, Raven did not recall sighting any underground place in a brothel written in the novel.

'...Just like the original Raven...' Looking around the old brick walls with visible cracks, Raven thought, recalling the unfortunate fate of the original owner.

'Kieran is also the same...' She glanced at the back of her elite slave. '....this Damon guy too...' Apart from the Langston family, all the people that she had met so far seemed to be side characters that the author deemed as not worth mentioning in the novel. Everyone linked to the original owner had never been mentioned. The same was probably for Kieran who she took in, and Damon, who she was about to meet.

'I wonder what their original fate was...' Raven suddenly thought of the endings of these people. Perhaps they met an untimely death or something else...

''We're almost there, masters.'' The dainty voice of the courtesan pulled Raven from her thoughts. Focusing on the reality, Raven decided to end her little act of tourism, and put all her attention on her goal for the night.

At the end of the long hallway was a pair of wooden double doors. The courtesan was the first to get there, and she pulled one of the doors outward for them to enter.

''D-Damon..be gentle p-please...''

''....Why should I?''

''Haa...Y-Your bites...Ha..p-painful...''

Raven had just finished taking her steps into the room behind the pair of wooden double doors. Welcoming her eyes was the pair on a couch, glued to together looking out of breath, and performing some unholy actions not seeming to have a pause.

Well...one of them did, and it was the person on top of the other, giving a sharp yet murderous that she could feel all the way from here.

''I don't seem to recall having any visitors.'' The voice of the person was deep yet hoarse, probably from the lip-locking with the other that had been done.

Eyes were directed to the courtesan standing amid the people, both by her side. Her eyes also met the gaze, but remained blank, and her lips were stagnant indirectly ignoring those words as though she didn't hear them.

However....

Her eyelids suddenly came together and her body dropped instantly after those words. Following this was a pin-drop silence. A pair of eyes swept over the body on the bare ground, belonging to the unknown person, and then lifted the narrowed gaze to Raven and Kieran. This was the beginning of a stare down between them. The atmosphere was uncomfortable for anyone to breathe peacefully. A murderous yet deadly air slowly blended amongst them.

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''Who are you?'' A question came from the unknown person.

''...Are you Damon of the Nightwolves?'' Raven was the one who replied with a question of her own.

''Depends on who's asking...and you are?''

''Someone of no importance.'' With a response of her own, Raven sized up the man, getting up with the courtesan adjusting herself.

It was as though the kissing among themselves did not happen with the way they acted normally like no one had witnessed them.

''Someone of no importance? I think I'll be the one to judge that.'' Now seated on the couch with a bent leg resting over the other, the unknown person focused pointedly at Raven since she was the one who answered. ''Now tell me, Who. are. you.?''

''Someone of no importance.'' The same answer came from Raven again.

''....Leave one for questioning.'' The words from the unknown person changed after a momentary silence. Glancing to the side towards the courtesan, words were directed to her and eyes returned to the smaller figure in their front. ''..barely alive...''

The second those words ended, the only thing left behind by the courtesan was nothing but air. The seductive figure was nowhere to be seen by the unknown person's side. Rather what followed was the clashing sounds of blades grinding together for struggle and dominance.

Far away from Raven, Kieran took on the courtesan with a sword formerly hung from his waist. In tune with the clashing of blades, bells around the thin waist of the courtesan and her ankles jingled in her every steps and movement.

Her pink silk clothes shadowed her every movement. Her every step in the battle were on her toes almost to the tip and her entire arm to the fingers followed a particular rhythm.

To Raven, the courtesan seemed to be dancing while battling with Kieran. Her steps and movement, poised yet complex, and captivating yet deadly with her every strike targeting sensitive areas on Kieran's body.

'...interesting...' Raven did not expect that someone could kill with dancing. Perhaps this was the way of murder for the courtesans in this brothel.

If she were to fight with someone like this, the struggle would have been real for her.

But not in her former life.

'Now Kieran...' Her eyes shifted to the courtesan's opponent, zoning in on his figure completely. A certain glint flickered in her eyes. 'Show me how you will deal her.'

'Show me the skills that you have gained as a slave for the Langston family.'

Ever since Kieran, an elite slave had entered her life, He had shown he was indeed an exceptional elite slave. Like a shadow never leaving her figure for a second, he was always there blending right in her background.

However....

What she wanted was not an exceptional elite slave.

She desired an almost perfect elite slave.

There was nothing and no one perfect in life, which was why she wanted an almost perfect elite slave. An unsurpassed one that could never be rivalled by her siblings' elite slaves.

Until now, Kieran had not showed the depth of his skills. In the battle ground of the sixth madam's manor, he merely displayed a little which did not please her the slightest. The state of himself after that battle was very questionable.

No sign of fatigue...No sign of struggle during the battle...and the gaze when facing the opponent as though he was nothing...those little things showed that Kieran was indeed not as weak as Commander Igor had indicated.

From the behavior of Commander Igor before that battle, he had discouraged her from choosing Kieran to battle. That had clearly indicated that Kieran was perhaps the weakest elite slave of all.

If Kieran was truly not the weakest, he wouldn't have said a word, but he did.

Commander Igor had also said that Kieran was longest-stayed slave. However, she would have to find out if he was indeed the longest-slave from the entire slaves of the Langston family.

If he was...then Raven guessed that his experiences despite his age was more than anyone imagined.

Though all these were speculations, Raven still wanted to see for herself if the speculations were not far from the truth.

'Show me that you are worth my survival plans, Kieran.'

As though there was telepathy between herself and Kieran, the fight that seemed equally balanced. Though with little luck on the courtesan's side, suddenly turned tide.

The only visible features on Kieran were his eyes. The glass-like eyes with a mixture of grey, stood more from his black clothing.

All of a sudden, they lit up. As quickly as the light came, it disappeared, dimming to its normal state in an instant.

Following this, the sudden strike that came from Kieran, ended the battle with the courtesan. Unable to bear with intensity of the strike from Kieran's sword, the courtesan was pushed back, tripping on herself and falling to the bare ground.

The daggers in her grasp fell, its blades clinking on the bare ground. Her current state was pitiful yet charming with her seductive countenance. Without a waste of time, a shadow hovered her, covering her entire crouched figure.

The first thing that the courtesan saw when raising her eyes was the fierce strike of the blade descending on herself without falter.