Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 1493: Section 1494 Surfacing Chapter 1493: Section 1494 Surfacing Looking at the residents who were packing their bags and planning to leave Gust Town, Angel said softly, “Are you not going to stop them?”

“Individual choices must be faced with their own consequences,” Alex replied indifferently.

“If you donʼt stop them, it could lead to greater casualties. If the residents of Gust Town catch a whiff of whatʼs happening, the situation might spiral out of control,” Angel said.

Angel could even imagine that if all those leaving died, the residents might guess that departing from Gust Town was the cause of death. At that time, with panic spreading and fear boiling over, what would happen once everyone realized they were caged birds was unpredictable.

“Tearing off the guise of tranquility might be the only way to see the churning waves beneath the surface.”

Angel was certain that Alex knew what the consequences would be, and yet he remained unmoved. Beneath his calm and uncontentious demeanor lay restless, even agitated, thoughts.

“Only by allowing the facade to crack can the cage reveal the exit,” Alex said softly.

Angel did not reply but continued to watch the people leaving in the distance. Suddenly, Angelʼs brow furrowed: “It seems you can no longer tear off the guise of tranquility.”

Alex looked in the direction of the sound and saw a group of Knights on steeds, blocking the path of those trying to leave.

No one knew what was said, but the departing people ultimately chose to return the way they came.

“If itʼs not a coincidence, then it seems that the hands hidden in the shadows still intend to maintain the peace,” said Alex with a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth: “Although itʼs not the outcome I wanted to see, itʼs still an unexpected variable.”

With that, Alex turned and left the Watchtower, clad in his neat and orderly priest robes, and walked out of the church.

After leaving the church, he greeted the fearful residents with a smile, offering words of comfort from the Holy Scriptures, impossible for anyone to imagine that just a short while ago, this man nearly pushed the entire population of Gust Town into the dark Abyss.

Alex walked along the main road until he reached the Knightsʼ patrol area.

Carrying an amicable smile, he approached and struck up a conversation. His conversational partner was none other than the Knight who had stopped the group from leaving.

After a while, Alex left with a smile.

Once he was out of sight, Alexʼs smile faded into a blank expression.

“Iʼve inquired, and itʼs true that someone instructed them to intercept. The reason given was that on the way to the Holy City, they discovered a pack of wolves and whatʼs likely to be the remains of the vanished Raven Knight, likely devoured by the pack,” Alex paused, eyes shimmering with irony: “A pack of wolves? Perhaps there are wolves, but whether they are real wolves is another matter.”

Angelʼs figure emerged from the darkness: “Did you find out who gave the instructions?”

Alex: “The news of the pack of wolves was relayed by the Sheriff to the Knights. However, I doubt that the Sheriff is the one wishing to whitewash peace.”

Angel had once infiltrated the Sheriffʼs home in Gust Town to confirm location information, so he knew a bit about the man. In Angelʼs view, the Sheriff was somewhat egotistical and arrogant but hadnʼt made any major mistakes toward the residents of the town. Considering his position, he was barely competent.

But if one were to equate the Sheriff with the dark hand behind the scenes, Angel wouldnʼt believe it.

“If it wasnʼt the Sheriff, then who was it?”

“Given the Sheriffʼs arrogant nature, he would find it difficult to take suggestions from his subordinates. Only two people could influence his decision: one is the real lord of Gust Town, Viscount Bega. The other is… Father Bertrand,” Alex said with lowered brows: “I just found out that Viscount Bega has not left his estate today. However, Father Bertrand left early in the morning and did see the Sheriff.”

That meant Father Bertrand was the source of the blockage.

Angel recalled Father Bertrand, and honestly, compared to Alexʼs powerful presence, Father Bertrand was as faint as a glowwormʼs light, virtually insignificant.

Yet, as events progressed, his presence became increasingly prominent.

To almost everyone in Gust Town, he was inconspicuous and ignorant. Only Father Bertrand seemed to have seen through something.

“I still donʼt think Father Bertrand is the undead manipulator,” Alex suddenly said on the way back to the church.

Angel remained noncommittal: “Whether or not he is the undead manipulator is another matter, but his desire to whitewash peace is quite apparent.”

Following this logic, aside from maintaining peace, Father Bertrandʼs most invested effort should be brainwashing Alex. Then, Alex might very well be crucially linked to the cage. If the cage was considered a prison, no one else mattered–the true person it wanted to imprison was probably Alex alone.

At this thought, Angel found it increasingly intriguing.

Initially, he had only planned to test the doorʼs effect and was prepared to return to Black Castle if he couldnʼt find the location information. With a Wizardʼs abilities, he could always find a way. If all else failed, there was also Dororo.

But because of these dramatic scenes unfolding, Angel suddenly wanted to see the final outcome.

Alex returned to the Kluya Church with a grave expression. The church was brightly lit; Father Beren spoke in front of the statue of the Father God with a tone of profound sorrow, discussing suffering, redemption, and hope.

Regardless of their belief or lack thereof, everyone silently followed Father Beren in reciting the Holy Scripture.

Alex did not immediately seek out Father Beren to get clarification. Instead, he quietly observed the scene, not joining in the recitation of the Holy Scripture and showing no pity on his face. Like the statue of the Father God in the church, his expression was as impassive as that of a true deity watching over all living beings without emotion.

The wait was anything but peaceful.

Alex heard the sound of hurried footsteps outside the church on the streets. Angel went out to take a look and found that yet another person had died.

And this time, the person who died was no ordinary individual.

With a loud bang, the sweating sheriff pushed open the church doors. Amid the frightened gazes of the worshippers, the sheriff said nothing and quickly approached Father Beren, whispering something in his ear.

Father Berenʼs pupils shrank sharply, and after a while, his lips turned white as he nodded silently to the sheriff. He then said to the congregation, “Due to certain matters, I need to step away for a moment. You may continue to read the Holy Scripture in the church. I believe that under the Father Godʼs gaze, all darkness will be dispersed.”

Father Beren spoke thus, but the congregation remained far from calm. Their fearful expressions and terrified eyes belied the unrest within their hearts.

Father Beren did not explain further; with a sigh, he hurriedly followed the sheriff out.

As he passed by Alex, Alex whispered, “Iʼll come too.”

Father Beren turned his head to look at Alex, saw the completely different look in his eyes, and finally nodded, “Come along.”

The reason this death case caused the sheriff to rush in sweating profusely,

was because the deceased were the wife and children of Viscount Beiga, the lord of the land.

When they arrived at the Viscount Beigaʼs residence, it was already a scene of chaos. Viscount Beiga knelt in front of his ancestorsʼ statue in the courtyard, holding three heads in his arms as he muttered incoherently in shock and agony.

The butler, in deep sorrow, informed them that due to a series of horrific murders in town, Viscount Beiga had spent the previous night resting in his private chamber, sleeping until noon. When he emerged from the chamber, he found that almost everyone in the estate was dead.

Alex then realized that besides Viscount Beiga, a total of eighteen lives had come to an abrupt end on the estate, including the maids. The butler had escaped the massacre by chance, as he had gone into town the previous night to arrange accommodations for his parents, due to the murders.

Upon hearing that as many as eighteen lives had been lost, the sheriff was flabbergasted. This was not just a matter of human lives; the deceased were the relatives of a viscount!

While the sheriff was worried about his own future, Father Beren turned pale with trembling hands and feet.

“Are you all right?” Alex stepped forward to support Father Beren.

Father Beren did not respond but just murmured softly, “Itʼs over… itʼs over…”

The nearest butler also heard Father Berenʼs words and asked confusedly, “Whatʼs over?”

Before Father Beren could reply, Alex said, “Viscount Beiga has not yet calmed down. Approaching him to recite the mourning rites now might only agitate him further. Moreover, Father Beren, after seeing so many children of the Father God fall into such hardship, is overwhelmed with grief and certainly unable to conduct the mourning rites.”

“Letʼs all take a moment to calm down.”

After speaking, Alex led Father Beren to a secluded corner, seemingly hoping to help the priest compose himself.

With Alex having put it that way, the butler could only nod in agreement.

Elsewhere, Alex led Father Beren to a small garden. As the viscountʼs estate was in turmoil, there were no servants to tend to the flowers. Other than the overly lush and almost dazzling flowers, no one else was present.

“Father Beren, I think itʼs time we had a talk,” Alex said to Father Beren, who was seated on a bench while he himself stood on the other side, speaking against the light.

Father Beren seemed still to be lost in his own emotions, but the repeated muttering, “Itʼs over,” had stopped. Clearly, he had heard Alexʼs words.

“Before we discuss anything else, can you explain why you keep repeating… itʼs over?”

“Whatʼs over? Are people over, is Gust Town over, or perhaps…”

The cage is over.

Alex swallowed the last sentence, not revealing his hand immediately but waiting quietly for Father Berenʼs response.