The Elusive Sorcerer

Chapter 244

On a brickwork suspension bridge directly connected to the clock and bell tower building, several people dressed in silver gray military style attire had gathered; some of them wore hats, both women and men. Their gazes swept over everything below.

Their presence was none other than due to the church and cathedral, together with personnel from the Cevenose Security Department, searching for Eistender members hiding in the square.

They were another squad from the same force as the five people who had killed the envoy of the SeiaofFire hunter organization. The presence of these ten people differed from the others, deviating from the original plan, because several months after that hunt, they had obtained important information from the underworld.

Rumors were circulating that a Receivers of Black Death, whose level was unknown, would perform a ritual on September 30, 1544, precisely when the annual cultural festival was being held in Layana's historic city square.

"Why didn't that Receivers target another city when cultural festivals were also held there one and two months ago, instead choosing this historic city?" asked a woman wearing a fedora decorated with soft feathers and a red ribbon on the upper right side.

The woman beside her knew the exact reason. Her eyes reluctantly met hers for several seconds before she answered, "The border with Vinohoshi. That person must want the advancement ritual to proceed smoothly, especially with the protection that will safeguard them until the ritual is complete."

They knew for certain that the Black Death ability had a wide and destructive attack range; on the other hand, Receivers of this ability could control how powerful their attacks were against specific targets.

The fact that the five of them were positioned far from the city square was proof of how terrifying that supernatural ability was. Although it was quite powerful, at least when the death manipulation spread in the form of a dense black mist mixed with a gray aura that enveloped everything, that weakness could be overcome by an artifact and an ability from the type opposite to the Manifestation type where Black Death belonged.

The ability from the aforementioned Supression type was none other than Disturber. It was not because the other three abilities of the same type as Disturber could not become worthy opponents for Black Death. However, with millions of jasmine flower petals possessing range, visibility, attack power, durability, speed, and effectiveness in capturing particles as tiny as the mist used as a destructive substance against anything surrounding it, it became a balancing force between the existing supernatural abilities.

"So, this is the reason we're here, to capture that person?" the woman asked, looking at her curiously.

"Yes," the woman in the hat answered hesitantly. "However, we don't know where that person is hiding, and we don't know whether they have companions or came here alone."

The man in the fedora glanced sharply at the woman, then answered in a flat tone, "There's no way that person came here alone. Judging from their movements, that person, or at least they, must be avoiding something whose truth even we don't know."

Not long after the conversation, five people from the intelligence squad approached them by walking across the rooftops surrounding the tower, their steps steady and agile like those of a cat.

The sound of their footsteps echoed through the air longer than it should have as the five men landed on the brick bridge, their robes fluttering for a moment before falling straight down.

One of the men approached with steady steps after noticing the squad's arrival, both hands tucked into his trouser pockets, his expression indifferent as he looked at them.

Among the five people who had just arrived, the gaze and pressure radiating from the man caused them to lose control. However, after the tension subsided from their minds, one of them raised his head and threw something.

A letter still sealed with red wax shot straight through the air before the man wearing a bowler hat caught it without any additional movement.

His left palm opened while the letter rested on it. Without hesitation, the man clenched his right hand and raised it high, then brought it down toward the seal with an additional strike.

Smack!

The seal shattered together with the protruding edge of the letter, revealing a sheet of paper while its contents remained indistinct.

'What kind of letter is this?'

After muttering inwardly, the man lifted the paper and read its contents. For a moment, his indifferent expression faded as the corners of his lips slowly rose before a faint smile appeared on his face.

He turned around and looked at them one by one, especially the three women who stood like magnets with opposite poles.

"Read this." The man in the hat threw the letter toward them, but the wind diverted it toward the man in the fedora.

Not knowing what had caused his attitude to change, the man caught the letter with his body leaning slightly forward, then stood still as his focus settled on the three paragraphs written in the Wana language.

The three women were curious as their steps carried them behind the man; the sound of their heels tapping echoed briefly as they carefully read the letter.

For a moment, the four of them remained silent for quite some time as their minds rapidly absorbed the stream of information before the letter vanished, transforming into pale white particles before disappearing from this world.

The bowler hatted man's gaze, along with those of the other five people, was fixed on the four individuals standing motionless as though they were statues that had remained in that place.

After reading for a moment, the man in the fedora carefully glanced around before taking a deep breath and asking:

"So... are we leaving this place, or are we going to that place?"

"We can't take the risk," the man said firmly. "Moreover, we can't get out of this place that easily after being trapped by them." With a grim expression, the man looked at the five people standing silently behind him.

"Can you do it?" he asked enthusiastically.

One of the men smiled, then said, "Maybe, yes. But can we switch with her?"

The slightly disheveled black haired man with dark wrinkles beneath his eyes pointed toward a woman wearing a feather and ribbon decorated fedora.

The woman was almost startled, unable to say anything as she agreed to the request. She stepped forward and switched places with the man, who then moved to where the woman had previously been standing.

Each squad turned around and moved in opposite directions, then remained silent for quite some time, falling into a difficult choice that concerned life and death.

"We'll meet at that place," the man in the bowler hat said somewhat apathetically.

"All right."

The words echoed in their ears for a moment before the two squads disappeared in an instant, leaving behind a cloud of dust where they had previously stood.

...

In the interrogation world, the fierce battle between a lieutenant of the Cevenose Security Department and a member of the Ordeal hunter organization had lasted for 10 minutes in real world time.

Pools of blood filled the beautiful water beneath their feet as each of them lowered their heads, their breathing becoming increasingly labored.

Not wanting to take the risk for too long, aware that the interrogation world would collapse if things continued this way, the lieutenant stationed in the west of the great city of Kuranda thought about releasing the remaining strength within his body.

With his left hand severed and two fingers missing, even though the lieutenant wanted to regenerate them, he had lost a great deal of strength after continuously using the wound transfer technique.

'Damn, if I can open this veil, I can absorb spiritual energy from outside and defeat that man.'

As he thought, the lieutenant raised his head, realizing that his condition was not much different from that of his opponent.

"...How about we just end this?" the lieutenant called out with a chuckle.

The calm flow of water where they stood, which had previously resembled an indestructible diamond that neither broke nor reacted despite being subjected to relentless attacks, now produced ripples and gentle waves that enveloped both of their feet.

The robed man lowered his gaze for a moment, staring at him for several seconds before looking back at him.

"Well... I was thinking the same thing," the man replied in a trembling voice.

The moment their eyes met, the lieutenant and the man lunged forward simultaneously. They did not use supernatural abilities. Their fists collided, leaving behind a thudding sound before it was swallowed by the void of the interrogation world.

Suddenly, the lieutenant lowered his hand. His goal was simple, to impair his opponent's vision.

The man widened his eyes, and the fist nearly struck his face, but his right hand quickly deflected the attack, countering with a kick that sent the lieutenant flying to his left.

There was a reason they did not use supernatural abilities, their spiritual energy was almost completely depleted.

They did not know the point at which they would die if they continued using those abilities, especially since the effects of the wound exchange still lingered in his mind even though the fatal wounds had completely healed.

The battle did not last long; roughly 2 minutes after exchanging punches and kicks, they lay helplessly upon the gentle ripples of the flowing water beneath them.

Their bodies swayed slowly before the movement became increasingly constant and sharp, even though the swaying caused the interrogation world to crack like glass shattering into countless pieces.

Now, both their consciousness and bodies returned to the real world, but in exchange, they had no idea where they were, and their consciousness slowly faded until they eventually passed out.

...

In the area of floating bridges, tram tracks, and streets, the people from the SeiaofFire hunter organization were still searching for two members of the Eistender hunter organization, along with the mysterious figure who had hunted their companions.

Although they moved back and forth and tried not to make any suspicious movements that might attract the attention of passersby, the dozens of people failed to find the people they were looking for.

After receiving a message from the master, the dozens of people hurried back to the airship, faced the master, and delivered their investigation report.

The master stood on a balcony with two gray armed iron staircases on either side, facing approximately 38 members standing neatly below him.

Then, the master straightened his right arm, while his expression no longer appeared as calm as before.

"We're withdrawing from this place," the master shouted loudly and firmly.

Whispers from several members could be heard, but the master allowed them to discuss the matter.

"We can't take the risk of remaining here," said a man wearing a flat cap.

"On that matter, I agree with you," replied the flat capped man with several strands of hair sticking out from beneath his hat.

"Something is strange about this situation," another man said, following his survival instincts.

"What do you mean?" someone unconsciously voiced his thoughts.

The man nodded, then provided further explanation, although it was nothing more than his personal opinion.

"There's something strange, especially with the dozen or so people who haven't returned to this airship. Moreover, the master seems to be planning something that even I don't know about."

"Something that we don't know?" The three men muttered in unison, as though the three of them were sharing the same thoughts.

The others heard the conversation and soon joined them as a man with bright blond hair reflecting the soft light of the chandelier walked closer toward them.

"I want to talk about what you said earlier." The man pointed at the dark brown eyed man with a gesture resembling a shooting motion.

The man's pupils narrowed before a sigh escaped his lips. "Go ahead. We'll listen to your explanation."

As those words were spoken, several people became interested and moved closer to hear what the man with pitch black hair had to say.

"Considering the master's words." He paused for a moment, as though allowing curiosity to sink into their minds. "Someone or something else unexpectedly appeared, and now it's disrupting this mission."

He turned around, slowly raised his head, then looked at the master without a trace of hesitation on his face.

Aware of that gaze, the master smiled broadly while shrugging his shoulders.

'He knows what is actually happening. That man, is he a subordinate of the five people whose positions are higher than mine?'

After muttering inwardly, the master realized that it was nothing more than his hypothesis. But did reality actually align with what was in his mind? The master did not know. Even though his current position was higher than that of the people in the vast hall below the main deck, he remembered that there was always a sky above the sky.

'I never expected that, in reality, I wouldn't be able to meet the highest leader and would instead meet his subordinate, even though that was the person I chose to carry out this mission.'

Various questions suddenly crossed his mind after everything he had done while being part of the organization.

Who exactly were those five people? How could 'they' establish such a large organization and openly recruit people to carry out this work?

The master fell silent as an answer slowly reached out toward him, only to suddenly crumble into dust the moment his skin touched it.

Lost in thought for quite some time, the master realized there was something important he had to tell them before this airship moved.

"We might not be able to get out of here," he said, his tone sounding as though he were trying to frighten them.

Although the master's confidence had previously been high, it was now no more than the sky realizing that there was another sky above it.

His people, who were none other than Receivers and Hollows, had died without the master himself knowing who had killed those five people in the blink of an eye.

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