The Arcanist Guild in Kirkham City had a far larger number of members than Gale had anticipated.

She had visited Arcanist Guilds in other cities before, but they all seemed to lack both members and powerful Arcanists.

However, as she stood outside the Guild house in Kirkham City, she could already sense the significant presence of Arcanists inside, some of whom appeared quite formidable.

‘There are so many First Class Arcanists… What’s going on?’ Gale silently pondered, realizing that this was not a typical situation.

After taking a deep breath, she entered the Guild house, which outwardly resembled a regular tavern.

Despite its unassuming appearance, Gale knew from the signs outside that it was indeed an Arcanist Guild.

As she settled at the counter to order a drink, another female Arcanist took a seat beside her and initiated a conversation.

“You’re not from around here. Did you also come here to hunt the people of the Ruri Kingdom?” she inquired.

“What?” Gale responded in surprise, as she had never heard anything about it.

“Oh… I guess you haven’t heard about it. By the way, I’m Corene… I’m a Summoner. To be exact, the mission was to hunt the Arcanists of the Ruri Kingdom. We’re actually lacking a member in our squad… Can you join us?” Corene asked. She had long red hair and an equestrian-inspired attire. She seemed quite different from many other female Arcanists as she projected an air of confidence.

Of course, she was one of the First-Class Arcanists that Gale had detected a while ago.

“Tell me more about this mission…” Gale inquired, unwilling to immediately dismiss Corene’s request and risk offending her.

Then, Corene went on to explain how the mission originated from a disaster the previous month, which claimed the lives of numerous Arcanists from a neighboring city.

She detailed a Vampire Subjugation that resulted in the deaths of several promising talents, Arcanists with the potential to become First-Class or above.

Although the subjugation was successful, the Soldiers or Arcanists of the Ruri Kingdom lay in wait outside the castle to seize their possessions. Corene also mentioned the use of multiple Airships in the attack.

“Interesting… If they possess such a formidable force, including airships, why didn’t they directly attack the Vampire Castle instead of ambushing the subjugation team?” Gale inquired.

“I heard it was due to their treaty with the Vampires, which prohibited them from causing harm. However, our kingdom’s people were not part of that treaty…” Corene explained.

“I see… Are we going to the Ruri Kingdom to hunt them?” Gale asked.

“Yes… However, the Guild didn’t want this to become a war between the two nations, so we will move discreetly. Anyway, even the Church of the Divine Sorcerer has begun offering a reward for hunting the Knights and Druids of the Ruri Kingdom… We just need to store their souls in their Sorcerer Stone to prove that we killed them and they’re really Knights or Druids of the Kingdom.” Corene revealed, emphasizing the gravity of the situation.

At this time, Gale couldn’t help but be surprised.

She didn’t expect that the Church would go so far to collect the souls of those people!

‘I don’t think this is a simple act of revenge. There must be more to it. We can’t be too involved in this mission and find the missing Dark Magicians.’

Gale sighed as she made a decision.

Despite the significance of the mission, Gale politely declined Corene’s offer.

Luckily, Corene understood her concern and didn’t think too much of it.

As Gale turned away, she spotted the Dark Magicians that left some traces around the city. The Arcanist was a young woman with black and white hair, exuding a beauty that belied her timid posture.

‘She looks so young… Furthermore, she’s not even a student of the Academy, yet she appears so promising. I wonder what path she is practicing… If she’s not delving into multiple Dark Paths, she can still be molded into a great Dark Arcanist…’ Gale thought as she observed the young lady.

The young lady seemed to have noticed Gale’s gaze, and as their eyes met, they both immediately recognized each other as Dark Arcanists. 𝘪𝑎.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Without hesitation, Gale departed from the guild house.

Simultaneously, the young lady, accompanied by her squad, made an excuse to leave and followed Gale outside.

Although she was unaware of Gale’s identity, she at least recognized her as a fellow Dark Arcanist.

Upon reaching the alley, the young lady approached the enigmatic woman.

“Why did you call me?” she asked.

“I’m Gale Evans, a Dark Magician from the Dark Arts Faction. I’m curious about you, as you weren’t being hunted by the Holy Knights here. Did you deceive them with an Artifact?” Gale inquired.

“It’s something like that… Is that the only reason you called me?” The young lady responded.

“You seem in such a hurry… I’m simply curious if you want to join the Dark Arts Faction. The Holy Arts Faction may not have sent their people here, but it won’t be long before they dispatch someone to search for Dark Magicians. Even if you’re not part of our faction, you’d still be hunted,” Gale explained.

“If you join us… I can personally teach you.” Gale said with a mysterious voice.

“Hypnosis? A Charm Spell in the Dark Arts? Are you practicing the Succubus Path? Urghh… I’m good. It hasn’t been long since I’ve gained freedom. I don’t want to be tied down again…” The young lady replied.

“I see… May I know what to call you?” Gale asked.

“Denise…”

“Alright, Denise… I won’t bother you again. However, I want to know if you’ve seen other Dark Magicians…”

Denise shook her head upon hearing Gale’s question.

“I haven’t seen them since they will not stay in a large city most of the time. They can’t freely conduct their dark research in such a place…” Denise responded.

Gale nodded in agreement since that certainly made sense.

“How about the Masked Devil? I heard the news about his appearance around here…” Gale suddenly asked.

“The Masked Devil?”

“Yes… I’m curious about his identity. As a matter of fact, I have a guess about his identity, so I wanted to confirm it by meeting him,” Gale explained casually. She wasn’t expecting much when she asked the question.

However, as she spoke, Denise’s eyes lit up.

To be honest, she also wanted to meet the Masked Devil. After all, she had a strange feeling that she knew that person!

𝑖𝘦.𝑐𝘰𝘮