As they drew closer, a stronger scent of blood assaulted their senses. The ceiling of the first floor of the house had been cut off, so Violet and her companions simply jumped in from the outside.
What awaited Violet was a rather terrifying scene.
There seemed to have been a fierce battle here.
Hmm... “gruesome massacre” might be a more fitting description.
But it was also somewhat strange, even eerie.
The hall wasn’t in disarray, wooden tables and chairs were arranged quite neatly. It seemed like this place was originally some sort of dining area.
Yet there were over fifty human corpses scattered around, all dead in the same manner.
Their heads had been severed by sharp blades, a single strike killing them.
Whether it was from sword wounds or otherwise, whoever killed them, the same person who sliced through the entire building like cutting tofu, even if it wasn’t the same individual, there must have been some profound connection.
There were heads and bodies rolling everywhere, yet the furnishings were so orderly, showing no signs of battle, as if... as if, at the same moment, they were all doing different things, and their heads simultaneously dropped off.
These dead...
They were all dressed in attire similar to that of thieves, with ghost-like symbols engraved on their cuffs, clearly belonging to the same faction. However, Violet did not see a single enemy corpse here.
To call it a massacre wouldn’t be an exaggeration.
Clearly, there were no survivors.
In the situation where heads were chopped off, even the undead from the Eternal Throne would immediately perish, let alone these ordinary humans, apart from those in the Divine Beast series.
From the markings on the bodies, this should be the hidden stronghold of the Ghost Thief Group, and the deceased were all hunters from that organization.
The brutality of the attacks clearly indicates deep-seated hatred. Upon reflection, the most likely culprits are the demons allied with the one claiming to be Tiyelu, the little butterfly.
Are they seeking revenge on the Ghost Thief Group and searching for the abducted Moon Shadow tribe offsprings?
Violet stood amidst the corpses, in the hall where half the ceiling had been torn off, looking around.
Since the loud noise earlier until now, not much time had passed. Even if the battle here happened earlier, the one who sliced the building mustn’t have gone far.
However, on the way here, Violet had been observant but didn’t notice anyone of concern, and Miss Priestess didn’t believe that revenge on the Ghost Thief Group alone warranted chopping down the entire building.
There was also a very important point: despite the Ghost Thief Group hiding away, they still stationed so many people in this building. Could there be something fishy here?
“Xiao Guang, anything unusual?”
Wrinkling her nose, the dragoness didn’t hesitate to raise her hand, pointing to a spot inside the counter.
“Master, there are many different scents mixed together here, even overpowering the strong smell of blood in the surroundings. It seems that many creatures have been here recently.”
As if afraid her explanation wasn’t clear enough, the dragon girl added, “Unlike humans.”
“Okay, my Xiao Guang is still as reliable as ever~”
Following the guidance of her pet’s keen sense of smell, Miss Priestess arrived at the designated spot and carefully searched under the somewhat dilapidated counter.
If it were the first time seeing it, Violet would probably need some effort to notice it, but with the experience of watching Eileen operate the secret passage in her own cabin before, the black-haired girl quickly found a similar metal ring.
This thing was tightly pressed against the ground, almost blending in with it, and with the dim backlighting under the counter, it was indeed not easy to spot. Violet wondered how those guys from before had found it.
Pulling the panel upward, sure enough, there was a deeper, darker passage below.
Nodding to the nearby Xiao Guang, who was observing, Violet proceeded down first.
Xiao Guang didn’t follow her owner into the tunnel, they had encountered similar situations more than once in the game. In such cases, it was best to leave someone behind to watch the entrance, providing an escape route in case of any unexpected changes.
With their tacit cooperation and contractual communication, there was no need to explicitly state such matters.
Walking along the narrow and gloomy tunnel, unlike the one under Eileen’s house, this one was clearly much more finely crafted. The walls on both sides were smooth, and the ground was no longer uneven. Night stones for illumination were fixed at regular intervals. Though not very bright, it was enough to see things dimly.
The sourc𝗲 of this content is freēwēbηovel.c૦m.
Though the tunnel wasn’t long, though Violet remained vigilant for potential enemies, to her disappointment, she encountered no living beings until she reached the end—a deeper stone chamber, where she immediately understood.
In front of her eyes was the only thing in the center of the chamber—a spatial teleportation array.
It should be noted that the magical level in the Human United Kingdom, especially in the development of spatial magic, was much inferior to that of the winged people. A small stable teleportation array capable of transporting living beings was something that a mere poaching group could never build.
Either some skilled individuals intervened, or there’s a larger force assisting them, but regardless, considering the Ghost Thief Group members guarding outside...
It seems that the place connected here, even if not the headquarters of the Ghost Thief Group, is definitely a particularly important area.
While summoning Xiao Guang, who was left outside to guard the entrance through their contract, Violet hesitated.
Should she seize this opportunity and continue pursuing?
Eileen had already made contact with the contact person of the Ghost Thief Group through this route. If she entered this unknown teleportation array now, she couldn’t guarantee what would happen, but she might miss the original plan.
But on the other hand, if things went smoothly, perhaps she could use this sudden opportunity to directly find the Ghost Thief’s lair, or even the special pup said to be associated with the demon god.
This was a gamble.
Should she proceed cautiously with the plan... or take the gamble?
“Master, I’m here. What is this...?”
The familiar voice of Xiao Guang came from beside her, and the priestess had already made her decision in her mind.
Considering the complexity of this magic array, the teleportation distance shouldn’t be too far. She had already left reminders for Eileen to use props, and the latter had mentioned that the contact person would need some time to meet up.
With Violet and Xiao Guang’s speed, they should be able to catch up in time if they really wanted to.
And more importantly...
Hey, it’s precisely because it’s something full of unknowns that it’s interesting, isn’t it? How could she miss out on this?
“Xiao Guang, we’re going in. Are you ready?”