Chương 197

The wailing of the factory sirens stopped. Even the fires that had started to lick at the roof beams sputtered and extinguished, smothered by the oppressive force flooding the ruined warehouse. Elder Alcmene descended slowly, her midnight-blue robes billowing dramatically, making her look like an avenging valkyrie.

Orion had met her once before, after the vampire incident, and even though she had seemed formidable then—the only person to even offer a glint of hope against Morliana—he only now understood why she was called Veil Priestess of Protection. Alcmene - First Bulwark of the Lunar Sanctum Class: [Saintess of the Moonlit Blade] [A-rank] Level: 181 Mind: 1599 Attunement: 1821 Body: 1100 Traits:?? [A-rank];?? [A-rank];?? [A-rank],?? [A-rank] She's a few levels below Yue, but not by much, and her stats are incredible.

Behind her, a squad of Inspectors dropped through the hole in the roof. They secured the area quickly, checked the workers, and formed a cordon around the blast crater. Orion leaned against a support pillar, fighting to keep from slipping to the ground. His whole body throbbed with a familiar pain, indicating he had pushed himself to the point of exhaustion to prevent the explosion.

Next to him, Pauline looked equally worn, with soot streaked across her pale face, though she stood tall as befitting a Magistra in the presence of an Elder. A moment later, Alcmene's feet softly touched the concrete floor, and she fixed them with a stern look.

"What has happened here?" Wincing, Orion tried to stand up to give her a report, but Pauline stopped him with her hand.

"We were following a suspect who had already proven to be belligerent toward the Sanctum, hoping he would lead us to a potential spy. That turned out to be true, but I had to intervene when the spy tried to silence the suspect. The ensuing battle was chaotic, and despite my efforts to trap him for interrogation, he used the Silence to evade them. After Orion joined the fight and we began pinning him down, he instantly switched tactics and took his own life, resulting in the explosion you saw."

It was an honest report, if one that avoided explaining exactly how they got on this trail and why the two of them thought they could do it on their own. The Veil Priestess regarded them silently for a long moment before nodding slowly. Whether she knew that Seraphina had been the one to give out this mission, had inferred something of the sort, or simply wasn't willing to make a big deal out of it now, Orion didn't know, but he appreciated the pass.

Having gained a general understanding of the situation, Alcmene slowly turned her attention to the pile of crates in the corner. Valerius Melior was curled into a ball, shaking so violently that his teeth chattered audibly. He looked small, pathetic, and completely broken.

"I suppose that is the suspect?" She asked.

"Yes," Pauline nodded.

"Valerius of House Melior. We were drawn to him by rumors that he possessed a unique sword, and it turned out it was given to him by the spy." By saying as much to a Veil Priestess, she was essentially condemning Valerius and likely his entire house to face the full wrath of the Sanctum, but Orion couldn't make himself feel bad about it. The guy had shown no remorse whatsoever and had been willing to ask for more if it meant getting revenge.

Alcmene drifted toward the noble scion, gliding over the debris and stopping in front of him.

"Get up," she said. Valerius scrambled to his feet, pressing his back against the crates.

"I... I didn't know! He said he was a craftsman! He said—""Quiet!" She growled, and the pressure in the room increased so much that Orion felt his knees buckle. Valerius, on the other hand, collapsed. He gasped for air, clutching his chest as if a giant hand was squeezing his heart. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. Alcmene leaned in, her face just inches from his. Her eyes were devoid of empathy, filled only with a terrible resolve.

"You have trafficked in illegal artifacts," she said in a cold monotone.

"You have conspired with foreign agents. You have endangered the lives of Sanctum citizens. Your life is already forfeit, boy. The only thing you have left to barter with for the safety of your family is the truth." Valerius sobbed, shaking in terror.

"Look at me," she ordered, and her eyes took on a familiar blue-silver glow. Orion had seen the same color when his mother had interrogated the soldiers at the underground base all those years ago, and he knew it meant Alcmene was peering into Valerius' mind.

"Who else knew of the sword?" The question wasn't what Orion would have asked first, but since he couldn't see Valerius' memories directly, he guessed he'd have to trust that Alcmene knew what she was doing. By now, Valerius' eyes were rolling wildly in his sockets, and it was obvious she was being rough. However, given the mental manipulation skills that one agent of the Iron State was known to have, it wasn't unexpected.

Suppressing incriminating memories is something any top-tier spy should be able to do with relative ease. I would be surprised if Valerius' mind was completely untouched, considering he seems to have received more than just the sword from them. The shaking grew more intense, and wisps of purple mana that disappeared too quickly for Orion to identify escaped from his open mouth and ears.

"Who else knew?!" Alcmene yelled in the insensate noble's face, causing a full-body seizure, yet there was nowhere for Valerius to escape, trapped in her iron grip. Orion looked away, not particularly interested in the brutal interrogation methods used by the Sanctum. He implied that whatever it was that Itzam had given him, it was responsible for his rapid growth.

I've never even heard of an elixir that could grant experience, but since Mom managed to brew something that gave me extra Body points, it might be possible. Tuning out the screams that were reaching a fever pitch, Orion tapped a dirty finger against his knee. To increase a stat like Body, you simply need to strengthen the physical body. It might be the easiest stat to directly influence, yet a tier four elixir only gave me five extra points.

To level up, you'd need someone capable of interacting with the System itself. Orion wanted to convince himself that it was too complicated to be feasible, especially on a scale large enough to justify its presence and abundant enough to be used as a bribe for noble scions. Yet, was it really that impossible?

He already knew that Seraphina had a way to influence the Class Ceremony and had long suspected that it was her ability to interact with the System that allowed the Sanctum to stand above most other factions, despite its insular and stifling rules. Given those prerequisites, it was entirely possible that someone with a similar level of power to hers, whose class was related to alchemy, could distill experience and use it to speed up growth, at least temporarily.

I doubt it's a feasible way to create powerful people, or else they would already be dominating the continent. But if anyone who drinks it skips ahead, gaining years' worth of experience in just a moment... Even as a soft power tool, it'd be terrifyingly effective. This theory also helped explain how the Silence was created. An alchemist of the fifth tier could definitely craft something like it given enough time.

The more data points fit together, the more Orion realized he might actually have something on his hands. A ragged scream pulled his focus away from the realization, and he looked back up, blinking as he realized that the interrogation was still ongoing. Pauline looked a bit pale now, even more than usual, but luckily, the Elder dropped Valerius like a sack of potatoes just a moment later, gesturing for one of her witches to get him out of her sight.

"Disgusting little rat," Alcmene spat, shaking her head.

"Was the search fruitful, Elder?" Pauline asked, hiding her unease with aplomb.

"He didn't know anything about the operations here, no," Alcmene said, "but we have a lead. Apparently, he saw another of Silverpeak's esteemed merchants talking with the spy, and kept it to himself, thinking he could blackmail Norman Nethergard into giving him a cut from the coin he was making from running our relief operations." The name didn't mean much to Orion, but Pauline appeared to recognize it.

"Nethergard, as is Magistra Nethergard?" Ah, that might be a problem.

"Indeed," Alcmene sighed.

"I have no evidence that she knows anything about this business. In fact, it's more likely that her cousin used her good name as a shield for his illegal activities after getting the contract to manage the refugee camp on her behalf. But as it stands, we can't take the risk. She must stay in the dark and be watched closely while we conduct a more thorough investigation of the Nethergard family business."

"Does that mean that you'll be taking the lead?" Orion asked. Alcmene paused, as if having forgotten that he was there as well. She seemed to take a moment to decide whether she should respond, then gave a shallow nod.

"I will. This has grown beyond your original mission, especially if a Magistra's family is involved." Before Orion could protest or slump in defeat, she gained a new glint in her eyes.

"But I suppose pushing you out would be an insult to the newly raised Veil Priestess, and I do want to start on a good foot. Yes, if you so insist, I will find you a place in my operation." Looking around the scene of utter destruction, she nodded to herself, completely ignoring the two of them.

"You'll do. You certainly have a talent for finding what needs to be found." The trip back to the Sanctum was quiet. Pauline was tired and sluggish, and Orion was running low on energy. The adrenaline from the fight had worn off, replaced by the realization that this was just the start of a much bigger operation. Somehow, when he'd been asked by Seraphina to take part in the counterintelligence operations, he'd thought it would involve more personal freedom.

Instead, he was finding himself working with more and more witches, and although he wasn't arrogant enough to believe he could take on the Iron State on his own, he still didn't like how Alcmene had essentially conscripted him. They didn't speak until they were back in the safety of the Voidwalker apartments.

"Finding anything in the refugee camps won't be an easy feat," Pauline muttered.

"We'll have to take it slow, especially if we want to get close enough to the Nethergards. It's not gonna be glamorous work." Based on her tone alone, it was clear that Pauline was even less enthusiastic than he was. For a moment, Orion seriously thought about going to his mother with this and having her protect him from Alcmene. Not that he thought the Elder was trying to get him in trouble.

Instead, she seemed to have a distorted view of him as someone who deliberately put himself in dangerous situations and would resent being left out. He had no idea how she'd developed such an insane notion, but it seemed to be rooted in an actual belief. Before he could say anything about it, though, a knock echoed from the door. Orion and Pauline looked at each other, knowing it was too early for Asteria's apprentices to arrive, and if Asteria herself were coming, she'd simply walk in.

He carefully went to open the door and let out a sound of surprise when he saw Selene waiting patiently on the other side.