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Heir of the White Lotus (Web Novel) - Chapter 1948: The Newcomer
Chapter 1948: The Newcomer
This chapter is updated by JustRead.pl
A hunchbacked figure strode down the broken streets of Adventurers’ City.The rays of the crimson moon washed over the urban jungle, casting ominous shadows onto the cracked cobblestones.
Countless monsters of all kinds swarmed about, but the hunchbacked figure paid them no mind. Hands clasped behind its back, the odd creature continued to stride down the street as though walking through a recreational park.
Monsters growled and snarled, but none dared come close. A large pack of wolves, consisting of almost fifty dark wolves, obstructed the way, baring their teeth.
"Hmm?" The figure was amused. "Little pups, do you want to play?"
The alpha matched the hunchbacked figure’s eyes, and the next moment, it shivered violently. It let out a howl, its voice filled with terror, and instructed its pack to scatter.
Scatter they did. In but a few moments, the wolves had fled with their tails between their legs.
"Tsk." The figure scoffed.
It bent its legs slightly, then in the next heartbeat, it disappeared. A moment later, it appeared atop a building.
Crimson light fully bathed its figure, revealing it to be a humanoid figure with the head of a goat. The same figure that had just violently knocked on the door of Genevieve and her team’s hideout.
"Hmm, now where is he?" the caprine creature murmured.
Its gaze first locked onto the dilapidated building that was the adventurers’ hideout he had earlier been drawn to, thanks to the loud voices from within.
The creature sneered. "Those annoying talismans."
It shifted his gaze away, scanning the skyline of the city, looking for someone.
"Ah, there you are!"
The creature bent its legs, then disappeared again.
It leaped from one rooftop to another with such incredible speed that its body was impossible to see. Only the bursts of dust it left behind with each landing revealed its presence.
Clearly, this was a monster that specialized in speed.
***
Far away, in some part of the city, a strange scene took place.
The public square looked like the scene of a grotesque celebration.
Half a dozen ghouls and zombies stood in a loose circle, mechanically scraping bows across violins, beating drums, and blowing into battered horns. Their movements were stiff and repetitive, as though they were marionettes reenacting the same performance.
At the center of the square, a headless couple danced.
The groom wore elegant black robes, while the bride’s flowing white dress trailed across the bloodstained ground. Their severed necks continued to pour dark blood, staining their clothes as they twirled in a slow, haunting waltz.
The music was hollow. The dance was graceful.
Everything else was a nightmare.
Suddenly, a visitor arrived.
The orchestra fell silent. The scraping of bows ceased. The drums stopped. The mournful notes hanging in the air vanished all at once.
At the center of the square, the headless bride and groom froze mid-dance.
One by one, every ghoul and zombie slowly turned toward the edge of the square. There, as though he had appeared out of thin air, was a lone figure.
Every hollow gaze fixed upon the newcomer.
"Hello, Puppeteer." The goat-headed monster waved his hand, smiling politely. "It’s been a while, hasn’t it?"
Silence.
The marionettes did not move.
A cold wind swept through the square. Then, a voice emerged. It came from one source, but it also came from many places. It sounded like a man. But it also sounded like a woman, a child, and an elderly person.
"What. Do. You. Want?"
"Can I not visit an old friend and catch up?" the goat monster displayed human-like emotions of disappointment and sadness.
"Out. With. It!"
The voices screamed.
"Do. Not. Interrupt. The. Celebration!"
The goat monster raised his hands to calm the Puppeteer down.
"Easy, now," it said.
Then his expression turned solemn, and it continued, "Last week something anomalous occurred in the city. His Majesty sensed it. He has sent me to investigate."
The Bridal Puppeteer fell silent. Then, it spoke in many voices:
"It. Was. Indeed. Strange. Someone. With. The. Brand. Of. Evil. Has. Appeared. The. Werewolf. Tortured. Him. Cut. His. Hand. I. Snatched. The. Hand. But... it. Disappeared. Strange. So. Very. Strange."
The goat monster’s expression turned grave. "Someone with the Brand of Evil has entered His Majesty’s kingdom?!"
"Yes."
"And what do you mean the hand disappeared?" The goat monster asked, its expression grim.
"I. Don’t. Know," said the Puppeteer. "Ask. That. Zealot. Werewolf."
This was a conundrum.
The Antlered High Priest was a difficult creature to deal with. Its beliefs were so twisted that it viewed even fellow monsters as nothing more than sacrifices to appease its god.
That was why the other monsters in the secret plane despised the High Priest. Worst still, it was immensely powerful. No monster dared approach it carelessly.
The goat monster immediately discarded the option of trying to talk to the werewolf. That would not lead to any good outcome.
It needed to find another way.
"Very well." It offered the Puppeteer a brief nod before disappearing again.
***
Several hours later, the goat monster silently arrived near an unassuming building.
The building was no different from the others in the city — broken, dilapidated, and overgrown with vines and moss. Yet, at the same time, it was unlike any of them.
For it served as one of the safehouses for the adventurers.
Now, a powerful Rank 2 creature such as this goat monster — especially one that served so closely under His Majesty, King Jacob de Vile — had no business knowing the location of the secret hideout, much less approaching it.
Which begged the question...
What was it doing here?
The goat monster looked around and confirmed that no one was in the vicinity. With calm, confident strides, it walked toward the building. It arrived at the door and raised its hand.
Knock! Knock!
If there were adventurers hiding inside, one would expect them not to respond to any knocks or calls when the crimson moon hung in the air. This was common sense.
But everything about this encounter was odd.
The goat monster did not knock again. It patiently waited.
And then...
Creak!
Someone opened the door from inside.
The goat monster looked at the figure inside, shrouded in darkness and betrayal. Its lips curled into a smile, and it asked politely, "Won’t you invite me in?"
A moment of silence ensued.
And then, a gruff, manly voice echoed from inside the house.
"You may enter."
The goat monster grinned.
It stepped into the building, effortlessly passing through the invisible barrier of protection afforded by the mysterious talisman.
Thud!
And the door swung shut.
