Midnight

When Matthew pushed open the door of the inn, it was already past midnight.

The lobby was dead silent. The guards and attendants who had been with Regg earlier had vanished without a trace, and even the old night servant was fast asleep, slumped over the counter.

The fire in the fireplace had long gone out, leaving only a few lingering wisps of warmth dispersing into the chilly air.

The entire space was enveloped in a nearly frozen silence, with only the faint echo of his footsteps on the wooden floorboards.

As Matthew walked up the stairs, he thought to himself that Regg probably didn't want to make a big deal out of this, or perhaps it was a tacit understanding that required no public outcry.

This was for the best, saving him the trouble of explaining tonight's encounter upon his return.

He reached the second floor.

He first paid a visit to Aidan's room.

The door was slightly ajar, and when he pushed it open, only empty darkness greeted him.

The bed was neatly made, the table was empty, and there wasn't even a trace of human presence.

Aidan had not returned yet.

Matthew stood at the doorway, his heart sinking slightly.

He hadn't seen Aidan among the pile of corpses at the villa earlier. Could he still be on the second floor?

However, as soon as this thought surfaced, Matthew dismissed it.

His own Spirit was already capable of clearly probing a single floor, and Sutton's Spirit was far stronger and more condensed, enough to cover the entire villa. If Aidan had really been hiding on the second floor, there was absolutely no way he could have avoided Sutton's perception.

After his brief conversation with Sutton, Matthew had caught a glimpse of the man's mindset. Beneath that single eye, only those who had embarked on the path of a wizard were viewed as peers.

Ordinary people and common Class holders were probably no different from roadside weeds or penned livestock in his eyes, deserving not a shred of mercy.

Or had he encountered some other accident on his way out?

Or had Aidan gone to look for Regg beforehand? Or was he simply delayed outside and hadn't made it back yet?

A faint trace of worry flickered across his brow, but he quickly suppressed his emotions and turned to return to his own room.

The immediate priority was to handle the cloth bag he had brought back from Sutton's place before heading out to look for Aidan.

The three bottles of Blood-Burning Potion inside the cloth bag glowed with a faint, dark red light under the dim candlelight. The bottles were cold to the touch, but a restless energy seemed to be faintly flowing within.

Just as he closed the compartment and was about to stand up and head out—

A soft yet urgent knocking sounded on the door, as if suppressing some form of panic.

Matthew's heart leaped, and he opened the door almost instantly.

Sure enough, it was Aidan standing outside.

He carried a bulging, heavy cloth bag on his back. His face was a mixture of lingering excitement and panic-stricken fear, with sweat-soaked hair clinging to his forehead, and his chest still heaving slightly.

“Brother Matthew...” Aidan panted as soon as he opened his mouth.

Without a word, Matthew reached out, pulled him into the room, and quickly shut the door.

“Sit down first.” He turned to pour a cup of water and handed it over. “Catch your breath before you speak.”

Aidan took the cup and gulped down several large mouthfuls. Only then did he let out a long breath, the tension on his face easing slightly, though the flickering light in his eyes still betrayed his panic.

Matthew waited for his breathing to even out before immediately asking, “What happened after you went up to the second floor of the villa earlier? Why were you delayed for so long?”

Aidan set down the cup, his Adam's apple bobbing as he lowered his voice. “I did as you told me and searched for things on the second floor... There were indeed a lot of valuable items up there—gold coins, jewelry, and some small ornaments. I hesitated a bit while bagging them, worried I might miss something, and ended up losing track of time.”

He paused, a lingering fear surfacing in his eyes. “While I was packing, I suddenly heard a massive boom—the entire building shook! Then came the sound of walls being smashed through by something, with debris and stone raining down...”

“I knew right away that whatever made that noise was far beyond what I could handle, so my only thought was to escape.”

Aidan said, unconsciously gripping the corner of his shirt, “But I didn't dare use the stairs, fearing I'd run into someone, so I jumped out of the second-floor window. Fortunately, there was a flowerbed below, and the soft soil cushioned my fall, so I wasn't hurt.”

“After landing, I didn't dare look back. I ran all the way to the west, weaving through several alleys. Only after making sure no one was following me did I dare circle back to the inn.”

Matthew listened quietly, his gaze lingering on Aidan's face for a moment.

Jumping from the second floor was indeed not difficult for a newly advanced Class holder, and taking a detour back was a cautious move. It sounded perfectly reasonable, with no obvious loopholes.

Yet, an inexplicable sense of strangeness welled up in Matthew's heart.

He looked at Aidan—this youth had first been saved by him in a desperate situation, then had unexpectedly broken through to become a Class holder after being kidnapped, and now had even managed to escape safely right under the nose of a Third-Grade Apprentice like Sutton...

This luck was simply too good to be a mere coincidence.

Once is luck, twice is opportunity, but what about three times?

Matthew's eyes deepened slightly, but he did not press further, merely nodding. “It's good that you're safe.”

He reached out and patted Aidan's shoulder, his tone softening. “You've had a tiring night. Go back and get some rest. We'll talk about everything tomorrow.”

Aidan seemed to finally relax, his shoulders slumping slightly as he murmured, “Okay... Thank you, Brother Matthew.”

The two exchanged a few more brief words about the commotion outside tonight and the silence of the inn before Aidan stood up to leave, carrying his heavy bag of loot.

As he closed the door, he cast a glance back at Matthew, his eyes reflecting what seemed like gratitude, yet also a flicker of hesitation, as if he wanted to say something more.

Matthew did not dwell on it.

He closed the door, picked up the cloth bag Aidan had brought back, walked over to the bed, reopened the hidden compartment, and pulled out the wooden box.

Under the candlelight, the three bottles of Blood-Burning Potion stood quietly, the dark red liquid inside shifting at the boundary of light and shadow as if it were alive.

Beside them lay the notebooks he had brought back from the laboratory. Their pages were yellowed, and the neat handwriting recorded symbols and data that he could not yet fully comprehend.

He picked up the potions one by one, feeling the slight chill of the glass and the faint pulse of energy within against his fingertips, while his mind drifted back to Sutton's calm, single eye and his words: “As fellow wizard apprentices, we should look out for one another.”

Was it genuine goodwill, or some deeper calculation?

Matthew did not know, but he was certain of one thing: tonight was his opportunity.

He packed the potions and notebooks away again and pushed the box back into the hidden compartment.

He turned around and picked up the cloth bag.

The cloth bag felt heavy in his hand, its fabric stretched taut by the contents inside, to the point where he could faintly feel the sharp edges and rounded contours of the hard objects pressing against it.

However, his heart did not hold the same excitement as before. Now that he knew of a much wider world, he no longer cared as much about these mundane, mortal things.

Still, judging by the weight and feel alone, it was definitely far more than just loose copper coins or ordinary jewelry.

He untied the tight knot, his movements light and carrying a faint, barely perceptible trace of anticipation. As the mouth of the bag fell open, a chaotic glimmer of light was reflected from within—the brilliant gold of stacked coins, the cold refraction of cut gemstones, and the warm, matte sheen of several silver pieces... It was packed to the brim, almost overflowing.

“So much...” Matthew murmured to himself, a genuine look of pleasant surprise flashing in his eyes.

He reached his hand inside and grabbed a handful of gold coins first.

The minting process of the Kingdom of Cher was by no means exquisite, but the heavy weight and the familiar relief of the king's profile brought a very tangible sense of satisfaction.

With a rough estimation, this single handful contained twenty to thirty coins, and there was far more than just one “handful” in the bag.

Beneath the gold coins were several pieces of jewelry set with gemstones: a ruby ring, the gem not particularly large but of a pure, rich color; a fine silver chain, dangling a teardrop-shaped blue crystal; and several brooches engraved with family crests. Though not extravagant, their craftsmanship was delicate, clearly the everyday wear of nobility.

In addition, there was a small pouch of unpolished raw gems that shimmered with a colorful gleam under the candlelight, as well as several silver ingots of considerable weight.

Matthew took them out one by one and lined them up on the table.

The metal and gemstones clinked together with crisp, pleasant sounds, and the candle flame flickered, casting a dazzling array of colors across the table.

He watched silently, the corners of his mouth turning up slightly without him realizing it.

When traveling in the mortal realm, though money was not everything, it could resolve the vast majority of troubles—lodging, food, intelligence, equipment, and even “convenient passages” at critical moments.

With this bag of wealth, he would not have to worry about making a living for a long time to come. He could focus more on searching for clues to the path of wizards or dealing with the storms that might lie ahead.

Moreover, he could also give them to Aidan to help him grow quickly.

He picked up the ruby ring and examined it closely against the candlelight.

The interior of the gemstone was clear and the blood-red color was rich, making it clear that it was of no small value.

He then picked up a silver ingot, feeling its heavy, cold touch. The last trace of tension in his heart from tonight's adventure was gradually smoothed away by this solid, sparkling harvest.

That kid Aidan... was really quite lucky.

Taking this risk had truly been worth it.

Matthew gathered the valuables back together and wrapped them up carefully.

He blew out the candle.

The room plunged into darkness, with only the scattered patches of light from the streetlamps outside leaking through the gaps in the curtains, casting a few spots of hazy glimmer.

Matthew sat cross-legged on the bed and closed his eyes, yet his mind still conjured images of the faint glow of the glowing stones in the underground laboratory, Sutton's indifferent profile as he flipped through the notes, and Aidan's eyes from earlier, filled with that mixture of excitement and fear.

The night was still deep, and the road ahead seemed to quietly grow winding and long within this silence.

Putting his thoughts aside, Matthew focused on circulating his meditation method, beginning to absorb the energy particles in the air.

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