Persian Assassin: Dance of the Prisoners

Blurred, but the brilliance of the setting sun is very clear.The golden one wrapped around her body like light silk, fluttering along with her pure white veil.The sight was beautiful and intoxicating.

"What are you thinking, so lost in thought?"

The thorn touched the tendon of my inner thigh, I could not help shaking my knees, and quickly pinched his wrist.

"It's not intentional, this area is a sensitive area of ​​a person." Arshak curled his lips, lowered his eyebrows and looked concentrating, "Especially... the virgin."

"What nonsense, hurry up." I let go, and glanced at a curvy flower stem in the private part between my legs, embarrassingly urging.

Chapter 53 [VIII] Wheel of Fortune

"What nonsense, hurry up." I let go, and glanced at a curvy flower stem in the private part between my legs, embarrassingly urging.

He dexterously swirled his hand, pinching flowers on my skin: "Your skin is really smooth, like silk... especially here. If you don't tell me, I really can't tell that you are a warrior like an iceberg beauty."

Seeing the flower table becoming more and more seductive, and hearing this, I felt irritable, and warned him with a dark face: "Stop talking too much, and be careful that I will cut your tongue."

"Just the last sentence." Arshak raised his eyelids, and there was a trace of sadness in his eyes.He suddenly got close, "You are Ah Su Yin, right? When he slept with me... he called your name."

"Who?"

Who else?Embarrassment and consternation hit at the same time, I glanced at the door, but fortunately the door was closed tightly.Doing such an outrageous thing is not at all like Ishkad's usual prudent words and deeds.I stood up with a cold face, and Arshak leaned back on the bed exhausted, took a big puff of the pipe as if addicted to cigarettes, and squinted at me.The smoke was hazy, and his expression seemed to be laughing and crying: "Actually, I don't blame you for kidnapping me at all..."

He took a puff of smoke, pointed the chimney at the bird, and laughed wildly: "Let me not be trapped in that golden bird cage like it, forgetting how to fly! Let me not sing and dance all day long, just to please the public , I can’t help smiling at anyone! Let me not take off my clothes and lie down under someone who is as old as my father to have fun!"

The shadow of the past revived in my heart in an instant, I turned around and walked away.

"I used to do divination every day... There is someone who can rescue me from this prison, unchain me, and let me fly away..."

My feet stuck to the ground and my heart trembled.

"The funny thing is that this person came, but I was reluctant to fly."

My heart skipped a beat: "Do you know divination?"

"Why, do you want me to predict something for you?" Arshak smiled, his thick black eyelashes fluttering slightly.

"I want to divination... an old man, I want to know everything about him."

"Do you want to know a person's past and present? Or his past and future?"

"I want to divine my connection with him." I muttered to myself.

This is simply pointless.The connection between Flaviz and me was severed seven years ago.Isn't divination of one's own connection with a dead person something that only psychic priests can do?

Arshak stared into my eyes thoughtfully, and smiled for some reason.

"Can you psychic?"

"You can try." Arshak smiled mysteriously, twisted a strand of hair, and tilted his head to glance out of the window, "But I have a condition. You have to call Ishkad in for me later, I have something to say to him."

I subconsciously denied: "That person is not..."

"No, you love him."

He stared at me and cut me off decisively.A stack of things was slapped heavily on the table and unfolded into a fan shape one by one.This is a deck of cards with patterns I have never seen before. There are human figures and objects in different shapes and shapes. There are more than twenty cards.I took a closer look and saw that these patterns had a typical Egyptian style, and the markings on the cards were also written in hieroglyphics.

"...and the love is unforgettable. If you don't believe it, these spiritual cards will tell you the answer."

"What kind of card is this?" I looked at these dazzling patterns suspiciously.

"A divination card cut from the pages of Egypt's "Book of Blades," Arshak picked up one with his index finger, pursing his lips and chuckling, "This is Armenia's treasure. Just this one is worth a whole carriage gold coins."

I was taken aback and remembered the legends I had heard about this deck.

"Taut" is the Egyptian moon god, and "The Book of Tate" is a mysterious book specially used to convey the will of the gods, and the pharaohs made various decisions based on it.When the Egyptian dynasty was destroyed, in order to prevent foreigners from getting the book, it was painted as a card and handed over to the priest.Later, it was introduced to Europe by the hands of Alexander the Great, and it was rumored that it was buried with the treasures looted by the Macedonian army from the East.

Unexpectedly, this treasure was located in Armenia. I was slightly surprised: "Armenia is willing to use such a treasure as a dowry for the establishment of diplomatic relations with Rome?"

"Of course not. I stole it from the palace as a pastime to pass the boring time." Arshak smiled triumphantly, not allowing me to be surprised by his answer, and skillfully turned the cards to the back one by one. The table spread out, and began to give orders: "Okay, close your eyes, put your hand on the card, don't press it down, hang in the air, the soul of the prophet in the card will automatically sense the answer you want to know. "

He drew the curtains, and the cabin was filled with gloom, only an oil lamp on the table shimmered.Arshak's demeanor became more and more sinister, reminding me of the Jewish god I met in the slums of Ctesiphon.He was in a fashion, holding a crystal ball and babbling, saying that Flaviz was not dead and was looking for me, so I beat him up for granted.

Obviously feeling extremely absurd, I obediently closed my eyes and hung my hands above the table.My heart was beating so fast inexplicably, I had a hunch that this time, what I got would be a different result than before.

"Now, say that person's name."

My lips were a little dry, I moistened them with my tongue, and stammered: "Fla...Flavitz. No... Maybe it's just his last name..."

"Think of him—if you have a recollection."

I traced Flaviz's face in my mind, but what emerged in an instant was that strange and enchanting mask, with a pair of long, narrow and deep eyes staring at me.

I opened my eyes in fright, and at that moment, the two cards on the table slapped against my palm without any wind.Arshaq grabbed my wrist and turned my hands over.

On the left is a pair of embracing people, and on the right is a wheel that looks like a loom.

"Wheel of fortune...and lovers."

Arshak groaned softly, raised his eyes meaningfully to look at me, his eyes reflected my dazed expression.

"Wheel of fortune and lovers... what does this imply?" I repeated in a murmur, and the scenes of meeting and separating from Flaviz flowed through my memory, disrupting my emotional thinking.

"Lover, of course it means that he and you are the love of each other's life, and you will be fused with him, life and death. As for the wheel of fortune..." Arshak lowered his voice, and his tone was as gentle as reciting a mantra, "it means , reincarnation of life and death, resurrection of the dead."

"You are talking nonsense... There is no such thing as the resurrection of the dead in the world!"

I stood up suddenly, my legs were unsteady, and my voice was trembling.

"And what about Jesus Christ?" Arshak stared at me, tilting his neck back, revealing his honey-coloured collarbone.The pendant with a cross hanging on it, he is a devout Christian.I instinctively wanted to refute, but he put a hand on my shoulder, his bony fingers climbed to my forehead, and he took a big puff of smoke at me face to face.

"He was like Jesus Christ... a martyr born again."

His voice seemed to have a hypnotic effect, which sharply aggravated my already high fever dizziness.The smoke lingering in front of my eyes enveloped me like a cobweb, exuding a stale stench mixed with the smell of blood.

A faint whimper floated from the depths of the mist, like the desperate weeping of dead souls in hell.

No time to think about how I fell into such an illusion, I walked forward following the sound.

After taking a step, the smoke dissipated and faded away, leaving an almost empty darkness.

It wasn't until my sight adjusted to the light here that I realized it was a prison cell.The damp walls were covered with moss, and in the moonlight from a small window, an indecipherable mass wriggled on the ground.The misshapen black torso curled up like an ugly, dead cicada chrysalis.

——It was a person.

If that face, sunken and cracked like Pompeii after a natural disaster, can still be called a human face.

I took a step back in horror, and my gaze remained on those eyes, as if I had been struck in the heart by a bolt of lightning.I recognize those eyes.

Flaviets.

"..."

His mouth moved, like a mummy moving its wax-sealed lips.It was more beautiful than roses in full bloom in spring, and it narrated the most touching poems in the world.His pupils are deeper and more beautiful than the Aegean Sea, but at this moment they are like a dead swamp full of mud, and there is still a living fish in the swamp, rippling as it lingers.

My knee felt as if it had been crushed by a heavy hammer. I knelt on the ground trembling and fell in front of him.

This is the scariest phantom I have ever seen. It is more shocking than the scene of the execution ground where the skin and bones are removed, and it is no less cruel than the scene of the dead mother's tragic death.

"Fla... Viz... Fla Viz..."

In a daze, I read this name that seemed like a curse to me, and my whole body trembled like chaff.

"..."

The mouth on the face without facial features was split like a black hole, and it howled like a dying animal.

The withered hand suddenly grabbed my arm, and the sunken grimace was close to me. He swallowed every word in his throat.

"We will meet again, Ah Suin, like the thread of fate, the orbit of the sun, moon and stars..."

Breath and blood coagulate in an instant.This sentence is somewhat familiar, and I have no time to think about where I heard it. I opened my eyes wide and stretched out my hand to grab it. The phantom suddenly turned into a puff of smoke and receded.I pounced, but bumped into Arshaq's body across the table.

tbc

Chapter 54【XLIV】Being Surprised and Framed

"What did I see? What did you let me see?" I grabbed his necklace and asked with eyes open. I exerted too much strength, so that the cross necklace was broken by me. open.

Like an urchin who lost a treasure, Arshak suddenly changed his color, and he burst out with such great strength from nowhere, and grabbed the cross with his teeth and claws, his face full of resentment: "Did you see a ghost, so scared! I just want to help you sense your lover, who knows that his remnant soul form is so terrifying, you can't blame me!"

"Remnant soul?" I asked eagerly.

"It's just..." Arshak picked up a card and thought for a while, "When people are in the most painful time, their desire and obsession will become stronger, and a part of their soul will separate to form a remnant soul."

Flaviz...Flavitz, are you really reborn?Where are you?

"Can you help me... Help me feel him again?" I softened my tone, almost begging.

Arshak shook his index finger lazily at me: "Once the remnant soul sees the person he is obsessed with, it will disappear immediately. It is just a form of thought. Compared with looking for this kind of illusory thing, how to do it?" Why not find out where its owner is?"

As he spoke, he flicked the wheel of fortune and pointed to the pattern on it.I was surprised to find that the wheel on the card was turning slowly, and a golden wheel shaft was pointing to the window like a compass needle.The golden walls of the Roman harbor were reflected outside the window.I lost my breath for a moment.

"Look, he's right next to you." Arshak pouted and snorted, "But I'm sure he's not Ishkad... Tsk, he seems to be in Rome?"

I grabbed the cards and rushed to the deck, gasping for breath while propping up the mast like a seasick person. The golden city walls of the harbor in the distance shone like the setting sun in the night.It scorches my vision and confuses my brain.By the time I realized it, I had jumped into the sea and swam towards the port.

Faintly, Ishkad's hissing shout came from behind, and I plunged into the sea regardless of my care, and I didn't even know how I reached the shore.The crowds flowing between the port and the ships stopped because of my sudden appearance.I know that I probably look like a water ghost, but I don't have time to think about it.

The pointer of the wheel of fortune shifted slightly, pointing directly at the magnificent Roman Imperial Palace.He was there, so close to me, and I didn't know it.I hesitated for a moment, then stumbled towards it.

Even if it's just another nightmare, I'd rather be a moth to the flame.

"Who are you! Smuggled slaves! You can't enter without a Roman pass!"

A stern shout exploded from my ears, and the icy long javelin pressed against my chest, chilling my bones.I firmly grasped its sharp point, raised my head, and stared expressionlessly at the face huddled under the metal helmet.The next moment, it was exposed like a turtle shedding its shell, and slammed into the stone wall behind it.

Throwing the heavy helmet in my hand to the ground, I grabbed the reins and jumped on the horse, galloping in the direction of the blue dome like an arrow from the string.

The cold moonlight is fragmented, the sound of the wind rushes past, mixed with screams one after another, the sound of chasing behind is like a shadow, and the narrow and winding ancient Roman road is endless, like falling into an unreal nightmare.The salty liquid slid across the cheeks and quickly evaporated, but the eyes became more and more blurred.

"Catch him! There he is!

"Don't run!"

In an instant, as if going back in time, I returned to the streets of Athens, fleeing from the pursuit of human traffickers, and Flaviz would wait for me at the end of this journey.

The moment this intuition rushed to my heart, a team appeared not far away, blocking my way.The horse pouted in fright, I reined in hastily and almost rolled off.The pain of falling to the ground calmed me down a bit. Hearing the pursuit from behind, I hurriedly turned over and hid in the deep alley.

Fortunately, the team ahead did not come to round up me.They were wearing linen cloaks, connected by a thick chain, their hands and feet were shackled, and their heads were bowed, like a group of soulless walking corpses following the god of death.

The faint moonlight allowed me to see one of them with blue streaks on half of his face. He was a Gothic barbarian—a subordinate of Julyans.

I didn't dare to be careless, and avoided it cautiously, but I saw at a glance that the pointer on the card turned in the direction of the group of people walking.The blood surged up, and I immediately followed up.After turning a corner with this group of people, my eyes suddenly opened up.The front is no longer covered by narrow ancient roads, but a circular building standing on a wide square --- the Roman Colosseum.

It is more majestic and majestic than any building I have ever seen. Countless hollowed-out arches emit light in the night, as if a hundred-eyed giant Argus is domineeringly lying under the sky, which is amazing.

I surveyed the doors, expecting to find a figure among them, but the size of the person was too small in those arches for me to distinguish at all.

What are they doing inside?Are you into a gladiatorial fight?Is there a rodeo going on here?

When I was puzzled, I heard a series of lively horse racing sounds from far and near obliquely in front. The coming team was so powerful that the stone bricks under my feet were shaken.People and horses like a long dragon came windingly, the light of several torches was like a star river, shining the darkness like day, and a dozen or so chariots of different colors diverged to both sides like rainbow lights of seven colors, holding out a gleaming chariot The golden king caught up with a figure in a gorgeous high crown.

That was Constantius.

This is probably the biggest chariot show in Rome according to rumors.I lowered my waist halfway, took advantage of the darkness of the night, sneaked in, and squirmed along with the team step by step.

As soon as I entered the arched corridor at the entrance of the arena, the chariots and accompanying teams dispersed, leaving only a small team of attendants, and I followed closely.The light and shadow between the pillars of the corridor are changing, and thousands of people are moving around, walking through it is like entering a maze.As soon as they stepped onto the first-level stands, thunderous cheers broke out on the field, which was deafening.

The pointer on the wheel swayed like a lone boat on a stormy sea.I looked around, my eyes passed through the wide arena, and I was submerged in the sea of ​​people on the opposite side, unable to catch the focus.

His heart was beating wildly like a galloping horse, and his brain was buzzing.A high fever invaded my whole body, and my blood seemed to boil, and every nerve was filled with an irrepressible impulse.

Where are you, Flaviz?

I bowed my head and kissed the cards, my hands were trembling badly, just when a gust of wind blew in my face, the cards fell out of my hand and floated into the air.My heart suddenly seemed to be blown high into the sky, and a huge sense of panic poured from the soles of my feet. I reached out and grabbed it, but my feet slipped and I fell forward, and suddenly I felt my arms tighten.

"Hey, isn't this His Royal Highness Prince Arshak, what are you doing here alone?"

A deep and forceful laugh sounded from my ears, which startled me.As soon as he turned around, the blonde hair of the person behind him jumped into sight, and a pair of blue eyes like the sea were close at hand.I couldn't help staring at it and lost my soul, until my arms were held by people from left to right, and I suddenly came back to my senses.

The iron armor of the man in front of him glowed in the firelight. He was tall and burly. It was the Tyrion who had offended me at the dinner party.I should have hated him, but now I looked into those blue eyes and couldn't take them away.

Could it be him?

The question flashed by, and I immediately laughed at myself for my absurd conjecture.Even if he was really reborn, Flaviz would not lose his temperament, so how could he become a rough general?I looked anxiously into the arena, that card may be my only chance to find Flaviz!

"It's none of your business!" I broke away from him and grabbed my hand, but several guards rushed over from behind him and surrounded my way.

"How can it be none of my business?" Tyrion laughed loudly, "You are so interesting! Today is the Roman City Festival, His Majesty the Emperor intended to invite you to watch this grand chariot show, but you disappeared No, he sent me, a dignified senior general, to search for your whereabouts throughout the city, and you must be brought to him before the performance begins, so that you will be officially crowned in front of the whole country."

These words were like a thunderbolt on the ground.

In an instant I couldn't stand still, and I was sweating profusely——I was so dizzy, I was only looking for Flaviz, and I forgot to rush back to the palace before dark, and I rushed all the way here !

Probably seeing my pale face, Tyrion let out a schadenfreude smile, his eyes scanned my body: "To be honest, I'm quite surprised why it's such a coincidence... Last night the palace was catching assassins, today you even killed your eunuch." Disappeared and reappeared here. What's going on here?"

I stared at him coldly, my whole body tensed up, knowing something was wrong, I took a step back subconsciously.Behind him was the edge of the stands, and there was no way to retreat, except to jump into the arena, which was never a wise choice.

"Come on, your seat of honor is opposite. Will you go to His Majesty's side by yourself, or let them carry you there?" Tyrion pressed his sword on his waist and raised his chin behind me.

Can't escape immediately.Stand still for now, maybe there will be a turning point...

I turned around with a low eyebrow and let the two guards hold my arms.Passing behind a thick pillar, Tyrion quickened his pace and walked past me to the side of the stands, not knowing what to do.I instinctively sensed that something was wrong, I saw two flashes of cold light for a moment, and I dodged it with a conditioned reflex, but I saw him suddenly draw his sword and cut the throat of a guard, then grabbed another person and pushed towards me, throwing him A sword pierces the chest.

Before I had time to be surprised by this scene, I was caught off guard, and suddenly I bumped a few meters with a strong force, slipped on my foot, and fell backwards.

I used my elbows to protect my head, and my back fell heavily to the gravel-covered ground, which immediately caused a sharp pain like a fractured tendon, which almost made me faint on the spot.Amidst the dizziness, I insisted on staying clear, and got up.

Tyrion looked down at me from top to bottom, and ordered something to the soldiers in the stands.

——Framed.

Tyrion is trying to make me guilty of the assassin.

Chapter 55 [XLV] The Bound Prisoner

Looking at the two bloody corpses that fell in front of me, I realized that it would be difficult for me to get rid of this crime no matter what.I looked around, hurriedly stumbled towards the nearest exit, but heard a roar, a heavy iron gate fell from the sky, and fell to the bottom when I was only one step away.

The surroundings suddenly fell silent, only a few screams remained.A series of wild animal neighing came from behind me.My hairs stood on end, and I turned around slowly.

Just a few meters away, a huge black lion was staring at me.

I didn't notice that there was a beast show going on in the arena.

The chill instantly penetrated the bone marrow.I stood still, not daring to move. I spread my feet and lowered my body.

The lion looked skinny and very hungry, and I had no doubt that if I ran away it would rush up and bite my throat and tear me to pieces.While guarding against its sudden attack, I walked slowly and left the closed iron gate.But I was not allowed to move a few steps, and in an instant, it bowed its body, like the bowstring of an arrow about to leave the string.The next moment, a huge gust of wind roiled the clouds and waves, and the sand and mist filled the air for a moment, and a huge shadow like a dark cloud rushed in and pressed down.

I rolled on the spot, narrowly avoiding the bloody mouth that brushed past the head, quickly picked up a stone on the ground, aimed at the lion's skull, and hit its left eye.

The evil beast let out a shrill howl, but without any fear, it rushed towards me again with a murderous aura.Seeing that there were no larger stones nearby, only gravel, I took a deep breath and was ready to fight to the death.

Just at this critical moment, a long black shadow sprang out from the iron gate, and came straight towards the lion approaching me. The dust covered the sky like a sandstorm.A pair of towering black wings swept across the top of the head, and the deep animal pupils in the shadows flashed like meteors for a very short moment, and the dust and mist in the sky faded away.

There was only an iron gate left in front of my eyes, and the lion and the black shadow disappeared without a trace, as if it was just an illusion of mine.

I stared at the darkness behind the iron gate, my hands and feet were cold, and my world was spinning.

Even if I couldn't see the whole picture clearly, I could still recognize that the black shadow was the python I met in the aqueduct of the Roman palace.It actually appeared here again, and it saved my life.Why?Could this monster have any connection with Flaviz?

As soon as this idea came out, there was infinite gravity, driving me to walk towards the iron gate step by step.

"...!" At this moment, a strange cry came from behind, and with the sound of a sharp weapon piercing through the air, a short sword was stuck at my feet.

I turned around, and it was a barbarian dressed as a gladiator, waving his arms as if trying to stop me, behind him was an approaching army, and at his feet, something shimmered— ——The Wheel of Fortune.He bent down to pick it up, looked at it curiously, and then showed a surprised expression, as if to tear it.

"Stop! It's mine!"

I didn't care about running away, so I rushed towards him, knocked him to the ground, and snatched back the wheel of fortune.The face of the card has been torn, and the pointer on the wheel trembles unsteadily, just like my heart.

All of a sudden, my legs became weak, and I clutched this thin piece of paper, as if hugging the skeleton of Flaviz that day, and knelt down on the rough sand, crying like a child.

The menacing feeling under the eyelids is like a river bed that has been dry for many years finally flooded and burst its embankment.I curled up into a ball, trembling uncontrollably, like a deserter with no armor left, no strength left to resist, and let several weapons support my body.Several hands dragged me up and out of the arena.

I heard the boos and boos of the discussion around me, and my heart was so numb that there was no ups and downs.Tears couldn't stop streaming down her cheeks, falling drop by drop on the gravel under her feet, but they couldn't leave any traces.

"What's the matter, my dear little prince? If you want to participate in this grand event, I will naturally arrange an honorary seat for you. Why go to the Colosseum to perform?"

Meaningful words mixed with laughter came from above my head, and a solid gold cross stick was stretched under my chin, forcing me to lift my sagging neck.I gasped weakly, unable to utter a single word.

"What's the matter, why are you crying? I really feel pity..." The cane lifted my head higher, "I can't see that a little beauty like you will be an assassin. It's really a pity."

"It's too early to make a judgment now, my respected brother? At least it should be interrogated, right?"

As soon as this lazy and charming familiar voice floated into my eardrums, I couldn't help but follow the sound.

In the shadow of the purple tent hanging down, a pale and slender hand was revealed, holding a wine bottle and playing with it carefully.What he held seemed to be a chess piece, and he was playing a game of chess step by step, turning his hands into clouds, turning his hands into clouds, and he seemed to be plucking the strings, playing a soul-stirring magic sound.

I stared at that hand, a wave of dizziness welled up in my head, and finally lost consciousness.

Dimly, my body floated up, and my eyes were shrouded in light, as if I had returned to the temple of that year, at a beautiful dusk on a certain day.

The afterglow of the sunset poured in from the window and fell on Flaviz's body.The sunlight fell on the tip of his quill that was rustling like a layer of golden sand.I propped my chin and leaned beside him in a daze, watching his fluent and beautiful words fall stroke by stroke on the snow-white parchment, like a miracle.

"Do you know what this is?"

Flaviz's eyelids drooped gently, and the quill brushed my nose.

I shook my head, staring blankly into his eyes.

He smiled: "This is your name, Ah Suin. Do you want to learn how to write it?"

"Yeah." I nodded obediently, and put my hand in his palm, which is much slender and wider than mine.The hand that pulled me up from the abyss taught me to write my name.

The crooked "symbols" on the parchment are in stark contrast to Flaviz's writing.

I looked at him awkwardly, then looked at Flaviz with embarrassment, and muttered, "Flavitz, can I... learn to write your name?"

"Of course." The quill lifted my chin, tickling my neck.I shrank my neck, the light of the setting sun was covered by Flaviz's bowed head, "My little Cupid, you have to give me a kiss."

It sounds like a soft voice to comfort, but also like an unquestionable order.

Flaviz's hand landed on my back, patting it lightly like a tickle.His eyelashes are long and dense, dyed with sunlight, like a cloud.

The base of the ear became hot all of a sudden.I leaned over hesitantly, and pecked Flaviz's cheek, but he pulled his chin closer, and his lips touched a soft and sweet object.The cool fingers slowly slid across my spine stroke by stroke like plucking a string.I was so kissed that I almost lost my breath, and my jaw was released.

"Remember how to write my name? If you forget, I will... punish you." His lips moved slightly against my cheek.

I was busy rewriting the pen, recalling those strokes, and writing hastily on the parchment, for fear that I would forget what he taught me to write.Athione, Flaviz.The tip of the pen carefully landed on the paper, but nothing could be written, only a few drops of red flower juice fell down, like tears of blood.

I forgot how to write it.

My heart became inexplicably flustered, and I subconsciously looked around, but the window was empty, and there was no one there.The quill in my palm burned instantly, turning into black ashes, which leaked from my fingers, dissipated into the wind, and disappeared in an instant.

I wandered around in Nuo Da's empty temple, calling his name, and when I turned around, I bumped into another figure head-on.That weird and cold mask faced me face to face.

"Remember how my name is written, my Athione?"

I opened my mouth wide and took a deep breath, before my eyes fell into darkness again.Slowly, I regained a little consciousness.Half asleep and half awake, I felt as if I was being shackled by cold chains around my limbs.I tried to move, but my feet couldn't touch the ground --- my body was suspended in mid-air and I couldn't move.

His body was suffering from high fever, his throat was burning with smoke, and his brain was still a little confused.

The clothes were tightly adhered to the body by sweat, like a thick cocoon trapped in a layer, and it was so hot that one could not breathe.I took a few deep breaths, barely opened my heavy eyelids, and blinked a few times.But still can't see anything.

Not only were my limbs handcuffed, but a piece of cloth was also tied around my eyes.

This is... where is this?

I moved my cracked lips and let out a little insect-like hum.The sound of the shackles colliding triggered a series of lonely echoes in the room. This is a closed secret room.

is a prison.I became a prisoner.

The memory before coma came to my mind, I shook the chains that bound my limbs violently a few times, I only hoped that I was just experiencing a nightmare at this moment and could wake up immediately.But a series of footsteps from far to near reminded me that this is reality.

With a "bang", the iron door opened.

The person's footsteps were extremely light and slow, like a ghost.

"who?"

My body was restrained, and I immediately smelled a breath of imminent danger.With the covered eyes, I could only vaguely see a black figure swaying in the firelight, coming to me.

His breathing was clearly audible in the silence, brushing against my cheek like a hidden turbulence under the calm surface of the water.He was very close, but silent, as if conducting a silent interrogation.

I suppressed my restless beating heart and pretended to be in a coma, but calmness and nervousness quietly ebbed and flowed in this confrontation with this unexpected guest.

Finally, I couldn't help it anymore: "Who are you?"

What responded to me was a slight sound of clothes rubbing, and one hand pinched my chin. I was startled, and I tasted the cool and sweet liquid pouring into my lips.I subconsciously closed my lips to resist, but the thirst for a long time still made me swallow instinctively.I finally got some relief from the heat and dryness all over my body, and I felt a lot better immediately.

After feeding me water, that hand gently wiped my lips dry again, with careful and delicate movements, as if wiping a fragile treasure.

My heart trembled suddenly: "Hey, who are you? Let me down!"

My response was still silence.

The fingers on the lips stroked the cheeks, the tip of the nose, and then the forehead, and traced my outline from top to bottom, first lightly, and gradually, the strength of the stroking became two points ambiguous and three points lingering.

In the silence, the breath that brushes the face is like a river flowing into a stream and passing over a reef, becoming a little turbulent.

My lips trembled, and a trill escaped from between my teeth: "...Flavitz?"

The breath in front of me paused, and the fingers slowly moved away from my face.

"Is it you... Is it you? Don't go!" I blurted out and stopped my voice in confusion. I'm afraid it was my wrong extravagant imagination, or another fantasy dream.

The person in front of me did not leave, but slowly turned behind me.I thought he was going to unshackle me, but I felt a tightness around my waist and an arm around me.The wet back was attached to the firm chest, and the heat reached the bottom of the skin.The body of the person behind him is flexible and lean, like a python engulfing its prey.

A bewitching fragrance filled my nose, and I suddenly realized who this person was.

My heart suddenly hangs high, and my whole body is tense.The hands around my waist slipped into my wet and sticky clothes, and I tore open the lapel along the buttons, exposing my chest.When the sweat touched the air, I couldn't help but shudder, but the surface of my body was filled with heat, and panic also climbed up my throat.

"I won't go..." The voice in the ear was hoarse and seductive, revealing a unique aggressiveness.

I had a jolt.

The moist breath brushed the ears, and the hair was brushed to the shoulders.His face was very close, as if he was smelling my scent.My scalp was numb, and the back of my neck was hot, and I felt his lips pressed against it, as if he wanted to brand a mark there.

"You are not him..."