He knew nothing about the personalities or goals of the other Progenitors.

Were they territorial? Paranoid? Would they see him as a useful partner or a tasty snack to absorb?

Not to mention, also lacked the power to negotiate as an equal.

Right now, he was a beginner, a hidden rookie that only had potential to grow...

'For now, it's just a thought,' he decided, shelving the idea.

'I need knowledge to tell friend from foe, and I need power to stand beside them. Acting on this now would be suicide.'

Rose continued, her voice a little shaky.

"Aside from today's transaction with the Sin of Arrogance... about a month and a half ago, there was one special artifact. Me and the other traders were never allowed to open the box. We couldn't even touch it... The whole thing was done in total secrecy."

Seth's interest sharpened.

"Where is it now? Where was it delivered to?"

"I... I didn't handle the final delivery," Rose admitted.

"I didn't work alone back then. The delivery chain went like this: a man named Darius Velon got it first. He passed it to a man named Cedric Laibac. Cedric was supposed to give it to me and my brother, and then we would give it to the final person."

'The original Seth was also a demonic weapon trader?'

The information hit Seth like a physical shock.

The realization hit hard.

But after the initial shock, the logic followed quickly.

Rose and the original Seth were siblings and they lived together.

There was no way he wouldn't know what she was doing.

In fact, it was more likely that he had been involved from the start...

Perhaps he was the one who introduced her.

That thought made Seth's expression darken.

"The plan fell apart," Rose said, her voice dropping.

"Cedric got greedy. He decided to steal the artifact for himself. My brother was there when he tried to take it. My brother tried to stop him... but he failed. Cedric used the demonic artifact against him."

She paused, the memory clearly painful.

"I wasn't in the room at that time, I was outside, scouting the area with the others. When we heard the fighting, we rushed back but my brother was already unconscious on the floor."

"What happened to Cedric? And the artifact?"

Seth asked, keeping his voice neutral.

"Cedric was gone. He took the artifact and ran. We never saw him again," Rose explained.

"When my brother woke up, we questioned him. But he couldn't remember anything useful. He couldn't even remember what the artifact looked like. His mind was... scrambled."

Then, as if to answer a question she expected, she added a final, grim detail.

"After that... my brother started acting strange. He went mad.... and not long after, he got himself killed."

Seth processed this.

The timeline fit...

The original Seth's madness and death were directly linked to this secret, high-level artifact and a betrayal.

But a big question remained...

"If that demonic artifact was so powerful and dangerous..."

"Why were there no witches overseeing the transaction? Why use ordinary people?"

Seth pressed.

"That was the seller's specific instruction," Rose said.

"They warned us that witches, especially lower-circle ones, were the most susceptible to the artifact's effects. Its power could make them succumb to their own greed instantly and try to steal it. So, to keep the delivery secure, the seller hired only ordinary people as couriers. We were supposed to be less tempting targets, I guess."

She let out a bitter, hollow laugh.

"We didn't expect that Cedric Laibac was actually a stray witch the whole time. He had kept his abilities a complete secret. He must have thought his willpower was strong enough to resist the artifact's temptation... or maybe he thought he could control it."

"Where is he now?" Seth asked.

"Has he been found?"

Rose slowly shook her head.

"We're just ordinary traders," she said.

"We wouldn't know something like that."

As soon as the words left her mouth, Rose felt that strange pressure again.

It was the same sensation as before—like invisible eyes peeling through her thoughts, scrutinizing her entire existence.

Her breathing tightened for a brief moment.

Fear crawled up her spine.

She bit her lip and immediately added.

"But… I did hear something."

Seth did not interrupt.

"I heard that both the buyer and the seller deployed their own people..."

Rose continued.

"They're looking for Cedric themselves. They don't trust anyone else with it."

Seth's gaze darkened behind the mask.

'Both sides are searching for him,' he thought.

'That alone confirms how important that artifact is.'

If the buyer was willing to act personally to hunt Cedric, it meant the artifact was a big deal.

It was either unstable, completely irreplaceable, or so dangerous that even the owner couldn't risk it being loose.

'Why didn't the seller just give it to the buyer face-to-face?' Seth wondered.

'If it's this important, why use a chain of ordinary couriers?'

He could think of a few reasons.

Maybe they wanted to stay anonymous.

Maybe they were too busy, or too important to be seen.

But still, handing over such a critical item to regular people seemed like a stupid, risky plan.

There had to be another reason...

Just as this thought crossed his mind, a sudden, heavy knock sounded at the door.

BANG. BANG. BANG.

The sound was harsh in the quiet room.

Seth froze.

Rose reacted instantly.

She used the noise as cover.

She dropped into a crouch, rolled to the side away from the door, and in one smooth motion, pulled a small pistol from her jacket pocket.

She didn't hesitate at all!

She spun and fired directly at the spot where Seth had been standing just seconds before.

BANG!

The gunshot was deafening in the small space.

Plaster dust exploded from the wall.

Rose stared, stunned.

The spot was empty....

The man behind her was gone!

Outside, hearing the gunshot, the man didn't wait.

He kicked the door open, splintering the frame.

He burst into the room, his own gun raised and sweeping the area.

But he saw nothing.

Just Rose, holding her weapon, and a new bullet hole in the wall.

The room was otherwise empty.

The man was big, with a hard face.

He lowered his gun slightly, his eyes narrowed in confusion.

"You did not check in after the three-minute mark," he said to Rose, his voice a low growl.

"Protocol. I came up to check..."

He paused, his gaze scanning the empty corners, the space under the table.

"Who did you shoot at?"

Rose opened her mouth to answer, but the words died in her throat.

A cold, familiar dread washed over her.

That feeling...

The feeling of her every thought, her very existence, being picked apart by an unseen eye.

It was back.

The man wasn't gone.

He was still in the room... watching and listening to them.

Sweat beaded on her forehead and trickled down her spine.

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