Chapter 285: Wind’s Melody~
Hearing the question, Pietro lowered his head even further.
A bitter smile slowly appeared on his face.
"What else could it mean?" he muttered self-deprecatingly. "Everyone in Almast knows that I sold my mine for a cheap price. The buyer has been making a fortune from it every single day."
He let out a dry laugh filled with regret.
"If your words weren’t meant to mock me... then what were they?"
Sera’s pupils contracted.
"You... sold it?"
She stared at him in disbelief.
"Your Irphine Mine?"
’How is that possible?’ Her thoughts became chaotic. ’Did the future change again?’
Pietro simply nodded, his expression growing increasingly uncomfortable.
"I did."
Sera remained silent for a moment before asking the question that mattered most.
"Who bought it?"
Pietro hesitated briefly.
Then, with an indescribably complicated expression, he slowly answered,
"The young master of the Suarez family..."
"Luis Suarez."
Sera’s eyes widened.
Him again?
For a brief moment, she simply stood there, unable to process the answer.
After asking Pietro several more questions, the entire picture gradually became clear.
Months ago, Luis had already purchased the Irphine Mine.
Not only that, the mine had been operating continuously ever since.
That meant...
Sera’s expression gradually darkened.
’If the Irphine Mine has already been excavated for months... then the Omni Ore...’
Her fingers unconsciously tightened.
’Has it already been mined?’
The thought made her heart sink.
The Omni Ore was the material she had planned to use in forging Alex’s future weapon.
If Luis had already taken everything away...
Then what about Alex’s Omni Sword?
Without saying another word, Sera turned around and walked out of the tavern.
Alex glanced at Pietro one last time before quietly following behind.
The half-dwarf’s story had stirred a trace of sympathy within him.
One wrong decision...
And a man’s entire life had fallen apart.
Outside the tavern, Sera stopped walking for a moment and tapped lightly on her mana bracelet.
A faint blue screen appeared before her.
The call connected almost immediately.
["Young Miss."]
"Send the strongest Awakeners currently available at the estate to Imperial City."
There was a brief silence before the reply came.
["...Young Miss, there is one A-Rank and four B-Rank Awakeners currently stationed near the estate."]
"That’ll do."
Sera’s tone remained calm.
"Prepare them."
The voice on the other end hesitated.
["...Young Miss, Master specifically instructed us not to create unnecessary tension with the Royal Family."]
A faint smile appeared on Sera’s lips.
"Don’t worry."
"My business has nothing to do with them."
"You can tell Father exactly that."
Without waiting for another reply, she ended the call.
Alex had quietly listened to the entire conversation. Catching up to her, he finally couldn’t hold back his curiosity any longer.
"Wait, Sera."
She looked at him.
"Why are we suddenly going to Imperial City?"
Sera resumed walking.
"We’re only stopping there for a while."
"Our actual destination is somewhere else."
Alex blinked.
"Where?"
Her footsteps slowed for just a moment.
Without turning around, she quietly answered,
"The Ruins of the Fallen Kingdom."
***
Imperial City.
After regrouping in the city, the Awakeners dispatched by the Dennis family joined Sera and Alex. Without wasting any time, the group departed together toward the western forest, their destination being the Ruins of the Fallen Kingdom.
At the same time, inside the Royal Palace.
Leister, the Crown Prince Orneus’ most trusted subordinate, received a report regarding the unusual movements of the Dennis family’s heiress.
He read through the report once before placing it on the desk, his brows slowly knitting together.
"Why is the Dennis family interested in the western forest?"
His fingers lightly tapped the wooden desk as he thought.
’Is it because the assassins they once sheltered used that place as their secret base?’
He quickly dismissed the possibility.
"That doesn’t make sense."
"There shouldn’t be anything left there by now."
Even if someone wanted to investigate that place, it should have been the Suarez family. They were the ones directly involved with the matter. The Dennis family had neither the motive nor the need to interfere.
"Could it simply be the young miss acting on a whim?"
After thinking for quite some time, Leister still couldn’t arrive at a reasonable conclusion.
In the end, he added the information to the pile of reports that would later be presented to Crown Prince Orneus before putting the matter aside.
There was something far more urgent requiring his attention.
A possible candidate for the Crownshade had finally appeared.
According to the latest intelligence, the person had been sighted near Selvas City.
Leister immediately tapped his mana bracelet.
The communication connected after only two rings.
["Yo, Boss. Were you missing me? I was just thinking about you. What perfect timing. Even the breeze seems to be humming a cheerful melody today."]
Leister’s expression remained as stern as ever.
"Moria. There’s a mission for you."
["Another mission? How boring."] The voice on the other side let out a dramatic sigh. ["Can’t we appreciate the music in the air for once? It sounds like it’s inviting someone to a beautiful duet."]
"Be serious, Moria."
"This matter is important."
There was a brief pause before the carefree voice returned.
["Fine. What is it?"]
"Your task is to recruit a new colleague."
["Oh?"] The tone immediately became more interested. ["A new colleague? Now you’ve caught my attention. I wonder... are they strong?"]
"We don’t have much information yet," Leister replied. "Only that the target is a rebel from the Temar Kingdom. A Lynxes Branch Beastkin with genuine A-Rank strength."
He paused before giving the order.
"Depart for Selvas City immediately."
["Selvas City..."] Moria repeated thoughtfully before a light chuckle came through the bracelet. ["Understood. Hopefully, this future colleague has a pleasant voice. Travelling with someone who ruins the rhythm of the journey would be such a waste."]
Leister’s eyelids twitched ever so slightly.
"...Just complete the mission."
Before Moria could continue speaking any more nonsense, Leister decisively ended the call.
The room finally became quiet again.
He let out a slow breath before picking up the next report waiting on his desk.
