The mature handsome man fell to the ground in a slump, and Elsa landed gracefully. She turned to look at Ronan with some dissatisfaction, saying, "I've subdued him!"
Ronan replied concisely as usual, "Dead man, no threat."
Quietly invoking his spirit sight, not many dead bodies were near the entrance, several clusters of red outside the door, and a golden one inside the laboratory! Ronan extended his left hand outward in a vague motion, summoning a few soul fragments +1.
Eastern European features comprised soul fragments +3.
The French guy with the big nose hadn't died yet; he lay on the ground unconscious.
Lastly, Ronan's gaze turned towards the mature handsome man's body. A golden light flashed, and an ancient figure's soul fragment +1 appeared!
To find a soul fragment from an ancient figure was quite a substantial surprise.
Information flashed through his mind.
Ancient Figure's Soul Fragment +1: The soul fragment of a low-ranking mage who survived tenaciously in the era of decline, their magical power slowly reawakening, and their abilities regaining some semblance of strength that was once insignificant.
There were more details.
Grease Art: Cover physical objects with a layer of greasy oil! The original spell owner often used this spell for movement.
Ronan was puzzled. Could this spell be used for movement?
Slippery practice?
But in an instant, he understood.
He hadn't forgotten that he was a man who had mastered the Seventy-Two Arts.
Seventy-Two Arts: Skills that were once the pride of practitioners from the St. Fernando Valley!
Elsa's finger rested on the mature handsome man's neck. After confirming that he couldn't be saved, she uttered, "You killed him just like that."
Ronan seemed to ignore her, searching the man's body and discovering a gold badge the size of a one-dollar coin. It bore a pentagram emblem with red, blue, and green gemstones set into it, feeling unusual. Although he couldn't pinpoint why, he casually tucked it into his pocket.
Elsa was exasperated, "Is this how your FBI operates, with such brutality?"
Ronan found nothing else useful and casually commented, "The world's better off without people like him."
Elsa thought of the oven she had seen when she arrived and couldn't help but grit her teeth, "These savages!"
Ronan flipped through the paperwork on the desk beside the mature handsome man. Some forms, a few documents, and among them, there was a driver's license issued by Aruba. The person depicted on it looked remarkably like Anna from the Sophia Hotel!
After a careful examination, he was sure it was Anna.
Ronan's already somber heart sank even further.
She was a kind-hearted girl, undeserving of dying in such a vile place!
He could almost hear Anna's voice reminding him about the poisonous insects in the jungle before he had left this morning.
On the other side, a girl was kneeling and lying down. There was an ID card on the table; it belonged to the girl on the floor, named Mickey.
Approaching Mickey, Ronan said, "I'm letting you go now, don't make any noise."
Mickey nodded repeatedly.
Ronan casually tore off the tape sealing Mickey's mouth.
This action was a bit rough, and Mickey couldn't help but cry out in pain. However, remembering Ronan's warning, she quickly covered her mouth.
Ronan took out Anna's driver's license and placed it in front of Mickey. He directly asked, "Have you seen her? Where is she?"
In the instant of asking the question, there was a hint of tension in his heart. Do good people always meet bad fates? Elsa noticed Mickey's nervousness and squatted down to comfort her, saying, "Don't be nervous, we're here to rescue you."
Seeing Elsa, another woman, Mickey's emotions stabilized slightly. "I... I know Anna. We were brought here together. I heard... I heard them say that Anna, Ruby, and Alison are virgins. They took them to Paris three hours ago, saying they were... using them as raw materials for making perfume."
"Paris?" Ronan frowned. "Raw materials for making perfume?"
Associating this with the so-called grease produced here, using them as raw materials for perfume didn't sound like a positive outcome.
Mickey shook her head and nodded, her voice filled with uncertainty. "That's what they said. They took Anna and the others away. I don't know more than that."
Elsa patted Mickey's back gently. "Go find some clothes to put on first." She looked at the driver's license in Ronan's hand. "Do you know her?"
From the previous encounter in the workshop, what struck Elsa the most about Ronan was his ruthlessness.
To see him care about a girl like this surprised her.
Ronan simply said, "She's the daughter of the owner of the Sophia Hotel. She's a very kind girl. I hope she's safe."
Speaking this, he recalled the bodies hanging around.
How could she possibly be safe?
When in their hands, it was a luxury even to die painlessly.
Mickey found a piece of cloth to drape over herself and then spoke, "Please save Anna, save Ruby, save Alison, save Lena..."
Elsa's stern expression softened a bit. "I will do my best."
Ronan remained silent, beginning to search the laboratory.
Inside, there was a massive safe. Ronan found the key and opened it, discovering numerous experimental logs. Among them were records of a so-called manual extraction technique. Only then did he understand what these candles were meant for.
At this moment, Elsa approached. She extended her hand towards Ronan. "Can I see that badge?"
"Huh?" Ronan was puzzled.
Elsa explained, "I want to take a closer look at the emblem on it."
Ronan took it out. Because he felt the badge was unusual, he let Elsa see the pentagram emblem on it. Elsa said, "This is a mage."
The information obtained from the soul fragments had already indicated this, so Ronan wasn't surprised. He just asked, "What's special about it?"
Elsa continued, "It's the first time I've seen a real mage. In recorded literature, mages often have extensive knowledge, are skilled in alchemy, and some combat mages are physically strong and adept in battles."
Ronan had encountered voodoo witches, werewolves, and what seemed like vampires, so he was no longer surprised by these mystical entities.
"You're not a London police officer!" Ronan stated directly. "You know too much."
Elsa retorted, "You're not FBI either!"
Ronan tucked away the badge and deliberately said, "We've fought side by side. Let's be open and honest. I'm with the CIA."
Elsa had a feeling that this was to be expected. "I'm from MI6. I was sent here to investigate."
From the inner layer of the safe, Ronan flipped out dozens of passports—both male and female, all relatively young.
After a quick look, Ronan's facial muscles twitched again. There were several passports from the other side of the Pacific!
Damn it!
All these miscellaneous people deserved to die!
Ronan found two bags and placed some passports and documents in one of them, putting it in his bag. He said to Elsa, "I'll leave this to you. I'll borrow your dagger for a moment."
Taking the dagger Elsa handed him, Ronan exited the laboratory. He found the dead giant chameleon and crudely skinned it.
The strong appetite he felt was only for the chameleon's skin.
Therefore, Ronan was very certain that this was one of the materials required for his advancement to the Predator rank: the skin of the giant chameleon.
Elsa gave a puzzled look to Ronan, but thinking of the creature's uniqueness, she assumed that the CIA was interested in studying it. She didn't inquire further and began searching for evidence.
Ronan roughly peeled off the skin, wrapped it in a bag, and approached the unconscious French guy with the big nose. Avoiding vital arteries, he stabbed the man's leg with a knife.
The French guy, Raymond, woke up with a painful scream. The first thing he saw upon waking was the laboratory and the body of Master Henri. His spirit was immediately crushed.
Looking at the big-nosed man, Ronan asked, "Among the girls taken away, was there one named Anna?"
Raymond remained silent.
Ronan didn't waste words. He dragged one of Raymond's legs into the laboratory and tied him to the rack beside the candles. Then he pushed the man onto the candles.
Elsa covered Mickey's eyes. "You go out first."
Supporting herself against the door, Mickey trembled as she left the laboratory.
Designed meticulously by Master Henri, the handmade roasting rack was something Raymond wasn't fortunate enough to enjoy. He quickly yelled in pain, "I'll talk! I'll talk!"
Ronan remained unmoved. After countless interrogations, he knew that some people wouldn't shed tears until they were out of the coffin.
Raymond shouted, "I'll talk, I'll talk! I beg you, I beg you, I'll talk..."
Ronan pulled him back. "You only have one chance."
"There's a girl named Anna. Cyril had the mercenaries capture her from the island," Raymond could laugh while witnessing others being roasted, but he couldn't endure the sensation of his own skin sizzling. "She and a few other virgins were packed up and taken away by us over three hours ago. They'll be taken to the waterplane in the Gulf of Venezuela, then sent to French Guiana, and finally transferred to Paris. They should be over the Atlantic by now."
Ronan asked, "Where in Paris are they being taken to?"
Raymond glanced at the candles and said, "They'll be sent to the Albanian gang there first. They'll be temporarily under their supervision. Then, they'll wait for Master Grenouille to send someone for inspection. Master Grenouille believes that the scent of youthful virgins is the best material for top-notch perfumes. Those who pass his inspection will become raw materials for perfume production, and those who don't will be sent to the underground auction."
He cried as he spoke, "I'm not in charge there. I can't ask more. I don't know the location of the Albanians' inventory and where Master Grenouille is."
Ronan asked again, "What happens to these girls in the end?"
Raymond hung his head low, as if in penance. "They'll all die."
"How long does it take?" Ronan inquired.
"Once they're sent, they need to be conditioned." Raymond explained, "In general, Master Grenouille will start selecting on the fifth day after the goods arrive, and then..."
Ronan understood, "Five days."
Raymond trembled in fear. "Please, please don't kill me. I'm just an employee of Orbier Group. This business is being done by Orbier and those cosmetics companies. It's not my business, really! I'm just a small employee..."
Ronan continued to interrogate him until he squeezed out everything Raymond knew.
Leaving the laboratory and heading outside the workshop, Ronan activated his spirit sight to continue harvesting soul fragments.
In his state of spirit sight, he saw countless green halos, some of which were already fading and about to dissipate. Just in the past few days, this workshop had devoured the lives of countless individuals.
In the place where captives were held, Ronan and Elsa had rescued quite a few people.
Ronan also found explosives and oil barrels.
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