"LordMoonlight here. Testing, testing."

"It's working! I can hear you, my lord!" an overly excited voice shouted somewhere in the background.

Aron's first instinct was to assume someone had bypassed his sensory field and managed to sneak up on him. But a moment later, he realized the voice wasn't coming from his surroundings, it was echoing directly in his mind.

Seeing Rose spinning around frantically, searching for the source, confirmed he wasn't the only one hearing it.

"Really? Bwahahahaha!" the first voice from earlier sounded even more excited.

"I am the one and only! Many know me as the King of Kings, the Slayer of Gods, the Dripper of A..."

"My lord!" interrupted a timid voice. "You are supreme! Words cannot describe your greatness! But, erm… if you don't hurry, the one-minute duration of the Arati Artifact will run out."

"Tsk, tsk. You're no fun," the first voice muttered, sounding disappointed.

Then, dramatically clearing his throat, he continued,

"I, Lord Moonlight, invite you to my glorious gathering three days from now. Whether awakened or unawakened, it doesn't matter! As long as you have cores, you're welcome.

The purpose of this event is to trade goods, artifacts and essentials. Rest assured, I won't tolerate fighting during the event.

His tone turned proud. "The location is Nela Mountain. Entry fee, one awakened core. I got bills to pay, man! And make su..."

The transmission cut off abruptly.

Silence filled the air.

Aron immediately checked the Solara group chat.

[Solara group chat (Members: 9,9999+)]

Among the dozens of messages, he spotted Reaper's message to D-One and several others tagging him right after.

After reading a few, Aron couldn't help but feel awkward.

(The fck? When did I kill someone's brother?)*

He stopped reading and scrolled straight down to the latest messages, most of which were LordMoonlight hyping himself up while others actually joined in, getting excited for the exchange event.

Surprisingly, though, Nela Mountain, the location mentioned, was where Aron had lived before his downfall, before he left the Zone. he'd heard that Rihanna sold the place to some rich second-generation kid for six times its original price.

Deciding quickly, Aron made up his mind to go. He was still quite far from the area, and he wouldn't make it in time if he didn't move soon. Missing the event would be stupid, many awakeners would definitely attend, which meant plenty of talents to claim.

And with his new fortune of cores, he was hoping to acquire a weapon-type Artifact.

From the info he had gotten from Mateo before killing him, Aron was certain Demian was still somewhere in Zone B. That was the main reason he still remained in the zone.

Otherwise, he would have already left for Zone A. With his water control and infinite mana in full speed, he was confident he could reach the zone within a month.

Turning to Rose, Aron decided to stop beating around the bush and go straight to the point.

He stood up from the sofa and placed his hand on her forehead.

Rose, startled, froze in shock as a notification appeared in her vision. Her eyes widened, then shifted to Aron as if he were an alien.

[Water Control has been rented to you by the Saint.]

Payment: 1000 lifespan every month.

Grace Period: 3 days.

(Kill lifeforms to acquire 5% of their lifespan.)

Penalty for failed payment: Death.

You may choose to continue or return the talent after each payment period.

Accept? Yes / No

"Yes or no," Aron said calmly. "You have five minutes to decide. After that, I'm gone."

"But..."

"Five minutes," he repeated, his tone leaving no room for argument.

Rose bit her lip, her eyes glued to the glowing message in her field of vision.

After a moment of hesitation, she clenched her fists.

Aron noticed another slot in his Talent Vault being used and nodded in satisfaction.

Still, he couldn't help feeling bitter whenever he thought about Kaiser, who would only pay 500 lifespan after thirty days.

He couldn't change the amount until the full period was over, but afterward, he could decide whether to increase the cost or take back the talent entirely.

(Time to move to the next rank.)

Aron's eyes gleamed with anticipation. He was about to leave when his senses picked up movement, Rose's trembling hand, slowly reaching for his wrist.

Due to the vast difference in strength, her movement was so sluggish and slow to him, but this time Aron didn't dodge. He wanted to see what she was trying to do.

Rose, realizing he was about to leave, clenched her jaw. Ever since he'd saved her, she'd been wondering why. Aron never liked traveling with anyone, he preferred to move alone. She knew it was normal for some people to help others out of kindness, but not Aron.

Even without spending much time with him, she could tell, his indifference wasn't an act. He truly didn't care. He acted more like a robot than a human being.

But after seeing the notification earlier, she finally understood why he'd saved her.

Every time he looked at her with that detached gaze, she felt small. Pitied. Weak. Being saved by him twice only deepened that feeling.

Anger began to replace the fear she once felt toward him.

When he turned to leave again, she couldn't hold back anymore.

She grabbed his wrist tightly.

"Why are you so heartless?!" Rose shouted. "Do I have to spell it out for you?! I like you! Ever since before the apocalypse, it's like you've hated me!"

"Is it because I'm weak?!"

"I..."

"Yes."

Aron's blunt answer hit her like a slap. His tone was flat, his eyes as calm as ever.

He gently pulled his hand free and turned to leave. He didn't even glance back.

He had only said "yes" because he had no time to waste on emotional outbursts. Love was meaningless. All he cared about now was revenge.

Rose's body trembled. Her teeth clenched so hard it was as if she might break them.

"I promise you…" she shouted, her voice shaking with fury and resolve. "I'll become stronger than you! I'll make you kneel and yield to me!"

Aron paused at the doorway. Without looking back, he said, "I wish you the best of luck with that."

Then he walked out, disappearing into the distance.

Rose stood frozen, staring at his fading silhouette, her eyes burning with determination.

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