Chapter 148: The Visitors

Chapter 148: Chapter 148: The Visitors

Within minutes, the battlefield became quiet.

The surviving attackers had been defeated.

Some lay unconscious.

Others had stopped moving.

Only a few were still alive, and even they no longer had the strength to fight.

Only one man had managed to avoid the others.

The leader.

He had seen enough as his face went pale.

Soon he turned and ran.

"Damn it!"

He pushed himself as hard as he could.

They had prepared for Damon.

They had studied his previous battle.

They knew about his spirits.

They had planned the mist.

The numbers.

The timing.

It should have worked.

But none of it mattered.

"They told us he was dangerous..."

The man gritted his teeth.

"We should have known."

He kept running.

He had to report the failure.

More importantly, he had to tell them where the Zone Heart was.

That was what they had been ordered to find.

At least he had that.

He pushed himself faster.

And slowly, the forest became quieter.

He couldn’t hear anyone following him.

A smile slowly appeared on his face.

"I made it."

He looked back. Nothing.

The man laughed under his breath.

"That bastard..."

Just then, a voice came from behind him.

"Leaving already?"

His body froze.

The man slowly turned.

Damon stood between the trees.

The leader’s eyes widened.

"How..."

Damon smiled.

"You weren’t exactly hard to track."

The man’s expression twisted.

He immediately turned and ran again.

"Let’s go, Sylphie."

High in the trees, he drew Sylphie’s bow.

Wind gathered as it formed the arrow.

The leader felt something behind him.

He looked back. But it was too late.

The arrow shot out.

WHOOSH!

It passed straight through his chest.

The man stumbled, his legs gave out as he fell forward and hit the ground.

Silence returned to the forest.

Damon walked over slowly.

He looked at the fallen man.

"No one escaped."

Caelia and the spirits soon caught up.

Damon glanced back toward the direction of the Zone Heart.

His smile faded slightly.

Someone had sent these people here.

And now they knew where the Zone Heart was.

Damon looked toward the distant horizon.

"Looks like things are getting more interesting."

He really wanted to know who was behind this, but he immediately resigned.

"Let’s leave them for your father."

Caelia nodded.

"I’ll make sure it looked into."

With everything settled, they continued their journey.

The trip back to Winterbourne Mansion was much quieter than usual.

But it was also different.

Damon could feel it.

The change in Frostveil wasn’t something they had to imagine anymore.

They could see it.

The Aether was calmer.

The strange pressure that had followed them throughout their exploration had weakened considerably.

Even the Ice Elemental essence in the area felt purer.

Snow and Shiro both noticed it.

It wasn’t anything close to what they had experienced near the Zone Heart, but it was still enough to make cultivation easier.

Damon looked around.

"The difference is pretty obvious."

Caelia nodded.

"Very."

The number of beasts hadn’t suddenly dropped.

There were still plenty of them moving around Frostveil.

But something important had changed.

The zone wasn’t producing them at the same rate anymore.

Before, it felt like every fight was followed by another wave.

Now, the beasts seemed to be normal inhabitants of the zone instead of something being constantly forced out by its instability.

Damon smiled.

"At least we don’t have to worry about the zone getting worse every day."

"That’s a relief."

Caelia looked ahead.

"We actually did it."

Damon glanced at her.

"You sound surprised."

"I am."

She smiled.

"When we started, I wasn’t even sure we’d find the Zone Heart."

"And now?"

Caelia looked around.

"We’re going home."

Damon laughed.

"Not bad."

Soon, the walls of Winterbourne Mansion appeared in the distance.

As they approached, the guards noticed them.

Their expressions immediately changed as they hurried forward.

"Lady Caelia."

"Welcome back."

Their eyes then moved to Damon.

"Lord Damon."

"Welcome back."

The respect in their voices was obvious.

It wasn’t forced either.

Damon had started getting used to it.

Still, he couldn’t help smiling.

"Good to see you too."

One of the guards bowed.

"We heard what happened."

"You saved Frostveil."

"Thank you."

Damon waved a hand.

"It’s fine."

"We only did what we could."

Caelia smiled as well.

"Thank you."

The guards looked even happier.

They had heard the reports.

Some had even seen the changes in Frostveil themselves.

They knew how difficult the task had been.

Damon and Caelia continued toward the mansion.

The atmosphere around the place felt much lighter than when they had left.

The burden that had been hanging over Winterbourne was finally starting to disappear.

Caelia looked at Damon.

"We should probably rest."

"Definitely."

Damon nodded.

"I could use a meal."

Caelia laughed.

"You can think about food after such a big mission."

"Of course."

His reply only got shake of her head.

They were almost at the main hall when a servant hurried toward them.

"Lord Damon. Lady Caelia."

They stopped.

"Yes?"

"The family head has been waiting for you."

Damon raised an eyebrow.

"Waiting?"

The servant nodded.

"He asked that you come to the hall as soon as you returned."

Damon’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"Who is with him?"

The servant hesitated.

"There are visitors."

Damon frowned.

"From Tempest Hollow?"

"Yes."

His expression remained serious for a moment.

Then a small smile appeared.

Caelia noticed it immediately.

She shivered slightly.

That smile didn’t look innocent.

"What?"

Damon looked at her.

"Nothing."

"That smile said otherwise."

"I was just thinking."

"About what?"

Damon shrugged.

"We’ll find out soon enough."

Caelia stared at him for a moment.

Then she smiled.

She was curious too.

More importantly, she wanted to see her father.

After everything they had been through, she couldn’t wait to tell him that they had succeeded.

She suddenly walked faster.

Damon blinked.

"Hey."

Caelia looked back.

"Come on."

Damon shook his head.

"You’re the one who said we should rest."

"I changed my mind."

"Convenient."

She smiled and kept walking.

Damon followed.

"Wait for me."