Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

Chapter 1956 Serious Accusations

A few days later, the scouting team had arrived back at the City Hall.

Leah left to submit her reports from the past week. At the same time, she intended to get a clearer picture from the higher-ups about what had transpired at the sun temple.

Meanwhile, the rest of the team gathered in the dining hall. After surviving on nothing but cold rations for the past week, a meal prepared from the fresh ingredients grown in the hydroponic farm felt like pure bliss.

Despite being trapped in this nightmare, the City Hall had somehow managed to become largely self-sufficient. Vegetables were cultivated in hydroponic farms on the terraces. Water was drawn from the nearby lake before being purified for drinking and cooking. Most of the meat came from the monsters the adventurers hunted in the city.

Life was far from comfortable. But when it came to food and water, the City Hall had reached a point where survival was no longer their greatest concern.

Their basic necessities — food, water, and shelter — were no longer an issue.

Now the adventurers devoted themselves to a single goal: keeping the monsters at bay. Over the years, they had fortified the City Hall, established patrol routes, and built a fragile but stable existence within the walls.

Long ago, they had abandoned any hope of escaping the secret plane. They had tried. Many of them truly had. But they all failed nevertheless.

Now, this place had become their home. And they would defend it until their dying breath.

Genevieve and Michael sat on one side of the table, while the other side was occupied by the two elves. After getting their food, they sat and silently ate.

Dell suddenly said with a faint smile, "It's nice to finally be back home. At least, I can sleep now without those things constantly screaming in my ears."

"I'm looking forward to some peaceful sleep, alright!" Michael agreed.

Genevieve ate in silence, her thoughts constantly drifting toward Adam. She had not found a single clue about his whereabouts. She didn't even know whether he was alive or dead. And that worried her greatly.

Although she had unwavering faith in Adam and believed that, no matter the situation, he would always find a way to survive, having concrete confirmation would have gone a long way toward easing her worries.

The fact that she had been successful in enslaving a Rank 1 monster did not uplift her mood all that much. She absentmindedly played with the food on her plate, wondering whether Adam was safe.

A few minutes later, Leah arrived at the dining hall. With a quick scan of the vast hall filled with people, she finally spotted her team when Dell waved at her.

She made her way over, her expression grim. Even before she reached the table, she kept stealing strange glances at Michael and Genevieve.

Genevieve, observant as she was, realized that something was wrong.

"What happened?" she asked. "What did you find?"

Leah took her seat at the table. She scanned the faces of her teammates before her gaze settled on Genevieve and Michael again. She looked at them deeply, the frown on her face deepening.

"Well?" Michael pressed. He was suddenly getting a bad feeling about this.

Leah took a deep breath and then began, "The higher-ups have found the reason behind the commotion at the sun temple."

She paused as she glanced at her teammates, then said, "For now, we are in no immediate danger. And there have been no signs of new Rank 2 monsters entering the city since that incident."

"So, we're safe!" Dell breathed out a sigh of relief.

"But what was the reason for the commotion in the first place?" Genevieve asked, trying her best to mask the anxiety from showing on her face.

"It's…" Leah began, her words trailing off. "It turns out that it was your friend."

"What?!" Michael blurted out. "What do you mean?"

Meanwhile, Genevieve's eyes trembled, and she found it difficult to control her emotions.

"Your friend with the Brand of Evil," Leah explained. "It turns out that the monsters had been attracted by the mark of the devil. Hence, the reason for the wild commotion that night."

"No, that can't be possible!" Genevieve shook her head, adamantly refusing that explanation.

Michael snapped out of his senses. He quickly nodded.

"She's right!" he exclaimed. "Adam has some strange artifacts that help conceal the Brand. If that weren't the case, we would have been besieged by monsters the moment we left Davos!"

Leah inhaled deeply, trying to find the right words to say. She had a vague idea about how close Michael and Genevieve were to this young man with the Brand.

A moment later, she finally began:

"Look, you two. What I'm about to tell you came directly from someone at the council. Apparently, this… your friend might have been caught by the Antlered High Priest a few weeks ago.

"We don't exactly know how that happened, but the higher-ups believe that your friend was tortured and eventually offered as a sacrifice by that twisted werewolf to appease its god.

"In the process, the Brand of Evil might have attracted other powerful beasts. They believe that was what led to the battle between the High Priest and the Puppeteer—"

Before she could even finish her explanation, Genevieve firmly said, "No! That is not possible!"

Michael appeared completely aghast. He couldn't even begin to imagine that someone like Adam might have been caught by the Antlered High Priest, who was known to torture its victims and offer them as sacrifice to its god.

Meanwhile, Genevieve was in complete denial. Her cerulean eyes glistened with unshed tears as she said, "I don't believe for a second that Adam is dead. No… he can't be!"

Suddenly, her expression turned fierce as she glared at Leah. She couldn't control her emotions, no matter how much she tried. No… if she were being honest, she didn't even bother trying. The words came out unfiltered.

"Who told you this?" She demanded. "And how can they be so sure? Don't you think it's suspicious that the council seems to know exactly what happened—"

"Genevieve."

Leah coldly cut her off.

"I know you're hurting," she added. "But please refrain from making such serious accusations."

Genevieve belatedly realized the weight of those words. She hadn't meant to say them. For a long moment, she fell silent. She noticed how Leah and the elves were staring at her with dark frowns.

The adventurers at the City Hall respected and admired the council. They looked up to the four council members and were grateful to them for keeping everyone safe from the monsters.

And just now, Genevieve had implied something deeply unfair about them.

She had allowed her emotions to cloud her mind and said something that she quickly regretted. She bit her lip and lowered her head.

"Forgive me," she whispered. "I did not mean it."

It looked like one of the elves was about to sternly reprimand her, but Leah shot him a glare and silenced him.

Leah turned to Genevieve, her expression softening.

"You're not in the right state of mind," she said gently. "Finish your dinner and get some rest."

Genevieve remained silent, her head still lowered. After a long moment, she rose to her feet.

"I've lost my appetite," she said quietly. "If you'll excuse me."

Without another word, she turned and walked away.