Read Novel Full Chapter 2014 Different Reasons
Chapter 2014 Different Reasons
Gregor silently led Adam up the stairs toward the fifth floor.
Other than briefly suggesting that Adam leave Luca in the infirmary, he said nothing.
Adam naturally refused.
He didn't trust these bastards enough to leave Luca in their care. So, for the time being, he would simply carry the unconscious Paladin around like a sack of potatoes and meet the councilors with him still slung over his shoulder.
The atmosphere inside City Hall was strange.
As they climbed higher, more and more adventurers noticed Adam. Conversations gradually quieted as curious gazes followed the unfamiliar Magus carrying an unconscious man over his shoulder.
Whispers spread through the corridors eventually.
Who was he?
Why was Gregor personally escorting him?
And who was the battered man he was carrying?
Adam ignored them all. His attention remained fixed on his surroundings. He was also trying to find a familiar face in this building.
Meanwhile, Gregor's mind was anything but calm. It was a chaotic storm of questions, each one more powerful and destructive than the last.
How did he find out?
Who told him?
His expression remained impassive, but his thoughts raced uncontrollably.
The information about the vampires was not something outsiders should have known. Even among the people within City Hall, only those who sat on the council were privy to this information.
And yet, Adam had casually mentioned it.
Not only had he mentioned it, but he had done so while threatening to expose everything!
Gregor turned slightly and cast a complicated look toward the man.
How much does he actually know? he wondered in alarm.
Gregor's unease deepened with every step. He desperately wanted to question Adam, but he knew better than to do so in the middle of the hallway.
Adam, meanwhile, continued observing the building. The higher they climbed, the more he noticed.
The architecture was impressive. Everything was clean, orderly, and meticulously maintained. The people here lived disciplined lives. The corridors were decorated with intricate carvings and graffiti.
But there was something else.
Adam's brows couldn't help but furrow a little. He sensed a subtle current of magic permeating the air. It was faint. So faint, in fact, that an ordinary Magus would never notice it.
But Adam could. And he did.
A nigh-imperceptible current of magical energy permeated the entire building. He quietly extended his perception, and soon, he was able to learn the purpose of this magic.
School of Enchantment, he thought grimly.
His expression became colder, and he didn't bother hiding it.
The magic wasn't concentrated in one particular location. Instead, it seemed to have seeped into the very atmosphere of City Hall.
Are these bastards subtly influencing people's minds? He thought with narrowed eyes.
The thought immediately disgusted him. Perhaps it was nothing more than a precaution. Perhaps there was some other explanation. But Adam couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.
He despised this kind of magic. Well, not as much as necromancy, of course. But still. It was quite appalling. There was something fundamentally repulsive about manipulating someone's thoughts without them even realizing it.
How ironic…
A hidden enemy was already doing something similar to him.
Someone had been tampering with his memories and thoughts through Valerian's amethyst amulet, and Adam still didn't know who was responsible. And now he had walked into a building where the very air seemed to carry traces of enchantment magic.
His expression darkened, and he thought to himself, These people really are bastards!
The more Adam observed City Hall, the more his dislike for its so-called leaders grew. They claimed to protect the adventurers. They spoke endlessly about rules, order, and maintaining a balance of power.
Yet beneath that polished exterior, there were vampires, pathetic alliances, mind-altering magic, and dark secrets that they clearly had no intention of sharing.
What kind of people are running this place? he asked himself.
No, I know exactly their type.
As long as the ends justify the means, they will do anything.
And that's what makes them so dangerous.
He continued climbing without saying a word.
Neither did Gregor. But for entirely different reasons.
One was carefully observing his surroundings, increasingly disgusted by what he sensed. The other was desperately trying to understand how an outsider had somehow discovered City Hall's darkest secrets.
Lost in their own thoughts, Gregor and Adam eventually reached the meeting chamber.
Gregor pushed open the heavy wooden doors and stepped inside. Adam followed closely behind, Luca still slung over his shoulder.
The chamber was spacious but austere. A long, dark wooden table dominated the center, surrounded by high-backed chairs. Thick curtains covered the tall windows, allowing only a faint trace of daylight to enter.
Several enchanted lamps burned quietly along the walls, casting a dim, yellowish glow across the room.
The atmosphere was suffocating, almost as if it was meant to intimidate the newcomer.
Three people were already waiting for them — a dwarf, a human, and an elf.
The dwarf sat with his thick arms crossed over his chest. His broad face immediately darkened when he saw Adam enter. The old human beside him reacted similarly, his aged eyes narrowing with undisguised hostility.
The elf, however, was different. Her gaze lingered on Adam with open curiosity. There was no immediate hostility in her expression. Instead, she seemed intrigued, as though Adam were some fascinating puzzle that she had come across after a long time.
Adam noticed all three reactions. He said nothing. Instead, he silently laid the unconscious Luca on the floor beside him.
Gregor shut the doors behind them. He locked them and activated the privacy formation.
Click!
The soft sound of the lock seemed unnaturally loud in the suffocating silence.
For a moment, nobody spoke. Then Gregor quickly walked toward the other three, dropping the calm mask on his face and revealing a tense expression. His face was utterly grim.
The moment he reached their side, he turned to them and spoke in a low, grave voice:
"He knows!"
"Can you be any more vague?" the dwarf, Umlo, grumbled.
Gregor hissed in apprehension. "He knows about our deal with the vampires, damn it!"
And the reaction to the statement was instantaneous. The expressions of the three councilors rapidly changed.
Umlo's gaze darkened, his previously hostile gaze turning grim. The old human, Aramen, narrowed his eyes sharply as he stared at Adam, while even Kesha's intrigued expression disappeared.
The chamber suddenly became much colder.