Olivia took a long breath, trying to steady the hand that still gripped her trembling sword. The tip of the blade slipped slightly, but she immediately tightened her hold.

"No. I won’t work for you."

Silence fell instantly. The sound of water dripping from the damp alley ceiling was clear, like the ticking of a clock counting down the moments of her life.

Avvion did not look surprised at all; he only bowed his head slightly, as if he had expected that refusal from the very beginning.

"I knew you would say that," Avvion said, his voice flat yet calm.

Olivia furrowed her brow, her heart overwhelmed by surging suspicion.

Who is this man? Why is he so certain of my reaction?

Avvion continued. His voice was low but clear, every word falling like a stone onto the cold alley floor.

"But in this territory... someone who isn’t on the registry isn’t just ’nameless’."

He stepped forward, slow and calm, as if he were strolling through a garden rather than a dark alley filled with fallen guards.

"It is a problem," he added. His gaze rose to meet Olivia’s eyes, sharp and cold.

"And problems here are not left to live for long."

Olivia tensed her shoulders. She realized that the man before her was not just speaking empty words; he possessed the absolute power to erase anyone he deemed a ’problem’.

"Without a registration, you automatically become a slave. No rights, no protection, no voice."

Avvion took another step, closing the distance until the tip of Olivia’s sword nearly touched his black robes. He paused, deliberately giving those grim words time to sink into Olivia’s mind.

"And what’s more... you are a woman."

The atmosphere in the alley grew heavier, as if the oxygen had been sucked out of the cramped space.

"In this city, that is not an advantage," Avvion’s voice shifted into a cutting whisper, dripping with bitter cynicism.

"It is a weakness that people are just waiting to take advantage of."

Olivia bit her lower lip until it stung. Every word Avvion spoke was a cruel truth. She recalled the leering looks of the guards earlier how they had looked at her as if she were an object to be bought and sold.

She realized that in this world, individual courage was not enough to protect her from a fate worse than death.

Will I choose a false freedom and end up in the mines, or become a ’person’ to this dangerous man for the sake of my own life?

Olivia clamped her lips shut, as if locking away all the protests that longed to spill out. The arrogance that had given her the energy to hold the sword now slowly crumbled, replaced by a bitter realization.

The sword in her hand no longer pointed steadily at its target; it shook violently before slowly being lowered. The weight of the metal felt many times heavier than before, as if it were a symbol of Olivia’s failure to defend herself.

She was confused. Her head throbbed, not from the trauma of the fall from the building, but from the crushing reality.

Every word Avvion uttered was an undeniable truth. In her old office world, she was a respected professional, someone who possessed an identity and a voice.

But here?

She was just a dry leaf that could be blown away by the wind or worse, stepped on by anyone in power.

Avvion observed every shift in Olivia’s face. He did not seize the sword; he let her hold it. He knew she had begun to understand that in this city, ’truth’ was a luxury reserved only for those with status.

"Look at your hands," Avvion’s voice broke the silence, soft yet as cold as a freshly sharpened blade.

"They aren’t shaking because you’re afraid of me. They’re shaking because you realize I am the only life raft you have in the middle of this raging ocean."

Olivia did not answer. Her gaze was empty, fixed on the dirty stone floor. She felt small too small. She remembered the image of her ’death’ earlier; if she died here nameless, who would know? Who would look for her?

Do I truly have no other choice?

she thought.

Must I surrender my only freedom to a man I don’t know, just to keep breathing?

Avvion took another step, now standing close enough that Olivia could smell the scent of agarwood and cold iron on his black robes.

The man no longer looked at her with the same contempt as the guards. Instead, there was something more frightening behind his eyes a meticulous observation, like a hunter who had found a prize he almost lost.

"This world is not kind to the naive, Olivia," Avvion continued, saying her name as if he

had known her for a long time.

"And I don’t offer protection for free. But I offer something more valuable than status..."

He paused, letting the sentence hang in the air.

"...I offer survival."

Olivia looked up slowly, her teary eyes meeting Avvion’s unblinking gaze. In that moment, she realized she had stepped into a game much larger than simple population registration. She was no longer the Olivia from the office; she was a pawn placed on the empire’s chessboard, and her hands were now tied to the only person who held the key to her survival.

Avvion looked at Olivia with a calculating gaze, as if he were crafting a grand plan in his head. He did not care about Olivia’s trauma; to him, Olivia was an opportunity that had fallen from the sky.

"If you want to live," Avvion began, his voice slow yet authoritative,

"you can no longer carry your old name. In this city, the name ’Olivia’ might carry a curse... or worse, a target."

Olivia looked up, her eyes still swollen from fear now fixed on Avvion.

"So, what do you want me to do?"

Avvion smiled faintly... a smile that did not reach his eyes. He knew Olivia remembered nothing of her old world, and that was a great advantage for him. He could mold this girl however he pleased.

"Starting today," Avvion stepped closer, his fingers touching Olivia’s chin rough but not painful forcing her to look up.

"Your name is no longer Olivia. Your name is Via. You are my confidante, an orphan I found on the streets and took in as my personal servant."

Olivia was stunned. A new name? A new life? She knew it was a lie, but faced with the threat of death, she had no choice.

"Remember," Avvion whispered, his face so close that his breath touched Olivia’s cheek.

"In the political game I play, one small mistake in mentioning your own name... could bring your head to the edge of a sword. Do you understand?"

Olivia swallowed hard. She realized she hadn’t just sold her freedom; she had now become a character in Avvion’s play.

"I understand," Olivia answered slowly.

Avvion smiled with satisfaction

. "Good. Now, Via, follow me. We are leaving this alley of trash, and we are starting your performance."

Avvion turned, his black robes billowing sharply as they cut through the stifling air of the alley. He did not look back, as if he were entirely certain that Olivia or now, Via had no other choice but to follow.

Olivia stood frozen for a moment. She looked at the guard’s body lying stiff on the floor, then at the sword still in her grip. With trembling hands, she placed the sword on the ground.

Every sound of the metal clashing against the stone felt like a death knell for her old identity.

Via.The name felt foreign, cold, and hollow. It carried no weight of memory, no brilliant career record, and no one would cry if it were to vanish.

"Hurry," Avvion’s voice echoed from the end of the alley, sounding like an absolute command.

Olivia took a long breath, hiding the remnants of her fear behind a mask of forced calm. She stepped out of the darkness of the alley, following Avvion’s tall, majestic figure.

As soon as they stepped out into the city square, the scorching sun hit her, stinging Olivia’s eyes, which had grown accustomed to the alley’s darkness.

The square was still crowded, but the moment Avvion appeared, the crowd automatically made way. Their gazes were lowered, full of respect and fear.

Only then did Olivia realize this man was not just influential. He was someone to be feared.

"Lower your gaze," Avvion whispered without turning back.

"Here, eyes that are too bold to look are the first eyes to be gouged out."

Olivia immediately looked down, staying close behind Avvion’s stride. She tried to walk with the grace of a servant, but her feet, sore from walking on the cobblestones earlier, made her limp slightly.

"Via," Avvion called out, his voice now lower, almost like a whisper that only Olivia could hear.

"Remember, from this moment on, you don’t know anyone. You have no past. You are just a shadow I have brought to serve."

"Where are we going?" Olivia asked, her voice barely audible.

Avvion stopped suddenly in front of a beautifully grand entrance, adorned with intricately carved stone. He turned to Olivia, his sharp eyes seemingly testing how well the girl could act.

"To a place where my enemies are waiting," Avvion answered with a sinister, cunning smile.

"We are going into the Palace, Via. And there, you will learn that in the world of politics, the sweetest smile is usually the most venomous poison."

The massive doors swung wide open. Behind them, Olivia could see the glint of chandeliers and rows of palace officials lining up

Olivia’s heart raced. She was no longer the Olivia accustomed to office meetings; she was now stepping into a dragon’s den. She straightened her shoulders, trying to find strength behind the name Via that had been given to her.

This is no longer about who I am,

she whispered to herself.

This is about how I must live in a world that wants to kill me.

"Get ready," Avvion whispered before stepping into the magnificent hall.

"Our performance begins now."