Mozo's small apartment only cost twenty copper pennies per week.
Two hundred copper pennies… that was ten full weeks—almost half a year of rent!
As for one hundred gold pounds… Mozo didn't even dare calculate how much that was worth. Just thinking about it felt like a dream. Not to mention the remaining four hundred that hadn't been paid yet.
At this point, Mozo genuinely felt like he had already stepped into the ranks of life's winners.
Across from him, Audrey was a little troubled about how to gather the remaining payment as quickly as possible, but she still felt this deal was worth it.
After all, while five hundred gold pounds was a huge sum, it was still far better than the potential losses she might suffer if she blindly tried to solve the problem herself.
Not to mention the puppeteer she had mentioned—he would definitely charge her four to six hundred gold pounds, only to sigh regretfully in the end and say the curse was too powerful for him to handle.
Even though Mozo had already stated that puppeteers couldn't transfer someone else's curse.
Audrey had actually suspected that before, but without proof. Now that Mozo confirmed it, she became even more convinced of his capabilities.
But why did he know so much about mysticism?
Was he part of some hidden organization? Or was he affiliated with the authorities?
No… probably not.
In the eyes of rogue Beyonders like Audrey, official Beyonders were mostly greedy, lecherous parasites. Though that wasn't entirely accurate, class bias was hard to avoid.
Perhaps feeling like he had taken too much advantage of her—or perhaps wanting to further confirm the truth of the dream world—
Mozo suppressed his excitement and said seriously,
"Miss Hepburn, there is actually another method we can try. And we can do it right now. The success rate isn't high, but I can guarantee that even if it fails, there won't be any side effects."
Audrey, who already trusted him quite a bit, immediately lit up.
"What is it?"
Then, almost instantly, she started worrying about how much more she would have to pay.
Mozo thought for a moment before saying,
"You're part of the mystical world, so you should know that some families possess very unique abilities."
Audrey's eyes sparkled.
I knew it. You're definitely not ordinary. So you're from a hidden family?
What exactly is your background? A descendant of some lost empire? Or one of those angelic or sacred families?
No, the latter two seemed unlikely. So probably a noble lineage from a fallen empire…
What a pity. If he were from a current noble house, he would've been the perfect husband candidate.
Audrey still hadn't given up on her dream of marrying into nobility.
Even as a commoner, her status as a Beyonder and her preserved virginity still gave her a chance to climb the social ladder.
After all, every year there were nobles in the Empire who supposedly married commoners "for love."
But according to her sources, those women weren't ordinary—they were Beyonders like her. Beautiful, and not low in sequence.
"Yes, I'm aware," Audrey said. "So… you are?"
"There are things I can't disclose," Mozo replied calmly. "But my family might have the ability to erase certain abstract effects—such as curses or imprints. However, it hasn't been reliably proven. The success rate is… quite low."
As he spoke, he carefully observed her reaction.
Her eyes grew brighter.
She believed him.
Good.
"That's why I didn't mention it earlier," Mozo continued. "The success rate is too low. But if you're willing, I can try."
"Of course!" Audrey nodded quickly. "What do I need to do?"
"It's simple. Just… let me place a drop of my blood on your mark."
"…Huh?!"
Audrey froze.
Even with her limited knowledge, putting someone else's blood onto a slave mark sounded extremely dangerous.
But then she hesitated.
She had heard that certain bloodlines could indeed dispel curses. And Mozo didn't seem like someone driven by lust.
After a long internal struggle, she asked cautiously,
"Does it have to be on the mark?"
She recalled a story—Saint John once cured a demonic curse by dripping his blood into a river, allowing believers to drink it and be cleansed.
So maybe it didn't have to be applied directly.
That was her bottom line.
Mozo thought for a moment, then nodded.
"That should be fine."
Hearing that, Audrey finally agreed.
"In that case, I accept. And even if it fails, I'll pay you an additional one hundred gold pounds. Though it may take two months."
Mozo nodded.
He found a pin, bent it slightly, and pricked his fingertip.
Then, under both of their tense gazes, he let a drop of blood fall onto Audrey's forehead.
The moment it touched her skin, Audrey felt her body heat up.
But it lasted only an instant.
Soon after, a cool, refreshing sensation spread throughout her entire body.
Then her eyes widened.
The Sequence Nine potion she had recently taken… had completely stabilized.
Fully digested.
She could now advance to Sequence Eight.
"This… this worked?!"
She looked at Mozo in disbelief.
Mozo smiled and nodded.
"It worked. And the results seem better than expected."
Then, to her surprise, he gave her a formal bow.
"Thank you, Miss Hepburn. You've helped me confirm something extremely important. Because of that, you no longer need to pay the additional five hundred gold pounds. We're even."
Audrey stood there, overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events.
She didn't even know what to say.
What she didn't see was the cold sweat covering Mozo's face as he remained bowed.
The slave mark on her body… hadn't been removed.
It had been strengthened.
From this day forward
Audrey Hepburn belonged solely to him.
…I'm sorry, Miss Audrey.
I swear I will never force you to do anything against your will.