CHAPTER 60: AVOID THE PUBLIC EYE

Claudia believed Leonard was messing with her, almost as if he was taking joy from watching her suffer. Maybe it was due to his sadistic behavior or because of revenge for her killings, but either way, she didn’t appreciate any of it.

"Have you made your first kill with magic or from sheer will?" Leonard ignored her temperament and questioned her.

"I’ve read the reports. Your first recorded kill was of a victim being stabbed with a sharp object repeatedly. When people attempt their first kill, they are unfamiliar and nervous. The forensics analysis reported the 3rd stab was lethal already."

"..."

Claudia kept quiet, clearly unwilling to discuss her first kill. As for him knowing the report of her killings, she didn’t react much to it. The Crown Prince’s influence and power were not just for show.

Knowing their name or identity was enough for him to uncover many things in the snap of a finger.

"You can’t be serious, right?" At this moment, Mirelle chimed in. She couldn’t stand how Leonard was trying to scheme such a malicious action.

Although he didn’t say it outright, Leonard was clearly trying to use Claudia to eliminate those who stood in his path.

What made it very low risk was the mere fact that Leonard could keep his hands clean if Claudia happened to fail.

After all, with the slave collar, followed by Leonard’s extraordinary status, he could easily cover his involvement.

"It’s just a casual remark." Leonard shrugged in response.

Mirelle pursed her lips. As if she were foolish enough to believe it was just some casual remark. Every word and every action of his held multiple meanings.

Sometime later, the large ship began to move again to properly dock. In the meantime, the trio began to don the Crimson Guards’ outfit.

They mingled around with the Crimson Guards to prevent others from noticing anything suspicious.

While they feigned working alongside, Leonard patiently waited for Mirelle to give the signal. These people who could survive in Velastra for so long weren’t some careless folks.

Despite seeing his impersonator boarding the carriage and exiting, they still kept their people around to spy on the large ship.

Had it not been for their cautiousness, Leonard wouldn’t have made so many detours.

"We should be fine here," Mirelle threw some fake packages to the trash bin and expanded her magical perception.

"I don’t sense any nearby people. There’s also a diverging path up ahead that allows us to leave discreetly." She then pointed East and explained.

But to her surprise, Leonard shook his head and rejected the notion.

"Do you really think these people would leave an exit unattended?" He mused. "Rather than taking the diverging path, take the main path."

"But we’ll be spotted..." Mirelle frowned. They disguised themselves as guards and even did some menial duties to avoid the public eye.

"You are seriously lacking a lot, Mirelle," Leonard commented and pointed at Claudia. "Look at her disdainful expression. The more she expressed such emotion, the more you should know we’re doing well."

"Eh?" Dumbfounded, Mirelle shifted her sight to Claudia. Sure enough, just like Leonard had said, she was expressing contempt, disgust, and disdain.

Feeling exposed and her expression being used against her, Claudia quickly tried to change to a bright smile.

Unfortunately, Leonard was two steps ahead of her.

"As the master, I command you to put on your real emotion on your face and not some fake."

Almost immediately, Claudia’s face twitched uncontrollably as she was forced to revert to her hateful expression.

Seeing her laughable action, Leonard was starting to understand why slaves were so lucrative. As long as one could afford a slave, that was no different than being a lord. The feeling of control over another was a suppressed desire that most humans were born with.

"Based on your years of infiltration, what paths should we take to avoid being spotted?" Leonard questioned her. He was not omnipotent or a seer to predict his opponents’ moves without fail.

Hence, seeking an expert’s opinion was better than doing things blindly.

Claudia didn’t want to answer him.

’Why should I help this hateful man?’ She gnashed her teeth and tried to disobey Leonard’s command. Alas, the more she tried to resist and disobey him, the tighter the collar around her neck became.

What made the slave collar a fearsome item was the fact that it would provide excruciating yet non-lethal pain to the collared person. In addition, the collared person was not allowed to harm themselves to end the pain.

In a matter of a few seconds, Claudia plopped to the ground, her eyes turning hasty from the resistance. She was a trained assassin at the end of the day. Thus, she could resist longer than the average folks.

Unfortunately, such action was only delaying the inevitable while causing more harm to her.

"Crown—Vincent, is this necessary?" Mirelle was close to addressing his title, but managed to change midway and referred to him as Vincent.

"Would you prefer me to threaten her with more vile stuff then?"

"Never mind..."

A few moments later, Claudia finally caved in and stated, "The nobles usually surround the perimeter on a small scale. They don’t spread too far to avoid giving their opponent more leeway to escape. If we want to exit the Northern Dock without being spotted, we have to be confident and leave through the front."

"What? You mean we have to walk back?" Mirelle was startled and turned around. The dock was enormous, and arriving here took them more than 10 minutes already.

"Who said anything about walking back?" Claudia rolled her eyes and flashed a disdainful look.

"I’m saying that front." She raised her hand and pointed at the nearby exit gate.

"That gate?" Following her pointer, Mirelle was baffled.

Meanwhile, Leonard smirked and nodded in approval. "The gate which leads straight to the Trader’s Market. Guards are human as well. And humans are naturally curious and wish to explore a new area if granted the opportunity."