16. The Wandering Warlock
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"Mother?" Raven stopped and gave a helpless look at the woman dragging an extra-large mountaineering bag at a speed worse than a tortoise.

No, her new family did not mean to abuse her. It was her own doing; she volunteered for this thankless and strenuous task alone for a reason. Currently, they were walking in the middle of Hot Dunes, the barren area below the majestic Crucible Mountain.

The scorched earth with its overwhelming heat reflected by the undulating hills of sand felt like a punishment from heaven. Clayton looked back from time to time to check on her situation, his expression was hard to describe after seeing it. 

Sweat and sand matted her face making her look like that poor dirty cat he frequently saw in their yard. The glamour of Lady Elford melted just like that. On the bright side, she had shed several pounds now after days and days of his 'training'. He could have appreciated his lady's tenacity if not for the funny faces she made whenever she was suffering. 

If she's really in so much despair, why not stop? 

"Need help?" 

Ayan wheezed and gave him a ferocious glare. Those grey eyes flashing, and he swore he could see it sizzling with lightning. 

"Ten more steps… p-please don't tempt me," she said, making a shushing gesture. 

Clayton gave a nod, then turned into the twins. Alright, let's not anger the already grumpy cat lest it evolve into a sabertooth tiger. 

At twenty steps, she finally stopped torturing herself. The family came into an oasis before the sun dropped to the west. Ayan, with a fire on her butt, hurriedly ran into the water and plunged headfirst to take her first sip of cool clean water. 

"I'm alive~" she groaned and rolled to her side.

Although her body was in agony, her spirit was refreshed.  

"The effect of lake water on you has reached its peak. Your husband never doubted your rapid weight loss after shedding the toxins in your body. You are now in optimum health lass!" 

Ayan can now relax. It's just that she did not expect her own body to be poisoned, she thought she was only oversized because of an unhealthy diet. Thinking about the memories she had, it was a great wonder how she became so big with her poor appetite. 

So it turned out to be abnormal after all. And if doubt came to mind, the rest of the things she remembered became suspicious. How could Ayan turn into a soulless doll when she never had an accident aside from giving birth?  

In the first year of the twins, she was still able to fulfill her obligation as a happy mother. Breastfeed, bathe and play with them. But she worsened and became distant as time passed Clayton had no choice but to hire a nanny. It's not unusual for nobles to leave the care of their children to a nursemaid; in fact, it is the common practice causing a lack of emotional attachment to many families. The lady personally rearing her children was already very rare. 

Unfortunately, the nannies hired did not last long and were always frightened by Ayan's intermittent hysterics.

"I know you keep a lot of things from me." She extended her hands inside the fairy ring and pinched the fairy's face.  

"Hey, I gave you a copy of the novel." He pouted cutely. "If you feel things are far from what you believe, then feel free to investigate. However, I cannot disclose everything or else Heaven's Law will punish me."

Ayan frowned letting him go abruptly, "Punishment? What kind? Is it painful?"

"Obliteration." The fairy boy cried poorly while rubbing his ravaged cheeks.

She was worried for her little aid all of a sudden. Such a small thing will become short-lived if she was careless. 

Sensing that his strategy worked, Coco flew back to the tree to hide then stuck his tongue out playfully. "I'm sorry my master, this is for your own good."

Ayan was still comforting him when she suddenly heard the panic calls from behind. 

"Ayan, don't drink the water!" Clayton rushed too late, all he could do now was to pull her up to the bank and make her vomit.

"What?" she asked, confused.   

Clayton held her shoulders, "How much did you drink? How do you feel?"

Frantic eyes met her blank ones. When Clayton pointed at the water, her expression turned green and without any urging, she began to vomit violently. A huge black thing was floating in the middle of the water and who knew how long that corpse had been there!

She heaved while hunched on the side. A torrent of water mixed with pasta and some bits of bacon came out from her throat. None of them noticed that the seemingly still 'corpse' began to wriggle, disturbed by the noise they were creating. 

A sound of wading through the water surface came closer and closer, and to everyone's astonished eyes, an old man wearing a sopping wet black robe and a long beard came out of the oasis.

"Huh, that was refreshing!" the old coot said with a wide grin. The pleats on his face stretched.

With a few flick and swish, his wet clothes were dried, the same with his hair. 

Warlock. 

Carmine vigilantly pulled Raven to his side. 

"Oh, people finally! Don't be nervous, I am but a simple traveller. I am called Darius, I came from the west and it pleases me to see a fellow traveller in this bleak desert." 

Ayan already stopped vomiting after knowing that it wasn't a corpse they found but an old man who was too thirty that he decided to swim in his drinking water.

"Y-You…"

"Do not fret, I am not malicious."

No, err, she just wanted to ask why he was floating in the water. 

"From the west? How did you end up here?" Clayton asked, not lowering his guard.

Old Darius walked a few steps, chose a nice boulder and sat himself to it before telling his tale. 

"At first I was only meaning to collect a few herbs in the forest for alchemy. I did not expect to be chased by wraiths all the way to the Crucible Mountain. I have travelled miles from west till here, the only compensation is that I was able to get the herbs I wanted."

This is a case of running away until you can no longer find your homeland. Everyone felt sorry for the old stray all of a sudden.

"No, don't look at me like that. I have no regrets. I am originally a nomad after all."

You should have said so from the beginning. Give me back my sympathy! Ayan wailed.

"How about you young ones?" 

Since his eyes were on Carmine, the little baby felt like he should answer, "We are running away."

Raven held his forehead, wishing to return this brother to their mother's womb. Sometimes he doubted if they really are twins and wondered which one of them was picked up.

Darius laughed. 

"We are travelling to our new home. Father said so," Raven corrected flatly.

"Never mind, never mind. I can only say that we are the same."

Clayton looked even more suspicious. 

"Well, I mean it. Not to brag, but I have half of the continent eager to shoot me." He laughed freely. "I am also running away so to say."

Ayan thought this old man was funny, but she wouldn't underestimate him just because of that. He crossed the seemingly endless interconnected belts of Crucible Mountain alone while being chased by wraiths. As to how he made it here without injuries? They can only imagine.

The conversation could have dragged on if not for the monstrous howl of Darius' stomach. Then, he fell to the ground. 

"Ohhh, I thought water was enough," he groaned miserably.

As a result, the original four people became five sitting around a campfire waiting for a pot of stew to cook. 

"Please have this for now," Ayan said, handing the old man a hamburger she made earlier. 

Tears of joy gushed out like a waterfall from Darius' eyes after seeing food. 

The meat was carefully meat minced by Clayton which is half veal and half beef. She picked lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers from the space garden, cut them thinly before topping it on the juicy patty and finishing it with cheese and ketchup.

The twins drooled looking at Darius relishing the hamburger down to the last bite. They were not allowed to eat any snacks before dinner… how sad. But then, they saw their father sneaking a bite of spicy flavoured beef jerky and their faces crumpled.

Unfair! How could mother forget her beloved babies? 

Ayan saw Clayton teasing his sons on purpose and melted for some reason. Is this the famous young commander who kills like the devil on the battlefield? He's like a kid in the back alley deliberately poking others to cry. Quite a tall reputation was instantly demolished by him.

It made her giggle. 

This also made Ayan remember that Clayton is still a young adult. Mischief is as natural as breathing. 

Young adult my foot. He got his wife pregnant at the age of--- 

(ʘᗩʘ’) 

...wait, that's me. That means this body got pregnant at the age of s-s-sixteen.

Her mind screamed rogue.

The slightly scorched scent coming out of the pot woke her up immediately. Tch, why panic over it when underage marriage is so common in this world? The earliest marriage could be at the age of fourteen! Hypnotizing herself that it was legal, she calmed down. 

This is not the modern world where the age of consent is eighteen. Here, eighteen is already considered old and finding a marriage prospect becomes difficult. 

Dinner was hearty with an additional companion, especially if that companion is a good storyteller sharing his past adventures generously.

"Your cooking is worthy of praise, madam," Darius complimented rubbing his belly. "I have had enough of those foods that are either too tasteless or too strong in flavours. Your husband must be always looking forward to your cooking. Sigh~ if I may have the privilege of copying them that would be wonderful."

Clayton caught the last word, "Copying, does Teacher mean the recipe?"

"No, no, I have absolutely no skills in the kitchen. I couldn't even boil decent bathwater without burning a part of the house, let alone cooking." 

The poor guy…

"If not the recipe, I can only give you a few foods, but it would be difficult to avoid spoilage. It will be a pity then," Ayan said. 

Darius cackled happily, "Oh, you young people. Have you forgotten what I am? Is keeping an item such as food would be too hard?"

While saying that, he took out something hidden inside his robe and showed it to them. Reflected by the firelight are two small horns, one was ivory white while the other was obsidian black. 

"Have you heard of Cornucopia?"

Ayan's heart shuddered after hearing it. Heard of it, yes, absolutely. 

"Coco… do you know something?"

Coco sat under the tree with a serene expression on his little face, "I have confirmed his words to be true. It is indeed the fairy artifact Cornucopia."

"That's not what I meant!" 

This is clearly the first cheat item the new heroine acquired to help her pave the way into becoming a Saint! Why did she encounter this thing here?

"Fret not, Ayan. Everything is by heaven's will."

"Will my foot!" she hissed at him. 

Her mind drifted to the second volume.

It was the story of a heroine who becomes a mistress of a high-ranking lord undergoing a series of emotional battles, conflict in beliefs and defying different social status for the sake of love.

It could have been a great tale if it was written tastefully. But after reading it, Ayan couldn’t help but vomit at the hypocrisy. The author must love her darling heroine deeply; she cannot wait to dump all the good things at her feet.

The girl allowed herself to become a mistress in hopes of escaping her fate in the brothel. But quite frankly, a mistress’s position is not much better than a common harlot. (Ayan wasn't being bitter, but looking at it from a rational reader's perspective.)

Perhaps the only good thing about being a mistress is that you can only cater to one man during your contract, enjoy their pampering as they shower you gifts and to a certain extent even buy you a small property. You can live a life like a gentry, but then again you will never be equal to them. Mistressing is a lucrative job for many ambitious women in this world.

This choice has very much destroyed the dear heroine’s path back to high society. She will always bear the stigma of being a paid woman. A plaything.

Her presence alone is a great affront to those gently bred girls of the Circle; that is why no man would dare bring her to a place where most of the high-born frequents.

Realizing this situation, the heroine is of course indignant. She hated the vast gulf dividing the nobles and commoners. She hated the pretentious and ostentatious society to the bone as much as she longed to belong. But what can she do? The Circle has its own set of rules that goes far back to their ancestors. No matter how much she hates, she cannot change let alone challenge it.

The heroine was made pure and innocent to fit the standard character everyone would love. Of course, her character was also tailored to match the greatness of the male leads as well. (Yes, male leads. Unlike the first volume, this one is a reverse harem story!) The dear heroine had a good family background before falling to poverty. 

First on the lead who fell under her skirt-- err charms was male lead number 2. A man embittered by his life experiences and his failed marriage. A man at a loss when it comes to raising his children was lured by the spirit and unbridled personality of the heroine. She was kind-hearted and sweet yet proud and arrogant, someone who would never bow down to his terms considering he bought her.

Surprisingly, this love-hate relationship created a spark to his ever-dreary life and through many interactions and arguments, a love story began to blossom.

Unfortunately, because of her status as a mistress, the male lead cannot marry her. Their relationship will become the biggest scandal that will ruin both of them. What did the author do this time?

Of course, that is to lend a helping hand. This is the part where Ayan wants to roll her eyes. Why? Out of nowhere some distant loyal servant of XXX family that belonged to the ancients came to claim that the heroine is the last living relative of a great lord.

With her lies the great hope of continuing the bloodline through her offspring. Thus, she turned out to be a lady of XXX family; her children, if they were boys, would inherit the unclaimed title that came with vast wealth and properties.

That suddenly makes her and the lord’s status equal. So what about the issue of being a mistress? It was forgotten and never mentioned again.

The heroine came to meet this only relative left, climb back to the social ladder at the speed of a space rocket and enjoy the high life, avenge those who humiliated her and finally met the lords who seem to be blind and treats her as a rare species such that they cannot see any other ladies aside from her.

The end.

As for her prejudice again the aristocrats when they were looking down at her ‘occupation’? It had long melted when she became one of the aristocrats herself.

She went into afternoon teas, soirees, and balls flaunting her newly gained wealth in front of her rivals’ jealous eyes.  

The heroine has to get what she wants. Doesn’t matter if lord number 2 was married and has children. As a member of her harem, he had to fulfil his obligation and that was to widen the heroine's connections. Through him, she was able to display her power when the outbreak came. Selflessly helping the poor and the sick, when male lord number 2 witnessed her goodness, he decided to give her the treasure given to him by an old traveller he met. (Guess what that was.) 

And it was during that time that she also met the other male lords. With the help of the treasure, the outbreak did not succeed in destroying the imperial capital. The last bastion of hope. 

There was no definite description of the male lord number 2's separation with his wife; it was only vaguely stated that she had an accident before the family made it out of the forest. On the other hand, it was thoroughly described how they had a lot of differences and the relationship was loveless and cold.

In the middle of the story, the missing wife returned becoming the catalyst that pushed the events and emotions of the characters into climax. She came to re-establish herself as the lady of the house and the legal wife. Well the poor woman only wanted to stake claim to what’s rightfully hers. And if you were a noble lady, would you even tolerate your respectable husband throwing away your family’s dignity and shamelessly compete with other men for a mistress?

But since she was only here to play the role of a villain, her move was seen as aggressive and vicious. But quite frankly, it was only natural.

A well-educated woman does not fight with tears and wicked tongues but the lady has means to make the hypocritical heroine’s life busy. It’s just that her husband was so infatuated he stood by the mistress' side rather than his wife making the real lady a laughingstock in the Circle.

He could have ended the farce early if he divorced her peacefully and allowed her to take her sons.

In the end, the lady was frustrated. She devised a kidnapping scheme to eliminate the heroine and to spite her blind husband. But well, this is where she finally died. How can she fight several men with high statuses and all of them cannot wait to see her bleed?

Her death created a temporary rift between the main characters. But who cares? They will still get together in the end with the heroine coming back as a brand new lady of some wealthy ancient family to match her harem’s superb pedigree.

Ayan read that story with an effort not to throw it into the fire. If this heroine was truly good and had a sound mind she wouldn't allow herself to become a contracted lover even as a last resort when she knew it would harm her reputation. But she did and she still complained by the unfairness of the system. 

Coco who was fluttering by her side was about to burst into tears.

"I don’t think the marquess is the same blind idiot written in the novel. Not even close to it," he consoled.

"Heh…" Ayan smiled coldly. "We’ll see."

Coco was nervous. Why does it feel that his chosen soul has a split personality? It's scary. 

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