Chapter 78
In the design room, a bald muscular man was cutting fabrics, modifying patterns, making sample clothes. The whole room was filled with all kinds of fabrics, portraits, and clothing accessories, but it was neat and tidy, with everything in its proper place, giving off an aesthetically pleasing feel.
"It's approved! It's approved!"
A young female prisoner excitedly pushed open the door to the design room and said, "Master Langna, our submitted design has been approved. The featured collection for Kaishi this summer is the 'Fantasy Bubble' series you designed! Congratulations!"
"This is an honor for all of us," Langna smiled lightly. "Annette, with this successful experience, you are now a qualified fashion designer."
"It's all thanks to Master Langna's guidance," Annette bowed deeply. "If not for Master Langna teaching me wholeheartedly, how could I have progressed so quickly? This is your honor, Master. My contribution is negligible. I'm deeply grateful."
"Alright, enough with the modesty. If you don't mind, have dinner with us tonight," Langna's mouth curved up as his eyes brimmed with joy. "Such good news, I ought to share it properly with Roni as well."
"Can I order takeout?" Annette joked.
"You can, but the total has to be within five contribution points," Langna winked. "Okay, back to work. Don't get complacent just because we got contribution points from Kaishi. You can never have enough contribution points. And you should try designing independently too. Maybe the next collection will be up to you to take charge..."
"Alright, alright, I know, Master Langna you're great at everything except being long-winded."
Langna helplessly sighed and lowered his head to continue working.
Looking at the piles of fabrics in front of her, Annette had no mind to work. Her attention soon drifted to Langna. The more she looked, the more attractive she found this focused, working man. The more she looked, the harder it was to hide her silly grin.
Too bad he doesn't like women.
Annette sighed. The world is so cruel. When you finally find someone you like, not only do you compete with other women, but also with men?
She had been in Shattered Lake Prison for over a year. Like most death row inmates, she had no livelihood skills beyond simple manual labor, and she didn't have the fighting prowess on the deathmatch stage either - perhaps that was a good thing, at least she wouldn't get beaten to the point of questioning life by those ferocious beasts pretending to be pigs for food.
Annette naturally didn't dare gamble on the citizens letting her live in the Blood Moon Tribunal because of her pretty looks - on the contrary, destroying beauty is often a hidden desire in people's hearts.
The perverts in this country aren't limited to just the death row inmates locked up in prison.
But trying to learn a contribution point-earning skill in prison was almost as difficult as encountering a whirlpool in the Sea of Knowledge.
Repeating simple manual labor had no value. It had to be either an unique craft like the Beastmen's maze toys, the Goblin's bone carvings, or the Cannibal's oil paintings - Annette only found out after coming to prison that the Cannibal's paintings could sell for so much.
Other than that, it had to be complex work requiring mental effort, such as writing, musical composition, tax preparation - with the "harmlessness" of death row inmates, tax accountants from Shattered Lake Prison were especially welcomed by the rich. As long as they could survive the first Blood Moon Tribunal, most accountants, tax experts, and calculators among the death row inmates could live decently in prison.
Of course Annette didn't have the time to learn a skill, nor the brainpower for complex work. Just as she was about to give up and wait for death, wandering aimlessly around the prison, she accidentally walked into Langna's design room.
Fabrics were everywhere inside, and Annette could barely take her eyes off the sample clothes worn by the mannequins - the prison only provided plain white uniforms, she hadn't worn nice clothes for a long time.
She stood in the design room for a long time until a low male voice suddenly sounded from behind her.
"Do you like this outfit? Would you like to try it on?"
Somehow she ended up becoming Langna's designer assistant and apprentice.
Anyone who knew Langna would have a hard time associating his appearance with the profession of "fashion designer", but Langna was a highly valued exclusive designer for Kaishi, the blood moon fashion brand. Almost every design he made became Kaishi's featured collection that season.
The girls and women wearing stylish clothes would not know that the clothes they wore were designed by a bald death row inmate.
Although the brand did push things along, the fact that Langna could lead fashion trends every season was proof enough of his exceptional talent. Even Annette, who had never been involved in fashion design before, grew step by step under Langna's lead. Now, the joint design she did with Langna was even recognized by Kaishi!
Annette was even starting to feel grateful for her imprisonment - if the first twenty years of her life were dim and chaotic, then Langna was the most brilliant rainbow she had encountered.
Everything about Langna attracted her, his personality, talent, speech, everything.
Even his bald head emanated the unique unfettered radiance of an artist.
If she could spend her whole life with Langna, then it wouldn't matter even if she stayed in prison. In fact, compared to the murky society outside, the small prison could better accommodate a quiet design studio.
Too bad he wasn't interested, or rather, he didn't have much interest in women.
Whenever she thought about this, Annette felt sad and hopeless. She had even considered going to the medical center to get the doctors to give her a complete gender reassignment surgery. After all, in the Blood Moon Nation, gender was never an insurmountable obstacle.
But it was really difficult to make this decision, plus Annette didn't know if Langna would mind an unoriginal copy. Back then Langna was still single, so Annette wanted to straighten him out through prolonged company. There's a saying, 'even the bendiest man gets straight when erected', Annette was quite confident in her looks and flirting skills.
If not for the chip's restriction on any violent acts, Annette might have screwed first and dealt with consequences later.
Yet after a year, Langna's partners had changed while Annette hadn't even touched his bald head. She even had to eat dinner with the two of them, swallowing the stinky sourness of their romance.
Thinking about this, Annette felt like the fabrics in front of her were that foul man Ronald, and she cut him to shreds fiercely with the scissors.
Knock knock.
The design room door was pushed open. Langna looked up, his eyes instantly curved into crescents as he revealed a faint smile. "Roni, how do you have time to come over here? What's wrong, are you not feeling well? Want me to go with you to the medical center?"
Pale-faced Ronald shook his head. "I'm fine, Langna. I came to find you today for something."
"To be precise," a handsome man walked into the design room, "we came to discuss cooperation with you."
Langna's expression cooled slightly. "The 'Beauty Beast' Igora... Roni, he's dangerous, come over here by me. Igora, don't think the prison can protect you. If you dare harm Roni, I have plenty of ways to make you wish you were dead."
Another person walked into the design room, standing between Igora and Langna. "Don't worry, Langna. No one will be harmed here."
Langna was no longer smiling at all: "‘Troublesome’ Ashe, I thought that even if we were not friends, we were definitely not enemies.
Ashe smiled and said: "We are friends, in the past, now, and in the future as well."
"Langna, we came here to discuss cooperation with you."
Suddenly, Langna raised his hand: "Annette, please leave first."
"Master—"
"Leave!"
Annette glared fiercely at Ashe and the others, biting her lip angrily as she left the room.
Ashe glanced at the closed door and said: "You can probably guess why we are here. This is not some vulgar male conversation, so we do not mind an extra accomplice."
Although Igora didn't announce his prison break plans with a loudspeaker, he had visited several prominent inmates in prison, so the news had already spread. With the connections of 'Gourmand' Langna, he certainly knew Igora's intentions, which was why he deliberately dismissed Annette.
Langna completely ignored Ash and stared quietly at Ronald. "Roni, is this your idea?"
Ronald, who had been a bit timid, met those deep blue pupils and gritted his teeth with determination. "Langna, I want to join Igora's team and escape from prison with them!"
"Roni, we can live very well in prison. My contribution points are enough to ensure we'll never be selected for the Blood Moon Tribunal - "
"But I want to leave!" Ronald said loudly. "Langna, are you coming with me, or staying here!?"
Langna was silent for a long time, glancing at Ash and Igora.
When Langna's gaze swept over him, Ash broke out in goosebumps all over, filled with an instinctive fear as if facing a mortal enemy, even having the urge to flee!
It was like...facing an executioner!
"Roni, you know I can't refuse a request from my beloved," Langna breathed out slowly and said calmly, "Beauty Beast, Evil One, as you wish, I, Langna Chiose, am willing to obey your commands. But remember, if anything happens to Roni during this, you will have to keep him company in the afterlife."
"Tell me your plan."
"Since we haven't gathered everyone yet, I can't reveal too much for now," Igora said. "All I can tell you is that Ash has a way to remove the restrictions of the chip."
Langna looked at Ash in surprise but didn't say much. "Who else do you need to find? I can help."
Igora shook his head. "No need. But first you have to tell us, what abilities will you have after the chip restrictions are removed? It might just happen to fill a gap in the team, then we won't need to find new members."
Langna was silent for a while, seemingly considering whether to reveal his background. Everyone waited patiently for his decision.
Finally, he sighed. "Turn off all the lights except one."
When only one lamp remained lit in the corner of the design room, Langna walked into the shadows where the light could not reach, blending completely into the darkness.
"I am a Moonshadow."
Igora's body jerked. "Impossible. Moonshadows and the Sacred Bloodline would never be allowed into the Blood Moon Tribunal. The research institute and church would not permit such disgrace to the two tribes' honor - "
"But I'm an exception. Unlike my brethren who need the moonlight's illumination to transform into Moonshadows, I have to hide in the shadows to transform. Under the moonlight I actually cannot transform. The church has no need to worry I would do anything to disgrace the tribes."
"Besides, unlike my brethren who resonate with the blood moon and descend into madness, I have never heard the blood moon's call. After transforming into a Moonshadow, I only become more cruel, more rebellious, and more... ruthless."
With the lithe and agile steps of a predator, a wolfman nearly two meters tall and covered in grey fur walked into the light.
Its deep blue pupils made all three people feel as if they had fallen into an ice cave.
"I am a traitor to the church, a disgrace to the Moonshadows, a beast even the blood moon spits on. I am neither a pure Moonshadow nor a devout human. Every strand of fur is filled with disloyalty to the blood moon."
"They call me... a werewolf."
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