Day of Imprisonment

This place exudes a special aura everywhere. Even in the most unassuming spots, one might discover meticulously crafted statues and patterns. Some areas appear relatively neat, while others are chaotic and disorganized.

It depends on the specific area.

Judging from the style, materials, and scale of the buildings, it's clear that this place is divided into wealthy and commoner districts.

Naturally, those closest to the center of the royal city are the rich and powerful.

Roshi even caught sight of the royal palace.

However, it was heavily guarded by a large contingent of soldiers, preventing anyone from approaching.

Judging by the weapons and equipment, this place is still in the age of cold weapons, but there's also a foundation of mechanical science, as Roshi actually discovered a clock shop.

Based on these observations alone, it's impossible to determine which 'fairy tale' serves as the backdrop for this world.

The identification provided by the flower shop owner, Elena, came in handy.

Along the way, they were stopped by patrolling guards twice to check their identities. On one occasion, they even encountered a guard captain.

The captain was even more robust than Mad Lion. His armor alone probably weighed fifty or sixty pounds, and with the addition of a spiked war hammer, his equipment weighed over eighty or ninety pounds.

His eyes were as sharp as an eagle's. Mad Lion secretly admitted that, in a fight, he might not be able to defeat him, even if he risked his life.

“Big brother, it looks like there's a small square over there.” Mad Lion pointed ahead. Roshi had already noticed it. There was indeed a small square, no more than twenty meters deep, surrounded by houses, with a cobblestone pavement.

Horses were frequently seen here.

As a result, there was a considerable amount of horse manure along the way. Interestingly, some seemingly impoverished women and their children were collecting it.

They were probably planning to dry it and use it as fuel for their homes.

At this moment, many people were gathered in the small square, seemingly for some event. This was clearly a way to quickly learn about this unfamiliar environment.

Roshi and Mad Lion squeezed through the crowd. Relying on Mad Lion's height, which was noticeably taller than everyone else, they easily secured a good position.

More people continued to gather.

Some carried vegetable baskets, while others led horses, though the horses couldn't get through and had to stay on the periphery.

These were fully capable of combat.

On the wooden platform, there were several nooses.

This was a deluxe version of a standard gallows, capable of executing five death row inmates at once.

However, at the moment, there were only two people tied up on the platform. They appeared to be incapable of resisting. Not only were their faces bruised and swollen, but the blood on their faces and bodies hadn't been cleaned off.

Moreover, they didn't seem to be locals.

They were other Memory Retrievers.

The surrounding crowd had come to 'watch the spectacle.' Soon, someone who appeared to be an official announced the two men's crimes.

Espionage, assaulting guards, and murder.

The charges were severe. Soon, the two men were fitted with black hoods, and then someone specifically placed the nooses around their necks.

The wooden planks they were standing on were movable, connected to levers on the side by hemp ropes. When pulled, the planks would open like doors, causing the men to fall. Their weight and inertia would cause the nooses around their necks to snap their necks.

Even if they were lucky enough not to die instantly, they would be strangled to death by continuous suffocation.

As the levers were pulled, the fall of the two men caused exclamations from the surrounding crowd. Then, the ropes instantly tightened, accompanied by various bursts of laughter. Some people were cursing, while others were making the sign of the cross to express compassion and pity. Most people were simply chatting with those around them.

They were betting on whether the two men had already lost control of their bowels.

“Let's go, there's nothing to see here!”

“Yeah, I don't know when it started, but there seem to be more and more strange people in the city. The guard captain said they're spies from the outside. So many have been hanged already, but these people don't seem to be afraid of death.”

“I don't think so, they're probably just terrified!”

“Chris, people can't stay terrified forever. They're not drunkards, and even if they were, they'd sober up eventually.”

“It used to be more interesting. Those criminals would cry and beg for mercy, displaying all sorts of amusing ugliness. That's what we came to see. But these guys are boring. They don't make a sound when they die, aren't they afraid?”

“Brother, are we playing cards tonight?”

“Yeah, but will that old tiger of yours at home agree?”

“Ha, I found a chance to feed her well today, and I told her I was going to work tonight. I lied and said I found a night job.”

“If you lose and can't bring back the money, she'll eat you alive.”

“No, if I lose, I'll just say I ran into robbers on the way home. Anyway, there are always some suspicious people in the city these days…”

“Damn it, who stepped on my foot? These are my new boots.”

“There's no good show to watch, let's go home, Kelly.”

“I wonder if that slut Cinderella has cleaned the house.”

"Polo? Hey, I'm here. Let's go for a drink later, my treat!"

Clearly, regardless of the place, it's always chaotic when a large crowd disperses.

Fortunately, there are guards here, so although it's messy, there haven't been any accidents. The crowd leaves the small square from several directions and then disperses.

Luo Xi was walking in one direction when the Mad Lion, who was following behind, stepped forward and whispered, "Big Brother, didn't you say you wanted to check out the clock tower? This direction is wrong."

"The plan has changed," Luo Xi said without further explanation to the Mad Lion.

The reason he changed his plan was that he heard a name.

The Mad Lion didn't ask any more questions and steadily followed behind.

Luo Xi didn't let the Mad Lion walk with him because the guy was too strong, making him very conspicuous no matter where he went.

Acting alone was fine, but if the two of them walked together, they would inevitably be targeted by the guards. Separating would make them less noticeable.

Ahead were three women dressed in relatively luxurious clothes.

Here, the rich and the poor could be clearly distinguished by their clothing.

Especially the women from wealthy families.

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Clean and beautiful dresses, delicate calfskin boots, fluffy and beautiful hair, and fair and callus-free hands...

The three women in front, a middle-aged noblewoman and two younger ones, were clearly from a well-off family. They walked onto the wide road ahead and directly boarded a carriage parked by the roadside.

Although the carriage was not large and slightly dilapidated, it was still a carriage.

Here, it was a symbol of status and position, something that the poor and peasants could never afford in their lifetime.

At this moment, Luo Xi took out a card, activated it silently, and then turned and walked to the side intersection.

Because several sharp-eyed guards were coming from the front.

Following the rich family's carriage would make anyone with a little sense suspect your intentions. Moreover, the carriage was faster, so to keep up, you'd have to run, which would almost tell everyone that you were tailing them.

Using a [Tracking] card could perfectly avoid these small problems.

Next, Luo Xi continued to stroll around.

He was looking for the mark left by Lin Qiqi in the city.

However, besides seeing one at the dock, Luo Xi didn't find any more clues.

This was not a good thing.

At the same time, they had to avoid the patrolling guards in the city as much as possible. It wasn't until dusk that Luo Xi and the Mad Lion, having searched without success, followed the [Tracking] card to the outside of a building located in the wealthy district.

A two-story building, with the carriage in the back alley and stables nearby for the horses.

At this time, the people in the house were enjoying dinner. Luo Xi sneaked over and looked through the window, seeing a family of three: the noblewoman and her two daughters they had encountered on the street that day. They were laughing, seemingly talking about something interesting.

Luo Xi went around to the back of the house and asked the Mad Lion to keep an eye on the alley entrance. He took out a card called [Nimble] and activated it, then jumped in through a window opened from the side.

For Luo Xi, this didn't even count as a difficult move.

Not to mention he now had a card buff.

[Nimble] allows you to control your body more harmoniously. In addition, with the blessing of Nimbleness, the sound of your footsteps is almost inaudible - you look like a cat!

The house smelled of food, and there was a room in the back kitchen. Luo Xi noticed someone was there.

There was the sound of washing clothes.

Slowing down, Luo Xi peeked in the back and saw a young girl in patched clothes washing clothes.

Very skilled.

Luo Xi already knew which fairy tale scene this was based on.

After staring at the very beautiful girl for a long time, Luo Xi narrowed his eyes and slowly retreated a few steps.

He didn't disturb the girl who was washing clothes, but instead found the stairs to the upper floor and quietly went up.

Now the mother and her two daughters were enjoying delicious food in the front, while the beautiful girl, like a servant, was washing clothes in the back. According to Luo Xi's understanding of that fairy tale, there should be no one else in this house.

He went up to the second floor and then found the small ladder leading to the attic.

Then, Luo Xi muttered to himself as he climbed the stairs: "...From a young age, Cinderella lived a hard life. Her mother died early, and her father remarried and passed away soon after. Cinderella's stepmother and stepsisters were very cruel to her, often making her do hard labor. She had to sweep ashes and wash clothes every day and was forced to live in a small room in the attic. Although life was hard, Cinderella always maintained a kind and optimistic attitude."

"This is the background fairy tale in this scene, 'Cinderella.' Heh heh, to be honest, I'm quite satisfied with this story."

Luo Xi muttered, revealing a meaningful smile.

As if he had glimpsed some very interesting secret.

When he entered the narrow and cramped little room in the attic, according to his original plan, he was going to rummage through this cold and simple little room in the attic to see what he could find, but the moment he entered the door, he had another discovery.

There was someone in this little room in the attic.

Although he couldn't see the other person's figure, Luo Xi just knew there was someone hiding here.

His gaze looked towards the dark corner over there.

The next moment, a figure gradually emerged from the originally empty corner.

The other person was squatting, staring at Luo Xi and whispering, with a look of surprise and impatience, "Which number are you? You're early, aren't you?"