Richard stared at the other man in silence, then took another step. He neither spoke nor stopped, approaching the other unhurriedly.

The young man didn't seem to notice him. Right under Richard's nose, he did a wonderful thing: he struggled to pull the body of the zombie out of the fence, which had lost its head and was no longer moving.

Then the invisible blade appeared again—a straight mark from the patient's neck to his abdomen, as if it had been dissected vertically by a huge scalpel that was fast and ruthless, and the lifeless, rotting muscles flipped to the sides, revealing the bones and internal organs within.

Fortunately, the blood in the bodies of the patients infected by the plague was closer to the coagulated state than ordinary people, and it was not splashed everywhere, otherwise this scene would have been even more miserable.

The young man crouched down again. And this time, he almost stuck his head into the abdomen of the corpse......

Although Richard didn't want to be nosy, the other party had obviously noticed him, and it was really unbearable for him to be able to behave like no one else.

He didn't want to waste time, and he didn't want to watch the other party dissect and study a near-rotten corpse in front of him. This is for dinner.

"Over there."

Richard spoke in a deep voice.

"Are you the messenger sent by the Hanged Man?"

His way of speaking is quite straight to the point. Richard had already decided that if the other party still ignored him, he would teach this guy a lesson.

It wasn't his intention to take the initiative to do things to strangers, but Richard didn't have so much time to waste on people who had nothing to do.

Fortunately, the other party knows each other very well. The young man squatting on the ground was startled and turned his head to look at Richard in surprise. His expression was slightly confused, as if he had just woken up from a nightmare.

Still, the young man offered a friendly smile to Richard.

"I didn't expect someone else to come to this damn place. Are you from this wizard's tower? ”

After saying this, after a pause for a few seconds, the young man said in a sudden tone as if he had just woken up from a dream.

"Oh, I see! So you are the messenger of Lord Rasputchin? ”

“...... Yes. ”

Richard nodded quietly, but the hands holding the hilt of the sword and the suitcase were subconsciously clenched, and a cold sweat broke out on his back.

A storm stirred up in his heart—

Because the other party's voice is quite familiar, I only heard it not long ago......

But how is this possible?

*

The young man lifted his glasses on the bridge of his nose, walked over to him, and held out his hand to Richard with enthusiasm.

"Hello, first time we meet, just call me Crowley."

Seeing that Richard did not react and looked very indifferent, the young man named Crowley did not feel embarrassed at all and said with a smile.

"Sorry, I was a little fascinated just now. It's the first time I've seen a place that has been ravaged by plague magic not so long ago. In addition, I have always been interested in the mysteries hidden in the human body......"

He turned his head to gaze at the patient's corpse lying quietly outside the cell.

"The situation is the same as I imagined, the high-level black magic can completely change the structure of the human body. For example, the victims who are imprisoned here have a gastrointestinal system that is like some of the most dangerous evil species that can only survive in the wilderness, and exercise often consumes more calories than they can provide. In order to be able to absorb nutrients more fully, there are high requirements for food, and in this world, it is human beings who are suitable for them. That's why they instinctively attack and devour the living. It is clear that this habit could not have arisen naturally, but rather the bad taste of those who created this plague. In addition, the ability to expand the power of the plague realm to the realm of 'transformation' in the realm of life is far beyond my imagination......

As Mr. Crowley himself declared, he was intrigued by the human body, an important part of the realm of magic in life, and he talked endlessly.

But Richard's main concern was not this, but ...... His voice.

"It sounds very similar to the 'preacher' I met at the 'Reverse Cross' meeting, but it gives a slightly different impression...... Is this really a coincidence? ”

After he couldn't help but ask Miss Real Name to verify this, he got an affirmative answer.

"No, it won't, right?"

Richard felt caught off guard.

"Is the other person the 'preacher'? This is too bad, he really didn't give up, and even took the initiative to sneak into the magic tower? The opponent's rank is equal to or higher than that of a legendary wizard, and it is easy to see my bottom ......"

Richard's palms were sweating. If he is indeed recognized, he will be in a dilemma, on the one hand, he will encounter a terrible enemy who is no match for himself, and on the other hand, there is a chance that he will reveal that he is not the real Raspuchin, and that he has the ability to disguise the legendary rank as an apprentice......

"Something is wrong."

Richard struggled to calm himself down.

"I've already used the prophecy spell of 'Rank Judgment' just now, and the other party is just a high-level wizard, what's going on? Some kind of camouflage? ”

"The fact that the voices are similar or even the same does not mean that it is the same person, after all, what I heard at that meeting was not necessarily the voice of the 'preacher' himself...... But if it's a disguise, what is the rationale for using this 'Crowley' source? ”

"Besides, wasn't he sent by the 'Hanged Man'? Why is there a connection with the 'preacher'? Does the old man know the details of this man? ”

“…… By the way, could this be the same student that the 'preacher' sent to the 'hanged man'? However, judging from the previous exchanges, the 'Hanged Man' is quite dissatisfied with the 'Preacher' and has no close relationship, and he is very afraid that the 'Preacher' will interfere in the plan for the fall of the magic tower that is closely related to the [Starfire Furnace], and the cooperation with me is even more of a secret hidden under the water...... Why would he send such a man? Aren't you afraid of the plan being exposed? ”

Richard's brain was spinning desperately, but he couldn't come to a definite conclusion.

The other party naturally didn't know a lot of what the person on the other side was thinking about in a short period of time, and he was still gushing about his findings.

“…… Ah, excuse me. It's a gaffe again. ”

A few minutes later, Mr. Crowley suddenly clapped his hands. He cleared his throat and said apologetically, "You're not interested in this kind of thing, are you?" ”

Compared to the frivolous tone of the "preacher," this man's tone was more sincere.

"By the way, could you please ask your name?"

"No need, just leave it to me."

Richard refused indifferently.

“…… All right. ”

Crowley shrugged his shoulders and did not object, he closed his eyes and silently chanted the incantation, a striking light flashed in his hand, and a magic key appeared in his palm and handed it to Richard.

When Richard took it, he had a vague feeling of unreality.

...... That's it?

The communication with the unknown messenger was originally the time node that he was most worried about revealing his identity during this trip. Now it seems like I'm overthinking -

At this moment, Richard Deton felt a chill in the back of his head, like a flash of inspiration on a normal day—this was not a description, but the effect of the "Ring of Vigilance" of the magic of the prophetic realm prepared in advance. This is a spell that triggers automatically when the user is threatened, providing wizards with a "sixth sense" against danger.

The other party is suddenly ready to do it!

Richard remained silent, and the corner of his eye fell on the other party.

His vision had been greatly strengthened, and he could clearly see that Mr. Crowley's hands were naturally placed behind his back, as if he were preparing some kind of magical gesture.

It's a pity. Richard thought to himself that in front of a prophetic wizard, no small gesture was meaningless.

Richard didn't hesitate, the snake staff hidden in the suitcase was released from the already cooled "Shock Humanoid", and at the same time, the long sword in his hand was already on the opponent's neck.

The master-level psychic power was like an invisible and untouchable colossal shadow, instantly enveloping the space between the two of them that was only a few meters away, and a magic hand quietly invaded the spiritual realm from reality......

Mr. Crowley's eyes immediately fell into a daze when he was hit by this force at close range, and it took five or six seconds for him to recover. And when he came back to his senses again, there was already a piercing chill on his neck.

Crowley's body froze for a moment, not daring to move.

Richard slanted his sword slightly, the cold blade piercing his skin, blood pouring down.

"Wait, wait a minute! Don't get busy! ”

The other party reacted quickly, and immediately raised his hands behind his back and made a gesture of begging for mercy.

"I'm sorry! But I'm here to check the identity, and I hope you understand. ”

"Identity? Do you need to use this way? ”

Richard snorted coldly.

"But ......"

Mr. Crowley smiled wryly.

"I thought that the first person to take the initiative to find this place would definitely be the messenger, but I didn't expect that the person sent by Lord Rasputin, who is the leader of the wizards, was not a wizard, but a swordsman who could escape from the encirclement and interception of countless patients...... This was a big surprise to me, so I thought I'd give it a try. ”

A master of swordsmanship? Richard thought it was a little ridiculous, but he didn't show it.

"And now?"

"I'm self-aware. Whether you're true or not, I don't have a choice, do I? ”

Mr. Crowley shrugged.

Richard stared at the other man's face. Cold sweat was breaking out on his nose, and his pupils were constricting imperceptibly. And more importantly...... The result of psychic magic "sifting through lies".

He didn't speak, and withdrew his sword after half a ring.