A while later, Ray and Ashclaw sat facing one another in a wide hall.

Ashclaw noticed nothing unusual, unable to tell that the man across from him wasn't his son. It was his enemy in disguise. The disguise provided by the Mimic skill was too perfect, even a ruthless and cunning old man who had long traded away his humanity for ambition couldn't see through it, apnd that, Ray believed, was going to be the reason for his downfall.

"What made you miss home? You rarely visit," Ashclaw said.

"There's something important I want to discuss with you," Ray replied.

"What a coincidence. I also have a matter to discuss with you."

Ray remembered the saying, "If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle."

He was clear about where he stood.

Average bronze and iron rankers were no match for him, and, with his cunning, killing talented bronze rankers with special ability was well within his capabilities.

He was also aware what he needed to do to kill Ashclaw. Torvin's memories had made Ashclaw's weaknesses clear to him.

The only problem was it wasn't going to be easy to lure Ashclaw into a dungeon.

Although he had a well throughout plan, he might not succeed in enticing Ashclaw.

So he wanted to hear Ashclaw out first to understand where he stood at this point in time better.

Depending on what he says, he might or mightn't need to make changes to the script he had come up with to entice Ashclaw into following him into a dungeon!

'Since there's a matter I don't know about and it concerns my enemy, let's hear it first before deciding how to proceed with my plan. Knowledge can be turned into a blade, and perhaps I can use this information against him.' Ray said, "You go first."

"Where should I begin?" Ashclaw sighed, then began recounting everything that had happened since he prepared a plan to kill two birds with one stone.

His scheme had backfired on him.

That night, Ray not only killed Kane, the assassin Ashclaw had sent after him, but also wiped out the town's guards who were meant to finish Kane.

When the Invigilator from the Investigation Bureau finished his investigation, a massive misunderstanding was created.

The cornered parties were led to believe Kane had succeeded in killing Ray before being ambushed by the town's guards. Yet instead of going down obeditently, he dragged all his ambushers down with him.

As a result, Varun lost over a dozen and a half of his underlings, though he remained ignorant of it for now.

Once the truth reached him, he would no doubt come for Ashclaw to settle the score.

Before that comes to pass, Ashclaw needed to come up with a mountain of blood money to appease him.

If he failed at that, he could lose everything — perhaps even his life.

After all, Varun was no sane man. He had murdered his own parents and devoured them happily when he found out they were planning to betray him. Although, his relationship with Ashclaw hadn't reached that level, Ashclaw had abused his trust, which was enough to earn his ire. There was no telling how he would react to the loss of his subordinates.

Two months—that was the deadline. And even that reprieve had been hard-bought. He had to offer his son to Nisha, that accursed succubus.

Ray internally smiled. His ruthless actions had harmed Ashclaw greatly. How could he not be happy?

'Ashclaw is left with only two choices. Either he have to sell his mine or his valuables to survive past the two months deadline. Considering his personality, he won't give up on the silver ranked items. They are his trump cards, and Varun is unpredictable. He can only give up his mine, his greatest source of wealth.'

Outwardly, he didn't show his happiness.

He only furrowed deeply as if he had been triggered, not liking what he had heard.

"Father, you slipped up once, but you slipped hard. And now you're dragging me down with you. Who in a thousand miles doesn't know Nisha is a succubus who had slept with and gained control over a thousand men since her awakening? God knows what kind of disease she is carrying. I would rather die than put my meat in that quagmire." Ray snorted twice. "Marrying her is no different from willingly wearing a green hat and telling the world you're a cuckold with the desire to become a whore's slave for life.. I will never agree to it."

Torvin would've reacted to it similiarly.

"It concerns my survival. If you refuse, I won't even have two months to prepare." Ashclaw's eyes trembled, moisture gathering at their corners. He truly looked pitiful.

Ashclaw's goal was simple yet heavy: move to the royal capital and settle down in the mainland.

Everything he had done so far, everything innocent life he had taken, every cruel thing he had done, was to accomplish that one goal. No way in hell would he do anything determinatal to his ambitions.

He couldn't afford to give up on the mine. It was the key to securing the last chunk of wealth he needed to buy his way into the capital in just a few short years. On top of that, the mine hid a stunning secret he would never share with anyone.

As for his silver-ranked items, He was dealing with some of the most deranged humans to ever walk the earth. without his trump cards, he would never sleep easy.

That was why Nisha's support was so crucial to him. he needed time. Time to come up with a third option.

"Agreeing to your request is the same as selling myself into slavery. Sorry, but I can't agree to it. My mind won't change no matter what you say," Ray said bluntly, making it clear Ashclaw had no time to think.

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