Chapter 4: Young Girl, Sign This Contract

He pulled out a Soul Contract from his bag, already filled with terms. Peggy took it and skimmed through, essentially containing the necessary team cooperation terms, such as neither party should harm the other, directly or indirectly. What was noteworthy was the last clause:

This contract is valid for five years. The first party (Aske) shall provide the second party (Peggy) with sufficient knowledge and training to grow to the level of self-protection, while the second party shall follow the first party's commands without violating the aforementioned cooperation terms. The spoils of war obtained by the team shall be distributed by the first party.

A standard Mercenary Apprentice contract.

"So, you teach me combat skills in exchange for my service to you?" Peggy asked.

"Correct," Aske said with a smile:

"You now possess Initial Rank Extraordinary Power, but you don't know how to use it. I will teach you how to effectively harness your own strength, in exchange for working for me for a while, fair enough?"

"Add one more condition," Peggy said. "Help me with my revenge, kill those Vampires in your house, within a set time frame."

Clearly, the girl still harbored caution and distrust towards him, which Aske didn't mind.

In fact, according to the main storyline, a world-class War was imminent within these years.

Solo fights aside, even powerful Transcendents couldn't avoid being overwhelmed by numbers.

Hence, establishing a high-level combat team that follows his command was a sufficient reason for Aske to push this forward.

As for the team members, it didn't matter whether they trusted him at first. Once they tasted the benefits, they would naturally be bound by mutual interests.

"Alright." Aske wrote down, "Then within a week."

Revenge in a week? Peggy was slightly excited, but in front of Aske, she forcefully suppressed her excitement, only watching coldly as he signed his name on the Soul Contract.

"Done," Aske handed over the contract. "Have a look."

Peggy reviewed the contract again, confirming in her mind the key terms of the contract: Aske was to teach her the use of Extraordinary Power in exchange for her service, with a five-year term. The revenge was just an extra gift.

For her, this was not an unacceptable arrangement. If she could have had Extraordinary Power that very night, wouldn't her parents have been spared from the Vampires that broke into their home?

Moreover, she was now part of the Blood Clan; without the power to defend herself, she might one day be discovered and executed by the Church.

With these thoughts, Peggy signed her name at the end of the contract, under the space for the second party.

"Good, now we are partners bound by life and death," Aske said with a smile, putting away the contract, feeling an invisible Extraordinary Power connecting them.

"And please remember the part about my revenge, Mr. Aske," Peggy said coldly.

"Don't call me 'Mister'; just my name will do," Aske said, unhooking a Short Sword from the belt around his waist. "This is the weapon prepared for you."

"A weapon?" Peggy took the Short Sword.

"Some of the Blood Clan think that claws and spells are the best weapons," Aske explained. "That's not actually the case. Until you advance to Level 5 in your rank, a fine weapon is still essential. Do you know why you tried to attack me before, and I blocked you every time?"

"Why?" Peggy asked.

"Because the sword is longer than the arm," Aske naturally stated. "I touch you with my sword before you can even reach me."

"If that's the case, why not use a longer weapon?" Peggy reasoned, asking, "Like a Longsword, or a Long Spear."

"If you blindly pursue range, why don't you choose a sniper rifle?" Aske shook his head. "The longer the range of the weapon, the weaker it is in close combat. The saying 'an inch longer, an inch stronger; an inch shorter, an inch riskier' comes from this truth."

"For the Blood Clan with higher Agility, Short Swords and Daggers are the most suitable weapons, because your speed can make up for the lack of distance. Daggers are strong in offense but weak in defense, while Short Swords are relatively balanced."

"You have recently become a member of the Blood Clan and have not yet familiarized yourself with your own Extraordinary Power," Aske continued. "Extraordinary Power must be digested through practical exercise and converted into corresponding Physical Power or Spiritual Power. Anyway, the Blood Clan are nocturnal creatures, not needing sleep, so let's start the first training plan tonight."

"Run with all your might to the cemetery on the other side of the hill, chop a branch from the bushes outside the fence with the Short Sword, then rush back and throw it into the fire pit, keeping the fire going all night, just like that."

"And what about you?" Peggy asked. "Are you going to watch me?"

"Of course not," Aske said. "I am human, I need to sleep."

He took off his dried Cotton Armor and Chain Armor, found a flat spot near the fire, lay down, and fell asleep.

Peggy watched him silently. Then, sword in hand, she headed out the door.

Running under the moonlight was a novel experience for Peggy—she had always been a well-behaved girl at home and never went out after 7 p.m.

Now she was a member of the Blood Clan, adapted to the night surprisingly well, and seemed to have a hidden urge in her heart.

It was a Bloodthirst, a desire to kill, and to hunt.

Reaching the end of the cemetery, dry bushes sprawled outside the fence. Peggy leaped over the fence and struck hard at the nearest bush with her Short Sword.

The shrubs were chopped down by the short sword but then sprang back unharmed.

Peggy silently watched for a while before she discerned the reason: her short sword's blade was not sharp, and the shrubs were elastic; mere chopping could only deform them by pushing them down.

She reached out to grasp a bush, used her right hand to sever the branches at the base with her short sword, then picked up the branches and ran back at high speed.

Upon rushing into the abandoned house, Peggy was shocked to find that the fire had diminished significantly. It was because no one had added wood, and some of the logs inside were burnt out. She hurriedly threw the branches into the fire, turned around, and sprinted to the far end of the cemetery.

After several trips back and forth, Peggy finally understood the design logic behind Aske's training plan: only one branch could be cut each time, and the fire consumed wood quickly, so she had to shorten the time spent running back and forth, and the sprint speed had to be maximized.

Stopping to cut branches was also a waste of time; she could grab the shrub branches while sprinting, place the short sword at the bottom of the branch, and use the momentum to cut it directly, saving even the motion of swinging her arm.

Back in the abandoned house, there was no need to run to the fire to add branches; she could toss branches into it from five or six steps away, saving several more seconds.

After running back and forth over a hundred times, Peggy finally noticed an increase in her physical power, including the explosive power when her legs propelled her during a run, the ability to maintain balance on rough terrain, and the reactive ability to accurately swing her sword at targets while sprinting, among other improvements.

The vampiric traits that were infused into her body from the Initial Embrace, containing vast extraordinary power, were continuously improving and enhancing her physical strength.

She was growing stronger at a visibly rapid pace!

Morning came.

Aske rose from the ground, rubbing his sore shoulders.

Sleeping on the ground was uncomfortable, and it was no wonder people worldwide used pillows. He opened his eyes and looked at the fire pit in the center of the abandoned house.

The fire had dwindled a lot but was not completely extinguished; a few branches could still be seen crackling in the flames. Suddenly, a whooshing sound was heard, and another branch was tossed into the fire; Peggy stood at the entrance of the abandoned house, looking at him expressionlessly.

"You're awake," she said.

"I am," Aske stood up, redonned his armor, and strapped his longsword and handgun.

His mouth felt dry, and he really wanted to brush his teeth.

"The training was effective, right?" Aske said, "We should leave this place now."

"While training," Peggy hesitated, "I constantly felt a bloodthirsty urge to tear apart or chew up some creature, I'm not sure if it's just my imagination."

"It's from the extraordinary trait in Flesh I, which contains a small amount of mutant emotions," Aske waved dismissively, "When being absorbed, it might lead to changes in your own consciousness. But you're only Level 1 now, so the negative impact should be minimal. I guess if you focus a bit, that urge can be suppressed, right?"

"Yes," Peggy said.

"That's good then," Aske walked out of the abandoned building.

The two walked down the hillside and left the cemetery. Aske bought a black robe in a nearby clothing store, replacing Peggy's linen shroud and also concealing her face to prevent familiar people from assuming she had returned from the dead.

Leaving the clothing store, they headed straight for the next shop, which was the blacksmith's they had visited before, located near the school where Aske worked.

"Boss," entering the shop, Aske pointed to Peggy behind him, wrapped in a black robe, and spoke to the shopkeeper who hurried over, "Prepare a suit of Chain Armor for this lady, the kind that's made entirely of steel rings and doesn't restrict natural movement."

"And include a set of fitted leather armor, well-tanned with flexible joints, shoulder plates that distribute weight, and lined with three layers of linen."

"Of course, Master Achilles," the shopkeeper grandly bowed, seeing Aske as a big customer, "However, the full steel ring Chain Armor requires custom work by a blacksmith, and it might take a month to deliver."

"Five days," Aske said, "I'll give you 50 pounds, get the steel rings from a factory across Golden Horn Bay, and you can hire workers from other blacksmith shops to weave the rings. I'll be back for it in five days. Here's a 20-pound deposit in advance."

Quickly calculating his profit of 5-15 pounds, the shopkeeper immediately nodded in agreement, "No problem, Master Achilles. Hastar, damn it Hastar! Get your wife over here quickly to take this distinguished lady's measurements!"

"Nordrik! Go to the factory across from Golden Horn Bay right now, order 15,000 Chain Armor rings, and don't even think about dinner if you can't get it done by 5 p.m.!"

With the shopkeeper's urgent commands, the entire blacksmith shop erupted into chaos. Soon, a worker's wife came out, looking terrified, and took Peggy to the back room for measurements. Aske stood outside the shop, looking at the bustling street. After a moment, Peggy walked out wearing leather armor.

"Because you said earlier you were afraid of being recognized, I asked for a mask," Peggy lifted the hood of her black robe, revealing the mask she wore underneath. It was a simple, black tragic mask, the kind worn by actors in ancient Sirius tragedies.

"Good," Aske nodded, "Next, let's take care of your Revenge."

The two arrived at the district where Aske's ancestral home was located and checked into a hotel, booking a room on the fifth floor. From the room's window, they could clearly see the street in front of the ancestral home.

"Are you planning to use a sniper rifle to kill the Vampire who comes out from this position?" Peggy asked.

"No," Aske said, "This room is for you, to watch your enemies die."

"Oh," Peggy nodded in sudden realization. She understood that her own strength was too weak, so Aske chose to go back alone to kill, leaving her here to watch the outcome.

Leaving Peggy in the room, Aske quickly left the hotel and returned to the Holy Sophia District where he had bought the guns the day before, heading straight into the Great Cathedral.

"I wish to make an accusation," he said to the Bishop at the pulpit.