Chapter 51
Hisran asked, looking incredulous.
“Is she crazy? Why tell me something she hasn’t even shared with her subordinates? Since when were we so close?”
“Watch your mouth, unless you want it ripped open the next time we meet.”
Hesed snarled, his eyes glaring.
“The information about Gluttony must have been obtained from the shaman who visited the White Tower during lunch today.”
Events from the afternoon slowly began to piece together in Hesed’s mind.
Irina had come to his office to share the information she obtained from the shaman, and by a cursed twist of fate, she must have witnessed him meeting with the elder mages.
‘If I were in her shoes, even I would think, This bastard is preparing to betray me.’
That’s why she hadn’t responded to any of his attempts to contact her.
“Did she mention any location?”
“Hey, calm down. Doesn’t something seem off?”
Though concerned about Irina, as an outsider, Hisran could think more clearly.
“The shaman delivered the information at lunch today. But in just a few hours, he managed to identify the monster or the culprit’s location and contacted Irina? Unless he was setting a trap to lure her to a specific place.”
Hesed realized, his breath catching in his throat. Hisran was right. This was a scheme targeting Irina—a trap. Perhaps the shaman and even the whole incident were part of it.
“I’ll dispatch search parties to Quilton City and other locations where the incidents occurred to find the Tower Master and the shaman.”
“Good, hurry. I’ll contact Siord and Loretta.”
Hesed and Hisran suppressed the ominous feeling growing inside them and did what they needed to do.
*
“Hey, there’s no time to waste. You still owe Irina, right? Get to the White Tower immediately.”
Hisran managed to pull Siord away from a cozy moment with Yeonhwa.
But they couldn’t reach Loretta. Even the Vice Tower Master of the Black Tower didn’t know her whereabouts.
“Damn it, forget it. She always shows up at critical moments anyway.”
Hisran decided to forgo Loretta’s help. Even though Gluttony was a formidable monster, he believed that with the Red Tower Master and his support, they could handle any variables that arose.
Hesed moved just as swiftly as Hisran. He pushed the White Tower mages so hard that they quickly found the shaman’s body in the back alleys of Quilton City.
“Lord Siord, please.”
Though Siord looked displeased, he made an incision close to the shaman’s heart to draw blood and cast a spell.
Using blood instead of pure water made reading memories exceedingly difficult, but for Siord, who had a deep understanding and control over water magic, it was just manageable.
“…Because it is the blood of the dead, there are limitations in probing the memories. However, I did manage to extract some information.”
With only Hesed, Scarlet, and Vine, who were Irina’s senior disciples, and Hisran present, Siord revealed the information he had uncovered.
“First, this shaman was in cahoots with the person who kidnapped Irina from the beginning.”
“…Sending an unverified individual to the White Tower. We must hold Ovtatio accountable later.”
Hesed gritted his teeth.
“Second, Gluttony has already claimed 444 lives. I’m not well-versed in shamanism, but the number 444 seems significant.”
“In shamanism, 444 signifies eternal death and completion. The monster known as Gluttony must have an unimaginable power.”
Scarlet, being from a rare tribe with some knowledge of shamanism, muttered with a dark expression.
“Third, the one who created Gluttony and kidnapped Irina is a dark sorcerer.”
At the mention of a dark sorcerer, Hisran’s eyes glinted dangerously.
“Devrant, that bastard.”
The one who had slipped through their fingers once in the south and once in the east.
Siord nodded.
“Yes, when he infiltrated the Blue Tower, it also seemed he had the aid of shamanism.”
“Damn cockroach. How does he manage to avoid death and slip away every time?”
Black mages, who worship the god of rage and black magic, Tumor, and disrupt the world’s peace, could never coexist under the same sky with mages who follow Magia, the god of magic, and use their abilities for the world’s advancement and peace.
“That bastard! This time, I’ll kill him for sure!”
“If he follows his usual pattern, he wouldn’t have killed Irina yet.”
“Right. Whether he intends to brainwash her or use her as a vessel, we need to find her quickly.”
At Hisran’s words, Hesed, Scarlet, and Vine steeled themselves. They were determined to find Irina, no matter the cost.
However, Devrant, the leader of the dark sorcerers who had lost all his subordinates in the south and east, moved faster than anyone had expected.
On the very night they realized Irina had been kidnapped, the enemy struck first.
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