As I left the house, I looked up at the clear, cloudless sky, distracting myself from the strange mood Giorgina had created.
The plan for the day was to head to the underwater dungeon and saturate my core as much as possible, since it was already at 87%.
According to my calculations, it would take another full week of intensive hunting to fill it. And then there was the matter of what would happen once the core was ready to evolve.
Last time, I lost consciousness for a few minutes, but this time, I wouldn't make the same mistake. Especially not inside that dungeon.
I walked through the neat streets of the citadel, deep in thought. In my old timeline, living here would've been unthinkable. Back then, it was already a miracle to get by, working like a mule day after day without pause.
There were days when the exhaustion was so heavy I only wanted to collapse to the ground and never wake up again. The only reason I kept pushing my mental and physical limits was Lena. She was sick, and if I hadn't stayed by her side, she wouldn't have lasted long.
So I kept going, just to see her smile a little longer. But it wasn't enough. She slipped away before my very eyes… with her last breath.
Even now, I still felt that pain in my chest, that emptiness that dragged everything away, leaving nothing but pain and resentment.
The period after her death was even worse. I had no strength to do anything, and everything felt pointless. But I couldn't die, not after Lena, in her weak voice, had begged me to grow up healthy.
Typical of her. Even on her deathbed, I was still her priority.
As I once said, she was far too good to have a brother like me.
Then things truly went downhill. I couldn't pay certain "taxes," and instead of ending up as a slave, by a hair's breadth, I was shipped to one of the smaller islands to work in the mines. There, the mortality rate was no joke, and honestly, the only thing that set me apart from an actual slave was the lack of a collar.
Hmm… what a pain in the ass.
Turning a corner, I caught a glimpse out of the corner of my eye. Just as I suspected, two men were tailing me. They approached quickly, then slowed, keeping a cautious distance.
As I thought. Paul didn't fully buy the story.
Part of me expected something like this, knowing the man's personality, but that didn't make it any less annoying.
First, the Merchants, now the Explorers, are spying on me. Never a moment alone.
Still, whoever hired these guys had to be incompetent. It was painfully obvious they had no talent for surveillance. At least the Merchants were better at it.
The real issue was figuring out how long they'd keep following me. From what I'd seen, Paul wasn't very patient, so if I didn't do anything suspicious in the next few days, chances were they'd leave me alone.
And if they didn't… oh well. I could always get rid of them.
Even though it was annoying, it wasn't the end. I could start working on part of my plan, and in doing so, I'd finally be able to meet "them" again.
So, over the next few hours, I did nothing special. I wandered around, browsed some stalls, and even took the chance to relax at home.
Then, as the sun began to set, I left the house and crossed the citadel gates. Just like during the day, a couple of figures kept tailing me, but I pretended not to notice and headed for the docks.
I looked for a boat, something obvious enough that the two fools could still follow me, and found one easily.
"I need a ride to Vera Island."
The sailor gave me a knowing look and grinned lewdly.
"Looks like someone's planning to have fun tonight, huh? Not judging, kid. When I save up a bit myself, I can't resist visiting that paradise either."
I stared straight into his eyes without saying a word. The atmosphere went cold, and he quickly realized it was better to keep quiet.
"…That'll be a hundred valis, kid."
The fare was crazy, but once you set foot on that island, that kind of money would be treated like pocket change.
I paid him silently, boarded, and let the boat cut through the dark waters lit only by the last trembling rays of sunset. The night wind carried the salty smell of the sea, but even from afar, you could already catch another scent, a sweet, overwhelming perfume that would follow you the entire time on the island, dulling your senses.
Not that it would work on me. Besides being Rank 1, I had Poison Resistance.
When Vera Island appeared on the horizon, it looked like a constellation fallen to earth. Lights in shades of red, purple, and gold pulsed along a massive central avenue, beckoning you in. The waters of the harbor shimmered like a trembling mosaic of colors.
As soon as I disembarked, I was greeted by music spilling from every building, raucous laughter, the clink of coins in casinos, and above all, the voices of women luring customers with promises of every kind of pleasure.
Vera never slept. The island was built to burn through both money and souls at the same speed. It was not uncommon for someone to become addicted to that place, losing everything.
The funniest part? The place was designed to drain every social class. Near the center, the casinos and brothels screamed high-class luxury, while in the outer districts, everything was crooked and broken, and those who worked there had no life left in their eyes. Same for those who went in.
The main avenue, wide enough for two carriages side by side, was always crowded. Drunk men roaring with laughter, nobles in disguise looking for exotic thrills, mercenaries blowing months of pay in a single night. Girls in revealing dresses fluttered by like silk butterflies, with smiles as inviting as they were desperate.
Vera was the kind of place where every vice could be satisfied and every dream destroyed.
It had been a long time since I last set foot in this hell dressed as paradise.
But now, it was time to get to work.
Glancing back, I could see those two men nearly forgetting I existed, too busy staring at full bosoms and playful looks from the women.
Fine by me.
I grabbed a cloak from a street stall, threw it over my shoulders, and bent my knees slightly to give a false impression of my height.
It only took five minutes before the two of them completely lost me. I'd love to say it was thanks to my skills, but honestly, it was no harder than stealing candy from children.
Back to the matter of the island, there was one landmark everyone could see, no matter where they stood: the massive pagoda at its center.
That was Jasmine's residence, the self-proclaimed protector of women and leader of the red-light district, which couldn't have been further from the truth.
If Paul was a soulless dictator and Anthony a colossal bastard, then Jasmine was nothing more than a hysterical bitch with an enormous ego.
She believed she was the best, the most special, the most beautiful, that everyone should worship her as a goddess, when in reality, she was just insane.
I recalled an old scene. Back then, I worked on Vera Island and saw that woman from a distance.
As usual, she walked the streets with her entourage, basking in the pleading stares of others, checking that everything ran perfectly. That much was fine, but then one of her men looked a little too interested in a prostrate woman, and Jasmine noticed.
Want to know how she reacted?
She grabbed a still-burning torch and pressed it mercilessly against the woman's face. The poor soul screamed, begged her to stop, while Jasmine smiled as if… excited.
When the woman's face was ruined, Jasmine had her dragged into one of the worst brothels. The guard didn't fare much better; he lost… his dignity as a man.
Leaving that memory behind, I stepped onto the main avenue, ignoring the voices calling out to me from every side, until I spotted what I was looking for.
The figure moved swiftly through the crowd, deft hands stealing coin pouches from unsuspecting victims.
I made sure to slip my own pouch from my belt and keep it just barely visible, like a distracted rookie begging to be robbed. I stopped at a brightly lit stall, pretending to examine the goods.
The shadow moved, in an instant, it was behind me. I barely felt the light touch, and with it, the weight on my belt disappeared.
The figure darted away quickly, but never once escaped my gaze.
Now take me to them.