Hints (1)

Matthew suddenly realized he hadn't felt this way in a long time. It was the feeling of things slowly moving in a direction he controlled.

Since coming to this world, too many things had forced him to keep running. Herbert's pursuit, the lack of resources, and his own insufficient strength—every step had been like walking on a knife's edge. One slight misstep would have meant falling into a bottomless abyss.

But the royal capital, for the first time, gave him the opportunity to lay out his plans slowly. It was large enough, with enough resources and complex enough factions. Naturally, there were more dangers, but by the same token, there were more opportunities.

As long as he wasn't in a rush and took things step by step, he would eventually find his place. At this thought, Matthew slowly let out a breath.

“Aidan.”

“I'm here.”

“From now on, spend a little time going out every day. Taverns, the Mercenary Guild, the docks, the markets—you can go to all of them. Don't stick to one place. Today at a tavern, tomorrow at the docks, the day after at the market. The more people there are, the more mixed the information is. The more mixed it is, the easier it is to find problems.”

Aidan nodded seriously. “I understand.”

“Also,” Matthew continued, “if you really hear something particularly strange, do not investigate it yourself. Come back and tell me immediately. Remember, come back and tell me.”

Aidan didn't hesitate. “Yes.”

Matthew looked at him, his expression growing a bit more serious. “Many things aren't as simple as they appear on the surface. An ordinary person's curiosity can sometimes be fatal, especially in the royal capital. The death of an ordinary person here won't draw any more attention than the death of a rat.”

Aidan felt a slight chill in his heart. He knew Matthew wasn't trying to scare him. Having come all this way, he had already witnessed too many things. Whether it was Herbert or those extraordinary powers, they were all enough to prove how fragile an ordinary person was when facing a truly powerful expert.

At this thought, he nodded even more firmly. “Don't worry, Brother Matthew. Without your orders, I won't act recklessly.”

A trace of satisfaction finally appeared on Matthew's face. This was the answer he wanted.

The two of them chatted simply for a while longer. Most of it was about things they had seen in the city today. When Aidan mentioned the Class Holder Plaza, his face was still full of envy. He talked about how well-equipped the mercenaries were, saying that the armor on many of them was clearly worth a fortune.

He also mentioned several adventure groups with very complete team compositions. Knights in the front, Shield Warriors in the middle, and Archers in the back. There were even Clergy specifically responsible for healing. It was clear that Aidan truly yearned for that.

Matthew just listened quietly without interrupting. Only after Aidan finished did he smile softly. “Envious?”

Aidan scratched his head somewhat awkwardly. “A little. After all, those are true Class holder teams.”

Matthew looked out the window. Under the night sky, a crescent moon had slowly risen. The silver-white moonlight spilled over the rooftops of the royal capital, giving the entire city an extra layer of tranquility.

He suddenly spoke. “In the future, we will be stronger than them.” His voice wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally calm. There were no grand words or passionate tones, as if he were merely stating a fact that would definitely happen in the future.

Aidan was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh. “I believe you.” He truly believed him. Because having come all this way, others might not know, but he had watched Matthew with his own eyes, going from an unremarkable apprentice to where he was today, step by step.

Every time they encountered a difficulty, Matthew would find a way. Every time they seemed to be in a desperate situation, it would eventually turn into an opportunity. This time, Aidan still believed it would be no exception.

The room returned to silence. Matthew didn't say anything else. He just gazed quietly out the window. The night in the royal capital had just begun, and the story belonging to him had also just begun.

Early the next morning, Aidan headed out. Following the method Matthew had explained yesterday, he no longer deliberately tried to ask about mysterious figures or press for information that others simply didn't know. He just acted like an ordinary Class holder from out of town.

He drank at mercenary taverns, wandered around the Class Holder Plaza, and occasionally chatted with a few mercenaries. He listened to them brag, complain, and tell stories of unknown veracity.

Matthew, on the other hand, didn't go out with him. The room was very quiet. Sunlight shone through the window, landing on the table. The Blood-Veined Rapier still lay quietly in the black long case. Matthew only glanced at it before putting the case back into his storage ring.

Today, he wouldn't practice his swordsmanship. At least, he didn't plan to practice it frequently. Yesterday had proven that the benefits brought by the Purple-quality equipment were real. Since that was the case, there was no need to be in a rush. The improvement of strength required a gradual process. Especially with a power that carried side effects, one had to exercise even more restraint.

Matthew went to the window, watching the increasingly busy street outside as he fell into thought. Right now, there were quite a few things laid out before him.

First were the wizards. This was his primary goal for coming to the royal capital. Second were spells. He still mastered too few spells. If he truly encountered a powerful enemy, the variations of his Energy Missile were still limited. Third were resources. Whether it was magic stones, materials, or knowledge, they all required a large amount of gold coins for support.

In the end, it was still about money. At this thought, Matthew couldn't help but smile. Whether in his past life or this one, wealth seemed to be an unavoidable topic.

However, compared to the county seat, the opportunities to make money in the royal capital were clearly far greater. This place gathered the most chamber of commerce in the entire kingdom, the most Class holders, and the most nobles. Naturally, that also meant the most demand. As long as he could find a suitable entry point, making money wouldn't be difficult.

The difficult part was how to make money without exposing himself. After all, if a Second-Grade Apprentice with no background suddenly produced a large amount of rare resources, it would easily attract the attention of those with ulterior motives. The royal capital was never short of smart people. Matthew wouldn't underestimate anyone.

He sat back in his chair and took out paper and a charcoal pencil. He began to organize the current information point by point.

【Goal: Join wizarding circles.】

【Current Clue: None.】

Matthew thought for a moment and added another sentence at the end.

【Start from anomalies.】

Then, he continued to write the second point.

【Goal: Learn new spells.】

【Priority: Protection > Control > Scouting > Attack.】

Seeing this, Matthew nodded slightly. He wasn't lacking in attack spells for the time being. After being enhanced by the panel, the Energy Missile was sufficient as his primary means of attack. Conversely, defense had always been his weak point. Once he encountered a sneak attack, he had almost no other option besides dodging. This was a very obvious shortcoming.

As for the third point, Matthew only wrote two words.

【Money.】

Then, he wrote down several possible directions below it. Selling alchemy materials? No, the source would be hard to explain. Selling magic stones? Even worse. Selling spell models? The risk was too great. Compounding potions? He didn't know how.

One plan after another was written down, and one after another was crossed out. Until finally, the paper was covered with various marks. Yet Matthew still hadn't found a particularly suitable method.

He rubbed his brow. This matter of making money was even more troublesome than he had imagined. Just then, a knock sounded at the door.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Matthew put away the paper. “Enter.”

The door pushed open, and Aidan walked in quickly. However, unlike yesterday, his expression today was clearly a bit strange. It was as if he had heard something but didn't know if it was true or false.

Matthew saw it immediately. “A harvest?”

Aidan nodded. “Yes. And... it's a bit strange.”

Matthew put down his teacup. “Speak.”

Aidan organized his words. “This morning, I heard two mercenaries chatting in a tavern. They said that night patrols have increased quite a bit recently. Especially at night. Near the East District and the Theater District, several more patrol squads appear every night.”

Matthew didn't interrupt, just listened quietly. This kind of thing, taken on its own, didn't have much value.

Aidan continued, “Later, I went to the docks. An old man loading cargo there said, ‘Don't go wandering around at night lately. Especially don't go to the east. If you hear someone calling your name, don't look back for anything.’”

At this point, Aidan couldn't help but smile. “I thought he was just trying to scare me at the time. But the other people nearby didn't laugh at all. Instead, they all nodded.”

Matthew's gaze finally began to change slowly. This... was no longer just one person's story. It was different people, in different places, pointing toward the same direction. East District. Theater District. Nighttime. Increased patrols. Don't go near. Don't look back. These scattered bits of information were starting to slowly connect.

Matthew didn't speak immediately. The room fell silent again. He leaned back in his chair, his right index finger lightly tapping the table. Once. Twice. Thrice. This was his habit when thinking.

Aidan didn't make a sound, just stood quietly to the side. He knew Matthew was currently organizing these fragmented pieces of information.

After a moment, Matthew spoke slowly. “Besides these, is there anything else?”

Aidan thought for a bit and continued, “There's one more thing. I heard it in a tavern near the Class Holder Plaza. A few mercenaries were drinking. One of them had a bit too much and started bragging. He said his brother is in the Third Patrol Group of the royal capital.”

Matthew's eyes flickered slightly. “Continue.”

Aidan nodded. “That mercenary was quite proud at first, saying his brother is very prestigious now. He patrols with the Knight Order every day, his salary has increased a lot, and he said it won't be long before he brings their old mother to the royal capital to enjoy life.”

Aidan paused here. “Later, someone asked him if something had happened in the royal capital recently and why the patrols had suddenly increased. That mercenary's face changed instantly.”

Matthew listened silently. Aidan tried his best to recall the scene from that time.

“He said... his brother came home a few days ago and only said one thing. Lock the doors at night. Don't go out no matter what you hear. If someone knocks, ask who it is through the door first. Don't ever open the door directly.”

Matthew narrowed his eyes. This didn't sound like a normal security warning. Ordinary thieves or ordinary gangs wouldn't make the members of a Patrol Group specifically warn their families like this.

Aidan continued, “Someone pressed him for the reason, but the mercenary shook his head. He said his brother refused to say, only that it was an order. If he violated the order, even his brother would be punished.”

The room fell silent once more. In Matthew's mind, he couldn't help but link together all the information from yesterday and today. Theater District. Nighttime. Increased patrols. Don't go near. Don't respond to strange voices. Don't open the door. And... vampires.

He naturally wouldn't conclude that there truly were vampires just because of a rumor. That would be too arbitrary. But if the same information started appearing repeatedly, then it was worth noting.

Matthew slowly stood up and walked to the window. The streets outside were still busy. Sunlight spilled over the flagstone road, and everything appeared peaceful and harmonious. But he knew that the truly dangerous time was never the day, but the night.

Aidan suddenly spoke again. “There's also one small thing.”

“A small thing?”

“Yes. When I was coming back from the docks today, I saw a few patrol knights driving away some homeless people. Normally it wouldn't be anything, but those homeless people kept shouting one sentence.”

Matthew turned his head. “What sentence?”

Aidan frowned, imitating the tone of those people at the time. “They said... ‘It wasn't us stealing things. Someone dragged the bodies away at night. Someone really dragged them away. It wasn't wild dogs. It was a person.’”

Aidan gave a bitter smile. “The people nearby all thought they were crazy. Some even cursed them, saying they'd say anything to beg for money. Later, the patrol knights just drove them away directly.”

Matthew didn't laugh. Instead, he fell silent. Bodies. Dragged away. Patrol knights. Driving them away. If it were just one homeless person's gibberish, no one would care. But the patrol knights' first reaction wasn't to investigate, but to drive them away. This was quite thought-provoking. Of course, it could also just be because the homeless were affecting the city's appearance.

Matthew wouldn't rush to a conclusion. He silently made a note in his heart. 【Homeless — Bodies — East District.】

At this point, Aidan suddenly asked in a low voice, “Brother Matthew, is there... something wrong with these things?”

Matthew was silent for a moment, then slowly shook his head. “We don't know yet. There are too few clues. These things might be related to each other, or they might be completely unrelated. We can't assume there's some monster just because of a few rumors.”

He said this, but then his tone shifted. “However, as long as the same thing is mentioned by more and more people, it's worth continuing to investigate.”

Matthew walked back to the table and picked up the paper and pencil. Below his original notes, he slowly wrote down a few more lines.

【Theater District — Night patrols increased.】

【East District — Avoid going out at night.】

【Internal members of the Patrol Group likely know something.】

【Homeless mentioned missing bodies.】

【Multiple people related to nighttime anomalies.】

After finishing, Matthew put down the charcoal pencil and lightly blew on the paper. A smile slowly curled at the corners of his mouth.

Finally, he had a direction. It wasn't about finding a wizard directly, but finding a line that could lead to the wizarding world. It might be very thin, and it might be very long, but at least it had appeared.