Kole's eyes narrowed as a frown marred his handsome visage.
Storm Daily? Wasn't this the newspaper that corrupted many people and killed me through a mental storm brought by the Banes? Was it shut down after the whole fiasco?... Kole briefly wondered how he coincidentally appeared right outside the gates of the building that killed him.
However, he just shook his head to throw unnecessary thoughts out of his mind.
It was just a coincidence. Nothing more, nothing less.
Soon, curiosity shined in his dark eyes. Since he was already here, why not take a look?
Maybe he could find something interesting. Or even the cause of corruption.
Although he thought it was highly improbable, after all, the hounds of Tempest Order wouldn't leave any dangerous stuff behind during their investigation, he was still interested.
He retraced his steps and entered the dark alleyway again, where he willed it for the bags with dark clothes and a black face mask that covered his face, except his eyes, to appear.
In an instant, the Reality was superimposed over Subspace, and the particular bags Kole wanted, appeared.
Kole quickly changed his clothes and wore a dark suit with a long black trench coat. He pressed down on his black hat and wore the mask on his face.
With a swirl of his ankles, Kole moved out of the alleyway and stepped towards the abandoned building.
When he approached the entrance, he saw a Tempest Order notice attached to the broad doorway that said: Stay away!
The familiar insignia of a golden glowing Compass was etched above the notice proving its authenticity.
Kole merely shrugged. He knew it was authentic. After all, this was created from the blessings of the Goddess, and it was absolutely impossible for anyone to copy it, no matter how many techniques or powers they had.
The notice just made Kole even more curious.
He went around the building, checking for a different entrance when he stumbled upon a woman, covered in a similar dark dress.
She had emerald eyes, and she wore a long feather hat with a veil covering her face, while also wearing a face mask that hid most of her facial features.
Kole could only take a glimpse at her eyes, which he felt familiar.
However, she separated from him just as quickly and went her own way.
Is this a fashion trend nowadays?... Kole mused internally with a low chuckle.
Soon, he found a window in the back of the building. It was closed, but all Kole had to do was point his finger at it.
His Spirit Energy stirred and concentrated on his index fingers. Then, Kole put his finger on the glass window.
Crash!
With a tinkling sound, the glass shattered.
He looked around to see whether someone was watching him or not. After confirmation, Kole snooped in the build.
When Kole entered the building, he couldn't help but cough a little because of the pungent air condensed inside. Evidently, the entire building has been closed for over a week. It was no surprise to Kole as he waited for a little to adjust his breathing.
After that, Kole wandered the building but was left disappointed. Except for the growing molds and murky air, everything was cleaned up. Not even a single piece of furniture was left behind.
"The hounds of Tempest Order are too effective! They didn't even leave a single crumb of paper."
Kole pondered briefly as he came to an amusing conclusion.
"Instead of searching what things are corrupted and possibly cause further corruption in the future, they emptied the building entirely."
"This… isn't this too callous!?" Kole's felt his eyes twitching.
"Tch. So I didn't find anything in the end…" Kole clicked his tongue as he went back to the window where he came from.
With a low tumble, Kole jumped out of the building and landed on the ground.
As he stood up, he patted his clothes to ensure no dust was left behind.
After all, these were newly bought clothes. He didn't know whether his mother would give him more money later, or would just shrug and tell him to go out and earn money on his own.
He had to make sure not to waste a single pound!
Satisfied, Kole was about to go back and change out of the clothes when he saw a man in a similar outfit staring at him from the corner of an alleyway. Except for his dark brown eyes, nothing else was visible.
This has to be the fashion trend nowadays, right? It can't be a coincidence that all these people are interested to check out this building, right?... Kole controlled his twitching eyelids with difficulty.
Soon, the man with dark brown eyes took a coin out of his pocket. He flipped it in the air and caught it with his palm.
Kole was extremely confused. His mind raced with different thoughts.
The man looked at the coin intently. After that, he put it back into his pocket and looked at Kole.
Suddenly, he nodded.
Confused, Kole nodded back.
After that, the man winked at him.
That fellow winked at him!
Kole could only helplessly wink back as his mouth twitched.
Then, the man turned around and walked in the darkness of the alleyway; his departing back appeared in Kole's vision.
Kole gritted his teeth as a strong sense of dilemma arose in his heart.
Should I follow him? Clearly, he wanted me to follow, that's why he winked, right?
Who is he? Can he lead me to the secrets of the corruption in Stormwatch, where I died almost a week ago?
After a moment of deliberation, Kole followed the fellow in dark clothes in the dark alleyway…