Aberleign was amused at the excited look on the woman's face. He too felt a bit proud because of all the attention they were giving him. They would definitely be in awe once they knew who his disciple was.
"Rigel Ginehart, he is the one." After saying that name, the entire hall became silent.
The people started to whisper to each other because of the name. The Gineharts were a bit controversial until this day because of the accusations that the duke suffered. It was also a hot topic right now the sudden disappearance of General Linius. One other topic was the sudden isolation of their youngest.
"Are you sure about that elder?" Evari had a frown on her face because of what she heard.
The ducal family was shrouded with rumors so the female hero didn't know if it was a good thing for the elder to consider the man as his disciple. She could also feel that the others felt the same. She even gave a glance at Arcaine who had been silent beside her.
Aberleign already noticed how the excitement died down when he said Rigel's name but he did not care. Even with all the rumors, the Ginehart would not lose their composure nor power. Besides, their youngest son was someone powerful.
"Do you really think that the duke would back down or hide just because of those rumors? He might be in his home right now and relaxing while all the people are busy gossiping about him and his family." He shook his head and started to walk forward.
Evari and Arcaine gave way for the elder. He walked passed them while laughing because he knew Rigel's value and if the people around him didn't see it then that doesn't matter. The people who heard him laughing almost thought that he had gone crazy but they knew deep down that what he said was true.
The people in the hall slowly dispersed after the commotion and only Evari and Arcaine were left at the bar. Ms. Leithia served them some cocktails and smiled at them. Evari was lost in thoughts while staring at her drink.
"Why would the elder even defend them like that?" Evari could not understand the elder's motives.
Arcaine, who knew the importance of connection and power, shook his head. Evari Claude was a hero who doesn't engage in the world of politics. She rose to the ranks without relying on anyone but in a world where anyone could be brought down, people like them needed a golden thigh where they could hold on.
"You are not a political person so you won't understand. If you pay attention once in a while, you'll know." Arcaine sighed before he drank his drink in one gulp.
"What do you mean?" Evari looked up and gave Arcaine a questioning look. She was still holding her cocktail glass but her full attention was on the man.
Arcaine raised an eyebrow. He did not have the intention to answer but he knew the woman's persistent spirit. "Because even if rumors continue to circulate against the Ginehart duchy, their power will not diminish. They will still be part of the four duchies that lead and support the kingdom."
Evari still looked confused that Arcaine became a bit frustrated because of the woman. All she knew was fighting and doing some mission. She could easily get and follow instructions even though they were a bit cryptic but a simple matter relating to politics, she did not understand.
"The elder wasn't bothered because Rigel Ginehart is a valuable asset for him to maintain his connection with Duke Ulysses Ginehart. With that kind of power, even the king or kings of the other kingdoms will think twice before offending him." Arcaine explained to make the woman understand.
Realization dawned on the woman and her face lightened after she understood it. "So that was the reason." She nodded her head as she could not understand these things regarding power and influence.
While the hall was in a state of silence and the news of another S-class hero arriving reached Cygnus, he still felt relaxed. All the information regarding the new hero was all written in a document that Ari summarized for him. She also had information on the other S-class heroes in the kingdom and on the other kingdoms.
"Let them be, what we must do right now is capture those people." Cygnus swiped the holographic report in front of him and it disappeared. "My dungeon, how is it going?"
"It is ready to use master." Mr. C bowed his head.
"That's good, now we can slowly bring them all to that place." Cygnus grinned as he jumped up from his seat.
A gate appeared inside the room and he entered. Nina and Mr. C followed behind as they appeared above a forest inside the El Merey kingdom. According to the information, the witch was living in what they called the Dead Forest.
With the help of Ignius's wyverns, they were able to have a view of the forest thus the master was able to create a gate that directly connected there. It was exactly not a dead forest because from above, the canopies of the trees were vibrant green. It was actually pleasing to the eye.
Even though the forest looked alive, it also felt dead at the same time. This must be the reason why they called it the Dead Forest because they could not feel any living being beyond those luscious leaves. Mr. C and Nina looked at the master but he did not have any reactions towards it.
"Let's go," he commanded. They flew towards the center of the forest.
Before they could fly nearer, they were repelled by a strong wave of mana. Cygnus chuckled and used his hand to stop the second wave that was coming their way. "Impressive!" He muttered with a grin.
Without much hesitation, he stretched out his hand towards the direction where the mana waves were coming. He snapped his fingers and a red wave of mana with distorted lines of lightning appeared and opposed the gray mana wave aiming for them. Cygnus did not stop there. He snapped his fingers a couple more times and successive mana waves of his own appeared.
The gray and gloomy mana waves tried to keep up but all of it were destroyed. The red mana waved did not stop and continued it's path towards straight. The woman who was controlling the mana waves changed tactics and created a barrier to protect herself from the attack.
Cygnus's mana wave collided with a barrier and broke but the remaining energy from it bulldozed the surroundings around the barrier. The trees were razed to the ground and burnt so that only the ashes remained. The woman saw the devastation that a fragment of that mana wave caused and it made her heart stop for a moment.
That was a feat that no human could do. The person who released that much mana without looking exhausted was a monster. She felt them enter the forest so when they got near her abode, she tried to stop them. She wasn't expecting that one of them would retaliate.
"Are you hiding?" She heard a youthful voice from above and saw a young man together with a woman and an elderly man who looked like a butler.
The witch did not answer. She wanted to ignore them as she added more layers to her barrier. The person who spoke was dangerous.
Cygnus frowned because he could clearly see the woman inside the barrier but she was not answering. "Oy, are you the witch that they are talking about?" He asked again but still he did not receive an answer.
He was inherently impatient from the very beginning and now the person he was talking to was not answering him. Cygnus knocked on the barrier. A loud cracking sound echoed inside the barrier and when the witch looked up, she saw that the first layer of her barrier had a fissure and that it could break anytime.
Cygnus only used his knuckle to slightly knock on the barrier but it already caused it to collapse. He knocked again and this time, the first layer of the barrier shattered into luminous pieces that disintegrated in the air. Cygnus saw that there were still barriers and his patience was running thin.
"Butler," he called out. Mr. C floated beside him and bowed. Cygnus pointed at the barrier.
The butler nodded and floated towards it. He pulled back his hand as his whole body turned to black. The nanites became concentrated around his hand. After he made sure that it had enough power, he released a punch.
This punch caused a rumbling sound but it only managed to break a thin layer of the barrier. He frowned and took a step back because he could feel that Nina was on her way. Nina also tried to punch the barrier but it only made the crack made by the butler larger.
Nina also took a step back and looked at the master with a sheepish smile. She scratched her head and laughed awkwardly. She then avoided the master's gaze.
"Useless," Cygnus muttered. He knocked on the barrier and a louder rumble shook the entire forest.
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