Black String of Fate

"If what he's saying is the truth, then his Innate Gift is somehow protecting him from losing memories. That shroud might also be related to that. Let's go back inside, he will be a valuable aspect in this mission that we can't afford to lose."

Xavier said with hand signs and Lafia nodded. They walked back inside, finding Lilly seated with a warm cup of milk in his hands. It seemed like the party members calmed him down and coaxed him into giving more information.

"I asked Lilly more about this case. These people whom he refers to as They, apparently, only appear at the exact moment it turns midnight, and after kidnapping a child, disappear like a ghost. They look like specters, wearing a dark gray cloak and floating around silently. Lilly said that even though they disappeared after the kidnapping, he could always feel their presence around him.

He took this opportunity to speak to us because he couldn't feel them here."

Alina said, and Rolan added in,

"I assisted Thomas in setting up a holy barrier around here before we assembled for the meeting. That must be why there was no presence of specters here. This fact can also further confirm his story."

Thomas nodded, agreeing with Rolan. Xavier was a bit confused though,

'Why couldn't I sense those specters if they were omnipresent? I have the Celestial Mind, such a simple task should've been easy for me…'

Though he was confused, it did not disillusion him from the task he was supposed to do.

"The next full moon is in a week. We should carefully observe the behaviors of everyone living here. Lilly, you must stay close to us. You're still alive even after discovering them, there must be a malicious reason as to why so. Stay close to any of us, we'll protect you."

Lilly looked into the eyes of the party members, and they all gave him a reassuring smile. Though the child looked mature, they knew he was still a child. He has the potential to be someone great and wise, but that's his potential only. He's still at the age that needs protection and care.

Not like them, who had to grow up early due to their harsh circumstances.

Lilly gave them a relieved smile and got up from the chair.

"I'll go back to my room now. The orphanage is used to me roaming around the night, but being late will make them suspicious."

"Sleep tight. These problems are no longer your worry. You have hired us, let us deal with it."

Lafia said like a responsible adult, which made the whole party give her a side-eye. The duality of their reckless party leader was astounding at times.

She gave them a nasty stink eye before smiling and waving goodbye to Lilly. He waved back, and directly headed to his dorm.

"I sometimes forget that you're also an adult, Lafia. That was a cool one-liner." Adam cheesily commented, which invited a nasty scowl from her.

"Learn something from me then. Maybe, I don't know, stop gambling?"

"Ah, you're going right for the jugular, huh?"

"Guys, stop fighting. Let's discuss what our next steps should be."

Rolan tiredly broke up the heated atmosphere and brought the main topic back to the discussion. Hopefully, this will be the last time he does this. He's not going to miss being a damn caretaker for his party members acting like kids.

'Even a kid is more adult-like than these "adults".'

"We can do nothing but keep watch, I guess. Whenever we have a problem, hang something belonging to you in this storage room. We shall act as if this meeting never happened, and if we see something hanging over here, we should all assemble together."

All of them nodded and proceeded to disperse. It had been a long night, with significant revelations about this case. Xavier, instead of heading back to his assigned room, decided to sleep in the trees for today.

He climbed up a random tree and made himself comfortable there. As he lay down and gazed at the stars, he thought about this mission more.

'The specters being undetectable to me? That sounds suspicious, but I really have no reason to doubt him. It must be because I have not initiated yet…

Will we be able to clear this mission? The more I hear about this, the more impossible it seems. It's not an easy C-rank mission just because it is suspected that the main enemy is Crafted Elite. It might not even be fully true, as the report is written by a child who somehow managed to swap the true mission.*

I have a bad feeling. I feel like I'm biting off more than what I can chew. I'm uninitiated, I have no real power to rely on right now. I believe I can't even hit specters because they require the use of some form of energy to harm them.

There's also the question of why. Why are they kidnapping kids, and only on the night of the full moon? Specters aren't creatures who discriminate based on the phase of the moon, they just care about darkness. What can they even gain from sacrificing kids right now? I doubt Laplace was even active during this time…

Well, let's see. I'll just have to try my best. As always, I'll figure a way out.'

Xavier closed his eyes and drifted off to a light sleep. Throughout his whole introspection of how dangerous this quest was, he never thought about running away. It was his stupid pride, he refused to back down from danger. It was something that was present when he was a Demon King, and it is present now.

Living life on the edge, it was how he had lived since forever. Now, this was just another unknown danger to face.

Somewhere, someone inside the orphanage, smiled as he heard the discussion of the naive adventurer party that had come here.

*[A/N Regarding previous chapter, pls read]