"I want to walk around a bit first, so let's say goodbye here!"
As soon as those words left his mouth, Leilin caught the disappointment in Jessira's eyes, while Newt visibly relaxed with quiet relief.
He gave a smile, turned and waved, then disappeared into the crowd, with Gubule quickly following after him.
His remarkable constitution allowed Leilin to faintly hear the muffled argument between the two behind him.
"Honestly…" Leilin shook his head. "Instead of devoting their limited energy to the pursuit of truth, they fixate on this sort of thing…"
"Well, I suppose that's the simple pleasure of mortals!"
After shaking his head, he then nodded, called out to Gubule, and continued on his journey.
"Once we enter the Black River region, we'll be quite close to the Ouroboros Ring's headquarters—the Phosphorescent Swamp."
Gubule was clearly familiar with this area, carrying an air of both dread and longing.
He deftly arranged to hire a carriage, and then he and Leilin sat inside, enjoying the scenery along the way.
If they had pushed hard, they naturally wouldn't have been traveling this slowly, but Leilin wasn't in any particular hurry and wanted to see more of the Central Continent's scenery, so he had chosen the carriage as their means of travel.
As night approached, Leilin and his companion arrived at a small town.
The town's inn was tiny; even in the front room, one could smell a mixture of alcohol, body odor, and horse dung.
This made Leilin frown slightly, but since it was the only inn in this small town, they would have to make do. Regardless, the inn's accommodations were at least a step up from sleeping rough.
After Leilin and Gubule stowed their luggage, they returned to the main hall, intending to have something to eat.
Dinner was beef stewed with potatoes, served with some fresh vegetables—the town had little else to offer. But it was cooked well enough; the beef atop the potatoes gave off an appetizing aroma that stirred one's hunger.
"Hmm?"
Just then, Gubule's expression suddenly changed.
A deep grayish-white hue spread from the inn's entrance, expanding continuously until it engulfed the other patrons and the shopkeeper alike.
Crack! Crack!
The ordinary people touched by the grayish-white all froze in place, as though turned into wax figures.
"It's a petrification spell! There are wizards—and they're targeting us!"
Gubule exclaimed in alarm and rage, rising to his feet as a ring of earth-yellow energy particles materialized around him, spreading outward in all directions.
A protective glow enveloped the round table where they sat, shielding them from the fate of the other patrons.
Leilin, meanwhile, seemed completely oblivious to all of this, still savoring the town's home-brewed wheat beer with evident enjoyment.
Bang!
The inn's wooden door exploded inward, and two wizards in black robes strode in, each wearing the ruby badge that Leilin had seen before.
"Newt! We meet again!" Leilin raised his cup and greeted him with a faint smile.
Among the two wizards who had burst in, Newt was indeed one of them. But at this moment, his facial muscles were contorted as he glared fiercely at Leilin. "Where's Jessira? Hand her over now!"
"Jessira? Wasn't she with you?"
Leilin chuckled.
"She left afterward. I suspect she was abducted by someone. And based on the tracking mark on her, I'm certain she's right here!"
Newt's eyes had gone slightly red.
"A tracking mark?" Leilin laughed in disbelief. "How lacking in confidence must one be to plant such a spell on the person they love?"
"I don't care. Uncle! It must be him! This wizard took Jessira!" Newt grabbed the sleeve of the wizard beside him and pointed toward Leilin.
The wizard with him shifted his gaze slightly, then abruptly stepped forward.
A flash of silver light swept past, and Gubule's elemental halo shattered instantly.
"Second-rank wizard!" Gubule muttered under his breath.
Hearing this, a look of smug satisfaction appeared in Newt's eyes, while the other second-rank wizard showed no trace of joy on his face.
In his eyes, Gubule—who was only half-elementalized—was naturally nothing to worry about. But Leilin, who had remained perfectly still the entire time, gave him an unsettling feeling of being unable to see through.
"Gentlemen, the Nonolifa Family has absolutely no intention of using force. It's simply that our heir's fiancée has recently gone missing—a serious matter. We need to search these premises and would appreciate your cooperation…" This second-rank wizard stated his intentions quite clearly and plainly.
First demonstrating his strength, then showing a measure of courtesy while leaving room for negotiation—this had to be said, was the smarter approach, certainly far better than Newt's behavior.
"Together with whom?" To Gubule's surprise, Leilin simply nodded in agreement.
Wait, I need to fix that line. Let me re-do: "Very well!" To Gubule's surprise, Leilin simply nodded in agreement.
"Thank you!" Seeing Leilin so cooperative, the second-rank wizard's expression softened considerably, and even Newt refrained from saying anything further.
"It's here!"
Newt pulled out a strange mirror, glanced at it, then suddenly rushed upstairs.
"Let's go take a look." After eating and drinking his fill, Leilin rose calmly and followed with Gubule, while the second-rank wizard trailed closely behind them, seemingly afraid Leilin might suddenly flee.
"Ah… Jessira… my Jessira…"
When they reached the room where Leilin and Gubule had stowed their luggage, they suddenly heard Newt's wailing.
"This is bad!" Gubule rushed in, only to find a white dress thrown on the floor, with a large amount of bloodstains near the abdominal area, partially dried into a dark, almost black color.
"What happened?"
"Jessira! Jessira! How dare you—" Newt's face flushed crimson as he charged forward with a furious roar.
"Trouble!" Gubule's brow furrowed deeply as a layer of yellow scales appeared on his body. Several massive earth-yellow hands materialized and pinned the already-unraveled Newt to the ground, restraining him.
"A warlock of the Ouroboros Ring?"
The second-rank wizard's expression shifted as well, quickly turning fierce.
"Even if you are from the Ouroboros Ring, forcibly taking our family's fiancée and treating the Nonolifa Family's heir this way—you owe us an explanation!"
Silver light blazed in his eyes as a silver whip materialized in his hand.
"Wait a moment." At this, Leilin merely smiled lightly, his hand already resting on the second-rank wizard's shoulder.
"Hm? What—" Though it was just a small hand, it felt as heavy as a mountain. The second-rank wizard found his body stiffening, unable to even lift a finger.
"Innate Wizardry—Fire Repulsion Ring!" A layer of flames erupted from the second-rank wizard's body, forming the shape of a fire ring, its edges tinged with threads of silver that warped the surrounding air.
"Annihilation!" But then he heard two cold, sharp syllables from Leilin's mouth.
Sizzle! The flames were immediately extinguished, not even leaving a wisp of smoke behind.
A terrifyingly vast wave of spiritual power violently shattered the second-rank wizard's defenses, surging into his sea of consciousness and sealing away all of his spiritual power.
"Th-third-rank wizard?!" The second-rank wizard turned his head with difficulty, his voice hoarse and dry.
Leilin had been using spiritual power compression techniques to mask his energy fluctuations all along. Now, as they leaked out bit by bit, the massive energy tide made the surrounding air feel as though it were solidifying.
"Tell me—if I wanted that witch called Jessira, would I really need to resort to such sneaking about?"
Leilin swept his gaze over the two wizards and asked coldly.
"O-of course not! It was a misunderstanding on our part! My apologies!" The second-rank wizard shook his head hastily. On the Central Continent, while the wizard community was flourishing, third-rank wizards were not so easily encountered. In any major power, a third-rank wizard held an important position—firmly among the upper echelons. To deal with two first-rank wizards, there would have been absolutely no need for such elaborate measures.
By this point, Newt could no longer even speak. Even after Gubule released his restraint, Newt remained collapsed on the ground, cold sweat continuously streaming down.
The most powerful wizard in the entire Nonolifa Family had only reached the third rank. If Leilin took a dislike to them and killed them, whether anyone could exact revenge was truly anyone's guess.
In that instant, Leilin had indeed harbored a flicker of killing intent, but he quickly suppressed it.
For him, killing these two wizards—or even Jessira—would bring no benefit or advantage, and might even draw the ire of another third-rank wizard.
Though Leilin had no fear of the other party, he didn't want to court unnecessary trouble.
"Follow me!" And so, he merely cast a casual glance at the second-rank wizard and Newt on the ground before walking straight out.
Gubule followed closely behind, then the second-rank wizard and Newt. Before a third-rank wizard, they had absolutely no room to play tricks and could only obey Leilin's instructions.
Leilin walked out of the town with clear purpose, arriving at a grove of plane trees.
Though Newt was somewhat puzzled, he continued to follow.
Leilin approached the largest of the plane trees and tapped lightly on its trunk as though knocking on a door. "Anyone there?"
Thump thump! The tree's surface produced a muffled sound, but nothing happened.
"You're clever! Your scheme was carefully laid out. But you're still not mature enough—after completing your work, you simply can't resist returning to the scene to watch the aftermath!"
"I spotted you long ago. You'd best come out now. Otherwise…" Leilin's voice turned cold.
"Hmph! Fine, I'll come out. What are you going to do about it?"
With a swish, the tree trunk's surface split open to reveal a circular portal, and the young girl Jessira—whom Leilin had first encountered aboard the airship—leaped out and latched onto his arm.
"Leilin! You're so amazing! How did you find me?"
Meanwhile, the second-rank wizard and Newt's faces had twisted with rage.