On the "Black Death," in the Captain's cabin.
At this moment, inside the luxurious room, the air was as cold as if it had frozen solid.
Tracy sat on her large, velvet-covered bed, a sinister, twisted smile on her face. Her fingertips slowly traced a short whip woven from black leather.
The tip of the whip dragged a dark streak across the velvet bedsheet.
"Plop."
A tear slipped from the golden-haired maid's eye, dripping onto the cold wooden floor. She knelt before Tracy, her body trembling with fear, not daring to even breathe.
Why was the Captain so angry? The reason was simple.
This afternoon, after cleaning the room, she had mustered her courage to lie on the Captain's soft, large bed, just as she used to, waiting for the Captain's return, hoping to regain the Captain's favor with her body.
She had even presumptuously put on the Captain's favorite silk pajamas, wanting to give her a "surprise."
But that wasn't the most important thing—the most important thing was that while tidying the bed, she saw the somewhat old men's coat that the Captain had always held close.
"Damn thieving cat—" The moment she saw that coat, an undisguised jealousy flashed in the golden-haired maid's eyes.
Ever since the Captain returned, she had been like a different person, not only neglecting her but also wearing that coat every day, a look of reminiscence occasionally appearing on her face.
The reason the Captain was like this, without a doubt, must be related to the original owner of that coat.
"Damn it!"
Perhaps out of resentment, or for some other reason, after a brief internal struggle, she "thoughtfully" took the coat to be washed, using the most fragrant soap to clean it thoroughly, completely washing away the scent of that unfamiliar man that made her somewhat jealous.
However, she was happy with her washing, but she didn't know how furious Tracy was when she returned and saw this scene.
After all, in a sense, this coat was the only thing Luo En had left her.
Now, it had been touched by an outsider.
"You tell me," Tracy's voice was soft, yet like a venomous snake's tongue, "how should I—punish you?"
The golden-haired maid shivered all over. She suppressed the oppressive feeling that almost suffocated her and trembled as she explained: "Cap—"
"Captain—I—I just saw that the coat hadn't been washed for too long, so I—"
Her words were cut short by Tracy's cold, sharp interruption.
"Did I not tell you," Tracy slowly stood up, the whip in her hand making a "swishing" sound as it rubbed against the air, "that without my permission, you are not allowed to enter my room again!"
"It seems I've been a little too good to you." She walked up to the maid, using the handle of the whip to lift her face. "So good that you've forgotten your place. It seems you no longer wish to stay on this ship."
As soon as these words left her mouth, the golden-haired maid no longer dared to be stubborn. She was scared out of her wits, repeatedly kowtowing and apologizing: "I was wrong! Captain!
I will never dare again! I…"
Just as Tracy raised the whip, preparing to harden her heart and strike, the surface of the large full-length mirror in the room suddenly rippled like water,
A strange ripple appeared.
Tracy's movement stopped. The anger on her face instantly receded, replaced by an icy coldness.
She glanced at the maid still trembling on the floor and said with disgust, "Get out!"
The golden-haired maid, as if granted a great pardon, scrambled out of the suffocating room.
After the door closed, Katarina's graceful figure slowly emerged from the mirror.
"Oh my~" She looked at the messy scene in the room and the whip in Tracy's hand, a playful smile on her face. "My little Tracy, who are you so angry with?"
Tracy didn't explain, only looked at Katarina with cold, expressionless eyes.
"Mother, why are you here again?"
Seeing her daughter's distant expression, Katarina immediately put on a look of feigned tears, saying in a wronged tone, "Little Tracy, do you dislike Mother so much~ Mother came specifically to bring you good news."
"Alright, Mother, let's get to the point." Tracy didn't want to waste any more time playing along with her and quickly cut to the chase.
"Alright~" Katarina shrugged helplessly, putting away her superb acting skills.
Her purpose in coming this time was to inform Tracy that, because she had "voluntarily" handed over that entire ship of Beyonder materials, the higher-ups of the cult were very satisfied and had counted all of it as her merit.
"So, your promotion to Sequence 4 Demoness of Despair has been tacitly approved," Katarina said. "However, there are other operations within the cult recently, and the specific arrangements will need to wait a while longer. You can also use this time to completely digest the Sequence 5 Demoness of Afflictions potion."
Hearing this news, Tracy merely gave a cold "hmm," without any joy on her face.
To be honest, she was no longer very enthusiastic about promotions now.
Especially since this opportunity was exchanged for Luo En's half of the materials, which made her feel like some kind of dirty transaction.
More crucially, being promoted with potions provided by the cult meant that she would forever be unable to escape the cult's control. All those past visions of "freedom" and "future" had ultimately become mere bubbles.
Just as she was feeling agitated, the surface of the exquisite dressing mirror by her bed suddenly rippled faintly.
Mithor was contacting her.
Could it be that there was news about Brando?
Tracy immediately perked up, picked up the dressing mirror, glanced at her Mother, then turned her back and began to communicate with Mithor.
Katarina stood not far behind her, a playful smile on her face, watching with interest, without any extra movements.
"What?! How is that possible?!"
Suddenly! An uncontrollable exclamation, full of shock and disbelief, burst from Tracy's throat. Her slender hand, gripping the dressing mirror, turned white from the force, and her body began to tremble uncontrollably.
"Oh my, what interesting thing has happened?" Katarina walked closer curiously.
However, what she saw were Tracy's eyes, which had turned bloodshot.
Tracy suddenly spun around, staring intently at Katarina with eyes filled with grief, anger, and deep-seated hatred, demanding:
"Mother, was it your arrangement?!"
"Huh?"