Published at 19th of February 2026 7:16 am

Chapter 1516 Two Birds

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Twilight Brotherhood Headquarters.

Lebu thought about his meeting with Nilrem for an entire day and night.

He ruminated over the statements the old man had made, cross-referenced them with what little intel he had access to, and came to the conclusion that it was worth trusting him.

However, he wasn't going to be dealing with him alone. He wasn't foolish enough to take on such a risky endeavour all on his own. He knew that he wasn't dealing with just Nilrem, but an entire organization that was even more mysterious than the Brotherhood.

And that's how he found himself in a room, lying on a flat surface with several Magi performing detection spells on him.

Krummor Grimriver stood in the distance, arms crossed and a light frown on his face. Lebu had told him everything about the meeting with Nilrem. So the first thing the dwarf did was to check if the ginger-haired Agent had something planted on or inside of him.

Several minutes later, the lead person, a Mana Vortex Magus, conducting the search, came up to Grimriver and shook his head.

Krummor secretly sighed in relief. "Very well."

He then turned to Lebu, who was putting his clothes on, and sternly said, "Potts, follow me."

"Yes, sir!" Lebu quickly followed behind the Warden.

***

The pair moved through the dim corridors, heading to the deepest levels of the underground building.

They walked in silence for a long time, with Lebu respectfully trailing behind the dwarf. Needless to say, he was quite nervous. If he was truly about to meet who he thought he was, then he had every right to be nervous.

"It was foolish of you," Krummor suddenly said.

He turned sideways and looked up at the ginger-haired man, "Meeting an operative of an unknown secret organization, the very faction that killed not just one but two of our Councilors, was utterly foolish!"

The dwarf scoffed and then turned back around.

"Was it because of the boy?" he asked, his tone turning gentle.

Lebu lowered his head and answered in a soft voice, "Yes, my lord."

Krummor let out a sigh. "I don't know how you deduced that Nilrem was part of this mysterious faction that we have been investigating, but thanks to you, we are finally no longer in the dark."

Lebu said with an awkward smile, "Ah, yes. Thank you, sir."

"Don't thank me yet," the dwarf sternly said.

"I've forwarded your meeting report to the Councilor. He's going to decide how to proceed. And naturally, he'll also decide whether you'll be rewarded for your insight and bravery, or punished for your recklessness and stupidity."

As I thought, Lebu exclaimed inwardly.

I really am going to meet the disciple of the legendary Gerald Acadia, the one they call... Ghost of Twilight!

The dwarf and the human soon arrived before a pair of towering stone doors.

Krummor stepped forward and knocked on the door in a specific manner. A few moments later, he lowered his head, as if listening to something, and nodded. He turned to Lebu and said, "Go ahead."

Lebu couldn't help but gulp, "A-Alone?"

The dwarf couldn't help but scoff as he turned away and left, leaving behind his parting words:

"Did you expect me to hold your hands? Fool! Don't keep the Lord Councilor waiting!"

Lebu shrank back involuntarily at being reprimanded like that. He inhaled a few times, trying to calm down his emotions. He smoothened the creases on his robes, then pressed his palms against the stone doors.

With a loud creak that echoed thunderously, he slowly opened the door - a simple act that surprisingly took a lot of strength and stamina.

By the time he stepped foot inside the chamber, he was already panting slightly.

The room was mostly dark, with the only source of light being a few crystals embedded in the ceiling high up above.

Lebu's heart rate quickened as he slowly made his way in, looking around for the Councilor. But all he saw was smoke and darkness.

"...My Lord?" he called out, his eyes flashing with nervousness. "M-my name is Lebu Potts. I, uh... I was-"

Suddenly, his words got caught in his throat as a pair of massive eyes blinked open in the darkness. Lebu felt his heart gripped by terror when, the next moment, sharp jaws emerged beneath the tenebrous eyes.

An ominous growl echoed throughout the chamber as the face of a giant black wolf fully revealed itself right before him.

Lebu's face was drained of all color as he collapsed on the ground. No sound escaped his lips. He could only stare in horror as the wolf's gigantic head drew

closer, until it loomed directly above him.

A rush of warm air washed over his body as the wolf exhaled sharply. The

beast's lips parted, and he said in a low, deep voice, "He's clean."

A moment later, another voice echoed in the chamber.

"Thank you, old friend."

The giant wolf retreated back into the darkness, its massive silhouette fading

from view.

In its place appeared a gnome, hovering calmly in the air. He had one hand clasped behind his back, and the other held a long pipe from which he leisurely

smoked.

Berger gazed at Lebu, who was still frozen in terror, and said in a dignified

voice, "Rise, Agent Potts."

Lebu snapped out of his senses, his gaze settling on the levitating gnome.

The Ghost of Twilight! He thought in shock.

His gaze then shifted to the darkness behind.

And that must be the familiar that always accompanies the Councilor. But to

think that it was so big and mighty...

Lebu slowly rose to his feet, his legs still trembling. He placed a hand on his

chest and deeply bowed.

"I-It is an honor to meet you, my lord!"

Berger scanned Lebu for a while, his gaze eventually softening. "You did well deducing the true identity of that man named Nilrem," he said.

"T-Thank you, sir!" Lebu felt extremely glad.

"But it was unwise of you to meet him alone," Berger continued.

"... Yes, sir, I-I understand my folly."

"I have read your report and confirmed it with our operatives in Amberfall," said

Berger as he took a long drag from the pipe.

"While they have no information regarding the appearance of a Rank 4 undead knight, our sources do confirm the emergence of a Mana Core-level Cultist by

the name of Osbert."

Lebu finally raised his head and asked in surprise, "So Nilrem really wasn't

lying?!"

Berger exhaled a plume of smoke into the air, which then transformed into a

raven and a phoenix.

He watched the two birds drift and fade before speaking with a thoughtful look

on his face:

"Not entirely..."

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