Chapter 4

Brandi Ratcliff took her first step away. Her boot snapped a dry twig, the sharp crack echoing loudly through the damp, silent trees.

Cason lay in the mud, his dark eyes locked onto her retreating back. His mind was a chaotic mess. The memories of his past life-the endless betrayals, the knives in his back from people who smiled at him-clashed violently with the reality of the crude linen bandage wrapped tightly around his chest.

He gritted his teeth and tried to force mana into his legs to stand. A blinding, tearing pain ripped through his damaged core. His muscles gave out, and he slammed back into the wet earth with a heavy thud.

Brandi heard the noise. She paused for a fraction of a second, her index finger tapping lightly against her thigh, but she didn't turn around. She kept walking.

She was about to disappear behind a thick cluster of thorny bushes.

The primal instinct to survive overpowered Cason's deep-seated paranoia. His throat was raw, his voice cracking as he forced the word out.

"Wait."

Brandi's lips curved into a tiny, victorious smile. She instantly wiped it away, replacing it with a look of deep annoyance as she turned her head to look over her shoulder.

She raised one eyebrow. "What? I stopped you from bleeding out. My charity ends there."

Cason swallowed hard, the humiliation burning in his chest. "Take me with you. Get me out of this forest. I will... I will repay you. Whatever you want."

Brandi rolled her eyes inwardly. A villain's empty promise meant nothing to her. She wanted the system's instant payouts.

She pretended to weigh her options, her eyes scanning his broken body. She walked back to him and stood over him, extending her pale, dirt-smudged hand.

"My name is Brandi Ratcliff," she said coldly. "I'll take you. But you are dead weight right now. You do exactly what I say."

Cason stared at her hand. He hesitated, his jaw ticking, before he finally reached up and gripped her fingers.

The moment their skin touched, the mechanical voice chimed in Brandi's head.

[Initial bond established. Daily investment task triggered: Share water.]

Brandi hauled him up. Cason's legs buckled, and he stumbled forward, his heavy frame crashing into her shoulder.

He instinctively tried to shove himself away from her, hating the vulnerability, but as he moved, he caught the scent of her hair-a faint mix of crushed herbs and fresh blood. The scent bypassed his defenses, forcing a strange, tiny knot of tension in his chest to loosen.

Brandi didn't complain about his weight. She grabbed his arm and threw it over her shoulders, wrapping her arm around his waist to support him. Together, they began the agonizingly slow trek through the dense forest.

After half a mile, Cason's breathing grew ragged. His skin was burning with fever, and his cracked lips were bleeding slightly.

Brandi stopped walking. She leaned him against the rough bark of a massive oak tree.

She reached into the deep pocket of her riding pants, secretly accessing her system inventory, and pulled out a leather flask filled with cold, clean water.

She popped the wooden cork and shoved the flask toward his face.

"Drink," she ordered, her tone harsh. "I'm not carrying a corpse."

Cason eyed the flask suspiciously. He took it with shaking hands and brought it to his lips. He drank greedily, the cool water soothing the raw burn in his throat.

The system panel flashed gold in Brandi's vision.

[Investment task 'Share water' complete. Reward: 50 Premium Mana Crystals.]

Brandi's heart did a happy leap, but her face remained a mask of stone. She snatched the flask back the moment he finished and shoved the cork back in.

Cason wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. He stared at her sharp profile. The contradiction was driving him crazy. Her words were venomous, but her actions were keeping him alive.

"Why are you doing this?" Cason asked, his voice low and laced with heavy suspicion. "You don't know me."

Brandi knew exactly how to handle a paranoid villain. If she claimed she was just a good person, he would never trust her.

She let out a harsh, cynical laugh. "Don't flatter yourself. This forest is crawling with beasts. If something jumps out of the bushes, I need a meat shield to throw at it while I run."

Cason blinked. Then, the tension in his shoulders completely vanished.

That was it. That was the brutal, selfish logic he understood. It made perfect sense in this twisted world. He actually felt a wave of relief wash over him. He found this cold, calculating woman far more tolerable than the hypocrites who preached righteousness before stabbing him in the back.

They rested for a few minutes before Brandi hauled him back up.

Just as the sun began to dip below the horizon, casting long, bloody shadows through the trees, the dense foliage finally broke.

They stepped out of the tree line onto a wide, packed-dirt road. In the distance, the warm, flickering lights of a sprawling town illuminated the dusk.

Clearwater City.

Brandi stared at the lights, her index finger tapping a slow rhythm against her thigh. That city was a goldmine, the perfect place to start pouring her new wealth into her favorite investment project.