"Did you hear that?" Evelyn asked after Strax and Samira had left her ''House''. She still couldn''t quite believe what he had mentioned, even though she had agreed to help by lending her ''strength''—if that''s what her hired mercenaries could be called.


    "He''s either a genius… or aplete idiot…" Lyana said, having remained hidden the entire time, just listening to what that mischievous man was nning. Of course, she wasn''t doing it for herself; it was because Evelyn had asked her to stay hidden and only intervene if he tried to harm her or if her physical safety was at risk.


    Even though Evelyn was more willing than ever, after so much time suffering in solitude, it was still hard to trust a man with such strange and illogical ideas… That''s why Evelyn needed direction, a personal opinion from someone she trusted… fortunately, this time…


    "I agree." She said, how could she not? What that man wanted to do was illogical…


    Just think about it! He didn''t even try to hide it. When shemented about the city being destroyed, he quickly changed his ns to dominate the city. It was so obvious that he wasn''t concerned with the real ns anymore that she couldn''t help but agree with him—it was so absurd, so idiotic that…


    "He''s going to seed." Lyana said, firmly admitting that it was so ridiculous that… "I know, he''s going to seed." Evelyn repeated, not out of trust in him, but because she believed in his sheer audacity and the absurdity of his n…


    "I can''t believe I''m doing this, you know?" Lyana said as she sat in the same spot where Strax had been not long ago.


    "Neither can I." Evelyn admitted.


    "Ah…" The two sighed together as they tried not to let their frustrations spill out onto the table…


    "At least, does that remedy really exist? I mean, we need to be sure about that…" Lyana questioned, but Evelyn shook her head, "It exists… at least he firmly believes it does, especially since I couldn''t detect any lies in his words… Despite… him being extremely honest… it''s almost frightening." She said.


    Lyana pondered for a few seconds on what she could do to avoid thinking about bad thingsing from Strax, since he was still trying to help her Mistress despite the obvious issues between them. Lyana and Strax might have problems, but her mistress didn''t hold any grudges or animosities… She was even too calm, and that irritated Lyana a bit.


    "So, should I prepare?" Lyana asked, seeing that, even knowing this, she couldn''t change her Mistress''s decision. "Of course." Evelyn said with a smile, but before that…


    "Just one question… Why did you agree to this when we could just buy the item?" Lyana questioned. It was really strange for her to have agreed to something so surreal…


    "Hm? Of course, it''s for fun." Evelyn said with a smile. "W-What?" Lyana asked, unable toprehend what her Mistress was thinking… This was… idiotic?


    "Hey, don''t look at me like that, okay? I just thought it would be fun to take part in a big heist," she said with a grin. "You''re starting to resemble him." Lyana said.


    "Who?" Evelyn questioned.


    "You know exactly who I''m talking about, that lunatic who just left here with a n to create a new force in the city and dominate the damn ck market!" Lyana shouted,pletely losing herposure…


    Well… we all knew she would…


    "Hey, calm down, okay? We''ve already agreed that everything will work out, and we owe him, so what''s the harm in having some fun?" Evelyn said yfully, while Lyana''s worry only grew. She couldn''t quantify how nervous this situation was making her…


    "Seriously… I need a new mistress." Lyana murmured nervously, trying not to unload another wave of negative thoughts onto her. Fortunately, she managed to keep herposure… for now…


    "So, what do we do?" she asked. "We wait until the day of the auction. Prepare as best you can; we''ll probably join forces with that Rogue he mentioned. Also… try to buy information about anyone named Strax in the ck market… This guy is still hiding something, something I have no idea about… Strax Antares doesn''t really fit." Evelyn said.


    "We already know he''s lying about the name, so what''s the point of finding out? What if Strax is also a false name?" Lyana said, but Evelyn shook her head, "The way his wives call him, I''ve noticed that… They''re not skilled enough liars to fake something like that. His name is Strax… I can confirm that…"


    Lyana silently listened to what her mistress said, but she had her own suspicions… ''A man this strong,ing from Vorah… without any etiquette like a knight, but able to wield not one, but two spiritual swords of special grade… well, to me, it seems obvious.'' She thought, but didn''t voice anything to her Mistress; it was still too absurd to consider, despite all the evidence…


    "Alright, we''ll keep an eye on him," Lyana said as she stood up, "I''ll do as youmand…" she said, disappearing like a shadow.


    "I just hope I don''t regret this… Maybe my time is shorter than I think…" Evelyn murmured, looking at her hands, which were visibly losing color as the veins turned blue…


    Evelyn looked at her hands, the faded color of her skin reflecting the deterioration she tried to hide from everyone, even herself. Strax''s promise was too tempting, and the opportunity to participate in something as grand as taking over a city — even just for fun — offered her a powerful distraction from the slow advance of the disease that was consuming her.


    "Fun, but also risky..." she murmured to herself, her thoughts echoing in the empty room. "But maybe... this is exactly what I need. A little chaos before the end."


    She got up from the chair, slowly walking to the window of her office. Outside, the city pulsed with life,pletely unaware of what was being nned in the shadows. Evelyn felt a chill as she thought about what was toe. The idea of dismantling the entire local economy and building something new from the ashes was terrifying, but also exciting.


    "And if he actually seeds...?" Evelyn wondered, doubt mixed with a hint of hope. Perhaps, just perhaps, Strax''s insane n was the key to everything. Her cure, the power she so desired... all of it seemed within reach, as long as she yed her cards right.


    But the question that still lingered in her mind was: who really was Strax? She knew there was more to him than he let on. A man who mastered special-grade spiritual swords,ing from an unknownnd, with such unbridled ambition... He was an enigma, and Evelyn didn''t like enigmas she couldn''t decipher.


    "Lyana is right to be suspicious. We need to find out more about him before it''s toote," she murmured, her hands unconsciously clenching into fists.


    With onest sigh, Evelyn stepped away from the window, feeling the weight of her decisions on her shoulders. She knew that, no matter what happened, there was no turning back. She was too deeply involved, both in her search for a cure and in the game Strax had proposed.


    The auction was approaching, and with it, the beginning of something that could change the fate of many. Evelyn just hoped that, in the end, she wasn''t trading her soul for a little more time... or fun.


    As she prepared for what was toe...


    ...


    "Why are you like this?" Monica questioned, looking at Strax''s hands, which were sped together as he pondered...


    "It''s okay, I just want to find a way to handle this quickly and safely..." Strax murmured, for some reason feeling that something was very wrong behind the scenes... It was a confusing feeling...


    "Do you really want to do this? I mean, I understand you need the Dragon Heart, but... Is it really worth sacrificing a city?" Monica asked, a bit scared to know the consequences that would follow after he pursued Christine''s Revenge...


    "None of that will happen... We''re going to overwrite these guys and take control of all of it." Strax said, and they exchanged nces... "You... haven''t you been too greedytely?" Beatrice questioned, and Strax just smiled, "If being greedy means freeing ourselves so we can live our own lives...


    I''d love to be even greedier so we can stay together." Strax said, almost consuming her with his gaze, which left her embarrassed...


    "Are you going to trust us to help you this time?" Monica asked, already imagining that— "You all need to get stronger. There''s no point in cultivating and learning things if you never use them." He said, contradicting all her thoughts...


    "But... I want you to stick together when it starts. Stay with Rogue and Evelyn''s squad, I, Christine, and Yennifer will do the heavy lifting inside the Auction," he said, and they understood well what he meant...


    "No room for immediate failure, huh?" Samira questioned, "We need to dominate not just a city, but the entire illegal trade..." Beatrice murmured...


    "Well, we''re here now, aren''t we? So let''s do this." Beatrice said, smiling, and all the women in the room smiled as well...


    "A big heist, huh... I never thought I''d be doing something like this, hahaha" Straxughed.