——Seven days of work, exhausted to death. Starting tomorrow, I'll make up for the missed updates.
Also, Qidian currently has a Million Arthur event — just download and register to get 500 Qidian coins. Everyone can give it a try. Free stuff is free stuff, heh.
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Huff… huff… Jacques seemed to hear someone breathing heavily right beside his ear, each exhale and inhale perfectly in sync with his own heartbeat. *Is that my breathing? Is this what it looks like when I can't resist the devil's temptation?*
The labored breathing continued. After what felt like a dozen seconds, Jacques spoke in a hoarse voice that seemed to come from another world entirely, as though every last drop of strength had been wrung from him: "What… what do I need to do?"
He felt as though he had been split clean in two — one half drowning in longing, completely submerged by the tide of love; the other watching from the sidelines, filled with self-reproach, yet powerless to stop anything.
"Mr. Jacques, all you need to do is sign a magical contract with me — not reveal my identity, turn a blind eye to any irregularities found during inspections, and refrain from attempting to betray us during the voyage and after returning to Stewart." Lucian maintained his elegant smile and absolute vigilance; knight attendants with strong faith often caused trouble at the critical moment when a deal was about to be struck. "In return, I guarantee that should you be unable to become a knight through your own strength within three years, I will provide you with a potion to stimulate your bloodline. Even if you cannot find me at that time, the Magic Parliament will ensure fulfillment — Mr. Tom can countersign on behalf of the Parliament to that effect."
After finishing, Lucian added: "We can also include in the magical contract: as long as you do not endanger our lives, we will not harm you or your companions aboard this ship."
Jacques took several heavy breaths, then raised his head and stared hard into Lucian's eyes: "Fine, you win. Cherie is my greatest weakness."
The moment the words left his mouth, he felt something inside him shatter with a clang. But once the decision was made, all the hesitation, the inner turmoil, the desperate wanting yet not daring to accept — all of it vanished completely, and he settled into a strange state of relaxation.
"Congratulations, Mr. Jacques. You've made the wisest choice. I'm certain your future will be bright indeed." Lucian smiled as his right hand produced the prepared parchment from inside his coat. He handed it to Jacques to hold, then took the Feather Pen and "magic ink" from his pocket, and began writing rapidly in the mysterious format of a magical contract.
As he wrote, Lucian did not look down at the parchment. His gaze remained fixed on Jacques the entire time, and his left hand did not relax in the slightest, still loosely clenched.
Jacques paid no attention to this, looking down at the parchment in his hands. With a slightly bitter tone, he said: "I've already seen my future — it's shrouded in darkness. Having betrayed my faith and the knight's code, I can hardly awaken my bloodline's power through my own will anymore. And potion-stimulated awakening can only go so far, let alone overcome the barrier to Great Knight. But as long as I have Cherie, I would leap into the abyss without hesitation."
"Mr. Jacques, you truly are a devoted lover. I admire you from the bottom of my heart." Lucian said with a smile as he continued writing. "Moreover, as I understand it, abiding by the knight's code is meant to help one find their own path, and through that, consolidate one's will — and then use that will to awaken the bloodline's power. What is your path? Is it to protect Miss Cherie, to protect your love? And would you give up everything for that path, accepting the devil's temptation? If so, then I believe you can likewise awaken your bloodline through your own willpower."
Jacques looked at Lucian in surprise: "Mysterious mage, your understanding of awakening bloodline power is quite different from what my knight instructor taught me, but it does seem to have some merit." Tom was equally puzzled and surprised — he hadn't expected Lucian to have such an unusual grasp of the knight's path as well.
"I know a few high-ranking knights…" Lucian answered vaguely — he certainly couldn't say he'd pieced it together from things Natasha occasionally mentioned in passing. "And on the current continent, scientific — er, magical research is advancing by leaps and bounds, changing with each passing day. Even if you, Mr. Jacques, have awakened your bloodline power through a potion, that's not necessarily a dead end. Perhaps in a few years, or a decade or so, some mage will develop a better potion formula that can help you compensate for the deficiency and continue advancing?"
With that, Lucian waved the Feather Pen a few more times and signed his name at the bottom of the contract.
At this point, Jacques naturally wanted to hear words that would bolster his confidence, so he showed a smile for the first time: "I've heard that the Church's holy water, combined with secret potions from noble families, can raise someone to the level of Second-level Knight at most — like Duke Vaolet. Who knows, future potion formulas might really produce the breakthrough you mentioned, Mr. Mage. Uh — Lucian? Evans, heh, you share the same name as that genius musician Cherie admires most? Though he's a warrior who never compromises against darkness, and you, on the other hand…"
Jacques turned the parchment over to read the terms carefully, and was surprised to notice Lucian's signature. But after that brief exclamation, he went back to reading the contract without connecting the two in the slightest — why would the celebrated, world-famous musician be this shadowy, devil-like sinister figure hiding before him?
"Heh heh." Lucian gave a dry laugh. A magical contract was ineffective without one's true name. At the same time, he turned his head slightly to assess Tom, wondering whether Tom had figured out his identity. Up to this point, he had only ever used the surname "Evans."
If Granuf were here — thinking about how
Tom, still blocking the doorway, stared intently at Lucian's left hand and Jacques, ready to unleash his bloodline power at any moment. As for the matter of identical names, he seemed to have encountered such coincidences too many times to react.
Jacques read through the contract several times, confirmed there were no issues, then accepted the Feather Pen from Lucian and signed his name — "Jacques Weijie" — in the bottom right corner. "Mr. Evans, is this sufficient?"
Lucian nodded, had Tom countersign as well, then held the magical contract in hand and extended his spiritual energy to completely envelop it.
Faint magical ripples emanated from the text on the parchment, transforming into pale blue flames that burned slowly.
Since he hadn't cast the spell himself, Lucian was able to suppress the magical fluctuations with his spiritual energy, watching the parchment turn to ash within the pale blue flames.
When it had completely burned away, Lucian suddenly felt something intangible materialize within his soul, and Jacques's expression became slightly dazed.
This was the sign that the magical contract had been established!
"The contract is sealed. Any violation will result in destruction of the soul by magical fire." Lucian smiled and extended his right hand to shake Jacques's, as if celebrating a successful partnership. "Then we won't disturb you any further in your inspection of the Divine Arts array, Mr. Jacques."
Jacques gave Lucian a long, deep look: "Mr. Evans, I have to say — you are a true devil. A devil who excels at bewitching hearts. When I was undergoing knight training, I always believed I could stand firm against a devil's temptation. But now…"
He trailed off and moved past Lucian to inspect the wall panels beside the window.
Lucian and Tom stood at the doorway, watching him work with focused attention.