"What did you say? What's happening?" Raven asked, stunned.
From the other side came an endless chorus of wails and screams. It wasn't the sound of just one or two people, but a horrific, echoing cacophony that sounded like the depths of a living hell.
"Don't... don't come looking for me..."
"Don't come looking for you? Wait! Rudy, where are you? Hey! You—"
The connection went dead.
Raven funneled magic into the glintstone, but it was useless. Either the glintstone on the other end had been destroyed, or some powerful interference was severing the signal.
Lansi swallowed the beef in her mouth. "Did something happen to Rudy?"
"I'm not sure." Raven thought for a moment. "Stay here. I'm going to his room to check on him."
"I'm coming with you."
Because of his leg injuries, Rykard had arranged for Rudy to stay in a guest room on the second floor, with servants to look after him. Raven and Lansi hurried to the room and threw open the door. It was empty.
"My Lord, what are you doing?" A servant on night watch asked fearfully, not daring to block their path.
"Isn't this Rudy's room? Where did he go?"
"Rudy? Ah, you mean the Albinauric who lost his legs? Is he not inside?" the servant replied. "The Albinauric didn't like being fussed over. He told us not to come in and disturb him. Even though his legs were gone, he could walk well enough with two sticks. Perhaps he went somewhere else? Should I call the others to help you look?"
"No need." Raven frowned. The servant didn't look like he was lying, so Raven didn't press further. He paused, then asked, "Has anyone else been to the second floor?"
"Inquisitor Ghiza came by a few hours ago; his room is also on this floor. But he should be gone by now," the servant answered. "He spends most of his time working and only occasionally returns to the Manor. Usually, he leaves again shortly after arriving."
"Inquisitor Ghiza..."
Raven remembered Rykard mentioning that name. It was this Inquisitor who had extracted the information from the Windmill Village residents regarding Godwyn's secret support of the Frenzied Flame. Presumably, he had returned to report this matter to Rykard.
"I understand. Go back to your work."
Lansi tugged on Raven's sleeve. "What happened to Rudy? Should we wake the others and start a search?"
"Not yet. Let's not make a scene." Raven shook his head and thought for a moment. "Rudy's Albinauric blood has a very distinct scent. I'll try to see if I can pick it up."
He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, trying to find a trace of Rudy.
Lansi waited for a long time, watching Raven sniff around like a hound. Finally, she lost her patience. "Hey, are you actually getting anything?"
"Ahem... I may have overestimated myself." Raven looked slightly embarrassed. "I'll try something else."
His sensory abilities were perhaps second to none among the demigods, but his "sensing" was more on a subconscious and spiritual level; his physical five senses were sharp, but tracking a specific scent was a specialized skill. Merely having a keen nose wasn't enough.
"My nose is quite sensitive. Let me try," Lansi said. She puffed out her chest, took a massive breath, and closed her eyes.
"Hey, at least use your nose! What are you going to smell by inhaling with your mou—" Raven started to snap, but before he could finish, Lansi grabbed his arm. "Where are you pulling me? Don't tell me you actually smelled it."
"If I'm downwind, I can smell food from over ten kilometers away," Lansi said proudly. "Tracking a scent as obvious as Albinauric blood is child's play." She dragged Raven this way and that. "Huh... there are several trails of Albinauric blood."
"Several?" Raven asked, confused. "What do you mean by that? Is there more than one Albinauric in Volcano Manor?"
"It would seem so."
"Can you still distinguish Rudy's trail?"
"It's fine. There are subtle differences even in Albinauric blood; I can tell which one is Rudy's," Lansi said. "Hmm... all the scents are converging now. Rudy was taken away by someone else. That person has a very heavy stench of gore—there are many different types of blood on him."
Raven's frown deepened as he listened.
He and Lansi wandered through the Manor in the dead of night, encountering no one else. Presumably, everyone else had retired for the evening. Eventually, the two stopped before an unremarkable room.
"Is it here?" Raven pressed his ear to the door. Hearing nothing, he hesitated for a second before turning the handle.
The door was unlocked.
Gently pushing it open, Raven looked into the empty room. There didn't seem to be anywhere a person could hide. "Rudy came here?"
"The scent vanishes right here," Lansi said.
"Then there must be a secret door or a hidden passage." Raven grew serious. He began to visualize the architectural structure of Volcano Manor, searching for where a hidden space might be.
"Right here. This wall," Lansi said, dragging Raven over. "The scent stops exactly here."
The stone wall looked perfectly ordinary, identical to the walls surrounding it. Raven tapped it with his knuckles; it sounded solid. However, when he closed his eyes and focused his senses, he finally detected an anomaly.
"There's an illusory wall here," he said, taking a step back. "The caster's magic is incredibly sophisticated. Wait... it's mixed with the power of an incantation? To be able to combine sorcery and incantations like this—"
Raven's expression grew increasingly grim. Such a technique was beyond the reach of even the masters at the Academy. There was only one person he could think of who possessed the identity and the skill to fuse magic and faith so seamlessly.
"Rykard..." he whispered.
"That impressive? Can you break it?" Lansi asked.
"I can." Raven took a deep breath. "The primary function of an illusory wall is concealment. Once its location is pinpointed, it's no sturdier than a locked iron door. However, if I break it by force, it will be noticed. I'll try to dispel it without damaging the underlying structure."
Raven pressed his hand against the illusory wall, carefully feeling the flow of energy within. Even a sorcerer more powerful than Raven, like Rennala, might struggle to unravel this illusion in a short time. But Raven's extraordinary sensory perception made it possible.
He sensed tens of thousands of energy nodes within the wall and began cutting them with meticulous precision. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead. Finally, he let out a long breath. "It's undone."
He tapped eight specific stones in sequence with his staff. The wall gradually turned translucent and shimmered out of existence, revealing a dark, yawning tunnel. A hot wind smelling of sulfur rushed out, like a breath from the mouth of a scorched hell.
"That's it! The scent is coming from inside. Let's go find Rudy!" Lansi stepped forward eagerly, only to realize that Raven hadn't moved an inch.
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Elden Ring: The Unborn One's Journey Through Elden Ring(135 Chapter - Ongoing)
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