Chapter 99: The Stalking

Chapter 99: The Stalking

As prominent figures, their movements were reported, but since Airael and the others hadn’t stirred up any major incidents in the Machia Republic lately, their arrival didn’t grab the attention of the current head of the Mils Family, Komit.

He had more pressing matters to attend to.

Like greeting the southern troops and plotting a serious lesson for those pesky orcs up north.

Just like the Nick Kingdom, facing orc raids from the south, they initially could only huddle defensively in their castle.

On this front, the Porcia Kingdom had it way better.

Known as the Land of Horsemen, their methods of production primarily involved grazing, making them highly mobile.

It wasn’t easy for the orcs to raid them; they might end up worse off instead!

After all, the men of the grasslands were strong and battle-hardened.

If left alone, they would just enjoy their grazing. But anger them, and they’d hop on their horses, grab their weapons, and turn into valiant warriors.

Because of this, the Nick Kingdom and the Machia Republic became prime targets for orc raids.

As long as Mils Fortress kept to themselves, Airael and her friends found it quite leisurely.

Dealing with such people was no light matter.

With plenty of funds at their disposal, they finally settled into a suitable inn within the castle.

Truth be told, Airael had nothing else to do here.

She had come just to confirm her gut feelings.

Now that her hunch was affirmed, she wasn’t planning on taking any action.

Besides, she didn’t have the ability to participate in such affairs.

In these struggles between great powers, an individual’s strength was minuscule, and their elfin hands couldn’t reach this far.

If she wasn’t careful, she might end up in a real pickle.

So, with nothing to do, she found herself quite idle in the castle.

Axi, on the other hand, seemed busy with a ton of things, leaving early and returning late, sometimes not returning until well after dark.

When Airael asked him, he didn’t spill any details and didn’t allow her or the others to tag along.

Airael wanted to respect his wishes and not follow him.

However, such a life was incredibly dull for Airael.

On top of that, her curiosity about Axi’s secrets got the better of her, so she decided to stealthily follow him.

With her cloak as cover, Airael’s plan worked like a charm.

She didn’t bring Celia or Aurora along, fearing their presence might attract Axi’s attention.

After all, their gear definitely wasn’t as good as hers.

Axi had no clue that Airael was tailing him.

So, she kept close behind him.

Following Axi, Airael found herself on a rather secluded street.

Then she saw Axi enter a tavern.

Airael approached the tavern, and upon seeing the sign, she frowned.

The tavern was named the “Lost Tavern.”

It certainly sounded mysterious.

Not thinking too much about it, Airael stepped inside.

As soon as she entered, she spotted Axi heading upstairs with another person.

This person was also cloaked in gray, their cloak enveloping them completely.

From their build, they appeared to be a man.

A man who seemed quite mysterious!

Considering Axi’s recent oddities, Airael’s instincts screamed that something was definitely up.

Unbeknownst to her, as she watched Axi and the mysterious guy, he subtly glanced back at her.

The visible part of the mysterious man’s face was covered by a gray mask.

Such a disguise only solidified Airael’s suspicion about this enigmatic individual.

Aside from this mysterious figure, no one else in the tavern noticed Airael’s presence.

Those drinking continued to drink, chatting away with a mouthful of crude language.

This caused Airael to furrow her brows.

The tavern staff seemed unfazed, serving the patrons with usual indifference.

Likewise, they didn’t notice Airael sneaking in.

Seeing that no one had detected her, she stealthily moved up the stairs.

When she reached the second floor, it was different from the ground floor.

The second floor featured several small private rooms.

Peering down the corridor, she estimated there were about ten rooms.

Currently, there was not a single soul in sight.

Clearly, Axi and the mysterious man had already entered one of the rooms.

This put Airael in a bit of a bind.

Which room were they in?

She couldn’t just check each room one by one.

That would be a real hassle.

What if there were more patrons inside? That would complicate things even further.

And doing so would definitely alert them!

Just as Airael was troubled by this, she heard footsteps coming up the stairs.

Turning around, she saw a stunning server carrying a tray of drinks making her way up.

Airael’s eyes lit up upon seeing her.

Quickly, Airael darted to the side.

As the server reached the second floor, Airael quietly followed her, making not a sound.

The hallway echoed only with the sound of the server’s heels tapping against the floor.

The soundproofing of the private rooms was evidently decent.

At least Airael’s ears didn’t catch any particularly loud noises.

This discovery made Airael a bit uneasy.

Because, with this, eavesdropping would be challenging.

However, she didn’t plan to give up just yet.

Where there’s a will, there’s a way; she would first see if she could find out which room Axi and that mysterious man were in.

Trailing behind the server, Airael arrived at one of the rooms in the middle of the corridor.

The server then turned and knocked firmly on the door.

“Bang! Bang! Bang!”

The door produced a dull sound.

After the polite knocking, the server opened the door and walked in.

Before entering, she said politely, “Gentlemen, your drinks have arrived.”

With that, she stepped inside to deliver the drinks.

And sitting inside the private room were none other than Axi and the mysterious man.

At this moment, Airael, through the open door, caught sight of the people inside.

Looking at the door that was slightly ajar, Airael wasted no time and cautiously stepped inside.

What she didn’t notice was that as her head peeked into the room, the mysterious man had once again caught sight of her.

Thus, her perfectly executed stealth move was entirely revealed to the eyes of the mysterious man.

But for some reason, he chose not to expose her.

Once inside, Airael hid motionless in the corner, not daring to make any further moves.