On the way back to Maplewood Town from the forest, Ansu saw David walking over hurriedly.
"Lord Hermit..." David lowered his voice to report, "I've just received a secret report. Samantha has returned to her seaside manor and has urgently summoned all the elders still in Benalu for a secret meeting."
A flash of understanding crossed Ansu's eyes. Samantha rushing back to reclaim her power and calling an elder meeting was not surprising.
"What did she say at the meeting?"
"The specific details are unclear." David shook his head first, then added, "But I asked some cult colleagues in the manor, and they told me that a heated argument broke out midway. Samantha lost control of her emotions and nearly came to blows with several elders on the spot..."
Ansu let out a mocking laugh. "It seems our acting cult leader's emotions are quite unstable."
David continued, "One colleague also told me that Samantha finally stormed out, muttering, 'If you all don't dare to go, then I'll go myself!'"
"Very good." Ansu nodded with a smile. The news of him giving orders in Maplewood Town was known throughout the cult; Samantha was clearly impatient to send people to surround and suppress him.
But with the situation in the city being so tense, and having heard that the quite powerful Pope's guard, Seance, had also come to take charge, the elders would certainly not agree to Samantha's risky move.
After confirming the arrangements in the forest with David one last time, Ansu prepared to return to his room to rest.
But just as he reached the door, he glanced at Freya and Vera's room. Remembering something, he instructed David in a low voice:
"David, regarding the events of these past few days, don't say what shouldn't be said, especially... to Celia."
David froze for a moment, instinctively glancing toward the room of Miss Vera and the Holy Maiden.
Understanding instantly, he immediately put on a confused expression and shook his head. "Lord Hermit, I don't understand what you're saying. What has happened these past few days?"
Ansu thought to himself, it was naturally the matter of him and Freya strolling around the streets whenever they had the chance...
But David's reaction... was a bit too clever.
Ansu silently observed the bewildered-looking David, thinking that this boy really wanted to advance his career...
"Yes, indeed, nothing happened." Ansu coughed lightly and said seriously, "Deacon General David, go attend to your business. Keep a close eye on Samantha's movements and wait for the opportunity."
And then, completely wipe out Samantha.
...
Two days later, on the rural dirt road leading from Benalu City to Maplewood Town.
In the swaying merchant carriage, Samantha, clad in a heavy cloak, pulled her gaze back from the boundless woods in the distance and stared intently at herself in the mirror.
The mirror reflected a young and beautiful face disguised by magic. Seeing herself so young, full, and radiating youthful energy, Samantha unconsciously broke into a smile.
However, this false appearance was fragile. When the chaotic mana within her became difficult to control, the young face in the mirror twitched slightly.
In an instant, large patches of terrifying and aged wrinkles appeared.
Samantha's expression immediately turned dark, and she crushed the mirror in her hand with a sinister grin.
She tossed the mirror shards out the window, her gaze turning toward Maplewood Town again, a nearly insane fire burning in her cloudy eyes.
It was almost time...
Once she settled this matter, she would no longer have to rely on magic to maintain that disgusting facade of aging...
She would obtain a true rebirth.
"Acting Cult Leader, we have arrived at Maplewood Town."
The Scholar lowered his head humbly and followed her out of the carriage.
The group arrived at a spacious courtyard with the merchant caravan. At this moment, Elder Matthew suddenly approached.
"The woods to the southeast feel a bit off... I sensed a surge of mana."
"It's Ansu and Celia!" Samantha's emotions were instantly ignited. "They really are here! Quick, follow me! Find them! Kill them!"
Another elder showed a disapproving expression. "We just arrived, and they're already using magic? I'm afraid it's a trap, Acting Cult Leader!"
"Enough talk! So what if it's a trap?" Samantha's gaze was cold. "As long as I can lock onto the two of them, I have an absolute chance of winning! Are you questioning my strength?"
"Of course not..." Elder Matthew lowered his head, silently thinking that Samantha, who had managed to break through the encirclement in the Royal Capital and had even recovered most of her strength by now, indeed possessed unfathomable magical attainments.
But...
At this moment, what he feared most was not even that powerful Ash Witch, but the Lord Hermit who was skilled in schemes...
If not for Ansu, they wouldn't have fallen to this state. Samantha had lost her mind, but he hadn't.
Maplewood Town right now might very well be filled with traps set by Ansu; even their being led here could be a setup...
"The two of you, split up in different directions and scout the path in the forest for me!" Samantha commanded coldly. "Once you find something, contact me with your Communication Amulet. I will arrive immediately."
The two elders exchanged a look, a flash of complexity in their eyes.
But in the end, they complied, "Yes, Acting Cult Leader."
After the two trusted elders left, Samantha looked at the Scholar beside her. "You come with me."
The Scholar lowered his head. "Yes..."
...
The vast forest south of Maplewood Town was incredibly silent.
As the figures of the two elders gradually disappeared, Samantha frowned and stared intently into the depths of the dense forest ahead. Her keen mana perception allowed her to sense an extremely dangerous feeling.
"Scholar," she suddenly spoke.
The Scholar nodded. Due to his own specialized cultivation path, he had always been clear about his duties.
Thus, he stepped forward, one step at a time, walking into the depths of the dense forest as if he didn't fear death.
Samantha followed behind, maintaining a certain distance from the Scholar.
They hadn't been deep in the forest for long when a sudden change occurred.
A surge of chaotic mana erupted violently. Samantha's pupils constricted, and her body turned into an afterimage as she retreated.
The moment she left her original spot—
With the Scholar as the center, space seemed to warp for a moment. A silent yet crushing force suddenly exploded, followed by the terrifying sound of large sections of tree trunks being torn apart. Wood chips and leaves were swept away in all directions by this energy.
Samantha stabilized herself outside the safety distance. She looked at the mess that had been instantly cleared, a sneer appearing at the corner of her mouth.
"A mere magic trap..."
A moment later, the Scholar, covered in blood and with several broken ribs, retreated in a sorry state.
"Acting Cult Leader... it's an Evocation magic trap. The trigger mechanism is unknown, but the power is too great! And there must be many more in the woods..."
"I know." Samantha looked at the blast-resistant Scholar and said indifferently, "Continue scouting the path."
"Yes..." The Scholar nodded, and despite his injuries, he turned back to continue deeper.
Next, the two encountered three magic traps in succession, but without exception, they were all triggered directly by the meat shield Scholar. Those seemingly powerful traps didn't even cause a single scratch on Samantha.
Seeing that these small tricks couldn't do anything to her, a confident smile rose on Samantha's lips.
The Scholar's cultivation path focused on magic resistance, and his body had undergone special modifications; ordinary magic attacks couldn't harm him.
However, the fact that the other party had carefully prepared so much for her only to have it easily neutralized by one of her subordinates still caused a sense of contempt to well up in Samantha's heart.
Is that all?
And she had thought that scheming Ansu had some great ability!
"Acting Cult Leader..."
The Scholar, who had just experienced the fourth mana explosion, spat out blood and retreated, his body charred black. "The power was even greater this time... How about we rest for a bit? Otherwise, I really won't be able to hold on..."
"Rest? What rest? We must find those two people today!" Samantha felt displeased and immediately wanted to reprimand him.
But seeing the helplessness and a hint of hidden disappointment in the Scholar's eyes, Samantha still tried her best to control her emotions.
She forced a seemingly kind smile. "Scholar, you have followed me for so long. I have seen all the contributions you've made..."
Then she changed her tone, dangling a carrot for her subordinate again.
"But this time! I can promise you, as long as you help me find them and kill them, once it's done, I will give you a special promotion into the Council of Elders!"
"The Council of Elders!?" The Scholar looked up in joy. "But my seniority..."
"Seniority doesn't matter." Samantha let out a low laugh. "If I say you can, you can! Is the Echoes of Truth not ruled by me?"
"Good, good...!" The Scholar's hope was rekindled. Being a cult elder was the best job in the entire organization. After all... who wouldn't want to do nothing all day and occasionally research magic while enjoying endless wealth and great power?
Under the acting cult leader's encouraging gaze, the Scholar turned around with great excitement and walked into the dark woods ahead, his pace even faster than before.
However, this time, the smile on his face did not last long...
The fifth mana explosion had more energy than the previous four combined. Space warped, collapsed, and exploded violently. A large area of the forest centered on the Scholar was turned to dust in an instant.
The magic trap finally affected Samantha herself as well.
Although she had fled in panic at the moment of the explosion, the violent magical blast still caused her skin to ulcerate and left her covered in wounds. The magical disguise she had worked so hard to maintain shattered instantly, revealing an incredibly wretched and ugly face.
She leaned against a tree trunk, staring fixedly at the wreckage ahead.
The Scholar had long been annihilated in the explosion, with not even a bone remaining; not even ashes were left...
In her bloodshot eyes, all confidence had vanished, leaving only malice and killing intent.
"Ansu!!!"
...
At this time, Ansu was confronting the Truth faction elder, Matthew.
Both had clearly heard that terrifying magical explosion and the hysterical roar that followed immediately after.
Matthew couldn't help but shudder, his face turning a few shades paler.
"Hermit... just how many magic traps did you set in this forest? What a grand display..."
"They were all carefully prepared for our acting cult leader. Could the display be anything less than grand?" Ansu smiled, his gaze scanning this trusted aide of Samantha.
"Elder Matthew, are you sure you want to be my enemy?" Ansu curled his lips. "She clearly sent you here to scout the path and die. Surely you don't still want to loyally sell your life for her?"
"I..." Elder Matthew's tone was hesitant.
"Forget it, think about it first. I have things to do." Ansu touched the Communication Amulet in his pocket. Celia had been sending him messages.
After sending a brief reply.
A ghostly blue magical glow flickered in front of him, and then the light became increasingly dazzling as a complex circle of teleportation symbols appeared on the ground.
After ten seconds or so, the blinding blue light suddenly subsided.
Celia's lazy and elegant figure appeared before his eyes.
After she stood still, she stared deeply at the person close at hand, the corners of her mouth slowly rising unconsciously.
"Long time no see. Did you miss me?"
She smiled softly.
Rate on N.U.
