Top Tier Perversion: Dual Cultivate Secretly

Chapter 8: Interference

The music from the ballroom felt distant as polished boots hurriedly pressed against the marble flooring and moved across the hallway.

A gush of cold wind brushed against Vincent’s face as he came across a partially ajar door at the end of the hallway.

He stopped, but the echoes of footsteps lasted a split second longer.

Vincent frowned slightly.

He turned around but the hallway behind was empty and clean. The same as when he left the ballroom which was filled with guards and servants.

Clink.

The sound of glass came from inside the courtyard and light laughter followed it.

Vincent turned around and placed his hand on the door. It felt slightly cold.

Pushing it open, the moonlight shone upon his pale face.

Soft candlelight illumination covered the dark expanse, and a small flight of stairs with two gargoyle statues at their sides lay in front of him.

"Ha-ha..."

Muffled laughter resounded in Vincent’s ears again as he climbed the stairs.

"It’s too bad that we can’t take the spoils first."

"Indeed. But it would be fun to watch the fall."

"Absolutely, ha-ha..."

Two masked men were chatting over wine by the fountain side with no one else in sight.

The men noticed Vincent’s arrival.

"Here to enjoy some fresh breeze and quiet, my lord?" One of the masked men with a full beard said lightly while pointing his glass.

"The ballroom has no place to sit. What else can a man do than go out? Haha..." the other masked man said while looking at Vincent.

"Greetings to you too, my lords." Vincent said as he neared them with a polite smile. "It’s a pleasant evening, and there’s indeed no place to sit in the ballroom."

"Right on the money it seems," another round of light chuckle broke out between the two.

Seeing as how Vincent wasn’t talking much, the full-bearded masked man toasted to him again.

"We would’ve kept my lord company but business calls."

The other masked man raised his glass at Vincent and winked as he moved past him. "The moonlight is more enjoyable with a young lady in embrace, my lord."

He then waved his hand and continued, "If you want me to, I can spread a small rumor of a handsome young lord sitting alone in the courtyard, haha..."

Vincent watched the men descend down the stairs and the metallic doors to creak open and close.

He turned around to search for his maid but right after, the door creaked open again, making him knit his brows.

’Did the two forget something...’

Right as Vincent had such a thought, he saw strands of blonde hair before him, following which appeared a pair of clear blue eyes.

A young lady in black dress was climbing the stairs while staring in his direction.

The evening breeze made her blonde hair flutter lightly.

Vincent took a step closer to her and made eye contact, thinking, ’Wasn’t she supposed to be in the courtyard?’

Anastasia stopped two feet before Vincent, and stared at his pale face.

’It’s the same face I’m used to since the last five years. But then...’

The fluttering of leaves distracted Anastasia as she turned to look at them.

Vincent too felt a rustle louder than usual and looked around.

’Strange. I don’t see anyone else here, but why does it feel like someone’s here?’

Vincent brought his attention back to Anastasia. She was still staring at something.

Vincent gave a light cough and said, "I’ve been looking for you everywhere but it seems like you were doing the same."

Anastasia averted her gaze from the leaves and saw Vincent’s calm expression, as if there was nothing wrong with anything.

’Why’s she not speaking and just staring indifferently?’

Anastasia acted in a professional and subservient manner from the first moment Vincent interacted with her. She had never been so silent.

"It’s getting a bit chilly here. Let’s head inside." Vincent said and walked past her, not giving her an option to reject.

There were stairs lined with candles and the gargoyle statues in front of him. Beside was open space with well trimmed bushes highlighted by lights seeping from the stained glass windows.

Shadows flickered against these bushes and made Vincent want to hurry up and walk inside.

He had only just taken the first step when he felt a hand on his shoulder stop him.

"Son of a—" Vincent jumped and turned around, only to see Anastasia looking down at him.

"Young master..." Anastasia called out softly.

"What now?" Vincent looked up with a frustrated face.

"I wish to ask you something." Anastasia replied calmly. "Please answer it."

"Not now." Vincent said and wanted to turn around, but he felt Anastasia’s grip on his shoulder tighten.

’What in the world...’ Vincent turned his head to see slender fingers clinging firmly on his shoulder.

Something was really off about this whole interaction. A maid shouldn’t behave this way!

"Please answer, young master." Anastasia said in a low tone.

Danger bells rang in Vincent’s head.

His body wanted to run instinctively but he couldn’t.

Anastasia’s grip was too firm.

’Calm down. Calm down.’ Vincent immediately chanted in his mind. ’Being a maid is a facade for her and this might be her original personality seeping out. What’s concerning right now isn’t her...’

"What is it that can’t wait until we’re inside?" Vincent displayed a calm expression on the outside.

He was looking at Anastasia but his focus was more on his peripheral vision.

Anastasia’s breathing was uneven as she remembered something and asked, "Young master, what would you have done today if you weren’t attending the ball?"

Faint flickers of shadows were visible in the corner of Vincent’s vision. It might be due to the flames of the candlelight, but it was putting Vincent more and more on edge.

He absentmindedly answered while staring into Anastasia’s eyes, "I would’ve drank and stayed in my room. Or maybe hit a tavern."

Anastasia visibly shuddered at the comment. She took her hand off his shoulder. It was trembling while pointing at him.

"You... how could you think of the same moment as—"

At this moment, in Vincent’s eyes, the world momentarily dipped into silence as something briefly rang in his head.

Anastasia mouthed some words but he couldn’t hear them.

The candle flames bent unnaturally and the shadows in his vision got stretched slightly wrong.

[Warn— — ing —]

Red letters of text glitched and disappeared. The mechanical voice did not speak in his mind either.

A curtain of darkness was falling from above, as if trying to engulf reality itself.

Vincent saw Anastasia still mouthing off words, but she soon clutched her head as her eyes and mouth opened wide, as if screaming.

From the darkness, Vincent saw a glimpse of something silvery descending, but soon felt a massive headache.

His vision blurred and he was losing his consciousness.

In the next moment, as Vincent blinked, he saw Anastasia clutching his shoulder, a tad bit too firmly.

"Please answer, young master." Anastasia said in a low tone.

"Huh?" Vincent felt as if his ears were ringing. He couldn’t exactly pinpoint what, but it felt like Déjà vu when Anastasia said that, as if he had lived the moment once.

Danger bells rang in Vincent’s head.

His body wanted to run instinctively but he couldn’t.

’Calm down. Calm down.’ Vincent immediately chanted in his mind, only to furrow his brows harder. ’Why does it look like I’ve said this before? What in the world...’

Vincent even had a vague idea of what he would ask Anastasia next and what her response would be, but he still could not help himself from changing the contents.

He looked up at Anastasia and said in a real calm tone, without pretending, "What is it that can’t wait until we’re inside?"

Anastasia’s breathing was uneven as she remembered something and asked, "Young master, what would you... um? What would you... huh?"

Anastasia was at a loss for words.

Vincent knew what she was about to ask as if instinctively, but couldn’t point at why.

Though, what was more important wasn’t this, but the shadows flickering in his peripheral vision!

’Shit!’ The hair on Vincent’s body stood on their ends. It was as if a knife was pressing against his throat, about to slice his head clean.

"Let’s go inside. Everything else can wait." Vincent did not give Anastasia another moment to speak and held her hand, pulling her down the stairs.

An air piercing sound breezed beside Vincent’s ear.

"Young master, careful!" Anastasia immediately pulled Vincent to the side.

Crack!

An arrow shot the gargoyle stone statue on the staircase’s right side, its wooden shaft still vibrating from the impact.

"Ambush!" Anastasia exclaimed and covered Vincent.

Vincent’s chest heaved up and down as he felt shortness of breath.

He was just an inch close to death!

If Anastasia hadn’t pulled him, he could’ve died!

’I should’ve ran the moment I sensed something off!’ Vincent cursed himself.

No more attacks arrived his way after that, and Anastasia was standing guard.

The leaves had stopped rustling altogether, despite the evening breeze flowing calmly.

A slight burning stench of wax filled Vincent’s nostril as some candles were extinguished.

Faint sound of footsteps then resounded in his ears and caught his attention.

Along with him, Anastasia turned to look at the metallic door at the courtyard’s entrance.

Someone was coming. freewebnovёl.ƈom

Tap.

Tap.

A few seconds later, the metallic door creaked open.