Wizard: I Add Points and Hunt Monsters

「Atop the Council Hall.」

Old Count Ernst stared out the window in astonishment. ”It’s her...”

In the dark clouds not far away, dozens, even hundreds, of lightning bolts descended to coil around a young woman with white hair and black eyes, as if she were the very master of lightning.

Meanwhile, the ground beneath her feet violently quaked as lava spewed from the fissures, annihilating everything in sight. Even from inside the Council Hall, he could feel the powerful tremors.

’If I remember correctly, that’s the girl Ales brought back all those years ago...’

’Why has she become like this?’

’Could it be...’

BANG!

Just then, Lan’er ran in, panting, his face flushed. ”B-Bishop Andrews... he-he’s refusing to send anyone to stop the Abyssal Sect’s sacrificial ritual.”

Old Ernst didn’t turn around. He continued to watch the scene outside the window in silence, his expression growing darker by the second.

”Father, what do we do now? Baron Seth just returned with his men. According to him, everyone at the Secret Investigation Department is out of commission, affected by a rampaging forbidden object...”

”A forbidden object? What forbidden object?”

”It seems to be some kind of clown doll...”

”The Demon Clown!?”

Old Ernst’s expression changed. He turned his head to look toward the Secret Investigation Department. From his vantage point, he had a clear view of the Dumitru District.

In the distance, he could already see a bizarre, black-eyed figure in a clown mask, dancing its way toward the core district.

A trail of corpses littered the ground behind the clown. All of them were decapitated, their bodies tossed carelessly into corners. Some had even been thrown, with a sick sense of humor, into the fissures of spewing lava.

Seeing this, Old Ernst felt his chest tighten. The rage and shock left him breathless and dizzy.

When he saw the empty Secret Investigation Department building and the Investigators scattering into the distance, a terrible realization began to dawn on him.

”Damn you, Ales! You son of a bitch! You actually dared to fake the report on that forbidden object, on the clown, and leave it in Caster behind everyone’s backs!”

”What?”

BANG! BANG! BANG...

Without warning, Old Ernst flew into a rage, smashing everything within reach. ”Damn it! Damn you, Ales! Die! DIE! You deserve to die!!”

”Why would you do that? Why couldn’t you just send it to Klande?!”

”Die! Die! I’m going to kill you!”

Lan’er stared at him, stunned. ’Ales... Isn’t Director Ales already dead?’

”Father, you...”

”Go to the Cathedral right now! Find Andrews and tell him I know who’s behind tonight’s events! Go! Hurry up and go!”

”Huh? Oh, okay, I’ll go right now...”

Lan’er watched the screaming Old Ernst. He looked like a complete stranger, and Lan’er had no idea what was happening...

”Wait!”

”Father?”

Old Ernst stopped him but didn’t say anything more. He seemed lost in thought, as if about to make a monumental decision.

Seeing his expression, a flicker of anxiety crossed Lan’er’s eyes. The situation had spiraled completely out of their control.

’Not only is the Abyssal Sect performing a sacrificial ritual, but a forbidden object has also run rampant at the Secret Investigation Department. Now, even Krimms Cathedral—which has been quiet for years—has people blocking its gates...’

For a moment, even he, one of the plan’s architects, was starting to panic.

But what he hadn’t expected was that Old Ernst—who had always been so serious and steady—was panicking just as much as he was.

”Father?”

”We’re leaving!”

”Leave? Where are we going...” Lan’er asked, stunned.

”We’re leaving Caster!”

Old Ernst took a ring of keys from his waist, unlocked a drawer under his desk, and pulled out a parchment scroll. From the script visible on its edge, one could see it was an appointment letter for the City-State Governor of Caster, bearing the seal of the Klande Noble Committee.

”Why? The situation isn’t so bad that we have to give up...”

BANG!

After stowing the parchment, Old Ernst slammed his fist on the desk. ”You fool, don’t you get it? We’ve been used!”

Lan’er was dumbfounded. ”S-Someone used us? Who?”

”I don’t know,” Old Ernst said, striding over to a bookshelf on the other side of the room. He pulled out several books in a specific sequence. With a CLICK, the bookshelf slowly slid aside.

”But something is very wrong in Caster right now. We’ll leave first. Once the dust settles, we’ll return. With this appointment letter, Caster won’t slip from the grasp of the Ernst Clan.”

”But...”

”There’s no time! Grab everything from the Council’s treasury!”

Lan’er watched Old Ernst walk into the vault and begin placing items into his Space Ring one by one. Resigned, Lan’er could only follow him in.

”Father, I still don’t understand. Everything that’s happened tonight is just too bizarre.”

”It’s precisely because there are so many factors beyond our control that I’ve decided on a temporary withdrawal.”

Although Old Ernst didn’t know the specifics, his years of caution and patience allowed him to smell a conspiracy in the air.

’Tonight, someone definitely took advantage of the chaos—while we were dealing with the Council and suppressing the Secret Investigation Department and the City Guard—to make their own moves across Caster.’

’But it all happened too fast. I have no idea what their ultimate goal is!’

”Yes, I understand. So... should we inform the others?”

”Inform who?”

Old Ernst spun around and glared at him, his ancient, wrinkled face contorted with fury. ”Have you forgotten my teachings? As a noble, you trust no one but yourself!”