The azure-winged magpie gazed at the woman in the cage. She didn't feel pain because of the injuries on her body; instead, she met the magpie's gaze with a dreamy expression and alluringly licked the corner of her mouth.

"It's useless on me, you should have known this many years ago." The magpie spoke coldly.

The woman didn't respond, just emitted a soft laugh, which didn't surprise the magpie. The woman rarely answered his questions, nor did she seem to care about her predicament. As for the seductive gestures, given the magpie's understanding of this group, it seemed more like an instinctive hunting behavior.

"I'm so hungry, Mr. Magpie, I can smell the scent of living people. Did you bring me new food?"

The woman stretched her hand out of the cage, twisting her waist voluptuously, showcasing herself to the magpie.

"No, I sent them away," the magpie shook his head, "and I think there's no need for that anymore."

The woman was slightly confused by the magpie's words, "No need?"

Something felt wrong, but as she thought about it, a deep-seated hunger in her mind tormented her.

She had been suffering for many years, ever since she had infiltrated Daisy Castle intending to hunt the magpie's soul. In the end, she was countered and imprisoned, losing her freedom and surviving only on the magpie's occasional benevolence.

Everyone has an unspeakable side, and the magpie was no different. Those who trespassed into his castle with ill intentions eventually died at his hands, then delivered to the woman, prolonging her pitiful existence.

This was essentially a deal between the magpie and the woman, a symbiotic relationship, but from today, the magpie felt it was time to end this twisted connection.

"I remember you said, you... as the Demon, you recognize the scent of your creator, right?"

The magpie spoke while taking out an envelope, suspending it over the woman's head.

"So, can you determine its authenticity?"

The woman stared blankly at the envelope, able to sense the power contained within the paper, a power both familiar and terrifying. Even a faint trace of the aura was enough to prove its reality.

"What can I get?" The woman struggled to maintain her reason, resisting the hunger, and asked the magpie.

"You will gain freedom."

The magpie kept his cold demeanor.

"Don't worry that I'll go back on my word. I bring you souls as food, you provide me clues to the Extraordinary World; we've cooperated for decades, so I think there should be a certain degree of trust between us."

The woman hesitated, then revealed a charming smile with her face pressed against the cage's front.

She affirmed, "It's her, it's her power."

She knew what the magpie intended to do and continued.

"Should I congratulate you, magpie, after so many years of effort, you've finally found her trace."

The magpie's cold expression lasted for a few seconds, then a frenzied smile bloomed on his face. He grinned, laughing silently.

"You should release me now, magpie. You won't break your promise."

The woman pleaded, her gaze pitiful and affecting.

The magpie thought few men could refuse such a woman, and then he considered that this might be the power of the Demon. Even after all these years, the woman remained youthful and enchanting, while he had transformed from a robust youth into an old man.

"No..." The magpie shook his head, and before the woman could angrily rebuke him, he reached out and gently lifted her face, "We've been together for so many years, haven't we?"

His icy gaze was suffused with warmth, and the woman was somewhat bewildered, reading such emotions in this oddball's eyes for the first time.

"If I release you, you would no longer belong to me."

The magpie smiled at the woman, approached the cage, holding a shotgun in one hand, and pulling open his pajamas with the other. His muscles lifted the aging body, along with those scars, under the dim light, he resembled an ancient bronze statue.

"Close your eyes, lift your head."

The magpie leaned down as if to kiss the woman, his voice entered her ears. She hesitated for a moment, repeatedly confirming the magpie's intent through his aged eyes, seeing only sincerity.

The woman quietly mocked, "I thought you were different, magpie."

"There's no helping it; humans are emotional creatures. No matter how rational a person is, it's inevitable to develop feelings for someone they spend each day with... Are you the same? Even being a Demon, you used to be human; don't you feel anything for me?"

The magpie lifted the woman's chin, "Close your eyes."

Smiling, the woman closed her eyes. She guessed it was either time that corroded the magpie's will, or the joy of impending success made him relax his guard. Having been tormented by the magpie for so many years, she had been seeking an opportunity for revenge, and now the opportunity was right in front of her.

She cooperatively prepared to posture for a kiss, in her mind forming plans for the forthcoming attack. After all, she was a Demon, and the magpie was merely an old man. If not for the constraints of the cage and long spikes, killing him would be effortless.

As she thought this, the thunderous sound of a gunshot shattered all her thoughts.

The magpie put down the shotgun, the woman's body lay across the cage, her entire head blasted into a bloody pulp, evenly smeared in the darkness.

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