Chapter 2568 Underground Structures <TOC> Chapter 2570 The Goddess' Purification
Translator: SumTLMan
Upon realizing that below was the logistics headquarters of the Hero Squad, Angel knew he was bound to encounter others. What he hadn’t expected was that the first person he’d meet would be like Colo… no, even smaller than Colo.
The tiny figure was a little girl not even reaching the height of everyone’s knees, estimated to be under four years old. Her hair appeared uncut, long and soft, naturally falling over her shoulders, complemented by a green little dress, adding a splash of brightness to the somewhat dim corridor.
The little girl stopped not far away, her fair little face filled with confusion. At her age, she already sensed that the appearance of strangers was probably not a good sign.
As Angel and his companions continued forward, the girl began to retreat step by step until she reached a corner, where she peeked out, curious yet timid.
“Bringing such a small child into the ruins, this Hero Squad doesn’t have much of a bottom line,” Daus commented lightly.
“At least she, like Colo we just saw, is in a safe rear area,” said Angel, not really trying to argue but having seen too many partings between life and death. Compared to such sad endings, at least these children could still stay close to their loved ones.
Besides, if there weren’t some twists and turns in their story, their parents probably wouldn’t deliberately bring their children to make a living in the ruins.
“Is it really safe?” Daus raised an eyebrow in response.
Angel glanced at Daus, then silently turned his head: “Well then, if there’s danger, it means we’ve found a path to the underground sewers.”
“Your thinking jumps so much, I was just saying,” Daus started to say but was cut off by Angel: “I was just following your line of thought, just talking as well. Who knows if there’s danger inside, after all, we don’t have a prophecy wizard among us.”
Daus was left speechless, not knowing what to say, and could only exhale in frustration, intentionally using a fierce gaze to scare the little girl hiding around the corner.
Daus’ gaze, inherently menacing even when feigned, was very effective, especially for such a small girl who was already scared dumb.
A crying sound was heard, along with the milky voice calling out “bad person,” as the little girl ran deeper inside.
Angel gave Daus a glance: “Pointless.”
Daus grinned, showing his big white teeth, nonchalantly saying: “She dares to come into the ruins so young, she needs to see the harshness of the world for herself.”
This statement, along with his behavior of bullying a little toddler, even Vai, his good friend, couldn’t stand it, giving him a disgusted look and silently moving a few meters away from him.
Although Vai couldn’t speak, his actions said it all: I’m not familiar with this bully.
Daus remained unconcerned; after all, he hadn’t actually bullied anyone, just a harmless scare.
As Daus was thinking this, he quickly learned what the “big deal” was.
He saw a group of about ten adults approaching from a distance, storming over with great momentum, mostly women, each armed with various “weapons”. These weren’t spears or fine swords for swinging widely, but things like kitchen knives, long-handled soup spoons, and rolling pins.
From this stance, it seemed like instant karma for Daus bullying little Sherily.
As Angel was thinking this, sure enough, he heard one of the women across loudly inquire: “Was it you who bullied little Sherily?”
“No, Aunt Mary, you should be asking who they are!”
“I don’t care who they are, bullying Sherily means eating my spoon.” Yes, the one wielding the long-handled soup spoon as a weapon was this Aunt Mary.
“Back off, all this chirping, what does it look like, I’ll ask.” At this moment, a hunchbacked old man smoking a pipe came walking from behind the crowd, looking towards Angel and the others.
This old man appeared frail and stooped, but his cloudy eyes were sharp.
While others were furious, wanting to attack Angel and his companions, the old man had already spotted some oddities.
For instance, the red haired man seemed to have an extra hand on his shoulder?
Also, a figure in a black robe held a stone slab, seemingly featuring a nose that fluttered as if alive.
Aside from these two, the other two individuals also had extraordinary aspects, which immediately made him think of certain types of people.
Wizards.
In the outside world, the existence of wizards is a concealed legend, but for those like him, who make a living in dangerous ruins, wizards are known to be real.
And when he was younger, he had seen a witch, riding a broom and flying mid-air.
Luckily, that witch seemed preoccupied with urgent matters and didn’t mind them below; otherwise, he guessed that they all might have been gone by then.
After all, wizards here have been known to kill or even extort.
Facing other adventuring groups, they could fight to the death, but against these transcendent beings, even sacrificing all their lives wouldn’t compare to a pinky of their opponents.
The old man didn’t know if the others were transcendents, but it was always right to keep a good intention.
“What are you all storming over for, put away those pots and pans, don’t lose face.” The old man turned and scolded the crowd, then his expression changed, smiling warmly at Angel and his group: “Sorry for the misunderstanding, we heard from little Sherily that we had visitors, so we came out to check on the situation.”
When Sherily, the young girl, described someone as a “bad person,” the old man leading the group quickly corrected her, calling the individual a “guest” instead. This caused visible confusion and disbelief among those behind him. However, the old man held considerable authority within the Hero Squad, and despite his controversial assertion, no one dared to voice opposition.
“You don’t even know who we are, yet you call us guests. You are quite amusing, old man,” Daus commented, not mincing words. Given his age, Daus was certainly older than the old man. Kindness to the young might be acceptable, but respect for the elderly was out of the question for him.
“May I know where our esteemed guests hail from?” the old man asked, still in a friendly tone.
Daus was about to respond when Angel intervened, pulling him aside and stepping forward to speak to the old man: “First, answer me this, can you actually speak on behalf of this place?”
Without hesitation, the old man nodded: “My name is Tireless, my real name I’ve forgotten long ago, everyone just calls me Old Tireless. I founded the Hero Squad over forty years ago. Now that I’m old, I’ve handed the adventurous tasks over to the younger generation and deal with various miscellaneous duties here.”
Confirming that the old man could indeed make decisions, Angel didn’t hesitate. He raised his right hand, and a pale green light emanated from his fingertips, entering directly into Old Tireless’ forehead.
The old man stood frozen in place for a moment.
After a few seconds, he slowly regained his composure, now with additional information in his mind. Upon reviewing it, Old Tireless roughly understood the intentions of Angel and his companions.
Their main goal aligned with that of the Hero Squad, to explore ancient ruins. However, they planned to start their exploration from the Hero Squad’s rear base, an underground structure.
To voice such a request outright would have been seen as an insult, even to Old Tireless. After all, this location was their logistical headquarters, a confidential site where they managed their food, water, and rest.
For outsiders to come in wanting to search every room was akin to a stranger barging into your home announcing they’d inspect every corner.
Such a declaration would undoubtedly provoke outrage.
Yet, Angel’s maneuver left Old Tireless and the others at the base hesitant to act rashly.
The pale green glow from his fingertip was clear for all to see. They were worldly enough to guess that Angel might well be one of the legendary wizards.
This realization caused a stir of fear among them. If it were just a regular adventure group, they would not fear them, thanks to the Hero Squad’s long-standing friendly relations. But facing a being with extraordinary powers, not even the full strength of the Hero Squad, comprising mainly of their old and frail, would stand a chance.
“Noble lord, I understand your intentions now. May I consult with the others first?” Old Tireless bowed respectfully.
Angel replied: “If you need to wait for all members of the Hero Squad to return and then discuss it, we cannot wait that long.”
“There’s no need for that,” Old Tireless said: “I’ll just talk it over with them. They are all family members of the Hero Squad, and they can represent the others.”
Old Tireless pointed to the people behind him and said.
If it were just about talking to the group behind him, Angel wouldn’t mind spending a bit more time on it.
After all, an underground building is someone else’s “home,” even if it’s temporary, and it’s polite to speak to the owner first.
Of course, if the owner is not around, Angel wouldn’t feel burdened by entering directly.
As Old Tireless returned to the crowd and began discussing with others, Daus leaned close to Angel and whispered: “Since we’re using illusions anyway, you might as well cast one that makes them ignore our presence.”
Angel replied: “Your method could work, but I feel like someone might use it to do something strange.”
“What do you mean?”
Angel explained: “Like spying on someone bathing or bullying children, for instance.”
Daus was taken aback, showing a look of anger: “I would never do something so childish!”
Angel gave him a puzzled look: “Did I say it was you? Don’t take it personally. By the way, is scaring children considered childish or not?”
Daus continued to flounder: “It’s not scaring, it’s teaching her about the dangers of the world.”
Angel chuckled and did not continue the conversation. Whether it was or wasn’t, Daus knew in his heart. This guy always enjoys watching dramas and making a scene.
Seeing that Angel was ignoring him, Daus, feeling a bit stifled, surprisingly turned to Vai.
Oh, no, it was the Black Count.
“Lord Black Count, don’t you think Angel is very long-winded, always busy with these useless things?”
The Black Count snorted coldly without responding.
Just when Daus thought the Black Count would ignore him like Angel did, Vai suddenly said: “My ancestor told me to tell you: Rules were set at the beginning, after entering the ruins, everyone must follow Super Dimensional Wizard’s commands. If you disagree, you can just leave.”
Vai spoke haltingly, clearly the Black Count’s original words were not so gentle, and Vai, as the interpreter, had to soften them.
“Even Lord Black Count sides with Angel, how boring… Hey, Vai, you can talk?”
Vai nodded: “Just now, my ancestor unsealed my speech, but told me to cut down on the nonsense. If I spout any more nonsense, he’ll seal my speech again.”
“That so…” Daus’ eyes twinkled as if he had thought of something fun, and said to Vai: “Since we have nothing else to do right now, let’s chat.”
After a while, seeing that Vai’s speech was sealed again, Daus revealed a satisfied smile.
Vai was on the verge of tears, knowing Daus’ scheme and had flatly refused. However, Daus had tantalizingly brought up topics of Vai’s interest, deliberately twisting the facts which Vai couldn’t help but respond to, and the next second, his mouth was sealed.
Meanwhile, the Black Count mockingly taunted him in his mind.
Seeing Daus’ smiling face receding into the distance, Vai could only grit his teeth and bear it for now.
After about two to three minutes, Old Tireless finally approached.
Their side of the conversation, which they thought was whispered quietly, was actually audible to Angel and the others. So, they were already aware of the outcome.
Rather than saying Old Tireless was there to discuss with them, it was more accurate to say he was there to persuade them.
Most accepted Old Tireless’ persuasion, but there were still dissenters.
For these dissenters, Old Tireless, using his own authority and the fact that as extraordinary beings, any disagreement could involve everyone, managed to suppress all opposition.
Once it was confirmed that everyone had agreed, Old Tireless then returned.
“What is the result?” Angel asked, pretending to be unaware.
Old Tireless: “Honorable lord, before revealing the result, may I ask a small question?”
Angel glanced at Old Tireless and replied directly: “Marsha and her son, Colo, are just outside in the cellar. You can go and see them anytime, but I have sealed the entrance to the cellar. It won’t be opened until next week.”
Old Tireless wanted to ask about Colo.
Colo waiting in the cellar for his mother was something everyone knew, otherwise, little Sherily wouldn’t have thought it was Colo who had come back.
Angel had guessed right what was on his mind.
“Any more questions?” Angel looked at Old Tireless.
Old Tireless: “No more questions. As for the outcome of our discussion, I believe you already know without me saying.”
With that, Old Tireless stepped aside, and the group behind him also made way.
“If you see anything you like, lord, feel free to take it. We just hope you will try not to damage anyone’s home.”
Angel: “I will restrain myself.”
With that, Angel walked forward first.
Chapter 2568 Underground Structures <TOC> Chapter 2570 The Goddess' Purification