Chapter 269
Werewolves and Giants
The faint red glow in Yeats’ pupils flickered for a moment before he casually replied, “Not at all. I’ve just returned from Iris… I stayed on Glass Island for a few days after I came back.
“I studied at Iris for many years. It’s been a long time since I’ve been home.”
“A student, then…”
Haina’s expression was somewhat subtle.
The reason was simple.
This person looked at least thirty years old.
How long had he been studying?
Even many lecturers at the Royal Law University looked younger than him – the Bishops, for instance.
Furthermore, Haina felt inexplicably displeased upon hearing he studied at Iris.
She disliked the Iris people – she detested the affected and frivolous Iris people more than the Star Antimony people.
Consequently, she subconsciously felt that this Yeats might also be a rake. The sense of kinship with a fellow countryman weakened accordingly.
Her tone became calmer, and after a pause, she asked, “Mr. Yeats, what did you study at Iris… music?”
She could faintly sense a demeanor similar to Princess Isabel’s from this tall man.
So she instinctively felt that this person might be an Extraordinary of the Path of Beauty.
“We have our own Inheritances of the Path of Beauty in Avalon too! There’s no need to go abroad to study such things!”
“I studied screenwriting. Because I aspired to be a playwright,” Yeats sighed, his voice gentle and deep. “But it seems I’m better at writing poetry now.
“Everyone has things they’re good at and things they’re not,” Haina offered a polite consolation. “Even I, after going to school, and even after graduating…”
“—Only realized that my adept Path might be the Transcendent Path.”
Before she could finish, she was suddenly startled.
Her intuition aggressively warned her again, making her realize she shouldn’t say it, and she sobered up completely.
Encountering the same situation for the second time, Haina finally became vigilant. She looked at the man opposite her with an unfriendly expression.
If the first time was an accident, then a second occurrence in a row… was she being charmed?
Yeats’ charm was far inferior to Mr. Eivass’s, yet she could say casually to him what she wouldn’t dare say to Mr. Eivass. It was as if a mysterious force made her friendly towards this stranger.
She closed her mouth, looking at Yeats nervously and scrutinizingly, narrowing her eyes slightly.
“…A Charm of the Path of Love?”
“Sir…”
Haina was about to present her ritual sword – the train security had no authority to disarm her – deciding to arrest this strange man who used a charm to question strangers, under the charge of “Abuse of Illegal Path Ability.”
But just then, the train slowly arrived at its final destination.
“What?”
Yeats looked up innocently, “Is something the matter?”
But his acting was far inferior to Mr. Eivass’s – having seen Eivass feign innocence towards Sherlock many times, Haina almost immediately sensed that Yeats was acting.
But after thinking it over, she decided to follow the guidance of her intuition.
It was better to avoid trouble.
“Over these past few days, her experience at the Inspection Bureau has taught her a thing or two.”
Not only was the train cabin cramped, but it was also filled with unarmed civilians. A fight would likely cause great trouble.
Moreover, she was far from the Capital now and couldn’t request support. Her Gryphon hadn’t arrived yet, and the regional forces in Shepherd’s Bay Country were too weak…
She was no longer like she was before graduation, seeing Supervisors as powerful enforcers of fairness and justice – even on Glass Island, her home turf, the Inspection Bureau had been attacked. Supervision was not invincible. Since this person could silently use the Charm ability on her twice, he was likely stronger than Haina.
Therefore, Haina should at least not cause unnecessary trouble for her colleagues.
Rather than showing off strength, it would be more effective to report the situation and her findings to her teacher in a letter.
Eivass and Sherlock would arrive tonight anyway. If there was any conspiracy, let intelligent people think and solve it.
She wasn’t intelligent, so she shouldn’t overthink it.
“…Never mind.”
Thinking this, Haina replied stiffly.
She gave the man with a fake smile a deep look, memorizing his appearance and features, then picked up her luggage and turned to leave.
After Haina left, Yeats remained seated, motionless.
He stayed sitting upright even after everyone else had left.
But apart from Haina, other passengers seemed to disregard him… as they walked past him.
They not only ignored his existence. If Haina had been more sensitive, she would have noticed that when she argued with Yeats, no one else had even looked up.
It was as if the moment she started talking to Yeats, she was simultaneously drawn into a domain of non-existence.
Just as Haina hadn’t noticed him at all before Yeats actively initiated conversation with her.
Yeats walked to Haina’s previous seat and lowered his head to deeply inhale the scent she left behind.
As he inhaled, his pupils suddenly blazed with a scarlet light. After he closed his eyes to digest for a moment, the red radiance gradually faded.
“…Interesting. A pure and righteous personality. Not bad talent in the Path of Authority, already close to the Fourth Tier at such a young age. And adaptability to Transcendence and Twilight…”
His voice was gentle and deep. “Not only is he carrying Meg’s wine flask, but he’s also been in contact with Lancelot’s descendants. There’s also the aura of Alexander, Hermes, and Heracles… Is she the protagonist of this era?”
Did he come at this specific time purely by coincidence? Or was someone manipulating things from behind the scenes?
Yeats frowned in thought.
He took another deep breath, eyes closed, trying to discern details from it.
Suddenly, Yeats frowned slightly.
He opened his eyes, somewhat surprised and uncertain, “This scent is… Mathers, that fellow?”
Yeats stood in the train corridor, contemplating for a while.
When the train started moving again at the terminal station, he had already silently vanished from his spot.
He hadn’t passed through any window or door – but when he reappeared, he had turned into a crow, flapping its wings to fly onto the branches of a giant tree.
Then he transformed into a gray wolf.
His form was as thin as a shadow.
After he turned into a wolf, the branch beneath him swayed slightly but did not break under his weight.
Those brown-yellow wolf eyes quietly gazed at the departing Haina. Haina, however, suddenly looked back, glancing around… as if sensing something.
“Such a strong intuition.”
Yeats murmured in admiration.
And at that moment, his expression suddenly turned serious.
Yeats suddenly turned his head, looking in another direction, his gaze becoming profound.
“…A Demon Scholar?”
He muttered, “Or a Sorcerer?”
The wolf stood silently on the tree branch.
It seemed to stand for a long time, or perhaps only for an instant – as the sunlight shifted, he had vanished from his spot at some point. Just as he had disappeared from the train carriage.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Shepherd’s Bay Country, Windpipe Town.
Two Giants stood before the town’s public cemetery.
The ongoing exorcism ritual allowed the Demon Scholars in red robes to dig out coffins one by one. They were busy, yet no one noticed their presence.
“Your Highness.”
The shorter Giant said respectfully, “I’ve checked again, and there’s truly nothing.”
“There must be,” Prince of Giants Wolfram said in a low, stern voice. “My eye demon never makes mistakes – that book will appear in mid-December, near Windpipe Town in Shepherd’s Bay Country, ‘in the place closest to death.’ I must have it.
“If it’s not here, look elsewhere – remember to bury the coffins back properly, don’t disturb the locals. It would be bad if the Church found out… We need to buy time.”
“Where should I take them now, then?”
“Send half your men to infiltrate the morgues of all the hospitals in town. Then take the rest and search the cemeteries in the surrounding villages one by one.
“George is like a mad dog – he’s still chasing me, and I can’t always watch over you… You help me find the book first, and we’ll help distract George for you. Contact me via the mirage ritual after you find the book. Or notify me if you can’t find it in all the village cemeteries around here.”
“Understood, Your Highness,” the shorter Giant replied respectfully.
“Don’t disappoint me again, Cassiem,” Wolfram’s figure slowly dissipated like an illusion. Before vanishing, he warned again, “If you lose the Book of Law, don’t bother coming to see me.”
The Giant named Cassiem finally straightened his body only after Wolfram had left.
He pondered, while the people around him cautiously approached.
“Sir… you saw, there’s truly nothing.”
“I know there’s nothing. The leader just saw it with his own eyes… Have your brothers rebury them all. Then clean up any traces of excavation here,” Cassiem said expressionlessly. “After that, take a dozen men, in pairs, to search the morgues in the town’s hospitals. I’ll take men to check the surrounding villages.”
Update complete!
Food has arrived, time to eat!
