As Lucian calmly copied down the sentences, a line of blood-red words suddenly jumped onto the white letter paper, like flowing blood, giving a terrifying feeling:
"Stop what you are doing! Or you will receive a corpse!"
With a *snap*, Lucian, feigning panic, dropped the feather pen onto the table and stammered slightly, "I-I was just, just trying to record your demands, so I wouldn't forget."
"Your excuse is laughable, Mr. Evans. Stop these foolish actions. This is your final warning. If you do this again, you will receive Joel's corpse. Of course, a warning in the form of a finger is a necessity!"
Lucian was filled with pain and self-reproach, but he didn't let these emotions affect him. From the moment he decided not to cooperate with the cultists and instead seek an opportunity to save the hostages, he had mentally prepared himself for the possible harm that might come to Uncle Joel, Aunt Elisa, and Evan. Rescuing hostages from kidnappers was not a dinner party, not attending banquets, or engaging in leisurely pursuits. Without the resolve to pay a price, success was impossible.
"Fine, everything as you wish. I'll behave myself." Lucian tore the sheet of paper with the copied words to shreds.
*He can see me through this Divine Arts item, the letter paper, or does he have other means? The next step is to probe this, but I can't be too hasty, lest he see through the problem.*
Seeing the letter paper fall silent, Lucian put it away, then lay on the bed looking somewhat dejected. He didn't let his spiritual sense spread out, relying only on a vague, indistinct awareness to judge whether there were any other traces of supernatural force in the small room.
*At a time like this, I can't use Arcane Magic to probe. If discovered, it's over.*
Lucian understood very well that his ability to probe for information up to this point wasn't because he was much smarter than the cultists, but stemmed from an information asymmetry—they didn't know his true background. This advantage could be lost with a moment of haste or carelessness.
Except for the envelope left in the box, the entire cottage held no trace or aura of supernatural power whatsoever.
…………
The seemingly peaceful midday passed. Lucian took his much-lighter purse and headed towards the Gisu District, finding the old garden villa at number 116.
Its location was even better than Lucian had imagined. Situated near the city wall in the Gisu District, because there was no city gate here, it was very deserted. Only a few two-story villas, which looked poorly maintained, were sparsely distributed along the roadside trees, hidden among them.
These roadside trees, called "Lava," similar to sycamores, were tall and sturdy with dense foliage, completely enveloping these two-story villas. Golden fallen leaves danced in the wind, full of poetic beauty, while highlighting the seclusion and quietness.
Satisfied with the surrounding environment, Lucian walked to the gate made of iron railings and pounded on it heavily. The Association staff responsible for renting properties in the Gisu District should have arrived as arranged that morning.
Sure enough, upon hearing the knocking, a man in his thirties walked out from the white two-story building covered in ivy. He had neatly trimmed whiskers, wore a brown formal suit, and looked quite shrewd.
"Hello, Mr. Evans. I'm Brian. I'll show you around the villa." Lucian, having made the front pages of *Music Review* and *Symphony Herald* with an accompanying oil portrait, was the most talked-about and hottest figure within the Association that day. Thus, Brian, who had once visited the library to borrow books, recognized Lucian at a glance.
After he opened the iron gate and saw Lucian extend his right hand first, he hurriedly went forward with both hands, clasped Lucian's right hand, and shook it gently, his attitude extremely respectful.
To hold the position of managing house rentals in the Association's most lucrative department, the "Administrative Department," as a commoner, Brian relied solely on his shrewdness and caution. Faced with a musician of such great promise as Lucian, how could he be foolish enough to display arrogance? After all, there was no conflict of interest between them.
Under Brian's guidance, Lucian walked a circuit through the villa and found that neither the front garden nor the back lawn for outdoor gatherings were large enough. However, the interior of the villa was unexpectedly clean, neat, and beautiful. It did not adopt the "Trianon Court Style" decoration—the flashy, extravagant, and complex style similar to Baroque that had been popular in the last decade—but was arranged in a light and elegant style. The spacious hall, with its simple yet delicate decorations, statues, and other items, gave a refreshing and bright feeling.
It was a pity, however, that due to the obstruction of the city wall and the excessively tall Lava trees, the lighting in the entire building was very poor. Thus, the refreshing and bright style, shrouded in gloom, produced an eerily creepy feeling, which was particularly complemented by the green ivy outside.
"Mr. Evans, the environment of this villa is very quiet, and there won't be harsh sunlight. It's a place suitable for composing music. Are you satisfied?" Brian tried hard to frame the drawbacks as advantages. It was precisely because of the poor lighting that after the previous musician had entrusted it to the Association, it hadn't been rented out for several months.
Lucian didn't mind the dimness, as it meant the nights would certainly be even darker. He nodded and said, "Show me the rental contract."
Brian suppressed a smile, took a thick stack of rental contracts from the leather bag he was carrying, and handed them to Lucian. As long as he could rent out this villa, besides the commission he should get, the cost difference from the servants he had hired in the preceding months to clean and maintain it naturally belonged to him.
Lucian looked over the contract, found no issues, then picked up Brian's feather pen and signed his name. He also took a Gold Thaler from his purse and gave it to the other party. As a highly acclaimed musician, there was no need for a deposit or three months' prepaid rent when renting a house in the Gisu District.
Brian swiftly wrote a receipt, put away the contract, and then asked with an ingratiating smile, "Mr. Evans, a villa this size needs at least one butler, four servants, one cook, one gardener, one carriage, and a coachman. I can help you find people from the respective guilds."
"I may need some time before I can move in completely. Bring them next Monday for me to select." Lucian thought for a moment and agreed to Brian's proposal but postponed the time by a week, because this was the most critical period for rescuing the hostages, and he couldn't afford any negligence or disturbances.