The monster stood up, and unlike the Muri chief that Linde had killed earlier, this monster exuded an even stronger sense of oppression.
The monster in the pool turned its head, and who else could it be but Swift?
A considerable number of cult members have gathered in this vast underground space.
Among them were cult members of the Dedication Society, members of the Profane Church, and even a large group of dwarves.
It seems that both the cult town outside the city and the underground cavern here are the work of these dwarves.
When Swift turned around, the cultists all knelt on the ground, not daring to look her in the eye.
Then the monster was heard asking in a "Swift" voice:
"...Where are the people? How many are there?"
A member of the dedication church stood up tremblingly, head bowed, and said:
"My lord, we have gathered three hundred people so far, but we are still two hundred short of the five hundred you require."
Swift let out a deep, angry roar:
"Too slow! Speed things up, we must gather five hundred people as soon as possible!"
The cult members trembled with fear and echoed the sentiment.
At this moment, a member of the blasphemous church suddenly stepped forward and fawned:
"Sir, there are still..."
Before the cultist could finish speaking, his head had already vanished.
"Pooh!"
Swift spat.
"Idiot, do all the members of the Blasphemy Church lack brains?"
"It stinks terribly..."
The scene before them terrified the many believers so much that they dared not even breathe.
"Speed up the pace!"
"yes!"
…………
"What... is going on?"
Linde and his group, who had arrived in the west, were stunned by the sight before them.
The once bustling military camp in the west of the city was now deserted, not even a rat was to be seen.
Linde's activated perception system failed to find a single person.
After searching around, the group discovered some strange things.
The soldiers were gone, but the weapons and equipment were still in their original places, and basically nothing was missing.
"Oh no, it can't be what I thought..."
The worst-case scenario has occurred: the soldiers have already been taken away by Viscount Swift.
Whether they are captured and used as human sacrifices or converted into cult members, it is not good news for the current situation.
"Baron Linde... perhaps we should..."
Before he could finish speaking, Linde grabbed a fence by the roadside and activated his Deconstruction Aura.
A memory from not long ago flashed through my mind, from when the soldiers were still around.
That night, Viscount Swift arrived at the military camp alone.
After knocking out a night patrol guard, he began to perform some kind of sacred magic from the Dedication Society.
Before long, the soldiers in the barracks emerged from their dormitories in a line, looking like walking corpses.
The rows of soldiers stood obediently in front of Viscount Swift, looking quite eerie in the dark night.
Viscount Swift grinned and muttered to himself:
"Sorry, brothers..."
Then, under the cover of night, the soldiers in the camp left one by one and headed towards the castle.
"What's wrong with Baron Linde?"
Lillens was puzzled by Lind's strange behavior, and Leonis also cast an inquiring glance at him.
"Ahem, I just cast a spell and learned what happened here before."
"?"
Everyone present was shocked, but they all waited quietly for Linde's intelligence.
"This is good news; these soldiers were taken by cultists to be sacrificed."
Everyone present gasped upon hearing the news.
"This...this military camp has at least 300 soldiers, all gone?"
The most shocked person was Li Luns. He had been holed up in the mansion for the past few days, thinking it was better to avoid trouble and planning to wait for the two-week "waiting period" his father had given him to pass before cleaning up the city inside and outside the fortified city again.
It's fortunate that I came to see it, otherwise I would still be kept in the dark.
"What do you mean, sir?"
Leonis was somewhat worried. Although she didn't know how Lind had found out about the past, she firmly believed that Lind wouldn't lie to everyone.
"Sigh... The immediate priority is to find a way to get rid of Swift before he succeeds."
As he spoke, he deliberately emphasized the word "Swift," which was overheard by the sharp-eared Lillens.
"Huh? Swift is still alive?"
"Yes, not only is he still alive, but the Viscount's castle has also become his cult's stronghold."
"..."
Seeing the somewhat hesitant Lillens, Lind said:
"Don't worry, kid. With me here, the cult won't be able to cause any trouble."
"I...I believe you..."
Li Luns forced a smile; though he said he believed her, his heart was pounding.
"Without further ado, let's get to Viscount's Castle right away."
"Have your men disguise themselves; we'll take the backstreets."
"good."
The group quickly sprang into action. Lilens arranged for his men to disguise themselves as ordinary citizens, and the group cautiously made their way along the back streets.
Along the way, they tried to avoid the gaze of others, creating a tense and oppressive atmosphere.
As they approached the Viscount's castle, they found it heavily guarded, with cultists patrolling vigilantly.
"This way."
Linde led them around the main gate of the castle to the water outlet on the side of the castle.
This is the outlet of the river in the fortified city at the Viscount's Castle.
What are you doing here?
"I asked Lind quietly," Li Luns asked quietly.
Linde sensed their location and realized that they were currently diagonally above the cult's stronghold.
"Of course we went in."
Linde replied without hesitation.
"ah?"
Lind stretched out his hands, pretended to chant a few incantations, and then placed his hands on the solid wall.
Without any warning, marks appeared on the wall. Lin De scratched at it with his hand, and the once smooth and solid city wall turned into a pile of loose sand.
A hole has appeared in the city wall that can accommodate two people at the same time.
Let's go.
With that, Linde walked in on his own, leaving the bewildered crowd behind.
"Has magic evolved now? It's so different from anything I've ever seen before."
When did magic become capable of turning city walls into sand? Are you kidding me? This stuff is enchanted special stone; it's incredibly hard, how could it…?
Lillens looked at Leonis, hoping she could save his common sense. Leonis shrugged and followed without a word.
Looking at the dark cave entrance, Lilens gritted his teeth and followed it with a forced smile.
Soon, the group passed through the city walls and arrived at a dark and damp castle basement.
Looking at the many exquisite items piled up to the side, as well as several large boxes filled with gold coins.
"So... this is Swift's gold vault?"
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