[I found the information you asked for.] Erika's voice came from the bottlefly-shaped accessory.
"How is it? Did you locate them?" I asked.
[I did. It was easier than expected.] Erika bragged in a smug tone. [I even found several of their hideouts.]
I was a bit surprised.
I expected her to find who were the ones behind the assassination, but it seems like she found much more than that.
"How did you do that?"
[Well, I thought that if they planned to perform an assassination during the entrance ceremony of Central Academy, their goal should be to send a message. Considering that, they must have people in Academy City keeping an eye on the situation, so I decided to start searching there.]
[I did not find much at first, but after I used the keyword you gave me, I discovered a small group hiding in Academy City.] She continued.
[Paradise, a small cult that just appeared a couple of months ago. There is little to no information about them, only that their leader should be a rook, however, I could not find more information about him.] She added.
"Mm. So the assassination was to make themselves known?"
[Most likely. Their doctrine says that this world is full of sin and needs to be purified, and once it has been purified, the world will transform into a utopic paradise, without hunger, death, or sickness.]
"Let me guess. They also believe that the outsiders are some kind of angels sent to purify the world."
[They call them prophets.]
"Prophets, huh? What bullshit."
[Well, all the cults are full of crazy people. Anyway, following that, I managed to uncover two more hideouts in Academy City, one in Steerl City, and a couple more in some other locations. If you give me two more days, I can find more.]
"Amazing. As expected of you. Well done."
[Hehe, thank you.] Erika chuckled softly. [I'll send you the location of the hideouts and the forces they hold.]
A few seconds later, a butterfly flew into the manor through an open window.
I extended a finger gently, and the butterfly landed on it, turning into a small parchment with the information Erika found.
I read it silently.
Just like Erika said, Paradise was a rather new cult, so their foundations were shallow, unlike other more dangerous cults.
She found a total of six hideouts, every hideout serving as a meeting point for dozens of cultists.
In total, the number of cultists congregating in these hideouts was around Four hundred.
Most of the cultists were just normal humans, and only a handful among them were able to wield mana, but they were not that strong either, mostly in the natal realm.
Erika estimated that less than ten cultists had surpassed the natal realm.
But while reading the information, I found something interesting.
"A knight? Possibly a bishop?"
[Yeah. The one in charge of this operation should have reached the realm of Knight. I don't know how strong he is compared to other knights, though. There is a small chance he is bishop, but it's not likely.]
Mm...
As long he is not a bishop, it should not be too troublesome.
There was still an important piece of information I needed to hear, though.
"What about the cult's special ability?"
[It should be related to poison.]
"I guess that is expected."
[How are you planning to proceed, Linsley?]
"I'm planning to take care of the ones in Academy City. The others are so far away that making the trip is not worth it. Just follow the standard procedure for them."
[Understood. I'll send the information about their hideouts to the authorities of their respective cities.] Erika agreed. [Are you planning to move alone, or should I call the others?]
"Just me alone this time. The enemies are not that powerful."
[That is true. Is Vanessa not going either?]
"Young master refused," Vanessa replied instead of me, her voice tinged with a bit of displeasure.
I let out a wry smile.
"I need you to stay here so you can cover me in case Lina or Seela come. It will be troublesome if they discover I left the academy secretly."
"I understand." Vanessa nodded, but she was still unconvinced.
Fortunately, she was not one to go against my orders. I knew I could trust her.
"Thank you for the information, Erika. Continue investigating them, and tell me if you discover something new."
[Understood. Do you need my support during the operation?]
"Sure. It will make things easier."
[I'll get ready then.]
Erika then cut off the communication.
I put the communicator away and looked at Vanessa.
"I'm leaving. Take care of things here for me."
"Are you not going to eat first?"
I hesitated briefly before shaking my head.
"I'll eat after I'm done with this. Sorry."
"You don't need to apologize, young master. I understand."
I smiled gratefully.
One second later, my expression became solemn.
Extending my hand forward, I summoned one of the curses hidden on my body.
A white mask with a plain design materialized on my hand. The mask was not normal, though.
Just from a glance, you could notice the ominous aura coming out of it.
It was full of malice, hatred, and resentment, as though it wanted to harm the person holding it.
And that was actually its intention.
Cursed object, Faceless Mask.
It granted the wielder the ability to change their appearance at will, even changing their sex or turning into an animal.
In exchange, the wielder would develop multiple different personalities over time. These personalities are evil and full of hatred for the living, and will try to replace the original personality constantly.
It's said that the original owner was a famous actor who suffered a terrible disfiguration after being plotted against by the person he trusted the most. Ashamed of his destroyed appearance and filled with thirst for revenge, he hid himself under the mask and planned the murder of all the people related to his disfiguration and their families.
In the end, he committed suicide after killing more than fifty people, but his spirit, still full of hatred, remained in the mask, filling it with a powerful curse.
I stared at the mask briefly before putting it on my face.
An instant, later, my appearance changed completely.
My dark hair became completely white, my blue eyes took an ominous red shade, and my height increased slightly.
At the same time, the mask's design also changed, transforming into a luxurious raven masquerade mask.
At this moment, I stopped being the second child of the Steerl Family.
Instead, I became a reaper.
A reaper who harvested the souls of those seeking to bring the destruction of this world.