Gauss and the others returned to the inn.
They handed the house sale commission to York and reminded him not to go to less populated places recently as the city’s situation is unstable.
In the afternoon, Aaliyah returned to the inn beaming with smiles.
Her smile eased Gauss’s somewhat heavy mood from the morning’s experience.
"Found the right place? You look so happy."
"Yes, a very nice natural cave, with a waterfall and spring nearby, the scenery is very beautiful. I’m planning to set off tonight."
Aaliyah was already eager to break through.
Gauss was truly happy for her.
"Could you mark the exact location on the map for me?"
"Sure."
Aaliyah took a pen and started drawing on the map, from which city gate to leave, which route to take, where to enter the fork, and finally enter the woodland.
She recorded every detail because she had paid special attention to the route when she set off in the morning.
"Are you taking Hephaestus with you?"
Gauss handed Aaliyah the pouch containing Hephaestus.
"Hm?"
Aaliyah tilted her head slightly, looking into his eyes.
"Why should I take Hephaestus? It can stay with you and help you out."
Red Dragon Dragon Beast Hephaestus wasn’t her contracted creature, and the breakthrough wouldn’t affect it and her. If she took it, it would probably just sleep in the pouch the whole time.
"If you encounter any danger, you can summon it. Hephaestus should be willing to listen to you now."
Gauss was still a bit uneasy.
If Hephaestus stayed by Aaliyah’s side, everything should be foolproof.
In terms of combat strength, Hephaestus was second only to him in the team.
And if it couldn’t defeat an opponent, it could also take Aaliyah up to the sky to escape at any time.
"What danger could there be? Are you worried because of the Tiefling Paladin’s commission this morning? But we didn’t accept that commission."
Aaliyah shook her head.
"I might be overthinking it, but you should still take Hephaestus."
"Alright, if it makes you feel at ease."
Aaliyah ultimately didn’t refuse.
Night fell.
Aaliyah prepared her supplies, mounted Ulfen, and bid farewell to Gauss and the others in front of the inn.
"I should be back in a week."
"Don’t miss me too much."
"Go on."
After Aaliyah left, Ying nodded to Gauss and then turned into a shadow and followed her.
Ying followed all the way until safely escorting Aaliyah to the retreat woodland, scouting the surrounding area before returning to the city.
"I’ve scouted the area; it’s very safe nearby."
"That’s good."
Gauss nodded.
He also felt that perhaps he was overthinking it.
For some reason, upon entering Flute Castle, he kept sensing a pair of invisible eyes watching him.
The feeling wasn’t new; back in Forest Crown Town, he also felt he was being watched and tracked.
So while walking down the streets, he became more cautious, trying to detect where the spying was coming from, which is why he noticed various details and stumbled upon incidents these past two days.
"Serdur, where are you planning to head tomorrow?"
Gauss decided to give the team a break these days.
"Me? I should be going to the slums to conduct free medical consultations, right?" Serdur replied earnestly.
Usually, in the team’s downtime, Serdur would often visit the slums and lower towns to provide free medical consultations for the poor.
Firstly, the act of healing helps with his professional growth. Secondly, the poor who can’t afford medical treatment would, despite his non-human serpent half, treat him more kindly than most.
"Ying, what about you?"
"I plan to wander around the city." Ying shrugged.
"Me too, but I’m going to check out the blacksmith shop, get some steel ingots—my equipment needs some maintenance." Albena shared her plans.
"Alright, everyone stay safe."
Gauss planned to act alone as well, intending to roam the streets to flush out the lurking shadow.
Without teammates around, he felt more at ease.
...
Late at night, in Flute Castle’s Lower Town.
A backyard of a mundane shop with a sign "Old Books and Sundries."
The ground was piled with miscellaneous items, seemingly ordinary.
But if someone moved the moldy oak barrel in the corner and pressed a slightly loose brick on the wall behind it, a narrow staircase leading down would be revealed, just wide enough for one person.
At the end of the stairs was a hollowed-out basement.
The air inside the basement was stale.
There was an intoxicating mix of old parchment, cheap lamp oil, and a faint trace of sulfur smell.
The room was dim, relying only on a few ghostly blue flames for lighting, casting everything inside into flickering ominous shadows.
At the table sat three people, before them an unfolded city map and several sheets of paper with tiny scrawl.
"The target mentioned in the letter has appeared."
"What a coincidence, just when we started planning."
The middle-aged man at the main seat, slender with gold-rimmed glasses and a spotless dark robe, appeared scholarly.
The man almost merging with the shadows before him was fully wrapped in a deep gray cloak.
The third person wore a greasy leather apron, a burly man with a solid frame.
"We need to capture him, offer him to the great immortal Dragon Queen. The aura he exudes is so pure, so strong."
The scholar’s eyes behind his glasses shimmered with an almost fanatical glow in the ghostly blue light.
"But there are too many people in the city; we can’t act with everyone watching," the burly man reminded in a gruff voice.
"Don’t rush, let me think, let me think."
The cloaked man, who hadn’t spoken before, suddenly spoke.
"One of his companions left the city and took the little dragon too."
"That might be a good opportunity." The scholar nodded in satisfaction upon hearing the news.
"Besides the small dragon, keep a close watch on the target as well. He’s far more valuable than ordinary Dragon Beasts."
Their discussions flickered like shadows in the ghostly blue flames.
Underneath their attire, faint glowing marks were slowly emerging from their bodies.
"Until there’s no more royalty in the world, leaving only broken thrones, the great Giant Dragon will once again rule the world."
After finishing, all three extended their right hands, palms down, their fingers casting shadows resembling five unusual heads twisting and writhing in the flickering flame light.
...
Gauss walked down the streets of Flute Castle.
The weather was nice today.
The blazing sun overhead raised the autumn temperature significantly.
This is why there were more people walking on the streets.
Gauss walked while paying attention to the surroundings.
Although his Perception wasn’t exceptionally high numerically, his strong soul made him more sensitive to abnormalities.
Suddenly, he spotted a sneaky figure in the distant street.
"Hey!"
The child he called comfortably turned around stiffly.
Only after recognizing Gauss, who had silently approached him, did the boy relax.
"Oh, it’s just you, silly... kind-hearted person."
Tiefling boy Dreil relaxed completely.
Earlier he worried that a victim of his thievery had spotted him.
As for this handsome man before him, he wouldn’t forget.
Two days ago, it was him who paid for Dreil at a robbed bakery.
Although he was a small thief far from an upright character, even bad people prefer dealing with such good souls.
"You were about to say fool, right?"
Gauss asked with a smile.
The boy squeezed out an awkward smile upon being found out.
"Which bakery did you set your sights on this time?" Gauss saw him sneakily observing the shops lining the street and sighed, "The bread you stole the day before should haven’t been finished yet, right?"
"Hehe, I’m not planning to steal now."
Dreil showed a bashful expression.
"I want to... I want to buy a gift for my sister."
"You have money?" Gauss’s eyes showed doubt.