Chapter 97. Crazy People

Cyril frowned fiercely as he looked at the carefully written letter. It had been delivered through the merchant guild by Seraphina earlier that day, and the content was quite amusing.

[Dear Sir, how have you been?
This place is great. Just wanted to say thank you.
Of course, if I contact you just to say hello, you might scold me, right?
I’m writing this letter because I’m worried. It seems the three heroes might be looking for me.
If that’s the case… assuming I was destined to die anyway, can’t I be disguised as dead in the world? I know it’s a cruel request, but I have a feeling I was originally meant to die.
P.S. Please secretly let Marc know I’m alive.]

It seemed like she was rambling in the middle, but the main point was to make the world believe she was dead.

For Cyril, manipulating the identity of a corpse was not a difficult task. It was something he was already preparing to do.

But…

“Why is Marc always exempt?”

Cyril glared at the end of the letter in irritation.

Then Jacques, who was standing next to him, cautiously spoke.

“He’s a low-ranking mercenary who naturally got close to Miss Seraphina while doing mercenary work together…”

“I know.”

Cyril cut off Jacques with a sharp look.

The investigation into Marc’s identity was already complete.

Starting from his home address, they dug into his acquaintances, past, and even his embarrassing history. He was just a very ordinary, unremarkable low-ranking mercenary, as common as a street pebble.

But why did Seraphina keep looking out for Marc even while escaping from those great heroes?

It was bothersome.

Taking care of someone insignificant so diligently.

It seemed like she liked him unconditionally, for no reason.

“Uh, Master.”

Jacques spoke up to make up for his mistake of annoying the Master.

“If it bothers you, should I remove him?”

It seemed easy…

He didn’t bother to say the last part.

Cyril was silent for a moment, as if contemplating. It was a very tempting suggestion.

But…

“Forget it.”

He wasn’t confident he could handle the aftermath if Seraphina found out later. He had already burned the letter she requested earlier.

“More importantly, what about the guild?”

Seraphina’s concern wasn’t unfounded.

The three heroes were indeed moving to find the missing Seraphina.

Recently, even Claude, who should have been too busy in the North to move, had joined the search. Cyril couldn’t ignore it.

“The Guardian of the North has found another base.”

“Is that guy a bloodhound? How does he find them so well?”

“It seems he has a developed animal instinct.”

“Do you think I’m asking because I don’t know?”

Jacques fell silent at Cyril’s grim voice.

Claude’s momentum, as he recently started to act, was frightening. The information guild, which spread like a spider’s web everywhere, was disguised as various shops or households, yet somehow he managed to sniff them out, smashing the Sahar branch and then finding another nearby location.

Of course, even if a few bases were exposed, Seraphina’s location wouldn’t be discovered.

Information related to her was top secret within the guild, known only to a handful. However, if they kept stepping on them one by one like this, they might eventually stumble upon a faint clue.

“Master.”

At that moment, Jacques cautiously spoke up. There was still more to report.

“The Holy Knight Order has also started to move. And… it is said the Emperor has passed the walls of Elmon, but there were no accompanying knights.”

“Crazy bastards.”

Cyril swore irritably, holding a cigar in his mouth.

Even if the purifier is a precious resource, to go this far?

No.

What kind of f*cking idiot would believe that?

This was a man’s intuition. The three of them harbored impure thoughts towards Seraphina.

That fact made Cyril unbearable.

He couldn’t give Seraphina to insignificant men.

If someone could read his mind, they would be shocked, wondering how he could consider the three heroes insignificant, but Cyril gave a low command.

“Issue the activity stage ‘Deep Sea’ to all guild members.”

“Deep Sea… you say?”

Jacques’ eyes widened in surprise.

The information guild was an organization that melted into the shadows in the darkness. As such, they were trained more rigorously than anyone else to hide their identities and act discreetly.

How to blend into the crowd, hide one’s presence, use magic, and so on.

And the intensity varied according to the crisis situation.

Shadow, Underground, Ghost, Deep Sea, Darkness.

Depending on the five activity stages, the behavior of guild members, the degree of caution in hiding their identities, and even the location of their bases differed.

Usually, they operated as ‘Shadow.’

And currently, it was ‘Underground.’

But to raise it by two stages at once…

However, given that their opponents were the three heroes, there was no reason not to accept it.

Jacques nodded with a serious expression.

Exhaling a cloud of smoke, Cyril stared into space. The three heroes might be superior in strength, but in hide-and-seek, they were a step ahead.

“Let’s give it a try.”

He stubbed out the cigar in the ashtray and gave Jacques one more order.

“Oh. And send a guild member who knows how to sew over here.”

“What?”

“Sewing, I mean. Someone good at making women’s dresses.”

“…Understood, Master.”

Although it was an incomprehensible order, Jacques nodded for now. It was undoubtedly related to Seraphina.

And Jacques’ guess was spot on.

Cyril recalled the events that took place earlier that day at the information guild that was disguised as a merchant guild operating a general store.

<Do you also handle sewing-related items here?>

<There is nothing the merchant guild does not handle.>

<Great, hehe. Then I’ll request an introductory book on sewing, a sewing machine, thread and needles, fabrics, and buttons.>

<What type of fabric should I bring you?>

<Oh, I’m not sure…>

Seeing Seraphina at a loss, Cyril sent various signals with his eyes to the guild member disguised as the general store owner to behave properly.

The effect was immediate.

<I’ll prepare a variety of options. Just come and choose.>

<Wow, you’re really kind here!>

Seeing Seraphina’s face brighten with joy, a satisfied smile naturally appeared on Cyril’s lips.

Sewing, huh…

Listening to the sound of the waves flowing through the open window, Cyril looked up at the night sky.

It was an entirely unexpected interest.

Well.

Whatever she liked, whatever she was interested in, Cyril intended to support her unconditionally.

So that she would lack nothing while staying in Ponitan.

To repay what he couldn’t do for her when he was powerless as a child, and then some.

* * *

Whoosh…

Silver hair, like the moon was woven into it, gently swayed in the wind blowing from somewhere.

Johann, who was standing on a hill, mounted on a mighty warhorse and quietly gazed down at the village below.

“It’s unusual.”

The phrase ‘on the brink of explosion’ would be more fitting.

“The aura of the Undead…”

Regions where the Undead frequently appeared on the continent were systematically managed.

The most frequent appearance site, the Grodes Mountains, was entrusted to Claude, while the next most frequent, Sahar, was left to Mihail. Purifiers were dispatched to other areas needing meticulous management.

Among them, of course, were those active in other countries.

Since the undead were enemies of humanity, Johann cooperatively dispatched purifiers, and they, in turn, received reasonable compensation.

However, no matter how much he cared, it was virtually impossible to monitor the vast world perfectly.

Like this nameless village in front of him.

“There might be more victims that Marseus missed than I thought.”

Reaching a bitter conclusion, Johann swung the reins like a whip. His blue eyes, riding the wind, flickered with anger and responsibility.

Having left the Imperial Palace under the pretext of a continental tour, Johann was traveling around meeting purifiers scattered across various places.

Hoping that by listening to the hardships of fellow purifiers, he might gain some insight into Seraphina’s heart. Hoping that he might be able to guess her whereabouts.

The road ahead was long, and time was short.

Two months had already passed out of the six he promised to Ionia.

Even if he hurried while pretending not to know, it wasn’t enough, but he couldn’t just pass by.

Sssss…

As Johann reached the entrance of the village, a black aura began to rise from the ground.

The villagers, unaware of anything, were living their daily lives, laughing and chatting merrily.

“Look, Uncle. I made a bracelet with flowers.”

“Wow, your hands are very skilled!”

“I need to make one for Gia and Katie too.”

“Didn’t you fight yesterday? Haha, kids will be kids… Ah!”

“Eek!”

A black wave surged between the man and the child having a warm conversation. It was a ghoul.

This village was lucky.

The undead had appeared right along the path where Emperor Marseus happened to be passing by.

Whoosh!

Johann’s sword swung down from above. The ghoul’s body split in half and slumped down, revealing a man and a child who had fallen backward in surprise.

The two, trembling and clutching each other, looked up at Johann with wavering eyes.

In their eyes, as they gazed at the silver-haired emperor on horseback, there was a mix of fear and awe.