Chương 75: The Haunted Manor

Selene looked Kyle up and down before shifting her gaze back to Richard. She took a deep breath and slowly relaxed her brows; the overflowing mana around her slowly disappeared.

"So? Mind explaining the whole matter?" She asked. Seeing that Selene had calmed down, Richard heaved a sigh of relief. He took a sip of tea before gesturing towards Kyle.

"I think it would be better if this young man explained. He's the concerned party, and he's the one who will accompany you." Selene glanced at Kyle, then walked to an empty seat and sat down. She picked up the kettle and poured some tea into two cups, one of which she placed in front of Kyle before picking the other and taking a sip. She placed the cup down on a saucer before resting her gaze on Kyle's face, waiting for an explanation.

"Thanks." Kyle looked at the steamy cup in front of him with surprise before taking a deep breath and recounting the entire story he told Richard.

"... Finally, we reported this matter to the Velkaris Branch a few days ago. Nothing came from it," Kyle finished. Feeling a bit thirsty, he picked up the cup of tea and took a sip.

"I see." Selene nodded calmly. She didn't have an outburst like President Richard, seeming rather used to the incompetence of some institutions.

"It's not unexpected that those guys at the Velkaris branch didn't send us a message considering that the count of Velkaris and the Marquis of Tarnfell belong to different factions, but…" She looked out of the window, her gaze piercing through many buildings, landing on the southern slums.

"I didn't expect that idiot Garrick to get involved with the Old Imperial Cult."

"Is there a possibility that the baron is also involved?" She shifted her gaze to Richard.

"No. I've tested him." Richard shook his head.

"I see, so it's just a dog acting on its own." Selene sneered. She tapped the wooden desk with her finger.

"Do I need to act?" Richard shook his head again.

"No need; the Bloody Hand Gang won't exist by tomorrow." Selene hmphed and stood up.

"Good, we shouldn't have allowed a gang like that to exist in the first place." Richard sighed but didn't say that dealing with gangs wasn't within their jurisdiction. He didn't want to anger her again.

"Kyle, was it?" Selene's gaze landed on the silent Kyle.

"Let's go. The earlier we finish this, the earlier I can go back to sleep." She said before walking towards the door. Kyle nodded at the president before following her. They walked out of the office and down the stairs from the third to the first floor. Many adventurers on the way, attracted by Selene's beauty and confident demeanor, cast curious glances, but upon seeing her sophisticated equipment and feeling the tremendous mana she emitted, they quickly moved their gazes away.

The two walked in the dim streets, illuminated by the occasional magic lamp. Kyle casually looked around before glancing at Selene.

"Umm… Shouldn't we have taken the horses?" He cautiously asked. Selene nonchalantly walked forward; her expression didn't change upon hearing Kyle's question. She simply said, "No need," before raising her staff and slowly tapping the ground.

"[Haste],""[Featherlight]," she rapidly murmured. Two violet-colored, millstone-sized magic circles overlapped on top of her staff.

"Swoosh!" A breeze picked up in their surroundings, circulating around the two of them, before attaching to their bodies. Kyle could feel the surrounding mana moving with the breeze, making his body feel much lighter and his movements much more swift. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

"Amazing," Kyle exclaimed as he moved his limbs. His movements felt much easier. The wind no longer hindered his movements but was assisting him. In fact, he could no longer feel the weight of his body. He felt as light as a feather, as if he could fly with just a slight jump. He thought so and didn't hesitate to try. Kyle crouched and jumped. His body effortlessly left the ground, jumping over a dozen meters with just a slight jump. The stores, taverns, and buildings near the guild came into his sight.

He even saw two figures in a window who clearly thought no one could see them over a hundred meters away.

"Truly incredible, vice president." Kyle was amazed. He felt that his speed had almost doubled, coupled with his almost nonexistent weight; even his endurance should have greatly increased. Selene chuckled.

"Just call me Miss Selene. Our speed should now be faster than the horses'. Lead the way."

"Understood." Kyle nodded and walked ahead, covering several meters with each step he took. Selene effortlessly followed behind. They soon crossed the central district and reached the southern slums. Many beggars and shady people in alleys looked at them greedily, yet none dared to act due to their confident demeanor and unusual speed. A few minutes later, they stopped in front of a large, dilapidated manor, one of the few manors in the southern district.

It used to belong to a wealthy merchant during the early days of Mirevale, but it was abandoned later on due to the death of the merchant and their family.

"This is the place where Garrick ordered his subordinates to move dead bodies into." Kyle pointed at the manor. He paused for a second; caution settled over his face.

"It's said that the manor was haunted by a specter, but the church investigated it years ago, and they found nothing. Still, few dare approach it." He had no way to deal with specter-like entities, so even though he had heard about this manor from a few loud adventurers months ago and was curious, he didn't dare approach it.

"I see, that makes it the ideal location for cult activities." Selene calmly stated. Her blue eyes didn't ripple upon hearing that it was haunted. Not to mention that a specter was a rather high-level undead, making it unlikely to appear in a place like this. Even if this manor truly had a specter, she had plenty of ways to deal with it.

"You can follow me or wait here if you want. I'm going in." Selene said before pushing the rusty gate and walking in. Kyle hesitated for a moment. He looked at his pitch-black surroundings before glancing at the creepy manor ahead. The wind blew from nowhere, causing the rusty gate to creak. In the end, Kyle gritted his teeth and followed behind. He figured that following the rank 2 mage would be safer than waiting alone at the entrance. He was also curious about the cult's objective.

The two walked along the abandoned path lined with weeds and unpruned shrubs, stopping at a large wooden gate. Kyle pushed the large gate open, and the two walked in. The interior of the manor was even more dilapidated than the outside, filled with dust and broken furniture. There was a thick layer of dust covering the ground, without any footsteps or unusual traces on it. Kyle carefully looked around; he rubbed his arm, feeling an unusual change in temperature.

"It's too cold," Kyle muttered, yet his voice resounded through the silent manor. Selene carefully looked around but didn't respond. She closed her eyes; the gem at the tip of her staff shone slightly, followed by a gentle breeze spreading from her position, sending the dust on the ground flying and quickly enveloping the entire manor.

"Cough! Cough!" Kyle quickly waved his hand, scattering the dust in front of him. His gaze fell on the glowing gem.

'Was that an investigation-type spell?' Kyle wondered.

'Judging from the spells she demonstrated so far, she seems to be proficient in wind-type spells.' He judged. A few moments later, the breeze slowly dissipated, followed by Selene opening her eyes.

"Let's go." She unhesitatingly walked to the door on the left side of the hall. Kyle nodded and followed behind. They walked past the broken door and stepped into what seemed to be the kitchen. Selene didn't even glance at the dilapidated kitchenware or blackened stove. She stepped over the clutter on the ground and stopped in front of a small, dusty door in the corner of the kitchen.

"Huh?" Kyle frowned. Even though he scanned the kitchen the moment they entered it, he didn't notice that small door at all.

'Was it a simple oversight?' He pondered.

"Don't think much of it, this door had the illusion school spell [Minimize Presence] applied to it. Unless you carefully check this kitchen corner by corner, you won't notice it." Selene stated. She placed her palm over the door and muttered.

"[Dispel]," Kyle felt a light flash from the door before that sense of dissonance disappeared.

'Mages are indeed dangerous.' Kyle's eyes narrowed. He had been inadvertently affected. This time, it was a spell that affected his senses; maybe he would encounter a spell that would affect his consciousness or even memories next.

'I need to develop a skill to counter that.' He added one more thing to his list.

"Let's go in," Selene said. She muttered under her breath for a moment before two flashes of light emitted from her staff, enveloping her and Kyle. Kyle flinched for a moment, but feeling no threat from the light, he didn't say anything. He curiously looked at the paper-thin energy barrier that completely enveloped him, trying to move and finding no issue.

'It feels like the [Arcane Armor] from my necklace, but more advanced.' Kyle unconsciously touched his necklace before looking at Selene. She was also enveloped by the same blue energy barrier.

"It's just a precaution." She said before taking the lead to walk in. Kyle quickly followed. They walked down a long set of stairs, illuminated by just the gem on top of Selene's staff. After descending what felt like an endless flight of stairs, they reached the bottom. A vast underground space opened before them, illuminated by scattered torches.