Marvin reached into his bag and pulled out a soul contract with all its terms already written. Aurora took it and scanned every clause. The contract mostly detailed necessary team cooperation rules such as both parties agreeing not to harm each other in any direct or indirect manner. One clause in particular caught her eye at the end:

  The contract shall remain in effect for 5 years. Party A (Marvin) will provide Party B (Aurora) with sufficient knowledge and training to help her grow strong enough to protect herself. In return, as long as Party B does not violate the terms of our cooperation, she must follow Party A's instructions. All spoils acquired by the team shall be distributed by Party A.

  It was a standard mercenary apprentice agreement.

  "So you mean you will teach me combat skills in exchange for my service?" Aurora asked.

  "Exactly," Marvin replied with a smile. "You now possess initial extraordinary power, but you do not yet know how to use it properly. I will show you how to make effective use of your own strength. In return, you will work for me for a period of time. It seems only fair."

  "One more thing," Aurora said. "Help me get my revenge. Kill those vampires in your house. And set a time limit for that."

  It was clear that the girl still harbored a measure of caution and mistrust toward him. Marvin was not troubled by it. In fact, according to the main storyline, a world-class total war was only a few years away. No matter how powerful an extraordinary individual may be, going solo would eventually lead to their downfall.

  That was why there was every reason for Marvin to build a high-level combat team that obeyed his orders. As for those teammates, whether they trusted him at first or not did not matter; once they tasted the rewards, they would naturally be bound by mutual interests.

  "Very well," Marvin wrote with his pen. "Within one week."

  Revenge in one week? Aurora felt a surge of excitement, but in front of Marvin she suppressed it fiercely and coldly watched him sign his name on the soul contract.

  "Done," Marvin said as he handed her the contract. "Take a look."

  Aurora re-examined the contract. In her heart, she confirmed the key terms: Marvin would teach her to harness her extraordinary power in exchange for her service for 5 years. The revenge clause was merely an extra bonus.

  To her, it was not an unacceptable arrangement. If she could obtain extraordinary power that very night, then her parents would never have been slain by those vampires breaking into the house. And now that she was a member of the bloodline, if she lacked the power to defend herself, it was only a matter of time before the church discovered her and executed her.

  With these thoughts, Aurora signed her name at the end of the contract under Party B.

  "Good. Now we are partners for life and death," Marvin said with a smile as he folded the contract, feeling an invisible extraordinary force bind them together.

  "Remember to help me get my revenge, Mr. Marvin," Aurora said coldly.

  "Do not call me 'Mr. Marvin.' Just call me by my name," he replied as he unbuckled the short sword from his waist. "This is a weapon for you."

  "A weapon?" Aurora took the short sword from him.

  "Some among the bloodline believe that claws and magic are the best weapons of all. But that is not so. Until you reach Level 5, an excellent weapon remains essential. Do you know why your previous attempts to attack me were always blocked by my sword?"

  "Why?" Aurora asked.

  "Because my sword may be short, but its reach is enough," Marvin explained matter-of-factly. "Before you can land a hit, my sword has already met you."

  "If that is the case, then why not use a longer weapon?" Aurora tried to reason. "For example, a longsword or a spear."

  "If you chase only distance, why not choose a sniper rifle?" Marvin shook his head. "Weapons with a longer range become more fragile in close combat. Longer means stronger, shorter means riskier. That is the way it is."

  "For bloodline members with great agility, short swords and daggers are the most suitable. Daggers are strong in offense but weak in defense, while short swords offer a more balanced approach."

  "You have only just become a bloodline member. You are not yet familiar with your own extraordinary power," Marvin continued. "Extraordinary power must be assimilated through practical training so that it can be transformed into either physical strength or mental strength. Besides, bloodline members are nocturnal creatures who do not require sleep. Our first training session starts tonight."

  "Run with all your might across the hill to the cemetery on the opposite side, use your short sword to hack off a branch from the shrub beyond the fence, then sprint back and toss it into the fire so that the flames never die out throughout the night. That is all."

  Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  "And you?" Aurora asked. "Will you watch me?"

  "Of course not," Marvin said. "I am human. I need to sleep."

  He removed his damp cotton cuirass and chainmail, and found a flat spot near the fire where he lay down to rest.

  Aurora watched him silently. Then she took her short sword, turned, and left.

  Running under the moonlight was a novel experience for Aurora. In her past life she had always been the obedient type who never ventured out after 7 o'clock in the evening. Now, as a bloodline member, she adapted to the night surprisingly well, and deep inside she felt a stirring impulse. It was a hunger for killing and a thirst for the hunt.

  She raced to the far end of the cemetery. Outside the fence, dry, withered shrubs lay scattered. In a flash, Aurora vaulted over the fence and swung her short sword fiercely at the nearest shrub.

  The shrub was pressed down by the blade, then bounced back unscathed.

  After a moment of silence, Aurora realized why: her short sword was not particularly sharp and the shrub was elastic. Pure hacking could only deform it.

  She reached out, grasped a clump of the shrub, and with her right hand, used the short sword to cut the branch at its base. Then she grabbed the branch and sprinted back.

  Running back into the abandoned house, Aurora was shocked to see that the fire had dwindled considerably. Apparently, no one had added more wood, and the pile had nearly burned out. She quickly tossed the branch into the fire and then dashed back toward the far end of the cemetery.

  After several trips, Aurora finally grasped Marvin's training plan. Each time she could only cut off one branch, and the fire burned down quickly. Therefore, the time spent running back and forth had to be minimized. Her sprint speed had to be maximized.

  Stopping to cut another branch was a waste of time. Instead, during her sprints she could grab a branch from the shrub, press her right-hand short sword against its base, and, using the momentum of her sprint, cut the branch off directly. This method would even save the motion of swinging her arm.

  Back in the abandoned house, there was no need to run all the way to the fire pile. Within just a few steps she could toss the branch into the fire, saving a few precious seconds.

  After running back and forth more than a hundred times, Aurora finally noticed her physical strength had grown. Her explosive leg power, her ability to maintain balance on rough ground, and her reaction speed to swiftly cut her target all improved noticeably.

  The bloodline trait she had acquired during her first embrace, along with the enormous extraordinary power within her, was continuously strengthening her body. She was growing stronger at a pace she could see with her own eyes!

  Morning.

  Marvin sat up and patted his sore shoulders. Sleeping on the ground was not pleasant at all. There was reason why everyone in the world used pillows when they slept. He opened his eyes and looked toward the small fire at the center of the abandoned house.

  The fire had dwindled but was not completely out. A few branches still crackled inside. Suddenly, a branch flew in and landed in the fire. Aurora stood at the doorway of the abandoned house, expressionless as she watched him.

  "You are awake," she said.

  "I am awake," Marvin replied, rising and donning his armor once more. He secured his longsword and handgun. His mouth felt dry. He longed to brush his teeth.

  "The training is effective, isn't it?" Marvin said. "We should leave this place now."

  "During training, I felt a bloodthirsty impulse. I had a desire to rip apart or chew on some creature. I do not know if it is merely my imagination," Aurora began hesitantly.

  "That is the extraordinary trait of Sanguine's Thirst I at work. It contains a trace of alien emotion. When you absorb it, it may cause a change in your own consciousness. But you are only at Level 1 now, so the negative impact should be minimal. I believe if you concentrate your attention, you will be able to suppress that impulse," Marvin said with a dismissive wave of his hand.

  "Yes," Aurora replied.

  "Then that is settled," Marvin said as he stepped out of the abandoned house.

  The two of them walked down the hill and left the cemetery. Marvin stopped by a nearby clothing shop and purchased a black robe. He changed Aurora's linen shroud and covered her face, so that familiar onlookers would not think she had risen from the dead.

  Without delay, they rushed to the next shop, the same blacksmith shop they had visited last time near the school where Marvin worked.

  "Boss," Marvin said as he walked in, pointing to Aurora draped in a black robe behind him. The shop owner hurried forward. "Give this lady a set of chainmail made entirely of steel rings that do not restrict normal movement."

  "Also include a set of fitted leather armor. It should be fully tanned with extra supple joints, with shoulder plates that help distribute weight. And of course, there must be three layers of linen padding inside," Marvin continued.

  "Certainly, Master Fontaine," the shop owner bowed deeply. He had already decided that Marvin was a major patron. "However, a full steel chainmail must be custom-made by our smiths. Delivery may take one month."

  "Five days," Marvin said. "I will give you 50 pounds. For the steel rings, go to the factory across from Gold Horn Bay. You may hire other smiths to work on the chain. In five days I will come to pick it up. I will prepay a deposit of 20 pounds."

  The shop owner quickly calculated his potential profit of 5 to 15 pounds and immediately agreed. "No problem, Master Fontaine. Nordric! Quickly go to the factory across from Gold Horn Bay and order 15000 steel rings for the chainmail. You must finish before 5 in the afternoon so you can have dinner on time!"

  Under the shop owner's frantic instructions, the entire blacksmith shop erupted into chaos. Soon, a worker's wife timidly came out and led Aurora to an inner room to take her measurements. Marvin stood outside the shop and watched the bustling street. After a while, Aurora emerged wearing fitted leather armor.

  "Because you were afraid of being recognized, I had a mask made for you," Aurora said as she lifted the hood of her black robe to reveal a mask underneath. It was a simple black tear-face mask, the sort worn by tragic actors in ancient Xiris dramas.

  "Very well," Marvin nodded. "Next, we must take care of your revenge."

  They headed to the district where Marvin's ancestral home was located and checked into a hotel, booking a room on the fifth floor. From the room's window, they could clearly see the street outside the gate of the ancestral home.

  "Are you planning to use a sniper rifle to take out the vampires that come out from that position?" Aurora asked.

  "No," Marvin replied. "This room is for you. You are here to watch your enemies fall."

  "Oh," Aurora said, understanding at last. She assumed that because her own strength was still too low, Marvin would go out and kill them alone while she remained safely behind to witness the result.

  Leaving Aurora in the hotel room, Marvin quickly left the hotel and returned to the Saint Sophia district where he had purchased his gun the previous day. He strode straight into the great church.

  "I want to report a crime," he announced at the pulpit to the chief bishop.