Chapter 941

“You’re lying.”

The Wolf Steward suddenly turned, tore off his cravat, as if preparing to strike.

“Is that so? Then wait to become a pile of scrap. When you’re scrap, perhaps Alice will create a new Wolf Steward?”

“?!”

Hearing the phrase “new Wolf Steward,” the Wolf Steward’s face twisted. He feared not annihilation—he feared most that Alice would create a new Wolf Steward and forget him.

“Or perhaps your twisted loyalty to Alice has become infatuation? When a new Wolf Steward appears, you’ll be nothing but scrap metal. Your Queen Alice will forget you—or worse, she might do something with the new Wolf Steward. What exactly will happen between your Queen and your replacement? Fascinating.”

Su Xiao’s words stabbed like knives into the Wolf Steward’s heart—even though he had no heart.

“Impossible. The Queen will never forget me.”

The Wolf Steward’s hands trembled. This was his greatest fear. He had accompanied Alice for too long; he had never truly imagined anything more than standing behind her. Now, he was about to become lifeless alchemical material.

“Who knows? Half a month ago, I created an alchemical raven. Now I realize—I seem to have forgotten where I put it. Ah, yes, right here.”

Su Xiao pulled out the discarded alchemical raven. He hadn’t forgotten it—this little thing had done him many favors.

Seeing the alchemical raven in Su Xiao’s hand, the Wolf Steward’s pupils contracted.

“It was just a toy I made on a whim. Its shared-vision ability was decent, but unfortunately, its core alchemical array shattered.”

Beside him, Bubu Wang rolled his eyes. His thought: “Says he forgot it, but kept it all along in his storage space.”

“A pile of discarded alchemical material—that’s its current state. Repairing it is impossible. As for altering it, I currently lack that ability.”

The Wolf Steward kept staring at the alchemical raven in Su Xiao’s hand. It reminded him of himself. Would he become like this? Yes, he would—reduced to discarded material, left in some corner of the castle. He could no longer host the castle game. If lucky, he’d become a decoration. A new Wolf Steward would stand by Alice’s side.

“Wolf Steward, haven’t you noticed?”

“What?”

Su Xiao interrupted the Wolf Steward’s thoughts.

“Your core material… has been reused. That means you might be a replacement for another Wolf Steward. Are you the second? Or perhaps the hundredth? Where did the previous Wolf Stewards go? Did Alice use their discarded materials to make other things? Waste recycling—that’s common among alchemists.”

Su Xiao’s words weren’t knives stabbing the Wolf Steward’s heart anymore—they were a great sword driving down from his crown, piercing straight through to his soles.

The wolf steward stood frozen in place; he had considered this too, for as long as he could remember, the castle game had proceeded orderly, and the old tenants imprisoned within the castle seemed to know him well.

Seeing the wolf steward’s reaction, Su Xiao’s eye twitched—he had just been guessing, but damn if he hadn’t hit the mark. There had been a previous wolf steward before this one.

“Does the process of mutation carry risks for the caster?”

The wolf steward regained his composure.

“Who knows? I already said—I don’t know much about mutation.”

Su Xiao fell silent. Both fell into stillness, yet a seed had been planted. When it would sprout depended on how much time the wolf steward had left. As a high-grade alchemical being, his existence spanned centuries—normal for one of his kind.

Boom.

The wooden hut halted. The wolf steward opened its door. Su Xiao observed him from behind.

Hostility hadn’t faded—it had intensified. But the wolf steward no longer openly displayed it. As for mutual destruction, now that hope existed, he was unlikely to do it—unless Alice gave a direct order.

Su Xiao stepped out of the wooden hut and entered a treasure vault—more accurately, it resembled a palace.

Inside the vault stood rows of square stone pillars, flanked by countless ancient-style wooden shelves, stretching beyond sight, each laden with artifacts.

Alice’s collection totaled 1,582,043 items. From this number alone, one could imagine the vault’s vastness.

The vault’s lighting was dim and golden, casting a dark-gold hue over everything. A red carpet lined the floor, embroidered with gold thread. Several murals adorned the ceiling. Su Xiao paused to observe them.

First mural: A female warrior, wielding a long blade, fought a man with a wolf’s head. Beside them stood an iron cage, its interior pitch-black.

Second mural: The female warrior raised her blade high, her pupils crimson red. In this painting, her style leaned toward evil.

Third mural: The female warrior had lost one arm. The surrounding void was riddled with holes—as if torn by battle. She stood atop the iron cage.

Fourth mural: Her arm had regenerated. Blood dripped from her blade. In her other hand, she held a wolf’s head. The iron cage was gone.

Fifth mural: The scene had changed. A headless body held the iron cage. Two arms reached out from within, gripping the headless body’s hands.

Sixth mural: The headless body collapsed. The iron cage was opened.

…

Only six murals existed, seemingly telling a story. After viewing them, Su Xiao felt the wolf steward bore some resemblance to the wolf-headed man—but only superficially.

At the end of the murals, a line of text was inscribed.

“Silver Epo, my lifelong beloved. You traded your life for my freedom. I will not merely survive. Within my castle, you shall endure forever.”

Connecting this to the murals, Su Xiao surmised Alice had once faced peril and was saved by a wolf-headed man named Silver Epo.

One thing Su Xiao could confirm: the wolf-headed man was not the wolf steward. Their demeanor and physical details differed. Perhaps the wolf steward was born as a substitute—a contradictory one—his core forged from the iron cage, his appearance modeled after the wolf-headed man. Did this symbolize both imprisonment and salvation?

The wolf steward also gazed up at the murals, his thoughts unknown.

“You have ten minutes to choose.”

The wolf steward spoke these words and walked deeper into the vault.

“Ten minutes…”

Su Xiao scanned the surroundings. He felt cheated. The ancient wooden shelves around him held countless items—but all were utterly mundane, revealing no special qualities. He reached out to touch one.

[Cup of Sealing]

Quality: Sealed State

Category: Sealed State

Rating: Sealed State

Description: Sealed State

…

Aside from the name, all other information was unknown. Were Alice’s vault items truly valuable? The answer was no. Over 90% were likely mementos—relics left behind by past players. He had found proof.

On a nearby shelf sat an item he recognized: a broken eyeglass frame. This was unquestionably the relic of the man with the gold-rimmed glasses.

This outcome was unsurprising. Alice’s vault held 1,582,043 items—no, now it held 1,582,044.

Among such a vast collection, many were mementos. Mementos could be white, green, or blue quality, for their value lay not in the object itself, but in the meaning it carried.

Su Xiao’s task: find something valuable among these 1,582,044 items. It was difficult.

ps: (Thank you to the patron “Su Xiao Chan~” for your support. Sigh, Fei Wen owes Grand Patron Su many updates—he’ll work hard to make it up.)