When the food was brought, Aren's mouth watered. He dug in like someone who had been starved of food for months. Aren loved food, and it wasn't because he got to eat a lot of it and fell in love with it. No, it was because he got very little of it, and so his desire to eat was higher than most. It was trauma eating.

He gobbled a whole plate of steak before moving on to the next. He only touched the vegetables a little, then focused back on eating the meat.

After several plates, he was finally done. He let out a heavy belch and then drank some water.

While he was busy eating, the butler stood there watching him eat, and when he was finally done, the butler stepped forward.

"Seems you enjoyed the meal," he said.

"Enjoyed is an understatement," Aren said as he got up. "But now that I'm done eating, I think it's best I start studying this entire castle," Aren stated.

The butler raised his brow. "You want to learn about the entire castle?" he asked, slightly confused.

"Yhup. I'm pretty sure that the next stage will be here, and I have an inkling of what it might entail, so I'd rather make a mental map as much as possible," he stated.

"Hmmmm, that's quite intriguing. Then how about this? I have found a liking to you, so I'll show you around and show you things that might help," the butler said.

Aren was a little skeptical. "Uhmmmm, why exactly would you even want to do that? Is there an obligation for you to aid me?" Aren asked.

"Oh no, no. There is no obligation for me to help you, but there's also nothing stopping me from helping as well. I am allowed to offer a hand to an awakened, as long as it doesn't interfere with the trials.

I'd suggest you take my help. Not many of us are inclined to helping awakened," he said with a sinister light in his eyes.

Aren stared at the butler. He didn't know why, but it felt as though the butler was threatening him in a way.

"I'm not sure of this man's strength, but from the way the others here respect him, he must have a lot of influence. I should follow what he says for now, but if anything feels off, I'll make a run for it."

"Alright, I'll come with you," Aren said.

"Good. Then please wait for me outside the kitchen. I have to talk to our chefs before I leave," he said.

The air became tense amongst the chefs the moment he said that.

Aren nodded and walked out of the kitchen. The door automatically shut on its own the moment he was out.

Inside the kitchen, the butler stood there with his hands behind his back.

"Some of you fail to understand that your lives here are thanks to Lady Elton," he spoke in a calm tone, his gaze locked on the chef who had nearly overstepped a few minutes ago.

The chef trembled in fear as cold sweat ran down his back. He wanted to look away, but the gaze of the butler kept him stiff.

"You spoke more than you were allowed to, almost spilling some important information," the butler said, then slowly lifted his hand, pointing a finger right at the chef.

The chef's eyes widened. His body began shivering uncontrollably. He tried to fight it, but he was overwhelmed.

The butler then moved his finger to the side.

SPLASH

The head of the chef was instantly blown off into a mist of blood. It spilled onto the ground and table, painting them red. Even at this sight, none of the others flinched.

One person immediately walked to the scene and grabbed the chef by the leg, dragging him out, while someone else came with a bucket to clean.

The butler walked to the door after that. It opened, and he walked out like nothing had happened.

Aren, who was standing outside, spotted some blood the moment the door opened, but he couldn't see it properly. Still, he was sure that something had happened inside.

The butler had a smile on his face. "Come with me. The first place I want to show you is the training grounds. I'm curious to see your strength."

Aren followed behind and asked, "Why should I show you my strength? If you turn out to be my enemy, I would have shown you everything."

"That's a valid line of thought, but you are missing something. You also learn about me, but as for me, I have seen you fight," he said, looking back at Aren with a glow in his eyes.

Aren subconsciously stepped back, but the butler smiled and continued walking.

"Honestly, there were a few times I couldn't see your fights, like when you left your camp. Tsk, I'm sure you had a lot of adventures, which would also explain the millipede," he said.

"You seem to know a lot about me," Aren said.

"Indeed, but that's not important. Let's not talk of each other again and focus on what we need to do. I believe there is a saying that goes, curiosity kills the cat," he said and let out a small chuckle.

Aren watched his back as they walked but said nothing else. He followed behind the butler, keeping his guard up.

They walked through several halls until they got to another double door. The butler pushed it and walked inside. Inside was a well paved marbled floor and heavily reinforced walls. On the ceiling were several well embedded crystals to illuminate the scene.

"This is where you and I will spar, and before we start, I'd like to throw you an offer. Go all out and aim to land one hit on me, and I'll give you a hint on the next stage of the trial.

I know you can feel it already. This stage is going to be harder than anything that you have ever faced."

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