Fire Mage (Web Novel)

Chapter 623: Change of Plans

"Dispose of the body," Charles said as he noticed Edwin's body had gone motionless and turned around before walking towards the house entrance.

At that moment, one of the guards showed a hesitant look and spoke concernedly.

"But he seemed to be an Inquisitor of the Order Church, Young Master. I fear things will become more difficult for you if we don't handle the incident properly. Should we inform Lord Baron about this?"

"Even if I tell you to stop, will you listen to my words?" Charles snorted coldly and continued to walk.

At that moment, in his Inner World, there was countless information about Erwin's daily life, his relationship with Archbishop Victor, and Order Churches' secrets appeared.

Soon, Charles also learned about the secret meeting they held under the cathedral's hidden chamber and was astounded.

'So, Archbishop Victor knows a secret location of a powerful artifact in Star Tombs that could even help him become a legendary powerhouse, huh? Last time, he failed to get his hands on it due to the time limit and decided to try again. But an anomaly like Ronan appeared and ruined his plan at the last moment. Left with no choice, he used his friends' help and assassinated him.' From Archbishop Victor's perspective, everything would go according to his plan if he managed to enter the Star Tombs.

But little did he know that Edwin had long sold this secret to someone else.

At that moment, some confidential information that was so important appeared in Charles's mind, causing him to halt his footsteps.

'Genesis, why the information about Edwin looks so differs from what you gave me before?' He couldn't help but ask.

[It might be due to a fake record being placed in the Administration office, Host. I use 'Wisdom Link' to bypass any hidden array and gather information from all forms of histories and personal documents. But I only found a single piece of data in the Administrative Identity Office in Edwin's cast. So, the possibility of his information being forged was also very high. Moreover, he also seemed to have kept his personal history hidden even from his original consciousness.]

'You sure are late to inform such an important detail.' Thankfully, Charles had learned his lesson long ago and acted independently from the very beginning.

He stood still, his mind reeling from the information that had flooded his consciousness. The revelations he had stumbled upon within Edwin's memories were of utmost significance, potentially altering the course of his plans.

At that moment, he realized that Edwin had been intricately connected to the higher echelons of the Order Church. To be precise, he was the son of a Head Deacon, a Legendary Rank Powerhouse!

'No wonder he became a Rank-4 Inquisitor at such a young age.'

'Genesis, tell me who will participate in the Star Tombs Exploration team from Order Church.'

[Yes, Host. Ten people will participate in the upcoming exploration mission. They are First Cardinal Luke, Head Deacon Colt, Fourth Cardinal Roman, Archbishop Ryan, Archbishop Jose, Radiant Sword Ruby, Holy Maiden Zoe, Champion Knight Lucy, Champion Knight Delilah, and finally, the Holy Son of Order.]

'Oh? Not only a Holy Maiden but even two champion knights and Holy Son of Order?'

"Lord Baron must be informed," the guard behind him insisted again, sensing the weight of the situation. "The Order Church will not take this lightly, Young Master."

Charles, deep in thought, snapped out and furrowed. He understood the gravity of the information he possessed and the potential consequences. However, he also knew that involving Baron Silvercrest could complicate matters further.

After a momentary pause, Charles made a decision. He turned to the guard, his gaze firm and determined. "No, I will handle this myself," he said commandingly. "But before that, you must ensure that no information leaks this street."

As he spoke, his eyes suddenly darted toward the ten people hiding on the neighboring house terrace and the opposite road.

At that moment, all those people who were watching Charles felt impending danger.

"I'll give you guys ten seconds. Before the time ends, all twenty of you must stand before me. Otherwise, prepare for the consequence." He said in an icy tone.

If it were before, the spying guards would've scoffed him off and acted like they didn't hear a thing. But after witnessing the Inquisitor's brutal death, they didn't dare to take this young boy lightly and hurriedly walked out of their hiding spots.

Before long, twenty people in different attires ran towards the lawn and arrived before him. They lined up in an orderly manner and stood with stiff expressions.

The corner of his lips curled up as he saw their action.

"Well-trained soldiers... To be precise, you must be the members of the Wolf Squad, right?"

Charles's piercing gaze swept across the lawn, and his eyes carefully examined each person present. As he observed the soldiers standing before him, his attention fixated on a particular individual—a man who stood out from the rest with his sturdy build and commanding presence.

Estimating the man to be in his forties, Charles noted the slight greying at the temples of his short, black hair, adding a touch of maturity to his appearance. The man's piercing blue eyes held a sense of wisdom and experience, reflecting a depth of knowledge that surpassed his years.

"Hmm, you aren't one of them," He raised his eyebrows and asked.

"Who are you?"

Upon hearing his words, the muscular man turned stiff and responded anxiously.

"I-I'm D-Duke Eldrakar's men, Young Master. My name is Theo, and my job is to monitor and report everything to Lord Duke once a week."

'He is quite honest.' Charles nodded while raising his hand and waving it.

A second later, twenty-two black streaks of fire came out of his hand and shot toward each person's brows. Although no one saw the black streaks of fires, they strangely felt an invisible power entering their heads.

But Charles again cast [Burning Thoughts] spell on everyone, erasing his earlier action from their memories.

"Now listen up, everyone. From today onwards, you will listen to my every command and work under me."

The guards exchanged uncertain glances but strangely respected Charles's authority and nodded in agreement.

"First, bring the dead body inside," Charles instructed, his voice appearing low volume. "Make it seem like he is still alive so that outsiders won't think he died already. Wait, I'll help you."

Although his words confused the guards, none dared to disobey and acted instantly.

More than five guards hurriedly ran outside and tried to take his body. At that moment, Charles released the invisible strings and made his hand twitch and move.

Gasps and shocking mutters came from onlookers as the guards carried his body inside.

After that, they placed the body in the middle of the lawn and returned to their position.

On the other hand, Charles squatted beside the body, took a drop of his blood, and made an identity imprint. After that, he stood up and gazed at the muscular soldier.

"Theo, go to 34A Master Street in Central Borough and relay a message to that mansion's Lord. Tell him he must come to the Northern Woods at 3.00 A.M. sharp if he wants his son back."

"Once you relay this message, return to your position and act like nothing has happened." He said calmly, turned his gaze towards the dead body, and added.

"As for the corpse, burn it until not even bones are left behind." Saying so, he quietly turned around and started walking towards the house.

Although Stella invited him for a talk, he didn't waste his time while saying an excuse and directly returned to his bedroom. As for Evelyn, he didn't care much about her future.

'As far as I know, she will be taken under custody by the Radiant Knights for investigation and will undergo some interrogation.' But whether she could use her wits and get a new life or get caught by the Radiant Knights was all in her hands.

Of course, the Radiant Knights would also come to arrest him within a few hours or by tomorrow morning if Edwin didn't walk out of the house, though.

But Charles had his plans.

Even if things get messed up, and the Radiant Knights come to arrest him, Charles could simply use the 'Sun Armor' bracelet and inform them that he was a member of the 'First Order' Holy Knights!

Within the Sun Church, First Order Holy Knights were considered an elite team with the authority to command an archbishop to do work for them. They would only obey the Pope of the Sun and had absolute power in the Sun Church.

'But I should use that identity as a last resort.' While thinking, Charles returned to his room and sat on the bed.

"Hmm, it would be helpful if I get a helper." He muttered and soon thought of his clone.

"I wonder what he is doing." He almost forgot about that unfortunate clone and decided to contact him.

He closed his eyes, connecting his consciousness with the soul shard, and soon sent a memory.

It wasn't a detailed message but a sentence in Morse code.

Once he sent the message, he calmly opened his eyes and started taking out the books he got from Bishop Orion.

After that, he randomly picked up a book, flipped the cover page, and started reading it. For the next two hours, he remained in the same position and read the books at an incredible speed. The first few books were mainly about the Star Tomb's unique atmosphere, different types of layers or dimensions, and the unique nightmare creatures the authors faced.

'It seems people entering the Star Tombs are teleporting to different areas randomly. So far, the authors have mentioned five different types of lands; each seems connected by a teleportation circle. But the difficulty is finding the teleportation appears harder than finding a needle in the haystack.'