Hearing these words Esdras's expression was twisted in rage, he was shaking internally at being used by these evil bastards so easily.

Celine was doing much better than expected, she was quick to suppress her fear of this monster. Perhaps it was because her mind was already occupied.

"Y-you, can you save this man? If you do I don't care what you want from me, I will give anything in return."

The twisted dark cloaked wraith laughed, "very well, a deal struck with my mistress is a deal that cannot be broken in truth. Give me a drop of your blood and I will know if you are lying or trying to deceive me."

The wraith unfurled his hand that was covered in plate armor. Celine did not hesitate, she was in a hurry, if Esdras died then he couldn't be saved at all.

She bit her finger and a drop of blood fell on the wraith's hand creating a sizzling noise.

"Hmm, very well. The agreement is simple, we save this man and you will come to the shadow realm where you will be reborn as a servant of my queen, for eternity. Now this man will be saved and restored to full health, and now a fragment of your true soul will be taken to ensure you won't back out. Is this agreeable?"

"When will I have to go to the shadow realm?" Celine asked.

"When my queen deems, I do not presume to know." The wraith answered.

"Fine, but can you also make it so that I will forget this? I… I don't want these memories until I get taken to the shadow realm…"

"…. My queen has agreed."

Suddenly the weather above started to change from clear sky to dark clouds blocking the stars.

Esdras couldn't see clearly but he could see an indistinct figure of an elegant woman in a gothic dress. Her features were unclear and her entire existence was flickering.

This was only a projected image.

She reached out with her hand and pointed at the dying Esdras from afar. Suddenly, his organs and flesh started growing back at incomprehensible speed.

Within a few blinks, when he was dying without hope, he was now back to normal as if he wasn't injured in the first place. It was an otherworldly power that defied common sense and made a deadly blow into an insignificant event.

He was literally saved with a gesture.

Seeing this Celine smiled in relief and even as the Queen pointed at her to extract a golden glowing fragment of her true soul, she didn't seem to mind in the slightest.

This scene was in engraved into Esdras's mind and body as he watched himself in the memory lying there helplessly, unaware of what was even happening around him.

He even had the gall to think that everything was going to be fine. That he somehow, miraculously survived without any consequences.

However reality was far from being that nice! How could things happen for bo reason?

The memories ended and Esdras was back in the real world. He got up and walked out of the room telling Celine that he was going for a walk.

He didn't stay or look back because he didn't want her to see his face, right now he was experiencing a flood of mixed emotions.

He got out of the fortress and deep into the forest. It was then that he used his Divination trait again. He had to confirm something.

This time the scene he was watching was before he was ambushed by that warlock. He wanted to know how he was held in place and didn't notice the existence of the warlock.

He was cautiously traveling with Celine and David when he suddenly froze in place. Through the effect of the divination he was able to see several ethereal chains binding his body and black shadow blocking his eyes.

He didn't see those things back then, they were completely new to him. That was when the divination took him somewhere else, not too far but it did bypass the warlock.

Into the forest, he once again saw that chained wraith, the servant of the Queen of dusk and gloom. He was the one who blocked his senses and held him in place.

The divination ended and he was once again back in the real world. Suddenly he started laughing, really hard like someone who just heard the joke of the century.

He held his stomach and leaned on the trunk of a nearby tree. He laughed and laughed, it was like he won't ever stop laughing. But then he suddenly stopped.

Under the light of the sun, the shadows hid his face in darkness and it couldn't be seen. Esdras then pulled out a waterskin and washed his face in that cold water.

His expression returned to calmness. There was no used in fussing over things that were now beyond his control. The solution is easy.

To get stronger.

It was simple, not complicated. Not easy but simple. He had the means to get stronger than anyone else, faster than anyone else. That was the truth.

He came to this world a month ago and he was already a Rank 2 being, he was sure of himself. So what if it was some so-call queen?

She dared to scheme against him and trap his woman? Fine! Then she should be prepared to see the consequences of her actions.

He was not some ant that could be used and then disposed of so easily. He was going to make her regret saving his life. She will look upon this day and curse herself to death, yet not being able to die.

However, Celine… he couldn't reveal that he knew what happened. She wanted to forget so that she wouldn't be constantly worrying about when she was going to be taken.

So, he had to treat her like normal and pretend that he didn't know, for her sake.