Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 1388: Section 1389 The Same Footprints

After listening to Angel’s account, Sanders also recalled the record book of Hua Que.

Upon a careful comparison, Natasha’s silhouette did indeed resemble the woman in the record book: the same long dress, the same slender and tall build, and the same golden curly hair.

If Natasha were now leading a little girl in a goose-yellow dress, their similarity could be claimed to be identical.

“It indeed bears a resemblance,” Sanders’s thought came through the Mind Ribbon, “It’s quite simple to find out if she’s the one who took Hua Que away.”

Sanders made no visible movement, but as he walked, an extremely abstruse energy transferred directly from his feet into the ground—

Halfway through her walk, Natasha suddenly felt something soft and fine under her feet.

Looking down, she noticed that the earth in the Earth Cavern had somehow become moist; when she stepped on it, her foot sank in slightly.

“Has someone spilled water here? It looks like I need to inform the servants to clean this up,” Natasha muttered to herself, not paying too much attention, and continued walking forward.

However, Angel and Sanders were quietly observing that damp patch of earth.

To be precise, the footprints on the earth.

“A simple water spell trick, and the answer comes out,” Sanders said indifferently.

Underneath the well in the graveyard, a distinct set of lady’s footprints had appeared, extending all the way to the outside of Hua Que’s Illusionary Realm.

According to Hua Que’s record book, only three people could have been there: Greya, the faceless shadow, and the woman who took Hua Que away.

Greya was excluded first, for with her strength, she wouldn’t casually leak any information that pertained to herself. Even if her body’s original owner took control, it would be impossible to leave such clear footprints underneath the well.

That left only the faceless shadow and the woman who took away Hua Que.

Although it was impossible to determine which of the two had left the footprints, Angel was more inclined to believe it was the woman who took Hua Que, for it was certain that she was the last person at the well.

If Natasha truly was the person who took Hua Que away, then her footprints might just match those found under the well.

The footprints that appeared on that moist patch of earth resolved their curiosity.

They were the same!

This footprint was shallow, narrow, and small. Although the pattern on the sole had minor differences from the ones left in the well, the shape and length of the foot were almost identical.

Although this footprint could not be claimed as conclusive evidence, coincidences cannot be repeated again and again; the force, size, and length of the footprints were similar, and Natasha’s silhouette was also a clue by itself—these two pieces of evidence allowed Angel to roughly confirm that Natasha was indeed the woman who took Hua Que away!

“It seems that luck isn’t bad,” Angel whispered, not expecting the core clue to emerge so soon when he had previously thought there was no answer to the puzzle.

He spoke this time not through the Psychic Branch’s Mind Ribbon, so Natasha, walking ahead, overheard him and paused, taking the opportunity to adjust the posture she had when Angel’s gaze was previously fixed on her, “Mr. Angel, what do you mean by ‘luck isn’t bad’?”

Angel smiled faintly, “Just the literal meaning.”

Natasha was somewhat confused, and Angel added, “Regarding the materials used to repair your mechanical half earlier, approximately ten Magic Crystals…”

Natasha was stunned for a moment, not understanding why Angel would bring this up now. Could it be that his earlier scrutiny was all about the ten Magic Crystals debt?

“I have the Magic Crystals in my room. I will retrieve them later; I won’t owe…”

Natasha did not finish speaking before she was interrupted by Angel mid-sentence, “You might have misunderstood me. What I meant to say is, you don’t have to repay the Magic Crystals. However, in exchange, I would like to consult you on a matter later. Is that okay?”

Natasha hesitated, “As long as it doesn’t involve anything secretive, it’s fine.”

Angel smiled, “I think it shouldn’t involve any secrets.”

As they spoke, they reached the end of the Earth Cavern and a door appeared ahead of them. After opening the door, there were stairs rotating both upwards and downwards.

After entering the door, Natasha chose to go up.

“Is this route leading to the Soul Realm, or to the Corpse Forest?” Angel frowned and muttered softly.

Natasha turned her head, looking at Angel with puzzlement, “How did you know we were going to the Soul Realm?”

“The Soul Realm, is it?” Angel said, “If I remember correctly, the Soul Realm should be under the jurisdiction of the Twilight King. What, is it now completely open?”

Suspicion deepened in Natasha’s eyes. Indeed, the Soul Realm on the negative second layer used to be Lady Isabel’s domain, a fact only known by those in Black Castle. How did this man know about it?

Could it be that he belongs to the Prophecy Branch?

“I’ve been here before, so naturally, I know the layout. The place we were just at is none other than the passageway between the Negative Third Layer Soul Chasing Grounds and the Negative Second Layer Soul Realm. If we go up from here, there are only the Negative Second Layer Soul Realm and the Negative First Layer Corpse Forest,” Angel explained.

Everything Angel said was correct, but what puzzled Natasha was, how could Angel possibly have been here before?

Now wasn’t a good time for Natasha to inquire about it, so she quickly explained, “Because of some special reasons, Lady Isabel is not in the Soul Realm right now. The Soul Realm has undergone modifications. The undead outside cannot enter, so for the time being, we have moved here.”

“I see,” Angel guessed. The so-called special reasons probably had to do with the incident at Black Castle, so he didn’t ask further.

As soon as they stepped out of the Soul Realm, the desolate scene instantly changed. Every inch of the place was exquisitely detailed, even the ordinary corridor looked incredibly luxurious.

The last time Angel had been to the Soul Realm, it hadn’t been this lavish, probably renovated after he had left.

There were Transcendents hurrying along the corridor, all of them were Witches. Seeing Angel and Sanders, their expressions were all one of surprise, after all, Black Castle rarely received men. Any males appearing here were either corpses or esteemed guests from other Witcher Organizations.

From the respectful manner of Natasha, it should be the latter, right?

Being watched by a group of Witches, who were also very beautiful, might have caused other men to be swayed.

But Angel, being stared at by this group of Witches, felt no such thing, in fact, he even had a faint sense of disgust.

He was able to look at Natasha calmly because Natasha belonged to the half-mechanical beings, but these Witches here, despite their beautiful appearances, the price paid for such beauty was the piles of corpses outside and the innocent women who were captured and brought here.

They would use evil Spell Techniques to kill innocent women and then bathe in their fresh blood. That was their secret to maintaining youth.

And Hua Que had died for this reason as well.

Angel deeply detested their actions.

So, seeing these Witches who openly displayed their beauty, Angel not only lacked any fondness but even allowed his expression to become a few degrees colder.

They soon arrived at the hall Natasha had mentioned.

The hall was as luxurious and beautiful as the outside, a semi-elliptical dome-shaped hall with beautiful patterns etched on the walls.

From these patterns, Angel could discern several hidden Magic Patterns, mostly spatial and isolation Magic Patterns. These were very profound Magic Patterns, and now linked together, they formed a Magical Energy Array, indicating that the engraver was definitely a very powerful Magic Rune Mage.

Near the hall walls, there were cabinets reaching up to ten meters tall, filled with scrolls of parchment. Some Witches, pushing ladder carts, were arranging the books nearby.

In the center lay a carpet, with soft sofas of an unknown leather material arranged upon it.

Kimberly was seated on a sofa, her enormous hairdo forest very conspicuous.

“Please, take a seat,” Natasha stood behind Kimberly, who gestured for them to sit down.

“I’ve already sent someone to stand guard outside the Earth Cavern. As soon as Greya and the others come out, they will be notified immediately,” Kimberly said indifferently.

“That would be troublesome,” Sanders said, then he stopped, almost as if he were a conversation stopper. The atmosphere subsequently seemed to freeze.

Kimberly fell silent for a moment, “Aren’t you curious about what Greya is doing?”

“Nothing more than issues related to the incident at Black Castle, troublesome,” Sanders remained terse.

Angel caught the implication in Sanders’ words. The trouble he referred to was if Kimberly told him, then certainly a lot of troublesome follow-ups would ensue, better not to listen. But if Greya told him after seeing her, there wouldn’t be so many troublesome follow-ups.

Of course, if Greya didn’t tell him after coming out, indicating that the waters of Black Castle ran deep, it would be even less necessary to get involved.

Although Kimberly did not understand Sanders as much as Angel did, she still could tell that Sanders meant to stay out of the muddy waters.

Kimberly smiled and did not continue to question Sanders but turned her gaze to Angel.

She hadn’t forgotten what Natasha had said before.

On the way to the node, Angel had eliminated nearly two thousand undead in just a few minutes; the speed of elimination was astonishing.

If they could make use of the Alchemy Weapon that could eliminate the undead, perhaps they could truly resolve the incident at Black Castle.

Moreover, Isabel had long wanted to change Black Castle, and this opportunity could be used to thoroughly clean up the undead riddled state of Black Castle.

With that thought, Kimberly asked Angel, “I’ve previously examined Natasha’s mechanical half-body, which you repaired very well. Are you also versed in Mechanical Alchemy?”

Angel nodded, “I know a little.”

“I’ve been studying Mechanical Alchemy for years too, but I received the heritage of Mechanical Alchemy in a remote world. I wonder if it’s diverged from the development of the Alchemy World in the Southern Domain,” Kimberly said with a smile. “How about we take this opportunity to exchange knowledge?”