I had been training in the underground cellar for the last few days, despite my cultivation allowing me to get a couple days without food I was finally feeling the dread of going hungry – my stomach let out a depression grumble every few minutes and had become a distraction from my training.

Regardless I had still managed to continue training Shadow despite still being at the stuck at the second level, despite my relentless training I had shown no signs of breaking through leaving me depressed but not completely without hope as I continued to pray for the rebellion I had predicted to happen, I would finally be able to grab some food.

The thought of real food after so long having lived on undercooked meat and foods bordering inedible due to my lacking ability in the realm of cooking caused me to enter a subconscious daydream about the joys of food… The taste, the sight and the eye-watering aroma of a divine delicacy.

I started to drool subconsciously at the thought of the delicacies I had tasted when I'd been wasting my life away partying whenever and wherever I could.

"I can't wait…" I mumbled under my breath before wiping the drool that had slowly slid down the corner of my chin before dripping onto the cold stone floor.

'I know the dark isn't an issue but even I'm beginning to feel the effects of the cold at this rate,' I thought to myself as I sat on the wooden stool staring at the piercing light that had barely managed to shine through the gap in the cellar doors.

The doors obviously wouldn't keep any heat inside, and the heat would naturally rise and escape through the gap in the cellar door – it was simply impossible for me to feel even the slightest warmth with my current living conditions.

"Quickly, open the cellar door – we have to make this idiot talk or the Young Masters plan might not succeed." A voice came from outside the cellar quietly, it had been whispered but had been heard clear as day with my heightened senses.

"The lock's gone!" Another voice exclaimed, it was more feminine than the first voice and obviously belonged to a woman – "So? If there's anyone down there we'll just kill them." 

Even from the other side of the door I could feel the killing intent he projected and couldn't help but be surprised, I could tell from their Auras that they weren't weak but the killing intent that he had had earlier was only slightly weaker than my own; however, be it either one of us we were still far away from the level of the old man, even now I felt a chill down my spine thinking of it.

In my thoughts, I had completely forgotten about the two that were outside the cellar, only reminded by the doors suddenly flinging wide open and making a whining sound as the hinges moaned like a man in pain.

I could either confront them directly or hide and see what they were doing first, making up my mind in that second I used Shadow and appeared almost instantly next to the corner of the room where a slight shadow still shrouded because it was next to the cellar doors the light couldn't shine there.

Luckily the room was small and I had been standing near the corner already so I had quickly appeared in the corner and hid in the Shadow Realm, they slowly descended down the steps – a heavy thud followed each step.

It sounded like they were dragging something down the stairs and it was hitting every step individually, "Close the doors." The man ordered, he was the first to appear – dragging a large bag behind him.

"Thud." The cellar doors closed loudly as I heard another set of feet descend down the wooden stairs, which were already creaking from the excessive weight they had experienced just moments earlier.

"Pppssst" The sound of a flame burning could be heard from the woman's direction, she descended holding a candle which lit the surroundings in a dim hue of light – luckily the room was large enough that the light didn't reach the corner I was hiding in.

I could now clearly see both figures, they were shrouded in black cloaks as the man dragged the bag I was now sure had a living human in towards the wooden bed, the women simply looked around the room before letting her eyes land on the wooden table.

"Where did these come from?" She said, staring at the two manuals I had forgotten to move – 'Shit.' I thought I had been too caught up in my own thoughts that I had forgotten to move the most important things, I could only sigh at my own stupidity and idiocy.

"Ignore them for now, whoever was stupid enough to leave them here will soon come back – we'll be here for a while regardless; however, you have to kill them quickly, we don't have time to deal with these trivial matters. The Young Master said we have to act and finish today." The man said back, however, his eyes clearly were looking at the manuals in interest, I had no doubt he'd take them if he had the chance…

Of course he wouldn't.

"I'll put him on the bed and you tie the ropes around his arms and legs, I'll get the information out of him as fast as possible and we'll regroup with Squad Leader at the castle gates before night falls." He said before I knew it he had already placed a boy on the shambles of a wooden bed which creaked slightly under the weight.

The woman instantly got to work tying his arms and legs to the bed, she was finished in a mere minute before returning to the side of the man who was ready to wake the young boy – the goodness in my heart compelled me to save him before they acted but this information could be valuable in the future, I had no ties to the boy so naturally I had no obligation to help him. 

I looked on coldly as the boy began to stir from his unconscious state. "W-where am I?" He stuttered as he looked around the dark room, fear in his eyes as he stared at the two cloaked figures.

"Where is it?" The man asked coldly, his killing intent already focused on the boy – it would be simple to slit his throat and kill the woman in an instant but I held myself back despite my heart telling me to save him.

"Where's what?" Confusion flashed in his eyes as he looked at his two captors, his body was trembling making the wooden bed tremble with him.

"The escape route, the one you discovered a year ago that led into the Royal Chambers." 

The boy obviously knew what the man was referring to because his breathing sped up slightly and in the almost silent room I could hear his heart beating louder than it had before, "I.. I don't know what you're talking about!" He said resolutely as he stared into the man's eyes.

"Think it through Kid, you can either tell us and we'll leave you alone or you'll be put in so much pain you wished you were dead." The woman spoke venomously as she threatened the kid.

"I don't know!" He said again, faking his confusion but the fear in his eyes was real and unmistakable.

"So be it." The man said and approached, I knew what was about to happen too but this information was too valuable – I couldn't let the life of one boy get in my way, even if I saved him the look in his eyes told me no matter what I said he'd never tell me. 

Even if he did I wouldn't be able to trust the words from his mouth fully or else I could walk right to my death willingly.

"Don't! Don't!" My attention turned back to the boy who was still strapped tightly to the bed, the woman had in an instant cut off the big toes on both his feet and dangled them in front of him with a cruel smile on her face.

"AGHHH!" He screamed in agony, the pain was too much to bear for a young child such as himself –but still, he didn't talk, he continued to stare daggers at the pair but there was still fear in his eyes. It was obvious that he wouldn't be able to last much longer under the pain and would tell them.

He was just a child after all I thought… But the results surprised me immensely – even after all the toes on his feet were chopped off, his feet severed from his legs and there were numerous incisions on his face that made blood drip down wildly. One of his ears had been chopped off and the other was dangling by a piece of flesh.

It had only been ten minutes since they had begun but the woman was vicious in her methods, the boy was trembling in pain as he finally gave in to their demands. 

"A cave two miles west of the capital, the escape route comes out there… please…kill me…" He said weakly as he looked at the two, they simply looked at him with indifference before the man walked to pick up my two manuals. Still, I didn't move from my spot – I wanted to see what they would do next.

"Kill me…" The boy said again, his voice much weaker than the first time he was in immense pain – but this time my heart didn't stir at his pain. Over the last ten minutes, I had forced myself to be indifferent too many times that I had truly become indifferent.

"Let's go." The man said before going to walk to the stairs. "Kill… me…" 

"Shut up." The woman spat on him before extinguishing her candle and walking to the stairs with the man – in an instant I was behind her and had reappeared, slitting her throat before using Shadow and doing the same with the man, both were dead within seconds. The expression on their face the same indifference they had looked at the boy with merely seconds ago.

I bent down and picked up the two manuals the man had taken from the table before throwing them on to the table again, my attention turned to the boy once more.

"Good…" He said weakly as he looked at me – obviously delighting in their death despite his immense pain, "Kill me." He requested.

I could only look at him coldly as I drew my dagger and slit his through before stabbing his heart. 

A single tear formed in the corner of my eye before running down my cheek – it had been the first time I had killed an innocent child since coming to this world – but the last tens of minutes had shown me how truly ruthless this world could be.

All I can do is steel my heart and shroud myself in a layer of ice, this had been the first time I had killed a child – despite it being at his own request. An innocent child too… But I had no doubt in my mind that this would not be my last...

I wiped the small icy tear that had finally made its way to my cheek and prepared to leave the cellar…

Today was the day…The daggers on my waist trembled with excitement as I thought of the slaughter that was about to ensue...