As evening fell in the Sekas Empire, in the slums outside the Nordland territory, two unexpected visitors arrived.
The leader of the two was a man in his early thirties. He wore tight-fitting leather armor, had a longsword at his waist, and his dark golden hair flowed freely behind him. They stood out in the dilapidated and decaying slums, immediately drawing numerous hostile glances their way.
Hungry mobs and thieves lurked in the shadows, their sharp, dagger-like gazes scanning the two figures.
However, when they noticed the Holy sigils on their clothes, those prying eyes quickly retreated.
In the Sekas Empire, perhaps some people didn't recognize the Empire's flag, but no one was unaware of the Holy sigils. They were the symbol of the messengers of the gods!
Other than the clergy in their temple robes, those bearing Holy sigils were none other than Witch Hunters!
Rumors had it that every Witch Hunter was blessed by the gods, possessing abilities far beyond ordinary individuals. No one was willing to cross paths with such targets.
Noticing the hidden figures disappearing into the shadows, Andrew sneered and then wrinkled his nose as the faint, putrid stench of the dilapidated alleyways wafted over him.
"As Archbishop Anluke said, these wizards are like rats, hiding in these dark, foul corners," Andrew said, covering his nose and complaining.
"We should stay vigilant, Andrew. We're not dealing with ordinary individuals this time," the leading man warned, clearly annoyed by Andrew's brash attitude.
A few days ago, a significant event occurred in the Duchy of Nordland. A wizard named Koru had attempted to bewitch the Duke's second daughter. Fortunately, the vigilant guards had discovered it in time, preventing the Duke's young daughter from being ensnared by the devil.
The memory of the fierce siege was still fresh in their minds.
To capture this audacious wizard, Duke Nordland had dispatched two large squads of guards, and even then, they had suffered heavy losses. If it hadn't been for the arrival of the Church's Bishop, Duke Nordland's reputation would have been tarnished.
Their current target was the wizard's apprentice, another sorcerer.
"Don't worry, Blaine," Andrew chuckled. "This time, we're dealing with a mere apprentice who's only been studying magic for a few months. These people usually only know a couple of parlor tricks. Trust me, a farmer swinging a hoe is more challenging to deal with than them."
In the half-year since he joined the Witch Hunters, Andrew had participated in several witch-hunting operations. At the beginning, he had been filled with dread about these supposed devil-summoning wizards.
However, after encountering them, Andrew realized that these wizards weren't as terrifying as he had imagined. Most of them posed no real threat; their magical powers were limited, and some were even less reliable than swords and shields.
As for the inexperienced apprentices, they could only be described as useless. Once they were distracted, they couldn't cast magic in battle and were easy prey.
What pleased Andrew the most was that the bounties for capturing these wizards were quite substantial. Duke Nordland had been even more generous, offering six whole Sekas gold coins for capturing a single apprentice. That would be enough to live in luxury for quite some time!
Of course, killing them would only be worth half the price.
Blaine glanced at Andrew but didn't argue, though he didn't let his guard down.
In his experience, Witch Hunters who relied too much on intelligence often didn't live long.
The slums outside Nordland's territory weren't large, and there was very little foot traffic. With their identities as Witch Hunters, Andrew managed to obtain information about their target's hiding place through a bit of intimidation from a homeless man.
The building before them was difficult to describe as a house. The red brick walls were covered in green vines, and the door seemed ready to fall apart with the slightest push.
Their target was right in front of them, but neither of them made an immediate move.
Andrew shot his partner a disdainful look, silently cursing in his mind. He took the initiative and placed his palm on the door, his calloused fingertips gripping the door latch. Though the door appeared rickety, it didn't budge, indicating something was blocking it from the inside.
Andrew gritted his teeth and forcefully kicked the door.
A deafening crash echoed as the door gave way, revealing the interior of the room.
The narrow room was a mess, cluttered with heaps of garbage piled up in the corners.
A candle on a wooden table at the side flickered for a moment, then extinguished due to the violent entrance, leaving the room shrouded in darkness. Only a faint glimmer of light filtered through the wide-open window, barely illuminating the tattered blanket dragged from the bed to the window's edge.
Blaine, who followed inside, scanned the room. His attention was quickly drawn to a piece of paper that had fallen on the floor.
Andrew also noticed this as he entered, and he bent down to pick up the crumpled paper. After reading its contents, his expression soured.
"Damn, it looks like we're late. This kid has already gone to meet up with other apprentices!" Andrew exclaimed in frustration. Taking into account the room's state and the message on the paper, he pieced together what had happened.
Their target, the apprentice wizard, had received word of their arrival before they got here and had left without packing up.
However, judging by the candle that hadn't completely burned out and the lingering warmth on the bed, it seemed the target hadn't gone too far.
With this in mind, Andrew grew impatient. He was determined to pursue their quarry. After all, it was six Sekas gold coins on the line, and he couldn't let the opportunity slip away.
Once their target joined up with other wizard apprentices, it would be much harder to capture them. However, compared to that, Andrew was more concerned about the possibility of other bounty hunters beating them to the punch.
"Wait a moment…"
Just as Andrew was about to hurry to the window to give chase, Blaine stopped him with a raised hand and pointed to the desk.
Andrew turned to look, and aside from the extinguished candle, there were more than a dozen copper coins scattered about, as well as sheets of paper covered with strange characters and symbols.
After a brief moment of contemplation, Andrew quickly understood his companion's meaning. If the apprentice wizard had left after receiving a warning, they wouldn't have left behind easily carried coins or these "precious" magical manuscripts.
With his experience in hunting wizards, Andrew knew most wizards would rather die than let their so-called research notes be compromised.
In other words, their quarry was likely still hiding in this very room.
Andrew sneered, and the telltale signs on the floor—dragged blankets, open windows, and the fallen note—all suggested that their quarry had fled.
It was evident that the apprentice had played a clever trick, attempting to mislead them to another location. It could even be a trap, and Andrew almost fell for it.
At this moment, hidden in the darkness, Lynn was breaking into a cold sweat. His mental state was increasingly frenzied in this life-threatening situation, his dispersed energy expanding in all directions under the influence of magic.
He could even influence the airflow to a certain extent, which had extinguished the candle without making a sound. This unique ability allowed him to remain hidden from the two witch hunters.
Blaine paid no attention to the now-aware Andrew. His gaze swept around the room, eventually landing on the dark red cabinet beside the tall window.
The cabinet was only as high as his shoulders, covered in dust, and unassuming in the drafty, dilapidated room. But it had enough space for a curled-up adult male to hide within.