Despite the happy sounds of my teammates unlocking their cuffs and slicing through the metal bars of the cell behind me, there's still a major issue to still be solved.

Lydia is missing.

The other presence on this floor that was masked by the cuffs happened to be this bald and bearded old man, not the white-haired katana-wielding mage I expected to see.

My mind races and I activate my enemy detection skill along with my other perception perks to scope out the floors above me. There isn't any sign of her, only more enemies.

I scoff and curse under my breath. The old man speaks as I start to turn away.

"Please, if you would be so kind as to free me too young man."

I look him in the eyes and he stares back with the same cold eyes, now with a glimmer of hope at the back of them. His wrists are bloodied and bruised, but it seems they've healed many times over. There is food and water near the back side of his cell

I respond.

"Why do they keep you around? It seems like you've been locked up for quite a while."

He gulps, giving me the hint of a thin smile.

"Wrong place at the wrong time I suppose."

I scrunch my eyebrows and tighten my lips, questioning his statement.

A loud clang sounds behind me as the last portions of metal bars crack the cement floor and my teammates start walking out. White and green light casts a glow that reflects off the old man's face. Abby is restoring everyone's wounds. I respond, intrigued by the old mans words.

"What for? There's a lot of things that aren't quite adding up here."

He replies.

"I was doing research on the Abyss. That's all it was, unfortunately. A northern section of the city links to the source, a man named number 1 found me while I was doing a few tests. He wanted my data, and I- well- I believe you can infer the rest."

I try to activate my Lie Detector skill, but it doesn't give me any readings. My eyes shift down to the magic-blocking cuffs that must be the cause of the interference. I want to believe what he has to say, but the easy thing to do would be leave him behind and not carry any extra baggage.

My teammates are the only people I care about right now.

Before I make my decision, Maria hugs me from behind.

"I knew you'd come. I knew you'd find a way!"

She's half crying and half laughing. I forget about the old man for a moment and turn around to hug her back.

Abby gives me a smile and mouths a thanks but is still busy working on Fisher's wounds. Arie walks up stretching his arms with a calm expression.

"Thanks for the save, but this is no time to celebrate. You know better than I do, we have a lot of work ahead of us. Not a single one of us is safe, and I don't even know who the enemy is."

I grit my teeth, holding Maria even tighter.

"It's everyone. The Association. Solara. Who ever this damn Inner Circle organization is. Plus... where is Lydia? Could she be tangled up in this mess too?"

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Silence fills the room.

Maria steps back, catching her breath and putting a more serious look on her face.

"No. You may not know her as well as me, but Lydia wouldn't betray us. I'm sure of it."

I nod slowly, not wanting to doubt her words, but the passive perks of my lie detector skill activate, and a soft green light envelopes her body.

It fades soon after, and based on everyone's lack of reactions it seems I'm the only one that can perceive it. It isn't blue text like my other skills, but I can instinctively comprehend that these words are the truth in Maria's mind.

I nod.

"I believe you. I'm just... laying out all of our options here."

A muttered tone escapes fishers lips.

"S-She's right. Lydia is as loyal as they come. That woman puts up a cold front, but I've teamed with her for years. She'd die before selling us out."

He coughs blood as Abby continues to restore him. The same faint additional green glow confirms these words are the truth.

My thoughts start racing.

Every second that passes in this escape plan of mine is making things more and more complicated. I don't necessarily care for her as much as my teammates that I've grown with, It's just that I hate not knowing the full truth. It makes me very irritated.

Being manipulated and deceived left and right by higher-ups and organizations that are supposedly stronger than me is not something I can put up with any longer.

I grit my teeth, trying to think things through. Before I can piece anything new together, the locked-up old man's voice echoes through the silence of the cell.

"Your white-haired teammate. I believe I know where she is."

All 5 of us turn his way, and I raise an eyebrow.

"Okay. Go on..."

He lifts his hands again.

"Please, help me out of here and I can lead you to their boss' room. The man with the pin labeled number 1 on his suit. I've been there a few times in the past, and I saw a young woman with white hair being brought in as I left just a few days back. She was yelling about how they;d regret this when her teammates came to save her. I thought it was a hopeless threat, but it seems what she's said will come true."

I look down at his cuffs, then back up at the man.

"Fine. Uncuff him. We'll give this guy a chance."

I'm sure I could make it to the Boss' lair myself, but just to make sure it wouldn't hurt to have someone lead the way. Plus, he definitely holds resentment toward this organization same as me.

"For now, the enemy of my enemy is my friend."

Abby throws the keys into his cage and I use sharp mana-imbued earth magic stone fragments to slice an opening in the metal bars, I use my perception skills to watch closely as the man's black metal restraints fall to the floor with a clang.

_________________________

[Lv. 89]

Active Items:

[NONE]

Active Skills:

Appraisal

_________________________

I activate my conceal skill immediately, changing my status to read that of an average level 350 hunter with only swordsmanship and the earth summoning skill that I've shown already. I'm almost positive Appraisal skills not of the special grade can only identify item stats, but its better safe than sorry.

I speak.

"Any suspicious movements and you're dead. Got it?"

He nods as I continue.

"Now, confirm everything you've said to me so far is true."

I point an earth magic imbued index finger that just cut through steel bars at his forhead, but all the man can do is smile.

"Of course it's true. Please, let me lead the way."

His demeanor flips from hopeless to joy-filled and helpful despite the deadly weapon pointed straight at him.

He walks out of the cell and begins making his way to the door at the back of the room. The same light green glows around his body then dissipates just as fast.

The man is no more than 150cm tall, just a bit shorter than Abby. He walks with a limp on his left leg, but the speed at which he hobbles toward the door makes it almost unnoticeable.

He doesn't speak another word before making it to the exit. The 5 of us stand in awkward silence as well. He speaks again while turning back to me.

"The name's Chester by the way. You've saved a stranger's life on a gamble, now I must do the same to pay you back. Please, allow me to help you find your friend."

His eyebrows shift up and down as he is clearly thinking deeply about something while struggling to keep eye contact with me. His attention darts around the room, but the genuine smile stays on his face.

Technically from his perspective, this is true. In reality, I saved him because I'm curious about a few things. What kind of loot this Bossman may be stashing in their office is first on the list... A close second is finding and saving Lydia. Third is one other thing that won't stop lingering in the back of my head. It's the question of what research this old man was doing on the so-called abyss that was so important that he was locked up for not sharing his data.

If I had to make an educated guess, the abyss is the blank energy reading that stretches out from the northern border of the city. This is what I sensed days ago upon our arrival, but haven't gotten a chance yet to check it out.

As odd and awkward as this man may be, he holds the key to many answers I seek.

I reply with a smirk.

"I'm Jay, nice to meet you too."