Chapter 4: Lies and Manipulation

A white envelope sat in Julius' hands as he looked at the dirty streets and the people passing by.

The single sentence written inside the letter held a great weight that seemed to make him feel unease.

Miss Monroe sat by his side, and the orphanage was really wuirry as the artificial sun went down, revealing the stark darkness in the skies that seemed to blind the world.

Of course, the gas lamps were hanging in front of every building, making the city illuminated a bit.

Monroe was feeling extremely tense at this moment because of the fact that Julius was in danger, and he didn't want to talk to her about it.

Which danger?

The letter—it was sent to him from the Warden's Sanctuary. If he didn't show up, then he'd die.

Julius, of course, knew all about that. In fact, he knew a lot more about it than anyone in this world.

The Warden's Sanctuary was able to know when a person awakens, and they immediately want to recruit them.

They had sent him the summons because he'd awakened. When that happened, a door was formed—a personal gateway to God's Garden, the realm of the Otherworld. But a door wasn't just an opportunity.

It was a threat.

If a person failed the trial behind that door, it didn't just close. It opened, allowing monsters from the Otherworld to spill through.

That's why the Sanctuary demanded obedience—and why those who refused to comply were executed without mercy. Their deaths were offerings to seal their unguarded doors and prevent catastrophe.

The ones who faced the most harrowing of challenges were the Avatars who controlled the Wonders. Although their identities remained a mystery, their stories had gone far and wide.

'I can't die,' Julius thought with a sigh, looking up at the dark skies.

The light flickering from the gas lamp poured on his face; his eyes were cold and calculating.

"Miss Monroe."

The elderly woman flinched as she heard a cold voice call her name.

"I think it's time to tell what's going on?" Julius turned to her and then poured out all that had happened so far.

A trial was meant to earn him a Story. Not a story in the literary sense.

No, a Story was something sacred. A gift passed down by forgotten beings—gods, heroes, monsters—etched into the soul through trial and torment. Every Warden's power was tied to a Story they had earned. And each trial was uniquely tailored to its bearer—a living nightmare designed to test the core of who they were.

Julius had one week to prepare. If he failed, he died. Worse, everyone near his door might die with him.

All he was hoping for was that he'd be able to get help to survive this coming week.

After an hour of rest, the bells of the distant church reached his ears, and he immediately stood up from the bed.

He came out of the building to see people on the streets coming out of their houses, gazing up and looking at the radiant sun in the skies.

[You have sacrificed one life point. Life points remaining - 102.]

As he saw the sentence floating in front of him, a loud scream suddenly reached his ears.

He looked back to see a woman who was dressed in rags holding her head and running around frantically. The people around seemed to dodge her and avoid her.

'Another one lost today, huh?' Julius thought.

Just then, a bright red ray of light descended upon the woman. Instantly, her skin began to burn as she was pressed to the ground.

Her screams echoed around the streets, and the people only stared at her with no emotion.

They were used to this in these parts—if anything, there were supposed to be more.

They lost up to five people daily to the Evernight.

After the woman was turned to ashes, Julius walked into the orphanage again. He could see children there visibly scared of what had happened outside.

"Hey kids, how about we go play a game, and whoever wins would eat the most!" he declared, making the kids jump around jubilantly.

They didn't deserve to live like this.

That was why working for life points was so important in this world.

After settling down for the day, Julius decided to write two letters: one to his distant family who abandoned him, and one to his boss to quit his job.

...

Two days later, Julius was sitting in a luxurious mansion with various artworks lining the walls.

He was wearing a simple black shirt with black trousers. His short hat had a white feather on the side, and he sat calmly on the black leather seats.

He was in the house of the nobleman Alvin, who he was blackmailing.

At first, when he found out about the nobleman's movements, he wanted to immediately bring the fucker down.

But then, if he played his cards right, he could gain a lot. It came in handy indeed, as he was able to get an audience with someone close to the Wardens.

Most of the Wardens nowadays had secret identities. Some of them decided to reveal theirs, but there were a lot of them who remained anonymous.

Unless you had a connection with the Sanctuary, it was impossible to get an audience with a Warden.

It would have been easy for him if he wasn't exiled by his family to live in an orphanage.

After what seemed like three minutes, the doors behind Julius opened, and a group of maids came in, carrying trays of food.

Julius frowned as he saw the wide range of foods being brought into the room, and he immediately estimated that it cost more life points than what he had right now.

Following them, Mr. Alvin came into the room, wearing a simple polo and some shorts with a smile on his face.

"Mr. Julius. Sorry for keeping you waiting long. The man would soon be with us," Alvin said, walking over to the couch across from them. He then sat down and began to eat.

'Seems like the decisions I made are all on point.' Julius smirked.

"No need to be bothered. I'm fine, really." He replied, taking off his hat and putting it on the armrest beside him.

Two days ago, Julius didn't want to push his luck. He didn't want the nobleman to feel cornered.

He could have immediately demanded that all children in his custody be released and publicized his face. But if he did that, Alvin would have killed him that very day and torn down his office.

By choosing his words carefully, he was able to gain a favorable position. Of course, he could still betray the man anytime. But for now, he needed a lot of things.

The most important of them... of course, was to survive.

The doors slowly creaked open as a man wearing a brown cloak walked into the room. His round glasses hung on his nose bridge, and his head was covered with a brown hat, matching the coat.

The man walked towards the table, his cane making a clacking sound as he neared the table.

"Mister Lin! It's so great to see you again." Alvin immediately stood up, giving the man a handshake.

"Likewise, I couldn't decline the invite of one of my highest sponsors," Lin said, his dark eyes locking with Julius' own.

Alvin immediately noticed and then cleared his throat.

"This is my friend here, Julius. He's actually the reason I called you out here today. Apparently, he needed an audience with a Warden or someone close to them," Alvin explained, and Lin walked over to Julius' side.

"My name is Lin, Mister Julius. I'm a historian, researcher, and explorer," the man introduced himself, shaking Julius' hand, then taking a seat across the long couch Julius sat on.

"Your hand is very cold," the historian said, and Julius withdrew his hand as the man said that.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm not going to waste any time here today." Julius decided to go straight to the point.

"Have you heard about the Stone of Rebirth?" Julius asked, causing Alvin to frown.

The historian smiled, nodding his head.

"Yes, there has only been one, and it's often dropped from fights with Archdemon-ranked monsters. Only two have ever been discovered, and it's able to heal any form of injury, mundane or unnatural."

"Very true." Julius nodded.

Historian Lin seemed to know his shit very well.

"What if I told you that I knew the location of one?" Julius said with a smile. This was where it was going to get tricky.

The historian stared at him for a few seconds, highly doubting his words.

It was understandable. After all, Julius had no notable background and was an ant in the aristocratic circle.

Nevertheless, he was interested.

"Go on."

"It's in the heart of the Valley of Echoes, where the great Archdemon-ranked monster was slain by the second Avatar ten years ago."

Hearing what Julius said, the historian and Alvin fell into a moment of thought, and the historian looked at Julius with a raised brow.

"And why exactly are you telling this to me?"

Julius smirked. He expected that question.

"You're a man who has made many discoveries and has documented many things over the past decade. If you find it, you'll be the one to have found the third Stone of Rebirth since the Era of Calamities." Julius said, folding his arms as he leaned back.

"And what exactly do you aim to get from this?" Alvin suddenly asked, making the historian look at him.

"Well, the price of history is worth more than a few thousand life points ain't it. I also want to accompany the team that would go on the expedition," Julius said, still wearing his calm smile.

"Wow, for a commoner, it's quite surprising that you have this amount of knowledge on you. How do you know all this?" the historian asked, and Julius shook his head.

"I've had the luck to meet many important people as I work as a reporter. I encountered a Sage on one of my expeditions. And I know how to traverse the valley safely," Julius said to them.

The expressions of shock both men had on their faces as they heard what he said was comical.

It was expected. Sages were the highest ranking of Wardens, often called Seraphim's Chosen or messengers of the Seraphim.

Even Lin hadn't met one in his entire lifetime.

That line alone made his words highly believable. And he was glad, as he had sorted out his biggest problem so far.