Late at night, darkness wrapped itself around the city like a heavy shroud. The narrow alleyways of Stone Bell City were swallowed by pitch-black shadows, the kind only broken by the distant glow of lamps flickering behind shuttered windows. In one such alley, Magus stood motionless, his presence merging seamlessly with the dark. His gaze, however, was fixed far ahead—toward a modest, dimly lit mansion that sat quietly among more extravagant noble estates.
Compared to the resplendent residences scattered throughout Stone Bell City, this particular house appeared unremarkable. Passersby would likely overlook it without a second thought. But Magus knew better. Beneath its plain exterior lay one of the Starfire Church's covert strongholds in Golden Rock Province.
After arriving in the city, he had spent three entire days observing the building from various angles, monitoring everyone who entered or left. Strangely, none of the individuals he had tracked seemed connected to the Starfire Church's mission of hunting magical creatures. It had been a frustrating and fruitless wait.
He had no intention of wasting more precious time, so he made a simple decision: tonight, he would capture someone—anyone remotely suspicious—and extract information directly.
He did not need to wait long.
A man cloaked in thick winter fabric stepped out of the mansion, glancing around with a subtle but unmistakable nervousness before making his way briskly into the night. Magus did not immediately pursue. Instead, he allowed several minutes to pass, giving the man enough distance before casually leaving the alley.
Hidden Dragon, already tracking from above, would ensure the man was not lost—not that Magus expected such a capable companion to fail. Keeping a safe distance also prevented the target from sensing he was being followed.
For half an hour Magus trailed the man, navigating Stone Bell City's cramped alleys and winding streets. At last, Hidden Dragon sent a silent signal indicating the target had stopped moving. Magus quickened his pace and arrived at the indicated location shortly after.
"What would a Starfire cultist be doing here?" Magus murmured.
The house before him was an ordinary residence in a commoner district—far removed from the secrecy and order of the stronghold. The mundane setting made the man's presence all the more suspicious.
He gestured for Hidden Dragon to stay alert outside, then coated his body in a thin layer of wind-element energy. With a soft leap, he sailed over the wall and landed silently in the courtyard.
As soon as he touched the ground, his enhanced senses caught the unmistakable sound of voices from inside the house—voices that immediately twisted his expression into something between disbelief and exasperation.
"My love, I missed you terribly," a man whispered fervently.
"And I missed you as well, Honey," replied a woman in an indulgent tone. "Lord Kubero has been overwhelmed with estate affairs lately, too busy to keep an eye on me. So we'll have all the time we want."
"That's perfect," the man responded eagerly. "Now… let me savor Lord Kubero's wife."
The suggestive rustling and intimate sounds that followed made Magus pause, staring blankly at the night sky for a moment.
"…Poor Kubero," he muttered under his breath.
Afflicted by an evil spirit and being cheated on—Magus almost felt compelled to offer condolences to this lord he had never met.
Shaking his head, he walked toward the room without bothering to conceal the sound of his footsteps. His senses confirmed no one else was inside the house. The pair had obviously chosen a remote place for a secret rendezvous.
The man inside reacted instantly. "Who's there?!"
When Magus pushed open the door, the lover had already leapt from the bed, reaching desperately for a weapon on a nearby table. The woman shrank into the bedding, clutching the quilt to her chest with trembling hands.
"Who are you?!" the man demanded, eyes wide.
Magus offered no introduction. A bolt of lightning shot from his fingertips, striking the man squarely. The cultist convulsed violently before collapsing helplessly, eyes rolled back.
The noblewoman inhaled sharply, preparing to scream—but she underestimated how long it took to draw breath. Magus flicked his fingers again. Another electric spark danced across the room, striking her and dropping her unconscious as easily as the man.
Closing the door, Magus used Wizard's Hand to lift the unconscious cultist from the floor. A short pulse of mental energy revived him just enough for the next spell to take hold. The moment the man's eyes opened, Magus cast Charm Human. The man's gaze turned glassy and vacant.
"Name," Magus said.
"Honey Diomande."
"Rank within the Starfire Church."
"Three-star Cultist."
Magus sighed, mildly disappointed. The hierarchy placed one-star through five-star cultists below the Priest level. A three-star cultist barely qualified as mid-tier and would likely know little about high-level operations.
Still, Magus pressed on. "What do you know about capturing magical creatures?"
"I know… some things," Honey replied in a hollow voice.
Magus's interest sharpened. "Explain."
"Priest Troy and Priest Ryan are responsible. They go out every day to hunt it… but they haven't caught it yet. The Cult Priest is furious."
"Every day?" Magus frowned. "Why haven't I seen anyone entering or leaving the mansion?"
"They use an underground secret passage," Honey answered. "No one uses the main entrance."
Magus rubbed his forehead, annoyed at himself. Of course a secret stronghold would have a concealed exit. It would have been suspicious for cultists to repeatedly walk through the front door. He had simply fallen into the trap of obvious assumptions.
"Lack of experience," he muttered.
He continued questioning. "Where do the hunting teams usually go?"
"North of the city," Honey answered. "The magical creature never leaves that region. Priest Troy and the others search there every day."
So the search zone was fixed. That simplified matters.
Finding the exit of the secret passage would waste time, but if the creature was always in the north, Magus could intercept the Starfire Church's hunting efforts instead. Once the cultists discovered the creature, they would inevitably cause a disturbance. With both him and Hidden Dragon scouting different areas, the likelihood of finding the creature increased dramatically.
Hidden Dragon's ability to shift between tangible and intangible form was ideal for navigating crowded districts.
Magus silently pieced together his plan, continuing to interrogate Honey until the cultist had nothing left to offer. Once satisfied, he prepared to dispose of the man in some efficient manner.
But just as he was about to act, a subtle shift in the room caught his attention. His expression tightened. He slowly turned toward the table.
The room was sealed—doors shut, windows closed—yet strands of moonlight slipped through the narrow cracks, forming thin silver lines across the furniture. And standing in the middle of the table, half-illuminated by that silver beam, was a small, snow-white cat.
A cat?
But no ordinary cat. Its fur gleamed like fresh snow under moonlight, and its eyes—icy blue and unnervingly intelligent—glittered like rare gemstones. Its delicate form seemed to flicker, as if the moonlight itself had shaped it.
An immediate chill ran down Magus's spine.
How had it entered without him sensing it? His perception was sharp enough to detect even mice scurrying in walls. And yet this creature had appeared within arm's reach before he noticed.
Something was definitely wrong.
He flicked his wrist, summoning an Earth Rune Gem between his fingers, ready to activate it at the slightest threat.
The cat stepped forward gracefully, its slender body casting gentle shadows as it moved. A small gold bell tied with a red ribbon hung around its neck, chiming faintly with each step. The soft sound combined with its fluid movements created the image of an elegant young lady strolling leisurely through a moonlit garden.
It reached the edge of the table and hopped down with poised elegance. Then, tilting its head upward, it regarded Magus—and the entranced cultist—with clear, inquisitive, almost human curiosity.
"Meow. What are you doing?"
The simple question, spoken in the voice of a childlike spirit, echoed through the room—an innocent sound carrying unsettling implications.
Magus tightened his grip on the rune gem.
This was no ordinary animal.
Something—perhaps the very magical creature the Starfire Church had been searching for—had found him.
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