Viers looked upwards to the ceiling. Silence ruled the room, Viers only heard the sounds of his and her breathing. The fireworks show outside was over but the festivities continued still. A stark contrast to the heavy air inside the luxurious restaurant’s private room.

“Not gonna pray to Dumuzin for help? No deal with the devil? You think him as God, right? With a big G? Omnipotent and omniscient? Almost all people I see in this cult think so. You said to me that he came to them in the moment of greatest need and gave reason to live… so why are you different?”

Farley sighed before answering.

“…I pray to him but he never answered. I can only choose the path that I deemed best. Besides, he also teaches us to rely on our own strength.” Farley spoke solemnly. “However… I also think… he’s not omnipotent and omniscient,” the last sentence was uttered with some difficulty and hesitation.

“Answer me this Farley, and remember you gave your everything to me. I forbid you to ever lie to me.” Viers who was for all intents and purposes Farley’s master, looked at her eyes sharply.

“I understand, it will be as your will.”

“Do you think the doctrine of the church is correct? Do good, love your neighbors, protect the innocent, make the world a better place, and all that?”

“…Yes, I believe the world is better by their existence.”

“Then do you think the doctrine of the cult is correct? This cult, Dumuzin’s, I couldn’t care less for other cults. Do what you like, from sacrificing five children during my ritual, killing villagers for distraction during our raid for Faith Water, donating goods and food to the orphanage regularly. Doing good or evil doesn’t matter, but whatever it is you must be ready to shoulder the consequences.”

“Yes, I have always believed that we are the architect of our own actions. The consequences, whether good or bad are ours to bear and ours alone.”

“You realize that you are betraying your cult and your faith for your life and your sister’s?” Viers added.

“Yes, even if Dumuzin himself excommunicated me, I will keep holding his doctrine as my guiding star.” Farley’s eyes didn’t have hesitation clouding it.

It’s eerie how similar Dumuzin’s doctrine with my own way of thought… The way I see it, her faith in Dumuzin isn’t too deep. I prefer not having a single-minded zealot religious fanatic as my follower, I’m glad Farley isn’t that.

I think… she could be useful. And the benefit of doing this should be worth the trouble.

“Good, I still have some questions but we have had enough tonight. Is there anything else you want to tell me?” There’s a subtle glint in Viers’ eyes.

This is a trap. What will you do, Farley? Are you going to say the hidden danger inside me as a sign of your sincerity or you hoped to keep me oblivious about the red tumors and my reduced life-force? This is it, what’s it gonna be? Your next sentences will determine your fate.

Viers didn’t trust Farley. Words were cheap and weight nothing to him. He needed facts and proofs. Should she lie or keep silent about his problem because of the cult joining she forced him to in the first place, Viers would backstab her first before she backstabbed him.

“…There’s a magical anomaly within you. The black thing you drank when you first joined the cult.”

Viers gasped and showed a shocked expression.

“Yeah that’s not gonna work, that’s a terrible fake face. Your facial tics and eye movement are wrong. It is within my prediction that you found out about it.”

“…That bad, huh?”

“I can teach you if you like, I’ve some knowledge about… social etiquette.”

“Fake acting you mean, that’s not a priority right now. Continue your story.”

“It’s harmless until you combined it with a special substance. The combination will cause an extreme mutation to your body. It severely impairs brain function and heightens physical ability. Using a special magic item, the cult can control people who mutated and use them as meat soldiers in the future.”

“Wow, that sounds like a terrible way to die.”

“Every cultist was given that concoction, so when they rebelled or ran away, the cult has a way to control them.” Farley took out a small vial from her purse. “This is the cure,” she put the green bottle on top of the table and pushed it towards Viers.

Viers didn’t expect this development. “You give it to me just like that? Is this a fake?”

“If I’m in your position, I will be angry with the one who roped me into the cult. I know you suffered loses so I already prepared the compensation. I told you in the past that you won’t regret it, I really mean that.” Farley showed her thoughtfulness to Viers.

In other novels, the red tumors would be a plot problem that’s hard to resolve. It can be more dangerous even! Such as it would become active next month, or the cure involves some super rare ingredients, or she tried to get the cure but the treasure vault is closely guarded so I can only get it after decimating the Styra family, or some other nonsense. The point is so the MC always has a looming crisis, so the novel readers would be at the edge of their seats constantly. Thank God I’m not the MC of that kind of novel! Poor sods…

“The substance to trigger it can be taken orally, injected to the bloodstream, or even inhaled, very easy to administer. The official name is Mutant Soldier Potion,” Farley said.

“I’ll confirm the authenticity of this cure first. Although this sickness inside me is mostly because of you, my gratitude for procuring the cure.” Viers took the small green bottle and put it in his pocket. “Anything else to add?”

“Your tier 4 affinity isn’t permanent… No, turning your face to stone won’t work in this situation. It implies you know something about it.”

“Hey, can’t blame a man for trying. I’m not schooled to be two-faced like you,” Viers said half-jokingly.

“I think you’re half making fun of me and half testing me,” Farley grumbled. “Anyway, the ritual isn’t permanent and it will wane in three or four years. The price for your boost were the lives of those five children and some of your own life. About this problem, I cannot solve it completely. I cannot make it permanent or raise it to tier 5 affinity but I can somewhat compensate about the vitality you lost.”

Farley took out another thing from her purse. It was a small pack of dried green leaves. “Vitality Tea. I have to sacrifice a lot for this and only managed to get this much of life boosting items. Boil the leaves and drink the tea, it should give you around five years of lifespan. I admit it’s still insufficient, typically one would lose a decade or two of lifespan for the blood ritual. I will do my best to make up for it in the future. Please forgive my inability!” Farley bowed her head apologetically, as if afraid for Viers’ ire.

Viers didn’t answer immediately, he tapped the table with his finger at a regular interval like a ticking clock. The taping sounds weighted heavily on Farley, she became very worried about the man in front of her. Her mother depicted him as a vicious wolf and she had seen Viers’ behavior to support that claim. In her worries, cold sweat drenched her brows.

But contrary to Farley’s thoughts, Viers wasn’t even angry. He was even impressed by her.

So let me get this straight. She roped me into the cult because of her mother’s vision. The objective is to get my help so she and her sister could survive the looming death at their father’s hand. I kinda suffered hardships because of it but she knew she had to get into my good side so she already prepared compensation. It wasn’t perfect but her way of thinking and mindset are clear to me.

Viers, you know what this is? This is professionalism!

In other xianxia novels, the heroine always got help from the MC but why is that? Because she’s beautiful? Because she saved MC’s life first? Because she’s a personification of all that is good in this world? Because she got a super special OP ability? Because she’s MC’s family? Because her backstory is so heart wrenching that the MC doesn’t have the heart to refuse to help? Because her birth status is so noble and incomparable?

That’s all well and good but what Farley displayed here… is pure professionalism at your workplace! She came clean about my hidden problem then she showed competence by fixing her own mess!

How often a heroine did that in a story? If a certain princess peach could escape from her captive tower without the help of a plumber with a red cap, that game’s story is dead in the water! I don’t want a heroine or friend or companion or anyone near me to be incompetent. You want to come with me, pull your own weight.

Did I ask too much?

Those that answered yes, have never work in an office before. In modern Earth, if you messed up your own work, you fix it even if it meant you have to pull an all-nighter. If the company suffered a loss of money because of your error, a salary cut is a matter of course! As an employee, you are expected to contribute to the company’s growth! After your contribution, only then you should expect the company to reward you.

Farley’s attitude pleased him greatly. From Viers’ point of view, Farley was submitting a resume to join his company, Viers Corporation. This corporation only had one person before, the CEO, and now there’s another.

Viers slowly stood up, the sounds of his chair scratching the floor made Farley flinched. He cast a long deep gaze into Farley’s eyes before extending his right hand.

“You’re hired.”