Upon hearing those words, Hooper felt bitterness appear in his heart. He never thought the Red Python members would deceive him and push him into a bottomless pit. Although it was his fault, he didn't want to accept it.
"What can I do for you, My Lady? I didn't know that the Red Python organization was worshiping a demon." He muttered while lowering his gaze in shame. Meanwhile, Selma and the other two companions glanced at each other and shook their heads helplessly.
"Raise your head. I'm not that mad about being spied on. I already knew that the organization would come after my head. So, don't worry. But do you have any information about the Red python? Where is the headquarters located? Who is the boss of this organization?" Roysia asked multiple questions while taking a seat near Fennelis.
Meanwhile, Hooper shook his head with a bitter smile and said regretfully. "I don't know anything about the organization's headquarters nor the leader's name, My Lady. But I know that Red Python's headquarters is not located in the Southern Mainland. I overheard the branch leaders talking once and learned they had planned to take an airship to the Red Python headquarters. If their main base is in the Southern Mainland, I don't think they will need an airship to travel." His words made Roysia nod in approval.
"So, where is that branch office?" Selma glared at him and asked coldly.
"It's in the Keris Kingdom's capital, My Lady. Because of an oath, I can't say any other word about its location." Hooper understood why she was angry at him and gave a hint.
"Hmm, did you inform the branch office about our arrival?" Roysia asked while sheathing her sword into the scabbed.
"Not yet, My Lady." Hooper shook his head and answered truthfully.
"Inform your organization members that I have two more powerful friends by my sides. Also, add more information like an unknown organization is backing me secretly." Roysia's lips curved upward, forming a smile as she said those words.
"Doesn't that make our position even more dangerous?" Fennelis asked with a nervous tone. If they believe his lie, it would be more like poking a honeycomb filled with bees using a small stick.
Meanwhile, Roysia shook her head and added.
"If we want to cover up a lie, we must add some truth. The truth to this lie is the name of the organization." She paused for a moment and smirked.
"Light Church should be more than enough for that position, right?"
For a moment, everyone in the hall felt like they were staring at a cunning person rather than an innocent knight lady!
"It might work out!" Fennelis said while taking a deep breath.
"Let's make these two organizations meet and fight for us. We will use that chance to escape back to the Peral kingdom." Smith understood Roysia's plan right away and said while nodding in approval. He joined this adventurers' team mainly to teach the youngsters about the danger, but he never thought that Hooper would sell his soul to a demon. Although he was mad about Hooper's stupidity, he didn't hate him.
'Being a fourth-tier warrior won't make one strong. These two lack experience.' Smith glanced at Selma and Hooper and sighed helplessly.
As for Nadine, Smith didn't have much to say. Her unique intuition skill gave her a big boost.
'Nadine is a smart child. She stays silent all the time and always thinks a step ahead. I don't need to worry about this cautious child.' He sighed and thought of what to do with the current situation.
"Going back to the Peral kingdom is the right choice for us." He made up his mind after pondering for a while and said decisively.
'Otherwise, we might lose Hooper to some demon.' He thought.
"You guys can go if you want, but I won't return to that kingdom. I have to find my husband. I don't know what happened to him, so I have to search for clues about him in the Taiga Sloth Woods." Fennelis said in a gloomy tone.
"Without finding any information about the Red Python, I also don't have any idea of returning to the Peral Kingdom." Roysia also nodded with Fennelis and said seriously, filling the room with awkward silence.
For the next few minutes, no one spoke a word, which caused a strange atmosphere. Everyone had different plans in their minds.
"Wouldn't your husband come and look for you when seeing your wanted posters?" Suddenly, Roysia thought of something and asked while arching her eyebrows upward.
"The officials must have already taken the wanted posters away, Lady Roysia. Moreover, no one would pay much attention to the low-level wanted posters except for a few E-rank adventurers." Fennelis said calmly. It would have attracted large adventurer parties' attention if the bounty amount were more than 500 white gold coins. Thankfully, that was not the case for them.
Although some adventurers would still come for their heads, their strength would pose no threat to this group.
"Let's wait here for the next two months. Then we will act based on the situation. If the enemy still pursues us at that time, we have no choice but to go back." Roysia paused for a moment as she looked at Fennelis and added.
"Fennelis, you can hire some local adventurers in the meantime and search for your husband's whereabouts from here. I will also try to find a way to contact the Black Watchers." Roysia's words made Fennelis' expression brighten up.
'Yes, Taiga Sloth Woods is not that far away from this city. I will use ten or twenty white gold as reward money and create a search mission in the guild. I hope Nicolaus or that half-elf kid would come here before the problem escalates.' Fennelis sighed inwardly.
"Thanks for the suggestion, Lady Roysia. I will hire some adventurers and search for my husband." She said with a bright smile on her face.
After a short exchange, the group dispersed, and everyone went to their rooms. They all agreed to stay in Silverland city for the next two months and plan to improve their strengths. Fennelis also thought of teaching Umi about the basics of the outside world and fighting techniques.
Moreover, she was planning to teach Umi how to control the ice elemental energy.
…
On May 8th, Amaryllis Town, Alastall Woodland.
It was a rainy day. Abium sat inside his room in a meditative state with closed eyes and regularly absorbed the spirit power from the divine fragment. After 15 minutes, he opened his amber eyes with a bright expression. For the last two weeks, he has frequently absorbed the spirit power from the fragment and improved his spirit power to a different level. As for subjugating the monsters, that plan was also running smoothly.
'We almost cleared the monsters that resided near the town. Once the rain stops, we should focus on making a path towards the underground tunnel. Uncle Claude's teammates are also progressing well. Within a month or two, all of them might break through into fourth-tier warriors.' He silently nodded and stood up from his wooden bed. He planned on creating a low-tier artifact using the magic rune circle at that moment!
'I know it is not an easy task to create an artifact, but I want to try. If possible, I need to create one before June 5th. I feel that the hooded guy is plotting something big in the royal capital. I have to go ahead stealthily and start my investigation. I can't let this guy do whatever he wants. Also, the necromancers-' suddenly, his expression froze.
'Necromancers? In the past, they were the ones who plotted the whole incident. What if this elven guy also has some relationship with necromancers? Wait!… What if he is the one who planned the Grand Nobles' Gathering Incident?' A chill went up to his spines as he thought about that event.
'No way! But I can't rule out the possibility of them being manipulated by this guy.' He sighed with a hint of worry in his heart. Abium quickly cast those thoughts away from his mind and went downstairs through the double staircase. Then he entered a small room on the right side corner, which had many stones and wooden sculptures arranged on it. He appointed this room, especially for Butler Alfred, and only Abium and Dwarf Kuran were allowed to enter. As he entered the room, he saw the middle-aged man with a pale face doing his sculpting work using chisels.
"Why are you here, lad?" Butler Alfred noticed Abium's arrival and asked with a frown.
"I need your help, uncle," Abium said while taking out a small wooden chest from his spatial ring. He quickly opened the wooden chest using a key and gave it to Butler Alfred. Inside were full of silver rings. A few days ago, Abium traded with the Wadel kingdom's ornament merchant and brought this chest for ten white gold coins.
But these silver rings were unfinished products, and no gems or crystals were embedded in them.
When he noticed Alfred's questionable gaze, he smiled softly and took out a palm-sized black crystal from his spatial ring.
"Uncle, can you cut this crystal into smaller ones for embedding them into these rings? Five or ten pieces should be more than enough." He said.
"I can do that. What is this crystal? It won't explode when I cut, right?" Alfred asked in a half-joking manner.
"No, uncle. Although it is a dark elemental crystal, it won't explode. So, when can I get the crystal pieces?" Abium asked curiously.
"Come here after two hours, or I will ask a maid to send them to your room," Alfred said while chasing Abium out of the room and concentrating his attention on the black crystal.
At the same time, Abium walked out of the sculpture room and returned to his room on the second floor.