He simply stared at the man.
“So?”
The man said, “If you are truly interested, perhaps I can provide some additional information.”
Matthew did not answer. Instead, he asked, “Why?”
The man's smile remained unchanged. “Because the Auction House wishes for our clients to be satisfied. Nothing more.”
Matthew looked at him. He didn't believe him, but he didn't refuse either. He knew that truly valuable information wouldn't just actively deliver itself to his doorstep—unless, of course, the other party wanted something as well.
“And the information?”
The man took out a thin sheet of paper from his breast pocket and handed it over. “Just some public information. It doesn't involve any secrets—just some supplementary details.”
Matthew took it and looked down. There were only a few sentences written on it, but one of them made his pupils contract slightly.
【This fragment was discovered in the underground ruins of the southwest Old District of the Royal Capital.】
【The age of the ruins is unknown.】
【Certain areas are suspected to have been artificially sealed.】
Underground ruins.
The southwest Old District.
Once again.
The man looked at Matthew and said softly, “If you would like to know more, Lord, there will be a more detailed introduction at the auction in three days.”
With that, the man turned and left without lingering.
Aidan watched his departing back and whispered, “Did he do that on purpose?”
Matthew folded the paper and put it into his storage ring. “Yes.”
“Then why did he give it to us?”
Matthew looked toward the deeper parts of the Auction House. “Because he wants to know who we are.”
Aidan was startled. “What do you mean?”
Matthew said calmly, “From the moment we showed interest in that item, others started paying attention to us as well.”
He looked out the window. The sunlight of the Royal Capital was still bright, and the streets were as bustling as ever. Everyone was going about their normal lives, but Matthew knew that starting from today, he had truly stepped into the hidden side of this city.
The Blood-Veined Rapier was not a weapon obtained by mere chance. The Theater District was not just a simple rumor. And the secret hidden beneath the Royal Capital was finally starting to reveal a corner of itself.
Meanwhile, somewhere in the Royal Capital, the hooded figure who had previously observed Matthew pushed open an old wooden door. Inside the room, candlelight flickered, and several figures sat there.
“Has it been confirmed?” someone asked.
The hooded figure nodded. “Confirmed. That sword has appeared.”
“Who is the holder?”
After a brief silence, he spoke a name. “Matthew.”
Inside the room, there was silence for a long time. Finally, someone whispered, “It has been ten years. Who would have thought it would return to the Royal Capital.”
...
After leaving the Auction House, Matthew did not return to the inn immediately. Instead, he walked slowly through the Commercial District for a while.
The streets of the Royal Capital were still bustling, and shopfronts were filled with various goods: magical beast furs, exquisite jewelry, potion ingredients, high-grade fabrics, and all kinds of merchandise from all over the kingdom. When ordinary people saw this, they might only find it lively and think of the Royal Capital as wealthy. But what Matthew saw was another layer entirely: resources.
A massive amount of resources, and they were concentrated in the hands of a select few. This was precisely why all Class holders gravitated toward the Royal Capital. Because everything they wanted was here: better equipment, higher-grade materials, more opportunities, and... greater danger.
“Brother Matthew,” Aidan followed beside him, looking somewhat puzzled. “Are we not heading back now?”
Matthew shook his head. “No rush. There is one more place we need to go today.”
“Where?”
Matthew looked at the map. “The Old District.”
Aidan froze for a moment. “Now?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Matthew didn't answer immediately. Instead, he simply said, “Because there are still three days until the auction. If we go investigate now, we will still have time to prepare. If we wait until after the auction, others will start taking action as well.”
Aidan understood. Investigating in advance always left them with more initiative than following behind others.
The southwest Old District of the Royal Capital was not very far from the bustling areas, but the feeling the two places gave was completely different. If the central area represented the most glamorous side of the Royal Capital, then the Old District was the history left behind by this city.
The roads here were not as wide, and the buildings were visibly older, with traces of time etched into their walls. Some stone houses had even stood for several decades. On both sides of the street, elderly people sat in doorways soaking up the sun, children chased each other in play, and street vendors called out to sell cheap goods. It looked ordinary, even somewhat mundane.
Aidan looked around, slightly surprised. “This place doesn't look dangerous.”
Matthew nodded. “Of course it doesn't. Truly dangerous places won't make everyone feel like they are dangerous.”
The two continued deeper. Soon, they discovered that this place was indeed different from ordinary city districts. Between some of the old buildings, there were obvious empty clearings. Some walls bore traces of having been repaired. And some roads, though clearly leading in a certain direction, had been artificially blocked off.
Matthew stopped in front of a stone wall. He reached out and touched the surface. “Here.”
Aidan looked over. “What is it?”
Matthew didn't answer. Instead, he simply opened his panel.
【Detected residual magic fluctuations】
【Source: Underground】
【Age: Quite ancient】
Matthew's eyes narrowed slightly. Indeed. Underground.
“What used to be here?” Matthew turned and asked an elderly man passing by.
The old man glanced at him. “Young man, you're not from around here, are you?”
Matthew smiled. “It's my first time here.”
The old man shook his head. “This used to be the outskirts of the old theater. It was abandoned later on.”
“Why was it abandoned?”
The old man fell silent for a moment. “I don't know. Anyway, after what happened ten years ago, no one has been willing to come near this place.”
Ten years ago again. The conjecture in Matthew's heart grew clearer and clearer.
“Old gentleman,” Matthew asked, “what exactly happened here back then?”
The old man looked around. After confirming there was no one else nearby, he lowered his voice. “Young man, some things are better left unasked once they've passed.”
Matthew did not press further. Instead, he simply said, “I was just curious.”
The old man let out a sigh. “Curious people... there were plenty of them in the past as well. And later...” He stopped here.
“What happened to them later?” Aidan couldn't help but ask.
The old man shook his head. “Nothing much. They just left the Royal Capital.”
Matthew looked at the old man, knowing he wasn't telling the whole truth. But he didn't continue to push either. He had noticed a pattern: everyone who knew about this matter chose to avoid it. It wasn't because they didn't know, but because they knew a little, yet didn't want to bear the consequences of speaking out.
After parting ways with the old man, Aidan said in a low voice, “The people here are all afraid.”
Matthew nodded. “Yes. And it's not ordinary fear. It's the fear that comes from knowing a certain existence is out there.”
The two continued their search. Soon, they arrived at an even more secluded alley. Almost no one passed through here. At the end stood an abandoned building, its battered stone doors covered in vines. There was also a faded emblem on the door.
Matthew drew closer, and his gaze froze. That emblem... he had seen it before. It was right near the hilt of the Blood-Veined Rapier. Although it was already damaged, the shape was highly similar: a crescent moon, crossed by a blood-colored pattern.
Aidan's expression shifted. “What is this?”
Matthew didn't answer, as a notification had already appeared on his panel.
【Detected cognate energy】
【Source: Unknown ruins】
【Match rate with Blood-Veined Rapier: 37%】
Thirty-seven percent. Although it wasn't high, it was more than enough to prove the connection. The Blood-Veined Rapier was indeed related to this place.
Matthew reached out to touch the stone door. In the next instant, a freezing sensation traveled up from his fingertips. Within his mind, an image suddenly flashed.
Darkness. Underground. Countless torches. A group of people clad in black robes. And... a longsword stabbed into a stone platform.
The image was extremely brief, lasting less than a second before vanishing.
Matthew yanked his hand back, his expression changing for the first time.
Aidan immediately asked, “What's wrong?”
Matthew remained silent for a moment before saying, “It's nothing.” But his gaze had already become far more solemn.
Because in that brief moment just now, what he saw was not an illusion. It was some sort of residual memory left behind by the Blood-Veined Rapier. And in that image, the location of that sword was precisely... an underground altar.
The southwest Old District of the Royal Capital. The old theater. The underground ruins. The Blood-Veined Rapier. The disappearance ten years ago. Now, all the clues were finally starting to point to the same place.
However, just as the two were preparing to leave, footsteps echoed from the distance. They were neither fast nor slow, as if the person had been waiting for them all along.
“You two,” a strange voice called out, “what are you looking for here?”
Matthew turned around and saw a young man standing at the mouth of the alley. He wore a long black coat and carried a faint smile on his face, looking like an ordinary noble. But Matthew knew at first glance that this man was anything but ordinary. Because his presence was too quiet—quiet to the point where he didn't seem like a normal human.
The young man looked at Matthew, his gaze falling on his storage ring. Then, he smiled and said, “If I'm not mistaken, you must be the person who recently acquired that sword.”
The air fell instantly silent. In the alley, the silence was somewhat unnatural. The wind blew past the dilapidated stone walls, kicking up a few withered, yellow leaves. The distant voices of the Old District's residents drifted over faintly, but this place felt as if it had been completely cut off.
The young man stood at the mouth of the alley, a warm smile on his face. He didn't seem to harbor any hostility, nor did he look like someone who had come to cause trouble. Yet, Matthew did not let down his guard, because the implications of what the other party had just said were far too significant.
What did this sentence mean? It meant that the other party knew about the Blood-Veined Rapier, they knew it had recently appeared, and they even knew that he possessed it.
Matthew did not answer. Instead, he simply looked at him calmly. “Who are you?”
The young man chuckled. He didn't answer immediately. Instead, he turned his gaze to Aidan. “If I'm not mistaken, you must be someone from the Knight Academy.”
Aidan's expression changed slightly, and his hand moved to his sword hilt. With just a single glance, the other party was able to determine his identity. This was definitely not the observational skills of an ordinary person.
The young man raised his hands to show he had no hostile intent. “No need to be tense. I just want to confirm one thing.”
“What is it?” Matthew asked.
The man looked at him and said slowly, “That sword... has it affected your mind?”
The air instantly froze. Aidan's pupils contracted slightly. He hadn't expected that the other party's first question wouldn't be about where the sword was, but rather about its side effects. This meant... he knew about the issues with that sword.
Matthew did not answer. Instead, he asked back, “Why do you ask?”
The man was silent for a moment. Then, he said softly, “Because ten years ago, someone else also held it.”
Ten years ago. Ten years ago again. This timeframe had already become the word Matthew heard most frequently of late.
“What happened to him?” Matthew asked.
The man did not answer directly. Instead, he took a few steps closer, though still maintaining a safe distance. “In the end, he died.”
Aidan's grip on his sword tightened slightly. “How did he die?”
The man glanced at him. “He lost control. He frantically attacked everyone around him, and was eventually killed by his own companions.”
Matthew's eyes darkened slightly. This was different from his guess, yet within expectations. The side effects of the Blood-Veined Rapier were indeed no simple matter.
“Therefore,” the man continued, “if you have already felt it, then it means it has begun to affect you.”
Matthew did not deny it. There was no need. The other party clearly knew a lot. Pretending to be ignorant would only diminish his own leverage.
“You know about this sword?” Matthew asked.
The man nodded. “Yes. But not everything. It is very special—far more special than you can imagine.”
“Where does it come from?” Matthew pressed.
The man looked toward the abandoned building. “Here. To be precise, this was once one of the places where it was created.”
Created? Matthew's brow furrowed slightly. Previously, he had always assumed that the Blood-Veined Rapier was merely some kind of special equipment. But now, it seemed things were far more complicated than he had imagined.
“One of them?”
The man nodded. “The true place of creation... no one knows. This was merely a place where it was later kept.”
Matthew remained silent, rapidly organizing the information in his mind.
The Blood-Veined Rapier. Special equipment. Underground ruins. Unknown organization. The disappearance ten years ago. The clues were multiplying, yet the actual answer seemed to be drifting further away.
“Why are you telling me all this?” Matthew asked.
The man smiled. “Because you are holding it right now. And, you don't seem to be controlled by it.”
These words caused Matthew's eyes to flicker slightly. “What do you mean?”
The man said, “Those who obtained it in the past could last a few days at most. They would grow increasingly reliant on the sensation of swinging the sword, loving combat more and more, until eventually, they could no longer distinguish whether they were using the sword, or being used by the sword.”
Matthew fell silent. Because this description aligned perfectly with his own experiences. Yesterday at the training ground, that desire, that urge to keep swinging the sword and see blood—it was indeed not an illusion.
“But you are different,” the man said. “You noticed the problem during your very first use, and you were even able to actively stop.”
Matthew looked at him. “So you think I'm special?”
The man shook his head. “Not special. Just calm.”
These words surprised Matthew slightly.
“For many who possess power, their greatest issue isn't a lack of power, but rather their inability to control the power they have acquired,” the man said. “You seem to understand this point.”
...
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