[Age 16: As expected, during this year's Windblu Festival, the feather once again landed in your hands.]
[Target Elent: Cryo. Attribute: Defense]
[Your defense has permanently increased by 16%.]
[With such a useful talent, you naturally wouldn't limit its use to just the Windblu Festival. As the Lawrence family's playboy, each year, at least a dozen respectable young won would fall for your charm, allowing you to drink their first glass of red wine.]
[This was inevitable. After all, in the world of indulgence, it was hard to find soone pure. If you relied on force, you could get away with it a few tis due to the Lawrence family's influence, but if you did it too often, trouble would surely follow. The only workable approach was to act as a charming playboy.]
[The girls fulfilled their vanity and other desires through you, while you gained the strength you needed from them. It was a fair exchange.]
---
[Age 17: The reputation of the "Phantom Thief" was growing. Initially, your brother Parsifal's actions were small, but in recent months, he had beco more daring, even going so far as to beat up a noble who was about to assault a commoner girl.]
[Where there's oppression, there's resistance. The commoners of Mondstadt, long oppressed by the nobility, began to see the Phantom Thief as a symbol of rebellion. The once faint spark of defiance seed to be igniting into a fla.]
[The nobles of Mondstadt, led by the Lawrence family, couldn't ignore this any longer. The incompetent soldiers of Mondstadt were powerless against the Thief, so the nobles issued bounties, promising great rewards to anyone who could capture the Phantom Thief.]
[Of course, you couldn't let the Thief—your brother Parsifal—get caught just yet. Even if he were captured now, as the next heir of the Lawrence family, he wouldn't face severe punishnt. You had to wait until he committed an unforgivable cri.]
[The bounty attracted many skilled hunters, but thanks to your ticulous planning and Parsifal's swordsmanship, none were successful. Even those who managed to find the Thief were easily defeated by his skill.]
[You thought Parsifal's "Robin Hood ga" could continue indefinitely, until one day, a foreign woman wielding a spear tore down a bounty notice and ca to the Lawrence estate.]
[This woman possessed an exotic beauty, but her blue eyes were devoid of emotion. Her weapon was a peculiar spear—its tip thin as a needle. From your knowledge of spear techniques, you knew that only soone skilled in precise strikes could use such a weapon effectively. The person wielding this spear was either a complete novice or a master.]
[The woman introduced herself simply as the "Spear Witch" and imdiately began hunting. Within a month, she succeeded—she tracked down the Phantom Thief and engaged him in battle. The fight was evenly matched, and Parsifal had to retreat.]
[The nobles criticized the Spear Witch, thinking she wasn't as competent as her reputation suggested. However, the Spear Witch revealed a shocking truth: the Phantom Thief used noble sword techniques, indicating that he was likely a noble. She couldn't risk killing him.]
[This revelation shocked everyone—including you. Although Parsifal had concealed his sword style during his escapades, the Spear Witch had still detected the subtle signs of his noble training, proving her exceptional skill.]
[You spoke with Parsifal about the Spear Witch, and he admitted that her power was formidable. Even he wasn't sure he could defeat her. You urged him to stop his activities temporarily to avoid further risk.]
[Although deeply moved, Parsifal refused your advice. "If I retreat at the first sign of trouble, my sense of justice would be too fragile."]
[To ensure Parsifal wouldn't be captured by the Spear Witch, you devised even more careful plans. anwhile, the Spear Witch seed determined to catch him, deciding to stay in Mondstadt for an extended ti.]
---
[Age 18: Unlike previous Windblu Festivals, this ti the chosen "sacrifice" was a stunning red-haired girl. Red hair was rare in Mondstadt, and her beauty far surpassed that of past sacrifices.]
[For so reason, you developed a special fascination with her fiery red hair. Strangely, despite drinking the "first glass of red wine" from many sacrifices, you had never encountered Pyro Elent. You had a feeling this girl might be the missing piece of your puzzle.]
[However, this ti, the girl didn't choose you or anyone else. Instead, clutching the feather, she jumped from the platform. You now had to decide...]
[1. Rush forward to save her (likely resulting in injury).]
[2. Do nothing.]
Heroism cos at a price.
Since the system warned of injury, it likely wouldn't be minor. However, Lucas was curious about what attribute Pyro might boost.
Based on prior experiences, Electro boosted strength, Geo enhanced constitution, Anemo increased agility, Cryo strengthened defense, Hydro improved ntal clarity, and Dendro boosted vitality. For so reason, Lucas had never encountered a girl with Pyro before.
---
[The height of the platform ensured you'd be injured upon catching her, but you rushed forward without hesitation, holding the red-haired girl in your arms.]
[She survived, but you felt intense pain in your right hand—it was likely a broken bone.]
[The girl's actions were a direct challenge to the Lawrence family's authority. As the guards moved to arrest her, you held her close and declared, "If you want to convict her, I won't object. But since I caught the feather, this woman belongs to tonight."]
[The guards, knowing your status, didn't question your decision. That night, the red-haired girl was delivered to your room, tightly bound. Instead of hearing cries or pleas for rcy, you were t with fiery curses.]
[Faced with the unruly red-haired girl, you had to decide...]
[1. Untie her.]
[2. Punish her imdiately.]
Ah...
Might as well punish her imdiately.
Frankly, Lucas wasn't interested in wasting ti on an NPC with no na.
After all, the only reason he saved this red-haired girl was because her elent might finally be the Pyro he had yet to encounter.
However, after a mont of consideration, he shook his head and said, "I'll choose the first option, and... activate imrsive mode."
This would be his first ti entering imrsive mode in this simulation.
It wasn't that Lucas lacked desires, but he always felt awkward about experiencing the Windblu Festival's sacrifices in this way. It felt too much like forcibly taking soone, and imrsive mode would make it feel too real.
---
[Imrsive mode activated.]
Lucas found himself in a luxurious room, filled with opulent furniture and fine artwork. The most striking item was a large portrait of himself—his face pale and slightly rebellious.
On the oversized bed, which could fit at least ten people, lay the red-haired girl, bound tightly like a gift waiting to be unwrapped.
Playing the role of "Eberhart," Lucas approached the girl. As described in the text, she had fiery red hair and a pale, beautiful face.
"Keep staring, and I'll gouge your eyes out!" she snapped at him with fiery defiance, though her current position made the threat aningless.
"You already broke one of my hands, and now you want to take my eyes?" Lucas replied with the arrogant tone of a noble. His right hand was wrapped in a bandage, a reminder of the injury he sustained saving her.
"Hmph!" The girl scoffed. "I wish I could crush all of you filthy nobles!"
"Too bad. Tonight, you're going to get even filthier..." Lucas smirked, gripping her chin. "...because of ."
"You—!" Her face flushed red as she bit her lip in frustration.
"You should feel lucky that you ended up with tonight," Lucas said as he gently tapped her cheek. "Unlike so of the other Lawrences, I don't have any strange preferences. Otherwise, you'd be tied up in a dungeon right now, getting whipped."
"You're no better!" the red-haired girl spat back. "Isn't this kind of bondage your twisted hobby too?"
"Tying up wild beasts requires strong ropes," Lucas replied casually. "Look at —I'm not bad-looking, and I'm in good shape. You're not exactly losing out."
"Shaless!"
The red-haired girl rolled her eyes but couldn't help stealing a glance at him.
Compared to the other greasy, bloated nobles, this young man was undeniably handso. His skin was well-maintained, and his lashes—damn it! How could a man have eyelashes that long? They were longer than hers!
---
Lucas's gut instinct had been correct—the red-haired girl indeed possessed Pyro.
[Target Elent: Pyro. Attribute gained: Elental Power.]
[Your limit has been removed. You can now control the power of Pyro.]
What?
Pyro wasn't just boosting attributes but granting direct control over fire?
Unlike the Vision system, this was not an "external organ" that gave him the power to manipulate the elents, but rather, it directly lifted the limitations of the body.
The girl who brought the fire elent to Lucas was indeed like a fla that burned the entire room.
In the beginning, Lucas thought that she was only trying to save her family, so she worked hard, but in the second half of the ga, the red-haired girl, it seems that she has already forgotten her original intention.
After everything was over, Lucas dozed off briefly. When he awoke, the red-haired girl had already tidied herself up and was preparing to leave.
Even though the Lawrence family enjoyed the Windblu Festival sacrifices at ho, they never allowed commoners to spend the entire night in the mansion. They believed it would tarnish the sacred and noble grounds of their residence.
Lucas had no intention of stopping her. The red-haired girl was different from the other won he had encountered before... but only just.
Just like those girls, their connection would last for only this night.
"By the way..." Lucas asked casually, as if to break the awkwardness. "You have so decent skills. Have you trained in combat?"
"I learned it from my father."
Perhaps because of what had happened earlier, the red-haired girl seed less hostile toward him, responding calmly: "He was an upright knight in service, but after punching a noble, he was imprisoned. I agreed to beco the Windblu Festival sacrifice in the hopes of freeing him."
Lucas knew this was just another lie of the nobility. Even if the girl offered herself as a sacrifice, her father wouldn't be released. In Mondstadt, many cris could be negotiated, but when it involved nobles, the law was ruthlessly strict.
"I want to ask you sothing..." the red-haired girl suddenly spoke. "I heard that those who spend the night in your room can take any item from it. Is that true?"
"Of course" Lucas nodded quickly, laughing. "You worked so hard tonight; take a few extra things if you like."
"No need," the red-haired girl replied, removing a portrait of Eberhart—Lucas—from the wall. "I'll take this painting."
"The painting is nice, but it's not worth much," Lucas said, puzzled. "Don't tell you've fallen for and want to keep my portrait to look at from ti to ti?"
"No, I hate you." The red-haired girl gave Lucas a complicated look. "I'm going to keep this painting so that my descendants can spit on it."
Lucas didn't get angry. Instead, he laughed. "Being rembered that way doesn't sound too bad."
"Goodbye," the red-haired girl said, opening the door. She paused, then shook her head. "No, I hope we never et again."
"By the way, what's your father's na?" Lucas asked suddenly. "Maybe I can arrange sothing to have him released sooner."
"Our family na is rare in Mondstadt. His surna is..." The red-haired girl spoke her last words before closing the door: "Ragnvindr."
The red-haired girl left.
Lucas was stunned.
Ragnvindr!
Isn't that Diluc's family na?
Could this girl be Diluc's ancestor?
No, no. She's a woman, so her surna wouldn't be passed down. It must be her brother or sothing.
Lucas mulled it over for a while, then slapped his thigh and laughed at himself. "Who cares? It's just a simulation. Whether it's Ragnvindr or Gunnhildr, they can't escape!"
---
[Entering Text Mode]
[Age 19: The "cat-and-mouse ga" between the Spear Witch and the Phantom Thief continued. She had beco your brother's most troubleso adversary. However, according to Parsifal, there were several occasions where the Spear Witch could have caught him but chose to let him go, leaving him confused.]
[You hadn't given up on mastering the spear, but unfortunately, the gladiator had nothing more to teach you. Often, you would practice your spear techniques under the moonlit skies—the fire of revenge in your heart never extinguished by your luxurious life.]
[One day, while practicing, you were suddenly ambushed by soone using spear techniques. Although you thought few could match your skill in Mondstadt, you were soundly defeated.]
[It was only when your opponent stopped that you realized the one who attacked you was none other than the Spear Witch, who had been hunting the Phantom Thief.]
-----
Author's Note: I wonder what'll be diluc's reaction..
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