2 Chapter 2 Always There For You_1

The turntable combination lock, the automatically retaliating magic runes, the hexagram alchemy sealing circle, the surveillance spirits... After the female prison guard had opened one intricate mechanism after another, the thick iron door blocking Aiden's path finally swung open, revealing a long corridor lined neatly with iron cells on both sides.

Silvertown's Rose Iron Prison, universally recognized as the most rigorous and impenetrable women's prison on the entire continent, gathered the most dangerous and brutal female offenders, and Aiden was the warden responsible for managing this prison.

Here in the core area deep within Rose Iron Prison, the most dangerous group of witches in the world was imprisoned. As the warden, Aiden would take some time to personally inspect the place every few days.

Flandre, the head of the prison block who was following Aiden, entered the gate and struck the railing beside her with an iron rod, shouting with full force, "Line up in front of the doors! Behave yourselves, the warden is here for inspection!"

No sooner had she spoken than dozens of cages immediately became restless.

"Aiden is here?" The female prisoners gathered in front of the cell doors, peering down the corridor from behind the iron bars.

"How have you ladies been doing recently?" Aiden smiled and waved at everyone as if he were a star actor in an opera house greeting his fans.

His words instantly sent the entire jail into an uproar, as ghostly howls and wolfish cries shook the heavens. The prisoners vied with one another to express their "affectionate reminiscences" for the warden with the fullest enthusiasm:

"Screw you! Somebody, feed shit to the warden!"

"Aiden, I fuck your ancestor, if you have the guts, come and fight one-on-one!"

"Ha! How come our big jailer is poking around again, feeling unsatisfied? Come and lick my feet!"

"Aiden, you dimwit schmuck! Come and eat my fist!"

Laden with murderous intent, vicious curses came flooding in, but Aiden and Flandre at his side had long been accustomed to this, walking leisurely down the corridor without batting an eye, reviewing each prisoner in the cells in turn.

The core area deep down essentially detained only one type of criminal: those with outstanding strength that other prisons found difficult to contain, most of them creatures far more powerful than humans—vampires, demons, witches, evil dragons, and even a few indescribable things... The variety was so diverse that it could almost form a biological museum.

Most of these witches were ferocious characters who trampled on rules with their mighty power and were the group of dangerous elements the prison needed to focus on the most.

From the differing reactions of the female prisoners, one could generally gauge the length of time they had spent in this prison.

Those who jumped up and down shouting the loudest were actually the newcomers who had just been locked into this prison. They had yet to have their spirit dampened, their first reaction upon seeing the big jailer was still to wish they could flay his skin, eat his flesh, and gnaw on his bones.

Next, there were those who had been imprisoned for a while and had become somewhat subdued after a few hard lessons. Although they still possessed their sharp edges, they no longer had the impulse to vent such impotent rage.

Like Ophelia, who had just recently been caught after a prison break.

"Well, well, the mole prince," Aiden stopped in front of a cell, looking at Ophelia—who was leaning on the bars and glaring at him unwillingly—with a mocking expression.

Ophelia turned her head away, annoyed.

"Because of your escape attempt, your sentence will be extended," Aiden taunted.

"It doesn't matter, this lady has a hundred years to serve, one more year is nothing!" Ophelia replied defiantly.

"Starting tomorrow, you'll also have a month of solitary confinement..."

"No big deal, I used to sleep in a coffin!" Ophelia dismissed the threat scornfully.

"Your escape photos will be made into promotional materials, to be circulated amongst everyone here," Aiden delivered another blow.

That shook Ophelia a bit—Aiden had captured the instant she turned around in astonishment, her body covered in dirt. If that undignified image was shown to the other inmates, it would be akin to a public execution; she would probably become the butt of other prisoners' jokes for a long time.

Aiden had deliberately waited for Ophelia to climb out of the prison before closing the net around her, chiefly to crush her pride and show the other inmates the ridiculous dance of the escapee in the palm of his hands as warden; only then could the intended deterrent effect be achieved.

Sometimes, pride is a more effective constraint than interests; many prisoners don't care about punishment but do care about losing face.

"Do whatever you want!" Ophelia gritted her teeth and squeezed out this retort through clenched jaws.

"In addition, your treatment level will be downgraded from tomorrow, and you will only receive half a cup of blood for your daily ration," Aiden continued.

Ophelia could no longer hold back, "Wait a minute, it's already too much to feed me pig's blood, and now you want to starve me?"

"What prince? You're already a prisoner, could you please be a bit more self-aware? If you want to get your privileges back, then behave and reform. If you break the rules again, it'll be more than just a downgrade of treatment," Aiden said, pulling up the corners of his mouth.

Ignoring Ophelia's tirade, the two moved on. The corridor at the very depth was much quieter than the front, and the prisoners were mostly cooperative, gathering at the bars, some even taking the initiative to greet Aiden:

"The warden came today too."

"Did the warden change his hairstyle? Looking good!"

"Warden, when will you take us out for some fresh air?"

...

Aiden waved back at them with a smile, but Flandre, following behind him, didn't let her guard down for a second. She was well aware that most of these seemingly cooperative prisoners were long-term, serious offenders who had spent years within the walls of the Rose Iron Prison. Under Aiden's personal reform methods, they had thoroughly integrated into prison life.

Compared to those seemingly ferocious newcomers at the very front, these old hands were actually more cunning and dangerous. The prison's most powerful witches were among them.

Of course, there were exceptions occasionally.

"Ah, Lord Aiden! I've finally seen you again, I've missed you so much!" The alluring succubus enthusiastically waved at Aiden from behind the iron bars, even blowing him a kiss.

"Oh, it's you, Fille." Aiden nodded with his usual composure and continued walking.

After taking a few steps, he suddenly realized something was amiss, frowned, stepped back, and stared intently at the succubus in the cell: "Why are you still here? I remember you were released last month after serving your sentence!"

"Ahaha, about that..." Fille scratched her face, shifting her gaze away awkwardly.

Aiden sensed something, turned to Flandre, and asked, "When did she come back in?"

"Just today. The reasons are the same old ones: illegal operation and safety production accidents. She organized the other succubi to return to their old ways without restraint, which led to numerous men being admitted to the hospital due to sudden weakness," Flandre answered emotionlessly.

"Why are you always caught up in the crackdowns?" Aiden asked, rubbing his forehead with a grave expression after hearing the explanation.

Since he had become the warden, this was the fifth time Fille had been brought back into the prison.

This woman, could she be deliberately targeting him?

As a succubus, Fille and her companions had the ability to make people dream lustfully and then take advantage of those dreams to absorb their life force. So, they opened a shop to provide dream services for a fee. And Fille, as the leader of the succubi, became the madam of the shop.

Such an enterprise wasn't explicitly forbidden, but due to Fille and her companions' lack of restraint, they often overly depleted their clients' life force, which resulted in the clients being admitted to the hospital with life-threatening exhaustion during their sleep. Soon, the group of succubi were thrown into prison for causing accidents in their business, and their shop was shut down.

However, Fille demonstrated a remarkably resilient spirit in this regard. Even after her business license was revoked, upon her release she would gather her companions to resume their former trade in secret.

But this group of overly voracious succubi simply lacked the capacity to learn their lesson, and they were soon caught and imprisoned again for the same reason.

And so, with repeated returns to old habits and repeated mistakes, Fille became a regular at the Rose Iron Prison.

Normally, someone with her level of strength and type of crime wouldn't have the right to be mentioned alongside the other inmates in this area. But as a high-level succubus, Fille was not only capable of using magic to pass through walls, but she could also charm ordinary people with just eye contact—ordinary prisons couldn't contain her, so she had to be thrown into the core zone of the Rose Iron Prison.

"I've only made a tiny little mistake, and they judged me a repeat offender, sentencing me to a whole year, which is way too much! Can't you think of a way to reduce my sentence, Lord Aiden? I'm willing to do anything..." Fille pleaded with Aiden in a fawning manner.

"Oh?" Aiden seemed suddenly intrigued. He looked around, then leaned in closer to Fille and whispered mysteriously, "Really... anything?"

"Of course, really! Absolutely anything!" Fille's eyes sparkled with excitement, sensing that he was taking the bait.

"Then you..." Aiden licked his lips, paused for a moment, and then revealed a kind smile, "can you reform properly? Promise me, from now on, don't pimp any more, okay?"

"Eh?" Fille froze for a moment, then quickly offered a forced smile, "Um, okay, definitely next time, definitely next time! But for now, find a way to reduce my sentence, please! I can serve you well at night..."

"You've got the nerve to ask me to reduce your sentence? I've put up with you for a long time!" Aiden's face suddenly hardened, and he kicked against the iron bars, "Do you think this is a hotel, coming here for every little issue, increasing my workload each time!?"

The most important thing as a prison guard is to never trust the inmates here. Succubi are most dangerous because they can charm their targets when their guard is down and then control their spirits.

Moreover, Fille had a long record of offenses. Even those who were just spellbound into dreaming by her could end up in the hospital, so directly succumbing to her seduction... it wasn't impossible to die on the spot.

Frightened by Aiden's fierce appearance, Fille shrank back, "I just... I just..."

"Shut up, next time you come in, I'm going to lock you up with the ghouls." Aiden's eyes were icy as he threatened her.

"No, please! Those undead stink so much!" Fille paled with fear.

Aiden no longer paid attention to the eccentric succubus, and proceeded to recheck the inmate count with his subordinates.

In the end, Aiden stood again at the entrance to the corridor, took off his hat, and addressed the prisoners, "Seeing you all cooperating so well with our work is comforting. Until next time, ladies. I hope that you will seek to reform yourselves here in the Rose Iron Prison and turn over a new leaf."

Amidst the curses of a group of female prisoners, Aiden closed the door behind him once more.

Today at the Rose Iron Prison, it remained another peaceful day.