Chapter4

"Drink this bowl of oatmeal while it's hot."

In the early morning, Caleb pushed the bowl in front of me. The concern on his face was flawless, as if the man with murderous intent in his eyes from last night hadn't existed at all.

I looked down at the bowl. There was no abnormal color, but I caught the scent of a sleeping draught. He didn't care if I slept until I became brain-dead, as long as it guaranteed that his precious beast could smoothly drain my blood.

"It's freshly cooked and a bit too hot. I'll let it cool down before I drink it." I picked up the spoon and stirred it absentmindedly.

Caleb glanced at the bowl and didn't press the matter further.

"Dad, look! She's so well-behaved today!" Leo stood in front of the mahogany stand, plunging both hands into the magical nest, rubbing and petting her aggressively. The ferret actively pressed against his palms, rubbing back and forth with a look of pure enjoyment.

Leo ran up to me. "Mom, don't go out today. You need to change her thermostatic stone; she doesn't like the cold." He paused. "If she bites you, you can't dodge it—Dad said she's just helping you draw out the impurities."

I glanced at Caleb. He didn't say anything, but walked over and reached out, stroking the ferret's back over and over, his palm pressed firmly against her. "Sacred beasts are perceptive. She knows we love her."

I reached my hand in as well. The ferret suddenly clamped her teeth onto the webbing between my thumb and forefinger, tearing open the unhealed wound from yesterday all over again.

"Are you stupid?! She doesn't want you touching her!" Leo violently shoved my hand away.

I dropped my arm, letting the beads of blood seep into my cuff.

Sitting by the dining table, watching this harmonious picture of a "family of three," I almost burst out laughing.

They didn't know that I had secretly smeared a layer of "Holy Light Corrosive Liquid Crystal" at the very bottom of the hay in this exact magical nest. It was completely non-toxic at room temperature. Only through sustained contact with the high heat of a human palm would it melt and release a toxic gas that gnawed at the soul. Every time they lovingly reached their hands into the nest, their body heat traveled down their fingertips, pressing the toxin deep into Sylvia's ethereal body.

"Good girl." Caleb gave a final kiss behind the ferret's ear and withdrew his hand. "Leo, go get your spellbook. We're going to be late."

He walked to the door and looked back. "Elora, we're going to be at the magic tower all day. Finish drinking that, and go back to bed for a good rest. Don't leave the bedroom before dark."

"Okay, I'll finish it." I scooped up a spoonful and put it in my mouth right in front of him.

Caleb stared at my throat. Only after confirming that I swallowed did he close the front door with satisfaction.

The moment the lock clicked into place, I immediately turned my head and spat the contents of my mouth into my palm.

"Bang!" The ferret suddenly sprang up from the hay pile, slamming into the glass lid, her four legs twitching violently.

Did it hurt? Caleb could use high-tier healing spells to cure the physical wounds caused by the silver thread last night. But no one could extract the toxin he had personally pressed deep into her soul.

I walked over to the magical nest and looked down at the violently trembling furball. "When they come back tonight and see the nest empty, do you think they'll cry?"

I grabbed her by the scruff of the neck, hauled her out, and stuffed her into a coarse black sack. I crossed through two alleys and entered the depths of the Shadow Market.

The shop never saw the sun, and the air reeked of stale blood clots and sulfur.

"The item you asked for." The one-eyed old man slammed a heavy, black iron crucible onto the counter. "A Holy Fire Tempering Crucible. It took a lot of effort to swipe this from the Inquisition's storehouse."

He lifted the lid, revealing a cluster of ghostly blue, cold fire inside. "This fire doesn't have a trace of heat. Whatever you put in it will have its fur and skin untouched, its bones and muscles unharmed." He paused. "But this cold fire will pierce into the soul through every pore, peeling the spirit away inch by inch like an onion. She won't die immediately. As long as the fire keeps burning, every moment feels like rolling on the edge of a blade."

A faint scratching sound came from the sack. Sylvia could understand our words. She was terrified.

"Excellent." I pushed a pouch full of gold coins onto the counter. "How do you seal the crucible?"

The old man was just about to reach for the lid when his hand froze in midair.

A sudden, piercing buzz rang out abruptly in the shop.

I looked down. The communication crystal at my waist was frantically flashing a blinding red light.