{Aurelian Barony Cell House}

Dorian had spoken to his parents about his planned trip to the capital.

He got their blessing as intended, and they also promised to assist Ishtar in looking after the entire place, including the elves.

According to what Erica told him, the elves were all curious to meet him.

Though their guards were still up around the humans, for some reason, they all seemed eager to meet Dorian.

They had claimed they wanted to meet the man that saved them, and his wife, whom they referred to as the "Beautiful Cold Queen."

Putting two and two together, Dorian figured they must be referring to Maria.

Then again, they had already met her lots of times, since she would often be the one distributing food to them.

As for him, while he wasn't actively ignoring them, he still didn't have it at the back of his mind to meet them any time soon.

At least not before he understood what they truly needed and how he could help them.

But for now, his business was with the criminals he had captured.

The guard opened the cell door and grabbed a woman from inside.

That woman was none other than Tai Hun.

"Lord Dorian wants to speak to you before you are transferred to the royal capital. You should be grateful he even wants to speak to you."

After saying these words, the guard dragged Tai out of the cell and towards the other room.

Not a single word left Tai's mouth, only a grin, a chilling grin that obviously spoke of a hidden motive…

…

Outside the cell house was a small meeting table with an umbrella and a cup of tea on it.

The green grass spread wide and far, and Dorian was seated on one of the chairs, with Maria standing right behind him.

From where he was seated, he could see the cell building, where the guard was now dragging the veiled woman, Tai.

'There she is. Her veil is still on, eh…' Dorian crossed his legs, his eyes fixed on the approaching figure.

Maria was against this meeting from the start, but since Dorian badly wanted to do it, she had no choice but to follow him as protection.

Soon, Tai was seated on the extra chair left open for her. Without even so much as resistance, Tai sat down.

She immediately leaned forward to take a look at Dorian's face.

The guard who had escorted her there bowed his head to take his leave. Now, it was just the three of them present there.

Dorian stared at her for a while, trying to see if there was any way he could get her to answer all of his questions before handing her to the king.

He would have asked Baron Telia, but that man had already tried to kill himself while in jail.

There was little chance he would have anything to say on the matter. This woman was his best bet.

'Before anything, I need to see if there is anything I can use to my advantage here.'

[The skill Analysis is currently active.]

[The target has been acquired.]

[Name: Tai Hun.]

[Status: Obsessed, obsessed, intrigued, obsessed.]

'Obsessed? With what?' Dorian raised a brow. 'Barely helpful, but I'll take what I got.'

Dorian cleared his throat. "Tai, was it?"

"Yes!!!" Tai suddenly answered, leaning forward, almost standing up from the chair.

While Dorian didn't react, Maria was quick to reach for her blade, ready to pull it out at the slightest hint of danger.

"Sit back down if you love your head," she uttered right after.

Silence took over the very next second, with Tai looking at Maria. It didn't take long for Tai to point at Maria and turn her gaze to Dorian.

"Why is this woman here? The guard said you alone wanted to speak to me."

"What?" Maria frowned.

But Tai ignored her, still pointing.

"They said you were the only one, so why is she here? I don't like her here. She is not why I came. I don't want her here."

Dorian was already quite confused. Her voice didn't hold that much of a threat, but she suddenly sounded strange. He really could not put it into words.

"If it's just me here, would you be willing to answer my questions?" he asked.

"My lord!" Maria protested.

"Yes! Just me and you! I've been waiting for this. I don't want her to ruin it!"

Dorian thought for a moment, then looked at Maria.

"Maria, please wait inside the cell house. I'll call you if I need you."

Maria hesitated, her hand still on her blade. "My Lord, it's not safe. She's a known criminal."

"I understand your concern," Dorian replied, his voice firm but reassuring. "But I need to try this. Please."

Maria, after another moment of intense scrutiny directed at Tai, finally relented.

With a reluctant nod and a final warning glance at the veiled woman, she turned and walked back towards the cell building, disappearing inside.

As soon as Maria was out of sight, Tai's entire demeanor changed. Her shoulders relaxed, and the tension in her posture visibly eased.

A low chuckle escaped her lips, a sound that sent a shiver down Dorian's spine despite its almost melodic quality.

"Finally," she purred, her voice now softer, almost intimate. "Just the two of us, as it should be." She leaned further forward, her veiled face still obscured, but her eyes, now clearly visible through the thin fabric, glinted with an unsettling intensity. "Now, what did you want to ask me? I'll answer anything."

Dorian sighed.

He surely felt uncomfortable, but this was far better than anything else.

"I have a lot of questions, but I'll start with just one. If you can give me a helpful response, then rest assured, I might be able to turn things in your favor. Well, only if you are willing to cooperate with me."

All while Dorian spoke, Tai's eyes glowed, staring solely at Dorian's eyes, as though getting drawn into him with each passing second.

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