When the demon servant’s words reached Michael and Elliot’s ears, the two exchanged a quick, shock-filled glance, their mouths agape in a moment of surprise they couldn’t conceal as their heads snapped toward the servant.
Michael was on the verge of asking a direct question to test the boundaries of this loophole, but the demon servant raised a hand coldly, cutting them off before either could utter a single word:
"I know.. I know exactly what you’re about to ask. Is there a specific number of [Merits/Points] that can buy a deed of freedom and a permanent exit from this castle?"
The demon servant looked at their faces; the duo settled for a slight, calculated nod, careful not to show overeager excitement that might betray their desperate urge to escape.
The servant continued with a mocking smirk: "Well.. the option both exists and doesn’t exist at the same time!"
Bewildered looks washed over both Michael and Elliot’s faces simultaneously. Wasn’t that a blatant contradiction in a single sentence?!
"What do you mean ’exists and doesn’t exist’?!" Michael blurted out with a touch of heat.
Elliot placed her feminine hand under her chin, speaking in a calm, analytical tone that added layered insight: "Does that mean it’s an available option on the System’s official menu, but priced at an impossibly astronomical cost of points? Just a ’dangling carrot’ designed to motivate sacrifices toward hard labor and complete obedience, duping them into believing there’s light at the end of the tunnel while their energies and souls are completely drained before ever reaching it?"
The demon servant’s eyebrows twitched slightly in mild surprise: "Wow!.. Hats off to you, smart human woman! A spot-on analysis.. The option to buy freedom does indeed exist and can be bought theoretically. It isn’t an unspecified number either; rather, it’s determined based on the sacrifice’s strategic importance and the rank of the couple wishing to leave. Ordinary sacrifices usually cost around 10 million points. As for your special case.. I can’t guess accurately since it’s beyond my pay grade, but I guarantee it won’t be a single point under 100 million!"
From 10 million to 100 million points?! That was a tenfold jump!
Michael ran a rapid mathematical calculation in his head: if every grueling mission granted a sacrifice a maximum of 100 points, and the two executed a daily mission without fail, they would need over 2,000 years of continuous enslavement!
This was absolute madness and pure absurd nonsense! It was a forced labor system wrapped in an illusory bubble, much like a carrot dangled before a donkey—it thinks it will reach it, yet it remains an untouchable mirage.
Elliot initiated a telepathic link with Michael:
{I’m wondering to myself.. even if we assume for argument’s sake that someone managed to hoard this miraculous number and free themselves, is there any guarantee they won’t be tracked down and dragged back into captivity?}
Michael smiled bitterly on the inside upon hearing Elliot’s question, replying via telepathy:
{The real question, Elliot, is: can any living creature even survive long enough to reach that number in the first place?! And even if a miracle happened and someone hoarded it, they’d be nothing more than a hollow husk whose power and talent were milked across thousands of missions—which are undoubtedly suicidal. That is, of course, assuming they didn’t spend a single point for two millennia, which is practically impossible!}
Elliot pondered this profound point. The System offered zero guarantees post-release, not to mention that the castle administration held complete control over the [Point System]. They could simply freeze quest distribution or jack up prices overnight under the guise of security protocols, deterring sacrifices from ever reaching the goal without needing to hunt them down outside!
This discovery deepened their doubts about the success of their current plan to lure the Eighth Prince (Halza) through greed. As a member of the imperial family, the prince would undoubtedly be aware of these strict, impossible rules through which the world’s laws had framed the loopholes of their old draft!
After the execution ritual concluded, Michael and Elliot were escorted back toward their suite down the corridor.. But before arriving, they were taken on "guided tours" around the castle. It wasn’t a real exploratory tour throughout the castle grounds as they had envisioned—tours required points, naturally!—but was instead restricted to the perimeter of their suite, passing by the luxurious wedding hall and the magical altar where they had awakened on their first day.
Elliot attempted to request permission to step closer to the altar and inspect its magical runes, but the demon servant shut her down flatly, stating that free movement off the designated path required a point balance! Elliot stepped back with cold, suppressed annoyance.
On the way back, the two managed to catch fleeting glances of the sector’s central kitchen, the rehabilitation infirmary, the guard barracks, and the magical watchtowers.. before being nudged back into their suite as the heavy iron door slammed shut behind them, locked by the two massive guards.
Within minutes, two new demon maidservants entered, carrying a lavish platter piled with cooked meat and magical vegetables, alongside cups of water and an additional glass filled with a thick, suspiciously yellow liquid that resembled gastric fluid ejected after vomiting!
One of the maids spoke in a stern, emotionless tone:
"Listen carefully to the new regulations.. Due to your special importance to the Alliance at this stage, it has been decided that you will receive daily mandatory magical drugs: [Personality Altering Pills]. Your vital signs will be checked daily to ensure compliance!"
Both Michael and Elliot were completely caught off guard by this forced development; this protocol was something they had never written in their novel draft!
The maid continued, clarifying the mechanism: "To be frankly blunt with you, these magical drugs work by overriding your original consciousness and forcing you to act as entirely different personas whose traits have been meticulously calibrated by the High Council for an entire night!.. In other words, there are pills that trigger a fierce, aggressive persona, and others that activate a tender, affectionate persona.. The most crucial part is that during this period, you will be in a semi-comatose state or deep sleep, while your bodies react instinctively and automatically according to the persona injected by the pill!"
Silence fell over the suite. A chill of genuine panic surged through their very souls!
This was a real crisis.. a catastrophe by all metrics and bounds!
If their consciousness was completely neutralized and their bodies were driven by these magical drugs to perform forced intimate roles, wouldn’t that inevitably lead to their bodies merging and full physical contact occurring without any ability to think or refuse?!
That was the ultimate disaster. If that happened and they produced the Child of Destiny at this stage, the Sacrificial Mark would complete its energy cycle immediately, devouring their bodies and souls whole until they died in the end!