“Do you recognise her?”

Aria’s voice was the only sound audible in the vacuum-sealed chamber. Everyone held their breaths while sweat trickled down their necks. If the ancient man was lying about his memory loss, the moment he reacted to the woman in the drawing, it would show. Naturally, the President knew of Aria’s intentions and had his eyes were peeled. Not just that, the hearing of a martial monk that fought a million battles had come back to him, and he desperately tried to listen to the ancient man’s innards for any odd changes.

Aria lacked the physical ability to pull off a stunt like the President, but her eyes never left Aurum’s. She observed, not willing to miss a single flicker or a single muddy emotion. She wanted to know… was the man really lying about his memory loss?

“...” Aurum pressed his index finger on his chin once more, the same action that he did just moments prior. He was struggling to give an answer, though it wasn’t from the anxiousness that Aria had hoped to see. Aurum was truly… baffled.

“Do you recognise her or not?” Aria pushed again, not giving the man any time to contemplate.

“No, I’m sorry.” Finally, Aurum gave his final answer. “I told you, I don’t remember anything!”

“...”

Aurum’s prompt answer was followed by a grieving silence. Aria’s hands trembled slightly, and the corner of her lips began to twitch. Showing the Lady in the Lake was Aria’s final trump card, but it turned out to be fruitless as well. Just like before, Yudonia’s top rankers were back to square one.

“I see… That’s unfortunate.” Aria held back her urges to screw-drive her fists into the ancient man’s abdomen and folded the crude drawing once more. Her purpose now completed, Aria had no reason left to stay. The young woman softly leapt onto her feet and pivoted her heels in the other direction.

“You’re leaving already?!” Aurum moaned in despondence. “But you’d just arrived!”

“Unlike you, I’m a busy person!” Aria protested without glancing back. “Opening your cell has caused us plenty of damage! If you want me to stay here, you should give us some substantial information! Why should I stay when you don’t know a single thing?!”

Aria was truly getting annoyed. The most frustrating thing for a researcher wasn’t failure, but the inability to get information in the first place. Who the ancient man was? What was he doing sealed at the bottom of an S-Class Dungeon? How was he even alive? What were the memories that were implanted into Aria’s subconscious… All of these were questions that Aria wanted to know, but they were questions that Aurum could not answer.

“It’s not my fault that I can’t remember a thing...” Aurum pursed his lips like a spoiled brat.

“Then figure out a way to remember!” Aria slammed her point home and turned her back towards the man. In the end, her affection for Aurum came from his usefulness as a test subject. If Aurum was unable to provide her with data, Aria felt no need to stay a single second more.

The Archmagus exited the chambers without listening to Aurum’s pleas. She didn’t even glance back a single time as the sealed doors opened for her.

“Can’t you be a little gentler?” Minerva questioned with a soft look as she handed over a towel. She had been looking in on Aria’s interactions with the ancient man, and even she felt that the woman was a little too harsh on him. “If you treated him like any other person, I’m sure that he’ll share more information with you.”

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“He’s not even human,” Aria complained.

“Still… He does seem human enough.”

“That asshole only behaves like a human because of all the memories he’d robbed from me! Otherwise, he’s as alien as E.T.”

“Fair enough,” Minerva didn’t press Aria further. If she were in the Archmagus’ shoes, Minerva would feel uncomfortable as well, given how clingy Aurum was. “So… what are you going to do now? If we can’t get anything out of him...”

“... We can still run tests on him. I’ll go back and dig into my Master’s old books. Perhaps there’s a clue among that pile of junk.”

“Do make haste,” Minerva urged. “We are keeping Aurum’s existence under wraps for now, but it’s only a matter of time before the other countries take notice. Once the cat’s out of the bag, Yudonia will be forced to hand him over. By then, all of our efforts would have gone to waste.”

“I know that,” Aria snorted. As an Archmagus, her curiosity of the unknown superseded her disgust for Aurum. If digging up on the man would lead to her taking one step closer to understanding the true nature of magic, Aria would dance with Aurum all day if that’s what it takes.

‘Ahhh, so much to do, so little time… I still have to visit Finn!’ Aria lamented her absolute lack of time while scratching the back of her head. She glanced over her shoulders and focused her attention on the sealed vault doors. Aria knew that from this moment forth, she would be spending a lot more time within those sealed chambers. Begrudgingly, of course.

“See you tomorrow.”

❖❖❖

Yudonia. A city populated by humans and a country that had less than a hundred years of history. Compared to the behemoths that had been in existence since the Greater Humanoid Species learnt how to farm, Yudonia was an infant in the international stage. They lacked the resources, and most of their culture was forged by immigrants seeking refuge. If not for Elfheim backing the small country, Yudonia may have long been invaded by other countries seeking to expand their territories.

Just as there were its cons, being a new country did bring some benefits to the fledgeling state. New technologies were quickly implemented, and towering skyscrapers became commonplace. Cities were constructed rapidly, and the people of Yudonia were more open to new ideas. Research, especially towards the arcane and forbidden arts, blossomed in the country and the city flourished into a place of futuristic travel. Some tourists even came here just to look at how advanced the Greater Humanoid Species could become.

Walking down the bustling roads of Central Road and experiencing the innovative inventions of top architects that couldn’t build their designs in older nations. It was a dream for all tourists that came to Yudonia. Though, not all tourists had the same intentions…

A blonde man with pale skin and gorgeous crimson eyes walked down the rather empty roads of Yudonia. Typically, the streets would be bustling with activity, but ever since the montgen levels of the world rose, more and more people were nestling at home, waiting for the mayhem to pass. Thus, the man could move unhindered through the roads, eagerly stalking his prey.

The blonde man found an empty seat at a diner and ordered a simple noodle meal. Oddly enough, even though he had striking features, no one really paid too much attention to him. It was as if he were as unnoticeable as the air itself. So, it wasn’t shocking that two ladies sat down just three metres away from him, even though the diner was as empty as an ancient cavern.

The two women wore casual-formal dresses, though not as neat as it should be. Buttons were askew, and creases could be seen all over their clothes. Their normally well-groomed hair were running all over the place, and they didn’t care. Particularly the brown-haired woman. She had panda eyes and a malnourished complexion. It wasn’t an exaggeration to call them a haggard pair that had been living under a rock for ten days.

“Finally! Something decent!” The first woman exclaimed as she slurped on her noodle soup.

“Slow down! The noodles won’t run away!” Her companion chided.

“Urghhh, I can’t help it! Being locked underground for days at a time… I miss the air and food from the outside!”

“No arguments there!” The second woman raised her canned drink in cheer. “So, Sabrina. When’s your next shift?”

“Three days from now…” Sabrina slouched on the table in protest. “I should have taken a normal job… Why did I enter the intelligence agency?”

“Hey, at least it pays well!” Sabrina’s friend added. “We just need to weather through this storm! Once the President and Miss Aria find out everything that they need to know, I believe that the ancient man will be transferred elsewhere!”

“Shhh! The walls have ears!” Sabrina interrupted with a stern index finger.

“Ooops, sorry.” Her companion stuck her tongue out in playfulness.

“Geez… With those loose lips of yours, it’s a mystery how you landed this job.”

“Haha, relax! There’s no one here to listen in on us!” Sabrina’s colleague reassured her, unaware that there were a pair of ears just a few tables away.

“Let’s just finish our meals, the sooner we get home, the better… Also, change the topic please.”

“Alright! So how are things going on between you and Charles?”

“That blockhead? I told you that it wasn’t going to happen!”

“Ayyyy, don’t be shy! Come on, I know that-...”

The two women continued to chatter away, gossiping and laughing to release some of their pent-up tension. They weren’t trained special agents, just regular scientists that happened to be in a government job. They didn’t know that they would be targeted and no one expected them to be targeted. And that’s what makes them the perfect prey.

“Bingo...” The blonde man smiled as he sat back in comfort. His mission was going smoother than he’d thought.