Chapter 120: The Follower

Chapter One Hundred Twenty
The Follower

In the northern outskirts, inside the three-story medical college building that was nearing abandonment.

Though it was only three in the afternoon, the mist and layered clouds had already made all of Backlund gloomy and dim, like a great downpour was about to arrive.

Inside the dilapidated corridor, cold light slanted in dim and deep through the windows, making everything look silent, scarred, and eerie.

This was Audrey’s second time coming here. She was no longer as nervous and tense as before. Wearing a surgical cap and a large mask, she turned her head slightly left and right, habitually observing the environment and every detail of this place.

Walking beside her, Viscount Glaint gradually grew frightened. Unable to stop himself, he lowered his voice and said, “Why does this place feel a little strange…

“Could there be ghosts or evil spirits here?”

As a mysticism enthusiast who had only half a foot inside the circle, the only truly supernatural phenomenon he had witnessed was Fors passing through walls and opening doors. He was uncertain whether resentful spirits and shades truly existed.

But that did not prevent him from being afraid of such monsters.

Fors turned her head and glanced at him, holding back a laugh.

“Most of the people attending this gathering are Beyonders. If there really are evil spirits or ghosts, they would be delighted. That means materials, or perhaps servants.”

Seeing Viscount Glaint visibly relax, she deliberately added, “Of course, I am only talking about weaker ghosts. A truly formed shade might be able to make everyone here die silently. You would want to run, but could only move back and forth among the three floors, unable to leave no matter what, as if you had entered a maze.”

Xio nodded in agreement.

“I once encountered a similar resentful spirit. I went in circles around a cemetery several times and could not escape. During that process, people kept inexplicably turning back, then suddenly dying. If not for a Beyonder carrying a Sun Charm, perhaps you would not be able to see me today.”

Viscount Glaint shivered. He hurriedly turned his head to look out the window. At exactly that moment, a withered tree branch struck the glass in the cold wind, making a soft sound.

Glaint nearly cried out. In panic, he moved closer to Fors and Xio, the two Beyonders.

Audrey suppressed the laughter that had almost reached her lips and quietly watched the scene. A thought naturally rose inside her heart.

I have seen Mr. Fool, who is nearly divine. I know of the City of Silver in the Forsaken Land of the Gods. I have heard of all kinds of terrifying monsters deep within the darkness. Why would I be afraid of resentful spirits and shades?

But… I truly have not actually encountered a ghost before. Pah! Audrey, what are you thinking? It would be better not to casually encounter that sort of thing!

Unless I have already become a Psychiatrist and possess Beyonder abilities that can influence other creatures, or obtain a mystical item that counters ghost-type monsters…

The group of four unconsciously quickened their pace, quickly arriving at today’s gathering location.

Before entering, Fors found an opportunity to bend slightly and lean toward Xio’s ear.

“You played along pretty well just now. You even made up a story that quickly to scare him.

“Look at the parts of Viscount Glaint’s face not covered by the mask. They’re so pale they’re almost colorless.”

Xio turned her head, answering with slight confusion, “I didn’t make up a story.

“That was something I encountered before coming to Backlund.”

“…”

Fors froze for a moment, then blurted out, “That was real?”

“What is there to lie about?” Xio’s confused expression was hidden by the mask.

Fors turned her head, took two steps forward, then suddenly trembled.

At that moment, Glaint, who no longer wished to remain in the gloomy, terrifying corridor, reached out and pushed open the door to the gathering place.

With a creaking sound echoing outward, what entered his eyes was a floor cast from cement. What entered his nose was the frown-inducing smell of antiseptic.

Immediately afterward, he saw a large pool at the center, filled with transparent yellowish liquid. Figure after figure floated inside.

Those figures were all naked. Some were relatively intact, while others had half their skin peeled away, revealing a jerky-like brownish color.

They were all corpses!

“Ah!”

A male scream echoed inside the room.

Gaze after gaze instantly turned toward Glaint.

Those gazes all came from figures in white coats gathered around the pool. They likewise wore surgical caps and large masks, with only their eyes and a little skin exposed.

Glaint’s body swayed. All he wanted was to turn and run, but then he saw Audrey, Fors, and Xio pass him without anything happening, walking in as though they were not companions who had come together.

Drawing a breath, Glaint nearly retched.

He looked back outside, only to see the corridor dark and cold, shadows indistinct. Not half a living person could be seen.

Shivering again, Glaint hurriedly quickened his steps and caught up with Audrey and the others, finding a place farthest from the pool to sit down.

Several minutes passed. One white-coated figure stepped out, used a hooked wooden pole beside the pool to pull a corpse to the edge, and then directly used his hands to drag it onto the cement floor.

He paused for two or three seconds, took out a surgical knife, and cut open the corpse’s abdomen.

As the wound deepened, a cold, hoarse voice suddenly came from within.

“The gathering begins.”

…

Glaint reached up to press the mask on his face, his throat moving a few times. He nearly vomited.

As various trades succeeded or failed, the gathering entered its middle stage. Audrey, who had been calmly observing, finally spoke.

“I would like the Spectator potion formula.”

Before her voice had even faded, she immediately felt several gazes sweep over, only to quickly move away without lingering.

After several dozen seconds of silence, the transaction fell through.

…

A little after four in the afternoon, the sky looked increasingly close to night.

“How could there be not a single thing…” Glaint failed to maintain the poise of a noble. Leaning weakly against the wooden wall of the carriage, he sighed in a low voice.

This Beyonder gathering had left a deep impression on him, making him feel he had endured tremendous risk.

But even so, he still had failed to buy the adult Unicorn Pegasus horn or the Crown Jellyfish venom crystallization.

Fors secretly curled her lip and said, “That is very normal. Although Backlund is the easiest place to obtain materials, if one cannot participate in every Beyonder gathering, it is likewise possible to go a long time without finding what you want. That requires either luck or patience.

“Look, Viscount. The Spectator formula Miss Audrey wants has still not produced any clue.”

Sometimes you encounter it, but have no money to buy it…

Xio, seated nearby, thought helplessly.

Audrey comforted Glaint with a sentence.

“When I return, I will search through my family’s treasury. Perhaps there is something you need.”

Today, she had brought the Seven-Colored Lizard Dragon pituitary gland, but had not encountered the Farsman Rabbit’s spinal fluid. Because of that, she had only exchanged it for three hundred and twenty pounds in cash—a preparation for Susie’s advancement.

Glaint nodded and was about to speak when he suddenly saw Xio sit up sharply and frown.

“It feels like someone is following us!”

“I trust your intuition. What should we do?” Fors asked, looking around once.

Following us? What about us is worth following? We merely sold one Beyonder item and obtained several hundred pounds in cash. Even if someone wanted to rob people, we should not be the foremost target… Although Glaint behaved like a newcomer, we did not… And the gathering organizer did many things to protect members’ safety and guard against anyone being followed. Unless—unless the person who sent someone to follow us is the organizer! Everything was normal last time. Mm. What is different between the two times…

Audrey’s thoughts spun rapidly, and a thought suddenly appeared.

Perhaps my request to buy the Spectator formula drew the Psychology Alchemists’ attention.

They cannot possibly sell the Spectator formula casually. What must come along afterward is an invitation to join their organization.

And inviting someone to join is even less simple. They have to guard against the other party being a quasi-Nighthawk, quasi-Mandated Punisher, or a spy sent by some other secret force.

If they do not observe the target or conduct an examination, the organization will be wiped out very quickly.

After pondering for several seconds, Audrey said to Fors and the others, “Prepare for an attack.

“Pretend we have not discovered the follower.

“If we can successfully return to Queen’s Borough, do not worry about Glaint’s and my identities being exposed. You two must leave covertly.”

Her emerald eyes swept across Glaint, and she added with a faint smile, “We are mysticism enthusiasts known by many. Finding an opportunity to attend a Beyonder gathering is very normal. Even if the one following us is an official Beyonder, they will not suspect anything, because we are still ordinary people. At most, they will use some other channel to issue one or two warnings.”

But I am already Sequence 8… Hoo. To come into contact with the Psychology Alchemists, I have to take a little risk… Official Beyonders should not target me merely because I asked to buy a formula. They should not be able to bypass the gathering organizer and follow us. I have to trust my own judgment!

Audrey encouraged herself inwardly.

“All right,” Viscount Glaint muttered in agreement.

The carriage continued forward as usual, circling several times. At the end, Audrey and the others changed into another carriage according to plan.

During the entire process, the follower never launched an attack.

When they reached the rear gate of Viscount Glaint’s mansion in Queen’s Borough, the two nobles returned in the normal manner, while Fors and Xio left using their own abilities and skills.

After more than ten minutes, Audrey took the golden retriever Susie and her personal maids, boarded her own family’s carriage, and left through the front gate without any concealment.

Listening to the rolling wheels, she could not confirm whether there was still a follower. She could only let her thoughts spread outward on their own.

Earl Hall’s daughter is clearly impossible to be a spy for any Beyonder faction…

There is not the slightest problem with her past…

Her love for mysticism is something well known…

Her identity and status can bring a form of help different from ordinary people…

Perhaps, in two days, members of the Psychology Alchemists will try to make contact with me…

Audrey thought with both expectation and nervousness.

…

Though Klein had claimed he needed to make preparations, he spent the next two days at the Cragg Club as though nothing were happening. He even joined a card game with the riding instructor Talim and others, winning a few soli.

Before going to sleep, he did not forget to go outside Solicitor Jurgen’s house and check whether there were lights on—whether he needed to feed the cat.

On Friday evening at eight o’clock, he put on an iron mask, pulled on a hooded black robe, and entered old Mr. Eye of Wisdom’s sitting room.