After purchasing the foxlike mask, we left the general goods store. Melanie had a puzzled look on her face, "Why would you buy such a mask?"

I held the mask in one hand as we stood outside, something about it was just mesmerizing. "Call it intuition, or maybe just some passing curiosity." I told her. I looked around for our next destination, "Where to next?".

Our next choices were the butcher shop and the weaponsmith down the street that leads back to the city hall. In the butcher shop, there were an assortment of meats from various animals and some exotic delicacies from mana-infused animals called monsters. The shop also purchases meat from people who hunt for a living. Meanwhile, the blacksmith store had an array of weapons available, though only of quality suited for common use such as adventuring work and for self-defense. There were also selections for various farming equipment such as shovels and rakes. Clearly, they catered their merchandise to the citizens living in the city as opposed to a more general customer base since this is more of an agricultural city rather than a trade hub. Most of their items also range from about three to five coppers on average, with the most expensive and exotic meat of thirty coppers and iron-made farming equipment at around fifty coppers.

We left the weaponsmith store at just about the time the noon bell rang. "Looks like it's time for lunch. Where do you want to visit first?" I asked my companion. She looked around at the other buildings near house to see if any of them were serving food and still had ample room for newcomers.

"That looks like a good place to start." She pointed to a small house on the edge of the street turns. When we arrived outside of it, there were a few people inside dining, and considering where the street leads to, it explains the poor foot traffic. "Let's head inside then."

We entered through the wooden door, which had the name of this establishment, 'Corner Finds', engraved on a plating that hung on the door. A resounding "Welcome!" echoed from within. The interior had around six tables, half were already occupied and there was only one waitress serving them all. We took an empty table near the entrance and the waitress handed us a menu. "Here's the menu, our weekly special this week is fried boar stew. Give me a shout when you're ready to order!" She shuffled back into the kitchen.

I turned to look at the menu. It was mostly cheap options, though to commoners it would be their ideal assortment. White bread, some veggie soup, a meat meal and some alcohol are available on the menu. Pretty limited though but they cost around three to five coppers which is pretty average. "I'll be getting the weekly special. What about you?". Melanie was focused on the menu quite seriously.

"I'll order the same then." It left me puzzled to why she took the menu so seriously. We called out for the waitress and ordered up. She was cheery as she was earlier and told us to wait a bit. I looked around at the patrons inside and most of them were men who looked to be some day laborers as evident by their clothing that showed signs of being worn and dirt on the sleeves. I guess they are the low ranking adventurers taking the odd day jobs available at the guild.

After a while, the waitress served us our stew, "Two fried boar stew!" She placed the stew in front of us. The bowl had a generous helping of boar meat and assorted vegetables. I glanced at Melanie seating opposite of me, "Looks delicious."

Our lunch took us about half an hour after the noon bell rang and we soon exited the small restaurant. There were more people out and about now. Either heading out for lunch or heading back to work. Our next destination will be backtracking towards the city hall and check out the clothing shop at the end. We jumped through the various taverns dotted around the center, ordering just one or two drinks. Since there was an abundant amount of orchard fields around the city, the type of drinks here are varied, some sweet juices, sour wines, etc. However, we could not truly enjoy them to their fullest since our goal was to hear and listen from gossips.

After hopping around four or five taverns, we finally arrived at the last business around this area, a clothing shop that had displays of their apparels visible through their storefront. We passed through the entrance and were greeted by a female clerk. With much of the same routine as the previous stores, we were given a tour of the shop's bestsellers and their flagship wares. Unfortunately, even though there were a lot of eye-catching outfits on display and in such an affordable price, the Imperial Government and Army rules dictate that we should always be wearing our uniforms unless we are off-duty or in a mission where stealth is a requirement. But I guess I can always have them deliver this to my family's estate and wear them as loungewear.

"This rounds up all of the shops near the center." I said, as we left the store while the voice of the clerk thanking us can be heard faintly. "Time to return to the city hall and cross-check it with the list."

We headed back to the city hall and received the full list of stores operating at Auburn. Then, we retrieved our horses and headed back towards our estate to make copies of the list for everyone to use during their investigations. The impromptu command center we set up had Rona and Ian inside, scanning the documents and sorting them into piles.

"We got the list from the governor." I announced as I walked in. Rona and Ian started to stand to salute but I waved them off. "Here, if you would make copies of them for each of the investigation teams." I handed Ian the file I received from the governor. Ian nodded as he received it. "Where's the others?" I asked him.

"They still haven't returned from their meeting with Spawn, but they should be back before the third bell." He started to copy the contents of the file into a blank sheet. Now that I freed up some time. I need to decide how to best use this. As I was pondering this, the ground shook, throwing everybody in the room in high alert and the house caretakers into panic.

"Check for damages!" The four of us sprinted outside, to check the entire estate and its surroundings for any damages. I passed through two of the servants, one who took cover under the dining table while the other fell down. "Are you alright?" I helped them get back on their feet and they said they were fine. "Go check around the house and the others, I'll look out front." With that decided, I ran towards the front door, and the sight of the city in panic was a shock to how tranquil it was earlier.

There were smokes billowing in the distance and the sound of rumbling, like the destruction of houses or structures. I called out to my team members within the estate, "We need to regroup!" I bolted back inside and ran towards our command room. I secured the documents that we brought from the bureau. If any of this was lost and its content were leaked, I would be in whole world of hurt. After checking that everything was secured I tucked them inside my pocket and called out again, "Command room! Now!"

Everyone in the team who was at the estate was gathered there after all the commotion and shouting I've done. "The smoke came from the southern side of the city." I turned to address Ian, "What's located there?" He let out sigh, "The poorer farms, and the most neglected side, thus making it a ghost town." He furrowed his brows as he continued to speak, "I think that's also where Spawn operates from." I inhaled sharply, "Then we need to secure our teammates first before reconsidering the objective. Any objections." No one muttered so I loudly claim, "Get ready! We're heading out in three!".

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Since we only had two horses remaining, I also dispatched one of the house servants to fetch three more horses and luckily they were quick enough to find them. Once everyone was ready, we rode on our steads and rushed towards the southern district. Along the way, we weaved through various citizens who were panicking and out on the streets evacuating northward. It would've been the ideal move to ask what they know but since our other members are unaccounted for, haste is of utmost importance.

The closer we got, the more thick the smoke were. Signs of debris damage and the smell of fresh blood was mixed in with the air, making it hard to breathe. I have a few tricks up my sleeve for this like purifying the air around my mouth. We also passed by numerous other people who lay face down on the ground, either collapsed to their injury, the harsh air, or just the shock of the accident that unfolded around them.

Once we were deeper south, we could see signs of magic around us, or feeling the lack of mana in some area. We tried to follow the tracks best we could and eventually, we could hear faintly some sort of struggle. "We have company! Get ready!" I spurred on my horse as my team followed me. The scene that we found ourselves in was a mess. Countless bodies were strewn about, with either blood gushing out from their wounds or crushed under debris. There were still a few more standing and fighting, two of which were our missing team members, Victor, who was helping out the trapped and wounded evacuate, and Cameron, who was in a duel with another mage that radiated an absurd amount of mana.

"Focus on evacuation!" We'll buy time as we move away from the disaster zone!". I barked out my orders. Despite my career of being behind the desk for years, the rigorous training the Imperial Academy brought on us was still drilled in me. I pulled on the reigns, making my mount stop as it turned and handed the reigns over. "If they can't move, bring on them horses, the rest will have to run the best they can." As soon as I saw them nod, I dashed forward near where the duel between mages were happening. It appeared that despite the finesse Cameron has with his fire martial arts, the immense amount of mana his opponent possess gave him a hard time.

I blasted a couple of wind bullets to get his attention and break off his attack from Cameron. He didn't dodge my attacks and lost his balance, giving Cameron an opening to follow up and push him back. We then reestablished our formation. "Make it brief please." I told him in between huffs and puffs.

Cameron wore a serious expression, never taking his eye off his opponent. "Most likely a Federation Mage, had some sort of weird artifact that caused this mess."

I nodded, "Anything else?." He just let out a tired sigh and grinned, "He won't last long, just be on your toes Captain."

While we were having this conversation, our opponent was mumbling something, and then he lashed out. "I will not accept this humiliation!" The mana around him erupted in a much more unstable way, as he continued to wail, "I will reclaim my honor! I will not be denied! RAGGHH!". He shed through his tattered clothes, leaving only his pants intact. His upper body now glowed in an ominous red and yellow glow. He thrust out both his hands and a different element was unleashed in each; fire from his right and lightning from this left. I wasn't sure if my wind barrier alone was strong enough to take a hit so as precaution, I manipulated the air in front of my barrier to repel it upwards. As my hunch was right, due to his unstable mana, his magic power was further increased and also less stable. Even with redirecting some of its force, I was still pushed back from the impact.

"Cover me! I've got a few ideas." I called out to Cameron.

I never waited for a reply. I just had to trust in him. As soon as his twin magic dissipated, I dashed forwards, launching a wind cutter as I jumped each time. I wasn't expecting much to damage him and he repelled them just by raising his hand to take the hits but he was taking a few step back each time it landed on him. With confidence, I propelled forward even faster and launched the fastest wind bullet I could conjure at him. I stopped a short distance in front of him and got a closer look. He matched one of the five individuals we had suspected, specifically one of the sort of twins or look-a-like. Since the wind bullet I attacked him with was too fast for me to see, I didn't see if it connected but it look like it did since he was hunched forward.

"YOU IMPERIAL DOG!" He bellowed and his mana spiralled out of control, bathing the immediate area in a bright white light, blinding everyone. I raised my left hand to shield my eyes but it was so bright that I could barely see the outline of hand. I could hear him wailing and screaming as his mana threatened to consume him and a good chunk of the southern district. I was trying all my tricks of air manipulation to pinpoint anything to land a decisive blow but suddenly I lost all sound around me. It wasn't just that I couldn't hear the man screaming anymore, I couldn't hear the smoldering of flames in the background, the cacophany of cries the evacuees were shouting out nor the sound of my own heartbeat.

Fear and coldness crept up on my spine. Have I really died? Is that why I've gone deaf? But if I move my left hand around my eyes, I could still see the outline of it if I shielded my eyes and see that the light emitted from the mage was still running. But I couldn't process the information correctly. I could die at any moment, or that this was just what older veterans said that your life would flash before your eyes as you die. The feeling of uncertainty and eeriness of a world without a sound was just this nerve wracking. I couldn't think of a way to explain all this but the moment my wind manipulation alerted me to a presence nearby, I fell unconscious.

I was lost in a darkness. With my body unmoving and a pounding headache. It felt as if I was in a void of space, unable to grasp anything, unable to sense anything. Like a viewer of a distance picture, I couldn't do anything except wander around, if I really am wandering about. I tried to recall what led to this, but the headache I'm experiencing was making it a difficult task to accomplish. So, I wandered, as it was the only thing I could do this in space of nothingness.

Then, I heard the faint echo of a voice, so faint that at first I was doubting myself. But I started to hear it better and better. It sounded like a it was singing a children's song. Although for some reason I couldn't understand the words they sang, but it the tone they sang it in was familiar enough for me to recognize what it was meant to convey.

It was about a child and their mother. The child's mother was working all night after she tucks him to bed and come morning, he finds her exhausted and tired but still able to do her chores. At first, the child thought it was like those morning vendors, but on some days he can find his mother having bruises and such on her, but he thought it was just because she lifted something heavy and fell over. The child continued to believe that his mother was a morning vendor. One night, the child tried to fake being asleep and once he felt his mother left him, he tried to follow her in the night. He followed her to one area of their neighborhood that was still very bright at night, along with many grown-ups. The child thought this was the night market where you would buy things you could sell for others in the morning market. Thus he continued to follow his mother, oblivious to the true nature of this neighborhood. The boy continued to follow his mother, slipping through various guards and grown-ups until eventually, he can hear his mother's voice in pain. He rushed to her aid only to see her in a face he never saw with a man he never knew behind her. His mother didn't recognize him at first but when the guards caught the child, the mother cried at her son, and begged to spare him. Eventually, due to the rules the brothel placed upon their courtesan that they should never have children, the mother was given a choice, to kill the boy or to leave the establishment. The child understood none of this and they came home together. The days they spent together became frigid and distant as he felt his mother was always at home now, never going out anymore. Eventually, the mother whispered, with anger at her child, "You shouldn't never woken up from that night."

"Yes, like that child, you will wake up and remember none of what happened. Be a good girl now." An unknown voice called out within my mind. It was an unfamiliar voice and had a kind tone to it. I tried to look around but to no avail.

"This is the mercy we bring, and for your to remember the lesson to never sneak out the truth of a happy life." The voice reminded me, in a tone that sounded pained and sad.