889 Tracing the Source (1/2)
The priest, which looked like a stitched monster, looked at Fernando with his hollow eyes that did not have pupils. ”He has offered this house to the great God.”
”Where is he now?” Fernando asked solemnly, feeling that it was getting weirder and weirder. Wasn't Tuck planning to escape this place? How did he become the believer of an evil god all of a sudden?
Had he been completely twisted by the evil god's priest, or even the evil god himself, into a selfless ”contributor”?
The priest sounded as calm as before as he said, ”He's in the temple.”
”I'm his friend. I'm here for him. I would like you to bring me to meet him in the temple.” Fernando had been unwilling to risk going to the nest of those believers whose behaviors were weird, but logically speaking, he was here for Tuck, and he could have asked for help from the Office of Sorcerers in case of any danger. If he did not go, it was very possible that the mysterious hunter would notice some anomaly.
Of course, Fernando knew very well in his heart that this city might not be under the control of sorcerers anymore. He inferred it based on the cry for help.
The priest slowly moved forward and circumvented Fernando as if he could see. ”Follow me, paranoid sorcerer. You will sense the almightiness of God after you come to the temple. You will know that Tuck has chosen a better path with his heart.”
He's not stopping me? Having no time to think, Fernando walked out of the villa with the priest.
It was already late at night. The silver moon was hazy, and darkness was everywhere in the city. Few lights could be seen.
Following the priest unhurriedly, Fernando analyzed the whole thing. ”A sorcerer somehow became an evil god's believer after leaving such notes, the whole city has been blocked, and someone delivers water and food regularly… Are the sorcerers secretly doing something based on this city, or have some believers of the evil god infiltrated Kufuray and controlled it bit by bit?”
It was not difficult to come up with the two possibilities because the place was in the territory of the sorcerers after all. It was next to the churches of the other gods but beyond the reach of the dark creatures, elves, dwarfs, or the Saint Truth. The first possibility could also mean the cooperation with the evil god.
He weighed the two possibilities, hoping to figure out the situation and find a way of survival. Based on the fact that it was a sorcerer who cried for help, the second possibility seemed more likely.
The priest in the lead walked to the market area and opened one of the stores.
Many goods were placed behind the door. There was nothing special. The blind priest passed the messy place agilely without bumping into anything.
At the center of the store, stone stairs led to the basement, where bright and yellow light was leaking out.
Kufuray has such underground chambers too. No wonder the archmage can hide and ask for help. Fernando thought to himself. Then, he frowned and sensed the contradictions. ”As I inferred before, the mysterious hunter must be at least a level-nine expert, or he couldn't have forced an archmage who is capable of putting me into a dream to stay here.
”Would such an expert secretly investigate after knowing that his enemy is hiding in the city, or would he simply erase the city with his strongest attack?”
Fernando believed that none of the experts in this age had the kindness to care about other people's lives. They would certainly do whatever it took to accomplish the mission as soon as possible in case the enemy's reinforcements came. So, how could the expert have decided to play hide-and-seek with the archmage in Kufuray? Was he not scared that a legend would pass by the place by accident?
It was obvious that the most effective approach was to destroy the city with thunderous attacks so that the archmage would be forced out or killed in his shelter. Whatever protection he was under, when an attack that was powerful enough to destroy the city arrived, the magic effects would definitely be triggered, and he would be discovered as a result.
There was another possibility, which was that the method of hiding involved the deep mysteries of time and space. However, an archmage was apparently incapable of that. If it was naturally formed, he could have stayed in the shelter peacefully without asking for help in a hurry.
More importantly, this place was not close to Aalto. Whatever happened, as long as the Office of Sorcerers was destroyed in the very beginning, nobody would notice anything wrong in ten minutes.
”Therefore, it's not that the mysterious hunter does not want to demolish the city, but his certain concerns prevent him from choosing such a radical approach. He is forced to play hide-and-seek with the archmage…”
Inferring the enemy's thoughts from their action, Fernando sensed more and more ”truth”. ”Either the evil god in this place is beyond level nine and terrifies him, or it is this!”
Based on his previous speculation, Fernando believed that he had already seen through the mist!
”If the evil god has reached the level of legendary, the sorcerers would definitely be willing to cooperate with him in such a situation as long as he is willing to. He will be given a territory for his preaching. There's no need to be so stealthy at all…
”Also, something has happened to many sorcerers in this place. Even though the enemy can fake voices and mails, there are always irrecoverable loopholes, like the people who deliver food and water but do not enter the city, and the source of the food and water… In such an intense situation, it can hardly escape the attention of the sorcerers in Aalto…
”Therefore, this place can only be a secret laboratory of the legends of Aalto! Only they can separate a city within their territory from the outside world without causing any suspicion! Only they can mobilize a large batch of food without raising any attention!
”That's why the mysterious hunter did not destroy the city immediately, which would've attracted the legends!”