Chapter 43: The Seed of Doubt
Finally, the annual hunting day arrived.
Rhys sat alone at a corner table inside the inn, slowly stirring the cup of herbal tea in front of him.
The normally noisy hall was even louder than usual today. Merchants, hunters, and mages filled every seat.
Servants rushed between tables carrying food and drinks, yet nobody seemed interested in eating.
Every conversation eventually returned to the same topic.
"Did you hear?" a middle-aged hunter whispered from the next table. "Another young mage was found dead last night."
His companion nearly dropped his mug.
"Another one? That’s the fiftieth in two days!"
"Fifty-one," an older man corrected while taking a long drink. "My cousin works for the city guard. He said they found the body near the eastern district."
A chill spread across the table.
"They say the killer took the heart again."
"Stop talking nonsense," a young mage scoffed, though his voice lacked confidence. "Who would pull out someone’s heart with their bare hands?"
The older man leaned closer.
"Then explain why every body was found the same way."
The young mage opened his mouth but failed to answer.
A woman sitting nearby lowered her voice.
"I heard none of them had wounds anywhere else. Just an empty hole in their chests."
"Gods..." someone muttered.
Another hunter shook his head.
"This annual hunt is cursed. First the disappearances, now this."
"You still going?" his friend asked.
The hunter forced a laugh. "After waiting three years for my chance? Of course I am."
Rhys quietly lifted his cup and took a sip. He had heard about the murders too.
But incidents like this were never rare in this world. The Azure Lotus Sect had already dispatched a Grand Mage to investigate.
Whoever the killer was, they would likely be caught soon.
What Rhys couldn’t understand was why anyone would dig out a mage’s Mana Heart.
The moment a Mana Heart lost its connection to the owner’s mana circuits, it shattered. It was practically useless.
[There are some forbidden techniques in the Systemverse that use Mana Hearts to forcefully increase one’s rank by deceiving the system,] the System said.
Rhys narrowed his eyes.
Before he could ask further, another conversation reached his ears.
"I heard the Azure Lotus Sect Master is behind the murders."
Rhys immediately sharpened his focus. Something felt wrong. This didn’t sound like ordinary gossip. It sounded rehearsed.
"Stop slandering her, fool," another man snapped. "She’s a Mystic Mage now."
"I’m not slandering anyone," the first man replied. "I’m stating facts. Think about it. How did she suddenly become a Mystic Mage after being injured? And what about the nine Grand Elders? They all became Grand Mages. Isn’t the timing too perfect?"
Several people nearby fell silent.
"What are you trying to say?" someone asked.
The man lowered his voice. "She advanced by consuming the Mana Hearts of mages."
The surrounding tables erupted.
"Impossible!"
"How could that even work?"
"Mana Hearts shatter after they’re removed."
The man merely shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe there are special spells that can preserve them."
The crowd quieted.
One man frowned. "Now that you mention it..."
Another nodded slowly.
"The Azure Lotus Sect did rise too quickly."
"And the victims were all talented young mages..."
"No way..." someone muttered.
"But what if..."
The seed had been planted. Rhys watched the man carefully. He didn’t miss the brief flash of satisfaction in his eyes.
Then the man casually stood up and drifted toward another group of people.
Rhys narrowed his eyes.
Someone wants to destroy her reputation.
But why?
Even if her reputation collapsed, what would they gain?
The Azure Lotus Sect Master was a Mystic Mage. Her elders were Grand Mages. She could seize any territory she wanted through force alone.
So what was the purpose?
Rhys quietly followed the man. At every gathering, the man repeated the same story. And he wasn’t alone.
Rhys spotted several others doing exactly the same thing.
Different faces. The same rumors. The same words. The same doubts.
He listened to their accents. Northern settlements.
A coordinated effort...
So the settlement masters were behind this. Which raised another question.
Were they behind the murders too?
There was only one way to find out.
Ask them.
Rhys doubted they would answer politely. A grin slowly spread across his face.
"A mask that hides my face is on my face..."
"You have an uncertain thought. Calculating the lifespan required to manifest this thought..."
One hundred thousand days vanished. Silver light gathered around his face.
A mask appeared.
Rhys twitched his lips. Two minutes of anonymity for one hundred thousand days.
What a bargain, he thought sarcastically. The only reason he ever spent this much was that he could afford it now.
After all, he had nearly a billion years of lifespan.
He followed the man out of the inn. The streets gradually emptied.
No witnesses.
Perfect.
Rhys activated Phantom Passage. The man didn’t even have time to scream. The world twisted. One moment he was walking. The next, he was falling.
When he regained his senses, he found himself inside a dark room.
"W-What...?"
He stumbled backward and collapsed onto the floor. The darkness remained silent. Then a silver glow appeared.
Two shining eyes. A wide smile. The man’s blood turned cold. "G-Ghost!"
A voice echoed through the room, cold and calm.
"Tell me who ordered you to spread rumors about the Azure Lotus Sect Master."
The man’s body trembled.
"And tell me who is behind the murders."
His lips moved. He couldn’t stop them. The words spilled out on their own.
"We don’t know anything about the murders!" he cried. "It wasn’t us! We only wanted to use them against her!"
Rhys listened quietly.
As expected. The rumors had been orchestrated by the three northern settlement masters. They wanted public opinion to turn against the Azure Lotus Sect.
And it was working.
Even some citizens of Azure City were beginning to doubt her. After all, the victims weren’t only from other settlements. Several were from Azure City itself.
The man was just a pawn.
But Rhys believed part of what he said. The victims were all talented young mages. The settlement masters wouldn’t sacrifice their best talents.
If they wanted to frame someone convincingly, they would have used expendable people.
Rhys rubbed his chin.
Destroying her reputation...
It sounds like the beginning of a coup.
But how?
How do you overthrow a Mystic Mage?
[Humans really overestimate themselves,] the System said mockingly. [Against absolute power, no scheme is sufficient.]
Rhys disagreed.
In both of his lives, humanity had proven the opposite.
The weak defeated the strong all the time. Not through strength. Through planning. Through deception. Through patience.
That was how humans climbed to the top.
He pushed the thought aside.
The murders. Are they connected or not? There wasn’t enough information yet. The Annual Hunt began today.
Whatever these people were planning, they would have to act soon.
Rhys left the dark room.
After settling his bill at the inn, he headed toward the base of the Eighth Peak.
As Rhys made his way toward the base of the mountain, he found himself hearing the same rumors everywhere.
No matter which group he passed, the topic remained unchanged.
The Azure Lotus Sect Master.
The murders.
The stolen Mana Hearts.
People whispered. They argued. They doubted. Some firmly believed she was innocent. Others were already convinced she was the culprit.
Rhys couldn’t help but marvel at the efficiency of the three settlement masters.
If they were truly unrelated to the murders, and had simply seized the opportunity to use them against her, then he had to admit their timing was impressive.
A few deaths. A few rumors. And an entire city had begun to question a Mystic Mage.
He silently gave them a thumbs up.
At the same time, he felt a little sorry for the little fox.
She probably didn’t even know that half the city was discussing how many Mana Hearts she ate for breakfast.
When Rhys finally reached the gathering area at the base of the Eighth Peak, he casually picked an inconspicuous spot near the edge of the crowd.
As always, he had no intention of standing out.
He crossed his arms, leaned against a large stone, and waited for the real players to arrive.
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