Forced to Become the Protagonist of a Restricted Novel [Transmigration & Rebirth] - Chapter 8

“…Miss?”

A deep, pleasant voice sounded above her.

Su Cheng was dazed from the impact, momentarily unsteady.

A large, strong hand suddenly landed on her shoulder, steadying her wobbling frame.

She saw a broad, powerful chest with flawless snow-white skin bathed in the sunlight streaming through the window, smooth as carved jade.

Her gaze traveled upward, past the leather straps, to a long neck and a sharp jawline.

And then to a strikingly handsome face with well-defined features.

It was an exceptionally tall man with a lean, muscular build, his upper body half-exposed, leather straps crossing over his prominent pectorals.

Silver dragon-head engravings adorned his pauldrons, and a heavy fur cloak draped diagonally down his back, where a massive two-handed sword was sheathed.

His curly hair was jet black, but his irises were a pale gold, with elongated pupils that resembled sharp black blades.

At first glance, he seemed cold and fierce, exuding an oppressive sense of intimidation.

Yet his expression was surprisingly gentle, his eyes filled with concern and a hint of apology, softening that unapproachable aura.

“Sorry, are you alright? Did I hurt you?”

Su Cheng: “?”

Wasn’t this the line the male lead and the Black Flame mercenary captain exchanged after their infamous “face wash” scene?!

The comments section had been flooded with howls, praising the author for the fanservice and raving about the captain’s “generous assets,” begging for a repeat.

Su Cheng shook her head quickly. “No, it was my fault for being so reckless.”

“I’m Kai, captain of the Black Flame mercenary group,” the black-haired man said in a deep voice. “Are you here in response to our recruitment notice? I hope my teammates haven’t offended you.”

Su Cheng was about to reply when—

A chilling presence suddenly pressed against her back.

She nearly summoned a Wind Blade on the spot.

“Ah, Captain, why assume it’s our fault—?”

The silver-haired youth who had been sitting on the table had somehow slipped down and appeared beside her like a ghost.

He stood close, though not quite touching her, leaving just a sliver of space between them.

But if Su Cheng moved even slightly, she’d end up in his arms.

The coldness seeped through her thin clothes, creeping into her skin.

The silver-haired man chuckled. “I was just greeting her politely, wasn’t I?”

Su Cheng was now sandwiched between two towering, hard-muscled male bodies, their powerful frames trapping her in place.

They carried no sweat or strong body odor—nothing unpleasant.

But the cold, unyielding armor, chains, and leather, mixed with the metallic tang of rust and blood, along with a faint trace of floral liquor, subtly enveloped her.

Like invisible shackles, coiling around her and dragging her into a dangerous world.

“No one offended me!” Su Cheng sighed. “Yes, I saw your recruitment notice downstairs and thought I’d try my luck. Only after arriving did I realize I haven’t registered as a mercenary yet. Also… it seems you already have a mage?”

She slowly sidestepped and glanced at the blond man in the meeting room.

The blue-eyed blond crossed his arms and snorted. “The notice specified an Elemental Mage. I’m not one.”

As he spoke, he uncrossed his arms, revealing the mage emblem on his chest.

One hand gripped a blood-red gemstone staff.

The entire design was crimson.

—The mark of a Blood Mage.

The mage system was vast, with numerous specializations, but they could broadly be divided into four categories.

Elemental Mages, those who wielded natural magic, required resonance with Elemental Spirits.

Arcane Mages refer to those capable of casting spells related to time, space, or even causality. These mages possess the rarest talents and are exceedingly few in number.

Next come Spirit Mages and Heterodox Mages.

The former study magic related to souls, with necromancers who manipulate the dead being one such type.

Heterodox Mages are far more complex. Spells involving curses, deconstruction, magic arrays, seals, enchantments, tuning, and illusions all fall under this category.

Their total numbers might be slightly fewer than Elemental Mages, but on most wanted lists and registers of heretics, Heterodox Mages far outnumber their elemental counterparts.

Blood Mages, who use blood as a medium for spellcasting, are also classified as Heterodox Mages.

Such mages are common in the southern continent. Those attempting to enter the northern continent through official channels usually face rigorous scrutiny from the Holy See’s knights.

Stowaways, of course, are another matter.

But since this individual dared to enter the mercenary guild, exposing themselves to the Holy See’s surveillance, they must be able to withstand such checks.

“Alright,” Su Cheng pondered, “Well, I’ll head downstairs first—”

“Don’t rush, little fool!”

The silver-haired youth hooked an arm around her shoulders. “Asking for your mercenary journal was to see what missions you’ve done. Since it’s all blank…”

Su Cheng instinctively lowered her stance, shifting her center of gravity as she prepared to dodge aside.

The silver-haired youth curled his lips slightly, his elbow pressing inward as if bearing down with immense weight.

Su Cheng staggered, nearly crushed, only to be firmly encircled by his muscular arm.

“Then it doesn’t matter.”

He whispered softly by her ear.

His cool breath brushed against her neck, stirring her hair.

Her spine pressed against the man’s chest, her back flush against the firm, leather-armored torso.

The leather armor and its lining were thin, and in such close contact, she could distinctly feel the contours of his muscles.

The silver-haired youth gave another slight squeeze forward.

Su Cheng: “…”

When Lin Yun was pulled into a hug by her white-haired teammate, she had privately mocked his small chest.

Now she realized it actually felt quite substantial.

“Enough.” Kai spoke sternly. “Don’t be so rude.”

Su Cheng immediately felt the weight on her shoulders vanish as the restraining force disappeared.

She took a few steps aside. “…What kind of mission do you need an Elemental Mage for? What specific abilities are required?”

The silver-haired youth snapped his fingers. “A mage gathering. You’ll need to infiltrate and gather some information. As for special abilities—what do you have?”

As he spoke, he raised a hand, twirling a finger in the air as if tracing the outline of the novice emblem on the girl’s chest.

He nearly touched it.

Su Cheng silently retreated.

In the original story, that character had outright groped her. She doubted the gender-swapped version would be any better.

The silver-haired youth narrowed his eyes, pointing at the emblem with his index finger. “This thing is real, right?”

Su Cheng kept backing up until she hit the wall. “No, it’s fake. Actually, I’m an incredibly powerful illusionist. All of this is an illusion I created.”

The silver-haired young man laughed, “If your illusion skills are that advanced, then perhaps—”

“Sasha,” the guild leader beside him interrupted, “May I ask your name?”

Su Cheng gave her real name.

“Pleased to meet you, miss,” the silver-haired youth said with a grin, “I’m Sasha, from the Shadowhunter Clan.”

He bared his sharp canine teeth, adding a wild edge to his handsome face.

Su Cheng forced a smile. “Hello.”

She knew he was a vampire.

—Though here, “vampire” was more of a derogatory term; the proper term was Bloodkin.

Like elves, Bloodkin were long-lived species who could easily live for thousands of years.

But while elves survived on wild vegetables and fruits, Bloodkin needed the blood of living creatures to maintain their strength—otherwise, they would fall into slumber.

Sasha blinked, seemingly surprised by her reaction. Noticing she didn’t question his identity, his smile deepened.

“And over there is—”

As he spoke, he gripped Su Cheng’s shoulders and turned her around with slight force, making her face the golden-haired mage standing by the wall.

“…Camus.”

The white-haired vampire introduced him this way.

Su Cheng curled her lips. “Hello.”

The blond man gave a dull grunt as a greeting.

“He’s always like that; don’t mind him.”

Sasha turned her back to face him again. “So, tell me about yourself, my adorable little girl. What did you do before? Where did you study?”

Su Cheng wanted to shake him off, but his grip was absurdly strong—his slender fingers clamped onto her shoulders like talons, making it impossible for her to break free.

Though she knew this was just how he acted in the original story, she couldn’t help glaring at him. “I didn’t interrogate you either, sir.”

“I just want to know you better,” Sasha pouted exaggeratedly. “If you’re curious, I’ll tell you my story. The Shadowhunter Clan is located in the Skronen Mountains of the southern continent—”

“You haven’t mentioned the payment yet,” Su Cheng cut in quietly, “or more details. Can any Elemental Mage join? Are there other requirements?”

Sasha spread his hands. “Payment depends on how well the mission goes—”

Seizing the chance, Su Cheng slipped away and darted to the guild leader’s side, putting on a serious expression like a well-behaved student in class.

Kai removed the greatsword from his back, leaning the nearly two-meter-long heavy weapon against the wall.

The obsidian blade was solemn and cold, with blood grooves running down the spine and delicate silver-white wave patterns flowing across the edge.

The angular hilt was wrapped in spiral engravings, while the guard extended into two sharp, curved wing-like blades, resembling half-furled, half-spread wings.

He sat down at the conference table, glanced at the girl who had moved beside him, and pulled over another chair with an outstretched arm.

The man lifted the heavy-backed chair effortlessly with one hand and placed it beside her legs.

Not a single sound was made throughout the entire motion.

Su Cheng whispered her thanks, then couldn’t resist adding, “Your sword looks really cool.”

“…Thanks,” he replied, slightly surprised. “I thought mages usually don’t pay attention to weapons like this.”

Su Cheng shrugged. “Just think of me as a mage who also dreams of being a Battle Master.”

The three people present didn’t seem surprised either. No one asked her why she didn’t cultivate battle energy, because such questions usually only had one answer—human energy was limited.

At her age, achieving the apprentice rank meant she must have already devoted much of her time to the field of magic.

Kai hummed thoughtfully. “Miss Su, what are your expectations and requirements for compensation?”

Su Cheng deliberately put on a thoughtful expression, pondered for a few seconds, then looked toward the blond man standing slightly farther away.

The latter had been looking down at a scroll but, sensing her gaze, immediately looked up sharply. His cold, piercing eyes locked onto her face.

Sasha scoffed. “If you want to sleep with him, you’ll have to ask him.”

Su Cheng: “?”

Su Cheng: “…That’s not what I meant.”

Sasha grinned at her. “But if you change your request—or perhaps change the person—”

Su Cheng deadpanned. “Are you incapable of understanding human speech? I said that’s not what I meant.”

She quickly turned to the serious team leader. “Originally, I wanted money. But since you have a blood mage here, I’d like to exchange my payment for some information—details related to blood magic.”

Camus suddenly lifted his head and set down the scroll in his hand. “You’re under a curse?”

Su Cheng nodded slowly. “You can sense it?”

Camus inclined his head. “To me, it makes you… different from others. But it’s not active right now, so I can’t be certain.”

Su Cheng looked impressed. “You’re truly remarkable. I’ve researched some related materials and suspect it might be a blood curse.”

“That’s possible,” the blond mage said, striding over. “Let me see.”

His previously indifferent demeanor vanished as he quickly closed the distance, stopping right in front of her, his gaze fixed intently on her. “If you’re willing.”

He added this belatedly, a second later.

Though logically, if she hadn’t been willing, she wouldn’t have brought it up in the first place.

Su Cheng deliberately hesitated, appearing tempted but still not entirely trusting.

She studied the mage before her.

Camus remained motionless, meeting her gaze without pressing for an answer.

His lashes were a deep gold, exceptionally thick, long, and curled, like delicate golden branches. The cold steel-blue of his irises darkened at the edges, condensing into indigo around his pupils.

Those eyes were extraordinarily beautiful, and his features—from the bridge of his nose to his lips—bore the precision of a meticulously crafted doll.

Yet, set upon the sharp, mature bones of a man, they exuded a strange, chilling intensity.

“…Alright.”

Su Cheng nodded slowly, removing her outer robe to reveal a sleeveless short top underneath, then turned around.

The silk fabric was dyed in a gradient of orange-yellow, the color spreading from her chest to her back, where two thin crisscrossing straps covered her spine.

Most of her back was exposed, with only a palm-width band of fabric encircling her waist. Her shoulder blades stretched beneath skin as pale and delicate as fresh snow, like trembling butterfly wings.

“This is—”

A slightly surprised voice came from behind her.

Su Cheng tilted her head slightly to glance back.

The blond mage frowned slightly, his expression growing more solemn, and then he began pulling on gloves.

He pulled out a pair of gloves from his coat pocket, their silver-white hue shimmering with a pearlescent sheen. A string of translucent thin stone pieces were arranged in an arc along the back of the hand.

Camus tugged at the edge of the gloves, his long fingers stretching in the air as silver-blue mist seeped through the gaps between the stones.

The knuckles of his fingers stretched the peculiarly textured leather, his cool fingertips landing on the girl’s fair back.

Su Cheng flinched.

She was standing by the long table, and when she tilted her head back, she could see the mage standing close behind her.

The golden-haired man paid no attention to her state, wholly focused on observing the pattern left by the curse.

He was very tall—when Su Cheng turned her head to look back, she could only see his chest.

Her gaze lingered on the ornate, heavy lapels of his coat and the ruffled silk shirt beneath.

The deep red diamond patterns and intricate gold embroidery stretched over his well-defined pectorals.

He hadn’t fastened the top two buttons, revealing a sliver of skin below his neck, where a silver necklace disappeared into his collar.

Su Cheng guessed that was probably another magical artifact.

Because it seemed to glimmer occasionally.

A finger tapped lightly against her spine.

Su Cheng tilted her head. “Hmm?”

Camus lifted his hand. “Two questions. Do you know who cast the curse? And has it ever activated?”

Su Cheng: “No. Yes.”

Camus: “How many times? And how was it resolved?”

“Come on,” a certain vampire’s laughter sounded from the side. “Are you really asking her to share bedroom details? Maybe I should take back what I said earlier—”

Su Cheng shot him a glare before turning back. “Can I ask first, Mr. Camus, in your understanding, how many solutions are there for this thing?”

The golden-haired man lowered his gaze at her. “So you also know there are other methods besides intercourse.”

Su Cheng: “…”

Su Cheng suddenly turned to Sasha. “Wait, you know what this curse is too?”

Otherwise, why would he mention bedroom matters?!

The silver-haired youth sat at the table, propping his chin on his hand as he grinned at her. “I’m a vampire, sweetheart. Blood-related magic… I might not be able to use it freely now, but I still know a thing or two.”

He stood up again. “By the way, I can join the consultation too. Let me take a look.”

Su Cheng resisted slightly. “Can we not make it sound like I have some terminal illness?”

Sasha had already walked over, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Camus, even trying to nudge the blood mage aside.

Camus, still analyzing the curse’s structure, frowned in annoyance and refused to budge. “What’s wrong with you?”

“I just want to help—”

The vampire leaned in closer.

Su Cheng felt his breath brush against her spine and instinctively shifted, only to be poked in the back by his cold gauntlet.

“I’ve noticed something.”

Sasha’s tone suddenly turned serious.

Su Cheng tensed. “What?”

Though she had skipped chapters and missed many details, spoilers from the comments had clued her in—these men all had hidden identities.

In other words, they were all well-informed experts.

Her mind raced with possibilities—maybe her curse had mutated, maybe the Incubus had lied to her, and drinking his blood had poisoned her.

“Your—”

The vampire lazily drew out his words.

“Your back muscles look like they’re neglected.”

“?”

Su Cheng was furious.

She didn’t care what others thought of her muscles, but not in a situation like this—this was a life-or-death curse they were dealing with!

Gritting her teeth, Su Cheng retorted, “And you’re any better? Your pecs are way worse than your captain’s!”

The meeting room fell silent instantly.