The dark room was shrouded in a deathly silence.
"How...?" she murmured, stepping back. "Humans haven't had contact with other races for a very long time."
"You're right about that. I hadn't heard that sirens still inhabited this world," I replied calmly.
She looked at me in confusion, especially when I mentioned the words "this world."
"I've met others like you before," I continued, "though not here, but in another world. It's true you're not common."
"You... you've been to another world?" she asked, her voice heavy with disbelief.
"You could say that. And since I've already revealed so much about myself, why don't you tell me about you? I'm quite curious to know what a siren is doing pretending to be the wife of a marquis. I must say, your hypnotic ability is quite impressive."
She let out a sigh of defeat, lowering her guard for a moment.
"Ugh, you really figured out everything... My name is Thalassa Serenia. I fled from my hometown when it was attacked by the Corrupted."
She clenched her fists, and a spark of resentment flashed in her blue eyes.
"For a long time, the races outside of humans decided to hide. We thought it would protect us from the Corrupted Beasts, which always seemed connected to you humans. But we were wrong; we only made ourselves weaker. Being separated and with little communication between cities, we were quickly wiped out by packs of them..."
She paused, as if reliving the horror of that moment.
"From sea wolves to creatures that didn't even have a proper shape... they spared no one."
Her voice trembled slightly as she recalled the massacre. The silence in the room grew even heavier.
"At first, I thought about going to the Capital of the Sea," Thalassa continued, hugging herself, "but I was pursued for days. Those monsters never tire, they never stop. I had no choice but to venture out of the sea."
I crossed my arms, analyzing every word with indifference. Her loss didn't move me in the slightest. In the world of cultivation, I had seen entire races erased from the stellar map. Far worse things happened all the time.
"So you used your hypnotic ability to deceive the marquis and the entire staff," I said in a cold voice.
"Yes... the marquis is very kind. Still, when I heard about his problem with the Corrupted Beasts, I thought it was my fault. But it seems these creatures aren't only growing stronger in the depths of the sea."
It was no surprise that they had already attacked cities. They would probably attack many more until they achieved their goal.
However, considering that Thalassa herself was an eighth-circle mage, I still doubted whether she was telling the truth or if the sirens were simply far more advanced than humans in terms of power.
"An eighth-circle mage hiding in a human mansion?" I stared at her fixedly.
Thalassa lowered her gaze, gripping her injured arm tightly.
"There was one of ours on their side... Their power surpassed anything I've ever seen," she confessed in a broken voice. "I was a coward. I left everyone behind just to survive."
I stopped abruptly. My eyes narrowed as I processed the information.
"So there was someone among them who surpassed the ninth circle?" I asked, my tone growing more serious.
"I don't know what level they were at," she replied, looking at the floor in shame, "but it's certain that even the highest-level mages and warriors couldn't do anything against that person."
I felt a slight spark of interest, but it faded quickly.
"I see. It was a pleasure talking with you, Thalassa."
I turned to leave, but she looked at me completely confused.
"Is that all?" she exclaimed, a mix of frustration and desperation in her voice. "Now you have to explain! At the very least, you've reached the ninth level, given how easily you blocked my attacks. You talked about other worlds... I don't even know your name. I really need someone to unload all of this on, because I can't carry this weight alone anymore."
I paused for a moment without looking at her.
"Cassian. That's my name."
As for the surname, I hesitated for a second whether to give her this life's or not. In the end, I decided it didn't matter much.
"As I said before, I've been to other worlds where there were sirens. Now I'm here helping Princess Elara obtain the throne. There's not much more to tell."
Thalassa remained silent, processing the simplicity with which I spoke about everything.
"Can you take care of the Corrupted Beasts here?"
"Well, why don't we go see for ourselves?" I said as I felt that what was happening in the other room was already coming to an end.
…
Elena Thorne was hiding in a room, waiting. "They bring me for this kind of thing… I don't understand what they expect to happen," she thought with annoyance.
In response to her words, the door opened past midnight and a figure entered. This was Elizabeth's room, and the silhouette sliding through the darkness was the butler we had already heard about.
It was no surprise that, stealthily, he began anxiously searching for something. His hands trembled as he rummaged through Elizabeth's belongings, desperately looking for that "special powder" that threatened to expose him.
"Were you looking for this, right?" Elena's voice emerged from the shadows, cold and lethal.
The butler tensed, but before he could scream or try to escape, Elena moved her hand with elegance. The moisture in the air condensed instantly, forming chains of pressurized water that coiled around his limbs.
"Ahh!" The man fell to his knees, the water cutting into his skin like steel. "Let me go! I don't know what you're talking about!"
Elena stepped out of the darkness, her face barely illuminated by the reflection of her own magic.
Almost at the same time, Elizabeth, who had been pretending to sleep, got up and walked toward the captured figure.
"Looks like the rat fell more easily than we thought."
Elara, who was in a nearby room, seemed to hear what had happened and came to see what was really going on.
The butler, trapped by the water chains, tried to stammer a defense.
"It's a misunderstanding... I simply forgot something while cleaning at noon."
"No one believes that kind of excuse, you know that, right?" Elara replied in her usual arrogant and mocking tone.
The butler looked at her with anger. Seeing that he wasn't going to convince anyone, he finally spat out the truth:
"Even if you kill me, they'll just send another."
"We know," Elizabeth said calmly. "That's why we want you to play a little part for us tomorrow. If it goes well, you'll get to keep your head."
The distrust on the slave of the gods' face was obvious.
It was at that moment that I appeared alongside Thalassa. Upon seeing me, the man looked surprised, but then he glanced at the "wife" of the marquis beside me and let out a bitter laugh.
"Miss Siren, why don't you tell them they don't stand a chance? You're only delaying the inevitable."
"So, you plan to do the same in Beaumont as you did in her hometown?" I said, gesturing toward Thalassa.
"It won't be long," the butler replied with a confidence that surprised me. "Besides, human power is too concentrated, and most of those who have surpassed the limits are on our side. They know it's their only chance."
"Do you really think the Black Widow Clan is invincible?" I asked coldly.
The man's eyes widened, not expecting me to mention that name.
"How...? I only know that name by chance... How is it possible that you know it?!"
"Let me tell you that not even Nyx Aeterna herself would dare act this way in front of me."
The name didn't seem to ring a bell for him, but he understood perfectly what I was implying.
I took a step closer, reducing the distance until he could feel my killing intent.
"Unstoppable for someone like you," I declared.
I made him look me straight in the eyes.
"Tomorrow, you'll play exactly as we tell you."
Whatever he saw in my eyes at that moment definitely made him forget who he served.
The terror he once felt for his "gods" was nothing compared to the abyss he found in my gaze. His lips trembled, but not a single word of protest came out. His will was completely broken.