The heavy wooden door opened almost silently in front of them, and the near-afternoon sun made the empty room seem spacious and bright, and if it weren't for the fact that the flowers in the bottles on the table had begun to wither, it felt calm and serene.

"Sercio rarely leaves here. Selene told Is, "He's missing here, too, and Rey...... The woman who took care of him together. The guard at the door swore that he had not seen them leave the room and had not heard any movement. ”

"Do you think someone took them away with magic?"

Iss asked casually, looking around the room. There is no sign of a fight here...... But there is no magical breath, and even if there is, it has long since dissipated.

"Even if it is, it's not something that ordinary mages can do. "Celine is sure that Greystone Fort is not Lutgar's Rock Castle...... But it's not a place where people can come and go at will. ”

She didn't make it clear, and Iss didn't bother to ask—an old castle like Limestone Castle had some way of dealing with magical intrusion.

"How much do you know about that woman?"

As Iss tried to find some clues in the room, Selene suddenly asked.

"Rosa?"

"Rey. ”

Isis was stunned for a moment before he reacted: "...... You doubt her?"

Selene replied hesitantly.

"I just don't think she's any ordinary country woman. "Ed seems to trust her, and she does take good care of Sercio...... She seemed to genuinely care about him. But now that I think about it, I really don't know much about her. ”

She seemed to have some irritation at her own negligence. But Ise doesn't feel like she can be blamed for it - Ed has a deep belief in Rey, and he's always unwittingly influencing others.

He knew why Ed trusted the woman so much - he thought he was the wife of the old priest on the ice field. Ed was entrusted to bring her a bouquet of flowers, whether she lived or died. And he actually did it...... That should just be a coincidence, right?

A hint of doubt kept him silent. Anyway, "she's the wife of a barbarian" isn't a reason to be trusted by humans.

"Did they take anything with them?"

When he asked the question, he realized, with some chagrin, that even he was beginning to suspect that it wasn't an outsider who had taken Sercio.

"Didn't bring anything. Selene replied, "I left something behind." ”

She walked over to the bed and reached for the pillow—a mess pressed under it. It looked like nothing more than a jumble of tangled branches, with a few golden threads faintly sandwiched between them.

-- That's not a silk thread. That's hair. Sercio's hair.

"What kind of spell is this?" asked Selene.

“...... Sort of. Isis replied, "The barbarians believe that this will keep the soul of a child firmly in their body, so that they will not be carried away by the song of their ancestors." Because their souls are too pure. I can't tell the difference between the two worlds. ”

“...... So she did care about him. Selene smiled wryly and put down her pillow, "Why would a human believe in those things of a barbarian?"

Isis did not answer this question.

He walked to the window, stood quietly for a moment, and then reached out and tore off the bundle that was bound to the side. Heavy curtains.

He's not good at searching - he's impatient. There is also a lack of carefulness. But he does have a sense of sensitivity beyond ordinary people...... At such a close distance, he couldn't have misheard the heartbeat of someone else.

The curtains hung down to the ground, and in the shadows, the blades of the sword that shimmered with cold light greeted them.

For a moment, Iss instinctively felt the danger...... and fear.

The sword was too fast for him to dodge, and the blade, which shone brightly in the sun, was clearly blessed by magic.

At the sound of Selene Green's rage, the cold twin swords rested on his neck.

Iss glared at the hazel-green eyes on the other side. Motionless - he recognized the damn black-haired elf.

"Maybe you should be congratulated on finally completing your mission?" he said with a cold face.

Sesyana blinked, looking a little overwhelmed.

A moment later. He slowly withdrew his twin swords, and said in a stiff tone, "You are not my task. ”

Isis unconsciously reached out and touched his neck. He didn't feel like he really wanted to kill him, his attacks were more instinctive...... But he didn't even have time to make any moves before he lost under the opponent's double sword, and it felt really bad.

"So what's your mission?"

Selene Green's angry voice rang out, "I treat you as a guest, Elf...... And you prefer to be a thief?!"

The sword dancer's eyes narrowed, and the muscles of his drooping arms tensed—a sign of danger.

Ise began to think about turning back into an ice dragon...... This elf's temper is no better than his, and in his current form, he can't beat him.

But Sesyana didn't attack the disrespectful human. He just closed his lips and forced himself to look at the ground, but his body was still standing straight, and his swords were always in his hands.

That look of forbearance inexplicably aroused a trace of sympathy in Is's heart—the elf who had been expelled from his homeland by his people was in a situation that was a little bit similar to his......

“...... Maybe we can sit down and talk about it first?"

In the silence, Iss spoke helplessly.

He never imagined that one day it would be his turn to play such a role!.

"It's my fault. Rosa raised her hands and looked apologetic, "I asked him to see if he could find something, he's good at it......"

"And you don't think you need my permission?" said Selene looked at her coldly.

"I've tried hard to get your permission, but it doesn't seem to be very successful. Rosa smiled wryly, "I'm so sorry...... We're just too anxious. ”

Isis sat silently on the side. He could understand Rosa's approach, a practical mercenary, to get what he wanted as quickly as possible without thinking too much about propriety...... Or even if it's legal.

That's understandable. If it hadn't been discovered, it wouldn't even cause any trouble...... But how did he know that it was the elf hiding behind the curtain!

Sesyana was standing not far away with her back to the wall, as quiet as if she were just a shadow...... Although the guards on both sides looked at him with wary expressions, probably not thinking so.

"The only thing we want to do is find Sercio as soon as possible. Rosa's tone was extremely sincere, but it was clearly unable to impress the angry countess.

"How long has he been sneaking around the Limestone Fort like this?" "Selene lifted her chin slightly, not even looking at the elf, "Is this how your majesty and the lord show their 'trust' in the Grian's family?"

“...... It has nothing to do with Ethan Croeffler. The smile on Rosa's face finally disappeared, "It's not an order to get us here. We're not Anktans - Sethiana isn't even human. We really have little interest in these power struggles...... If it's simpler, you might as well think of us as mercenaries, Borena has given us a task - to find and protect his brother, and believe it or not, mercenaries have their own honor, we promise and we will do it. ”

"And what kind of reward did he promise you?" Selene sneered, "a castle?"

"Gold Coins and Gems...... Of course. Rosa tilted her head, "Although more precious than that is his trust." You probably wouldn't believe that people like us would cherish things like 'trust' and 'friendship', but we would. ”

The warrioress took off her gentle and calm mask, and her bright eyes looked directly at the noble and proud lord in front of her: "Borena loves his brother and respects you, he left Sercio here because he truly believes that you will protect him well and not just to show some 'trust in the Grian family', you also have people who are cherished...... If you don't even see this or don't want to admit it, then maybe you don't deserve such respect. ”

Iss tugged at the corners of his mouth helplessly - well, if they did fight, who would he help?

To his surprise, however, after a moment of silence, Selene Grion let out a low laugh.

"It's so much better. She clasped her hands and leaned back, and suddenly she lost her aggressiveness.

"You know, I almost became 'someone like you'. Selene casually pointed at Rosa, but not offended, "What do you think I'm going to be prejudiced against adventurers?Ellen Cavo is my best friend, and my son...... My eldest son, he's no different from you. The smile on your face when you talk to me is always fake, girl, I can see it...... Are you sure it's because of my bias, not yours?"

Rosa was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously bit her lip.

"What you think of me, I will use whatever identity and attitude I will use to talk to you. Selene raised an eyebrow, "Trust is mutual, Rosa Latus, you don't look like someone who is swayed by things like status and status...... So what the hell did I do to make you hate me so much?"

The female warrior's face was flustered with a panic that Iss had never seen before.

"I didn't ......," she said hastily, closing it quickly, so fast that Iss feared she would bite her tongue.

Then she lowered her gaze and was silent for a few moments before shaking her head slightly, with a smile of embarrassment on her face that could almost be described as shy.

"You're right. She said, "It's my fault." I'm probably ...... Unconsciously thinking of you as someone else. ”

"Now," Selene nodded and smiled with satisfaction, "we can have a good talk." (To be continued.) )

PS: I have a cold again...... OTZ