You're Finally Here

Baker Street, the Warrior Tavern.

Inside the tavern during the day, it wasn't particularly lively. Only a few scattered customers sat in various corners, drinking in a silence that felt uncharacteristic for a pub.

Olivia, Ronan, and Gray walked in, while the rest of the team remained outside, ready to deploy a barrier at a moment's notice.

This was the location of the second suspect.

The suspect was a woman named Dalia Sullivan, the proprietor of the Warrior Tavern. According to the records, she was in her late twenties and currently single.

She had become a suspect because she had reportedly caused a drunken scene at the Soltu Statue Gallery, acting quite irrationally, and had been seen approaching the two general statues.

"Among the suspects, this lady is considered one of the less likely candidates. However, we still need to be thorough," Gray said, stroking his small mustache.

They approached the counter. Behind it stood a bartender wearing a white shirt and a black vest, looking quite young.

"We're looking for Ms. Dalia Sullivan," Gray greeted him.

The bartender smiled. "People from the Church?"

Gray tugged at his clerical robes. "Isn't it obvious? Don't ask why the Church is looking for Ms. Sullivan; that's between us and her."

The bartender chuckled. "Please don't misunderstand. Ms. Sullivan stopped coming to the tavern a few days ago. She said she was leaving Kaliron to go traveling. However, she seemed to know that members of the clergy would come looking for her, so she left a letter specifically for any who arrived."

Upon hearing this, the expressions of Olivia and the other two changed instantly.

Dalia Sullivan knew they were coming?

This was almost a direct admission that Dalia was the mastermind behind the incident at the Soltu Statue Gallery.

"Where is the letter?" Gray asked, his voice low.

The bartender gestured for them to wait, then crouched behind the counter, seemingly opening a cabinet to retrieve something. Moments later, he stood back up and handed over an envelope.

Gray took the letter and opened it immediately. Beside him, Olivia and Ronan fixed their gazes on the paper.

'I don't know how long it took you to track me down, but the fact that you found this place shows that you people from the Church aren't completely stupid.

'But unfortunately, how could I not know you were looking for me? I'm certainly not going to sit around and wait for you to find me.

'So, I've left.

'Don't ask where I've gone; I have no need to explain myself. Perhaps we will meet again soon, or perhaps we never will.

'After all, you made me lose an uncontrolled-grade forbidden artifact. I can't exactly act as if nothing happened.

'Therefore, I've left a little surprise for you in the tavern.

'If you survive this surprise, only then will you have the chance to see me again.

'Otherwise, as I said before, we may never meet again.

'Enjoy yourselves.

'—Dalia Sullivan!'

The revelation that Dalia Sullivan was the mastermind wasn't shocking; she was a suspect, after all. What was startling was her audacity—no one expected her to reveal the truth in such a manner!

"Watch out!"

Olivia stepped back, one hand gripping the Cross Grace on her necklace, her expression tense as she stared at the bartender.

The bartender, who had sounded perfectly normal just a moment ago, was now undergoing a grotesque transformation.

His eyeballs were bulging out, his mouth hung open, and his teeth were becoming exceptionally sharp as saliva dripped unconsciously from his chin.

In the time it took to read a single letter, a human being had ceased to look human.

"There's something wrong with the letter," Ronan judged quickly. "When we opened it, an odorless gas must have dispersed. There's something inside this bartender's body that was triggered by that gas, causing him to... to turn into a monster."

His extensive experience allowed Ronan to grasp the situation instantly.

"It's not just the bartender," Gray said, his face grim.

Inside the tavern, roars and snarls began to erupt one after another.

The waiters and even the customers were undergoing the same transformation as the bartender. Each one was drooling, letting out inhuman howls.

"Roar!"

The bartender moved first, lunging forward like a primal beast in an attempt to tackle the nearest person, Gray.

Gray kicked off the ground, dodging with a light, airy movement.

But before he could steady himself, more mutated individuals lunged at him from the surroundings.

Gray was forced to keep dodging, his movements appearing exceptionally agile.

The bartender, having missed Gray, turned and lunged at Ronan.

Ronan raised his hand and made a grasping motion in the air. Immediately, a pair of red gauntlets materialized over his fists.

Thud!

He slammed a punch into the bartender's chest, but it only sent the creature back a few steps. The bartender charged again almost instantly.

This caused the faces of all three to pale.

"Be careful! Their combat ability is likely no weaker than a Pilgrim's, maybe even stronger!" Ronan warned in shock.

These people certainly weren't transcendents.

What kind of method could turn ordinary people into beings capable of fighting transcendents so suddenly?

Olivia pulled off the Cross Grace, expanding it to its proper size. She scanned her surroundings with a serious gaze as several mutated figures rushed toward her.

"They might still be saved. If we take them back to the cathedral, we can try to restore them," Gray shouted.

Ronan's voice was even louder: "Save them my foot! Save ourselves first! If we can't restrain them easily, don't hold back!"

Olivia's actions were even more decisive than Ronan's words. Her figure blurred as she swept past a mutated monster, severing its head on the spot.

Seeing this, Gray was about to comment when he saw the headless monster turn around without stopping and lunge at Olivia again.

This made him scream, "Go all out!"

Outside the tavern, the other waiting clergy members rushed in, their faces pale as they joined the fray.

The number of customers, waiters, and the bartender wasn't huge; after all, it wasn't night yet, and the tavern hadn't reached its peak hours.

On the surface, it seemed the clergy would have no problem taking them down.

But... was it really that simple?

Olivia couldn't help but think of the letter Dalia Sullivan had left behind and its contents.

"The danger might have only just begun," Olivia muttered solemnly.