Your Majesty's money, why don't you engrave my name on it?

These creatures had two arms for attacking and grasping, which were deadly enough in the first attack, but difficult to retract. When the mercenary's armored body slammed into the monster, the slight resistance was so powerless.

"He's actually a 'soft bone'."

Reslaufer reached out and grabbed the shoulder of the half-dead monster below. The cartilage structure that could easily pass through various gaps was crushed in a moment. Before Reslaufer drew his sword to kill it, the monster had already fainted.

Before falling into coma, the tragic howls that resounded throughout the underground structure of the manor made even Angelita and Buddy feel horrified, and the monster's fellow monsters were even more like hearing their own wail. Those chokeholds that had not yet been involved in the battle scrambled back into the cracks in the surrounding walls, leaving only a few of their fellow monsters who could not escape to continue fighting.

Although they often communicated with each other using their strange howls, each strangler was actually a solitary hunter, and even when they gathered together, they lacked any sense of unity. Realizing they had been abandoned, those monsters that had been unable to escape in time immediately unleashed their ferocity, and their attacks became even more ferocious.

Angelita screamed, and a flash of sword appeared in front of her eyes. The sword in Buddy's hand was knocked away in an instant, but it was this obstruction by the half-elf that prevented the stranglehold monster's sneak attack from succeeding.

"Attack! Attack!" Leslaufer's voice sounded repeatedly behind Angelita. Finally, a blush appeared on the princess's face, which was already extremely pale!

"Shut up, Rathlover! I'm already doing it!"

The other tentacle of the chokehold in front of her was attacking again. Angrita raised the war hammer in her hand and let the starfish-shaped tentacle that popped up in front of her grab the owlbear's head. At this moment, Angrita no longer hesitated. She quickly pulled out the dagger that came with it, and imitated Leslaufer's just move. Instead of retreating, she advanced and sent the sharp blade straight into the chokehold's chest!

The strange sticky liquid splashed on Angelita's face. It was a completely different experience, different from the wolf blood in the wilderness that night. It was... blood that flowed because of her.

Angelita gasped heavily. The stench of the strangler's blood was pungent, but she remained oblivious, letting the stench linger in the air and erode her nasal cavity. The monster's struggles gradually weakened, eventually becoming mere spasms and twitches, until even this level of reaction ceased to exist.

A life, a life that was just full of life, turned into a smelly leather bag filled with messy cartilage under Angelita's eyes.

But what now? What should she do now?

"You did it, girl!" Buddy's surprised celebration brought Angelita back to reality from her trance. "Oh my god, that was neat! You will definitely become an excellent soldier like your uncle!"

"Those who can't even hold a sword shouldn't judge others," said Raslaufer, picking up the two swords that the half-elf had dropped into the passage twice before and handing them to their owners. "Stay still, we have something to ask you."

Go ahead, the mercenary ignored the guy and walked straight behind Angelita.

"How did it feel the first time?" He looked down at the girl kneeling on the corpse of a choker monster and asked, "Excited? Disgusted? No feeling at all?"

"How should I... react?" Angelita felt as if the voice didn't even come from her. "It's dead, isn't it?"

"It's as real as if you were alive."

"I've read stories that say people feel nauseous and vomit after their first operation, but I... didn't." She looked up at Reslaufer with a dazed and confused look. "Is that correct? What was it like the first time you took another life?"

"Like you said, I vomited all over the place, but I'm sure that has nothing to do with the 'deprivation of life' you mentioned," Leslaufer said slowly. "It was just fear. That man almost killed me, really just by a little bit. My advantage was so small that it could be ignored, but in the end he died and I lived."

"Weakness, exhaustion, and fear—in short, it had nothing to do with the killing itself. I was on the brink of life and death, so I didn't have the time to think about it like you do."

"But I'm not," Angelita's voice gradually became quieter, almost inaudible to herself. "But I'm not. I'm not going to die, am I? I'm not even close to dying."

"Though these monsters called chokeholds are terrifying, they don't have the power to kill instantly. Even if I'm captured by their tentacles, I won't die because you're here to save me."

"But I killed it..." Angelita was still trying to find the feelings deep in her heart, but that emotion was like a mirage, disappearing without a trace in the blink of an eye, and could never be found again.

Leslough looked at the girl. She didn't seem to be mourning the passing of life, nor was she repenting for her sins. She was purposefully searching for some feeling, but Leslough could do nothing to help her.

"If you can't find them, forget it. What's the point in forcing it?" The mercenary reached out and forcibly pulled her up. "After all, these are just a few monsters, not even as worthy of pity as the bugs you crushed under your boots. What are you looking for in them?"

Angelita was silent for a moment, then slowly smiled: "Yes, Uncle Leslaufer, I was overthinking it."

"They're just monsters, that's all."

"Actually, if you want, you can think of them as mind flayers. They don't have souls at all, just empty shells." Buddy Antichi had no idea what Angelita, who had just launched the heroic attack, was thinking, so he could only offer his best explanation. "Generally speaking, they're all classified as aberrations, so they should be about the same... roughly."

"Thank you for your explanation, Mr. Antichi," Angrita, who had just recovered from her inexplicable state, glanced coldly at the half-elf, "But that's my personal problem. Now, I think there are more important things that need your explanation, right?"

The girl's boots stepped on the tentacles of the chokehold's corpse below, pulling the warhammer out from its entanglement. With the swing of her arms, it looked like it would fall from Buddy Antich's head at any time!

Chapter 30 Confused Employer

"Spare your life!"

The man, who inherited half the agility of an elf, moved quickly. He almost immediately squatted on the ground while shouting, with his hands raised above his head, but it looked more like he was trying to prevent the war hammer from actually falling rather than wanting to surrender.

"I said, I said everything!"

"Then tell me everything you know." Angelita winked at Leslough triumphantly.

"I say, I say...what are you talking about?" "Are you still playing dumb? Where do these monsters come from?"

Facing the suddenly ferocious Angarita, how could Buddy dare to say he didn't know? But he did have a vague understanding of the whole story, so the two of them could only stretch their patience as much as possible and piece together the truth from his fragmented story.

Buddy had indeed concealed a number of facts, such as the fact that his grandmother's lineage, the Antichi nobles, was said to have produced a powerful magician, whose precious research manuscripts were preserved right up to his grandmother's generation. Buddy wondered if his mother knew about this, as the poor woman who died shortly after giving birth to him clearly couldn't tell her child any of this.

When his grandmother was alive, she never told Buddy these things, but after her death, the half-elf who was sorting out her belongings accidentally discovered this matter, and also learned that after his mother's death, the manuscript and related items were stored in the cellar of the winery by his disheartened grandmother. This led to his first action.

It’s not that Buddy couldn’t tell whether there was anyone inside the building. He never went in from the beginning, but went straight into the cellar!

"You've screwed us over!" Angelita gritted her teeth. "Why would you say such nonsense?!"

"Also, you haven't explained how these monsters appeared!"

"I really don't understand this. I think his magician's arcane manuscript will attract all kinds of monsters," Buddy said uncertainly. "I really realized I was wrong! When I go back, I'm willing to add another ten, no, twenty gold coins as compensation!"

"Mere compensation is meaningless," Leslaufer said, lifting the man up from the ground with one hand. "Since we've accepted your commission, we need to get to the bottom of it and see if it's really as you said."

"But before that—niece, come here and take a look at this guy."

The mercenary approached a corpse. Amidst the choker's flesh, a human in a black cloak stood out. Angelita quickly approached, avoiding the vacant, unclosed gaze, and leaned over to search the body. Within moments, she had grasped a piece of metal used for identification.

"It's coming for me," she frowned and nodded slightly at Leslough. "This is their unique token of identity."

"He probably wanted to take advantage of the chaos to deal with me, and then forcibly take you away," Leslaufer curled his lips in disdain. "Unfortunately, he underestimated the chaos itself."

I think it's more likely that I underestimated you, Angelita thought silently.

The tracker sent by the royal family was acting alone. Regardless of whether he left a mark for those who followed, their pursuit would inevitably be interrupted for a while, so this was not a big deal. Instead, it was the employer, who was even more confused than them, who was a problem. But at this point, the two of them had no choice but to take Buddy with them and continue their journey inside.

Low howls could be heard faintly from deep within the stone wall, but the surviving chokeholds no longer dared to attack. Leslauf and his two companions were very safe along the way, but this safety did not apply to everyone.

A corpse leaning against the wall, almost all its flesh and blood cut off, appeared in the light of the torch. A few steps ahead was another one, and a third, a fourth... These victims were undoubtedly the prey, food and trap bait of the chokehold. Their necks were twisted and broken due to violent pulling and constriction.

The exact time of their death is unknown, but they all died before Buddy's grandmother. The winery, abandoned for many years, did not escape the occupation of bandits, but bandits always meet bandits.

"There really are robbers..." Buddy followed behind in surprise, his body trembling slightly, "But they are all dead, they died a long time ago..."

"Maybe you didn't lie to us completely. You really heard their voices at that time, but they were just their ghosts!" Angelita made a face and said sarcastically.

"Don't say such dangerous things!" Leslough hit the little girl on the back of the head. "If there really is a ghost, we can only turn around and run away."

He is not afraid of physical monsters, even the demon Leslaufer, but not spirits. His weapons are just ordinary iron lumps. The only half-magic item on Angelita's body is the leather armor, so she is really unable to deal with them.

Angelita also knew that she had said the wrong thing, so she quickly stuck out her tongue to admit her mistake and followed Leslaufer obediently.

The cellar under the winery was very large, but most of the bodies were in the passage outside. When Buddy took out the key and opened the door of the storage room, all he could see were empty wine bottles lying around - the occupiers of the manor had destroyed all the wine stored here.

"Looking at the number, I'm afraid the stranglers smelled of wine when they ate it." Leslaufer held up a torch, carefully avoiding any parts that might be ignited, and observed the environment inside. "Buddy, the main part of the manor should be up here, right?"

"Yes, but you have to go out from the other side of the passage. There is a staircase there," the half-elf said hurriedly. "Do you want to go up and take a look?"

"I don't think it's necessary. Aren't you looking for that saved manuscript? Then let's get started. Where is it?"

Buddy immediately ran in a certain direction. From the clues he'd found at home, he knew the manuscript was probably stored in a secret compartment in a corner, along with other spellcasting materials. But as he struggled to pry open the loose bricks with the crossguard of his sword, the half-elf let out a desperate wail.

No more! Nothing! The secret compartment at the back was completely empty. Not even a scrap of paper remained, let alone a manuscript!

This couldn't have been done by those bandits! They'd left bottles scattered everywhere, so how could they have taken the contents of the secret compartment and then put the bricks back in their place? It was as if they'd already been using this place as their lair while they were still alive!

Chapter 31 Grandma

"Could it be the Choker Monster who did it?"

Angelita came closer and immediately understood the reason for the half-elf's wailing: "Didn't you say that they and the mind flayers are both some kind of 'weird'? I heard that the mind flayers..."

"No, completely different," Buddy interrupted Angelita before she could finish. "After all, classification is just a method used by scholars to facilitate research and understanding. They are actually two completely different organisms."

"Chokemons are even less intelligent than many animals. Even if they like the alcohol here, they're unlikely to be interested in something they can neither eat nor drink."

"So, you're more inclined to believe someone else took it?" asked Raslaufer, leaning on his greatsword.

"It's not a tendency, it's a certainty!" Buddy pulled his hair frantically, "But how is this possible? My father is an elf, he's unlikely to be interested in human magic. My mother, grandparents, and even great-grandparents are all dead! Who would take it away before me?"

He moved as fast as he could!

"It seems we have to go up there," the half-elf stood up and looked at Leslaufer and Angrita with pleading eyes. "I'm very sorry, but this commission is not over yet. I at least need to know where it went! This is very important!"

"It costs extra money!" Angelita said first, imitating Leslaufer's voice.

"Ten gold coins!" Buddy gritted his teeth and said quickly.

"Don't make a fuss, little girl," said Leslough, who rarely addressed Angelita by her name in front of others. "Mr. Buddy, there's no need to go to all that trouble. You've already added the extra charge once, so there's no point in adding more. Let's just go up."

Mercenaries also have some unwritten rules. Even if they are dissatisfied with the salary offered by their employer, mercenaries will usually only ask for a price increase once. If they feel it is not enough, they will either part ways or take it themselves.

Leslaufer hadn't come here for the half-elf's money in the first place; the price increase was enough.

Buddy glanced at Reslaufer gratefully, but the latter turned around and walked towards the opposite passage. After passing through two doors and a flight of stairs, the three of them appeared inside the main building of the manor, and what came into view was its hall.

"If you really come in and take a look, you won't dare to go down."

Angelita raised her foot and hit Buddy's calf hard. The latter sniffed and didn't dare to talk back.

The miserable state of the living room could not be concealed by the fact that it had been abandoned for many years. Many of the furniture showed signs of violent disassembly: several chairs could not fit together their four legs, the cabinets on the wall were missing two corners, and even the carpet, which had become so gray that its color could not be seen, had been torn into strips by some sharp claws.

"But anyway, it's better than down there. At least there aren't so many corpses," Angelita said as she used her warhammer to smash the door locks of the surrounding rooms one by one. "Hey Buddy, come and see if there's your hand in here—"

In the moment the girl paused, Leslaufer rushed in front of her with his sword raised.

A hunched black shadow pounced on the giant sword as swiftly as an ocelot. The weight forced Leslaufer to step back several steps. Angrita took advantage of this opportunity to roll to the side and stood next to the half-elf.

But then, she heard Buddy Antich utter a word that made her unable to believe her ears.

"grandmother?!"

Even someone as experienced as Leslaufer couldn't help but tremble at this moment, but fortunately, the attacking black shadow also stopped and did not take this opportunity to continue attacking.

The few of them finally saw the black shadow clearly.

She was an old woman, very, very old, with a spine almost bent into a ring. She was wearing a tattered black dress. Her eyes were so sunken that they were almost invisible, with only two pitch-black eye sockets. No one knew whether clarity or madness was shining in them.

"Buddy," a hoarse voice rang out from the old man's throat, "my..."

"It's me! It's your good grandson, Buddy!" The half-elf pushed away Angarita who was trying to stop him and rushed towards the old woman. "Grandma! Why are you here? I was watching your coffin being buried! I-"

Buddy's eyes suddenly blurred, and as Leslaufer kicked him on the waist, the scene in the half-elf's eyes began to spin.

"She's not your grandmother, you idiot! She's a monster!" Angrily, Angelita dragged him aside. "Didn't you see her buried with your own eyes? How could it be her?!"

A powerful spellcaster could certainly resurrect the dead, but that couldn't change the length of life! Those who had died of old age couldn't be brought back to life by any decent means!

"But she really--" Buddy relied on his physique to push Angelita aside again and tried to explain, but when he saw that his grandmother, who was over eighty years old, was fighting with an experienced warrior in his prime and there was no winner, he could not say the rest of the words.

"What the hell is going on?!"

"Undead creature!" Leslaufer gritted his teeth. "I broke at least half of her ribs, but her skin is as hard as steel!"

"Buddy..." The "grandmother" whose appearance became more and more terrifying as the injuries on her body accumulated made her voice heard. But this time, her good grandson could not believe that this was still his relative.

"Lie down!"

The monster in the skin of "grandmother" was still not as good as the double-paid mercenary who was used to seeing life and death. When he exposed her flaw, Leslauf chopped off her head with a sword. The shriveled ball rolled all the way to Buddy's feet, and the black eye sockets and the toothless mouth looked at her grandson.

"Grandma! Grandma!" The old woman's body had already fallen down. Buddy quickly bent down and picked up his relative's head. He would never make a mistake. This was indeed his grandmother!

But...but what on earth is going on?

"Buddy..." The head without a body could still make a weak sound, "Don't...the notebook...is fake..."

"No, grandma, I don't want that thing!" Buddy's tears hit the head, but it couldn't bring the person in his arms back to life like the fairy tales he heard from his grandma. "What's wrong with you? What's wrong with you!"

"Bedroom..." The head, seemingly regaining some consciousness, murmured again, "Good boy... Grandson, hold me close and take a look..."

Angelita wanted to stop him, but it was too late. As Buddy held up his head, a thick black mist that was so thick that it could not be dissolved gushed out of the "grandmother's" mouth, completely covering the half-elf's body.

After all, it is just an undead creature, no longer a grandmother. Its existence is a disaster, regardless of whether it wants it or not.

Chapter 32 Burned

"Buddy! No!"

Leslaufer watched quietly. Although Angelita tried to go forward to rescue the half-elf, she did not dare to reach into the black fog. When the head in Buddy's hand turned into a handful of ashes, the half-elf fell straight back on the ground, his face ashen and motionless.

"It's good to respect the fate of others," said Leslaufer, who had just come forward. "No one is responsible for this. You've tried it, more than once."

"But he's still dead?!" Angelita rushed forward, wanting to see if she could save Buddy, but it was too late. "Are you just going to just watch? Come and save him!"

"It's too late. The undead creature's final transformation completely destroyed him." Leslaufer stepped forward. Although he could do a little more than Angelita, it was still far from enough. "But he may die peacefully. After all, he can see his grandmother again..."