"Of course, master. You can go ahead and test this girl as much as you like. I am sure she will entertain you much more than you think."

The kidnapper smiled as he looked at Layla and the noble before him.

That face sent a shiver down Layla's back, a chilling reminder of the danger she was in. But she refused to dwell on it, pushing the fear to the back of her mind.

Rather, she wanted to see the bright side of what was happening…which there was none of.

"Raziel, take our new friend by her arm and thoroughly wash her. Make sure you strip her of any spell on her."

The noble spoke, and the familiar name made Layla's eyes bolt to look up.

Although her brain was not working at full capacity, Layla was more than aware of the main characters in the original story.

The person named Raziel, who had a background as a slave before meeting the female lead, was a prominent character.

He was among the most popular sub-male leads in the original work because female audiences liked his cold face.

Layla gathered her courage to take a look, and the features matched.

The golden hair was a few shades darker than described due to all the dirt and blood in it, and the face was tanned and marred with scars from all the abuse the kid had suffered.

These features would be fleshed out once this kid met the female lead in the future, but his cold silver eyes were the same as those of his future self.

They looked at Layla in a way one looked at an annoying bug sitting in the corner of your room - enough to be aware of their presence but not bothered enough to get up and do anything.

No kid should look this intimidating (unless you were Layla), but the coldness this kid emitted made Layla shake a little inside.

"Master! Please be careful with our produce. Even if you don't want to buy this slave, others will buy her because of her features. But if you break her, then…"

"Don't worry! If my slave breaks your product, then I will pay double for it. But if I find out you lied to me, I will destroy you and your business. Do you understand, boy?"

The noble asked, and he looked old enough to call the kidnapper by this title.

His words made the kidnapper shiver in disgust, but he quickly gathered himself back and looked at the noble with a hard look.

"Of course, master. You can take my life if I lied to you this time. But I also hope you would reward me in the same manner as you are threatening me."

The kidnapper was pushing his luck here, but he knew that he had a chance to do that.

Layla tried to absorb more, but Raizel grabbed her hair, and she felt an intense pain in her body, making her collapse.

That feeling made her feel as if her body was being burned from the inside, and Layla bit her lip to stop herself from yelling out in pain.

Her hazy eyes looked back at Raizel, and she grabbed his arm to push it away from her hair. But she had no strength, and she almost collapsed.

"Looks like you were telling the truth after all. The flames of purification are not doing anything to her physical appearance. She is the real deal, after all. Raziel, you can stop now. This is enough."

The other kid stopped when asked to stop, and Layla breathed heavily from her mouth.

She knew she should not hate the kid who hurt her but the noble who gave the order. But it was difficult.

Especially when the jolts of pain were still going through her body.

'I need to be rational here. No matter how hurt I feel, I need to remember to preserve the original story's characters. I will need Raziel's help soon…'

Layla tried to keep a rational mind, but it felt impossible. She stopped caring about it halfway through, and she allowed her body to collapse on the ground.

"Boss! How about we tall of payment now. If you have it all verified, then I think this much should be-"

Layla was more aware of the kids near her than adults. That was why she noticed it when Raziel froze before making a distressed noise.

It made the noble look at his slave with a keen eye before his eyes widened, and he reached out toward the kidnapper to hold him by his collar.

"You betrayer! I take care of you all this time, which is how you repay me. Did you call the authorities to come and catch me? Did you think I won't notice? Fuck! I should kill you right here and now."

The noble spoke in an angry voice. The more he yelled, the more Layla's kidnapper looked confused.

"What do you mean…you know I would never betray you, master! This business is my everything, so why would I jeopardize it? Are you sure there is no mistake about this-?"

The kidnapper asked, and the lights flickered out all of a sudden.

Layla felt a familiar presence reaching for her wrists before she was free.

The kid beside her noticed and tried to grab Layla, but Mary's familiar presence stopped him.

"Good kids keep to themselves, and they don't cause trouble. If you are not a good kid, we will have a problem. Do you want me to discipline you as well?"

Mary asked as she reached out and snapped the wrist in front of her into two. It made Raziel breathe heavily as he cradled his broken wrist, but that was all he did.

He was like a cautious cat, not too afraid to approach Mary and Layla.

It was also the time the other two noticed Mary's presence, and the noble looked stunned to see her.

"You-! What are you doing here? The duke has no presence in this place, so you do not need to be here either. Go back!"

The noble yelled, recognizing Mary instantly. But she only smiled a blood-thirsty smile back at him.